A handful of short paragraphs tacked onto a massive federal spending bill could weaken California's fight to approve or veto the location of liquefied natural gas terminals planned for the state. The rider asserts that federal law passed decades ago gives federal regulators, not state officials, the exclusive legal right over LNG siting decisions. The four-paragraph rider, attached to a report on the lengthy congressional appropriations bill, specifically takes issue with the California Public Utilities Commission. The PUC is locked in litigation with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission over the siting authority question. Both sides contend they have exclusive jurisdiction...