League of Conservation Voters holds media teleconference to discuss postponement of committee vote on Gina McCarthy nomination. LCV board member and former Rep. Sherwood Boehlert to speak.
Senate Republicans on Thursday forced the postponement of a committee vote on President Barack Obama's choice to head the Environmental Protection Agency, making Gina McCarthy the third cabinet nominee to be slowed by the GOP in recent days.
Republicans on Wednesday also blocked a committee vote on Labor secretary nominee Thomas Perez, and have for now kept Energy secretary nominee Ernest Moniz from a final confirmation vote by the full Senate. Top Democrats insisted, however, that they will get Obama's nominees confirmed in the coming weeks.
HOUSTON (AP) — Convicted ex-Enron Corp. CEO Jeffrey Skilling's more than 24-year prison sentence for his role in the once mighty energy giant's collapse could be reduced by as many as 10 years if a federal judge approves an agreement reached Wednesday between prosecutors and defense attorneys.
Republicans on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee are waiting to the last minute to decide whether to try to delay a vote on the nomination of Gina McCarthy to head the Environmental Protection Agency.
Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., was among Republicans on the panel who have sought to get McCarthy to their demands for greater rulemaking transparency and to give industry a role in lawsuit settlements between EPA and environmental groups.
A group of those senators met late Wednesday to discuss their plans for the committee vote, but Boozman said no conclusions were reached and that they would talk again before the voting session Thursday.
HOUSTON (AP) — Convicted ex-Enron Corp. CEO Jeffrey Skilling's more than 24-year prison sentence for his role in the once mighty energy giant's collapse could be trimmed by as many as 10 years if a federal judge approves an agreement reached Wednesday between prosecutors and defense attorneys.
ATLANTA (AP) — Federal regulators are investigating whether workers at a factory that supplies parts to nuclear plants broke quality control rules and falsified records, according to regulatory filings.
EPA Acting Administrator Bob Perciasepe criticized the State Department's Keystone XL environmental review at a hearing before a House Appropriations subcommittee, Dow Jones Newswires reports.
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) — Apparently frustrated by a U.S. Supreme Court decision that struck down an $18 million penalty for a Texas natural gas firm, a federal judge is taking the unusual step of asking the environmental community for suggestions on how to sentence the company in a way that will have "the broadest possible impact."
WASHINGTON (AP) — The new chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission says she will review the agency's policy of letting companies and individuals settle charges without admitting or denying wrongdoing.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., and Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., criticized the Environmental Protection Agency's decision against regulating coal mine methane emissions, The Hill reports.
The American Petroleum Institute said the EPA ignored federal law by shortening the public comment period for its regulation to cut sulfur content in fuel, The Hill reports.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., apologized for referencing the Oklahoma tornadoes while criticizing Republicans on climate change during his weekly Senate speech, Fox News reports.
Harold Brooks, a researcher at the National Severe Storms Laboratory, said powerful tornadoes can't be blamed on climate change without more data, Bloomberg reports.
Despite successful tornado warnings in Oklahoma, Congress currently plans to let furloughs for National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration forecasters take effect, Politico reports.
Tesla Motors' plan to repay its Energy Department loan as early as today offers President Obama a major victory after two years of criticism for his clean-energy plans, Bloomberg reports.
A poll from Yale and George Mason universities found a majority believe national leaders should put priority on combatting global warming and developing clean energy, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The European Union's probe into possible energy price manipulation has brought focus to oil companies' trading desks, units that sometimes take more risks than Wall Street firms, Reuters reports.
Indonesian authorities arrested Chevron executive Bachtiar Abdul on corruption charges despite a 2012 court order clearing him of wrongdoing, Reuters reports.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said his country and Pakistan should expand cooperation on power generation to help alleviate Pakistan's energy crisis, Reuters reports.
