Energy Czar Talks about California Changes Ahead

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In the days when summer-long blackouts were being predicted, Governor Davis called long-term contracts crucial to guaranteeing adequate power in the future. S. David Freeman, who has a long history of service in public power, was hired to negotiate with energy suppliers. He made the deals, and the state signed 43 billion dollars worth of contracts. Now, with energy prices down, California owns so much power that it's selling it off at a loss, and even Freeman agrees the contracts should be renegotiated. Freeman defends his record while Jason Leopold, of Dow Jones Newswires, is impatient for action, in a spirited discussion about the rapidly changing face of California energy. Newsmaker: Deal Struck on Mexican Truck Access - The North American Free Trade Agreement calls for the free movement of trucks across the Mexican and Canadian borders. Yet it's taken eight years to work out a deal for Mexican trucks to get full access to US highways. Raul Hinojosa, director of UCLA's North American Integration and Development Center, has more on the deal that was finally struck. Reporter's Notebook: Toobin Touts Self, Book, 2000 Election, Bush - Jeffrey Toobin, federal prosecutor turned writer for The New Yorker, has a new book he was certain would be a best seller. Too Close to Call is the story of those agonizing days it took to decide last year's presidential election. Toobin joins us to talk about who won the election-and who owns the million-dollar baseball.
In the days when summer-long blackouts were being predicted, Governor Davis called long-term contracts crucial to guaranteeing adequate power in the future. S. David Freeman, who has a long history of service in public power, was hired to negotiate with energy suppliers. He made the deals, and the state signed 43 billion dollars worth of contracts. Now, with energy prices down, California owns so much power that it's selling it off at a loss, and even Freeman agrees the contracts should be renegotiated. Freeman defends his record while Jason Leopold, of Dow Jones Newswires, is impatient for action, in a spirited discussion about the rapidly changing face of California energy.
  • Newsmaker: Deal Struck on Mexican Truck Access - The North American Free Trade Agreement calls for the free movement of trucks across the Mexican and Canadian borders. Yet it's taken eight years to work out a deal for Mexican trucks to get full access to US highways. Raul Hinojosa, director of UCLA's North American Integration and Development Center, has more on the deal that was finally struck.
  • Reporter's Notebook: Toobin Touts Self, Book, 2000 Election, Bush - Jeffrey Toobin, federal prosecutor turned writer for The New Yorker, has a new book he was certain would be a best seller. Too Close to Call is the story of those agonizing days it took to decide last year's presidential election. Toobin joins us to talk about who won the election-and who owns the million-dollar baseball.

NAFTA

UCLA's North American Integration and Development Center

CA Consumer Power and Conservation Financing Authority

CA Public Utilities Commission

Cal Pine

Enron

Pacific Gas & Electric

Sempra Energy

Southern California Edison

Too Close to Call: The Thirty-Six-Day Battle to Decide the 2000 Election

Credits

Host:

Warren Olney

Producer:

Frances Anderton