Some form of energy reform legislation could get through California’s state legislature before the current session ends in September, according to one of the lawmakers whose re-regulation proposal was sacked by a lower house Assembly committee last week. At least four major proposals died in committees or were turned into two-year bills.

Sen. Joseph Dunn, chairman of the state Senate investigation of wholesale energy price manipulation, indicated he will try to get the Assembly rules committee to give his proposal for re-regulation of the electric industry a waiver to come to a full vote of the Assembly, or amend the bill’s (SB 888’s) provisions into another bill. Dunn was quoted in the Orange County Register as saying he will “spend a lot of time” with Assembly members getting them to better understand his re-regulation proposal that has been rewritten several times in both houses of the legislature.

“It really has to do with the fact that every member of the legislature — Republican and Democrat — is fearful of casting any vote on an energy-policy bill of this magnitude,” Dunn told the Register. The lawmakers don’t want to face possible voter backlash as happened to legislators who unanimously approved the state’s 1996 electricity restructuring law.

Separately, on Wednesday, California’s Gov. Gray Davis asked state legislators to put aside all other issues beginning Monday to focus “exclusively” on the unresolved state budget that is facing a record $38 billion deficit. The lawmakers are scheduled to go into legislative recess Monday, so the governor wants them to use part of their vacation, in effect, to pass an already three-weeks’ late budget.

Nevertheless, Dunn indicated he will be focusing on energy legislation, which he said can’t afford to wait until next year. He said the energy market is “broken” and needs restructuring before next year to head off problems he see developing around the volatility and upswing in wholesale natural gas prices this year.

Dunn received no support from members in the Assembly utility/commerce committee, and he has had strong opposition from power generators, major statewide big business associations and Sempra Energy, the parent of San Diego Gas and Electric Co. and Southern California Gas Co.

©Copyright 2003 Intelligence Press Inc. Allrights reserved. The preceding news report may not be republishedor redistributed, in whole or in part, in any form, without priorwritten consent of Intelligence Press, Inc.