The Week Ahead (June 25-29)

June 22, 2007
02:59 PM
• On Tuesday, June 26 the full committee will receive testimony on the preparedness of Federal land management agencies for the 2007 wildfire season and to consider recent reports on the agencies’ efforts to contain the costs of wildfire management activities.  Witnesses include The Hon. Mark Rey, undersecretary for natural resources and the environment, Department of Agriculture; C. Stephen Allred, assist secretary for land and mineral management, Department of the Interior; and Robin Nazzaro, director for Natural Resources and the Environment, Government Accountability Office. (Dirksen 366 at 10:00 a.m.)

 

• On Wednesday, June 27, the full committee will receive testimony on S.1171, a bill to amend the Colorado River Storage Project Act and Public Law 87-483; to authorize the construction and rehabilitation of water infrastructure in Northwestern New Mexico; to authorize the use of the reclamation fund to fund the Reclamation Water Settlements Fund; to authorize the conveyance of certain Reclamation land and infrastructure; to authorize the Commissioner of Reclamation to provide for the delivery of water; and to resolve the Navajo Nation’s water rights claims in the San Juan River Basin in New Mexico.  Witnesses include Mark Limbaugh, assistant secretary for water and science, Department of the Interior; Carl Artman, assistant secretary for Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior; John D’Antonio, state engineer, State of New Mexico; Joe Shirley, president, Navajo Nation; Herb Guenther, director, Arizona Department of Water Resources; Patricia Lundstrom, executive director, Northwest New Mexico Council of Governments; Victor Marshall, attorney, San Juan Agricultural Waters Users; and Mark Sanchez, executive director, Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority.  (Dirksen 366 at 2:30 p.m.)


Weekly Bonus …

All the amendments considered (both those approved and those rejected) during debate on the energy bill:

• Bayh-Brownback-Lieberman amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide for the publication and implementation of an action plan to reduce the quantity of oil used annually in the United States (#1505), was agreed to by a roll call vote of 63-30.

• Sanders-Clinton amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to establish an energy efficiency and renewable energy worker training program (#1515), was agreed to by unanimous consent.

• Inhofe amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to improve domestic fuels security (#1505), was not agreed to by a roll call vote of 43-52.

• Domenici second-degree amendment to Bingaman #1537, to provide for the establishment of a Federal clean portfolio standard (#1538), was tabled by a roll call vote of 56-39.

• Warner amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to authorize the State of Virginia to petition for authorization to conduct natural gas exploration and drilling activities in the coastal zone of the State (#1566, as modified), was not agreed to by a roll call vote of 43-44; having failed to receive 60 votes, this amendment was then withdrawn by unanimous consent.

• Menendez amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to require the approval of certain States before approving a petition for the issuance of leases authorizing the conduct of exploration or extraction activities (#1578, as modified), was withdrawn by unanimous consent.

•  Salazar-Grassley amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to express the sense of Congress relating to the use of renewable resources to generate energy (#1524), was agreed to by voice vote.

• Salazar amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to reduce United States dependence on foreign oil by promoting the development of plug-in electric vehicles, deploying near-term programs to electrify the transportation sector, and including electric drive vehicles in the fleet purchasing programs (#1572, as modified), was agreed to by voice vote.

• Bunning-Domenici amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide standards for clean coal-derived fuels (#1628) was not agreed to by a roll call vote of 39-55.

• Tester-Byrd amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to establish a program to provide loans for projects to produce syngas from coal and other feedstocks while simultaneously reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reliance of the United States on petroleum and natural gas (#1614) was not agreed to by a roll call vote of 33-61.

• Kohl-Specter amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to amend the Sherman Act to make oil-producing and exporting cartels illegal (#1519) was agreed to by a roll call vote of 70-23.

• Cardin-Mikulski amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide for the siting, construction, expansion, and operation of liquefied natural gas terminals (#1610) was not agreed to by a roll call vote of 37-56.

• Thune amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide requirements for the designation of national interest electric transmission corridors (#1609) was agreed to by voice vote.

• DeMint amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide that legislation that would increase the national average fuel prices for automobiles is subject to a point of order in the Senate (#1546), was ruled out of order after the motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act with respect to this amendment was not agreed to by a roll-call vote of 37-55.

• Gregg second-degree amendment to Baucus amendment #1704, to strike the provision extending the additional duty on ethanol and for other purposes (#1718), was ruled out of order after the motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act with respect to this amendment was not agreed to by a roll-call vote of 36-56.

• Bingaman-Boxer amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to ensure that the renewable fuel standard does not harm the environment (#1693), was agreed to by a roll-call vote of 58-34.

• Inhofe amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to ensure agricultural equity with respect to the renewable fuels standard (#1666), was ruled out of order after the motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act with respect to this amendment was not agreed to by a roll-call vote of 31-63.

• Kyl second-degree amendment to Baucus amendment #1704, to disallow the credit for renewable diesel for fuel that is coprocessed with petroleum (#1800), was not agreed to by a roll-call vote of 45-49.

• Bingaman-Domenici amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to improve the section relating to energy storage competitiveness (#1528), was agreed to by unanimous consent.

• Bingaman-Domenici amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to require the Administrator of General Services to submit an annual report to the Energy Information Agency (#1529), was agreed to by unanimous consent.

• Menendez amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to make the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico eligible for the Federal weatherization program (#1533), was agreed to by unanimous consent.

• Cantwell amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to establish a standard for Federal agencies for the purchase of products that have standby power (#1551, as modified), was agreed to by unanimous consent.

• Kyl second-degree amendment to Baucus amendment #1704, to provide a condition precedent for the effective date of the revenue raisers (#1733, as modified), was ruled out of order after the motion to waive the Congressional Budget Act with respect to this amendment was not agreed to by a roll-call vote of 38-55.

• Stevens amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to replace Title V (Corporate Average Fuel Economy Standards) with a modified version (#1792, as modified by the Kerry second-degree amendment to require automobile manufacturers to increase the percentage of new alternative fuel automobiles manufactured for use in the United States to 50 percent by model year 2012 (#1843) that was agreed to by unanimous consent), was agreed to by voice vote.

• Collins amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide for the development and coordination of a comprehensive and integrated United States research program that assists the people of the United States and the world to understand, assess, and predict human-induced and natural processes of abrupt climate change. (#1615, as modified)

• Cardin amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to promote the energy independence of the United States (#1520, as modified)

• Bingaman amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to make certain technical edits to Title III (#1639)

• Bingaman amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, technical amendment to (#1677)

• Bingaman amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to make technical amendments (#1798)

• Cantwell amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to modify the definition of renewable biomass (#1698)

• Bingaman-Domenici amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to prevent supply disruptions from planned refinery outages (#1568, as modified)

• Domenici-Bingaman amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide an alternative sulfur dioxide removal measurement for certain coal gasification project goals (#1569)

• Inouye amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to propose a study of the adequacy of transportation of domestically-produced renewable fuel by railroads and other modes of transportation, and for other purposes. (#1597)

• Dole-Carper amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to expand the scope of the applied research program on energy storage systems to include flow batteries (#1624)

• Akaka-Murkowski amendment to promote the development and use of marine and hydrokinetic renewable energy technologies (#1764, as modified)

• Boxer-Alexander amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide from the Capitol power plant (#1799)

• Inhofe amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide transitional assistance for farmers who plant dedicated energy crops for a local cellulosic refinery (#1602)

• Inhofe-Clinton amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to modify sections to provide for the use of geothermal heat pumps (#1660)

• Murkowski-Stevens amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to amend the Alaska Natural Gas Pipeline Act to allow the Federal Coordinator for Alaska Natural Gas Transportation Projects to hire employees more efficiently (#1513, as modified)

• Voinovich-Carper amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to implement the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage (#1683)

• Bingaman amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide for the treatment of certain applications and requests (#1729, as modified)

• Menendez amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide for a study on the effect of laws limiting the siting of privately owned electric distribution wires on the development of combined heat and power facilities. (#1675)

• Burr amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to express the sense of Congress that the Department of Energy should be the lead United States Government agency in charge of formulating and coordinating the national energy security policy of the United States. (#1687, as modified)

• Burr amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to require the President to submit to Congress an annual national energy security strategy report. (#1688)

• Burr amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to amend the National Security Act of 1947 to add the Secretary of Energy to the National Security Council in recognition of the role energy and energy security issues play in the United States national security.  (#1689)

• Sanders amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to require that not less than 30 percent of the hot water demand for certain new or substantially modified Federal buildings be met through the installation and use of solar hot water heaters.(#1525, as modified)

• Bingaman-Domenici amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to require the Secretary of Energy to establish a program to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of installing advanced insulation into commercial refrigerated trailers, refrigerators, freezers, and refrigerators-freezers (#1567, as modified)

• Carper amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to require the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the Minerals Management Service, to conduct a study to assess each offshore wind resource located in the region of the eastern outer Continental Shelf. (#1717)

• Feingold amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to clarify the purposes of the energy and environmental block grant program (#1710)

• Wyden amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide for a national assessment of carbon sequestration and methane and nitrous oxide emissions from terrestrial ecosystems (#1759, as modified)

• Cantwell amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to modernize the electricity grid of the United States by catalyzing the production, use, and integration of technologies capable of communicating and recording valuable information relating to conditions of supply, consumer loads, and system performance (#1797, as modified)

• Kohl amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide a set aside for small automobile manufacturers and component suppliers for awards under the advanced technology vehicles manufacturing incentive program (#1595, as modified)

• Brown amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to establish a renewable energy innovation partnership program to support the development, demonstration, and deployment of systems and projects relating to renewable energy (#1676, as modified)

• Hutchinson amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to require the Secretary of Energy to enter into an arrangement with the National Academy of Sciences to assess the impact of the renewable fuel standard (#1679, as modified)

• Collins amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to provide for research support to facilitate the development of sustainable markets and technologies to produce and use woody biomass and other low-carbon fuels (#1700, as modified)

• Enzi amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to modify the deadline by which the President is required to approve or disapprove a certain State petition (#1724)

• Snowe-Kerry amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to authorize loans for renewable energy systems and energy efficiency projects under the Express Loan Program of the Small Business Administration (#1702)

• Kerry-Snowe amendment to the Reid substitute #1502, to establish a small business energy efficiency program, and for other purposes (#1706, as modified)

#  #  #