Dianne

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has asked the Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs to investigate the possibility of an improper relationship between the energy industry and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission based on an exchange between FERC Chairman Curtis Hebert and Enron Chairman Ken Lay as reported in The New York Times.

Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Gordon Smith (R-OR) introduced last week the first bipartisan legislation aimed at restoring price stability and reliability in the western electricity and natural gas markets.

Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and Gordon Smith (R-OR) will formally introduce today the first bipartisan legislation aimed at restoring price stability and reliability in the western electricity and natural gas markets.

Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) announced last week that he and Sen.Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) have reached “consensual agreement” onlegislation that would levy price caps or cost-based rates onwholesale power transactions in western markets for as long as twoyears. The measure also would seek to reimpose price caps onshort-term gas transportation to the California market, and wouldrequire gas sellers to declare separately the transportation andcommodity components associated with their bundled “gray market”transactions.

Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) announced yesterday that he and Sen.Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) have reached “consensual agreement” onlegislation that would levy price caps or cost-based rates onwholesale power transactions in western markets for as long as twoyears. The measure also would seek to reimpose price caps onshort-term gas transportation to the California market, and wouldrequire gas sellers to declare separately the transportation andcommodity components associated with their bundled “gray market”transactions.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) introduced legislation on CapitolHill last week that would give the Department of Energy (DOE) theauthority to overstep FERC by setting an interim regional price capor cost-based rates on wholesale power transactions in 11 westernstates.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) is preparing legislation that wouldcall for a price cap to be imposed on wholesale electricitytransactions in the western region during emergency situations, anaide to the senator said.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) is preparing legislation that wouldcall for a price cap to be imposed on wholesale electricitytransactions in the western region during emergency situations, anaide to the senator said.

In a letter to U.S. Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt this weekSen. Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) urged Interior’s Minerals ManagementService to shutdown exploration on 40 offshore California leases,for which producers paid $1.25 billion initially.