- San Antonio Express-News: EIA: U.S. oil output to hit 45-year high this year
- Washington Examiner: EPA chief: Power plant rules will survive
- CNBC: Oil rebounds above $57
- Washington Examiner: Energy industry to Obama: Skip Congress to lift ban on oil exports
POLITICO Morning Energy for 7/8/2015
By ERIC WOLFF, with help from Darren Goode, Andrew Restuccia and Darius Dixon
APROPRIATORS GONNA APPROPRIATE: Congress worked late last night amending the Interior and EPA appropriations bill. The members put off all roll call votes until today, which means ME and ME readers alike must wait for members to go on the record on funding the EPA’s climate rules, water rule, and ozone rule. The bill already includes almost dozen riders barring funds for agency rules and cuts to overall agency funding by about 9 percent.
RFS conundrum solved: In a twist on the usual partisanship interwoven throughout Tuesday’s debate on the 2016 Interior-EPA spending bill, leaders of both parties convinced their own not to offer amendments that would repeal funding next year or otherwise water down a proposed EPA mandate for the blending of ethanol and advanced biofuels in gasoline. Conservative Rep. Barry Loudermilk form Georgia and liberal Rep. Peter Welch from Vermont were prepared to offer separate amendments attacking EPA’s Renewable Fuel Standard, an issue that splits both parties over regional lines tied largely to the future of corn ethanol. The amendments, if passed, threatened the passage of the entire appropriation. Leadership in both parties managed to keep members of their caucus from introducing amendments that would alter the Renewable Fuels Act.
Lesser prairie chicken listing defunded: An amendment sponsored by Rep. Kevin Yoder of Kansas prevents the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from spending money to implement or enforce the threatened species listing of the lesser prairies chicken.
Northern long-eared bat listing defunded…sort of: Rep. Glenn Thompson of Pennsylvania managed to pass an amendment that would prevent the Fish and Wildlife Service from treating the northern long-eared bat as endangered. The problem? The bat is listed as merely threatened.
Truck Rule shut down…An amendment from Republican Rep. Diane Black of Tennessee would prevent the EPA from finalizing or implementing the greenhouse gas rule for medium and heavy trucks. The agency proposed the rule last month. The amendment passed on a voice vote.
Confederate battle flag can no longer be sold in parks: Congress passed three amendments on voice votes that would ban the National Park Service from selling merchandise bearing the Confederate flag, displaying Confederate flags in federally managed cemeteries, or displaying the Confederate flag outside of an accepted historical context.
SENATE GOP THINKS GLOBALLY, ACTS LOCALLY: Republicans will have their first big opportunity to attack international efforts to reach a global warming deal when the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee holds a hearing on the subject today. While Republicans have largely conceded that they can do little to stop President Barack Obama from signing onto a climate agreement that is designed to circumvent Senate oversight, that won’t stop the GOP from lobbing rhetorical grenades. Chairman Jim Inhofe and his colleagues are expected to try to cast doubt on the United States’ ability to hold up its end of the bargain by arguing that the Obama administration’s 2025 climate change target is unrealistic. Republicans’ marquee witness is David Bookbinder, a former Sierra Club official who will tell the panel that the target is unattainable based on the domestic measures outlined in the roadmap the administration submitted to the United Nations earlier this year.
ME first look at testimony: “Given what we now know, however, it seems more likely that the Administration simply does not have a plan for achieving even a 26 percent reduction in emissions by 2025,” Jeff Holmstead, a former air chief for the EPA under President George W. Bush, will tell the committee in his opening remarks. Holmstead will also argue that the administration is avoiding telling the public the details of how the U.S. will meet the target. “The Administration’s lack of transparency is both surprising and troubling.” Holmstead is a partner at Bracewell and Giuliani and often represents utilities — and recently sat down with The Agenda’s Darren Sameulsohn, here http://politi.co/1fkolgg, in case you missed it.
Will there be snowballs? It’s going to be 90 degrees today, so Inhofe would have really had to plan ahead. Then again, he makes the committee schedule, so anything is possible.
If you go: The hearing starts at 10 a.m. in Dirksen 406. Watch the hearing and see the full witness list here: http://1.usa.gov/1Hct4q9
THE WIND BENEATH CLEAN POWER PLAN’S WINGS: The American Wind Energy Association, a wind power trade association, will release a study based on data from the Energy Information Administration that shows “wind accounts for more than half of the lowest-cost Clean Power Plan compliance portfolio, thanks to wind’s role in protecting against increases in the price of natural gas,” spokesman David Ward said. The association will release the full report at 2:15 p.m.
IER PRESSES PUBLIC UTILITY COMMISSIONS TO FIGHT CARBON PLAN: The Institute for Energy Research, an energy policy shop with a free market philosophy, is sending a letter to the chairman of every public utility commission asking them to “stand up” to the EPA’s carbon rule. PUCs aren’t directly responsible for complying with the Clean Power Plan, but IER spokesman Chris Warren clarified the letter’s intent to ME: “Most utilities are major proponents of a state plan and will profit significantly from investments under the CPP. We’re urging PUCs to do everything in their power to stand up for consumers and reject the CPP. Specifically, we want PUCs to reject the costs incurred by utilities under the CPP as imprudent investments.” As Politico has reported in the past (http://politi.co/1LRicEz) , IER receives funding from the Koch Brothers’ political network. http://bit.ly/1CmGSm7
HAPPY WEDNESDAY! I’m Eric Wolff, and I’m thinking that Inhofe could maybe get some snow from his pal Sen. Ed Markey, who seems to have socked away a snow supply and stored it in Boston. http://nyti.ms/1ClrUgh. In the meantime, send tips, quips, and comments to ewolff@politico.com, or follow us on Twitter @ericwolff, @Morning_Energy, and @PoliticoPro.
LAB CONFAB: The Energy Department is bringing some of its biggest nerds to Capitol Hill this afternoon to talk up all the R&D work the national labs are doing. Deputy Energy Secretary Elizabeth Sherwood-Randall is expected to give some opening remarks, and will be followed by a cast of congressional lab-lovers: Rep. Hultgren, Rep. Fattah, and Sen. Coons. Afterwards, Lynn Orr, the undersecretary of science and energy, will moderate a panel with three sitting lab directors, DOE’s Melanie Kenderdine, Edison Electric Institute chief Thomas Kuhn and NASEO executive director David Terry. There will also be exhibits focused on fuels, engines, electric powertrains, fuel cells, and vehicle lightweighting. If anything, it might be a great bonding experience for the labs and DOE HQ considering that that relationship isn’t always so rosy. Be there and be square: Cannon Caucus Room starting at 3 p.m.
PARDON ME, HAVE YOU ANY FOSSIL FUEL FUNDING? The Nation magazine tried to get all the presidential candidates from both parties to sign a pledge to not accepting any money from the oil, natural gas, or coal industries. Democratic candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders and Green candidate Jill Stein both promptly took the pledge. Democratic candidates Martin O’Malley and Lincoln Chaffee both, initially, said they supported action on climate change, but did not sign the pledge — until yesterday afternoon, when O’Malley decided to sign up. None of the Republican candidates nor Hillary Clinton responded to the magazine. http://bit.ly/1CWoQ52
KIRK SPOX CALLS GREEN CAMPAIGN ‘SICKENING’: As ME readers know, green groups are hammering Illinois Republican Senator Mark Kirk for votes that would limit the Clean Power Plan. Kirk is running for re-election in 2016 and will face Democratic Rep. Tammy Duckworth. His spokesman called the campaign “sickening.” Jack Darin, director of the Illinois Chapter of the Sierra Club, replies, “What’s truly ‘sickening’ is Kirk’s recent decision to side with big polluters.”
CHICAGO RESEARCHERS DEFEND STUDY: As your host reported last month, a study of the federal weatherization assistance program from the University of Chicago found the program spent $2 for every $1 in benefits. The study seemed to undermine longstanding orthodoxy showing the benefits of energy efficiency programs, and efficiency advocates leapt to defend their programs. The Researchers posted a defense of their program on Monday conceding that the weatherization program had non-financial benefits, including the greater comfort of recipients of its largesse. But the researchers also touted the strengths of their study over other studies which found greater savings. “Many of these evaluations, however, are based on savings projections that — as we found — can significantly overestimate the savings when applied in the real world.” http://bit.ly/1Cououu
QUICK HITS
— Facebook Doubles Renewable-Energy Target to 50% by End of 2018. Bloomberg: http://bloom.bg/1TjwJeo
— How Disruptive Is Tesla, Really? MIT Technology Review: http://bit.ly/1dKvepu
— Han Solo blasts into Disney’s ‘Star Wars’ universe with own film. Reuters: http://reut.rs/1H8XhHC
— Wave Power Device Starts Producing Power in Hawaii. Electrical Construction & Maintenance: http://bit.ly/1CmUEoE
— Wis. Supreme Court: No ‘Direct’ Link Between Wind Farm Locations, Housing Sector. North American Wind Power: http://bit.ly/1TkhhPg
Tags: climate, energy, fuel, gas, oil