Education

Emphasizing education and his state’s economy, Oregon’s new governor last week offered an inaugural address that was devoid of any clues as to how he will treat energy issues in a state buffeted by high unemployment and a $3.5 billion budget deficit. However, a spokesperson in the state energy department said Gov. John Kitzhaber has indicated that he wants to focus on energy efficiency, biomass and long-term energy planning.

Emphasizing education and his state’s economy, Oregon’s new governor on Monday offered an inaugural address that was devoid of any clues as to how he will treat energy issues in a state buffeted by high unemployment and a $3.5 billion budget deficit. However, a spokesperson in the state energy department said Gov. John Kitzhaber has indicated that he wants to focus on energy efficiency, biomass and long-term energy planning.

The Pennsylvania House on Tuesday and the Senate on Wednesday separately voted in lame duck sessions to override Gov. Ed Rendell’s veto of an education bill. However, the severance tax on gas drillers that Rendell and some lawmakers had sought for more than two years was never considered.

Noting that a “significant portion of the funding” will be allotted to natural gas infrastructure projects, a nonprofit energy and environmental education organization, American Clean Skies Foundation (ACSF), praised the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) decision to provide nearly $300 million for development of alternative fuel vehicles, including those using compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG).

As the federal energy department hosting a third in a series of public education sessions on liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Los Angeles Thursday, the sponsor of the proposed Clearwater Port offshore LNG terminal project on the Southern California coast announced it now has “significant competitive advantages” from its merger into NorthernStar Natural Gas, Inc. and is prepared to go forward.

California’s three principal gas distributors are gearing up fora major customer education program this fall in the face ofincreased wholesale gas prices ranging from 35% to 50%. It hascaused the companies to dust off conservation and low-incomeassistance programs from previous years.