Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2012
Latest action · Aug 2, 2012 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMar 28, 2012
- Passed HouseAug 1, 2012
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2012 - Amends the Federal Power Act to require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to ensure that any emergency order issued under such Act for the interconnection of facilities for the generation, transmission, and sale of electric energy, that may result in a conflict with a requirement of any environmental law, shall: (1) require generation, delivery, interchange, or transmission of electric energy only during hours necessary to meet the emergency and serve the public interest; and (2) to the maximum extent practical, be consistent with any other applicable environmental law and minimize any adverse environmental impacts.
Provides that any omission or action taken by a party to comply with such an order that results in noncompliance with any environmental law shall not: (1) be considered a violation of such law; or (2) subject such party to any requirement of, or any civil or criminal liability under, such law.
Requires such an order that may result in a conflict with environmental law to expire within 90 days after it is issued. Authorizes FERC to renew or reissue such order for subsequent periods, not to exceed 90 days each, as necessary to meet the emergency and serve the public interest.
Requires FERC, in renewing or reissuing such order, to: (1) consult with the primary federal agency with expertise in the environmental interest protected by such law and include in any such order conditions determined to be necessary to minimize any adverse environmental impacts, and (2) make such conditions available to the public. Authorizes FERC to exclude such a condition from the order if such condition would prevent the order from adequately addressing the emergency.
Authorizes, during an emergency, a municipality engaged in the transmission or sale of electric energy and not otherwise subject to FERC's jurisdiction to make temporary connections with public utilities subject to FERC's jurisdiction and construct temporary facilities for the transmission of electric energy in interstate commerce as may be necessary or appropriate to meet such emergency.
Cosponsors 18
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Mar 28, 2012 to Jun 8, 2012; 5 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-IL | Adam Kinzinger | Original | Mar 28, 2012 |
| D-TX | Charles A. Gonzalez | Original | Mar 28, 2012 |
| D-TX | Gene Green | Original | Mar 28, 2012 |
| R-NE | Lee Terry | Original | Mar 28, 2012 |
| D-PA | Michael F. Doyle | Original | Mar 28, 2012 |
| R-TX | Joe Barton | Apr 16, 2012 | |
| R-MO | Billy Long | Apr 25, 2012 | |
| R-TX | Francisco "Quico" Canseco | Apr 25, 2012 | |
| D-IL | Jerry F. Costello | Apr 25, 2012 | |
| R-OK | John Sullivan | Apr 25, 2012 | |
| R-OH | Robert E. Latta | Apr 25, 2012 | |
| D-NY | William L. Owens | Apr 25, 2012 | |
| R-KY | Ed Whitfield | May 8, 2012 | |
| R-OK | James Lankford | May 8, 2012 | |
| D-GA | John Barrow | May 8, 2012 | |
| R-KS | Mike Pompeo | May 8, 2012 | |
| R-GA | Phil Gingrey | May 18, 2012 | |
| R-PA | Tim Murphy | Jun 8, 2012 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Energy and Commerce Committee | Referred Mar 28, 2012Markup Jun 20, 2012Reported Jul 9, 2012 |
| Energy Subcommittee | Referred Mar 30, 2012Hearings May 9, 2012 | |
| Senate | Environment and Public Works Committee | Referred Aug 2, 2012 |
Actions 14
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Aug 2, 2012Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.
- Aug 1, 2012Mr. Olson moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Aug 1, 2012Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H5602-5604)
- Aug 1, 2012DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 4273.
- Aug 1, 2012Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H5602-5603)
In the Congressional Record 3
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extensions | Debate and remarks E1426 | John D. Dingell D-MI | Aug 3, 2012 |
| House | Debate and remarks H5602–H5604Text printed H5602 | Gene Green D-TX, Henry A. Waxman D-CA, Michael F. Doyle D-PA, Pete Olson R-TX | Aug 1, 2012 |
| House | Lists H1740H.R. 4273–4294 | — | Mar 28, 2012 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Jul 3, 2012H.R. 4273, the Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2012As ordered reported by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on June 20, 2012
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the page H1740.
Printed hearings 1
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 112-141 | THE AMERICAN ENERGY INITIATIVE, PART 19: FOCUS ON H.R. 4273, THE RESOLVING ENVIRONMENTAL AND GRID RELIABILITY CONFLICTS ACT OF 2012, AND H.R.210 pages | Energy and Commerce Committee | May 9, 2012 |
Titles 4
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To clarify that compliance with an emergency order under section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act may not be considered a violation of any Federal, State, or local environmental law or regulation, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2012
- Short Titles as Reported to House
- Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2012
- Short Titles as Passed House
- Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2012
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Energy.
- Administrative law and regulatory procedures
- Civil actions and liability
- Electric power generation and transmission
- Emergency planning and evacuation
- Energy
- Energy storage, supplies, demand
- Environmental assessment, monitoring, research
- Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- Pollution liability
- Public utilities and utility rates
Text 4
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Aug 2, 2012Referred in Senate
- Aug 1, 2012Engrossed in House
- Jul 9, 2012Reported in House
- Mar 28, 2012Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
