- Oil & Gas Journal: Witnesses at Senate panel hearing talk up crude exports
- New York Times: UPS Agrees to Buy 46 Million Gallons of Renewable Diesel
- Washington Post: A milestone for wind energy: Work underway on first offshore platforms in U.S. waters
POLITICO Morning Energy for 7/29/2015
By DARIUS DIXON, with help from Darren Goode, Alex Guillén and Nick Juliano
HEADS UP! CLIMATE PLAN COMING NEXT WEEK: The Obama administration will push back the deadline for states to submit their carbon-cutting strategies by a year under the Clean Power Plan and give them an additional two more years, until 2022, to comply with their plans, the New York Times (http://nyti.ms/1MtuQK5) and the Washington Post (http://wapo.st/1DNJzZf) reported last night. That final regulation from the EPA, which may come as early as Monday, is the centerpiece of President Barack Obama’s climate change strategy and will for the first time seek to regulate the U.S. power industry’s emissions. The proposal issued last year calls for cutting carbon emissions from power plants by 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030.
And to help convince states not to wait to sit on their hands, the Obama administration will introduce a new incentive for renewable energy and energy efficiency programs ahead of the Clean Power Plan’s first compliance date of 2022, a source familiar with the rule told ME. “The incentive program is really going to help move states to take early action on deploying renewable energy and deploying efficiency programs, which is going to jump-start their efforts to hit their targets in the compliance window,” the source said.
STEYER UNFAZED BY CLINTON’S KEYSTONE SILENCE: Tom Steyer’s hard green line is turning soft when it comes to Hillary Clinton, reports the Energy team’s Andrew Restuccia from Des Moines, Iowa. The billionaire climate activist has spent more than $100 million of his personal fortune to support green-minded candidates and ballot initiatives in the past five years, ruffling the Washington establishment while threatening to torpedo even fellow Democrats who don’t hew the line on controversies like the Keystone XL oil pipeline. But he declined repeatedly Tuesday to criticize Clinton, who still refuses to take a stand on the project, and whose just-released initial climate proposal is notably short on specifics about issues like fracking and Arctic drilling. Steyer told POLITICO that he won’t demand that Clinton stake out a position on the proposed Alberta-to-Texas pipeline. “She isn’t for Keystone,” he said. “She has no position.”
Even so, Steyer insisted that he hasn’t effectively endorsed Clinton already, despite hosting a fundraiser for her in May at his San Francisco home. Andrew has much more: http://politico.pro/1MTQVQa
SANDERS … NOT SO MUCH: “It is hard for me to understand how one can be concerned about climate change but not vigorously oppose the Keystone pipeline,” said White House hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders said in a statement after a Clinton town-hall event in New Hampshire where she was asked about the project. Clinton demurred: “This is President Obama’s decision and I’m not going to second-guess him because I was in a position to set this in motion and I do not think that would be the right thing to do,” she said (http://politi.co/1DN19wC). Bernie’s also not impressed with Clinton’s goal of producing a third of the nation’s electricity from renewable energy by 2027 and installing 500 million solar panels by 2020.
YOU’RE CROSSING THE HALFWAY MARK! This is Darius Dixon’s evil twin. And you know I’m the evil one because in Star Trek it’s the one with the goatee. Evil or not, send your energy news, tips, and commentary to ddixon@politico.com, and follow us on Twitter @Morning_Energy and @POLITICOPro.
McCARTHY DEFENDS EPA HARASSMENT RESPONSE: EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy will tell the House Oversight and Government Reform panel today that agency officials “have made a number of changes … and strive for continued improvement” amid allegations of sexual misconduct involving some of its employees. “While I firmly believe these employees are isolated examples, I believe we can always do better,” McCarthy says in her prepared testimony. Today’s hearing is a follow up to one the committee held in April and involves additional alleged sexual harassment in EPA’s Region 5 office in Chicago. McCarthy says the person responsible “was subsequently held accountable and no longer works for the agency,” McCarthy says. McCarthy’s prepared statement: http://politico.pro/1fF74hp
But McCarthy won’t be able to give her testimony until after the panel hears from three EPA employees who say the agency hasn’t done nearly enough to prevent harassment. That includes Carolyn Bohlen, a Chicago-based Superfund enforcement official who filed a Region 5 discrimination complaint against the agency in September 2011. Ronald Harris, who similarly testified (http://wapo.st/1I02yDX) 15 years ago amid allegations of racism and sexual discrimination under Clinton EPA Administrator Carol Browner, is also testifying. And EPA Region 6 advisor and former Region 5 employee Ross Tuttle, whose witness statement asks McCarthy to “go on the record and state there will be no retaliation against me” for testifying. He then says sexual harassment and other misconduct at the agency is “endemic” and notes it is “absolute folly” to expect “any change to the Agency culture.” Bohlen similarly requests: “In God I trust, that my testimony today, along with that of my colleagues (present here this morning) will not result in further retaliatory measures.” Bohlen: http://politico.pro/1IqVEJo; Harris: http://politico.pro/1I02hRn; Tuttle: http://politico.pro/1OAfxOy
If you go: The hearing starts at 9 a.m. in Rayburn 2154.
MARKUP FU: THE LEGEND CONTINUES: The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will try to finish action today on a broad bipartisan energy deal from Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski and Sen. Maria Cantwell, the panel’s top Democrat. Day One of the markup ended largely drama-free Tuesday after running more than two hours. And although Murkowski said that she hoped to finish today, she went ahead and reserved a third day — either Thursday or sometime next week — just in case. The panel disposed of 25 amendments on Tuesday through one means or another, with most of them withdrawn for further behind-the-scenes deliberation or for the sake of broad bipartisan harmony, until the Senate floor. And if you include those that may be lumped together in another manager’s amendment, about a third or so of the 94 amendments that were filed to the bill could be basically dealt with before the start of today’s session. The committee only held roll call votes on three amendments Tuesday and approved just one: Sen. Lamar Alexander’s measure reauthorizing Energy Department research and development assistance for vehicle technologies that improve fuel efficiency.
If you go: The markup now continues at 10:30 a.m. in Dirksen 366.
THE HOUSE MAKES IT REINS: The House on Tuesday passed the REINS Act, legislation aimed at expanding Congress’s power to kill regulations from the executive branch. The 243-165 vote fell largely along party lines. H.R. 427, would require that any major regulation with an estimated annual economic impact of $100 million win congressional approval before taking effect. The White House has threatened to veto the bill. Lawmakers approved an amendment that would extend it to cover any Obamacare-related rule, regardless of its economic impact. They also added provisions requiring agencies to release detailed data used in rulemakings and to report to Congress on whether projected job gains or losses occur in the public or private sector. The House voted down a series of Democratic amendments, including ones that would have exempted pipeline and nuclear safety regulations or any rule deemed to create jobs.
** A message from Earthjustice: President Obama, one in six black children suffer from asthma. That’s not a statistic. It’s a shame. Will you stand with vulnerable communities and reduce ozone pollution to levels that protect children or cave to Big Oil and their allies attempt to pollute the issue? The science is clear finalize the most protective ozone standard. http://asthmafeelslike.org **
PEACE OUT HOUSE: The House is planning to skip out of town today — a day earlier than planned — after lawmakers consider two bills on the floor. They’ll be back after Labor Day. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have plenty to do.
TELL ME HOW YOU REALLY FEEL, MR. SPEAKER: Via POLITICO’s Jake Sherman and Burgess Everett: “Speaker John Boehner, addressing a roomful of fellow House Republicans on Tuesday morning, described a major, six-year highway bill crafted by the Senate as a ‘piece of s—,’ according to sources in the room. Senate Republicans have been only slightly more charitable about the House’s three-month measure, calling it another lame procrastination on an issue that needs to be dealt with now.” Not only does it look like lawmakers have to patch highway spending in October, Congress has an interesting shopping list set for this fall: The Iran nuclear deal, Export-Import Bank reauthorization, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, lifting the debt ceiling, and, you know, funding the federal government. http://politico.pro/1Da2ulY
COAL UNDER PRESSURE — JEWELL TALKS FEDERAL SALES: Interior Secretary Sally Jewell will kick off a series of listening sessions on the Bureau of Land Management’s coal program today. Environmentalists and some Democrats have long complained that Interior sells off coal on federal lands at rock-bottom prices, a position that has gotten backup from GAO and Interior’s inspector general. Interior will also hold sessions next month in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and New Mexico. Today’s hearing starts at 1 p.m. at Interior’s HQ and will livestream here: http://www.blm.gov/live
— Before today’s session, the Center for American Progress will hold an 11:30 a.m. press call with Sens. Ron Wyden and Tom Udall and Rep. Matt Cartwright on potential coal program reforms. http://bit.ly/1KvzvJp
ME MAILBAG: More than 130 lawmakers, including a few Democrats, wrote a kindly worded letter to EPA chief Gina McCarthy urging her to hold off on a more stringent ozone standard. The letter: http://1.usa.gov/1KwF11l
NEW TERRITORY FOR EXELON-PEPCO PROPOSAL: The Exelon-Pepco merger proposal crosses a (mostly symbolic) milestone after today: They can call the whole thing off. The deal “may be terminated by each of [Pepco Holdings Inc.] and Exelon under certain circumstances, including if the Merger is not consummated by July 29, 2015,” according to Pepco’s filings with the SEC. However, the proposal can be extended to Oct. 29 if they’re only waiting for regulatory approvals. The D.C. Public Service Commission is the only set of regulators that haven’t given their blessing to the union although Pepco expects the deal will close by the end of September … but not if Maryland’s Office of People’s Counsel has anything to say about it.
That office, led by Paula Carmody, is challenging the merger’s 3-2 victory before the Maryland Public Service Commission in circuit court. Besides simply calling for a stay on the merits of the decision itself, Carmody’s office has honed in on former Maryland regulator Kelly Speakes-Backman. The ex-commissioner voted in support of the merger not long before accepting a job with the Alliance to Save Energy, which has ties to, and receives money from, Exelon. The problem, Carmody and others say, is that Speakes-Backman was in discussions about the new gig while still mulling the merger. Speakes-Backman told the Washington Post last month that she didn’t know about the ASE-Exelon ties until after her second interview at which point she took a hiatus from the job discussions. “At that point,” Carmody write, “the former Commissioner did not recuse herself from the case as a result of the apparent conflict of interest. She also did not disclose the information to the parties to the proceeding and provide them an opportunity to request her recusal from the case.” Carmody’s motion: http://politico.pro/1IIjG4B
For its part, Pepco’s filings said the company “believes the Motion is without merit and intends to vigorously oppose it and any other attempts to impede the effectiveness of the [Maryland PSC] order or delay the closing of the Merger.”
INSLEE ORDERS CARBON CAP FOR WASHINGTON STATE: Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has jettisoned his push for a clean fuel standard in favor of ordering a state-set cap on carbon emissions. Inslee yesterday directed his top environmental official to set up a regulatory cap on carbon emissions that would not charge for carbon emissions and therefore would not raise funds, unlike Inslee’s previous proposal to the legislature. Inslee’s program also wouldn’t create a central market to trade emissions credits, though his office says emitters can trade privately. Inslee said in a statement that legislation would have offered a more comprehensive option, but that “Senate Republicans and the oil industry have made it clear that they will not accede to any meaningful action on carbon pollution.” The process, including getting public comment, should take about a year, according to the governor’s office.
— The Evergreen State is already a relatively low emitter, getting much of its electricity from hydropower dams and other renewable sources. The state has just one coal-fired power plant that is slated to go offline by 2025. Washington’s five refineries are also major emitters.
QUICK HITS
— Alaska’s terrifying wildfire season and what it says about climate change. The Washington Post: http://wapo.st/1MtuXFC
— BP Swings to Second-Quarter Loss on Lower Oil Price, Deepwater Horizon Deal. The Wall Street Journal: http://on.wsj.com/1D7SKZW
— French climate ambassador concerned over slow progress of draft Paris deal. The Guardian: http://bit.ly/1IpQYzd
— FPL plan to buy, close coal plant in Jacksonville finds opposition. The Orlando Sentinel: http://bit.ly/1MU1ClN
— Small Businesses Bear Burden of Ex-Im Bank Shutdown. The Wall Street Journal: http://on.wsj.com/1ONNUlP
Tags: energy, fuel, gas, oil