1. The owner, lessee, operator or other person who is liable for payment of the money derived from the sale of the production from an oil or gas well located in this state shall:

(a) Pay the money directly to each person identified as being legally entitled thereto not later than:

(1) Six months after the first day of the month following the date of the first sale of the production, and thereafter not later than 60 days after the end of the month within which subsequent production is sold; or

(2) Twelve months after the first day of the month following the date of the first sale of the production, and every 12 months thereafter, if the amount owed is $25 or less.

(b) If unable to pay timely any portion of the money because of inability to locate a person entitled to receive the money or for any other reason, deposit the unpaid portion of the money in an escrow account in a bank, credit union, savings and loan institution or savings bank in Nevada, using a standard escrow document form approved by the Attorney General of Nevada. The bank, credit union, savings and loan association or savings bank must be federally insured or insured by a private insurer approved pursuant to NRS 672.755. The deposit must earn interest at the highest rate being offered by that institution for similar deposits. The escrow agent may commingle money so received into escrow from any one source. The escrow agent shall pay the appropriate amount of principal and accrued interest from such an account to a person legally entitled thereto within 30 days after the date of receipt by the escrow agent of a final legal determination of entitlement thereto. Applicable escrow fees must be deducted from the payment.

2. Any person who violates the provisions of subsection 1 is liable to each person legally entitled thereto for the unpaid amounts of money, together with interest at the rate of 18 percent per annum on the unpaid balance from the date the payment was due pursuant to paragraph (a) of subsection 1.

3. This section does not apply to payments from an owner, lessee, operator or other person who is liable for payment of the money derived from the sale of the production from an oil or gas well located in this state to a person identified as being legally entitled to such a payment if those persons have agreed in writing to some other period of payment for the first payment or for subsequent payments.

(Added to NRS by 1991, 385; A 1999, 1507)