Letter to the Editor

Legislature's third week ends

By Rep. Dick Anderson

02/03/2015

We now have finished the third week of the 2015 legislative session and all committees are very busy hearing legislation that may become law. Bill drafts that have appropriations as part of the bill draft will be our primary focus the next two weeks. I serve on the Human Services Committee and the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and we hear a great number of bills.

The deadline has passed for any new bill introductions on the House side. I expect that we will be concentrating on getting the surge bill passed for infrastructure funding in the next two weeks. 

We usually hear revenue forecast for our state in February but this year it will be delayed until March in the hope that the numbers will be more accurate. Planning a budget for two years with the first few months of revenue data is very difficult but critical to the appropriation process.

House Bill 1358 is one bill that I am working on that will provide funding for the reclamation of abandoned oil and gas wells. This funding will be used for reclamation and restoration of land water resources adversely affected by oil and gas development including related pipelines and facilities which were abandoned or were left in an inadequate reclamation status before Aug. 1, 1983. 

As of now there is not any continuing reclamation responsibility under state law and the Industrial Commission may expand up to $3 million per biennium from the fund for cleanup in these old legacy oil sites. There is funding available to the Industrial Commission for the purpose of conducting a pilot program involving the Oil and Gas Research Council in conjunction with research facilities in this state to determine the best techniques for removing salt from the soil surrounding waste pits reclaimed by trenching between 1951 and 1984 in the north central part of the state.

There are also bill drafts that will help our area hospitals with funding for new facilities, upgrades and to help debt reduction as our critical access hospitals need some assistance. Rural healthcare is critical to our communities and citizens who want to live here. We are also working to provide programs and new methods to assist these facilities with nursing and provider needs.
I will try to write updates and let you know all the 2015 legislative session is progressing. I hope to keep you informed of legislation that affects our area specifically. Please keep me informed of these issues or legislation that is a concern to you.