In This Issue:

- Energy and Climate Debate

- Congress

- Administration

- Department of Commerce

- Department of Energy

- Department of Treasury

- Environmental Protection Agency

- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

- International

- States

- Miscellaneous

- Excerpt from Energy and Climate Debate:

Energy and environment debates are alive and well in Washington this week, as the Senate begins negotiations over the Keystone XL pipeline and President Obama delivers his State of the Union address.

The Senate voted January 12 to begin debate on legislation (S. 1) to support the construction of the Keystone XL pipeline. One Independent and ten Democrats joined Republicans in supporting the measure. Amendments began to fly January 20. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee Chair Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) offered a procedural amendment. Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) offered a scaled-down energy efficiency package that would promote efficiency in government buildings and push back water heater regulations. Sense of the Senate Amendments from Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT) call on the chamber to recognize that climate change is real and caused by human activity. An amendment from Senator Al Franken (D-MN) would require TransCanada Corporation to use U.S. materials to build the pipeline. An amendment from Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) would prevent the export of crude oil from the pipeline. An amendment from Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) would lift restrictions on crude oil exports and hasten liquefied natural gas exports. Amendments from Senators Cruz, John Hoeven (R-ND), and Joe Donnelly (D-IN) would streamline the development of cross-border energy infrastructure. An amendment from Senator Deb Fischer (R-NE) would outlaw the use of greenhouse gas considerations in National Environmental Policy Act reviews. An amendment from Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) would leave fracking oversight primarily to states. An amendment from Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) would extend the wind production tax credit. An amendment from Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) would define underground national gas injection to include storage. An amendment from Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) would provide government assistance for school energy retrofits. An amendment from Senator Cory Gardner (R-CO) would promote federal building energy efficiency. An amendment from Senator Mike Enzi (R-WY) would limit the Environmental Protection Agency’s power over state plans to limit visibility pollution near national parks. Amendments from Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) would eliminate the corn ethanol fuel mandate (co-sponsored by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)), limit Environmental Protection Agency regulations on power plants that burn waste coal, and mandate a study of transitioning the federal government’s vehicle fleet to natural gas vehicles. An amendment from Senator Gary Peters (D-MI) would mandate a study on the impacts of petcoke. An amendment from Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) would designate petcoke as a hazardous waste. Amendments from Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) would prevent metal theft and promote energy efficiency retrofits. Amendments from Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) would implement revisions to the Endangered Species Act. An amendment from Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) would express the sense of the Senate that waste from oil and gas operations, particularly methane emissions, should be minimized. An amendment from Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) would require tar sands projects to pay a fee into the Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund.