02/18/1997 01:43 PM House FIN

  HOUSE BILL NO. 51                                                            
                                                                               
       "An  Act relating  to the  Department of  Environmental                 
       Conservation."                                                          
                                                                               
  REPRESENTATIVE ROKEBERG  provided members  with a  committee                 
  substitute,  Work Draft #O-LS0091\T,  dated 2/17/97 (copy on                 
  file).   Representative Foster MOVED to adopt Work Draft #O-                 
  LS0091\T,  dated 2/17/97.  There  being NO OBJECTION, it was                 
  so ordered.                                                                  
                                                                               
  Representative  Rokeberg  maintained   that  the   committee                 
  substitute simplifies  the legislation.   He explained  that                 
  the committee substitute  more closely follows HB  342 which                 
  was  passed  by  the Nineteenth  Alaska  State  Legislature.                 
                                                                               
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  House Bill 342 was vetoed by the Governor.                                   
                                                                               
  (Tape Change, HFC 97-32, Side 2)                                             
                                                                               
  Representative Rokeberg reviewed changes incorporated in the                 
  committee  substitute.  The committee substitute revises the                 
  title.  It  also adds  a findings and  intent section  which                 
  states:   "The people of  Alaska express their  will through                 
  the  legislature  and   regulations  implement   legislative                 
  action."   He  maintained that  it is  the  legislature that                 
  determines  the  policy  of  state  government.   Section  2                 
  deletes language  relating to  the definition  of background                 
  conditions, page  1, lines 10  - 12, version  T.   Section 3                 
  deletes  "shall" and inserts  "may" on page  2, line 7.   He                 
  observed that the prior language  resulted in a $3.2 million                 
  dollar fiscal note.  This language relates to state takeover                 
  of  the  National  Pollutant  Discharge  Elimination  System                 
  (NPDES).  The  original legislation added authority  for the                 
  state takeover  of  this  program, at  the  request  of  the                 
  Department  of Environmental  Conservation.   "Natural"  was                 
  changed to "background" on page 2, lines 27, 28, 30 and 31.                  
  New language was added on page 3,  lines 10 - 15, to clarify                 
  that an applicant  is allowed to  request a change in  state                 
  regulation  for  water  quality standards  when  there  is a                 
  deviation from federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)                 
  standards.  New regulations would be promulgated as required                 
  by the  statute.   This statutory language  does accept  the                 
  petitioning  language   as  found   in  the   Administrative                 
  Procedures Act.   "Hydrologic"  was changed to  "biological,                 
  chemical, and physical".                                                     
                                                                               
  HB 51 was HELD in Committee for further consideration.