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Representative Joe Green State Capitol, Room 214 Juneau, AK 99801-1182 Phone: (907) 465-4931 Fax: (907) 465-4316 Send E-Mail |
For Immediate Release: April 26, 2000 Juneau -- The Alaska Senate Wednesday passed House Bill 414, which clarifies the requirements for service on the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC). The AOGCC is a quasi-judicial agency with the responsibility for inspecting Alaska's oil and gas wells and off-shore platforms, and for making sure oil and gas production is not wasteful or inefficient. The commission is set up to include a petroleum engineer, a petroleum geologist, and a member of the public who is not required to have a technical background. Hpwever, for the past four years the commission has been without a petroleum engineer. "HB 414 clarifies that one of the commissioners must have subsurface experience," said Representative Joe Green, sponsor of HB 414. "Because the activity they regulate is thousands of feet below the ground dealing with oil and gas reservoirs with thousands of pounds of pressure, the commission really needs someone with a petroleum engineering background to ensure safe operations and to protect the state's interests." HB 414 passed the Senate 14-5 on reconsideration and now returns to the House for concurrence with Senate changes. # # #