BUFFALO TWP — The township supervisors are mulling whether to join a multi-municipal lawsuit against the state to rescind the new law setting an impact fee for natural gas drilling.

Several municipalities, including Richland Township and Allegheny Township, asked Buffalo to join their pending lawsuit.

Although Buffalo supervisors on Wednesday agreed the new law is flawed, they opted to have township solicitor Larry Lutz research the issue before making a decision.

Supervisor John Haven, board chairman, opposes the law’s provision that supersedes municipal zoning by enabling drilling to occur anywhere.

“It’s taking zoning out of our hands,” he said.

Haven criticized the state for tying municipalities’ hands.

“They should stay out of our backyard,” he said.

The supervisors also bashed the law mandating some of the revenue culled from the impact fee be given to municipalities in which there are no gas wells.

Supervisor Dan Przybylek said state legislators should have done a better job crafting the bill.

“We were sold out,” he said.

Under the new law, which Gov. Tom Corbett signed last week, any company drilling natural gas wells using the fracking process, including Marcellus Shale, must pay the state an impact fee.

Hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, is the process in which water, sand and chemicals are pumped at high pressure into a formation to crack the rock, releasing the gas.

The impact fee amount ranges from $40,000 to $60,000, depending on the average price of natural gas.

After the fees are collected each year, flat amounts are given to state agencies and funds as well as county conservation districts.

Of the remaining money, 40 percent goes to other state funds while 60 percent heads to counties and municipalities.

Each county/municipality share is split three ways: 36 percent to the county, 37 percent to municipalities with wells and 27 percent divided among all municipalities in the county.