Subcommittee advances DOGAMI budget with measures to expand carbon sequestration, e‑permitting and mine oversight

Subcommittee co‑chairs moved the Legislative Fiscal Office recommendation on House Bill 5010 on June 3, 2025, forwarding the Department of Geology and Mineral Industries’ biennial budget to the Ways and Means full committee with a due‑pass recommendation.

The recommendation sets the department’s 2025–27 budget at $36,745,672 — including $10,687,685 general fund, $20,069,258 other funds and $5,988,729 federal funds — and provides for 50 positions (48.8 FTE). The LFO said the recommended budget represents a roughly 53.1% increase over the 2023–25 legislatively approved budget and a 65.3% increase over current service level, driven primarily by five policy packages and 14 additional positions (12.8 FTE).

The budget packages include: $1.8 million general fund one‑time for continued e‑permitting development and conversion of an IT specialist from limited duration to permanent; a $10 million one‑time other‑funds limitation and four limited‑duration positions to pilot shovel‑ready geological carbon sequestration projects (funded in part by the Department of State Lands); and an increase of $1,625,046 other funds and six permanent positions to address permitting service levels and site inspections in the Mineral Land Regulation and Reclamation (MLRR) program. The LFO noted $3.1 million of other‑funds revenue in the recommendation is associated with the companion fee bill (Senate Bill 836).

Members debated whether the size of the increase is justified while the agency’s key performance measures (KPMs) are still maturing. Senator Anderson and other members said they have seen activity in mining districts and expressed cautious support for the agency’s direction under new leadership; other members said they would vote no unless performance metrics show clearer improvement. The LFO directed DOGAMI to propose at least one new performance measure in the 2027–29 budget cycle tied to permit processing timelines.

The subcommittee adopted the LFO’s dash‑1 amendment to reflect the recommended totals, recorded objections during procedural votes, and moved HB 5010 as amended to the full committee with a due‑pass recommendation. The committee also approved the department’s proposed six KPMs and added two budget notes: one requiring a 2026 report on the e‑permitting project (governance, schedule, budget, risks and mitigation) and a second requiring a 2027 report on implementation of the MLRR process audit, progress on the permit backlog, average days to process permits by type, and the projected cost and fee changes necessary to fully implement audit recommendations.

Discussion versus decision: the budget and amendment votes were formal actions recorded by the subcommittee; debate centered on agency performance, staffing levels and the size of fee‑driven revenue assumptions. The subcommittee required reporting and a new KPM to create an accountability path for the large budget increase.

The subcommittee’s action sends HB 5010 as amended to the Ways and Means full committee for consideration.