Oversight

Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA) will put the oil and natural gas industry on the hot seat Wednesday when his Oversight and Government Reform Committee takes a look at the exemptions in federal environmental and health requirements for onshore energy development. The hearing also is expected to explore the potential impact of oil and natural gas activity on the environment and health of populations living near production areas. Not one producer will testify at the hearing. Instead, the House committee will hear from the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy council; Trout Unlimited, a conservation group; the Endocrine Disruption Exchange, an international group that focuses on human health and environmental problems; and a medical toxicologist. In addition, officials from the Department of Interior’s Bureau of Land Management and the Environmental Protection Agency are due to testify.

The oversight board at the nation’s largest municipal utility earlier in September approved annual budgets for the utility natural gas purchases exceeding $500 million annually in the 2008-2009 fiscal year before tapering off significantly through 2016-2017 with the advent of renewables and a more diversified generation portfolio.

Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell Thursday asked the chairmen and ranking members of the U.S. House and Senate committees with oversight of the energy industry to begin an immediate investigation into possible manipulation of the price of natural gas.

As it operates under a new oversight board and is looking for a permanent new general manager, the Imperial Irrigation District (IID), a public-sector powerhouse dealing water and electricity in the southeast corner of California, is still trying to recover from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina two years ago and subsequent hedging deals for natural gas supplies that went sour.

As it operates under a new oversight board and is looking for a permanent new general manager, the Imperial Irrigation District (IID), a public-sector powerhouse dealing water and electricity in the southeast corner of California, is still trying to recover from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina two years ago and subsequent hedging deals for natural gas supplies that went sour.

As part of a large bundle of new appointments late Friday, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger filled three of the five seats on the oversight board of the California Independent System Operator (CAISO) and reappointed one of the five members of the California Energy Commission (CEC). All of the selections require confirmation by the California Senate.

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne said the department will take a “fresh look” at the flawed 1998 and 1999 deepwater Gulf of Mexico leases that are costing the federal government billions of dollars in lost royalties.

Illinois’ House Electric Utility Oversight Committee voted 9-4 last Monday to extend a current electric utility rate freeze in the state by another three years starting in January, a move that Ameren and Exelon both have said would lead to bankruptcy for their state utilities. Credit rating agencies confirmed the utilities’ dire predictions the following day.

Having authorized the raw numbers and programs for its fiscal 2006-07 multi-billion-dollar budget, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) oversight board Tuesday directed the city-run utility’s management to pursue 10-year contracts in its natural gas hedging strategy and calculate proposed electric fuel cost and renewable energy rate adjustments by the board’s July 18 meeting.