YUCCA MOUNTAIN: Backer in line to flex muscle

Feb 09 - Las Vegas Review - Journal

Rep. Joe Barton, R-Texas, is considered the front-runner to succeed Rep. Billy Tauzin, R-La., who announced late Tuesday he was stepping down from the chairmanship on Feb. 16 and won't seek re- election.

"This is a disaster for the state of Nevada," said Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev. "Joe Barton's name might as well be Joe Nuclear."

Barton, 54, heads the energy and air quality subcommittee. A proponent of fossil and nuclear energy development, he has advanced bills supporting the construction of a single, permanent repository for nuclear waste.

In 2002, Barton was the main House sponsor of the bill that overturned Gov. Kenny Guinn's veto of the Yucca Mountain Project. The bill cleared the way for Congress to ratify the mountain ridge, 100 miles northwest of Las Vegas, as the repository site.

The Capitol Hill newspaper Roll Call reported Wednesday that Tauzin has received an offer to become president of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturing Association.

Barton said in a statement that he is seeking the chairmanship and has discussed it with House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas.

Berkley said a Barton promotion would increase the clout of the nuclear power industry. She was unaware of any other candidates. "He did everything he could to promote Yucca Mountain as a repository. He will continue to lead the charge to bury nuclear waste in Nevada, except now he will have more power to do it."

Others said changes might be less noticeable. The 57-member energy committee is dominated by lawmakers who support development of nuclear power and other energy sources no matter who would be at the helm, some said.

"They've always been pro-Yucca. I don't see much changing," said Michele Boyd, legislative representative for the Public Citizen Critical Mass Energy and Environment Program, a group that opposes the repository.

Also, Boyd said the focus has evolved to how much money should be spent on the Yucca Mountain Project each year, a matter that is debated in other committees.

Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., said Yucca Mountain fights largely have shifted to the courts, although utilities could still try to get bills passed allowing early nuclear waste shipments to the site.

"We continue to watch those guys," Porter said. "Members of Congress represent their states, and their states want nuclear waste in Nevada."

Members on the Energy and Commerce Committee have broad responsibilities. The panel considers telecommunications matters, health care, consumer protection and product liability bills and environmental pollution in addition to energy development.

Brian O'Connell, an executive with the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners, said Barton will have much more on his plate than nuclear waste.

"You could argue he'll be able to pay less attention to any individual thing because he will be juggling a broader agenda," O'Connell said.