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NCSL Testifies on State Environment Programs
Representative Joe Hackney, Speaker Pro Tem of the North Carolina House of Representatives and Chair of NCSL's Environment Committee, will testify on Wednesday, September 13, before the House Subcommittee on National Economic Growth, Natural Resources, and Regulatory Affairs. The hearing, entitled "Lessons from the Laboratories of Democracy: Environmental Innovation in the States," will provide NCSL an opportunity to provide members an overview of needed changes in federal law, regulation or policy to further enable states to implement programs to protect and enhance environmental quality. The hearing will also provide other state officials the opportunity to highlight innovative state programs. The testimony will be available on NCSL's web site following the hearing at www.ncsl.org/programs/press/2000/hackney.htm.

MTBE Bill Passes Senate Committee Despite Doubts
On September 7, the Senate Environment Committee passed the Federal Reformulate Fuels Act of 2000 (S. 2962), which would ban the use of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) as a gasoline additive. The committee's vote of 11-6 signaled potential difficulty for the bill to advance further. The chief sponsor, Sen. Robert Smith (R-New Hampshire), has indicated he will try to attach it to an appropriations bill. Senator Smith must also overcome the lack of companion legislation in the House. S. 2962 would ban the use of MTBE in four years, promote the use of ethanol and other alternative fuels over the next 10 years and delegate to the EPA broad authority to regulate fuel additives. Concerns have been raised about the federal tax exemption in TEA-21 on renewable fuels sources and its potential effects on The Highway Trust Fund-a loss of 54 cents on every gallon of renewable fuel sold. In addition, opponents of the legislation insist that the ban on MTBE and the jump to ethanol is hasty, citing that not enough research has been conducted on the long-term environmental effects. One alternative solution being offered is to continue monitoring the leakage of storage tanks while studying the effects of both ethanol and MTBE. When the bill hits the floor, Senator Inhofe (R-Oklahoma) intends to offer up amendments ensuring the bill does not create an ethanol mandate.

Land Conservation Bill
On Wednesday, September 6 the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) issued its cost estimate for HR 701, The Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA)-$1 billion in fiscal year 2002 and a total of $8.7 billion over four years. CARA was approved by the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee in late July. The bill would appropriate close to $3 billion annually to protect coastal areas, expand parks and preserve wildlife in all 50 states. The projects would be funded from royalty payments, currently pooled into the federal Treasury, drawn by offshore drilling on federal land. For more information on CBO's report, visit its web site at www.cbo.gov.