Stateline Headlines

Rebuilding the coastline, but at what cost?

U.S. approves expanded gas exports

State Officials Seek Help Fighting Invasive Species

State officials want to play a bigger role in fighting invasive species on federal lands, calling on federal officials to better coordinate their efforts.

Plans to split Lake Tahoe oversight called off after compromise

Farm bill clears Senate Agriculture Committee

Budget woes will hamper wildfire prevention: officials

Study: Most States Cut Emissions in Last Decade

Stateline - EIA Study says 32 States Cut Emissions Between 2000 and 2010

Gas tax alternative drive takes wrong turn: Our view

N.Y. Senate fracking backer tied to firm with gas lease

Lawmakers plan to start drafting farm bill next week

Weatherproofing cities to deal with future Sandys

Perry makes a plea to Obama

Western Governors Want Feds to Do More in Stressed Forests

Is the federal government doing enough to protect its forests? Western governors don’t think so.

Sequester Costs States Millions in Mineral Revenue

States outraged as Interior Department cuts millions from monthly mineral payments, citing sequester as reason.

EPA: Most of Nation’s Waters are “Poor”

More than half of the nation’s thousands of miles of rivers and streams are plagued by substandard water quality, including harmful levels of nutrient pollution and mercury, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Top 10: Gun Run Pumps Up State Wildlife Funds

Which state wildlife programs will benefit the most from a surge in gun sales?

Surging Gun Sales Pump Millions into Wildlife Restoration

Gun enthusiasts’ recent race to buy firearms has had a surprising consequence: more money for wildlife programs.

Nullification: Old Arguments Against Feds Get New Life

States challenging Washington is not new, but Second Amendment worries have breathed new life into a movement championing a wider range of topics than ever before.

Report: Insurers Ill-Prepared for Climate Risks

Just 23 out of 184 large companies doing business in the U.S. follow a comprehensive plan to address climate change risks, according to a survey conducted by insurance regulators in California, New York and Washington.

Forced Cuts Would Take Toll on State Air and Water Programs

Should Congress fail to reach a budget deal by Friday, the country’s air and water could get murkier, environmental officials are warning, as forced cuts would deal a heavy blow to state programs that carry out the bulk of inspections and pollution cleanups.

In State of the Union Speech, Obama Targets Jobs, Energy

With much of his focus on jobs and the economy, the president called for policies aiming to spur a “rising, thriving middle class” and quicken the country’s slow climb from recession. But in the wide-ranging speech, he left plenty more for states to chew on — particularly in energy and environmental issues.

Fracking for State Dollars

The boom in oil and gas production has some states taking another look at the kinds of taxes they levy.

‘Cliff’ Deal Answers a Few Questions for States

Congress averted the much-feared “fiscal cliff” late Tuesday, passing a legislative package to be signed promptly by President Obama. The deal answered a few burning questions for state governments, but many still linger.

Election Year Brings Big Changes in State Policy

From battles in the legislatures to battles at the polls, Stateline reporters traveled all over the country in 2012 reporting on news from the states.

States Grant Utilities Extra Rate Increases

Utilities say they need additional revenue to modernize their aging infrastructure. Many states are responding by allowing them to charge higher rates.

State Officials Brace for Impact as Sandy Nears East Coast

State emergency managers rallied every resource as a unique megastorm swirls closer to landfall, threatening to bring a potentially deadly combination of hurricane force winds and historic surge levels to the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic coast, along with heavy Appalachian snows.

Ahead of Convention, Republican Governors Release Energy Plan

Ahead of the Republican National Convention scheduled for next week, Republican governors have released their broad energy plan. Not surprisingly, it finds fault with President Obama.

Still No Farm Bill, But More Assistance to Drought-Ravaged States

With Congress still at an impasse over the farm bill, the Obama Administration this week pledged $30 million more to aid farmers and ranchers hit hard by drought.

As Nuclear Waste Problem Persists, Federal Regulators Freeze Licensing for Reactors

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission decided Tuesday to hold off on issuing licenses to plants that are new or up for renewal. That’s until it addresses states’ long-held problem with the temporary storage of nuclear waste.

Report: State Fracking Oversight Laws Need Overhaul

States aren’t doing enough to ensure that water supplies are safe during the controversial fracking process, a new report finds. Natural gas companies are able to circumvent laws, it says, through loopholes protecting “trade secrets.”

In Energy Policy, A Year Marked by Clashes in Federalism

New federal rules for power plants and natural gas drillers stirred heated debate in statehouses this year.

Congress Seeks Input on State Nuclear Waste Woes

A U.S. Congressional subcommittee on Thursday (June 7) addressed a question states have long hoped the federal government would answer: Where will nuclear power plants permanently store their growing stockpiles of spent fuel and other hazardous waste? It’s a problem that has gone unresolved for decades, as the fede

States Ahead of EPA in Cutting Mercury Pollution

With the Bush administration under fire for pushing weak mercury pollution standards, several states are striking out to clean their own skies of toxic mercury emissions from coal-burning power plants and other sources.

States Set Example with Green-Power Policies

Colorado lawmakers are expected to vote this week on making renewable energy account for a certain percentage of power purchases. Fifteen other states already have laws that let government set the pace in buying energy from green power, broadly defined as sources such as wind, sun and water.

Soaring Gas Prices Unlikely to Affect Gas Taxes

Record-high gas prices may send you scrounging for loose change under the car seat, but so far only Florida is considering lowering its fuel tax to try to ease the pain. Other states have no immediate plans to follow suit unlike four years ago when at least two states temporarily removed gas taxes.

States Outdo Federal Government in Combating Global Warming

In the absence of a federal policy to combat global warming, at least 39 states are actively pioneering strategies to reduce greenhouse gases. The state of Washington has taken the boldest action by adopting the nations toughest carbon dioxide reductions for new power plants.

Western States Struggle to Meet Wildfire Threats

Despite dire warnings that catastrophic wildfires are fast becoming the norm in the West, observers say that budget shortfalls, National Guard deployments and cuts to federal fire programs have left Western states at their lowest level of fire preparedness in years.

Gas Prices Hit State Fleets, Consumer Wallets

Memorial Day, meant to honor soldiers' sacrifices, this year will mean consumers' wallets get pinched as they hit the road for the ceremonial start of summer. Soaring gas prices are also affecting state vehicle fleets and fuel budgets. California and Florida are launching price-gouging investigations, and a few states are thinking about suspending their state gas tax.

Oil Sticker Shock a Windfall to Energy-Rich States

Rising oil prices may be creating havoc at the gas pumps and making Wall Street jittery, but its a boon for a handful of oil-producing states. States know, however, that any windfall is likely short-term.

See the U.S.A., Win a Chevrolet

It's summer vacation season, and the competition among states for tourists is fierce. No state wants to be left without vacationers and their wallets. Even with slim promotional budgets, state and local tourism officials are enticing Americans with sweepstakes and freebies to help secure their share of an anticipated summer tourism surge.

Environmental Justice: An Emerging State Issue

Toxic waste dumps, air pollution, lead poisoning -- nobody wants these environmental blights in their neighborhood, but poor people live with them a lot more than affluent folks. Some states claim to be making strides toward more fairness in this regard, but critics say so-called environmental justice policies amount to little more than lip service.

GOP Touts Bush's Record on State Affairs

Republicans made the case this week for a second term for President George W. Bush, saying his policies already are helping states budget prospects and will help states deal with the ongoing challenges of health care costs and job growth. Bush formally accepted his partys nomination at the Republican National Convention Thursday and sketched out his domestic agenda for a second term.

Hot-Button Social Issues Cram State Ballots

Voters this November will tackle controversial issues that many statehouses couldnt resolve, including whether to ban gay marriage, boost the state minimum wage or have a lottery. Californians will have the longest list of ballot questions with 16.

States Struggle to Help Poor Pay Winter Heating Bills

Temperatures are dropping and fuel prices are rising, causing states to worry that some of their neediest residents will be left out in the cold this winter because states dont have enough money to help low-income people heat their homes. An initial sampling of states shows that requests for home heating aid through the federally funded and state-administered Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program could reach an all-time high in 2005.

States Target Greenhouse Gases

In the absence of national policy, states have created programs that are resulting in the reduction of greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane.

States in Forefront of Agricultural Biotech Debate

States took the lead in debating regulation of genetically modified food and the agricultural biotechnology industry in 2001-2002, with 158 bills introduced in 39 states, a new report finds. Despite a flurry of legislative activity, only 45 measures were enacted by last year and the majority were designed to protect the research and growth of genetically modified food from vandalism, a new report finds.

Governors Kick Off Fire Season with Call to Action

A group of Western governors attending a forest health summit in Montana called on Congress for immediate action to protect high-risk communities from wildfires in Western states.

Kempthorne Says He'd Accept EPA Post If Offered

If President Bush asks Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne (R) to become the new head of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Kempthorne said Thursday (6/19) it would be his responsibility to take the job.

Budget Cuts Take Toll on State Parks

The campgrounds, historic sites and lush forests in U.S. state parks cant escape the effects of the budget crisis. State park officials report that financial woes are hacking at recreation programs and prompting fee increases, reductions in personnel and deals with corporations in parks across the United States at a time when many state officials report increases in park visitors.

States Want Control Over Power Line Decisions

The Aug. 14 massive electrical blackout has renewed calls for more federal oversight of the nations power transmission system, but state officials want to retain some regional control over the location of power lines.

E-Waste Disposal -- States' Computer-Age Headache

More than 10 million computers and television monitors will be tossed out this year, creating a computer-age headache for states trying to mitigate the environmental impact of toxic electronic waste.

Governors Mull Blackout Solutions

Responding to the recent blackouts in Midwestern and Northeastern states, governors gathered here for the National Governors Association's (NGA) annual summer meeting said the nations electricity grid needs an upgrade, but did not agree on how to make it happen.

State Legal Chiefs Team Up to Influence Policy

Assuming a role that used to be played at the federal level, state attorneys general are tackling some of the nation's biggest issues environmental enforcement, corporate corruption and prescription drug prices.

Few States Self-Police with Environmental Impact Laws

The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) has become the bedrock of U.S. environmental policy since President Richard Nixon signed it into law in 1970. It requires all federal agencies to evaluate the impact of their actions on the environment, and offers a model for environmental regulation in the states a model, however, that relatively few states have chosen to emulate.

States Push Pollution Rules, Power Line Authority

This was the year of the blackout, an almost unfathomable electrical failure that in minutes turned off the power from New York to Toronto to Cleveland on the afternoon of Aug. 14, stranding millions. It was also a year when states balked at White House efforts to rewrite the Clean Air Act in ways that some states fear will aggravate pollution and smog. Yet the states, while insisting that Washington keep enforcing environmental rules, also want the feds to keep hands off state power line decisions.

Northeast States Weigh California-Style Car Law

Eastern seaboard states in violation of federal clean air standards are considering cleaning up their acts by emulating Californias stricter automobile emission standards.

'O Christmas Tree' More Than a Carol in Some States

Even the Christmas tree is a matter of public policy. Some state governments regulate various aspects of the Yule symbol, from the manner in which people buy their live evergreens to where they mount them and what happens the trees are ready for the mulch pile.

States Offering More Energy Incentives

If you've thought about going solar in the face of rising electricity costs, now may be the time to do it. With only a few exceptions, states are offering tax credits, sales rebates and other incentives to promote the use of alternative, or renewable energy sources.

State Environmental Budgets Take $200M Hit

President Bushs FY2003 budget proposal for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would give states an additional $15 million to enforce clean air and water regulations, but that won't even begin to offset the substantial cuts many states are already making to their own environmental spending because of budget problems.

Farm Links Cultivate New Generation

Web sites like HotJobs and Monster.com offer employers and career seekers thousands of opportunities to find each other every day, but you likely wont find listings on them for one of the nations most visible and time-honored occupations: Farming

Open Space Questioned As Anti-Sprawl Tool

Your local playground, county park, preserved farm, state forest or national monument came at a high price and may serve an important purpose, but theres scant hard evidence to prove that it's stopping sprawl as advertised, according to a new report from the Brookings Institution.

Lengthy Drought Takes Toll on States

Three-minute showers in Pennsylvania. A run on low-flow toilets in New Mexico. Early spring fires in Colorado. And the extension of low-interest loans to farmers across the country. All are the result of a long-running, near-nationwide drought that has prompted local and state governments to implement new water conservation guidelines and forced some governors to ask the U.S. Department of Agriculture to declare their states drought disaster areas.

State Parks Hit Hard Times

If you're planning a hike, a cookout or a fishing trip at your favorite state park this weekend, you may want to call ahead to make sure it's open. Especially if you'd rather not run into vandals or risk arrest for trespassing.

Environmental Measures Trigger Ballot Fights

A campaign to require labels on genetically-modified foods in Oregon is one of several ballot measure fights that pit consumer rights and environmental groups against corporate interests at the polls on Nov. 5.

States Vie For Innovation Awards

Who says you cant be creative in state government? Thirty-one state government programs are semifinalists competing for one of five $100,000 grants in the Innovations In American Government Awards.

Crop Duster Groundings Might Hit Harvest

Farmers in many states might feel some impact at harvest time this fall from the post-September 11 grounding of 5,000 crop dusters. Planes and helicopters used to spray fertilizer and chemicals on millions of acres of U.S. farmland are flying again now, but they had to stand down for a day or more three times in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon -- and the groundings occurred during a phase of the growing season crucial to the survival of crops susceptible to disease and insects.

Western Governors Meet on Electric Deregulation Crisis

A meeting in Portland, Oregon last week could help shape a state policy response to the nation's latest energy headache -- the electric deregulation crisis. Although the crisis is rooted in California's flawed electric deregulation plan, it has other causes as well and it is starting to have adverse economic consequences in several Western states.

State Lawmakers Concerned About Lack of Focus on Farm Issues

Farmers may be wondering if there's room left in the "new economy" for them after listening to the nation's governors deliver their State of the State addresses this year. The state of American agriculture garnered barely a mention amid all the talk about commitments to education, technology development, and holding the line on government spending. Only three governors -- Judy Martz of Montana, Dirk Kempthorne of Idaho and John Hoeven of North Dakota -- devoted much time to it.

Governors Push Conservation On Private Lands

The $17.6 billion that voters in state and local elections have approved for land purchases since 1998 is a powerful index of citizens concern for the environment, but buying up open space wont accomplish enough on its own, a key group of governors said this month at a land policy summit hosted by the National Governors Association (NGA) in Washington, DC.

States Defend Environmental Record

State officials have claimed for years that they, not the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), do the vast majority of traditional environmental work the inspections, assessments and enforcement actions on potential and real polluters carried out each year in the United States. Now, they say, as the debate over their capacity to handle environmental responsibility continues, they have the numbers to prove it.

Conservationists Strive To Protect Eastern Forests

While economic realities alter the viability of forestry and land ownership in the eastern United States, conservation groups are pooling resources to ensure that the regions woods will remain much the way Robert Frost saw them 80 years ago when he wrote "Stopping By Woods On A Snowy Evening." Outright open space acquisitions are popular, but the less expensive tool of choice is becoming the easement, the purchase of the development rights to lands that could otherwise attract new construction. Conservationists are buying them up in larger chunks than ever before.

CARA Push Begins Anew

The Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA) is back on Congresss list of legislative priorities, looking much the same as it did when it failed to come to a floor vote in the U.S. Senate last fall.

Riding an Oil and Gas Wave Into the Black

The past several months found lawmakers in most states lowering their legislative sights as the slowing U.S. economy drained dollars from state coffers. But a handful of states are bucking this trend as they ride a wave of higher than average oil and gas prices to better fiscal health. Alaska, Louisiana, Montana New Mexico, Oklahoma and Wyoming are all enjoying an unexpected windfall from taxes on the oil and gas industries in their states. Analysts caution, however, that just as in the past, the wave of high prices won't last long. Already there are signs it is petering out.

Bush Out to Polish Federalism Image With Pending Order

President George W. Bush is in the process of drafting an executive order on federalism that might help defuse criticism that he has betrayed his roots by overriding state authority on patients rights, taxes, education, energy, the environment, and the faith-based initiative. Bush, a former Texas governor, called in his campaign and early in his administration for a more even balance of power between Washington, D.C. and the states, but state officials say he has not practiced what he preached.

Corrected Federal Data Crops Picture of Lost Lands

Valuable forests and agricultural land slipped under the wheels of the nations sprawling commercial and residential juggernaut at a rapid rate over the last decade but not quite at as quickly as first believed, recently corrected federal data shows. The Natural Resources Conservation Service, the land and water conservation arm of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, released the long-awaited update to its Natural Resources Inventory (NRI) last week.

States Crack Down on Gasoline Thieves

More and more U.S. motorists have become "fuel shoplifters." With the price of gasoline at near record-high levels, gas stations are reporting that more drivers are filling up their gas tanks and fleeing without paying. Twelve states have responded by pumping up criminal penalties for those convicted of stealing gas. Most of them have added a punishment to the usual "petty theft" penalty - suspending violators' drivers licenses for six months.

NGA Meeting Ends With Fed-State Plan on Electric Ills

Providence , R.I. - The National Governors' Association Tuesday unveiled a plan to work with the Bush administration to identify and fix problems with the U.S. transmission grid, the nation's electric power distribution system.

Don't Go Near the Water, Environmental Group Says

With all the hype about sharks in the water this summer, one would think death by man-eating fish would be the only thing to worry about when going near the ocean. Well, think again. In its 11th annual report on beach closings, the Natural Resources Defense Council noted that closings in 2000 due to disease-causing pollution had nearly doubled from the 1999 figure of 6,160 to 11,270.

Electric Deregulation Weakens Reliability, Study Finds

An unintended consequence of electric utility deregulation, embraced by 23 states, has been more power outages and other reliability problems within the nations electricity grid, a new study says. Power companies are to blame for this rise in unreliability, as are the state and federal governments, according to a team of U.S. Department of Energy investigators responsible for the study.

Support Swells For Governor-Backed Conservation Funding Bill

Legislation that would dramatically expand federal aid to state and local governments for a wide array of conservation and environmental impact endeavors took a long stride forward this week when 165 more members of Congress signed on as co-sponsors, bringing the total to 292 -- a level of support that guarantees House passage of the measure. Under H.R. 701, the Conservation and Reinvestment Act (CARA), federal, state and local governments would share a permanent $2.8 billion set-aside of federal revenues from oil and gas drilling on the outer continental shelf, a funding source that could either diminish or end the need for new taxes or fees to support conservation efforts nationwide.

States, Environmentalists Quarrel Over Clean Water Permits

State and federal regulators in charge of reviewing factory discharge levels and tightening water quality standards for the nations major industrial polluters are failing to do the most fundamental part of their job, according to a new fifty-state study. But state water officials say that the study by two Washington, D.C. environmental groups twists truth by relying on questionable data and ignoring recent efforts by several states to improve water quality rules and streamline a cumbersome permit system.

Electric Restructuring Trend Pauses In Some States

Twenty-four states had embraced electric utility deregulation as of the end of 1999, but the story has been different in 2000. Last week, Iowa's Legislature tabled a bill to open up the sale and production of electricity in the Hawkeye State, and uncertainty in Nevada led Gov. Kenny Guinn to pull the plug on a Mar. 1 implementation deadline. However, in Alabama, big businesses are arguing that deregulation is a concept whose time has come.

Acid Rain Keeps Falling Despite Power Plant Controls

Congressional adjustments made to the Clean Air Act 10 years ago have reduced acid-rain forming sulfurous emissions from coal-burning power plants. But that doesnt mean the problem has gone away, say the authors of a recently released federal report.

Persistent Drought Prompting New State Action Plans

Barring a series of unforeseen spring soakers, states in the Midwest and Sunbelt face a drought that could be just as harsh as the one that devastated the eastern U.S. last year, offering many of them the chance to test their drought action plans for the first time.

New Federal Water Rules Threaten To Swamp State EPAs

New rules touted by the Clinton administration as the best way to get states on the fast-track toward eliminating non-point source pollution and cleaning up U.S. waterways will strain states environmental protection resources some possibly to the breaking point state analysts say. But federal officials counter that the rules are needed to help states, the vanguard of national environmental protection efforts, meet the goals of the federal Clean Water Act.

Electric Deregulation's Side-Effects Vex Several States

Electric utility deregulation is supposed to bring about lower power prices by exposing utility monopolies to competition. At least that's what the 24 states that have opted for deregulation anticipated. But it has been more of a pain than panacea for a number of states, producing everything from tax shortfalls to power blackouts to exorbitant rate increases.

Tobacco States Cool Crop's Slow Burn

Writing as Virginias governor during the last days of the American Revolution, Thomas Jefferson described tobacco farming as "a culture productive of infinite wretchedness" and looked forward to the crops decline in his state and Maryland after the war. Two hundred years of Chesapeake history appeared to have proven the father of modern democracy dead wrong. But with total acreage at its lowest level since 1874, the Old Dominion putting half of its first installment of the 1998 tobacco settlement in the hands of leaf growers, and Maryland offering them a full-scale buyout, Jeffersons vision seems less crackpot than prophetic.

Soaring Natural Gas Prices Hold Good, Bad News for States

From Washington to New Jersey, states are coping with price spikes in the nation's $51 billion natural gas industry. In Indiana, Democratic Gov. Frank O'Bannon is weighing suspending his state's sales tax on the clean-burning fossil fuel. Experts say industry developments will ease natural gas prices nationwide, but the bad news is that relief won't come in time to lower costs by winter.

Sprawl's Long Arm Touching State Parks, Report Warns

Sprawl, long reviled for tearing the heart out of America's cities and gobbling up the greenery, is now the greatest threat to her state park system, according to a report card released Friday by a non-profit park conservancy in honor of the 84th birthday of the National Park Service. It says the 10 most threatened state parks in the country are in Georgia, North Carolina, Minnesota, Nevada, West Virginia, Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Montana.

EPA Chief Looks Past November To Environmental Future

Carol Browner, the longest-serving administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), says she used to describe the relationship between state and federal environmental regulators as something like an arranged marriage. "We had to stay together for the children," she quipped this week to an audience of journalists, environmentalists and representatives of government, labor and industry at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

School Pesticide Question Challenges Policymakers

To spray or not to spray? That's the dilemma facing increasing numbers of school districts engaged in perennial battles with six-legged classroom intruders and harmful campus weeds. It's also a question state and federal officials are under mounting pressure to answer.

On the Record: The Sierra Clubs Ed Hopkins

Observers on both sides of the green policy issue realize the nations environmental laws arent getting any younger. Revamping them calls for a fresh look at how states have done as frontline enforcers. Stateline.org Staff writer John Nagy recently asked environmentalist Ed Hopkins for his assessment.

On the Record: Michigan Environmental Head Russell Harding

With a Republican-dominated administration and a history of being a staunch friend of industry, Michigan isn't generally viewed by environmentalists as a champion of the environment. Nonetheless, the Great Lakes State launched a $675 million investment in brownfields recovery and related programs two years ago and has won national laurels for its pollution prevention efforts. Stateline.org recently spoke with Michigan Department of Environmental Quality director Russell Harding, who served in Alaska and Missouri before taking over as Michigans top environmental regulator in 1992.

Delay Of Inventory Leaves Sprawls Pace In Question

Federal data released nearly a year ago that shows an alarming state-by-state disappearance of open space remains unverified after the discovery of a computer error in March cast doubt on its validity. Federal officials now say say state and local planners and others waiting for corrected data will have to keep waiting at least until the end of the year.

Statewide Growth Measures Loom Large On Tuesday's Ballot

It should not be surprising that 2000 would yield another bumper crop of growth-related statewide ballot measures, rooted as most are in the anti-sprawl fever feeding voter interest in local elections. Voters in 22 states will weigh in on how to channel growth through 35 statewide measures, according to a new report released by the Brookings Institute. Local ballots will offer residents "hundreds" of additional opportunities to shape their cities and counties.

Gas Prices To Challenge Records Over Holiday Weekend

Gasoline prices are poised to challenge record highs as motorists head for the highways for the Memorial Day weekend, new figures produced by the American Automobile Association show. A gallon of regular unleaded will cost drivers an average of $1.52 and could top two dollars in Chicago.

Electric Utility Deregulation Express Losing Steam

Barring filibusters and sleeping pills, few things set heads nodding faster than talk about electric utility deregulation. But for the nation's largest business, the stodgy, $208-billion electric power industry, it's big. It's also big for state legislators, consumer advocates and environmentalists. And one day soon, ordinary consumers may also take interest, should this soporific issue deliver promised cost savings in the double-digits.

Electric Utility Deregulation Driven By Costs

The push among states to deregulate their electric utilities, triggered by federal laws passed in 1978 and 1992, has entered a second, more cautious phase. Gone is the urgency shown by 18 states that embraced deregulation from 1996 through 1998. Most of those states, including New Jersey, the most recent convert, have residential electric costs well above the national average of 8.43 cents per kilowatt hour. But cheaper electricity elsewhere has taken the edge off the issue.

Oil Crisis Forces States Into Action

While dollar-a-gallon gas is a dream for the nation's drivers, $9-a-barrel oil is an all too real nightmare for oil producing states straining to recoup lost revenue. One of them, Alaska, is facing a $1 billion budget gap thanks to the lowest oil prices since 1977. After considering and rejecting other remedies, Gov. Tony Knowles has proposed reviving the state income tax, last collected in 1980. Meanwhile, Texas, Wyoming and Oklahoma are resorting to a mixed bag of legislative actions to protect in-state oil producers and safeguard severance tax revenues that account for a significant portion of their general fund incomes.

U.S.D.A. Study Raises Questions about Electric Deregulation

Electric utility deregulation could cause 19 states to have higher electric costs, especially rural customers in those states, an internal study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture concludes. The study, which runs counter to Clinton administration claims that deregulation will save consumers in every state billions of dollars annually, recently fell into the hands of the National Journal, which reported its findings. Despite this fresh ammunition for foes of deregulation, a powerful congressman is set to start work on a bill that would mandate it in all 50 states.