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U.S. Senate Approves Legislation to Close the Notorious “Enron Loophole” FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Friday, December 14, 2007 NEFI LEGISLATIVE ALERT
Bill Would Help End Excessive Speculation and Prevent Manipulation by Energy Traders CTEL Bill Passes U.S. Senate As members are well aware, NEFI and a coalition of over 80 national, regional and state groups led the charge to Close the Enron Loophole (www.closetheenronloophole.com), which has contributed to excessive speculation and opened the door to manipulation and fraud in the unregulated energy commodities markets, or ‘dark markets.’ Yesterday, coalition allies in the U.S. Senate, including Senators Carl Levin (D-MI), Diane Feinstein (D-CA), Byron Dorgan (D-ND), and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) agreed on a compromise package that combines elements of several different “Close the Enron Loophole” bills. By unanimous vote, this compromise was added to the Farm bill (H.R. 2419) by unanimous consent. Today, the Farm Bill was passed, with the Close the Enron Loophole bill included, by a vote of 79-14. CTEL Champion Sen. Carl Levin said “The provisions we are adding to the farm bill will finally close the Enron Loophole… By strengthening market oversight and transparency, our legislation will help put the lid on excessive speculation and restore prices based on supply and demand instead of trading distortions.” Maine’s Senator Snowe, who has for years been speaking out on this issue on behalf of fuel dealers, was pleased as well. “As the heart of winter looms, this timely amendment will provide vital certainty to Americans that energy prices are indeed dictated by supply and demand, rather than manipulation by energy traders,” she said. NEFI & PMAA Spent the Week Rallying Support on Capitol Hill The victory also comes two days after NEFI President Sean Cota testified before a U.S. House subcommittee on the impact of speculation and manipulation on the nation’s fuel dealers. For nearly two days following his testimony, Cota (aided by Jim Collura, NEFI VP for Government Affairs and Rob Underwood, PMAA Manager of Congressional Affairs) engaged with members of Congress and their staff to build support for Close the Enron Loophole efforts. PMAA President Dan Gilligan also addressed Republican House Leaders on the issue during an Energy Forum on Thursday. For Sean Cota’s Complete Testimony and streaming video from Wednesday’s House Hearing: NEXT STEPS: Conference with House, Presidential Approval, and Closing the other “Gaps” On Wednesday, the U.S. House gave preliminary approval to a bill that is weaker than the Senate legislation. Congressional leaders expect the bills to enter into conference negotiations in January of next year. NEFI and PMAA will support the Senate bill, and remain hopeful that the President will sign that bill into law.
While the bill, if it becomes law, would be a major victory for the coalition and its allies, it is not the final step. NEFI is also concerned about the so-called “foreign markets loophole,” the lack of industry representation in CFTC advisory committees, poor CFTC funding, and other concerns. All of these concerns must be addressed before a complete victory can be achieved. NEFI has begun discussions with coalition allies in Capitol Hill on how to tackle these issues.
After a Two-Year Struggle… finally, a solid and resounding victory. But the war is not over. Thank you to all NEFI members, state associations and friends for continuing to support us in this important effort.
FOR COMPLETE COVERAGE, SEE NEXT WEEK’S ISSUE OF NEON, NEFI’s INDUSTRY E-LETTER!
To contribute to this and many other NEFI legislative and regulatory efforts: http://www.nefi.com/pdfs/LRACpledge.pdf
For more information contact: James Collura, Director Legislative & Regulatory Action Center (www.nefiactioncenter.com) New England Fuel Institute (www.nefi.com) Office: (617) 924-1000, Ext. 216 Email: jimcollura@nefi.com
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