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“RESOLVING ENVIRONMENTAL AND GRID RELIABILITY CONFLICTS ACT OF 2012” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Energy was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E1426 on Aug. 3, 2012.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
RESOLVING ENVIRONMENTAL AND GRID RELIABILITY CONFLICTS ACT OF 2012
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speech of
HON. JOHN D. DINGELL
of michigan
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
Mr. DINGELL. Mr. Speaker, I am proud that the Energy & Commerce Committee has been able to come up with another bipartisan piece of legislation that addresses a significant problem. I thank Chairman Upton, Ranking Member Waxman, as well as my good friends Mr. Green and Mr. Doyle. The work they and their staffs put into this bill is admirable.
To quote Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, ``the law is an ass.'' Current law makes no sense by forcing a utility to comply with one federal agency and then be fined by another for complying. The bill before us eliminates this contradiction and will provide certainty to utilities that might need to operate under an order in the future. I believe the compromise negotiated will allow environmental protections to stay in place while ensuring the Department of Energy has the tools it needs in order to respond quickly to true emergencies.
Of the few emergency orders that have been issued under the Federal Power Act, most have been short term propositions. If an emergency order violates an environmental law, the negotiated compromise will allow the Department of Energy to react to an emergency situation and quickly issue a 90 day order which is longer than most of the orders that have been implemented. Should the emergency last longer than 90, the Department is required to consult with the appropriate Federal agency of the violated environmental law. The appropriate agency will submit its recommendations on how to tailor the extended order to minimize violations adverse environmental impacts. The Department of Energy may exclude recommendations it believes will interfere with implementation of the emergency order.
I believe this is a good piece of compromise legislation that solves an unnecessary contradiction in current law. I urge all my colleagues to support the Olson bill.
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