State Lawmakers Defeat Oil Cleanup Funding Measures : Legislature: Industry opposition and rivalry between the Senate and Assembly killed two bills that would have taxed companies to create a $150-million ‘superfund’ to pay for mopping up spills<i> .</i>

Two bills that would have taxed oil companies to create a $150-million “superfund” to clean up offshore oil spills were defeated Tuesday in the face of heavy industry opposition and rivalry between the Senate and Assembly.

The legislation, passed in separate forms by the Assembly and Senate last month, would have levied a 25-cents-per-barrel tax on all oil produced in California to maintain the superfund. It also would have required companies to extend to the state an unlimited line of credit to pay for spills if the superfund were to run out.

The Senate Government Organization Committee killed by a 4-1 vote the Assembly-approved version of the legislation, authored by Assemblyman Ted Lempert (D-San Mateo).

The Assembly Judiciary Committee then refused to even consider the Senate version of the bill, written by Senate Majority Leader Barry Keene (D-Benicia).

The two cleanup bills, which were prompted by the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill in Alaska and the British Petroleum spill off Huntington Beach earlier this year, probably will be reconsidered by the committees in August, lawmakers said.

Environmentalists attributed the defeat of the two measures to intensive oil industry lobbying. “This shows the oil companies have the upper hand. They exercised a lot of political muscle to keep the coastline from being protected,” said Corey Brown, lobbyist for the California Planning and Conservation League.

The Senate and Assembly were also clearly divided over which version of the cleanup legislation to approve.

The Senate committee seemed to favor the Keene bill not only because it was written by a prominent member of their house but also because they agreed with it philosophically. The Senate bill left oversight authority over oil cleanups with the state Fish and Game Department, instead of creating a new state department to supervise the oil companies.

The Assembly, on the other hand, overwhelmingly backed Lempert’s bill, which was also preferred by environmentalist groups. That bill contained not only the superfund provisions but also a number of measures designed to prevent oil spills. For example, it would have given the state authority to inspect oil facilities and levy increased fines and penalties in the event of a spill.

Both Assembly and Senate leaders pushed hard for their respective versions of the bill. Lawmakers and lobbyists on both sides of the issue said that Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco) threatened to kill the Keene bill if the Senate committee defeated the Assembly legislation.

Since the Senate and Assembly could not agree on which bill to pass, both wound up getting killed. “It’s an ego battle between the two houses,” said Gordon Hart of the Sierra Club. “It’s a question of Senate machismo. They wanted to have credit and control (over the legislation). They let their egos get in the way of good policy.”

Now all sides involved in the debate--oil companies, environmentalists, senators and Assembly members--will have to go back to the negotiating table to try to hammer out compromise legislation before the end of the legislative session in August.