Oil and gas lobbyists have approached Gov. Bill Ritter for help, fearing the rush of reform bills in the legislature could slow Colorado's multibillion-dollar energy industry.

Ted Brown, president of the Colorado Oil & Gas Association, wrote a letter to Ritter complaining about the "patchwork of competing policies" in the legislature with conflicting and overlapping concepts.

"There seems to be a new bill every other week to reform the oil and gas industry," said COGA's Greg Schnacke. "We hope the Ritter administration recognizes it's a big industry and that it is important for Colorado's economic health. We should have a comprehensive approach and not a piecemeal approach when it comes to regulating the industry."

Proponents of the bills say the industry's complaint is unjustified, given that bill sponsors have reached out to industry representatives for discussions and have sought their input in shaping the proposed legislation.

Ritter spokesman Evan Dreyer said the governor has received the oil and gas industry's letter.

"They raise a valid concern," Dreyer said. "The governor is very receptive to what they have to say."

In his letter, Brown said a half-dozen or more bills that aim to reform the industry are "sweeping and would have potentially wide-ranging effects on the industry's continuing ability to operate effectively in the state."

House Bill 1223 would require the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission to work with health officials to minimize the impact of drilling on human health and the environment. Similarly, House Bill 1341 changes the commission's board by including the executive director of public health and environment or the director's designee.

Some bills would slow Colorado's oil and gas production because of stringent oversight, even as other bills outline how the state should use growing revenue from oil and gas production, Schnacke said.

"We should sit down with everybody, get control over the process and have a measured understanding of how the bills interplay," Schnacke said, "We need to interpret how the state agencies will work together for the efficient regulation of the oil and gas industry."

"We are willing to address the issues and try to work out something, but we can't do it in six to eight weeks," Schnacke added.

Schnacke said the last major bill that overhauled oil and gas regulation in the state passed in 1994, after three years of discussion. And it took another four years of rule-making by the oil and gas commission to implement the legislation.

Elise Jones, executive director of Colorado Environmental Coalition, said the bills were long overdue to reform the industry.

"We agree with the industry that dialogue is important, and that's why we have been talking to the industry for years," Jones said. "We look forward to continuing conversations with industry. However, reform is long overdue, and there is a need for more balance in how Colorado undergoes energy development."

chakrabartyg@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2976