2-07 House Committee Lay Over Unamended

• Title: 2-07 House Committee Lay Over Unamended
• IBCC - Doc Type: Legislation

2-07 House Committee Lay Over Unamended

Page 47 of 49

The issues that you've heard today presented to you may be new to
you 'cause you haven't spent a lot of time thinking about this bill
probably until today, but they're certainly not new to us, myself
and Russell George and his able staff have been meeting with these
same stakeholders and going through these fundamental important
questions.

You've heard the same issues over and over again. Who sits at the
table? What is the nature, force and scope of these agreements?
Does the legislature need a say in the end? What about the
Governor? All of these range of issues are issues that we've been
working through in attempt to accommodate the various input that
we've received.

I don't know what the cherished timeline is, but in terms of taking
action on the bill, but when we get to the point where we are going
to take action on the bill, we're going to have a strike below
amendment that we think and we'll communicate with you
beforehand hopefully get some of your feedback that gets at many
of these core issues that have been presented to you today.
Hopefully to the liking of at least the majority of the members of
this committee and hopefully a broader majority than that because
there is so much support for the concept, as you've heard. We've
just got to make the stmcture, the process, the mechanics work and
we think we can do that.

The over arch and the big picture issue that everybody's talking
about this year rightly is the budget and what is the proper
resolution of that will or won't be. I would submit that with the
exception of that issue that this position of this water issue is the
second most important issue. The decisions that we make or don't
make in the next couple of years in this building will have an
enduring impact on this state and its quality of life for the next ten,
25, 50, even 75 years. Just as the decisions of Delph Carpenter's
and his contemporaries really frame our quality of life today.

So I hope that the committee and I know that the committee will
work in good faith to flush out the challenges and issues associated
with this legislation so that we can hopefully move it forward this
year and begin the process of finding some solutions to this
important issue. Thank you committee, thank you Madam
Chairman for your time.

Madam Chair: Representative Hoppe.

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