The
Chairperson announced that the Board was conducting this meeting to meet
with the representatives of the Department of Energy and other Affected
Units of Local Government (AULGs) to negotiate and decide the allocation
of Yucca Mountain Repository DOE funding among AULGs including the County
of Inyo, for the current federal fiscal year.
Inyo County Counsel provided a brief review of the Inyo County
Board of Supervisors’ authority to conduct this meeting and confirmed
that the meeting was being conducted in compliance with the State of
California Brown Act.
The
Board and the other representatives of the AULGs' discussed the proposed
levels of DOE funding to the various AULGs.
The discussion included the following: (a) the need for the
counties to reach agreement without DOE or Congressional intervention; (b)
that the allocation be agreed upon in order to not jeopardize the funding;
(c) the importance of transportation issues to certain counties; (d) the
opinion of those attending the Tonopah meeting that the counties with high
balances were threatening other AULGs’ funding; (e) Inyo County’s
close proximity to the site and the need to maintain funding for hydrology
studies and other Yucca Mountain Repository activities being performed by
Inyo County; (f) licensing application involvement and the potential
funding which may be required; (g) working towards a mutual agreement in
order to secure higher funding for all AULGs in the future; (h) discussion
on the County of Inyo’s allocated amounts for hydrology studies; (i) the
need for an understanding that because there is an approved work plan and
an established reserve account future funding levels for Inyo County
should not be compromised by the acceptance of a reduced amount this year;
and (j) the opinion by other small AULGs’ that Inyo County should reduce
its funding request in the spirit of cooperation.
Moved
by Supervisor Bilyeu and seconded by Supervisor Cash to accept $570,000 as
this year’s Inyo County AULG funding from the DOE for Yucca Mountain
Repository activities, as the amount to begin negotiations.
Motion
carried unanimously.
Reaction
from the remainder of the group was that the amount in this motion, might
create an impasse. The Board
and the other members of the group continued to discuss possible
alternatives to the $570,000 amount approved by the Inyo County Board of
Supervisors. The County of
Inyo ultimately accepted the amount of $535,000 with agreement of the
entire group to act together to influence future funding.
Moved
by Supervisor Cervantes and seconded by Supervisor Arcularius to revise
the amount of AULG funding to be accepted this year by Inyo County from
$570,000 to $535,000 and approve a 10 County AULG consensus letter to be
created by representatives of the 10 counties, seeking higher DOE funding
to the Affected Units of Government (AULGs) in the future. Motion
carried unanimously.
