02/26/2009 10:15 AM House FISHERIES

HCR  6-COOK INLET SALMON TASK FORCE                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
11:50:40 AM                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR EDGMON announced that the  final order of business would be                                                               
HOUSE  CONCURRENT RESOLUTION  NO.  6, Recreating  the Cook  Inlet                                                               
Salmon Task Force as a joint legislative task force.                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
11:50:42 AM                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE CRAIG JOHNSON introduced HCR  6 as an extension of                                                               
the Cook Inlet Salmon Task  Force, which originally formed due to                                                               
constituent complaints.   The task force had  a specific mission:                                                               
to  investigate the  causes of  low  salmon returns  to the  Cook                                                               
Inlet area.   He  reported that  the task  force met  four times,                                                               
without conclusive results.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
11:52:13 AM                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE MILLETT  moved to adopt committee  substitute (CS)                                                               
for  HCR 6,  Version 26-LS0395\E,  Kane, 2/4/09,  as the  working                                                               
document.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
11:52:22 AM                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR EDGMON objected for discussion.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
11:52:26 AM                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE JOHNSON  said that the  CS adds public  members to                                                               
the  task  force,  in  concert   with  the  legislative  members.                                                               
Community   participation   will   be   further   encouraged   by                                                               
integrating the publicly appointed members.   The task force will                                                               
be reduced  in size  by this  action, but  the expectation  is to                                                               
have  private sector  representation  from  commercial and  sport                                                               
fishing  entities.   He opined  that  recreating this  body as  a                                                               
joint task force will provide a means to avoid continued pit                                                                    
falls, allow a neutral stance to address issues, and opined "I                                                                  
think we would be ahead of the game."                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
11:55:24 AM                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR EDGMON announced that the bill would be held for further                                                                  
review, and public testimony.