feed-image E2-Wire - The Hill's E2-Wire Feed »
  May 8, 2013, 4:04 pm

Republicans to huddle Wednesday to mull options on EPA nominee vote

By Ben Geman

Sen. James Inhofe (R-Okla) said Environment and Public Works Committee Republicans may seek to postpone Thursday morning’s committee vote on Gina McCarthy, the White House nominee to run the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Inhofe said several committee Republicans will meet at 5 p.m. Wednesday afternoon. Sen. John Boozman (R-Ark.) also said the meeting was occurring Wednesday.

Asked in the Capitol if Republicans would ask the panel’s Democratic leadership to delay the vote, Inhofe replied, “I can’t tell you that. Ask me at 5 o’clock.”

Read more...
Archived under: Energy & Environment, E2-Wire
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 2:23 pm

Senate rejects gun amendment to water infrastructure bill

By Ramsey Cox

The first GOP amendment voted on for the Senate’s water infrastructure bill was about gun rights.

The Senate is considering the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), which would authorize projects related to flood and storm risk reduction, coast and inland navigation, and ecosystem restoration.

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) introduced an amendment to the bill dealing with gun use on Army Corp of Engineer’s land.

Coburn’s amendment failed on a 56-43 vote Wednesday — 60 votes were needed for passage. It would have allowed individuals to carry guns at water resources development projects administered by the Secretary of the Army.

Read more...
Archived under: E2-Wire, Senate, Votes, Energy/Environment, Ports & Waterways
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 1:26 pm

Sen. Wyden: 'It's time to vote' on DOE nominee

By Zack Colman

The confirmation process for Energy Department (DOE) Secretary nominee Ernest Moniz has gone on long enough, Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) told reporters Wednesday.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) has stalled the confirmation through a procedural hold. He and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) have concerns about a DOE-managed nuclear fuel project in their state.

Wyden said he and the committee's ranking member, Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), have "talked to both senators a number of times, and we’ll continue to do it. I think it’s time to vote.”

Read more...
Archived under: Energy & Environment, E2-Wire
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 1:17 pm

Interior’s fracking rules in cross hairs ahead of upcoming release

By Julian Hattem

At a House Natural Resources Committee hearing, Republicans warned of executive overreach; Democrats accused Interior of caving to industry pressure.

Read more...
Archived under: E2-Wire, Pending Regs, Energy/Environment
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 12:46 pm

Energy-efficiency bill clears Senate panel

By Zack Colman

A bill viewed as a bellwether of the Senate’s appetite for passing energy-efficiency legislation breezed through the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday.

The bill (S.761), co-sponsored by Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) and Rob Portman (R-Ohio), passed the committee by a 19-3 vote. Republican Sens. Mike Lee (Utah), Tim Scott (S.C.) and Jeff Flake (Ariz.) opposed the measure.

But even the bipartisan endorsement for the bill might not be enough to get it to the floor. A similar version last year fell victim to a disagreement between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) regarding amendments.

Read more...
Archived under: Energy & Environment, E2-Wire
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 12:09 pm

Former Rep. Norm Dicks lands at Van Ness Feldman

By Ben Geman

Former Rep. Norm Dicks (D-Wash.), who led the House subcommittee that oversaw Environmental Protection Agency and Interior Department funding, has joined the prominent law firm and lobby shop Van Ness Feldman.

Van Ness Feldman focuses heavily on energy and natural resource clients, and Dicks will joint the firm as a senior policy counsel, working out of both Washington, D.C., and Seattle.

Dicks didn’t run for reelection last year after 36 years in Congress.

Read more...
Archived under: Energy & Environment, E2-Wire
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 11:39 am

Utilities push Obama to nix highway tolls for emergency response

By Zack Colman

Electric utilities plan to ask President Obama to waive highway tolls for utility crews responding to extreme weather-related power outages, an industry source told The Hill.

Obama is meeting with utility chief executives and trade associations Wednesday at the White House to discuss improving response times to major weather disasters like Hurricane Sandy.

The industry source said it would ask Obama for some quick fixes — mostly on the logistics side of emergency response — to prevent a similar episode, with the toll issue being a good start.

Read more...
Archived under: Energy & Environment, Transportation & Infrastructure, E2-Wire, Highways, Bridges and Roads
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 11:20 am

Sen. Baucus pushed to back carbon tax

By Ben Geman

The Washington Post’s editorial board is urging retiring Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) to back carbon taxes in the wider tax code overhaul that the powerful Finance Committee chairman wants to achieve.

The Post’s new editorial calls a carbon tax “an elegant policy Congress could immediately take off the shelf.”

It’s not the first time the paper has backed the idea. But The Post’s latest push could buoy a loose collection of policy wonks and climate activists seeking any traction in their steep uphill climb in favor of carbon taxes.

E2-Wire looked at the against-the-odds push in detail here.

Read more...
Archived under: Energy & Environment, E2-Wire
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 9:14 am

Gore: 'There's no such thing as ethical oil'

By Zack Colman

"There’s only dirty oil and dirtier oil,” Gore told Canada’s The Globe and Mail.

Read more...
Archived under: E2-Wire, Automobiles
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
  May 8, 2013, 9:13 am

Defender of EPA climate rules leaving Justice Dept.

By Ben Geman

Ignacia Moreno, head of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, is stepping down after a tenure that has included defense of federal greenhouse gas rules and the ongoing civil prosecution over BP’s 2010 oil spill.

Moreno, who won Senate confirmation in November of 2009, plans to leave the Justice Department (DOJ) early in June, the DOJ announced Wednesday.

Read more...
Archived under: Energy & Environment, E2-Wire, Personnel Notes
comment Comments
E-mail Print share
 
« Start< Prev12345678910Next >End »
 

More Videos »

E2-Wire Twitter - Click to follow
More From The Web
bloglogo

More Briefing Room »

More Congress Blog »

More Pundits Blog »

More Twitter Room »

More Hillicon Valley »

More E2-Wire (Energy) »

More Ballot Box »

More On The Money »

More Healthwatch »

More Floor Action »

More Transportation »

More DEFCON Hill »

More Global Affairs »

More In The Know »

More RegWatch »

Get latest news from The Hill direct to your inbox, RSS reader and mobile devices.