While we have been working on an unrelated investigative story, the ongoing saga of the Minnesota legislative Environment and Natural Resources Conference Committee hostage taking continues.
Sadly, this isn't the sort of hostage standoff that can be resolved with pizza and patience. At this point, we wonder if a heady brew of lutefisk booya would help.
The Environment and Natural Resources Conference Committee (SF 959) meets again today, Saturday morning, at 9:00 a.m. At the table:
SF959 (Hansen/Ingebrigtsen) Omnibus environment, natural resources, and tourism policy and finance bill.
House Conferees: Hansen, Wazlawik, Morrison, Fischer, Heintzeman
Senate Conferees: Ingebrigtsen, Ruud, Eichorn, Tomassoni, Westrom
The House has the gavel.Any meeting documents will be posted on the House Environment and Natural Resources Finance and Policy committee website at https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/Committees/Home/92007
Committee Documents:
House-Senate Fiscal Spreadsheet
Environment Policy Tracking Sheet
Revisor Side by Side Article 1
Revisor Side by Side Article 2
Revisor Side by Side Article 3
Revisor Side by Side Article 4
Senate Counsel Summary
House Research Summary
Second House Offer (05-07-21 at 745PM)
DNR MPCA Letter 5-7-21
Readers can watch the Minnesota House Information YouTube livestream here beginning at 9:00 a.m. Here's the archival YouTube of the hearing:
The new House offer
That's the stew. The new offer? It's in the links above. Need a quick look? Last night we tweeted:
Here's the second offer from the #mnhouse for tomorrow's #EnviroConferenceCommitee SF959 (Hansen/Ingebrigtsen) Omnibus environment, natural resources, and tourism policy and finance bill meets at 9:00 AM Sat. 5/8/2021. House has the gavel #mnleg 1/2 pic.twitter.com/K5tHMrlNWf
— Sally Jo Sorensen (@sallyjos) May 8, 2021
The new editorial
At the Star Tribune, the Editorial Board weighs in on Grand Diva Sen Inge's negotiating performance art in No need for 'or-else' legislative demands in Minnesota:
A powerful state Senate Republican chairman has issued a budget threat that could be felt across Minnesota, with particular repercussions for greater Minnesota.
Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen, who leads the environmental and natural resources committee, has said that unless Democrats drop a proposed clean car emis-sions rule adopted in 15 other states, there will be no funding for state parks, the Minnesota Zoo, the Department of Natural Resources and other environmental functions. That could mean, among other things, closure of state parks by July and no ability to get fishing licenses, which are issued by the DNR.
The new emissions rule, brought forward by the state Pollution Control Agency, would require auto manufacturers to increase the number of electric vehicles headed to Minnesota. It would, finally, give Minnesota drivers who want electric or hybrid vehicles more options than they have now.
Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka told an editorial writer that a state shutdown "is not a caucus position" but then added, "We have passionate chairs who really believe in issues they're trying to get. I support the positions they want to get. What [Ingebrigtsen] is trying to accomplish is important."
There already is already a substantial gap between the House and Senate environmental proposals. The DFL House's $371 million bill would move toward addressing climate change, reducing pollution and fighting chronic wasting disease and invasive species. It would include new regulations on perfluoroalkyl substances in food packaging, prohibit turtle harvesting and create environmental justice areas.
The Republican Senate's skinnier $317 million bill would prioritize recycling and waste management, support groundwater preservation, and emphasize funding for the state parks, trails and the tourism industry while also targeting invasive species. It also would strip the Pollution Control Agency of its ability to enact clean car rules, forcing the agency to go through the Legislature, where Republicans have pledged to block them.
There are worthy goals in both bills, and the more than $50 million gap between them will be hard enough to close without "or else" demands. Greater Minnesota's economy, in particular, is in a fragile place. It needs those nearly 10 million visitors a year who flow through state parks. Nearly 20% of those visitors come from other states and countries. Uncertainty about parks funding could well result in changed plans for some of them.
The Minnesota Automobile Dealers Association already tried to sue in federal court over the MPCA's authority to issue such a rule and failed, with the court dismissing the suit in February. The rule itself should not be this controversial. Transportation is now the top source of greenhouse gas emissions in this state. The proposed rule is not, as Gazelka and Ingebrigtsen have portrayed it, a California plan.
Clean car emissions rules have also been adopted in Washington, Oregon, Colorado, Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Connecticut, Maryland, Delaware and the District of Columbia. New Mexico has devised its own clean car standard, and Nevada is developing its new standard through, yes, rule-making.
Interestingly, Virginia adopted its rule with the full support of the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association. In an interview with Bloomberg Law, that association's president, Don Hall, said his group was in favor of more electric vehicle inventory but that distribution was lagging. He described dealers' support of the new rule as "unprecedented," adding that it was "better to get on that electric train and be a part of the future than to dig our heels in and say no, no, no, people don't want these cars."
That is a very sensible approach.
We direct readers to two news items in the Star Tribune: Greg Stanley's Minnesota 'clean cars' rules may move forward, administrative law judge says and Briana Bierschbach and Jessie Van Berkel's Minnesota leaders miss their own deadline for budget framework.
Chair Rick Hansen, DFL-S. St. Paul, has wanted to get the job done. Chair Bill Ingebrigtsen should savor the lutefisk booya and stay in the meeting.
Photo: "Fencing remains around the Minnesota State Capitol, as one week remains for the Legislature to compromise on a roughly $52 billion state budget and finish the regular legislative session." Photo by Glen Stubbe, Star Tribune.
Related posts:
- OAH judge rules in favor of MN Clean Car Rules; @sen_inge quickly adjourns conference committee
- Enviro Conference Committee: in no-drama move, House releases offer hours before meeting
- In the spirit of compromise, Sen. Ingebrigtsen denies shutdown strategy, makes offer, takes Senate members, logs out and goes home
- New low for #mnleg: Senate Republicans to shut down parks, Zoo & more over emission rules
- [VIDEO] Watch omnibus environment bill conference committee
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