Date: 09/30/2009

Final
Draft Bill 1

WATER RESOURCES REVIEW COMMITTEE

Votes: View--> Action Taken:
Moved Amendment L. 002 that reduces Tier 1 Operati
Moved to recommend Draft Bill 1 to the Legislative		FAIL
PASS



01:28 PM -- Draft Bill 1 - Funding for the Division of Water Resources

The committee reconvened.

Draft Bill 1— concerning funding for the Division of Water Resources— was requested at the August 19 meeting of the Water Resources Review Committee and amended at the September 9 meeting (Attachment N). It authorizes the expenditure of up to 5 percent of the moneys in Tier 1 of the Operational Account of the Severance Tax Trust Fund for the Division of Water Resources, and allows this increase to supplant moneys that would otherwise be made available to the division from the General Fund. It also eliminates the Tier 1 authorization for the Division of Wildlife to account for the increase.

Attachment N.pdf
BILL:Draft Bill
TIME: 01:33:41 PM
MOVED:Fischer
MOTION:Moved Amendment L. 002 that reduces Tier 1 Operational Account moneys that are allocated to the Division of Reclamation, Mining, and Safety from 25 percent to 20 percent (Attachment O) and strikes the provision of Draft Bill 1 that eliminates the Tier 1 funding for the Division of Wildlife. The motion failed on a vote of 3 to 6.
SECONDED:
VOTE
Baumgardner
No
Brophy
No
Fischer
Yes
Gardner C.
Excused
McKinley
No
Schwartz
Yes
White
No
Whitehead
Yes
Curry
No
Hodge
No
Not Final YES: 3 NO: 6 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: FAIL

Attachment O.pdf

01:41 PM

 Jeff Ver Steeg, Assistant Director of the Division of Wildlife, spoke in opposition to the provision of Draft Bill 1 that eliminates the Tier 1 Operational Account funding for the Division of Wildlife to account for the increase for the Division of Water Resources. He explained how the Division of Wildlife uses this money to address impacts to wildlife from mineral and energy development. He also explained that 75 percent of division's budget is paid for with hunting and fishing license fees which are expected to decline in 2009 and 2010. He also described how the division plans to address the revenue shortfall and responded to questions about the impact to the division if the Operational Account moneys are no longer available.
BILL:Draft Bill
TIME: 01:56:47 PM
MOVED:Curry
MOTION:Moved to recommend Draft Bill 1 to the Legislative Council. This bill authorizes the expenditure of up to 5 percent of the moneys in Tier 1 of the Operational Account of the Severance Tax Trust Fund for the Division of Water Resources and eliminates the Tier 1 authorization for the Division of Wildlife to account for the increase. The motion passed on a vote of 7 to 2.
SECONDED:
VOTE
Baumgardner
Yes
Brophy
Yes
Fischer
No
Gardner C.
Excused
McKinley
Yes
Schwartz
No
White
Yes
Whitehead
Yes
Curry
Yes
Hodge
Yes
Final YES: 7 NO: 2 EXC: 1 ABS: 0 FINAL ACTION: PASS



02:00 PM

Representative Curry offered to sponsor the bill in the House and Senator Brophy offered to sponsor the bill in the Senate. Senators Hodge, White, and Whitehead and Representatives Baumgardner and McKinley requested to be cosponsors of the bill. If approved by Legislative Council on November 10, this bill will be introduced as a House Bill in the 2010 Legislative session and will be exempt from the sponsor's five-bill limit.