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<br />On the DNR side of the severance tax, there are two funds <br /> <br />that Senator Isgar referred to. One is the Operations Account. <br /> <br />One is the Perpetual Fund. <br /> <br />The Perpetual Fund has been sitting <br /> <br />unused by and large. <br /> <br />That's where we've loaned money for water <br /> <br />projects. <br /> <br />The Power and Water Conservation Board takes <br /> <br />recommendations and applications from water users throughout the <br /> <br />state. <br /> <br />That money is not being used to its potential simply <br /> <br />because, as Senator Isgar pointed out, there aren't sufficient <br /> <br />resources for these small communities, these ranchers and <br /> <br />farmers, these ditch companies, usually in the rural areas of <br /> <br />the state, to do the feasibility and the environmental impact <br /> <br />statements so that they can then have the go ahead to go out and <br /> <br />borrow money against the Perpetual Fund to build these projects. <br /> <br />I think that's a lot different than what Referendum A <br /> <br />sought to do. Referendum A sought to just create a bigger <br /> <br />portion of that Perpetual Fund, that still wouldn't have been <br /> <br />able to be accessed by these smaller communities that can't <br /> <br />afford to do that groundwork. <br /> <br />So, to answer your first question, I think Senator Isgar <br /> <br />already responded this. <br /> <br />I don't want to be too repetitive. But <br /> <br />to answer your first question of why don't these folks come down <br /> <br />for direct appropriations? I don't think that's the way we <br /> <br />should do business down here at the legislature, especially with <br /> <br />- 11 - <br />