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House amends carbon‑sequestration bill to preserve prior permits and require local input
Summary
Lawmakers approved amendments clarifying that entities with an existing certificate of public convenience are grandfathered and directing the commissioner to give substantial consideration to local public input before issuing permits; the measure passed after technical fixes.
The House took up Senate Bill 36, a bill governing carbon dioxide transport and sequestration permits, and adopted floor amendments that clarified the law’s effective date and exempted pipelines that already held a certificate of public convenience from new procedural changes.
Representative Guymon and other sponsors said the amendment was requested by the administration to make the effective date the governor’s signature date and to ensure that any pipeline that already had a certificate would remain subject to the rules in effect at the time its certificate was issued. The sponsor explained the change was intended to avoid retroactively altering the regulatory requirements for projects that had already secured state authorization.
Lawmakers also debated language directing the Department of Natural Resources (the commissioner) to give “substantial consideration” to local public comment, including municipal and parish input, during permit review. Sponsors said that language formalizes local engagement in the permitting process; critics sought a concrete definition for “substantial consideration,” but sponsors and the floor chair said the phrase allows the secretary discretion to weigh substantial local concerns without giving a veto to localities.
Members asked whether any pipelines already had certificates; the sponsor said the administration indicated one certificate existed involving two parishes (reported verbally on the floor) and that the amendment would preserve those prior authorizations. The House adopted the clarifying amendment and then passed the bill.
Votes at a glance: SB 36 — passed (final tally recorded on floor).
Why it matters: SB 36 changes procedural review for carbon projects and adds a role for local input; the adopted amendment seeks to avoid retroactive changes for projects that already hold permits while giving the commissioner authority to consider local concerns in permit decisions.
What’s next: With House passage, the bill will proceed through the legislative process; sponsors said implementation details and any future rulemaking will follow.
