Fresh from their recent recess, House Democrats and Republicans who sit on the House Energy and Commerce Committee this morning will take another crack at marking up legislation designed to provide relief to the troubled California wholesale energy markets. A Capitol Hill aide expressed confidence that the bill will be voted on today by the full committee.

Mark-up of the bill, the “Electricity Emergency Relief Act,” was delayed last month after last-minute negotiations between the two parties broke down over the measure. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Joe Barton (R-TX), was put into the House Energy and Commerce Committee hopper after being voted out by the panel’s subcommittee on energy and air quality (see Daily GPI, May 11).

Negotiations over the bill continued over the Congressional recess. Talks between members appeared to center around a proposal from the Democratic side of the aisle that at least 80% of all wholesale sales of electricity made by a public utility or other entity fall under contracts with pre-determined prices over a period of at least one year (see Daily GPI, May 29). When asked whether negotiations were continuing, Barton spokeswoman Samantha Jordan said that the talks had ended, awaiting today’s session.

Jordan told NGI that Barton’s office expects the bill to be voted on today. Jordan was also asked how quickly the measure could be moved to the House floor, assuming a favorable committee vote. “We don’t have a commitment,” Jordan said. She pointed out, however, the bill is time-sensitive in that it seeks to help California’s energy markets this summer.

©Copyright 2001 Intelligence Press Inc. All rights reserved. The preceding news report may not be republished or redistributed, in whole or in part, in any form, without prior written consent of Intelligence Press, Inc.