HELENA -- A bill pitched as a catalyst for future energy development in Montana won endorsement Thursday from the Montana House, but not without criticism that it needlessly expands government.

House members voted 70-30 in favor of House Bill 114, one of the first significant energy bills of the session to face a floor vote in the House or Senate.

It would create a five-member state board to help coordinate new energy pipelines and power lines, both within and outside Montana.

Supporters of the bill said without new pipelines or power lines to transport products outside the state, much of the hoped-for development of oil, gas, coal, wind and other energy won't occur.

"It's time to put people in my neck of the woods to work," said Rep. Alan Olson, R-Roundup, the sponsor of the bill. "And this is a bill that (will do that)."

The measure now goes to the House Appropriations Committee, which will decide whether the $250,000 cost of the board fits into the state budget for the next two years.

Opponents of the bill -- primarily Democrats -- argued that a state board isn't needed to foster pipeline and power line construction. It's up to the private sector to coordinate and build the lines, they said.

Rep. Brady Wiseman, D-Bozeman, also warned that if it becomes easier to move Montana-produced power to out-of-state markets, Montana consumers will be forced to compete with fast-growing areas in the West for electricity.

"That's a guarantee that our power rates will go up," he said.

But supporters said they saw no problem with the government helping coordinate an expensive, complex infrastructure that's needed if Montana hopes to boost energy development.

Rep. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, said the state wouldn't rebuild the state Capitol or any other major structure without a plan, and that a plan is needed to coordinate power lines and pipelines.

State government has no "clearinghouse" or agency to do that job, and the proposed Electrical Transmission and Pipeline Authority would fill that void, he said.

"I don't want to see transmission lines haphazardly crossing the state," Jones said. "There does need to be a planning agency."

Under HB114, the governor would appoint the five members of the "authority," or board. The board could hire its own staff and contract out for services.

The original bill budgeted up to $350,000 for the board during the next two years, but the full House voted 51-49 Thursday to amend that amount to $250,000.

The board has the power to help investigate, plan and establish routes for oil-and-gas pipelines and power lines and take part in regional planning groups. It cannot condemn property to be used as routes for pipelines and power lines.

"The development of Montana's energy resources is essential to a healthy economy," Olson said. "The time for talk has got to stop. It's time to act."