AOGCC nominee Jesse Chmielewski highlights orphan‑well cleanup, carbon‑storage primacy at confirmation hearing

The House Resources Committee heard testimony March 17 from Jesse Chmielewski, the governor’s nominee for the petroleum-engineer seat on the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (AOGCC). Chmielewski, who said she has served as a petroleum engineering commissioner at the AOGCC for six years, told lawmakers she led the agency’s orphan well program and helped secure federal grant funding to plug and remediate abandoned wells.

Chmielewski said, “Today, the AOGCC has been awarded $50,000,000 in grants with an additional $43,000,000 potentially available.” She told the committee some of those funds will plug nine wells in the Southcentral region this year and that the AOGCC’s aim is to have Alaska orphan wells “plugged, abandoned, and remediated using federal funding.”

She described AOGCC work to pursue state primacy for EPA Class VI wells (wells that would be used to inject and store carbon dioxide), following enabling legislation passed by the Legislature (sponsor-referenced House Bill 50). Chmielewski said a draft regulation package for Class VI primacy was with Department of Law and the EPA for review as of February 28, and that the agency expects a “crosswalk” process comparing federal rules to draft state regulations. She advised the committee the primacy process could take “at least a year, maybe two years” before the EPA grants primacy, while interested parties could still apply directly to EPA in the meantime.

Committee members pressed on two related points: the stability and timeline of federal grants, and the AOGCC’s statutory remit. On federal funding, Chmielewski said recent executive orders briefly paused grant reimbursements but that states were again able to withdraw funding after roughly a three‑ to four‑week pause. On regulatory scope, she reiterated the AOGCC’s role is technical oversight to prevent waste and maximize resource recovery rather than driving investment decisions: “economics don't come into play in our decisions,” she told Representative Fields.

Chmielewski also summarized recent AOGCC work on pool rules and injection orders for specific fields and said she has represented Alaska on national bodies, including as the governor’s delegate to the Interstate Oil and Gas Compact Commission.

Ending: The committee set the appointment aside; the transcript indicates public testimony on appointees will be scheduled at a later date. Chmielewski emphasized continuity and experience in the quasi‑judicial commission’s work on orphan wells, carbon storage primacy and reservoir regulation.