Virginia's Commitment

Revolving doors always raise questions. That's not to say that people who go through them are necessarily tainted by the trip — going from a corporation to a government agency that regulates it, or in reverse, or sometimes going around more than once. But the trek from regulated to regulator can raise some eyebrows.

Winchester — A recommendation by two administrative law judges in Pennsylvania has placed the proposed Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line (TrAIL) in jeopardy. The judges ruled Thursday that the 240-mile power line should not be allowed in the Keystone State. Should the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission agree with the recommendation and decline to approve the line, its approval in Virginia would also be in limbo.

Virginia may have given a controversial power line an initial "yes," but Pennsylvania has given it an initial "no." In a ruling released late Thursday, regulatory judges in Pennsylvania recommended that the state's Public Utilities Commission deny applications from Allegheny Power and Dominion Virginia power to build the Trans-Allegheny Interstate Line. A hearing examiner for the Virginia State Corporation Commission has recommended approval for the controversial power line, but only on the condition that West Virginia and Pennsylvania also sign off on the plan.

STATE UTILITIES COMMISSION Ex-Dominion Lawyer to Avoid Power Line Debate A former lawyer for Dominion Virginia Power who was appointed to a commission that oversees utilities has said he will not participate in deliberations over a 65-mile power line proposed by the company.

Democratic Gov. Timothy M. Kaine's should reconsider his decision to appoint a lawyer representing Dominion Virginia to the State Corporation Commission, according to a local congressman. Rep. Frank Wolf, R-10th, wrote to Kaine this week asking him to reconsider his appointment of James C. Dimitri, of Richmond-based law firm McGuire Woods, to a long-standing vacancy on the three-member regulatory body. Dimitri is the lead attorney representing Dominion Virginia in the utility's effort to build a controversial 500-kilovolt power line from Frederick to Loudoun county.

Results will help industry get ready for climate-change rules that Boucher says are coming... Researchers began a small-scale test yesterday to determine whether carbon dioxide can be captured in a coal seam instead of being released into the air. About 1,000 tons of the greenhouse gas will be injected into a seam that can't be mined in Russell County. "This is a major event in securing the future of coal nationally," said U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, D-9th, who spoke at a gathering yesterday in Cedar Bluff to kick off the effort.

Some opponents of a 65-mile power line planned for Northern Virginia, including a congressman, are criticizing Gov. Timothy M. Kaine's choice to fill a vacancy on a state commission that oversees utilities. Last week, Kaine (D) named Richmond lawyer James C. Dimitri to the three-judge State Corporation Commission to replace Theodore V. Morrison Jr., who retired. Dimitri, taking his seat on the commission with a temporary appointment, will serve a full six-year term if he wins confirmation from the legislature early next year.

OCEAN CITY, Md., Gov. Martin O'Malley announced Saturday that Maryland will join Montgomery County, the University of Maryland and other local governments in a long-term commitment to buy wind power and other renewable energy, as he laid out an aggressive plan to overhaul the state's electricity system.

Deadlock in the legislature gave governor the picks; legislators still must approve Gov. Timothy M. Kaine is filling prized judgeships tossed him by a deadlocked legislature with, among others, the veteran judge from the trial of the mastermind of the 2002 Washington-area sniper shootings. Two other key posts went to a Chesterfield County judge and a Richmond lawyer.

Boyce — Virginia isn’t a thriving market for wind power yet, but interest in uses of alternative energy for private use is growing. Ken Jurman, renewable-energy program manager at the state Department of Mines, Minerals, and Energy, said he is receiving more consumer inquiries about solar array installations for private use — and wind installations to a lesser extent — to help defray energy costs. “People seem to want to do this,” he said. “They’re just trying to figure out how to pay for it.”