Agriculture, Forestry & Economic Development- House

No natural gases are the cleanest burning fossil fuel natural gas utilities are begin to look at renewable natural gas hydrogen and other natural gas alternatives to enhance their gas supply and make their service even more environmentally friendly Senate bill one hundred thirty six would amend the Arkansas statutes regarding the purchase of natural gas by natural gas utilities to remove possible barriers to purchase of these alternative fuels by providing that the Arkansas Public Service Commission may allow gas company to remove the cost of a reasonable purchases real simple basically this is a new technology we just wanna make sure that public utilities have the authority to go ahead and purchase this it went out of the Senate unanimously and so we're just hoping for the same kind of in this committee thank you for anything. Good question. Represented J. you're recognized. Thank you madam chairwoman is anything of any opposition to this bill anybody contacted proposed to her. Not that I'm aware of the representation thank you thank members here are there any other questions by the committee members. Is there anyone in the audience that would like to speak for. Anybody in the audience that would like to speak against the bill. Are you closing your bill. I'm close with that as for good vote thank you what's the will of the committee. Motion to pass all those in favor say aye. Those against NATO. Congratulations your bill has passed thank you. House Bill fourteen seventy one. Senator Hillman. Thank you madam chairman how can I ask operated come up here with me from the agriculture department yes please state your name and who you're with for the record. Yes ma'am I miss Scott berry on the planning street division director for the part of our culture. They had a new title but I didn't know what was of. Committee members come today and now present a bill to the a and I want to give you a bit of of a backstory on this. many years ago we had some pesticides in the state they were really good pesticides. They killed everything. And they lasted forever. And we still got pesticides in the state that are really good pesticides and they last forever. I'm talking about the heavy metals like mercury. Good data plan treatment he killed the way Wilson is still out there I'm talking about the. cotton poison cotton does to. I get your marked for did you want to that of. Arsenic things like that. And now to get you look the story about it when I was a kid. I live in a mysterious yeah I don't know what was gives on maybe Joe Jett that is but you don't know what miscues are we live in a country we had muskies Daddy would mix up powdered DDT. And gotten deste. And and take it to the auto sector and they take that Stephanie checker and all in the yard you know what we have a misty is after that but that was arsenic DDT. The staff is still sitting around in people's barns and sheds several years ago we started program in the state where you could take your abandon pesticides to a collection site and they would ask no questions about where it came from white was there anything like that this was a great this is been a great way to clean up some of these pesticides are these heavy metal Senator in people's barns you bet they are is there a lot of other stuff sense and that is come out yes there is. So the State Plant Board or the Department countries done a good job with their fifty dollars a year that they've been collecting as a as a permit renewal for all the chemicals that are used in the State. But this is an expensive way to dispose of the staff not knowing what Senator where it comes from it all has to be treated the same way in a in a I think they actually burn it but has to be done under EPA standards and I love that it's and it's expensive so the the password comes in the Department culture comes in and they're asking for the authority to raise that fifty dollars up to as much as one hundred dollars is never been ready since ninety one to that push cards two thousand five twenty story and it's never been right since then and the calls for cleaning up other people's mistakes in the past or have gone keep on going up and this is a good bill it it protects us as agriculture he per is that protects us the citizens of Arkansas if you have got any questions. Really like for Scott to answer. You and you were saying also. Are there any questions from the committee. Seeing no questions is there anyone the audience that would like to speak for the bill. Anyone like to speak against the bill. Sing NO one are you close for your bill except for center up for represent the warning I don't see tears fall that was as yet but yes I am close for the bill now moves to pass but the will of the committee all those in favor say aye those opposed no congratulations your bill has passed house bill fourteen forty two. You're recognized thank you chairman I'd like caliber billing commission's office to join me that's okay. Yes please state your name and who you're with for the record please. I'm Kelly board chief deputy commissioner state lands you're welcome to proceed. Thank you chairman college this is a very simple bill help in the lan commissioner's office get into the twenty first century to allow other billing and permits to be done online with a website which currently is not available the reason this came up is because audit was trying to get some information from them that they could not locate so this just trying to keep like I say get them up to date the twenty first century pretty much it there's been some concerns on section six about those leases of theirs I was working on a member today did not get here but there's some questions we can fix on the Senate and so. I will take any questions you might have are there any questions. But you want to add anything Mr Kelly no ma'am. Saying the question is is there anyone in the audience that like to speak for the bill. Against the bill. Against the bill you're recognized can the in the table state your name. And who you're with please. Thank you Mr chairman Terry been on with impact management group on behalf of the American petroleum institute currently as it's written we are opposed to this bill because section six which represent Bentley referred our or mentioned currently that bill still has section six in there we we have a lot of problems in it I really wasn't prepared to testify because I thought the bill's going to be amended but as it currently stands we're oppose this bill moving forward. Are there any questions. The representatives you're recognized. Can you tell me what more about why you're opposed to that section six because it's it's being struck right. Yes so well it's it's being struck and then section six again I don't have any notes with me and so on I'm not really prepared to speak on it but the way section six section six kind of structures the way that we do a lot of the leases. And without that it basically restructures everything that that is going on and and I've been on the phone with the a pro and. Basically most of the oil and gas industry with and we're all post as it's currently written. And and so. What I called represent Bentley and kind of explained. Our position to horror and the reasons for it and I thought we had an agreement on amending the bill and and not fully trust her intention to maybe try to fix it down Senate side but I'm not sure you can appreciate that. You know we. What we're we're not for this bill moving forward in its current form in your opinion what's the reason that that whole section is being removed. Well I think that that empowers the state land commissioners office to restructure a few things and it's our position that that particular thing governs the way a lot of these leases are currently written and. If you remove that section then that changes a bunch of things and the ripple effect of that would be enormous. It looks that way thank you. Are there any other questions. Sing other questions thank you for. Thank you madam chairman thank members there anyone else who would like to speak for the bill. Against the bill. Senator Bentley would you like to close for your bill. I'm sorry representatives I didn't say you. That's okay I just wanted to if it's with your permission asked of resonant Bentley or someone for the Lancashire to explain why we're removing that section if what we're trying to do here is established a website to learn more about what they're doing or have for audit can take a look at it I don't understand why we're removing this section is. A Representative. We've agreed to remove the section we we try to get it done this morning to get it in here in the committee and we did we just weren't moving on you've got my commitment if that we will remove with the rest of the bill is far more important to ask your question we have twenty nine sand and gravel permits in this specific legislation relates to sand gravel permits is a war if you have Senate gravel permit March of nineteen seventy five it never changed we have twenty nine total permission twenty five of them fall under section six there and we were trying to take that out simply so that we could get those back and review we're not want to mess with or against but I don't want to mess with the rest of the bill either so I would rather amend this section completely struck section six and then the district in you being put it back in. Later we probably next session we would route it to make it more understandable that has to do with sand and gravel. But I'm less worried about that that. Thank action is not going to have a great impact on the operations for us we were just trying to amend this on the Senate in the end this ride the yes. Yeah thank you the other thing is who is going to do the website build who's going to be doing that technology. We already have contracted with a company called data scale to assistance it's going to mostly created database force is a way for us to put information into it thank information out to have it readily available to the public if you wanted to have a laugh about all the one gas permission to state right now we'll spend an inordinate amount of time gathering it this way the information directly by but we're already moving forward with a thank you thank you manager represented the bank's. Thank you madam chair. So what's the amendment going to do. Amended to add section six back in there it is yes was able the amendment is going to put it back in as it is currently yeah. Sixty fifth six section six it's crossed out in this bill and we're just going to take those lines back and I thought would have it done today but with the session removing the White is afraid not to get something done today I sent that on Friday but anyway it was wasn't here this morning so. Again it there was sand and gravel and then deal with oil and gas so I thought we could go ahead moved for to get a fix on the Senate was not was not trying to do anything but that so. Represented Jett you're recognized. The main campus and term Kelly you make references Curtis thank you may reference next session and then amending it back in the Senate and so. Is it next session or you going amended back when it gets to the Senate because out here today. Refuted jet what will commit to use it we will place we will completely struck section six from this bill. What distracting section six. We're gonna go back and read it back in we're going to leave the lines that are section six that in effect will make this legislation stay in the code where it is written now then we can talk with the people that are involved next session we'll come back and try to fix it for Senate graph okay twenty nine apartments okay we'll take out the offending language of this bill in the Senate during the session yes okay thank you thank you mentor will. Are there any other questions. Seeing no other questions was the will of the committee. For a lack of motion I'm sorry your bill has died. No one said nothing don't look at me like that less welcome back one moment thank you members thank you. The artist let everybody else take care. House Bill fourteen twenty six represented Lundstrum. You're recognized represented Lundstrum thank you. Colleagues I was a little surprised when this came up and I got a first phone call that another phone call then another phone call and I thought this is something I. Was not expecting turns out this little device is really good for ordering food. It's not so good if you're the restaurant and there different platforms that are popping up all over the place and what they're doing is they screenshot the restaurant's menu. They added it to their platform the restaurant has no clue that they're adding it to their platform. Then you order hopefully the restaurant. Gets the information and somebody goes and picks that up and hopefully it's delivered hopefully the system works the restaurant has no clue nobody has asked them if they can enter into a contract in each state is now having to come back and say wait a second time out this is the wild wild west and you do have to enter into a contract to do business I don't know about how you all do your business but I bet you probably wouldn't like somebody representing your business anywhere without your permission and all this bill does is say in the state of Arkansas if you're a restaurant and you want to do business with us you gotta ascus. Because what's happening right now is if if you want to get a hold of these folks on the internet you're calling some place it might be India. Sometimes there's a twenty to thirty percent up charge sometimes the food never shows up. Sometimes they shooter and menu item or the menu might be a year old and there's not even the items anymore on the menu so the restaurant under gets a call from an aggravated customer that says my feet never showed up. And guess what it didn't and so they can't get a hold of the person they can't solve the problem and so each state is having come back and say time out if you want to do business with the restaurant in Arkansas you can ask first and then maybe they can both get together and hopefully both make a lot of money so this bill just says slow down and ask first with that'll entertain any questions. Representative Smith you're recognized. Thank you madam chair Representative Lundstrum so. I don't. If I want to order something I usually. Get it does take out I'll go pick it up myself it's a contract between me and the restaurant correct but these these apps that you're talking about like maybe GrubHub or some others how does the money change hands with. This type of thing because. If you've got a customer who is wondering where is my order but they've already paid how does is this more of a scam for some of these for some of them it's a scam for some of them they will use your credit card and it will go into their system but the restaurant never gets it. So that's a problem sometimes a restaurant gets it sometimes they don't okay and. All right and California right now there's a class action lawsuit for a hundred and fifty million dollars. But it took awhile to get there and a lot of restaurants are suffering right now and so each state time and go back and do something like this okay thank you represented avis you're recognized thank you so is. GrubHub and uber delivering all the delay not enter into contracts with these restaurants currently now some do some of the better actors are asking ahead of time some are not. And if you want to get on the phone and talk to them and say wait a second you're not representing my restaurant. It's three hours four hours is somebody answering in somewhere else and good luck. Some of the smaller towns I know in where I live we had on a delivery service that I guess. I guess technically it was online but you had to kind of call them and they go to pick your food up your through them so even these low small delivery services would have to sign a contract at the restaurants they need to talk to the restaurant first summer working great they know what they're talking to and it's working really well some of the large national ones are not being thank you. Are there any other questions. There anyone here to speak for the bill. Against the bill. Would you like to close for your bill. All I have to say is let's let's let these restaurants survive and let's help him out a little bit with that I'd like to close you're recognized motion at. Where the proper time Sir do pass. Motion to pass all those in favor say aye. Opposed no congratulations your bill has passed thank you colleagues I know there's some restaurants watching right now that'll be very excited House Bill twelve seventy three. Representative Smith you're recognized thank you madam chairman request permission to have Mr Blair Arnold join me at the table to answer questions yes please state your name and who you're with for the record please. There are no with the law firm of Murphy Thompson Arnold Skinner and Castleberry. You're welcome to convene. Thank you H. B. twelve seventy three is the. All in gas owners lien act in the purpose of this bill is to protect landowners royalty owners in the event that a well operator owner should take bankruptcy or going to receivership. Without a creditors could take the moneys in the gastro but this also has a provision in it that actually protects creditors operators and third party purchasers and it's similar to a bill that was introduced several years ago which protected farmers storing grain if an elevator took bankruptcy. Are you ready for question ready for questions yes are there any questions. Seeing no questions is there anyone to speak for the bill. Against the bill. Sing NO one are you closing your bill close for the bill yes but the will of the committee. Motion to pass all those in favor say aye opposed no congratulations your bill has passed thank you Senate bill one forty eight. And I represented Lundstrum is going to be presenting. Colleagues I'm a poor substitute for Representative Tosh but we are getting rid of some old language and added that language and with the chairs permission I would like to ask a guest come to the in the table with me yes state your name and who you're with for the record please. Good afternoon I'm still B. Johnson the director of the Arkansas GIS office part of the Department transformation and shared services. this is a language and no longer useful language and so basically it's means removed with that I'll close and he can enter to entertain any questions are there any questions. There anyone here to speak for the bill against the bill. With the will of the committee. Motion to pass all those in favor say aye. Does not congratulations your bill is passed thank you colleagues I'm sure represented Tosh appreciate your indulgence and what that were adjourned.