The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1950-04-11


billions of cubic feet of natural
| and oil fields of the Southwest
| Big city mayors want Mr. Tru
man to veto the bill. Democrat
from the oil and gas producing
states want him to sign it.
| The bill has touched off one o
the hottest fights in the curren
session of Congress- fight tina
crosses party lines. The Presiden
himself has admitted that the de
cision is one of the hardest h,
| has been called upon to make.
Here's now the controversy
started.
Back in 1888, Congress passed
the so-called Natural Gas Act. Il
gave the government legal pow
er to control certain gas prices.
The authority was vested in
the Federal Power Commission.
Under the Natural Gas Act of
1888, the Federal Power Com
missioner ''FPC"- was given
the right to control the price of
natural gas after it entered a
pipeline for delivery to another
state. Congress did not make it
clear at the time exactly where
this authority began or where it
ended.
What about the growing num-
Der of so-c allied independent pro-
ducers-the companies which
were producing most of Ameri-
cas- natural gas, but leased pipe
lines instead of owning them out
right2
Were they, too, subject to
control? Did the FPC have power
to regulate the price of natural
gas at the sourse, before it went
into the pipeline?
The southern oil producers
shouted mo indeed. Congress
never intended the power COM
mission 10 have that right" The
fight was taken to the courts,
and carried to the top.
In 1947 the Supreme Court
handed down its decision-ruling
that under the 1898 law the FPC
could control prices charged by
producers at the source, before
the gas entered the pipeline.
But even that didn't settle the
matter. The fight continued. In
view of the bitterness of the
controversy, the FPc RETAINED
from exercising its new authority.
No attempt was made to regu-
late the price of natural gas as it
flowed from the gas and oil
fields of Louisiana, Oklahoma
and Texas. OF course, the COM
mission was still free to enforce
its new powers whenever it saw
fit. There was no guarantee it
would refrain from doing so
forever.
For Obvious reasons, this state
of affairs could. not satisfy the
independent gas producers, They
wanted concrete assurance that
the government would not and
could not interfere with gas rates
at the source. Their desires are
reflected, in the natural gas bill
introduced in the 81st Congress
by Oklahoma Senator Robert S.
Kerr. It would exempt the indie
pendents from government price
regulation.
Immediately after Congress
approved this bill, President Tru-
mans mail was flooded with
angry protests. Mayors of IS
large cities demanded that he
veto the bill. They said it would
force consumer prices up. Many
of the protests came from influ-
entail Democrats, representing
the big city vote that has been SO
important to the Democratic
party at election time. 1t was
strong. political pressure.
Equally strong pressure came
from the other side-from influ-
entail Democrats in the gas and
oil states. Spearheading their
campaign. along with Senator
Kerr, was the speaker of the
House, Representative Sam Ray
burn of Texas.
The big city Democrats argued
that exennpting the so-called in
dependents from control would
open the gates to unlimited and
unregulated pricing for just
about the entire natural gas IN
dustry. They said it would de-
feat the purpose Of the 1888 law.
Southwestern Democrats took
the opposite view. They said free
dom from government control
would bring prices down, and
spur competition.
Meanwhile President Truman