04/24/2001 01:55 PM Senate L&C

              SB 168-COMMERCIAL FISHING LOAN PROGRAM                                                                        
                                                                                                                              
CHAIRMAN RANDY PHILLIPS called the Senate Labor & Commerce                                                                    
Committee meeting to order at 1:55 pm and announced SB 168 to be up                                                             
for consideration.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
MR. GREG WINEGAR,  Director, Division of Investments,  said that Mr.                                                            
Crane, CEO  of the Commercial Fishing  and Agriculture Bank  (CFAB),                                                            
had raised some  issues relating to the Division's  policies and the                                                            
way they administer the fund. He said:                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
     I think it's  important for the committee to know  that we                                                                 
     have responded  to those issues  in writing and through  a                                                                 
     series of meetings and also  some telephone conversations.                                                                 
     As  I  testified last  week,  we  did modify  one  of  our                                                                 
     policies  relating to  quota shares just  to be very  sure                                                                 
     that  we were not  in any way overlapping  their program.                                                                  
     Also, I want  the committee to know that we will  continue                                                                 
     to  work with  CFAB  to better  coordinate  our programs,                                                                  
     because that benefits everyone  and both of these programs                                                                 
     are  very, very important  programs for  a very important                                                                  
     industry  in this state. We may  not agree on everything.                                                                  
     Our  programs  don't target  the  same people.  They  have                                                                 
     different  purposes.  So, we may  not end  up agreeing  on                                                                 
     every single  issue, but I really don't think  this is the                                                                 
        form to settle those differences, because this bill                                                                     
     really doesn't speak to those things.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
     Basically,  this bill,  I think,  is going  to affect  the                                                                 
     majority of  harvesters that utilize this loan  fund, most                                                                 
     of  which don't qualify  for CFAB  financing. The concern                                                                  
     that we  have, Mr. Chairman,  as we have testified to,  is                                                                 
     just  the extra  effort,  time and  energy that  would  be                                                                 
     needed to go through that application process twice.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MR.  CRANE  said  he  didn't  have  a  response,  but  would  answer                                                            
questions.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
SENATAOR TORGERSON  moved to adopt the L version 4/20/01  of SB 168.                                                            
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  AUSTERMAN  said he  wouldn't  object to  moving  it out  of                                                            
committee,  but he objected  to the  whole concept  of the bill.  He                                                            
said,  "I think  the  whole  issue  revolving  around this  and  the                                                            
information I've  received from Mr. Crane and others  that there may                                                            
be a problem  with the Division  of Investments  and there may  be a                                                            
problem  within their  fisheries loan  programs,  but I don't  think                                                            
this is the way to address  those issues. I think that if there is a                                                            
problem there,  we should address  the problem rather than  creating                                                            
what I consider may another problem by tying it to CFAB."                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN PHILLIPS  announced that  there were no objections  and the                                                            
committee substitute was adopted.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR  TORGERSON moved  to pass  CSSB 168 (L&C)  out of  committee                                                            
with individual  recommendations.  There were  no objections  and it                                                            
was so ordered.