It’s not a foregone conclusion. But it is possible that the Democrats will regain control of at least the US House of Representatives in November’s election. The question then would be the extent to which the congressional energy agenda would change.
Unlike many other issues, energy can be bipartisan, particularly when it comes to oil and gas. The division more frequently is between producers and consumers than political parties. Republican Bobby Jindahl and Democrat Charlie Melancon agree that Louisiana should get a share of revenue from federal leases off their state.
Nevertheless, the emphasis would change in the House because Democrats would schedule hearings and move legislation if they became the majority party. A bill to authorize oil and gas leasing in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge obviously would face more obstacles, for example.
But the House also might become less aggressive in its Outer Continental Shelf leasing reform proposals and accept the Senate’s more focused bill. High storage levels may keep natural gas prices from climbing very far before the election, while gasoline prices have fallen so far since Labor Day that they no longer seem to be as big an issue.
Several proposals
Still, there are several proposals by Democrats which have not been fully considered in 2006 that could move ahead in 2007 if Republicans lose control of the House.
On July 25, leading House Democrats introduced what they called the “PROGRESS Act.”
The bill would establish a national energy security commission, to develop national goals, a Manhattan Project-style center to create an advanced vehicle efficiency consortium, and a national biofuels infrastructure development program.
It also would try to improve biofuel transportation by stimulating domestic freight railway investments and require federal and state governments to use more biofuels, develop biofuel plants across the country, and speed development of standards to promote alternatives to oil.
Products reserve
House Democrats also responded to rapidly climbing gasoline prices late last spring with a promise to revive their proposal to create a strategic products reserve as an alternative to a Republican-backed bill to ease refinery permitting, which eventually passed the full House and awaits Senate action.
They also appear more likely to propose moving investigations and prosecutions of alleged oil product price-gouging from the states to the federal government. Bart Stupak (Mich.), ranking minority member of the Energy and Commerce Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, introduced a bill in September to give the Federal Trade Commission that authority.
Such proposals suggest that Democrats would mandate energy goals instead of simply relying on market forces if they assume control of the House.
