Environmental Quality Council to Launch Interim Work
The newly appointed Environmental Quality Council (EQC) will meet next week in Helena to elect a presiding officer and establish its work plan for the next several months.
The bipartisan council will meet in Room 172 of the State Capitol beginning at 9 a.m. on May 28 and 8:30 a.m. on May 29. The public is invited and will have a chance to make comments.
Among the topics expected to be addressed are water adjudication, changes to the state open-cut mining program, and removal of gray wolves from the federal endangered species list.
The council also will hear updates from state agencies that it oversees: the Departments of Environmental Quality; Fish, Wildlife and Parks; and Natural Resources and Conservation.
The EQC was created by the 1971 Montana Environmental Policy Act. The council helps the Legislature to develop natural resource and environmental policy by conducting studies on related issues and overseeing the state's natural resource programs. The council operates within the legislative branch of state government.
Legislative leaders have appointed the following people to serve on the EQC during the interim between the 2009 and 2011 sessions:
Brian R. Cebull, Billings
Diane Conradi, Whitefish
Rep. Sue Dickenson, D-Great Falls
Mary Fitzpatrick, Billings
Rep. Julie French, D-Scobey
Sen. Bradley Hamlett, D-Cascade
Sen. Jim Keane, D-Butte
Rep. Mike Milburn, R-Cascade
Jeff Pattison, Glasgow
Sen. Rick Ripley, R-Wolf Creek
Sen. Jim Shockley, R-Victor
Rep. Cary Smith, R-Billings
Sen. Mitch Tropila, D-Great Falls
Sen. Bruce Tutvedt, R-Kalispell
Rep. Chas Vincent, R-Libby
Rep. Franke Wilmer, D-Bozeman
The EQC is the only legislative committee that includes members of the public among its voting members. Mike Volesky will also serve on the council as a nonvoting representative of the Governor's Office.
For more information about the council, visit www.leg.mt.gov/eqc or contact Hope Stockwell, legislative research analyst, at 406-444-1640 or hstockwell@mt.gov.
