Chamber Scoring Energy Risk

May 26, 2010

National Journal

Amy Harder

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce plans to begin evaluating climate and energy legislation with a new energy security index made up of 37 metrics in four categories: geopolitical, economic, reliability and environmental.

Formally called the Index of U.S. Energy Security Risk, it will "certainly be able to help the chamber in making decisions going forward and helping our members understand the different equities each policy affects," said Karen Harbert, president of the chamber's Institute for 21st Century Energy. "In an essence, it can be a scorecard."

First up for the new index will be the climate and energy bill introduced by Sens. John Kerry, D-Mass., and Joe Lieberman, I/D-Conn., Harbert said. The chamber is waiting for the federal Energy Information Administration to conclude its analysis, which will still be a few weeks.

The index covers every year since 1970 and uses private as well as government data, including trends and projections, to evaluate policy based on whether it increases or decreases U.S. energy security. Chamber officials hope the index serves as an all-encompassing tool for congressional staff, think tanks and others involved in the energy debate.

The current energy security index of the U.S. is 83.7 -- the higher the number, the more risk. Chamber experts determined that energy risk was greatest in 1980 (a score of 100) and lowest in 1994 (72.6). The chamber predicts that the number will continue to rise as long as no major policy is implemented that would decrease the country's energy risk.

In crafting the index, Harbert said, the chamber consulted with a "broad range" of industry and trade associations to ensure the data being used was representative of industries like coal, renewables and energy efficiency. The groups that advised the chamber included the Electric Power Research Institute and the American Enterprise Institute, Harbert said. The chamber also sought input from former top government officials, such as Guy Caruso, who was EIA administrator before joining the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Harbert said the chamber didn't consult with any environmental groups, but that they "would certainly be welcome." She added that we "have certainly taken great care to include environmental concerns in this."

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