02/23/2011 01:00 PM House RESOURCES

                 HJR  9-ENDORSING ANWR LEASING                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
1:07:41 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  FEIGE announced  that the  first order  of business  is                                                               
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION  NO. 9, Urging the  United States Congress                                                               
to  pass legislation  to open  the  coastal plain  of the  Arctic                                                               
National   Wildlife   Refuge   to  oil   and   gas   exploration,                                                               
development, and production.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
JENNA CROUSE,  Staff, Representative  Lance Pruitt,  Alaska State                                                               
Legislature,  introduced  HJR  9   on  behalf  of  Representative                                                               
Pruitt, sponsor.  She spoke as follows:                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
        House Joint Resolution 9 urges the United States                                                                        
     Congress to pass legislation to open the coastal plain                                                                     
     of the Arctic  National Wildlife Refuge to  oil and gas                                                                    
     exploration and development.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
     The Alaska National Interest  Lands Conservation Act of                                                                    
     1980  prohibited leasing  or other  development leading                                                                    
     to production of  oil and gas from  the Arctic National                                                                    
     Wildlife   Refuge.  Today   domestic  demand   for  oil                                                                    
     continues  to  rise  while  domestic  crude  production                                                                    
     continues  to fall,  with the  result  that the  United                                                                    
     States imports additional oil from foreign sources.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
     New  technology has  greatly reduced  the environmental                                                                    
     impact of development  on the North Slope.   If Prudhoe                                                                    
     were built  today the  footprint would  be as  small as                                                                    
     1,526 acres.   Oil and gas development  has also proven                                                                    
     it can  successfully co-exist on Alaska's  arctic.  The                                                                    
     Central Arctic  Caribou Herd at  Prudhoe Bay  has grown                                                                    
     from 3,000  to as high as  23,400 in the last  20 years                                                                    
     alone.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
     HJR  9  mirrors  previous legislative  resolutions  and                                                                    
     includes  provisions  for   renewable  and  alternative                                                                    
     energy sources, protection of wildlife,  and the use of                                                                    
     directional drilling.   We encourage you  to join these                                                                    
     past  legislative  efforts   in  sending  this  unified                                                                    
     resolution to Congress.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:09:26 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
DIRK  CRAFT, Staff,  Representative  Lance  Pruitt, Alaska  State                                                               
Legislature, explained  the changes that  would be made to  HJR 9                                                               
by  the  proposed   committee  substitute  [labeled  27-LS0379\B,                                                               
Luckhaupt/Bullock,  2/21/11].   He  said  the following  language                                                               
would  be added  to page  1, line  1, to  better reflect  all the                                                               
language included in the resolution:                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
     relating  to  oil  and  gas  exploration,  development,                                                                    
     production,  and royalties;  and relating  to renewable                                                                    
     and alternative energy technologies.                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MR. CRAFT explained that another  change would be the deletion of                                                               
"any" from page 3, line 21,  to eliminate redundancy.  On page 3,                                                               
line 22,  and page 4, line  5, the words "and  alternative" would                                                               
be  added.   On page  3,  line 29,  the words  "the Alaska  State                                                               
Legislature urges that oil and  gas exploration, development, and                                                               
production" would be added for clarification.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
MR. CRAFT,  in response  to Co-Chair  Seaton, clarified  that the                                                               
last proposed change  is located in the original bill  on page 3,                                                               
line  29,  and in  the  proposed  committee substitute  (CS)  the                                                               
change is located on page 3, line 28.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:11:43 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  SEATON moved  to  adopt the  proposed  CS, Version  27-                                                               
LS0379\B,  Luckhaupt/Bullock, 2/21/11,  as the  working document.                                                               
[No  objection was  stated, therefore  Version B  was before  the                                                               
committee.]                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GARDNER asked  whether the  sponsor would  accept                                                               
the following amendment to the original bill:                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
     Page 2, line 5:                                                                                                            
          Delete "state's"                                                                                                      
          Insert "state and the nation's"                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MR. CRAFT responded that the amendment would be accepted.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GARDNER  elaborated  that   it  is  really  about                                                               
national security.   In response to Co-Chair Feige  she said that                                                               
on Version  B the amendment would  be located on page  2, line 6.                                                               
She  said  national security  is  one  of the  state's  strongest                                                               
arguments  with   Washington,  DC,  about  the   Arctic  National                                                               
Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR. CRAFT offered to have this  amendment taken up in a future CS                                                               
if the committee did not have time to act on it today.                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
There being no objection the amendment was adopted.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
MR. CRAFT,  in response to  Representative Munoz,  explained that                                                               
the  difference  between HJR  9  and  [HJR  11]  is that  HJR  11                                                               
specifically opposes  wilderness designation in Area  1002 of the                                                               
Arctic National  Wildlife Refuge,  whereas HJR  9 deals  with the                                                               
more  general  opening  up  of the  refuge  for  development  and                                                               
production.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:15:04 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE MUNOZ moved to report  HJR 9, Version 27-LS0379\B,                                                               
Luckhaupt/Bullock,  2/21/11, as  amended, out  of committee  with                                                               
individual  recommendations  and  the  accompanying  zero  fiscal                                                               
note.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  FEIGE objected  for purposes  of the  record and  asked                                                               
that a roll  be taken.  Representatives  Dick, Gardner, Kawasaki,                                                               
P. Wilson,  Munoz, Foster,  Feige, and Seaton  voted in  favor of                                                               
reporting   HJR   9,  Version   27-LS0379\B,   Luckhaupt/Bullock,                                                               
2/21/11, as amended,  out of committee.   Therefore, CSHJR 9(RES)                                                               
was reported  from the  House Resources  Standing Committee  by a                                                               
vote of 8-0.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:17:01 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
The committee took an at-ease from 1:17 p.m. to 1:19 p.m.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
1:19:59 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR  SEATON  moved to  [rescind  the  committee's action  in                                                               
reporting CSHJR 9, Version B, as amended] from committee.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  MUNOZ  moved  to  [report CSHJR  9,  Version  27-                                                               
LS0379\B,   Luckhaupt/Bullock,  2/21/11,   as  amended,   out  of                                                               
committee  with individual  recommendations and  the accompanying                                                               
fiscal notes].                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
1:20:47 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CO-CHAIR FEIGE  asked that  the roll  be taken.   Representatives                                                               
Foster,  Dick,  Gardner,  Kawasaki,  P.  Wilson,  Herron,  Munoz,                                                               
Seaton, and Feige voted in favor of reporting HJR 9, Version 27-                                                                
LS0379\B,   Luckhaupt/Bullock,  2/21/11,   as  amended,   out  of                                                               
committee.  Therefore,  CSHJR 9(RES) was reported  from the House                                                               
Resources Standing Committee by a vote of 9-0.