This monthly review goes out to members of the AGI Government Affairs Program (GAP) Advisory Committee, the leadership of AGI's member societies, and other interested geoscientists as part of a continuing effort to improve communications between GAP and the geoscience community that it serves.
High Gasoline Prices Fuel Dueling Energy Policies
Congressional Natural Hazards Caucus Holds First Event
Update on Geoscience Appropriations
Supreme Court Rules on OCS Oil Royalty Case
Call for Comments on National Climate Change Assessment
Forest Service Accepts Comments on Roadless Initiative
NRC Releases Report on Science at EPA
AGI Joins in Advocating Science Education in the States
Welcome to AGI/AIPG Summer Interns
Schedule of Upcoming GAP Activities
New Material on Web Site
********************
High Gasoline Prices Fuel Dueling Energy Policies
High gasoline prices have everybody talking about energy policy. On
June 15th, the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee held a hearing
on S. 2557, the National Energy Security Act of 2000, the Republican leadership's
broad energy policy bill. The hearing provided another opportunity
for majority members to voice their concerns over the current administration's
energy decisions. For his part, President Clinton ordered the Federal
Trade Commission to subpoena major oil companies in an investigation into
possible collusion, price-gouging, or antitrust violations causing ever-higher
gasoline prices in the Midwest since the beginning of June. A Congressional
Research Service report attributes those high prices to five factors: higher
crude oil prices, low inventories, pipeline problems and most importantly,
the use of reformulated gas (RFG). The report stated that the use
of ethanol in the patented RFG process may be responsible for approximately
half of the Midwest's price increase.
Earlier this week, Vice President Al Gore released a $125 billion energy plan for the next 10 years. In contrast to the Senate Republican plan, which focuses on increasing energy supply, the Gore plan focuses on reducing consumption through the use of "green technologies." The proposal leans heavily on the mechanism of tax incentives for the use of enviromentally friendly cars, sport utility vehicles (SUVs), and trucks. It also increases tax breaks or funding for energy efficient building equipment and homes, as well as funding for weatherization upgrading for low-income houses. Economic incentives are extended for further natural gas exploration and increased contributions of renewable energy sources to electricity production.
Congressional Natural Hazards Caucus Holds First
Event
An AGI alert reported on the initial forum of the Congressional Natural
Hazards Caucus. The forum focused on reducing America's vulnerability to
disasters and featured testimony from leaders in the federal, state, disaster
relief, insurance, and scientific sectors. The goal of the caucus, co-chaired
by Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK) and Senator John Edwards (D-NC), is to improve
the ways in which local, state and federal government prepare for and help
mitigate the costs of natural disasters. The AGI alert encouraged geoscientists
to contact their senators about the caucus and encourage them to join,
particularly Republican senators. More at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/caucus_alert0600.html.
Update on Geoscience Appropriations
On June 27th, AGI sent out a special update on the latest geoscience
appropriations activities. After the House passed H.R. 4578, the
fiscal year (FY) 2001 Department of the Interior and Related Agencies Appropriations
bill, the Senate Appropriations Committee began consideration of the bill.
Senate appropriators had a larger overall allocation for the bill than
their House counterparts, allowing them to provide higher funding levels
for the U.S. Geological Survey -- $847.6 million compared to $816.7 million
in the House version and $895.4 million requested by the President. The
Interior bill now awaits a vote on the Senate floor. The House also passed
H.R. 4635, the FY 2001 VA/HUD and Independent Agencies Appropriations bill,
which includes funding for NSF, NASA, and the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA). Funding for the geosciences stayed the same as in the
original bill -- $523.8 million for the Geoscience Directorate, down $59.2
million from the request. As reported in May, the EarthScope project
in the Major Research Equipment account was not funded. On June 19th,
the White House's Office of Management and Budget released a Statement
of Administration Policy regarding H.R. 4635 and included a section stating:
"The Committee's deletion of funding for Earthscope and the National Ecological
Observatory Network (NEON) would delay the development of large-scale research
equipment to enable us to understand better and predict earthquakes and
threats to sensitive ecological regions." More at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/appropsfy2001.html.
A copy of the special update is available at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/approps_update0600.html.
Supreme Court Rules on OCS Oil Royalty Case
The oil industry received some welcome news June 26th when the U.S.
Supreme Court ruled in Mobil Oil Exploration & Producing Southeast,
Inc. v. United States that the federal government must pay $156 million
to Mobil Oil and Marathon, Inc. This amount is equal to that paid by the
two companies for offshore oil and natural gas lease contracts purchased
in 1981. These contracts gave them the right to explore and develop
oil reserves off the North Carolina coast, contingent upon environmental
approval. Soon after the purchase, however, Congress passed the Outer
Banks Protection Act that prohibited the Department of the Interior from
approving either company's "plan of exploration" (required for a company
to begin oil exploration) as well as setting up further obstacles to offshore
oil exploration and drilling. Frustrated, the oil companies sued
the federal government for breach of contract. This week, eight of the
court's nine justices agreed that the oil companies' rights had been violated,
stating "We agree that the government broke its promise; it repudiated
the contracts; and it must give the companies their money back." Claiming
that Mobil's predicament was far from unique, an oil industry representative
asserted that the high court's decision would have a substantial impact,
particularly on exploration and production in the eastern Gulf of Mexico,
where the Department of the Interior has been unable to fund new leases
since the early 1980s.
Call for Comments on National Climate Change Assessment
AGI sent out an action alert encouraging geoscientists to provide their
views on the national climate change assessment, parts of which have been
released for public comment. The assessment has three main components:
regional analysis, sectoral analysis, and a national synthesis. A
draft version of the national synthesis, "Climate Change Impacts on the
United States: the Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change,"
is available at http://www.gcrio.org/NationalAssessment/
as a PDF document along with information on submitting comments and other
supporting documents. The deadline for submitting comments is August
11, 200 deadline. The AGI alert is available at http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/climate_alert0600.html,
and additional information on the climate change debate is available at
http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/climate.html.
Forest Service Accepts Comments on Roadless Initiative
Under President Clinton's Roadless Initiative, the U.S. Forest Service
has proposed new regulations to protect certain roadless areas within the
National Forest System. The most controversial provision of the roadless
initiative is to restrict certain activities such as road construction
and reconstruction in the unroaded portions of inventoried roadless areas.
There is also concern from the geoscience community about the lack of access
for scientific research and to conduct field studies on national forest
land deemed roadless if such an initiative is promulgated. The U.S.
Forest Service issued a Draft Environmental Impact Statement and proposed
rule on May 10, 2000. It is currently up for public comment and review
until July 17, 2000. The U.S. Forest Service will hold 330 public
meetings nationwide. The meetings will both provide information and
be open for oral and written comments. Comments on the proposed rule
and DEIS may also be sent to: USDA Forest Service-CAET, Attn: Roadless,
PO Box 221090, Salt Lake City, UT 84122 by mail; by e-mail to roadlessdeis@fs.fed.us;
and by fax to 877-703-2494. A final environmental impact statement
is due for release this winter. More extensive information and the
full text of the DEIS is available on the U.S. Forest Service's roadless
website at http://roadless.fs.fed.us/.
NRC Releases Report on Science at EPA
The National Research Council (NRC) has released its final report entitled
"Strengthening Science at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency: Research
Management and Peer Review Practices." The committee recommended
the creation of a high-level administration position to coordinate and
oversee all scientific activities in the agency. The administrator would
be responsible for all aspects of the transfer of sound scientific and
technical information into the agency's proposed policies or regulations.
The report also details several ways the Office of Research and Development
(ORD) could better maintain research program continuity, enhance research
leadership and strengthen scientific communication in the agency and between
it and outside entities. The report stressed the need for a new peer-review
policy to promote separation, objectivity and independence between the
reviewer and the project decision-maker. The committee applauded
the advancements the EPA has made in the past five years, and supports
the continued attention to balancing core and applied research. The report
can be viewed at http://books.nap.edu/catalog/9882.html.
AGI Joins in Advocating Science Education in
the States
Earlier this month, AGI joined with other professional organizations
to promote the need for greater attention to science education at the state
level. Under the auspices of the Triangle Coalition for Science and
Technology, a group of professional organizations - including the American
Chemical Society, the International Technology Education Association, the
National Biology Teachers Association, the National Science Teachers Association,
the National Society of Professional Engineers, and Project 2061 at the
American Association for the Advancement of Science - sent a letter to
the 50 chief state school officers urging them "to continue to make improved
student learning in elementary and secondary science, mathematics, and
technology education a state priority." The letter also recommended
the need for a curriculum specialist at the state department of education
to help lead state reform efforts in science education. A copy of
the letter and information on science education is available at AGI's Science
Education Policy Update http://www.agiweb.org/gap/legis106/ike106.html.
Welcome to AGI/AIPG Summer Interns
The AGI Government Affairs Program staff has been augmented this summer
by three interns, who have already spent several weeks attending congressional
hearings, researching policy issues, and maintaining the AGI website. Nathan
Morris is a masters student in the School of Public and Environmental Affairs
at Indiana University; Audrey Slesinger just completed a masters degree
in geochemistry at the University of Bristol, England; and Michael Wagg
graduated in May from Albion College, where he double majored in geology
and history. He begins graduate work this fall at the University of Michigan.
AGI gratefully acknowledges major support for the internships provided
by the AIPG Foundation.
Schedule of Upcoming GAP Activities
| July 8-11 | Natural Hazards Workshop | Boulder CO |
| July 12-15 | CESSE Meeting | New York NY |
New Material on Web Site
The following updates and reports were added to the Government Affairs
portion of AGI's web site http://www.agiweb.org
since the last monthly update:
Sources: Energy and Environment Daily, Federal Register, Greenwire, House Science Committee, Library of Congress, National Research Council, Supreme Court, Triangle Coalition, USBudget.com, U.S. Forest Service, U.S. Global Change Research Program, Washington Post.
Please send any comments or requests for information to AGI Government Affairs Program at govt@agiweb.org.
Posted June 30, 2000
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