Reid pushes to move energy bill in July

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) alerted Senate committee chairmen Thursday that he plans to move comprehensive energy legislation in July.
 
Reid asked the chairmen to recommend legislation to deal with the Gulf oil spill before July 4 so that leaders can include those ideas in the comprehensive energy package.
 
{mosads}“I think it is extremely important that you each examine what could be included in a comprehensive energy bill that would address the unfolding disaster in the Gulf of Mexico,” Reid wrote in the letter.
 
“Among the actions I think we need to explore are ensuring that the oil companies are held accountable for their actions and the damages caused by their operations,” Reid wrote.
 
Reid suggested changing the law to “ensure swift and fair compensation of people and communities for their oil pollution-related losses.”
 
The law now limits oil companies’ liability for spills to $75 million. Reid has voiced support for eliminating the cap altogether, noting the damage caused by Deepwater Horizon accident was estimated last month to reach $14 billion.
 
Reid has proposed his chairmen consider changes in “criminal and civil penalty structures.”
 
He also urged his chairmen to “make sure that effective federal safety standards are in place and effectively enforced.”
 
He argued Congress must ensure the nation is better equipped to avert and respond to similar disasters in the future.

Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.)
and Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), the authors of the Senate’s leading energy and
climate proposal, applauded Reid’s call to action.

“The disaster in the Gulf has
intensified the feeling of urgency on all sides, and Senator Reid’s letter is
crystal clear that he expects the Senate to step up to the challenge this year,”
the lawmakers said in a joint statement. “The time is ripe for action on the American
Power Act. Our approach creates 200,000 jobs a year, all while reducing
our oil dependence by 40 percent.”

Earlier Thursday, Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) called on President Barack Obama to contain the massive oil slick in the Gulf, which is expected to wash up on Florida’s beaches in the next few days.
 
Nelson said the president should mobilize additional military assets, such as Navy personnel, to work on sub-sea mapping.
 
Sen. Lindsey Graham (S.C.), who has served as the lead GOP negotiator on energy and climate change legislation, said last week that the oil spill would imperil passage of broad energy legislation.
 
Graham has argued that expanding offshore drilling would be essential to winning Republican support for an energy and climate bill. He said he suspects the oil spill has made expanded drilling less politically viable.
 
Senate Democrats, however, see the Gulf crisis as giving energy reform new momentum.
 
A senior Senate Democratic aide told The Hill last week that Democrats would use the oil industry as a political foil to pressure Republicans to support reform.
 
Reid cited the Gulf disaster Thursday as strong evidence for why Congress should act to reform the nation’s means of energy production.
 
“We are grossly over-dependent on oil for our energy needs, in part because the oil companies have chosen not to invest their massive profits in the domestic production of clean and renewable alternative fuels that would make our nation more secure and reduce the risks of environmental disaster,” Reid wrote.
 
Reid’s letter did not specify whether the comprehensive energy bill would include language to curb carbon emissions, a controversial proposal within the Democratic caucus.

Some Democrats, such as Sen. Byron Dorgan (D-N.D.), have argued for bringing an energy-only reform bill to the floor. He has suggested that colleagues could then try to attach an amendment addressing the emission of gases linked to global warming.
 
Such an amendment would probably require 60 votes to pass. Liberals, led by Kerry, want climate change legislation included in the comprehensive energy reform bill before it reaches the floor.
 
Reid has said he would meet with his committee chairmen next week to discuss how to proceed on energy reform. He has said he would then convene a meeting of the entire caucus during the week of June 14 to talk about it.
 
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), Energy and Natural Resources Chairman Jeff Bingaman (D-N.M.), Environment and Public Works Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), Banking Committee Chairman Chris Dodd (D-Conn.) and Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) received the letter.
 
Homeland Security Committee Chairman Lieberman, Agriculture Committee Chairman Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.) and Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) also received Reid’s letter.  

— This article was originally posted at 3:37 p.m. and updated at 4:45 p.m.