House members voted 70-30 in favor of House Bill 114, one of the first significant energy bills of the session to face a floor vote in the House or Senate.
It would create a five-member state board to help coordinate new energy pipelines and power lines, both within and outside Montana.
“It's time to put people in my neck of the woods to work,” said Rep. Alan Olson, R-Roundup, the bill's sponsor. “And this is a bill that (will do that).”
The measure now goes to the House Appropriations Committee, which will decide whether the $250,000 cost of the new board fits into the state budget for the next two years.
Opponents of the bill - primarily Democrats - argued that a new state board isn't needed to foster pipeline and power line construction. It's up to the private sector to coordinate and build the lines, they said.
Rep. Brady Wiseman, D-Bozeman, also warned that if it becomes easier to move Montana-produced power to out-of-state markets, Montana consumers will be forced to compete with fast-growing areas in the West for electricity.
“That's a guarantee that our power rates will go up,” he said.
But supporters said they saw no problem with the government helping coordinate an expensive, complex infrastructure that's needed if Montana hopes to boost energy development.
Rep. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, said the state wouldn't rebuild the Capitol or any other major structure without a plan, and that a plan is needed to coordinate power lines and pipelines.
State government currently has no “clearinghouse” or agency to do that job, and the new Electrical Transmission and Pipeline Authority would fill that void, he said.
“I don't want to see transmission lines haphazardly crossing the state,” Jones said. “There does need to be a planning agency.”
Under HB114, the governor would appoint the five members of the new “authority,” or board. The board could hire its own staff and could contract out for services.
The original bill budgeted up to $350,000 for the board during the next two years, but the full House voted 51-49 Thursday to amend that amount to $250,000.
The board would have the power to help investigate, plan and establish routes for new oil-and-gas pipelines and power lines and would take part in regional planning groups. It could not condemn property to be used as routes for pipelines and power lines.
“The development of Montana's energy resources is essential to a healthy economy,” Olson said. “The time for talk has got to stop. It's time to act.”
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