00 HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 35                                                                                           
01 Encouraging federal legislation to improve federal fiscal terms for a trans-Alaska                                      
02 gas pipeline.                                                                                                           
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04  WHEREAS Alaska's North Slope, including the Prudhoe Bay and Point Thomson oil                                          
05 and gas fields, hold at least 35 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas reserves, an amount                          
06 sufficient to supply a large natural gas export project in the state; and                                               
07  WHEREAS companies operating in the state, including permit holders, oil and gas                                        
08 leaseholders, and other parties, have indicated an interest in investing in a trans-Alaska gas                          
09 pipeline if it is economically feasible; and                                                                            
10  WHEREAS a study recently commissioned by the State of Alaska prepared by Dr.                                           
11 Pedro Van Meurs indicates that the project economics could be substantially improved through                            
12 changes in federal tax laws related to this project; and                                                                
13  WHEREAS the United States Congress recently passed similar tax changes to                                              
14 facilitate development of frontier deep water oil and gas development in the Gulf of Mexico;                            
01 and                                                                                                                     
02  WHEREAS Dr. Van Meurs' report estimated federal tax revenues under the current                                         
03 structure to be $26,000,000,000, none of which will be realized if the project is not completed;                        
04 and                                                                                                                     
05  WHEREAS there would be substantial additional benefits to the United States from                                       
06 the project, including increased employment opportunities across the nation and an improved                             
07 trade balance with Asian countries; and                                                                                 
08  WHEREAS liquefied natural gas projects proposed for other countries are competing                                      
09 to meet the Asian market demand for liquefied natural gas in the 2005 to 2010 market window                             
10 and could displace the Alaska project;                                                                                  
11  BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests the United                                      
12 States Congress to enact tax legislation that would improve the economics and likelihood of                             
13 an Alaska liquefied natural gas export project; and be it                                                               
14  FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests the                                           
15 Governor to use his best efforts to support passage of this federal legislation.                                        
16  COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the                                           
17 Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S.                                             
18 Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.