The House Energy, Environment & Natural Resources Committee on Feb. 22 adopted the committee substitute for House Bill 403, a measure that revises how oil-and-gas fund revenues are distributed and used.

Sponsor Representative Murphy said the substitute changes the distribution formula so that, in the first year, distributions are limited to 50 percent of the designated funding, increasing to 75 percent in the second year and 100 percent thereafter. "The changes begin on the second page. Page 2, beginning at line 7 through line 15, changes the distribution formula. This is largely in response to the vice chair's comments and concerns," Murphy said.

The substitute also changes statutory language about agency discretion (replacing certain "shall" mandates with more permissive language) and removes a previously proposed energy-education allocation on page 4, lines 17–18. Murphy told the committee the stylistic edits and the single deletion were intended to conform the bill's text to the committee's policy direction.

Committee discussion was limited; members moved to adopt the substitute and recommend that the original bill not pass and the committee substitute do pass. The committee clerk conducted a roll call that recorded unanimous support. The chair announced the committee's action as a do-pass recommendation with a recorded vote of 10 yes, 0 no.

Because the committee took public comment on an earlier version of the bill at a prior meeting, no new public testimony was taken on the substitute at this session. The sponsor and the committee described the substitute as intended to give the implementing division time to "ramp up" by phasing distributions over three years.

The committee's approval sends the committee substitute for House Bill 403 to the next stage in the House process.