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House adopts mineral lease recodification, redirects some bonus bid revenues
Summary
Lawmakers amended and passed Senate Bill 55 to recodify the Mineral Lease Act after recent federal land exchanges, reallocating bonus-bid and royalty proceeds among the Constitutional Defense Fund and the Community Impact Fund and delaying some allocations until July 1, 2001.
Representative Hatch moved amendments to Senate Bill 55 to recodify the Mineral Lease Act after the state—ompleted a recent land-exchange with the federal government, explaining the changes were intended to clarify where bonus bids and royalty proceeds should be allocated. "This allows any excess dollars over and above those $750,000 dollars would go into the Rural Electric Commerce Communications Fund to accrue to the Constitutional Defense Fund up to $2,000,000," Hatch said during floor remarks.
The adopted amendment package (Amendment No. 21 and related friendly edits) delayed the effective allocation of some bonus-bid revenue to the Rural Electric Commerce Fund until July 1, 2001, deleted sharing requirements for bonus bids on certain trust tracks, and specified permitted uses of the permanent Community Impact Fund. Representative Sykes moved a friendly amendment to provide additional in-lieu tax payments to fifth- and sixth-class counties to offset costs incurred from properties (for example, state parks and wildlife resources) in those jurisdictions.
Advocates called the package a cleanup and a clarification of the statutory language to reflect the land exchange; Hatch said staff had coordinated changes with the Governor's office. Representative Becker noted a conflict of interest (representing a sixth-class county) before the vote and the amendment votes proceeded under normal parliamentary procedure.
The House adopted the amendment and passed SB 55 as amended (64 yes, 8 no). The bill will be returned to the Senate for further action and signature by the President of the Senate.
The bill as amended: clarifies allocations from bonus bids and royalty proceeds after a land exchange; terminates a mandatory annual appropriation from the Mineral Lease account to higher education that had been phased out; and creates a coordination clause with related appropriations bills to direct extra money into the Constitutional Defense Fund up to a cap, with any surplus reverting to the Community Impact Fund.
What happens next: SB 55 will be returned to the Senate for concurrence/signature.
