04/17/1996 04:10 PM Senate RES

                                                                               
         SB 180 Value-Added Timber Sales; Marketing                         
                                                                               
   CHAIRMAN LEMAN  announced  SB 180  to be up for consideration.  H        
 explained that the proposed committee substitute adds the Alaska              
 Forest Products Research and Marketing Program.                               
                                                                               
  ANNETTE KREITZER,  Staff to Senate Resources, explained the changes          
 in the Resources CS.                                                          
                                                                               
  TOM BOUTIN, Director, Division of Forestry,  said he didn't support          
 deleting the "J" relating to letting an individual have more than             
 one contract.  He did support the other changes and was pleased               
 that it included the Alaska Forest Products Research and Marketing            
 Program.                                                                      
                                                                               
  SENATOR FRANK  moved to adopt CSSB 180(RES).  There were no                  
 objections and it was so ordered.                                             
                                                                               
  SENATOR LINCOLN  objected to find out what "J" meant.  MS. KREITZER          
 explained that Senator Taylor requested the amendment and the last            
 time the bill was before the committee a constituent testified                
 against it.   SENATOR LEMAN  added that deleting "J" would mean there         
 is no limit.                                                                  
                                                                               
  SENATOR LINCOLN  said she wanted to hear the Department's opinion.           
  MR. BOUTIN  explained that the chief reason they don't support             
 taking that out is that the Board of Forestry went through a very             
 extensive public process on this value-added bill and that wasn't             
 one of the recommendations they made.                                         
                                                                               
  SENATOR FRANK  said he thought the concern was that it wouldn't              
 allow for joint ventures.   MS. KREITZER  agreed and said even with           
 this provision taken out the Commissioner can say no.                         
                                                                               
  SENATOR FRANK  asked if  MR. BOUTIN  could accommodate the joint             
 venture concern, but still prevent a monopoly of all the available            
 timber.   MR. BOUTIN  replied that he didn't think the bill precluded         
 having a single dry kiln that people like Northland and Al Peg                
 could ship lumber to out of these contracts.                                  
                                                                               
  SENATOR FRANK  moved to pass CSSB 180(RES) from committee.                   
                                                                               
  SENATOR PEARCE  said she wanted it on the record that her husband            
 works for one of the regional corporations that has timber                    
 interests in the State and she didn't know if this would create any           
 opportunities for the company.                                                
                                                                               
  SENATOR LINCOLN  commented, then, that she is also on a regional             
 corporation board that enters into timber sales.                              
                                                                               
 There were no further objections to CSSB 180(RES) and it was passed           
 from committee.