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OVERNIGHT ENERGY: House GOP to take on farm dust
State of play: House Republicans are set to take up legislation Thursday that blocks the Environmental Protection Agency from tightening farm dust regulations, a bill that the Obama administration calls unnecessary and argues could threaten clean-air protections.
Farm dust has become something of a rallying cry for Republicans in recent months, amid growing concerns among the GOP about EPA regulations and their effect on the economy, especially the agriculture sector.
But EPA has said over and over again that it has no plans to make existing regulations more stringent that govern coarse particulate matter from industrial and agricultural operations — often called farm dust.
The bill, which the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved last month, is expected to pass the House, but it faces major hurdles in the Senate.
On top of that, the White House threatened to veto the legislation Wednesday, arguing it would “create high levels of regulatory uncertainty regarding emission control requirements that have been in place for years.”
“Specifically, the bill's exclusion from the entire [Clean Air Act] of a new class of air pollutants called ‘nuisance dust’ (an imprecise and scientifically-undefined term) could be used to roll back existing public health protection limiting pollution from mining operations, industrial activities, and possibly other sources,” the White House said in a formal Statement of Administration Policy.
Read more about the veto threat here.
NEWS BITES:
BP to appeal oil spill violation notices
BP said Wednesday it plans to appeal a series of regulatory violation notices issued by the Interior Department stemming from last year’s massive oil spill, arguing the issues identified by federal regulators “played no causal role in the accident.”
The notices, which are a first step in collecting penalties from the company, allege that BP failed to conduct an accurate pressure integrity test on the well and neglected to halt drilling operations at the well amid indications of problems.
BSEE issued an initial set of violation notices in October to BP, Deepwater Horizon rig owner Transocean and Halliburton, which performed cement work on the well. The notices were based on a joint Interior Department-U.S. Coast Guard report that blamed the companies for the spill.
Wednesday’s notices were based on additional review of the evidence from the spill.
“The issues raised in today's INCs regarding drilling margins and related integrity testing played no causal role in the accident,” BP said in a statement Wednesday. “BP intends to appeal these INCs, as well as those issued several weeks ago.”
BP has 60 days to appeal the most recent round of violation notices, after which time BSEE will weigh imposing civil penalties on the company.
Senate panel to vote on controversial Interior nominee
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee is slated to vote Thursday on President Obama's nomination of Rebecca Wodder to serve as assistant secretary for Fish, Wildlife and Parks at the Interior Department.
Wodder, who used to head the group American Rivers, has come under fire from some lawmakers over past criticisms of hydraulic fracturing and other issues.
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee recently scuttled a planned vote on her nomination, and it has not yet been rescheduled.
Energy groups push for Dodd-Frank leeway
Energy trade groups are pushing lawmakers to support bills that ease Dodd-Frank financial reform rules that the groups say are hindering their ability to use derivatives markets to hedge against price risks.
The groups say the provisions — which toughen regulation of the huge, freewheeling derivatives trading markets — could unfairly create new costs and burdens for parties engaged in legitimate hedging.
“We have consistently supported the bi-partisan goals of the Dodd-Frank Act to enhance regulatory oversight and transparency in the derivatives markets. However, derivatives provide electric and gas utilities, electricity providers, natural gas producers and energy companies an important tool to insulate our energy customers from wholesale commodity price volatility, and offer the stability and certainty that our members need to make critical capital investments that contribute to economic growth and job creation,” states a letter to lawmakers Wednesday.
The letters comes from the American Gas Association, the American Public Power Association, the Edison Electric Institute and other groups.
They are backing Rep. Randy Hultgren’s (R-Ill.) bill to prevent “commercial end-users” from being classified as swaps dealers. The energy groups argue that Commodity Futures Trading Commission plans will misclassify them as swaps dealers and impose unneeded restrictions.
They’re also backing Rep. Michael Grimm’s (R-N.Y.) bill to exempt commercial end-users from margin cost requirements on their trading.
The Electric Power Supply Association,
Independent Petroleum Association of America, Large Public Power Council,
National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, and Natural Gas Supply Association also signed the letter.
ON TAP THURSDAY:
The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will hold a hearing at 9:30 a.m. on the nomination of Arun Majumdar to be the Energy Department’s under secretary of Energy. Read more about Majumdar’s nomination here.
The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee will hold a hearing at 9:45 a.m. on “Barriers Facing the Long-Term Unemployed.” Republicans plans to bring up the Keystone XL oil sands pipeline, which they say would create jobs and boost the economy.
A Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee panel will hold a hearing at 2:30 p.m. on “on opportunities and challenges to address domestic and global water supply issues.”
At 10 a.m., the Center for Strategic and International Studies is hosting an event on ExxonMobil’s 2012 energy outlook.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT...
Here's a quick roundup of Wednesday's E2 stories:
— House approves 'mother of all anti-regulatory bills'
— Sen. Thune files bill to block EU emissions trading for airlines
— White House threatens to veto Republican farm-dust bill
— Obama threatens veto if pipeline decision is added to payroll tax cut
— GOP uses Obama-Harper meeting to push Keystone oil sands pipeline
— Dems push GOP to bolster mine safety
— Sen. Boxer to climate change deniers: ‘You are endangering humankind’
— Huntsman criticizes GOP front-runners, says 'recognize science for what it is'
— Gore sorry Gingrich repudiates Pelosi ad
— Interior issues second round of violation notices to BP over Gulf spill
— Republican asks EPA to prove it isn’t exaggerating greenhouse gas figures
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