Gridlock but There’s Hope
Different perspectives on the state of federal policy
Play word association and after “Washington” the common response might be “gridlock.” While the consensus view that the broad sweep of a comprehensive energy bill is a non-starter in the current political climate, the new-found emphasis on energy security could move the debate forward.
On the “Policy Gridlock in Washington” panel at the recent EnergyBiz Leadership Forum in Washington, D.C., those views were prominent on the panel.
The panel opened with the pessimistic and most certainly valid observation that big policy pushes are unlikely. After healthcare and the failure of climate legislation, that’s here for all to see.
“This is the worst I have seen it in my 28 years in this business, bringing with it uncertainty and high costs,” said Lonnie Carter, president and CEO of Santee Cooper in South Carolina and chairman of the American Public Power Association.
He’s concerned about the coming regulations in the short and long terms, especially on carbon emissions. Regulating greenhouse gases by the EPA is unprecedented in both the size and scale of previous regulatory attempts, he said.
Speaker after speaker at forums like these decry the lack of a national energy policy.
Jason Grumet, president of the Bipartisan Policy Center said the U.S. does have one. “There is a national energy policy and it’s cheap oil,” he said. One might add cheap electricity to the discussion, which nearly everyone agrees is bound to change considering the challenges the industry faces.
But he did point out that energy policy often breaks along regional lines and doesn’t necessarily follow the leadership of each political party.
“Climate change is not going to be the center of any energy policy anytime soon, but there are three or four interests Congress cold rally around,” he said.
Infrastructure, permitting and subsidies could be on the table. “Watch out, folks,” for subsidies, he said, given the current fervor for budget-cutting on Capitol Hill. “It’s not just renewables, but there could be a broad look at them,” he added.
Julia Hamm CEO of the Solar Electric Power Association saw some reasons for optimism in her arena.
“Regardless of the policy gridlock we are seeing here in Washington, for renewables, especially solar, we will see rapid deployment even without federal support,” she said. “The question becomes how quickly this will happen and at what scale.”
State support at various levels has been critical and important tax credits in the federal tax code are on the books for a few more years, she added.
Just don’t look for the game-changing to occur in a massive sweep, but maybe in incremental actions that might get through a Congress and president that have to show at least some progress during the economic slowdown.
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