Anchorage Daily News

JUNEAU -- Gov. Sarah Palin formally asked lawmakers Monday to pay for an $8 million study of the idea of laying a small pipeline to bring North Slope gas to the Anchorage area.

But key lawmakers said they're not inclined to give the governor the money.

"The gut reaction is no," said Rep. Kevin Meyer, R-Anchorage.

Rep. Mike Chenault, R-Nikiski, said the Legislature could pay for a study, but it might want to retain control of the study itself rather than handing the money to the governor's office. An independent study arranged through the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee, which often hires expert consultants, might be the best way to get an "unbiased" result, he said.

"In my mind, the governor has a lot on her plate," Chenault said, referring to the administration's efforts to try to land a much larger pipeline to carry gas out of state.

Meyer and Chenault are the co-chairman of the powerful House Finance Committee, to which the Palin administration sent its funding request for study of a "bullet line."

A bullet line would be smaller, less expensive and possibly could be built much sooner than the big pipeline TransCanada Corp. and others have proposed. It would be a sidekick to the mainline -- a way to bring North Slope gas to Fairbanks and to Southcentral Alaska, where supplies of Cook Inlet gas are running out.

But even this smaller gas pipeline could be very expensive at $3 billion or more, state officials have said.

Palin announced Friday she would ask lawmakers to fund a feasibility study on the bullet line.

The announcement came after a contentious week that saw Palin veto some projects lawmakers wanted, and legislators question her attention to supplying gas for local homes and businesses while pursuing a huge pipe to ship gas Outside.

The lawmakers asked the governor to add local gas supply to the agenda of the June 3 special session, when the administration might seek approval to award a license and $500 million subsidy to Trans Canada.

But Palin refused.

Then she announced she would request funding for the bullet line study.

Some lawmakers said Monday the governor's request seemed designed to counter criticism, and the questioned whether an $8 million study is really necessary.

"Eight million dollars is a lot of money," said Anchorage Republican Rep. Ralph Samuels, who chairs the Legislative Budget and Audit Committee.

The state could take advantage of studies either already completed or under way on piping gas to locals, Samuels said. Two examples are studies by Enstar Natural Gas Co., the Anchorage gas utility, and the Alaska Natural Gas Development Authority, a state agency, he said.

"I don't know that we need to reinvent the wheel here," added House Speaker John Harris, R-Valdez.

Harris said he believes the authority has $5 million available in its budget if a bullet line study is needed.

The funding request the Palin administration sent Monday said the feasibility study on a bullet line would be finished in the last half of 2009, and private engineering firms would do most of the work.

Funding, if granted, would be included in the state capital budget, which House members are now considering with six days left in the session before adjournment.

Palin spokeswoman Sharon Leighow said the governor's office had no immediate comment on the possibility of funding being denied to the governor.

Find Wesley Loy online at adn.com/contact/wloy or call him in Juneau at 1-907-586-1531.

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