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OVERNIGHT ENERGY: Keystone pipeline takes center stage
State of play: House Republicans will step up their attacks Friday on the Obama administration’s decision to delay action on the proposed Keystone XL oil sands pipeline until after the 2012 elections.
A House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on the proposed Alberta-to-Texas pipeline will cap several days of attacks on both sides of Capitol Hill. (See our coverage here, here, here and here.)
Their support runs counter to green groups that bitterly oppose the pipeline, which would expand imports from Alberta’s massive oil sands projects.
The witness testimony is available here.
The hearing comes two days after dozens of Senate Republicans — including GOP leadership — introduced a new bill to require a State Department permitting decision within 60 days.
The Senate bill faces an uphill battle but has the support of powerful business groups including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the American Petroleum Institute.
“The Administration’s recent decision to put off a decision on the permit delays the project’s benefits for American job seekers, the economy, and domestic energy security,” the Chamber said in a letter to senators Thursday.
The Senate plan is currently a GOP affair, but conservative Democrats Mary Landrieu (D-La.) and Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) told The Hill Thursday that they will consider signing on.
House Republicans are pressing their own bill to speed up action on the project. Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) is rolling out legislation this week that would put the permitting decision in the hands of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
NEWS BITES:
Emanuel says he would testify on Solyndra
Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s former chief of staff, said Thursday that he would testify on Solyndra if invited by Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, according to NBC Chicago.
Here’s the story.
Republicans on the committee have alleged that Emanuel, now mayor of Chicago, pushed the $535 million Solyndra loan guarantee. Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), a top Republican on the committee, said this week that he expects the committee will call Emanuel to testify. Read more on Barton's comments here.
EPA unveiling revisions to Boiler MACT Friday
The Environmental Protection Agency is planning to unveil proposed revisions Friday to its air pollution standards for industrial boilers.
The regulations have come under fire from industry groups, Republicans and some centrist Democrats, who argue that the rules will impose a massive burden on the economy. The House voted in October to delay the implementation of the rules.
EPA issued revised final regulations for boilers and solid waste incinerators in February under a court-ordered deadline. The final rules were more lenient than draft standards issued by the agency last year, which industry groups had called unworkable.
Since the final rules differed so much from the draft rules, EPA opened up a reconsideration process on the revised final standards.
The agency is set to unveil proposed revisions to the regulations Friday.
EPA says the regulations, which would require that boilers and incinerators install “maximum achievable control technology” to reduce harmful emissions, will prevent thousands of deaths and heart attacks.
Landrieu sees progress on BP spill penalties bill
Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) sees progress toward a vote this year on bipartisan legislation that would steer 80 percent of the penalty money from last year's BP oil spill to Gulf Coast states.
“The co-sponsors are talking one-on-one with senators right now to build enough support to get a vote before Christmas, and we are getting very good support. Slow and steady,” Landrieu, a lead sponsor of the bill, told The Hill in the Capitol Thursday.
“We are not there yet but we think we can get enough of our colleagues to support this idea,” she said. Landrieu introduced the bill with a bipartisan group of Gulf state lawmakers, and it cleared the Environment and Public Works Committee in September.
The BP oil spill is expected to lead to billions of dollars in Clean Water Act penalties.
Energy Department awards $12 million for rooftop solar
The Energy Department announced Thursday that it is doling out $12 million to support the deployment of residential rooftop solar power.
The money is going to teams that compete in the department’s Rooftop Solar Challenge, which aims to “spur solar power deployment by cutting red tape — streamlining and standardizing permitting, zoning, metering, and connection processes — and improving finance options to reduce barriers and lower costs for residential and small commercial rooftop solar systems.”
Here’s Energy Secretary Steven Chu: “Through this competition, the Energy Department is helping to unleash America’s solar potential by investing in projects that will make it faster, easier, and cheaper to finance and deploy solar power in communities across the country. These awards will reduce the cost homeowners and businesses pay to install solar energy systems, while at the same time saving money and time for local governments faced with tight budgets.”
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT...
Here's a quick roundup of Thursday's E2 stories:
— Republicans demand more Solyndra documents from the White House
— Poll: GOP divided as public belief in global warming ticks back up
— Rep. Ryan: Calculate the true cost of Energy Dept. loan guarantees
— Judicial Watch sues administration for Solyndra documents
— Energy defends air pollution regulations, says new rules won’t crash power grid
— Democrat berates Obama officials on Iran
— White House denies pipeline delay was political decision
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