Free Republic

<p>Not a lot of "ho-ho-ho's" at Pacific Gas and Electric Co., what with the big blackout and then the earthquake, but one group sure is smiling -- namely, the lawyers who represented the utility in its bankruptcy proceedings.</p> <p>It turns out that as part of that $8 billion, ratepayer-funded deal to bring PG&E out of bankruptcy, the state Public Utilities Commission signed off on $227 million in attorney fees.</p>

A change in enforcement policy will lead the Environmental Protection Agency to drop investigations into 50 power plants for past violations of the Clean Air Act, lawyers at the agency who were briefed on the decision this week said. The lawyers said in interviews on Wednesday that the decision meant the cases would be judged under new, less stringent rules set to take effect next month, rather than the stricter rules in effect at the time the investigations began. The lawyers said the new rules include exemptions that would make it almost impossible to sustain the investigations into the plants,...