Easter may bring movement on CBM legislation

By RINDI WHITE-Frontiersman reporter

JUNEAU -- Bills addressing coal-bed methane may get more attention after Easter, according to staff from the offices of several Valley legislators.

Two bills are awaiting hearings in the House Resources Committee, of which Rep. Beverly Masek, R-Willow, is co-chair. House Bill 395, a bill that addresses several of the issues relating to coal-bed methane development, may be ready for a hearing the week after Easter, according to Joe Arvidson, chief of staff for Masek. The bill passed out of the House Oil and Gas Committee, where it was merged with HB 420, which addressed water rights issues, on March 12.

Arvidson said Masek, co-chair of the House Resources Committee, waited to move the bill forward until several issues in the committee substitute of the bill were resolved.

"The committee substitute they sent us from Oil and Gas had too many problems the way it was," Arvidson said.

Arvidson explained that some of the statutory changes recommended in the new version of HB 395 conflicted with existing statutes, while other areas of the bill appeared to be unconstitutional. Arvidson said he hasn't fully reviewed the new document, which was made available Wednesday, but expects a hearing on the bill to be scheduled after the Easter break.

House Bill 531, sponsored by the House Resources Committee, also moved into Masek's committee Thursday. Arvidson said he has not yet had a chance to review the bill and add it to the committee's schedule. HB 531 is a companion bill to SB 312, sponsored by the Senate Resources Committee, with primary work on the bill done by Sen. Scott Ogan, R-Mat-Su. The two bills would essentially toss out the shallow-gas leasing program set up eight years ago, and require coal-bed methane developers to conform with the requirements of other oil and gas drillers.

A hearing on SB 312 to evaluate whether the Alaska Property Owners' Bill of Rights, a list of requirements drawn up by several groups from around the state emphasizing the rights of surface property owners in CBM development, should be included as part of the bill, was held at the end of March. A second hearing on that topic was canceled.

Contact Rindi White at rindi.white@frontiersman.com.