Democrats Make Nice on Energy Legislation

Recently, Reg•Watch has been critical of Congressional Democrats' disorganization on passing comprehensive energy legislation. But now, it appears as though the voices of sanity of prevailed in the House of Representatives. According to numerous reports (like this one from Reuters), Reps. John Dingell (D-MI) and Rick Boucher (D-VA) are abandoning several ill-conceived provisions which they were pushing from their positions on the House committee crafting the legislation. The two lawmakers revised the language under pressure from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi who wants a bill by the July 4 recess. Language which would have prevented individual states from implementing their own vehicle emissions programs is among the dropped provisions. That provision had drawn the ire of environmentalists, federalism watchdogs, and some House Democrats. Dingell and Boucher's committee hopes to report the bill to the House floor by the end of next week.
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