fyi
Yet proposed legislation that would give enforcement authority to federal regulators or the reliability council, or both, has been locked to the hip of a broader energy bill.
"It's a hostage," said Elizabeth Moler, a former chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (news - web sites) and now an executive vice president at Exelon Corp., one of the nation's largest electric power companies.
The energy bill has been stalled for years due to partisan battles over issues such as drilling for oil in an Alaskan wildlife refuge and regulation of carbon-dioxide emissions. And while Democrats in the House and Senate have attempted to separate the reliability issue from the massive energy bill, Republicans have refused to go along.
It's all the Republicans fault, as usual. ;-)