The Week Ahead (June 7-11)
June 4, 2010
03:42 PM
Senate Committee on Energy & Natural Resources
Week of June 7-11
On Wednesday, June 9, the full committee will hold the fourth in its series of hearings regarding the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. In this hearing, the Committee will examine issues related to the Department of the Interior’s May 27 report, “Increased Safety Measures for Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf,” including oversight of recent actions recommended by the Department to address the safety of offshore oil development. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar will be the witness. (Dirksen 366, 9:30 a.m.; overflow room is Dirksen 226.)
On Wednesday, June 9, the Water & Power Subcommittee will consider S. 2891, to further allocate and expand the availability of hydroelectric power generated at Hoover Dam; S. 2779/H.R.3671, to promote Department of the Interior efforts to provide a scientific basis for the management of sediment and nutrient loss in the Upper Mississippi River Basin; S. 3387, to provide for the release of water from the Ruedi Reservoir for the benefit of endangered fish habitat in the Colorado River; S.3404, to amend the Reclamation Projects Authorization and Adjustment Act of 1992 to require the Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Bureau of Reclamation, to take actions to improve environmental conditions in the vicinity of the Leadville Mine Drainage Tunnel in Lake County, CO; and H.R. 4252, to direct the Secretary of the Interior to conduct a study of water resources in the Rialto-Colton Basin in California. Witnesses will include Timothy Meeks, administrator, Western Area Power Administration; George Caan, executive director, Colorado River Commission of Nevada, Las Vegas; Michael Connor, commissioner, Bureau of Reclamation, U.S. Department of the Interior; Ken Olsen, Lake County commissioner, Leadville, CO; Richard Walden, commission chairman, Arizona Power Authority, Phoenix; Phyllis Currie, general manager, Pasadena Water and Power Department, Pasadena, CA; Doug Peterson, president, Minnesota Farmers Union, St. Paul; and Andy Mueller, president, Colorado River District Board of Directors, Ouray. (Dirksen 366, 3:00 p.m.)
Bonus …
Majority Leader Reid said yesterday that he hopes the Senate will take up clean energy legislation later this summer. In a letter, Reid asked key committee chairmen to either report bills or submit ideas before July 4 on how to respond to the as-yet-uncontrolled oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Fortunately, Senate Energy Committee staff has been working on these issues for several weeks, responding to Chairman Bingaman’s instructions to develop a legislative package that addresses key concerns related to this disaster.
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