Reid Says First Energy, then Smart Grid and Cap-and-Trade

Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NM) said last Wednesday that Congress could meet President's Obama's call to pass sweeping energy legislation this year - including cap-and-trade - but it would take three bills to do it. Reid said he plans to start with an energy bill that Sen. Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) is currently working on that includes a renewable energy standard, adding that the bill could be on the Senate floor by mid-April. Then Reid envisions that Congress will work on a measure to create a "smart grid" to transmit electricity from renewable sources. Finally, Reid said the Senate would take up a cap-and-trade bill, asserting the other measures would help lay the foundations for a new energy economy. Read more at E&E (sub'd req.)