Senate OKs Energy Bill; House Fight Looms
WASHINGTON - June 28
The Senate overwhelmingly approved energy legislation embraced by both Republicans and Democrats Tuesday, but hard bargaining looms with House GOP leaders who favor measures more favorable to industry.
But lawmakers acknowledged that the measure would do little, if anything, in
the short run to stem the soaring cost of energy including oil that this week
has eclipsed $60 a barrel and gasoline that last week averaged $2.22 a gallon at
the pump, according to the Energy Department.
"We still have many hurdles to overcome," said Sen. Jeff Bingaman,
D-N.M., who led the Democrats in fashioning the massive bill. The bill passed by
the House in April differs sharply from the Senate legislation over oil
production and the degree of emphasis on conservation.
Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., said the Senate bill would usher in "a new
policy for the United States ... that energy should be clean, renewable and that
we have conservation" to curtail energy demand. He said it would help
assure a broad mix of energy sources in the future from nuclear power to wind
energy.
But the Senate deliberately skirted some of the most contentious energy
issues facing Congress.
The legislation says nothing about drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife
Refuge in Alaska, although that's a top priority of the Bush administration. The
House-passed bill calls for developing the refuge and assumes $2.6 billion over
10 years in federal revenue from refuge oil lease sales.
And unlike the House bill, it is silent on giving aid to larger oil companies
and refiners who want protection against environmental lawsuits because one of
their products, the gasoline additive MTBE, has contaminated drinking water in
hundreds of communities. House leaders have insisted an MTBE waiver be part of
energy legislation.
Domenici said the House should work out a compromise acceptable to the Senate
on the MTBE issue. There have been discussions among House Republicans to
establish a federal fund for MTBE cleanup along with liability protection for
the manufactures.
President Bush praised the Senate for passing the measure, saying it would
help U.S. economic growth by addressing the causes of high energy prices and the
nation's dependence on foreign supplies of energy. "I urge the House and
Senate to resolve their differences quickly and get a good bill to my desk
before the August recess," he said.
Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman also applauded passage of the Senate bill and
said he was prepared to try to help resolve the MTBE issue. But for now, he
said, he views it as an issue to be resolved by the lawmakers. "We would
hope there could be a compromise that could be agreed upon," said Bodman,
although adding he didn't know what the solution might be.
The Senate twice before in the last four years has passed energy legislation
only to see the effort fall apart without a final agreement. Both GOP and
Democratic lawmakers predicted that if a compromise is to be reached with the
House and also be acceptable to the Senate, it will require in the close
involvement of the White House.
Bush has called on Congress to give him an energy bill by August. Most
senators believe that is unrealistic, given the expected difficult discussions
still ahead.
More environmentally friendly than the energy bill passed by the House in
April, the Senate measure would funnel 40 percent of some $18 billion in tax
breaks over 10 years to boost renewable energy sources such as wind and biomass.
The Senate bill also would try to reduce energy consumption through tax
incentives for efficient appliances and homes and for gas-electric hybrid cars.
Other fights are expected with the House over how much corn-based ethanol
refiners would have to use - 8 billion gallons a year in the Senate version vs.
5 billion under the House bill - and whether utilities should have to produce at
least 10 percent of their electricity from wind, solar or other renewable energy
sources.
The cost of the Senate package also is expected to be an issue.
It would cost $16 billion over 10 years, according to a preliminary analysis
by the Congressional Budget Office, compared to about $8 billion for the House
bill. The White House wanted a $6.7 billion price tag. The House version is
somewhat misleading, however, since it relies on $2.6 billion in revenue, not
yet certain to be approved, from oil leases in the Alaska wildfire refuge.
"It's going to be a tough conference (with the House)," said
Domenici, who as the bill's floor leader had seen months of tough negotiations
go for naught two years ago.
The Senate also passed energy legislation in 2002, when Democrats were in the
majority, but saw efforts to get a compromise with the House evaporate when
Republicans regained their majority in the Senate.
The Senate bill, cobbled together during months of behind-the-scenes
discussions and two weeks of floor debate, was viewed by its supporters as an
attempt to expand and diversify the country's energy supply and reduce its
reliance on oil.
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On the Net:
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee: http://energy.senate.gov/public
White House Council of Environmental Quality: http://www.whitehouse.gov/ceq/index.html
For far more extensive news on the energy/power
visit: http://www.energycentral.com
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