The Congressional Connector:
The Week of
September 26-30, 2005
New House Bill Would Penalize Gas Profiteers
Over the last month, gasoline prices have soared sky-high across the nation
following the devastating impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The
situation has been made still worse by reports of price gouging. In one
case, a station in Florida boosted its prices by 80 cents a gallon. (The
station was located on Interstate 10, which was a main evacuation route for
Louisiana residents fleeing Hurricane Katrina.) The Energy Department has
received thousands of complaints from consumers, yet currently there is no
federal law against price gouging on gas. On September 28, House lawmakers
introduced legislation to give the federal government new tools to clamp
down on price gouging during energy emergencies. The legislation would give
the Federal Trade Commission specific authority to investigate and prosecute
those who engage in predatory pricing, from oil companies on down to local
gas stations. Rep. Levin is a cosponsor of the measure
Endangered Species Law Endangered
On September 29, the House of Representatives voted 229 to 193 to adopt a
package of sweeping and controversial changes to the landmark Endangered
Species Act (ESA). Conservation groups, which opposed the House bill, claim
that the measure would dismantle the Endangered Species Act, which has been
credited with helping keep species like the bald eagle, the manatee, and
grizzly bear from extinction. Rep. Levin voted against the legislation,
which now moves to the United States Senate.
Greenspan: U.S. Has “Lost Control” of Its Budget Deficit
The influential Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, was quoted
this week as saying that the U.S. had lost control of the federal
government’s budget deficit. Referring to the record deficit spending of the
last four years, Chairman Greenspan told France’s Finance Minister, “We have
lost control.” The deficit for fiscal year 2005, which ends today, is
expected to be about $400 billion. In related news, Congress ended the
fiscal year having approved just two of the ten annual funding bills needed
to keep the government running. As a result, this week Congress was forced
to adopt a stop-gap spending bill to fund essential government services
through November 18 while the House and Senate attempt to reach agreement on
the remaining eight appropriations measures.
Lawmakers Propose Anti-Fraud Commission to Oversee Katrina Contracts
Earlier this week, it was reported that Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA) signed a 6-month, $236 million contract with Carnival Cruise Lines to
charter three full-service cruise ships to house Hurricane Katrina evacuees.
These ships currently sit half-empty in the Mississippi River and the Gulf
of Mexico. A number of FEMA’s other no-bid contracts for Katrina recovery
also have raised questions about whether taxpayers’ interests are taking a
backseat to those of private contractors. In order to ensure accountability
for federal hurricane relief and reconstruction spending, Representative
Waxman of California and other concerned lawmakers recently introduced the
Hurricane Katrina Accountability and Clean Contracting Act. The legislation
would establish an anti-fraud commission to examine federal contracts
relating to Hurricane Katrina recovery and would probe allegations of
profiteering.
