Senate Committee on Agriculture, Natural Resources & Energy (03/02/2006)

Final
STAFF SUMMARY OF MEETING

SENATE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE, NATURAL RESOURCES & ENERGY

Date:	03/02/2006	ATTENDANCE

Time:	01:38 PM to 04:11 PM	Brophy	X
		Entz	X
Place:	SCR 353	Groff	X
		Taylor	X
This Meeting was called to order by		Tochtrop	X
	Senator Isgar	Grossman	X
		Isgar	X
This Report was prepared by
	Geoff Johnson
		X = Present, E = Excused, A = Absent, * = Present after roll call

Bills Addressed:		Action Taken:
SB06-193 HB06-1032 HB06-1031 SB06-138		Amended, Referred to Appropriations Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole Referred to the Committee of the Whole Amended, Referred to the Committee of the Whole

01:38 PM -- Senate Bill 06-193

Senator Wiens, prime sponsor, commented on the bill requiring the study of underground water storage in the Arkansas and South Plate. He commented on the fiscal impact of the bill.

01:43 PM -- Russell George, Department of Natural Resources, supported the bill. He said that the Department of Natural Resources share of severance taxes are appropriate for this type of study.

01:55 PM -- Jenn Bolton, Audubon Society of Colorado, supported the bill, with an amendment.


BILL:	SB06-193
TIME:	01:58:47 PM
MOVED:	Tochtrop
MOTION:	Moved a prepared amendment to the bill, L.001 (Attachment A). The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy
	Entz
	Groff
	Taylor
	Tochtrop
	Grossman
	Isgar
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	SB06-193
TIME:	01:59:58 PM
MOVED:	Brophy
MOTION:	Moved that the bill be referred to the Committee on Appropriations, as amended. The motion passed 7-0-0.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	Yes
	Entz	Yes
	Groff	Yes
	Taylor	Yes
	Tochtrop	Yes
	Grossman	Yes
	Isgar	Yes
Not Final YES: 7 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:01 PM -- House Bill 06-1032

Senator Brophy, prime sponsor, said that the bill allows increases in compensation of election judges for district elections if necessary, increases in compensation for Board members, and puts in place an inflation adjustment.

02:02 PM -- Don Chapman, Riverside Irrigation District, said that these adjustments have been needed for some time. He said that current statutes have required numerous special elections. The bill will allow larger contracts before elections are triggered.


BILL:	HB06-1032
TIME:	02:08:45 PM
MOVED:	Taylor
MOTION:	Moved to put in a safety clause and an effective date of July 1, 2006. The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy
	Entz
	Groff
	Taylor
	Tochtrop
	Grossman
	Isgar
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	HB06-1032
TIME:	02:10:22 PM
MOVED:	Brophy
MOTION:	Moved that the bill be referred to the Committee of the Whole, as amended. The motion passed 6-0-1.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	Yes
	Entz	Yes
	Groff	Excused
	Taylor	Yes
	Tochtrop	Yes
	Grossman	Yes
	Isgar	Yes
Final YES: 6 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:12 PM -- House Bill 06-1031

Senator Isgar, prime sponsor, said that the bill will raise the daily per diem rate for the Southwest Conservancy District from $10 to $25.


BILL:	HB06-1031
TIME:	02:15:39 PM
MOVED:	Isgar
MOTION:	Moved that the bill be referred to the Committee of the Whole. The motion passed 7-0-0.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	Yes
	Entz	Yes
	Groff	Yes
	Taylor	Yes
	Tochtrop	Yes
	Grossman	Yes
	Isgar	Yes
Final YES: 7 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS

02:25 PM -- Senate Bill 06-138

Senator Shaffer, prime sponsor, said that the goal of the bill is to help break the U.S. addiction to foreign oil, improve the Colorado economy, help preserve air quality and improve the environment. He said that he has not quite reached consensus with all interested parties on the bill. He noted the requirements for the use of ethanol in the bill. Senator Brophy said that he wants the bill to treat all ethanol plants equally, not favoring a particular production plant.

02:40 PM -- Stan Dempsey, Colorado Petroleum Association, said that his organization opposes mandates on how they do business and opposes this bill.

02:41 PM -- Steve Douglas, SunCor Energy, described his business and its facilities in Colorado. He said that his company is pro-ethanol. His company opposes mandates because they constrain suppliers, entail significant administrative burdens, and distort the marketplace. He commented on new federal mandates. He said that the bill will cause price volatility.

03:14 PM -- Stuart Zion, Department of Revenue, was present to address questions. He commented on the fiscal impact of the bill. He said that it is likely that the bill will have programming costs for the Department.

03:17 PM -- Jake Meffley, Environment Colorado, said that his organization has historically supported renewable energy, due to its cleanliness, and reduction in greenhouse emissions.

03:20 PM -- Patty Stulp, Ethanol Management Company, said that the demand for oil is rising faster than the price for oil. She said that 25 percent of our oil supply comes from "terrorist" countries. She said that there are 31 ethanol plants under construction in the U.S., and that prices are expected to fall as supply and efficiencies improve. She said that the bill will put in place an incentive for cellulosic production of ethanol so that it will one day be commercially competitive.

03:44 PM -- John Ceveine, Colorado Corn, supported the bill. He commented on the environmental benefits of ethanol. He commented on comparative subsidies of ethanol versus oil and commented on tax code subsidies. He cited a study documenting these subsidies.


BILL:	SB06-138
TIME:	03:50:47 PM
MOVED:	Tochtrop
MOTION:	Moved a prepared amendment to the bill, L. 007 (Attachment B.) The motion passed without objection.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy
	Entz
	Groff
	Taylor
	Tochtrop
	Grossman
	Isgar
Not Final YES: 0 NO: 0 EXC: 0 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: Pass Without Objection


BILL:	SB06-138
TIME:	03:53:08 PM
MOVED:	Brophy
MOTION:	Moved to strike the last sentence in paragraph (2) on Page 2 of the bill. The motion failed.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	Yes
	Entz	No
	Groff	No
	Taylor	No
	Tochtrop	No
	Grossman	Excused
	Isgar	Yes
Not Final YES: 2 NO: 4 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: FAIL


BILL:	SB06-138
TIME:	04:09:55 PM
MOVED:	Tochtrop
MOTION:	Moved that the bill be referred to the Committee of the Whole, as amended. The motion passed 6-0-1.
SECONDED:
		VOTE
	Brophy	Yes
	Entz	Yes
	Groff	Yes
	Taylor	Yes
	Tochtrop	Yes
	Grossman	Excused
	Isgar	Yes
Not Final YES: 6 NO: 0 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS