AYES - 20

Altes(R); Baker, G.(R); Bledsoe(R); Bookout(D); Broadway(D); Crumbly(D); Glover(D); Hendren(R); Horn(D); Jeffress, G.(D); Jeffress, J.(D); Malone, P.(D); Miller(D); Pritchard(R); Smith, T.(D); Steele(D); Taylor(D); Whitaker(R); Wilkinson(D); Wyatt(D)

The Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission is the first stop for purveyors of the Fayetteville Shale yet it lacks the scientific expertise, communication skill and political will necessary to appropriately disclose potential environmental and health risks to the public. The increased authority given to the Oil and Gas Commission regarding the Fayetteville Shale has eroded the capacities of the Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Health to appropriately fulfill their duties.

The Oil and Gas Commission has become much more than a commission. It has grown into an agency. An unrecognized, undefined agency is a dangerous prospect for the people and its government. While the “agency” portion of the current commission should definitely be populated by a majority of people with oil and gas experience, the board portion is an entirely different matter. It should be as diverse as possible. It is a public, not professional, commission.

Many legislators have defended the Oil and Gas Commission by mentioning Director Lawrence Bengal by name and saying what a great job he is doing. It is either time to redefine his title (and those who assume his position in the future) as director of an agency governed by a board/commission or put the current Oil and Gas Commission under the jurisdiction of another agency through a restructuring process. Annual sessions will provide ample time for such an overhaul. Passage of hb1026 would have to be “undone” to achieve such a restructuring. Arkansas Interim Resolution 2007-004 was perhaps an abbreviated attempt to initiate such a process but it never made it out of committee.

In many states, like Pennsylvania and New York, the Oil and Gas Commission is a subsidiary of the State Environmental Protection Agency. Pennsylvania hired 36 Environmental Inspectors for the Marcellus Shale before drilling began.
Arkansas has approved funding for, but not hired, four inspectors for the Fayetteville shale and 3,000 wells have already been drilled. The AOGC website is written by and for oil industry people. It begs for more input from scientific, health, educational and communication professionals. If passed, this bill sends the message that Oil and Gas Exploration supersedes science, agriculture and human health in Arkansas.

Many Americans view the condition of baseball as a reflection of our overall society. When kids see athletes injecting steroids to insure statistical prowess, do they see our leaders doing the same thing by populating commissions with industry insiders? House Bill 1026 deserves much more consideration than it has been given.

Rejecting, or amending this bill is an opportunity to improve the game.