BusinessWeek reports that after a joint legislative hearing that included a critique of the proposed Pebble mine and state and mine officials, Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, and Rep. Bryce Edgmon, D-Dillingham, asked the Legislative Council for funding for a third-party review.

“Decisions concerning the Pebble prospect will have everlasting consequences,” the two wrote to Rep. John Harris, the Legislative Council chairman. “We must be sure we have given state agencies the guidance and tools they need to make the right determinations in this situation.”

But Harris said in an interview with BusinessWeek that there’s no money under the council’s purview appropriated for a study. Such a request would need to go through the legislative process, which is now in its money-crunching last weeks, he said. Assuming there is a reallocation of funds to support a study, Harris said the council -- if it were given oversight of the funds -- would still need to decide whether to move ahead with a study.