Bill Summary for Bill Number HB06-1317

Date: 03/01/2006

Final
BILL SUMMARY for HB06-1317

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION & ENERGY

Votes: View-->	Action Taken:
Moved to refer House Bill 06-1317 to the Committee	PASS

01:44 PM -- House Bill 06-1317

Representative Madden, prime sponsor, presented House Bill 06-1317 which directs the Colorado Energy Research Institute (CERI) and the Energy and Environmental Security Initiative (EESI) at the School of Law of the University of Colorado (CU) to annually create a Colorado energy profile containing up-to-date statistical energy information relating to Colorado, along with projections of how the profile will change over time. Representative Madden deferred answering questions for the committee so that Dr. John Trefny could have time to testify.

01:45 PM

Dr. John Trefny, President of the Colorado School of Mines, spoke in support of the bill. Dr. Trefny discussed the role, purpose, and functions of CERI. Responding to questions from the committee Dr. Trefny stated that the study would include research on nuclear and hydroelectric energy. He further stated that the research would most likely include all sources of energy that the state currently uses or could potentially use.

01:51 PM

Lakshman Guruswamy, Director of the EESI and representing CU's School of Law, spoke in support of the bill. Mr. Guruswamy stated that any type of decision-making requires information. He stated that decision-making for energy policy at the federal Department of Energy (DOE) is conducted by the Energy Information Agency (EIA), which provides high-quality, independent, policy information to meet the requirements of government, industry, and the public in a manner that promotes sound policy making, efficient government, efficient markets, and public understanding. He stated that the EIA conducts comprehensive information analysis and dissemination and described the EESI as the "lean-mean version" of the federal EIA.

He stated that while the EESI cannot do everything that the EIA does, the EESI will collect energy data relating to every source of energy in Colorado, including petroleum, coal, natural gas, nuclear, and renewable energy. The EESI will also collect information on energy prices and consumption. Mr. Guruswamy stated that some of this information is already available at the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, the Colorado Geological Survey, and the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission, but that it is scattered all over the state. He stated the EESI will bring all of this information to one central location and make it comprehensible. The EESI will also share this information with nongovernmental organizations, Colorado's Office of Energy Management and Conservation, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

Responding to questions from members, Mr. Guruswamy stated that EESI will work in collaboration with CERI. He also stated that he foresees decision-makers, such as members of the legislature, business people across the country, and the public at large interested in knowing what is happening with energy in the state using the collected energy data. He also stated that EESI could conduct surveys, within the parameters of the program's budget, to find out what type of energy information interested parties would be interested in having. He stated that the EIA already conducts similar types of surveys which are both time consuming and expensive.

02:02 PM

Representative Madden resumed answering questions for the committee. Responding to questions from the committee, Representative Madden explained that the project is being conducted at CU's School of Law as opposed to the School of Mines because it was the EEIS that originally initiated the idea. She stated that EEIS and CERI saw the usefulness for having an energy profile for the state after observing its effectiveness at the federal level through the EIA. She stated that the goal is to have the information publically available (free on-line and in hard copy) so that the public, including local governments, can make better and well-informed decisions.

02:21 PM

Representative Madden concluded her remarks.


BILL:	HB06-1317
TIME:	02:22:03 PM
MOVED:	McFadyen
MOTION:	Moved to refer House Bill 06-1317 to the Committee on Appropriations. The motion passed 10-0.
SECONDED:	Borodkin
		VOTE
	Borodkin	Yes
	Green	Excused
	Hefley	Yes
	Knoedler	Yes
	Larson	Yes
	Lindstrom	Yes
	Ragsdale	Yes
	Sullivan	Yes
	Welker	Yes
	McFadyen	Yes
	Pommer	Yes
Final YES: 10 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS