Energy Issue Tops Agenda of Governors

A conference of the Western Governors Assn. called to discuss wildfires and energy devolved Monday into another denunciation of Gov. Gray Davis of California, whose repeated failure to attend these sessions was said to be impeding solutions to the region’s problems.

In his 2 1/2 years in office, Davis has attended only one of at least six full-fledged meetings of the WGA, an association of chief executives from 18 Western states that tries to present a common voice to Washington on the region’s needs.

California-bashing is nothing new in the Republican-dominated group, especially with a Democrat in Sacramento. But as the energy crisis has focused so heavily on California, governors are increasingly frustrated that Davis is a constant no-show. His sole appearance was at the group’s “energy summit” in February.

Idaho Gov. Dirk Kempthorne went so far as to say that Davis’ absence at the meetings has hampered the group’s effort to resolve the West’s energy problems.

“Gov. Davis should be here,” Kempthorne said at the end of Monday’s energy session, which dealt with ways to transmit power from the West’s energy-rich, sparsely populated states to energy-hungry California. “No one state can be an island. We need to work together.”

Davis was not the only Western governor who failed to attend this meeting--five others didn’t attend either. Davis’ predecessor, Pete Wilson, also made a habit of missing the several WGA sessions each year.

A spokeswoman for Davis said a “personal scheduling conflict” prevented Davis’ attendance. California was represented at the conference by Deborah Slon, a legislative affairs liaison.

“I don’t think you should interpret that as a lack of attention and lack of interest,” said Davis spokeswoman Hilary McLean. “He has a great deal of respect for his fellow governors. We certainly count on and appreciate our neighbors in the West. “

But some governors here are baffled that Davis can’t find time to meet with them at a time when so many issues so crucial to California are on the table.

“These are issues concerning his state,” said Arizona Gov. Jane Dee Hull. “It would be better for him to make his points face to face, rather than through aides. It’s hard to make your case if you are not here.”

Wyoming Gov. Jim Geringer threatened to send the region’s power to the East rather than California. He coined the phrase, “OTC--Other Than California” to suggest a strategy to sell surplus power elsewhere.

“For the governor of California not to be here to participate removes California from the opportunity to have a partnership that’s beneficial to all,” Geringer said. “He really should look at his priorities. What I think Gov. Davis should do is look beyond political opportunity and look to the long-term viability of the state.”

Davis missed a spirited discussion among federal and state officials of one of the central puzzles in the energy debate: how to move the region’s abundant and diverse energy resources to where they are needed most. The transmission of energy to where it is needed is a challenge in such states as Wyoming and Montana, where coal mines are remote and unconnected to power transmission lines.

“We’ve got the resources,” Geringer said. “We are just having a heck of a time getting those resources where they are needed.”

The construction of power transmission lines is a private-sector issue and the governors discussed how to encourage the multibillion-dollar investment required to string a line of massive transmission towers across some of the nation’s most rugged terrain.

The governors heard from utility company executives who bemoaned the federal bureaucracy that makes building transmission towers a multiyear effort.

The aesthetic issue of states not wanting the unattractive towers dominating their landscapes was also discussed. That brought up, again, California. Jack Davis, an executive with Arizona’s largest utility company, reluctantly invoked the Golden State to illustrate the problem.

“I’ll use the most convenient whipping boy,” he said. “States argue, ‘We put these [towers] in my backyard so it will heat their spas in California.’ That’s what we’re facing.”