Legislature(2023 - 2024)SENATE FINANCE 532
05/11/2024 10:00 AM Senate FINANCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB120 | |
| SB125 | |
| HB19 | |
| HB50 | |
| HB122 | |
| SB217 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 120 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 125 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 19 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 50 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | SB 217 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 122 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| HB 111 | |||
| + | TELECONFERENCED | ||
| += | HB 66 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 347 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 202 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 145 | TELECONFERENCED | |
CS FOR HOUSE BILL NO. 50(FIN)
"An Act relating to carbon storage on state land;
relating to the powers and duties of the Alaska Oil
and Gas Conservation Commission; relating to carbon
storage exploration licenses; relating to carbon
storage leases; relating to carbon storage operator
permits; relating to enhanced oil or gas recovery;
relating to long-term monitoring and maintenance of
storage facilities; relating to carbon oxide
sequestration tax credits; relating to the duties of
the Department of Natural Resources; relating to
carbon dioxide pipelines; and providing for an
effective date."
11:28:16 AM
Co-Chair Olson noted that the bill had been heard several
times and a committee substitute had been adopted the
previous day.
11:28:31 AM
Co-Chair Olson OPENED public testimony.
11:28:59 AM
CHRIS WALLACE, PETROLEUM ENGINEER, ALASKA OIL & GAS
CONSERVATION COMMISSION, ANCHORAGE (via teleconference),
relayed that he was present for questions, and supported
the bill.
11:29:06 AM
KEN HUCKEBA, SELF, WASILLA (via teleconference), testified
in opposition to the bill. He asserted that the revenue for
carbon capture was a sales pitch. He suggested that that
carbon capture was unsafe, which had been the experience in
Japan. He thought the bill could be catastrophic or cost
the state a great deal of money. He believed that any
financial gain was speculative.
11:32:19 AM
CASSIE ANDREW, SELF, ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), spoke
in opposition to the bill. She spoke of the bill in
denigrating terms. She asserted that the 45Q federal tax
credit was fraudulent. She did not believe that the
legislation incentivize production and was against the
Paris agreement.
11:34:16 AM
KEN GRIFFIN, SELF, WASILLA (via teleconference), testified
against the bill. He mentioned that he had spent many hours
following energy legislation. He emphasized that an easy
search would reveal that carbon capture had been
detrimental to other states. He questioned why the state
would put something in the ground that resulted in
permanent liability. He asserted that what the bill
proposed was insanity and would lead to little revenue,
leaving Alaskans to foot the bill. He hoped that committee
members would not support the legislation out of fear of
Governor Dunleavys punitive response.
11:38:00 AM
Co-Chair Olson queried whether the Department of Natural
resources supported the legislation.
11:38:25 AM
SEAN CLIFTON, POLICY & PROGRAM SPECIALIST, DIVISION OF OIL
AND GAS, DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES (via
teleconference), relayed that he was not present to speak
to that question.
Co-Chair Olson assumed that the department would be in
favor of a governors bill.
11:39:01 AM
AT EASE
11:41:02 AM
RECONVENED
Co-Chair Olson continued with public testimony.
11:41:18 AM
LYDIA SHUMAKER, SELF, WASILLA (via teleconference),
testified in opposition to the bill. She felt that the bill
was unnecessary and would open Alaskans up to future
detriment. She said that global evidence had proved that
pressurized CO2 was dangerous. She mentioned potential
leaks and other potential problems. She asserted that the
bill was dangerous for humans and the environment. She
urged the committee to kill the bill.
11:45:05 AM
Co-Chair Olson CLOSED public testimony.
Co-Chair Olson relayed that there were three amendments to
consider.
11:45:21 AM
Senator Bishop MOVED to ADOPT Amendment 1, 33-GH1567\T.4,
(Dunmire, 5/10/24)(copy on file).
Co-Chair Olson OBJECTED for discussion.
Senator Bishop spoke to Amendment 1. He explained that the
amendment was known as "reserve-based lending language and
established a loan program administered by AIDEA for Cook
Inlet oil and gas projects. He continued that AIDEA would
be able to accept an ownership share of a project, in the
form of a carried interest and did not obligate AIDEA to
contribute to the development costs of the project. He
outlined the actions allowable by the authority under the
amendment.
11:46:50 AM
Senator Kiehl referenced Senator Bishop's remarks about the
nature of the interest and that if a project went over
budget, more money could not be requested from AIDEA.
Senator Bishop relayed that AIDEA was available for
questions.
11:47:27 AM
AT EASE
11:48:08 AM
RECONVENED
Senator Bishop reiterated that AIDEA would be allowed to
accept an ownership share in a project fund if the
ownership share was in the form of carry interest that did
not obligate the authority to contribute to the development
costs of the project.
Co-Chair Olson WITHDREW his objection. There being NO
OBJECTION, it was so ordered. Amendment 1 was ADOPTED.
11:48:46 AM
Senator Bishop MOVED to ADOPT Amendment 2, 33-GH1567\T.5,
(Dunmire, 5/10/24) (copy on file).
Co-Chair Olson OBJECTED for discussion.
Senator Bishop spoke to Amendment 2 and noted that the
language was from the original bill. He said that the
Senate resources Committee had paired down the bill and the
amendment would replace language that had been removed
related to geothermal resources. He
Co-Chair Olson WITHDREW his objection. There being NO
OBJECTION, it was so ordered. Amendment 2 was ADOPTED.
11:50:39 AM
Senator Wilson MOVED to ADOPT Amendment 3, 33-GH1567\T.7,
(Dunmire, 5/10/24) (copy on file).
Co-Chair Olson OBJECTED for discussion.
Senator Wilson spoke to Amendment 3. He explained that the
amendment would restore the commercial terms that came out
of Senate Resources Committee from $10 back to $2.50.
Co-Chair Olson WITHDREW his objection. There being NO
OBJECTION, it was so ordered.
11:51:45 AM
AT EASE
11:52:49 AM
RECONVENED
Co-Chair Olson asked whether the department would like to
speak to the bill now that the amendments had been adopted.
11:53:16 AM
JOHN CROWTHER, DEPUTY COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL
RESOURCES, relayed that the administration supported the
three amendments adopted by the committee.
Senator Kiehl asked whether the department could speak to
the perception of geologic risk raised during public
testimony.
Mr. Crowther explained that prior committees had discussed
the issue. He said that because of the nature of the
intended injection, seismic activity was not expected to be
a problem. He noted that some of the concerns about the
surface concentration and exposure of carbon dioxide were
founded and that any project would require designs to deal
with the possibility. He assured the committee that safety
would be a priority.
11:56:32 AM
Co-Chair Olson noted that Chris Wallace from the Alaska Oil
& Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC) was available for
questions.
CHRIS WALLANCE, ALASKA OIL and GAS CONSERVATION COMMISSION,
said that all safety standards and concerns would be
addressed by industry.
Senator Bishop wondered about the Class 6 Injection Permit
required by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Mr. Crowther responded that AOGCC could speak to the
permit. He added that the permit would be necessary for
carbon storage projects to process.
11:58:35 AM
Co-Chair Stedman thought the issue was complicated when
considering the technical aspects. He asked for a
definition of a Class 6 well and state and federal
regulatory oversight.
Mr. Crowther explained that the United States Department of
Environmental Protection, under the Safe Drinking Water
Act, had a program to regulate any injection underground,
for any purpose, that could affect drinking water. Under
the act the wells are divided into different classes, as
they serve different purposes, and Class 6 of those wells
was for the injection of carbon dioxide underground, which
involved a comprehensive regulatory analysis.
Co-Chair Stedman spoke to public testimony concerning Cook
Inlet and Alaskans concerned about why the capture should
happen in Alaska versus Japan.
Mr. Crowther said that the reason that Alaska was a
prolific hydrocarbon basis was because there were
sedimentary basins with deposits of porous reservoirs that
were also sealed by impenetrable rock, a geological feature
that was rare. He said that many places on the Pacific Rim
had limited potential for hydrocarbon development and the
storage of carbon dioxide.
12:02:07 PM
Co-Chair Olson asked whether the administration was
satisfied with the bill as amended.
12:02:19 PM
JOHN BOYLE, COMMISSIONER, DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES,
ANCHORAGE (via teleconference), relayed that the
administration had concerns with Section 40 of the bill,
which dealt with the Regulatory Commission of Alaska, and
potential LNG import provisions.
Co-Chair Stedman asked for specificity surrounding the
administrations concerns about Section 40.
Commissioner Boyle deferred to Mr. Crowther.
Mr. Crowther noted that Section 40 focused on a provision
that was introduced related to the administration of gas
storage under the RCA. He shared that the administration
wanted assurances that the language in the bill that
addressed potential costs associated with natural gas
storage should not shift the status quo where the costs
considered by the RCA were not definitively included or
excluded. He deferred further comment to the RCA.
12:04:39 PM
Co-Chair Stedman asked for a representative of the RCA.
12:04:51 PM
AT EASE
12:07:53 PM
RECONVENED
Co-Chair Stedman asked for the RCAs opinion on the amended
bill and for comments of Section 40.
BECKI ALVEY, ADVISORY SECTION MANAGER, REGULATORY
COMMISSION OF ALASKA (via teleconference), relayed that the
commission had not taken a formal position on the section
of the bill or the bill itself.
Co-Chair Olson relayed that the committee would be hearing
the legislation again, which would give the commission time
to research the bill as currently written.
HB 50 was heard and HELD in Committee for further
consideration.
12:09:38 PM
AT EASE
12:11:06 PM
RECONVENED
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| SB 125 Amendment 1 Kiehl.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
SB 125 |
| HB 120 CS in SFin summary of changes 5-11-24.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
HB 120 |
| HB 120(FIN) work draft version -B.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
HB 120 |
| HB 50 Amendment 1 Bishop.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
HB 50 |
| HB 50 Amendment 2 Bishop.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
HB 50 |
| HB 50 Amendment 3 Wilson.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
HB 50 |
| SB 217 Amendment 1 Stedman.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
SB 217 |
| SB 217 Amendment 2 Stedman.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
SB 217 |
| SB 217 Amendment 3 Bishop.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
SB 217 |
| HB 145 INFiN AK HB 145 Testimony.5.10.24.pdf |
SFIN 5/11/2024 10:00:00 AM |
HB 145 |