00HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 19                                                                                      
01 Relating to the sale of state royalty gas.                                                                              
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
03  WHEREAS the state owns land located on the North Slope that contains vast proven                                       
04 reserves of oil and natural gas and that has the potential for discovery of additional reserves                         
05 of oil and natural gas; and                                                                                             
06  WHEREAS the legislature has the constitutional obligation to provide for the use,                                      
07 development, and conservation of all natural resources belonging to the state for the maximum                           
08 benefit of its people; and                                                                                              
09  WHEREAS in furtherance of that obligation, the legislature has provided for the                                        
10 issuance of oil and gas leases to develop the North Slope oil and gas reserves; and                                     
11  WHEREAS the state's oil and gas leasing statutes require that the state receive a                                      
12 minimum royalty share of 12.5 percent of all oil and gas production from the leases; and                                
13  WHEREAS all citizens of the state have received tremendous additional benefits from                                    
14 the sale of oil produced from North Slope leases, including permanent fund payments,                                    

01 royalties, economic stimuli, substantial employment, and a tax base, which have benefited all                           
02 people of the state; and                                                                                                
03  WHEREAS, although the state would receive tremendous additional benefits from the                                      
04 production and sale of North Slope gas, the North Slope lessees have neither sold nor entered                           
05 into contracts to sell North Slope gas; and                                                                             
06  WHEREAS under its North Slope leases, the state has a right to take its 12.5 percent                                   
07 royalty share in-kind and sell that share on its own behalf; and                                                        
08  WHEREAS by entering into long-term contracts with potential purchasers for the                                         
09 future sale of the state's royalty gas, the state would aid in the development of a gas                                 
10 transportation system and the production and sale of North Slope gas reserves, thereby                                  
11 benefiting all the people of the state; and                                                                             
12  WHEREAS the export of North Slope gas to Pacific Rim countries would reduce our                                        
13 nation's trade deficit with those countries; and                                                                        
14  WHEREAS the export of natural gas would aid the national economy by stimulating                                        
15 economic growth and employment, and contributing additional revenue to the federal                                      
16 government;                                                                                                             
17  BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature supports and endorses the                                             
18 governor's efforts to sell worldwide, under long-term contracts, the majority of the gas to                             
19 which the state is entitled as its royalty share from North Slope leases.