Gas gouging politics

With assist from Kelsey Tamborrino and Josh Siegel

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— House Democrats handed their largely symbolic gasoline worth gouging invoice whereas the destiny of a clear vitality tax credit package deal stays within the shadows.

— Trump Interior Secretary David Bernhardt was in contact with a former consumer, however the Interior watchdog didn’t discover proof of unlawful lobbying.

— Interior Secretary Deb Haaland pledged to suggest a brand new five-year offshore leasing plan by the tip of June.

HAPPY FRIDAY! I’m your host, Matthew Choi. Congrats to E3 Consulting’s Elizabeth Stolpe for figuring out Nicomachus was Aristotle’s father. For right this moment’s trivia: Indira Gandhi was born in what metropolis? Send your suggestions and trivia solutions to [email protected]. Find me on Twitter @matthewchoi2018.

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DEMOCRATS SPIN THEIR WHEELS: House Democrats scrounged the votes to pass a gasoline price gouging bill Thursday, although it’s going nowhere in the Senate, and lawmakers acknowledged to POLITICO’s Josh Siegel that it largely quantities to political messaging.

“Sometimes we do vitality coverage and typically we do vitality politics,” Rep. Sean Casten (D-Ill.) mentioned earlier than reluctantly voting for the measure. “This is the latter.”

That motion closed per week through which Democrats’ most well-liked agenda of appearing collectively on their signature tax-and-climate bill light into the background — all whereas their unofficial Memorial Day deadline for making a call on whether or not to drop the hassle crept ever nearer.

“We have around six legislative weeks left so we need to be moving very, very quickly,” Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.) mentioned, referring to the interval earlier than the August recess that’s anticipated to mark the final possible interval earlier than the election to go laws.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) who’s driving the agenda on the opposite facet of the Capitol, continues to chase a bipartisan vitality and local weather deal, whereas nonetheless giving glimmers of hope to his Democratic colleagues that he stays fascinated with a reconciliation deal by holding a meeting with Leader Chuck Schumer.

Together, the atmospherics of the week gnawed at many Democrats who understand their last-ditch effort to go a party-line clear vitality and social spending invoice throughout an election 12 months retains getting swallowed by occasions.

“The need for a big climate package has not diminished over the past year,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) mentioned. “I am frustrated.”

Still, some main Democrats insist that conversations are taking place behind the scenes on the nitty-gritty of unpolluted vitality tax credit that may kind the core of a reconciliation invoice. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) waved away issues that closed doorways imply little motion, saying: “The likelihood of something happening is greater when it’s not public-facing.”

“This is not as if there aren’t discussions about reconciliation happening,” mentioned Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who led the cost on the tax credit final 12 months.

Manchin’s bipartisan discussions, in the meantime, are displaying no indicators of progress in direction of a deal, as Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) acknowledged, saying “we don’t have a lot of focus at this stage.” But a lot of Manchin’s colleagues aren’t urgent him to depart the desk with Republicans as they understand he alone dictates what they will go.

“If he sends something over here, I’ll vote for it,” mentioned Rep. Scott Peters (D-Calif.). “He has to get himself to a place where he’s comfortable. I hope he does.”

BERNHARDT’S BUSINESS: Former Trump Interior Secretary David Bernhardt stayed in contact with a former consumer after giving up his lobbyist registration, however DOI’s inspector basic did not discover proof that he acted illegally as a lobbyist throughout that point, based on a report launched Thursday.

A 2019 POLITICO investigation discovered that Bernhardt had met together with his former consumer, Westlands Water District, and worked on policies that benefited it shortly after taking his place as deputy secretary. Bernhardt’s ethics settlement barred him from engaged on something involving his former consumer for a 12 months after becoming a member of the company.

After reviewing over 100 digital communications between the 2, DOI’s inspector basic decided Bernhardt continued advising Westlands anyway. But the report says it didn’t see proof of direct communication with legislative officers.

“Based on the proof we obtained, we concluded that the conduct we recognized, standing alone, didn’t present that Mr. Bernhardt acted as a lobbyist throughout the that means of the statute after deregistration,” the report mentioned. A spokesperson for the previous company chief mentioned the “report fully vindicates Secretary Bernhardt.” Read more from POLITICO’s Ben Lefebvre.

A JUNE SALE: In case you missed the Senate Energy Committee’s quite colourful interrogation of Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, she announced Thursday a June 30 deadline for DOI’s subsequent five-year offshore leasing proposal, and everyone seems to be pouncing on the possibility to form the forthcoming plan.

House Natural Resources Chair Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) referred to as for a leasing plan with as few offshore drilling lease gross sales as doable to ”break our dependency on oil and fuel extraction.” The five-year proposals are mandated by the Outer Continental Shelf Leasing Act, however the Natural Resources Defense Council asserted it doesn’t actually have to include new lease gross sales.

Republicans, trade representatives and Manchin have been pushing DOI to unveil a brand new drilling plan for weeks. House Natural Resources rating member Bruce Westerman (R-Ariz.) expressed aid Thursday that the plan is within the works, however mentioned in an announcement that delaying future lease gross sales “is what drives industries to other nations with poor environmental records, when we can produce energy safer, cleaner and cheaper here in America.”

The American Petroleum Institute’s Frank Macchiarola asserted that June 30 must be when a plan is finalized quite than first proposed. New lease gross sales gained’t be doable till November on the earliest on DOI’s timeline, and Macchiarola solid doubt they’ll happen earlier than the tip of the 12 months.

ON THE MOVE: EPA is shifting ahead on a proposed rule to ascertain an alternate Renewable Identification Number retirement schedule for small refineries below the Renewable Fuel Standard according to a notice on the Office of Management and Budget dashboard. The discover alerts the draft proposed rule is at the moment present process interagency evaluation — the final step earlier than the company makes it publicly out there.

WHERE IN THE WORLD IS JENNIFER GRANHOLM? The Energy secretary heads as much as Connecticut right this moment, the place she’s going to make an announcement at DOE’s Southern New England Industrial Assessment Center that can conduct industrial assessments to assist native producers scale back their carbon footprint and practice a brand new vitality workforce, per final 12 months’s bipartisan infrastructure package deal. She’ll be joined by UConn Interim President Radenka Maric, Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Commissioner Katie Dykes.

She’ll additionally meet with Gov. Ned Lamont and Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) on the Connecticut State Pier to talk with representatives within the offshore wind trade on developments in southeastern Connecticut.

ICYMI: “FERC approves three natural gas projects as Democrats tee up policy changes,” by way of POLITICO’s Catherine Morehouse.

US-EU LAWMAKERS SLAM GAS FINANCE PLAN: Members of each the House and the European Parliament wrote to Biden and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen urging them to not permit the response to the warfare in Ukraine to incorporate new financing of fossil gas infrastructure, licensing or extraction. The 45 signatories included Democrats Elizabeth Warren and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Green MEPs, together with Marie Toussaint, and Socialists and Democrats, together with Mohammed Chahim. They mentioned the transatlantic Task Force for Energy Security ought to arrange guardrails in order that “our international locations not lock ourselves into a long time of additional reliance on fossil fuels when local weather science, environmental justice, and public well being issues necessitate a fast transition in direction of full renewable vitality.”

One day after the EU’s REPowerEU proposal that may spend billions on oil and fuel infrastructure, the lawmakers mentioned: “Liquefied pure fuel (LNG) infrastructure can take at the least three years to construct, thus failing to handle Europe’s short-term vitality must transition off Russian fuel.”

ARIZONANS FOR CLEAN WATER TECH: The Democrats of Arizona’s congressional delegation are urging EPA to incorporate new water distribution applied sciences in its consuming water packages to assist distant communities, together with the state’s Indigenous inhabitants, entry clear water.

In a letter to EPA water lead Radhika Fox, the lawmakers say present EPA packages, together with the Drinking Water State Revolving Fund, largely profit public water techniques, leaving out extra distant households, and that expansions of conventional water strains to rural areas within the state usually get delayed due to prolonged allowing. New tech that may serve extra localized wants corresponding to atmospheric water harvesting would get round these issues, the lawmakers write.

“It is our understanding that EPA has enough flexibility within existing programs and the aforementioned proposed programs to utilize distributed drinking water technologies. We respectfully request your assistance in ensuring that the deployment of distributed water solutions are eligible under these programs, in order to close the equity gap for rural communities, Native American communities, and communities of color.”

FIELD TRIP: The House Science Research and Technology Subcommittee is heading to Pontiac, Mich., right this moment for a subject listening to on creating an electrical car workforce. They’ll hear from representatives from labor, native authorities and academia to listen to about what sort of abilities are in demand within the sector, training and coaching wants, and challenges to transitioning from conventional automotive manufacturing.

EPW IN THE AIR: Biden’s decide to guide EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation, Joe Goffman, goes earlier than the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee for a affirmation listening to on Wednesday. He’s at the moment the workplace’s principal deputy assistant administrator. He met with Sen. Tammy Duckworth, who co-chairs the Environmental Justice Caucus, to speak about methods to handle legacy air air pollution, protect the Renewable Fuel Standard and preserve environmental justice priorities as a spotlight of the workplace’s work.

GUNNING FOR GUNNISON: Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) is releasing draft textual content for a invoice to guard his state’s Gunnison Basin right this moment. New oil and fuel leases and new mining claims could be banned within the protected space, however present leases would not be impacted. The boundaries of the protected space are nonetheless versatile, with Bennet accepting public touch upon the proposal until July 19. Read the bill text here.

THAT’S HOT: Prepare for an unseasonably scorching weekend in a lot of Eastern U.S., with the warmth index in D.C. expected to hit triple digits Saturday. The excessive temperatures are already inflicting hovering spot energy and pure fuel costs as extra of us activate the air-con, Reuters reports.

The North American Electric Reliability Corporation warned this week that giant swaths of the West and Midwest might face energy shortages this summer season as heatwaves crank up demand for air-con and drought impedes hydro technology.

SPACEX SCRAPS LNG PLANS: Elon Musk’s SpaceX dropped plans to construct a desalination, energy and liquefied pure fuel crops at its Boca Chica launch web site, Bloomberg reports citing US Fish & Wildlife Service paperwork. Musk had initially hoped to drill his personal pure fuel to offer rocket gas on web site, although the plans confronted backlash from environmental teams.

— “Italian police raid climate activists over Gazprom protest,” by way of POLITICO.

— ”Greece emerging as new hub for Russian ship-to-ship fuel oil exports, data shows,” by way of Reuters.

— “The Department of Energy to dole out $3.5 billion for carbon removal hubs,” by way of The Verge.

— “Upstate New York becomes hotbed for cryptocurrency mining. It might not last,” by way of POLITICO.

THAT’S ALL FOR ME!