SENATE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON OIL & GAS February 16, 1993 11:10 a.m. MEMBERS PRESENT Senator Loren Leman, Chairman Senator Rick Halford Senator Bert Sharp MEMBERS ABSENT Senator Judith Salo Senator Al Adams COMMITTEE CALENDAR SENATE BILL NO. 81 "An Act repealing the 65-day time limit for approval or disapproval of a proposed oil discharge contingency plan by the Department of Environmental Conservation; and providing for an effective date." SENATE BILL NO. 90 "An Act clarifying powers and duties of state officials in relation to a disaster emergency caused by a catastrophic oil discharge or the release of a hazardous substance." PREVIOUS ACTION SB 81 - See Oil & Gas minutes dated 2/9/93. SB 90 - No previous action to record. WITNESS REGISTER Jeff Morrison, Legislative Liaison Department of Military and Veterans Affairs P.O. Box 110900 Juneau, Alaska 99811-0900 POSITION STATEMENT: Supported SB 90. Janice Adair, Assistant Commissioner Department of Environmental Conservation 410 Willoughby Ave., #105 Juneau, Alaska 99801-1795 POSITION STATEMENT: Supported SB 90. ACTION NARRATIVE TAPE 93-2, SIDE A Number 001 SENATOR LEMAN called the Special Committee on Oil and Gas meeting to order at 11:10 a.m. and announced SB 81 REPEAL 65-DAY DEADLINE: OIL SPILL PLANS to be up for consideration. SENATOR SHARP moved to discharge SB 81 from Committee with individual recommendations. There were no objections and it was so ordered. SENATOR LEMAN announced SB 90 DECLARATION OF DISASTER EMERGENCIES to be up for consideration. JEFF MORRISON, Legislative Liaison, Division of Military and Veterans Affairs, and JANICE ADAIR, Assistant Commissioner, Department of Environmental Conservation, joined the Committee. MR. MORRISON said the bill is basically in two sections; the second section is primarily a housekeeping section. The first section eliminates confusion by deleting the language saying something is automatically a disaster. This is confusing because there are two different ways a disaster can be declared. The Commissioners of the Department of Environmental Conservation and the Department of Military and Veteran's Affairs executed a memorandum agreeing to work with this situation until it is clarified. This bill takes away the automatic declaration and puts in statute that an emergency isn't declared until it's declared by the Governor. Number 115 JANICE ADAIR agreed with Mr. Morrison's testimony. SB 90 resolves the conflict satisfactorily. Number 136 SENATOR SHARP moved to discharge SB 90 from Committee with individual recommendations. There were no objections and it was so ordered. Number 151 SENATOR LEMAN adjourned the meeting at 11:19 a.m.