POLITICO's Morning Energy
By Josh Voorhees
COMMITTEE REMIX - A Republican rout next Tuesday could convince Energy and Environment Subcommittee Chairman Ed Markey that his time would be better spent elsewhere. Two former Hill aides tell POLITICO's Tony Romm that, given the unlikelihood that a GOP-led chamber would advance meaningful climate change legislation next year, the Massachusetts Democrat may opt to push for a return to the top of the House subcommittee that handles tech and telecommunications.
Rep. Rick Boucher currently chairs the Communications, Technology and the Internet panel, but he has watched his one-time double-digit lead disappear in the lead up to the election. A Boucher loss could further open the door for Markey but, regardless of the outcome in Virginia, seniority would give Markey the edge if he wants to challenge for the spot.
ANOTHER OPTION - If Markey is looking for a change of scenery but still wants to play a hands-on role in energy issues, another (long-shot) possibility would be for him to seek a leadership role on the Natural Resources Committee, where he ranks higher in seniority than Chairman Nick Rahall (D-W.Va.). That panel would give Markey the chance to stay involved in issues like the BP spill and energy production.
THE QUIET CAMPAIGN - Meanwhile, Fred Upton is quietly cementing his position as the odds-on favorite to pick up the Energy and Commerce gavel in the next Congress, reports POLITICO's Darren Samuelson. http://politi.co/cqOF7E
The Michigan Republican has maintained that he is not campaigning for the post, but his recent actions paint a slightly different story. He has given $144,000 through his political action committee to GOP incumbents and potential new freshmen. And he's also been on the road trying to help candidates in the Midwest and Rust Belt, with recent stops for Randy Hultgren, the Illinois state senator gunning to win back former House Speaker Dennis Hastert's old seat, and Mike Kelly, who is challenging Pennsylvania freshman Democrat Kathy Dahlkemper.
CONSERVATIVE CRED - Upton is also trying hard to play up his conservative credentials as part of his bid to lead the powerful committee. He penned a small-government-hyping op-ed in the Washington Times earlier this month, and followed it up by blasting House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Henry Waxman, the man he'd like to replace as committee chairman, for staying quiet after NPR last week fired commentator Juan Williams.
Happy Friday and welcome to Morning Energy, where we remind you that if you paid for your child's Halloween costume you have a legitimate claim to at least a third of their candy. Speaking of treats, keep them coming to Josh Voorhees at jvoorhees@politico.com
LATE BREAKING - Halliburton late last night pushed back against the findings of a new Oil Spill Commission report suggesting it knowingly poured unstable cement into the Macondo well, potentially contributing to April's Gulf spill. In a six-page press release, the Houston-based company took issue with a number of the panel's findings and said that it believed there were significant differences between the tests it performed on the rig and those simulated by the commission. "The commission tested off-the-shelf cement and additives, whereas Halliburton tested the unique blend of cement and additives that existed on the rig at the time Halliburton's tests were conducted," the company said. Read the full release (all 1,800+ words of it) here: http://bit.ly/dolUNJ
** A message from America's Natural Gas Alliance: For natural gas updates, be sure to follow us on Twitter @ANGAus and @NatGasNow ! **
COMING TODAY - California voters will be voting in four days on whether to kill their landmark global warming law. But that's not stopping the California Air Resources Board from today's scheduled release of about 1,000 pages of proposed regulations outlining plans to implement the law.
CARB's spokesman said details would be out at noon EDT. Enviros tell ME they expect the plan to cover the electric utility sector and large stationary industrial sources for the law's first compliance period (2012-14). Transportation and natural gas will follow in the second compliance period. Other details expected today include the design of the allowance allocations and auction, the maximum amount of offsets allowed for compliance, and details for how the cap-and-trade system will be governed and enforced.
The proposals will be the subject to a 45-day public comment period, with the 11-member CARB then scheduled to take a final vote on the regulations during a marathon session Dec. 16-17 in Sacramento.
BALLOT BATTLE - The campaign trying to nix California's global warming law alleged yesterday that two counties are using tainted ballot materials that could throw the whole election into dispute and potentially require a revote.
The Yes on Proposition 23 team sent letters to the registrars of Contra Costa and Fresno counties, as well as the Secretary of State, taking issue with absentee ballots and a Web link that contain an outdated version of their proposal that a Superior Court judge has already ordered to be changed.
Attorneys for the Yes campaign called on the registrars to immediately correct the errors. They also said the tainted ballots "could call into question the state results and possibly give rise to an election contest and require a new statewide election on Proposition 23."
"With Election Day a mere few days away, it is unclear whether or not this egregious situation can be satisfactorily resolved," said Yes on 23 spokeswoman Anita Mangels. "A preliminary investigation shows that other counties may have directly or indirectly distributed similarly tainted materials, errors that could nullify the results of the vote on Proposition 23."
TEXAS FOOTBALL - Team No sees things a little differently. Steve Maviglio told ME last night: "This is a pathetic Hail Mary pass from Texas oil companies trying to salvage the more than $10 million they've sunk in a deceptive ballot measure. To somehow suggest that a website link will tip the balance of an election is ludicrous, and we are confident that election officials will agree."
BACKGROUND - The absentee ballot and link include a statement that Prop 23 would "suspend air pollution control laws," which a Sacramento judge in August had softened to "suspends implementation of air pollution control law (AB32)." The materials also referred to the regulated industries as "major polluters" when the judge had changed it to "major sources of emissions."
Yes on 23 officials issued a similar rebuke earlier this month to Reuters and Ipsos after they released a poll that relied on the outdated ballot language. The news organization retracted its story and the poll.
ALL THINGS EPA:
JACKSON 1, MIAMI JUDGE 0 - EPA chief Lisa Jackson is off the hook for a hearing on lagging Everglades cleanup after an Atlanta appeals court ruled yesterday that a Miami judge can't haul her down to Florida. U.S. District Court Judge Alan Gold didn't have the authority to compel Jackson to testify and will have to settle for EPA's water chief on her behalf, the panel decided. Two of the three judges agreed that there was no compelling need for Jackson to appear in person and that the district court "abused its discretion" by ordering her to appear.
EPA had offered to send another top agency official to a hearing slated for October, citing Jackson's conflicting plans to travel to China. Gold denied the request, demanding that Jackson appear in person, but the appeals court stalled the case after EPA challenged his order. The ruling: http://bit.ly/bXFzCu
EPA FOES EYE SPENDING BILL - A slew of industry heavy hitters is prodding Senate Republicans and moderate Democrats to attach a provision to halt EPA climate rules to any spending bill they take up this fall. There's a good chance that a Continuing Resolution or an omnibus spending bill will be the only thing the chamber does before the end of the year, and EPA opponents see it as their best shot.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, the American Petroleum Institute and other industry groups want a moratorium on EPA climate rules for stationary sources, which will officially take effect on Jan. 2.
FUZZY MATH - Blasting industry's feverish efforts to upend EPA regulations, environmentalists and economists yesterday questioned industry reports on environmental rules. NRDC commissioned university economists to grade industry studies of EPA's ozone standard and two reports on the air toxics rule for industrial boilers. Their grades: Incomplete, D/F and F, respectively. "These industry groups are attempting to shape vital public health policies with work that wouldn't pass muster in a college economics class," said NRDC attorney John Walke.
ENERGY STAR LAGGING - EPA still hasn't ironed out the kinks in its Energy Star program, according to a report issued yesterday by the agency's inspector general. The IG previously found that EPA couldn't assure that the products actually deliver savings in energy efficiency and reduced emissions and the program's integrity is still at risk, the IG said. EPA disagreed with many of the report's conclusions. IG report: http://bit.ly/bOGoxR
CHECKING THE TRAPS:
NYT: Yesterday's spill commission report has Halliburton back in a familiar hot seat. http://nyti.ms/bAPSTR
LAT: A conservative radio talk show host is urging listeners to mount their own write-in campaigns to derail Lisa Murkowski's bid to keep her seat. http://lat.ms/cuT6ON
AP: Major oil companies racked up major gains in net income in the third quarter. http://wapo.st/d9M1mS
** A message from America's Natural Gas Alliance: One solution for more abundant domestic energy is staring us in the face. Natural gas is the natural choice-now and in the future. We know we need to use cleaner, American energy. And, we have it. Today, the U.S. has more natural gas than Saudi Arabia has oil, giving us generations of this clean, domestic energy source. Natural gas supports 2.8 million American jobs, most states are now home to more than 10,000 natural gas jobs. As Congress and the Administration look for ways toward a cleaner tomorrow, the answer is right here: natural gas. Learn more at www.anga.us And, follow us on Twitter @angaus. **
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