After two nominations by the White House, once last year and again in January, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has scheduled a hearing next week to consider the confirmation of Joseph T. Kelliher to one of two open seats on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

Kelliher, a senior policy advisor at the Department of Energy, would succeed former Commissioner Linda K. Breathitt, whose term expired in December. The confirmation hearing is set for Feb. 11 at 2:30 p.m. in the Senate Hart Building. Although Kelliher is well liked on Capitol Hill, his nomination may face some potential pitfalls in the Republican-led committee or in the full Senate, which must confirm him as a nominee.

“I’m not aware of anyone who has a personal problem with Joe Kelliher,” but “I suspect he’s going to draw some pretty tough [FERC policy-related] questions from both sides” of the aisle during his confirmation hearing, said Bill Wicker, spokesman for the Democratic members of the Senate Energy Committee.

Still, “I get the sense he’s going to be here [at FERC] pretty quickly,” said one source.

But committee Democrats may have other plans. They are irked and “puzzled over why it’s taking the White House so long to nominate [former New Mexico regulator] Suedeen Kelly” to fill the other vacant seat at the Commission, Wicker told Daily GPI. Kelly, a Democrat, is backed by Sen. Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, the committee’s Democratic leader. With Kelliher on board, the Commission would be heavily weighted, 3-1, toward Republicans.

“We’re hopeful we will be seeing her nomination any day now,” Wicker said. But if not, he noted Democrats have the “option” to place a hold on Kelliher’s nomination to force the White House to act on Kelly. “I don’t know if there’s any [back-room] agreement or any discussions taking place” between Democrats and Republicans to try to avoid a “hold” on the Kelliher nomination, Wicker said.

President Bush originally nominated Kelliher to a five-year term on the Commission last May, but the nomination was stalled in committee due to the refusal of Senate Democrats to act unless the president also nominated Kelly to FERC. Kelliher’s nomination fizzled out when Congress adjourned in late 2002, forcing Bush to re-nominate him.

If Kelliher is confirmed Republicans could dominate the Commission indefinitely because the president apparently is under no time restriction to nominate a candidate from the opposing party. “I don’t know of any statutory requirement for the president to act to fill vacancies within a specific time,” said FERC spokesman Bryan Lee.

Kelliher’s term at FERC would expire on June 30, 2007, assuming he wins Senate confirmation.

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