Electric Utility Policy: Comparison of House-Passed H.R. 6 and S.Amdt. 1412 (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Aug. 26, 2003 |
| Report Number |
RL32041 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Amy Abel, Resources, Science, and Industry Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
Electric utility provisions are included in comprehensive energy legislation that has passed both
the
House and Senate. The House passed H.R. 6 on April 11, 2003. On July 31, 2003, the
Senate suspended debate on S. 14 , the comprehensive energy bill that had been reported
by the Energy and Natural Resources Committee. It then passed H.R. 6 with the text of
the Senate-passed version of H.R. 4 from the 107th Congress. For a comparison of the
House- and Senate-passed versions of the bill, see CRS Report RL32033, Omnibus Energy
Legislation: Side-by-Side Comparison of Non-Tax Provisions .
Before debate on S. 14 was suspended, Senator Domenici proposed
S.Amdt. 1412 on July 29, 2003, to completely replace the electricity title of S.
14 as introduced in the Senate. The proposed amendment was withdrawn on July 31,
2003. Although S.Amdt. 1412 is not included in the Senate-passed bill that will be
considered in conference, there are indications that provisions of the amendment might be brought
up.
Both the House-passed electricity provisions in H.R. 6 and those in
S.Amdt. 1412 would give limited rate authority to the Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) over municipal and cooperative transmission systems; create an electric
reliability organization; repeal the Public Utility Holding Company Act (PUHCA) and give FERC
and state public utility commissions access to books and records; prospectively repeal the mandatory
purchase requirement of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA); explicitly prohibit
round-trip trading; establish market transparency rules; protect native load consumers (existing
customers); and increase criminal penalties under the Federal Power Act. Title VI of the
House-passed bill would, in part, provide for incentive-based
transmission rates, allow transmission owners in certain instances to exercise the right of eminent
domain to site new transmission lines, create an electric reliability organization, and clarify the right
of transmission owners to serve existing customers (native load). Unlike the House-passed bill,
S.Amdt. 1412 does not contain provisions that would allow transmission owners to
exercise the right of eminent domain to site new transmission lines.
S.Amdt. 1412 contains provisions that are not included in the House-passed
H.R. 6 . These include provisions that prohibit FERC from requiring utilities to transfer
operational control of transmission facilities to a regional transmission organization (RTO), give
authority to power marketing administrations and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to join
RTOs, remand the FERC Standard Market Design (SMD) notice of proposed rulemaking, and
strengthen FERC's merger review authority.
This report will not be updated.
