Hotly opposed by the oil industry, the measure "establishes strong environmental protections and transparency requirements," the governor said in a statement.
Her bill, SB 4, is the sole survivor of a half-dozen fracking proposals in the Legislature this year. It requires permitting of wells, notification of neighbors living near drilling, groundwater testing and a study of fracking's impact on the environment. It takes effect Jan. 1, 2014.
The bill also would set rules for a related technique involving the shooting of acid solutions into the wells to release hydrocarbons.