House

A House Government Reform subcommittee will hold another hearing Thursday to explore why some of the largest producers have managed to avoid paying royalties on production from deepwater oil and natural gas leases that were issued by the federal government in 1998 and 1999.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Wednesday approved the proposed Pipeline Safety Improvement Act of 2006, reauthorizing the current pipeline safety law which was set to expire this year. The bill was introduced by committee Chairman Don Young, R-AK and Rep. Thomas Petri, R-WI. The American Gas Association said it was pleased the bill included a focus on prevention of excavation damage to pipelines, the single largest cause of incidents on the natural gas distribution system. The bill encourages stronger state damage prevention programs through financial incentives and increases penalties for failing to use the one-call system or failure to mark pipelines. The Senate still must act on the bill.

The House Judiciary Committee last Wednesday approved by voice vote a bill that would prohibit states from assessing taxes on interstate natural gas pipelines at a higher rate than those levied on in-state industrial and commercial facilities.

The House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday approved by voice vote a bill that would prohibit states from assessing taxes on interstate natural gas pipelines at a higher rate than those levied on in-state industrial and commercial facilities.

A House Judiciary subcommittee on Thursday approved by voice vote a bill that would prohibit states from assessing higher taxes on interstate natural gas pipelines than on in-state industrial and commercial facilities.

A House Judiciary subcommittee last Thursday approved by voice vote a bill that would bar states from assessing taxes on interstate natural gas pipelines at a higher rate than those levied on in-state industrial and commercial facilities.

Dirk Kempthorne, former governor of Idaho, was officially sworn in Wednesday as the secretary of the Department of Interior in a ceremony at the White House. He succeeds former Interior Secretary Gale Norton who departed in March.

The American Gas Association (AGA) has called on a House Appropriations subcommittee to provide full funding for needy energy consumers when it marks up a fiscal 2007 spending bill for the departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Wednesday.

California’s lower house state Assembly Thursday passed a comprehensive energy efficiency bill that would force both private and public sector utilities to meet accelerated statewide goals for increasing energy-saving programs. The vote was 57-18 for AB 2021, pushed by Assemblyman Lloyd Levine, chair of the Assembly’s Utilities and Commerce Committee.