Innovation-spurred growth in oil and gas production from shale formations led the U.S. to become the global leader in producing oil and natural gas. Because most shale is on private lands, drilling companies must access the resource through private lease contracts that provide a share of the...

Extraction of oil and gas from unconventional resources, recently enabled by technological innovations, revolutionized national and global markets. However, exploration and production still proceeds under legacy regulations, mostly promulgated at the state level. The mismatch of modern...