Message-ID: <22801570.1075851594598.JavaMail.evans@thyme> Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2001 07:36:19 -0700 (PDT) From: m..landwehr@enron.com To: richard.shapiro@enron.com, d..steffes@enron.com, linda.robertson@enron.com, john.shelk@enron.com, karen.denne@enron.com, janel.guerrero@enron.com, jeff.dasovich@enron.com, pr <.palmer@enron.com> Subject: WGA update Cc: paul.kaufman@enron.com, ginger.dernehl@enron.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Bcc: paul.kaufman@enron.com, ginger.dernehl@enron.com X-From: Landwehr, Susan M. X-To: Shapiro, Richard , Steffes, James D. , Robertson, Linda , Shelk, John , Denne, Karen , Guerrero, Janel , Dasovich, Jeff , Palmer, Mark A. (PR) X-cc: Kaufman, Paul , Dernehl, Ginger X-bcc: X-Folder: \Dasovich, Jeff (Non-Privileged)\Dasovich, Jeff\Deleted Items X-Origin: DASOVICH-J X-FileName: Dasovich, Jeff (Non-Privileged).pst reporting from the WGA summer conference in Couer D'Alene......... It was evident from the minute we got here that the governors continue to b= e "ticked off" at FERC for not supporting their efforts on price caps and t= hat they are feeling neglected by the Administration. Although we had been= told by staff that the resolution that would be voted on today would be su= bstantially "watered down" and not terribly controversial (in fact, we had = seen a copy of the proposed resolution about a week ago and I would agree w= ith that descripition), the tide turned in a meeting with the Governors the= mselves on Sat and then again on Sunday. By yesterday a new section and ot= her additional language had been added to the resolution. The most troubli= ng to us is a section that talks about creating regional mechanisms to deci= de regional power issues and that....."FERC should be required to defer to = such decisions". There is also language stating that FERC intervention on e= minent domain is "unwarrented and inappropriate".Even though we expressed o= ur concerns to several of our staff contacts, they insisted that the langua= ge was greatly watered down from what it could have been and that the Gover= nors felt that they needed to assert their "states rights". They also insi= sted that the wording was meant to encourage cooperation and to ensure that= whatever work was being completed by western stakeholders was given due co= nsideration by FERC. I argued that defer was not the word that conveyed th= at message correctly! I lost. The resolution will be voted on today at noo= n. Yesterday FERC COmmissioner Brownell, DOE undersecretary Bob Card, JIm Conn= aughton from the Council of Enviromental Quality (I think that's what it is= called) and Steve Griels, Deputy Secretary of Interior all participated in= the energy panel. Governor Kempthorne announced the signing of an MOU wit= h DOE and the WGA to cooperate on some studies and workplans, primarily on = energy efficiences and conservation in the west (this, by the way, was nego= tiated and drafted on Sunday late night...it appeared that Reuben Barrales = from the White House was the broker and it was accepted on Monday morning b= y the govs) The bottom line on this MOU is that DOE will give some modest = funding to WGA to do a study or two. It is painfully clear from the discussions yesterday that this administrati= on is going to be mired in process--the discussion on the energy panel was = full of discussion about task forces and studies and interagency cooperatio= n....blah blah blah ps as we expected Davis and Locke were not here