Committee: Economic Affairs Interim Committee
Author: Pat Murdo
Posted on May 3, 2018
Rep. Ryan Lynch, appointed to the Economic Affairs Interim Committee (EAIC) in place of now Sen. Nate McConnell, won election to take former Rep. McConnell’s place as the committee’s vice presiding officer on April 26. As a senator, McConnell no longer could serve on the EAIC, which already has all senators’ seats filled. Rep. Lynch was chair of the committee in the 2015-2016 interim.
In other action at the April 26 meeting, members moved forward with two committee bills and possibly a third. One bill will undergo further refinement after the committee reviewed proposed changes to a liquor license auction bill, Senate Bill 5 from the 2017 special session. A newly requested committee bill would repeal the Rail Service Competition Council. Sen. Tom Facey, a legislative liaison to the RSCC, suggested that the governor or a department head could create a council if a need arises instead of having the council based in statute. The third possible bill relates to the committee’s approval of most recommendations listed in the Senate Joint Resolution 20 study of unemployment in high-poverty areas. The suggested policy is to revise awards of extra incentives under Big Sky Economic Development Trust Fund grants to encompass both high-unemployment and high-poverty areas.
In other action, the committee:
For more information on the April 26 meeting, visit the committee website, review the audio minutes at http://leg.mt.gov/css/Video-and-Audio/archives/av.asp, or contact committee staff. The committee’s next meeting will be July 9 in Room 137 of the Capitol in Helena.
Committee website: http://leg.mt.gov/eaic
Committee staff: Pat Murdo, pmurdo@mt.gov, or 406-444-3594