| http://abcnews.go.com/sections/politics/DailyNews/Electricity_Bush010509.html
Power Hungry? Bush to Back Land Grabs For Electrical Lines By Carter M. Yang W A S H I N G T O N, May 9 — The Bush administration wants to give the federal government the power to seize private property in order to accelerate the construction of new electrical power lines. "We need more electricity wires carrying product across the country," the president said Tuesday night at a speech to the Electronic Industries Alliance Government Industry in Washington. Plan Would Expand Eminent Domain One of the ways Bush intends to achieve that goal is by asking Congress to pass legislation that substantially expands the government's eminent domain authority — the constitutional principle that allows the government to take privately owned lands for public use in exchange for fair compensation. "Given the criticality of having an energy policy … that can help make sure that people's supplies are secure, so when they flip on their switch the lights work, the president does want to make certain that our aging infrastructure is modernized," White House press secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters today. The administration's proposal would empower the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to appropriate lands and hand them over to power companies so they can build new electrical power lines. White House officials tell ABCNEWS the administration's Energy Policy Task Force, headed up by Vice President Cheney, will recommend the plan in its final report, which is set to be released next week. Charles Cushman, executive director of the American Lands Rights Association, a nonprofit organization that advocates private property rights, says rural land owners should be concerned about the long-term abuse of such an authority. He suggests crafting legislation that includes a cutoff date — not an option believed to be under consideration by the White House. "Sometimes these kind of wartime-type powers often continue after the crisis over," Cushman says, alluding to what many, including Bush and Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, see as a looming national energy crisis. "That can't happen here. This needs to have a deadline that takes this authority away once the crisis has passed. "What's Good For Gas … Eminent domain has historically been used for the building of public roads and bridges, but has previously been extended for the construction of natural gas pipelines. "The issue is whether or not we should have the same authority on electrical transmission lines," Cheney said Thursday in an interview with CNN. "That's never been granted previously." Referring to the power woes in California, which is enduring rolling blackouts, Fleischer suggested new pipelines would be necessary to improve the transmission of electricity across the country "so that if one region has a problem with energy, they can get energy from a different region of the country." "I understand why the president and his people are looking at this, but we've still got to protect the private rights of citizens," remarks Cushman. As it prepares to unveil its national energy strategy, the Bush administration has already come under fire from Democrats on Capitol Hill who accuse Bush and Cheney — both former Texas oil men — of allowing energy companies to reap record profits while failing to address record-high energy prices and looming shortfalls in many parts of the country. "The president has responded to the growing crisis by throwing up his hands and saying, 'There's nothing I can do. There's no way to give people immediate relief,'" House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt said at a press conference on Capitol Hill this afternoon. "The president's do-nothing response begs the question, 'Is the Republican answer to our energy crisis letting the energy companies dictate our energy policy?'" The electrical power line proposal is sure to draw further criticism |
