House passes two significant energy bills

Before the vote, Rep. Les Gara gave a warning.

"If it's just for in-state use, it's not going to result in very much state revenue. We've smartly adopted a rule that says if we produce gas for in-state use to keep the cost down, we're going to keep the taxes down," the Democrat from Anchorage said.

The second bill to pass was Rep. Mike Hawker's gas storage bill, the Cook Inlet Recovery Act.

Hawker, R-Anchorage, proposes the state provide a tax credit for a project which would use old gas wells surrounding Cook Inlet to store gas for use on those very cold winter days when the supply runs short.

"We face the very real risk of not having enough gas for people to heat their homes and keep their lights on," he said.

"When we start to look at these kinds of breaks, I hope when it comes to the rest of the state, when our energy problems, we'll remember that we have certainly gone a far way for Cook Inlet," Minority Leader Beth Kerttula, D-Juneau, said.

Some House members want assurance that the in-state gas line bill would not threaten the Alaska Gasline Inducement Act, which seeks to build a large-diameter line through Canada.

Speaker Chenault responded that it does not pose a threat, but that there certainly could come a time when the state has to choose one project or the other.

House Democrats tried to pass an amendment to the gas storage bill that would have required production tax credits to be passed on to consumers.

The amendment did not get passed. Hawker said the Alaska Regulatory Commission does not have a method of dealing with that kind of structure.

Contact Ted Land at tland@ktuu.com