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Stranded gas bill moves in Senate committees Administration revising bill to change Alaska coastal management Kristen Nelson Petroleum News Editor-in-Chief
The administration is still struggling with House Bill 191 which revamps the Alaska Coastal Zone Management Program. At hearings in the House Special Committee on Fisheries in March, officials from coastal communities said the bill took away the ability of local citizens to have a voice in development decisions that affected them.
The bill was voted out of Fisheries, with Republicans voting to move and Democrats opposed, but Jim Clark, Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski’s chief of staff, told reporters at a March 28 press briefing that the administration was working on the bill and that there would be some changes before it was heard in House Resources.
The changes are an effort, he said, “to accommodate some of the people in the rural areas” and also to make sure the changes will be accepted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the federal coastal program administrator.
“We expect to have it up on deck on April 9th and be ready to roll. It’s a good piece of legislation,” Clark said.
Amendments to stranded gas House Bill 16, amendments to the Alaska Stranded Gas Development Act, is moving in the Senate. The bill was heard and amended in Senate Resources April 2 and was scheduled to be heard in Senate Finance April 3. Senate Resources amended the bill to limit a qualified project to one which principally involves the transportation of North Slope natural gas. The words “North Slope” were added because, committee members said in discussion, they were concerned that the relatively small amount of gas required, 500 billion cubic feet over a 20-year period, could result in benefits going to gas which is not stranded. Rep. Hugh Fate, the bill’s sponsor, told the committee that the intent was to keep the scope broad enough to encourage exploration for additional gas.
Royalty reduction for inlet platform production Representatives Vic Kohring, Norm Rokeberg and Mike Chenault have filed a bill providing for royalty reduction from oil produced from Cook Inlet submerged land. House Bill 198 applies to submerged land in Cook Inlet, and provides that lessees will pay a royalty of 5 percent on oil from the field or platform if production that equaled or exceeded 1,200 barrels a day declines to less than that amount, as certified by the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission.
The bill provides that if production later increases to 1,200 bpd or more and remains at 1,200 bpd or more for more than 90 days, the royalty rate would be 7 percent for 1,200 to 1,300 bpd, 8 percent for 1,300 to 1,400 bpd, 9 percent for 1,400 to 1,500 bpd and 10 percent for more than 1,500 bpd.
The bill was referred to the House Special Committee on Oil and Gas. Department merger proposed Rep. Vic Kohring, filed House Bill 238 March 2 to merge the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and the Alaska Department of Natural Resources into the Department of Natural Resources and Conservation. Kohring said combining the two departments could save a substantial amount of money.
“The idea is to save the state money by consolidating these two departments, which often have duplicate functions and duties,” Kohring said in a statement. “By eliminating the overlap between these two departments, we can create savings for the state.” If passed, the legislation would be effective immediately.
The bill was referred to the House Special Committee on Ways and Means. l
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