[{"_1":2,"_112":-5,"_113":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6115145,"mediaKeyId","2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a","parentId",2739760,"title","Local lawmakers, regulators outline bills affecting technical colleges, carbon storage and road-impact funds","audioSeconds",987,"startMs",9123000,"endMs",10110000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a&start=9123&end=10110","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a/thumbnail_9123000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6115145/Utah/Local-lawmakers-regulators-outline-bills-affecting-technical-colleges-carbon-storage-and-road-impact-funds","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6115145-71cca4a628e831c2e1577346443bf15c/orig.mp4?Expires=1770412870&Signature=mAAVpmo-WB6Gv2TtMTvfMq2ksS~vnRLBgJ2aXaA7Xiy4v30xHCS7Wujw1fBvCqD8P2RmjPlUFv9EyBN~-qAvHRT8beipCk9GVh1GFROy~rtgNXHamk~kDlwuxKEXELoNoGrFu7svWblSY1qtf2pt3kn-9ryfBQ5CQvDgwqyBZzMYTPRDoBE2sWlSDLLUPDRNxGbK7vUO~Ky1sYnwmvxDg8ggmtOUpxQ8ByCDC~Y4GzPyOq-hOVnKh4S42nNYacxGgnJo4aPQC~34d3nLleRCRQaYoCqnqlkOMQ3C6FVY5P0OgEulmqcp8I6a7UcA-7LIu3hqzJgEbQxoCpqk35ncqg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Uintah Basin Revitalization Fund Board","date","2025-03-23T00:05:47.843Z","article","Representative Christine Watkins and Senator Kevin Winterton addressed the Uinta Basin Collaborative and summarized 2025 legislation and related rulemaking that affect technical colleges, carbon storage regulation and local road-impact funding.

Watkins said lawmakers amended statute to let technical colleges complete planning and design work before seeking legislative approval for capital projects and to address an identified funding inequity for rural technical college students who often remain in high school while participating in technical programs. \"We changed that so that they could plan and get drawings and get everything ready for it before they come to the legislature,\" Watkins said.

Watkins also described geologic carbon storage amendments and a statutory route for the Division of Oil, Gas and Mining to obtain state primacy for Class VI carbon injection permitting. She said the new law provides the board authority to impose civil and criminal penalties required by EPA for primacy. She referenced prior direction in 2022 (House Bill 244) and said a 2025 follow-on bill (House Bill 352) helped complete the primacy pathway.

For local infrastructure funding, Watkins described a three-year local road-impact severance surcharge: \"So it's 5¢ a barrel of oil or, 5¢ or a quarter cent on natural gas,\" she said. She said counties must justify road spending at the end of the three years and that the program is time-limited.

Senator Winterton and other speakers also described bills dealing with mineral-rights valuation when state land or rights-of-way are acquired, and legislation intended to encourage advanced electric-transmission technologies.

Natasha Baliff, the division\u000027s legislative and policy coordinator, updated the group on rulemaking. She said the division finalized a recycling-facilities rule effective Feb. 26 and is transferring permit work to the Division of Waste Management and Radiation Control. Baliff said the division had posted draft bonding rule language and that the Utah Petroleum Association planned to present edits; she said a Class VI carbon-sequestration rule was being finalized for formal board consideration in May and noted a separate rulemaking for deep brine wells under House Bill 478.

Ending: Organizers said they would continue to circulate legislative and rulemaking updates to stakeholders and noted additional county and collaborative meetings scheduled through the year.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Uinta Basin Collaborative March 2025","oneSentenceSummary","Representative Christine Watkins and Senator Kevin Winterton briefed the Uinta Basin Collaborative on 2025 legislation affecting technical-college planning and funding, geologic carbon-storage authority, and a three-year severance surcharge to fund local road impacts.","taxTitle","Uintah Basin Revitalization Fund Board, Boards and Commissions, Organizations, Utah Executive Branch, Utah","taxId",66171,"location","Utah","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6115150,"Uinta Basin Technical College outlines expanded training, Custom Fit support and Workforce Promise",2129,6172000,8301000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a&start=6172&end=8301","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a/thumbnail_6172000.jpg","/articles/6115150/Utah/Uinta-Basin-Technical-College-outlines-expanded-training-Custom-Fit-support-and-Workforce-Promise","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6115150-949f32b91d0b60f2d2a47b81dcf0041b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770414606&Signature=Tu2xoghqCtUtpLvRopN5DuLDF3P0UOv5qgNFHanRan-1bAwYD9f-qrEqQp4oPEbROOOaNf59UO8Zw19NKVID~ix~mH8qxB-wJS-M~RjxWOuwU8LIECU5pSNZzghNtR3L7nvN~J4e1MkfsQ2bSyndeQjMMprufCp1zmVZTPNpX91LtOKSZRwyxkv7r5e0IGdmw00y14~xyHREqvq8DdEYVwMCzNa48vabmk9Yc6jmqj9xK7NYPWgGSvo6uI70OlL5LNfzPoXO5TooW2a7ppvwCqC9xQqySIuLEn6JKKbgOZO3OdB35vOv1bqHGCPARlQK79wyfe8Ebi02rliAKCF2DQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Heather Lowry and UBTech colleagues presented the college’s workforce and training offerings to attendees at the Uinta Basin Collaborative meeting in Duchesne County, highlighting expanded CDL, energy-services and soft-skills programming and state-supported employer training subsidies.

Beau Dalton and Seth Taylor described the college\u000027s commercial driver\u000027s license (CDL) and energy-related courses. Dalton said the CDL day program runs about six weeks and the night program about nine weeks; students are expected to hold a commercial learner\u000027s permit on entry. The courses pair driving instruction with safety certifications such as first aid/CPR, H2S, SafeLand (Veriforce) and hazardous-materials (hazmat) endorsements to prepare students for oil-and-gas and transport jobs.

Seth Taylor described additional energy and operator training: tower and high-voltage programs, lease-operator (pumper) short courses, well-control and drilling supervisor training, and other industry-focused certifications. Brandt Munson and others added that UBTech offers construction, diesel, auto, welding and IT programs both day and night to meet employer scheduling needs.

Lisa Labrum described Custom Fit, the statewide employer training reimbursement program administered through technical colleges. \"All Utah paying tax paying businesses can qualify for it,\" Labrum said, and she explained the application and reimbursement process. She gave an example of a $5,600 employer training expense with a $2,200 reimbursement under the program and noted regional typical reimbursement levels (Labrum said UBTech often uses a 40% support level for employers in the basin).

Lowry described a Workforce Promise that bundles eight short “badges” (oral and written communication, leadership, digital technology, professionalism and work ethic, teamwork and inclusion, critical thinking and problem solving, and career management). \"If they complete all 8 badges, then we've made a promise to them that they will not have to pay for this course,\" Lowry said; employers that hire graduates who still need remediation are invited to send those employees back for follow-up at no charge under the promise.

Ending: College staff invited local employers to sponsor scholarships, to use Custom Fit for incumbent-worker training, and to recruit program graduates; they also promoted an April fine-art auction and a September golf tournament to benefit UBTech scholarships.","Uinta Basin Technical College staff described new and existing workforce programs — CDL classes, energy services, welding, electrical and a Workforce Promise of soft‑skills badges — and described Custom Fit reimbursement options for local businesses.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6115155,"Utah air-quality officials say EPA rejected second attainment extension, moving Uinta Basin to moderate nonattainment",749,3117000,3866000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a&start=3117&end=3866","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a/thumbnail_3117000.jpg","/articles/6115155/Utah/Utah-air-quality-officials-say-EPA-rejected-second-attainment-extension-moving-Uinta-Basin-to-moderate-nonattainment","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6115155-02db7c03c7ec45d17d16dfb4dc603be8/orig.mp4?Expires=1770413493&Signature=KCnMF07WMt8HO8~yzBOSej8yI~X12~I2IYGyIV~hYfS6mavbgBAZHujx8N6WNwkQqWtWXZ2l9iYFuTTXPFYAc7~7d2fJN5nWLT82FJh1NT3HwGZwNvKD7~NgbKXqf4H~sBaEtvInfP7ZYAQzi4kRF8bKB~MuRqof3wiYwbGcCxk-~6vgDx5y7B5-z1SAwidmhW53qIyqOW6bmjo0tMapttTe10agMKoNcFood0Cq90KR62hOKv2s9p~gyxkWb1VPnAIvYfoy02faQO9TzER9kr~n7Belm24xi4vq1xc~~KmAOYcYSdJbdNOvj-XvT~q-COgNthbXGyOjbiR8mpDPpQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Sheila Vance, air-quality program staff with the Utah Division of Air Quality, updated the Uinta Basin Collaborative on the basin’s ozone monitoring and regulatory status, saying that U.S. Environmental Protection Agency action removed a previously granted attainment extension and elevated the basin’s classification to moderate nonattainment.

Vance said the state and Duchesne County have filed a request for reconsideration and a stay of EPA’s decision and were awaiting a judicial ruling. She said the division paused active work on a moderate State Implementation Plan (SIP) while EPA reconsiders the decision.

Vance explained the regulatory metrics used to measure ozone: regulators use a monitor’s fourth-highest daily 8-hour ozone value and a three-year average of that “fourth high” (the design value) to determine attainment against the 70 parts-per-billion standard. \"We were bumped up to a moderate non attainment,\" Vance said, describing EPA’s final action.

Utah State University researcher Seth Lyman, facilitator of the Uinta Basin Ozone Working Group, reviewed monitoring data from the recent winter. He said the basin did not record an 8-hour average exceedance of the 70 ppb standard during the most recent winter but that some research monitors and certain sites saw late-January increases that approached the standard. \"We didn't go over the standard,\" Lyman said of the winter information, noting how a single high year can raise the three-year design value.

Vance also discussed EPA’s 2024 oil-and-gas methane rulemaking. She said federal rules for new and recently modified sources took effect in May 2024, and EPA also required states to address existing sources; states must develop plans that meet EPA guidelines. Vance said the division was preparing draft rules and anticipates presenting proposed regulations to the state board, with a target to have required material to EPA by 2026, but that timing could shift while federal reconsideration and related litigation proceed.

Meeting participants asked whether changes in federal leadership could affect ozone standards; Vance noted the EPA periodically reconsiders standards (the ozone review cycle noted as 2025 in the discussion) and that the agency had many regulatory reviews underway.

Ending: Vance said regulators would continue to share updates and that the division would await legal outcomes before resuming certain rulemaking steps.","Utah Division of Air Quality staff told the Uinta Basin Collaborative that EPA declined to grant a second attainment extension for ozone, moving much of the basin to moderate nonattainment; the division and county filed for reconsideration and a stay while related methane rules and state plans are developed.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6115161,"Foundation describes loans to bring LPG to Kenyan and Ghanaian households",1442,1414000,2856000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a&start=1414&end=2856","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2739760-0e24d6045351f8adbee1d7b9eced0b8a/thumbnail_1414000.jpg","/articles/6115161/Utah/Foundation-describes-loans-to-bring-LPG-to-Kenyan-and-Ghanaian-households","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6115161-47a61e2cff09fe09989eeea8db28703c/orig.mp4?Expires=1770413647&Signature=Fqt2Jm9tuyQxpQ0dSelRB9iLI8lQF46wUX2CoKFrVEegKjuPPJ9E8FYciqAfp1--QvxHw-dTfhQK-TWB8in-KGERNqBHfIIs5JyAnjrktGKhSKA~BTk3X5y3wya~qH4fCtX2yOhr9pdEGaTHX9IcwV6ExLNO33fD4VmsZmqYbxCwxkE27xTLkmm83HjZq1gAcogKkwCfNHMORrUm4vt9aiQJwysiZEqgSKJeKjTioMUCIMn8jJt9JjWniDSFdtkLAYv4kSUnr~PdUH49H0PpCfAqTLZH1ZziUJhO2~1QAvJICccuieTTngehR3k9oTBG9zaU5cXEGx1JDHt50VTU6w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Anne Hyer, representing the Bettering Human Life Foundation, told attendees at the Uinta Basin Collaborative meeting in Duchesne County that the foundation is using low-interest loans to help local businesses distribute liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, in Kenya and Ghana.

The foundation — launched by Liberty Energy and now about a year old, Hyer said — has focused on the “energy poverty” chapter of its work by financing entrepreneurs who will bring cylinders, distribution cages and payback plans to rural communities. Hyer said the foundation has disbursed its tenth loan in Kenya and Ghana as of the week before the meeting.

“2,100,000,000 people around the world who still cook every single meal as if they're camping,” Hyer said, describing the scale of household reliance on firewood, charcoal or dung for cooking. She said about 20% of Kenya’s population now uses LPG, primarily in the capital, and that the foundation is addressing two main local barriers: upfront affordability and last-mile accessibility.

Hyer described a typical intervention: a 4% interest loan to a Kenyan entrepreneur identified as Ben, owner of a business called Mama Gas, to expand cylinder exchange points outside Nairobi. Under the arrangement, Ben will offer households the option to buy a cylinder and burner up front and repay over time — Hyer said loan terms permitted repayment over 36 months — and will set up local refill or exchange locations to reduce travel distances for rural users.

Hyer also described loans to other entrepreneurs to build exchange cages and to convert institutional kitchens. She said one project in Ghana used loan funding to convert schools from wood to bulk LPG for student meal preparation. The foundation’s approach, Hyer said, is market-based rather than grant-driven: “We are providing capital in the form of low interest loans,” she said.

Hyer and her colleagues cited several technical details they say underpin the program’s climate and health rationale: the foundation’s materials note that a 6-kilogram LPG cylinder displaces roughly 60 kilograms of wood, and that charcoal production has a roughly 1:8 wood-to-charcoal ratio. Hyer told the meeting that indoor air pollution from open-fire cooking is an established cause of premature death and contributes to broader public-health burdens in low- and middle-income countries.

Participants at the meeting asked about emissions and greenhouse-gas impacts. Hyer said fuel switching to LPG reduces local deforestation and indoor smoke exposure and that the program works to expand supply infrastructure so demand growth can be sustained.

The foundation’s stated next steps include scaling distribution finance for entrepreneurs, enabling installment repayment for households, and supporting conversions of institutional kitchens. Hyer asked local attendees to help spread awareness of the problem of household energy poverty.

Ending: Hyer closed by inviting collaboration and by asking attendees to help amplify the foundation’s message; meeting moderators then moved the agenda to regional air-quality topics.","Anne Hyer of the Bettering Human Life Foundation told Uinta Basin meeting attendees that the group is financing local entrepreneurs with low-interest loans to expand liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) access and credit plans for households and schools in Kenya and Ghana.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Local lawmakers, regulators outline bills affecting technical colleges, carbon storage and road-impact funds

Uinta Basin Technical College outlines expanded training, Custom Fit support and Workforce Promise

Utah air-quality officials say EPA rejected second attainment extension, moving Uinta Basin to moderate nonattainment

Foundation describes loans to bring LPG to Kenyan and Ghanaian households