Wednesday, March 10, 2010

WHAT’S HAPPENING TODAY

Legislative floor sessions begin bright and early, at 8 am to noon on this next-to-last day of the session.  
Afternoon debate is from 2 to 4 and from 5 to as late as needed.  

Executive Appropriations meets at 11 a.m. and again at 4:00 p.m.  Caucus lunch is at noon.
A CO2 Reduction Rally on the Capitol steps is planned for 3:00 pm.  Speakers are former SLC Mayor Rocky Anderson, Senate Minority Leader Pat Jones, Rev. Diana Johnson Director of Utah Interfaith Power and Light, and U of U Sociology Professor Andrew Jorgenson.

IN THE HOUSE
A third version of HB 141 – Recreational Use of Public Water on Private Property , approved by the Senate yesterday, is on the House CONCURRENCE CALENDAR today.   Second Substitute HB 141 recognizes a limited recreational right to float and fish on public water , including a right to touch private property, with permission, to get around a dangerous obstruction in the water.  

Also up for concurrence is HB 143 –Eminent Domain Authority. The Senate amended it somewhat to not exercise state eminent domain over federal land if the federal government had acquired the land with the consent of the Legislature.
 
The House has posted 46 Senate bills , including SB59, requiring schools to set gang prevention and intervention policies , and SB265 , which would send $2.3 million from the Tobacco Settlement account to the Department of Human Services for statewide expansion of the Drug Court program. Drug Courts divert drug offenders from prison to substance abuse treatment.

The cap on charter school growth would be removed by SB188, provided the Legislature first appropriates money to pay for the new growth.
 
IN THE SENATE

Fifty-one House bills are on Second Reading , including Second Substitute HB170 , which tightens up the rules for removing children from foster homes .

HJR 31 asks legislative lawyers to amend their constitutional notes when the constitutionality of a bill changes due to amendments or substitution.  

HB 343 creates a Great Salt Lake Advisory Council and HB66 would require health insurers to provide
coverage for prosthetic devices, such as artificial legs, equal to Medicare’s.
 

WHAT HAPPENED TUESDAY?

In the House
Kathy Van Dame Reporting

SB242  Economic Development Incentives for Alternative Energy Projects
By Senator Kevin Van Tassell (R-Vernal) passed the House Tuesday

    http://le.utah.gov/~2010/htmdoc/sbillhtm/sb0242.htm < http://le.utah.gov/%7E2010/htmdoc/sbillhtm/sb0242.htm >


Floor Sponsor, Rep John Mathis (R-Vernal) gave a brief presentation and without debate called the question.  

SB242 would extend tax credits for “renewable” energy development to “alternative” energy development.  “Renewable energy” is defined as solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and hydroelectric. “Alternative energy”
would include petroleum coke, shale oil, uranium tar sands and oil-impregnated diatomaceous earth as well.

The bill renames the Renewable Energy Development Act to the Alternative Energy Development Act.  The revenue lost annually by expanding the tax credit subsidy to non-renewable resources would be $5 million in the short run and in the long run could be up to $360 million.
 

The vote was  54-10-11.  The ten no votes were by Representatives Beck, Chavez-Houck, Hansen, Poulson, Biskupski, Cosgrove, Johnson, Black, Janice Fisher, and King.


Absent or not voting were Brown, Hemingway, Mascaro, Sumsion, Greenwood, Herrod, McIff, Clark, D., Harper, Hughes and Painter


*In the Senate*

Kathy Van Dame reporting:


*Rep Roger Barrus' (R -Centerville) HB318 Revolving Loan Fund for Certain Energy Efficient Projects, passed the Senate unanimously Tuesday after brief discussion.
 

HB318 allows Utah's Energy Efficiency Fund, a zero interest revolving loan fund, to be used for energy efficiency projects in buildings owned by political subdivisions (i.e. cities, counties, and towns) in addition
to school districts.

This would put $2.5 million from the federal stimulus package, into the fund. Loans are repaid out of energy savings, then recycled to be used again. This transforms the stimulus funds from one-time to continuing funds.

Energy efficiency is the cleanest, most affordable energy resource available today.  But local governments and schools often have difficulty affording large energy efficiency projects.  This bill helps by allowing
political subdivisions  to access attractive loans for energy efficiency projects (currently available only to school districts), resulting in energy and cost savings that can be re-directed to other important public
services.

HB318   Revolving Loan Fund for Certain Energy Efficient Projects Amendments Rep Roger Barrus (R -Centerville), Sen Dennis Stowell (R-Parowan)
http://le.utah.gov/~2010/htmdoc/hbillhtm/hb0318.htm < http://le.utah.gov/%7E2010/htmdoc/hbillhtm/hb0318.htm >


*Also in the Senate*

Sandy Peck Reporting

*Substitute HB324 – Public Lands Litigation*, sponsored by Rep Ken Sumsion was amended and passed the Senate 20-7-2.  It directs the Attorney General to file eminent domain or quiet title lawsuits on federal property and appropriates $3 million from the Land Exchange Distribution Account.

Senator Wayne Niederhauser (R-Sandy) provided some interesting economic details to support the attempt to gain access to resources on federal land. Senator Ross Romero (D-Salt Lake) had suggested other ways to increase funding for education such as raising severance taxes.

Senator Niederhauser’s view was that severance tax revenue is going down because the federal government is locking up land. He said we should not increase taxes but increase the opportunity to extract gas, oil and other resources in an environmentally sound way.  He said this could bring in $140 million in severance taxes and $700 million from other taxes because we would add high paying jobs that would boost income and sales tax revenue. He also said that it’s a common misconception that the litigation money is coming from SITLA school lands.

Unfortunately there was no discussion about why we need more leases when many leases already granted are going undeveloped. Or about the economic and environmental advantages of choosing renewable energy resource development. Senator Niederhauser played a key role in switching to Utah’s single rate income tax on the grounds that it would bring economic development to the state, which many of us question.  
 
But it was good to hear an explanation of eminent domain litigation efforts that focused on facts and figures and tax policy without any more remarks about how nasty our federal government is.

 

 

Sandy Peck