Legislators Framing Climate Bills Hold Energy Stock

By JAKE SHERMAN

As Congress moves ahead with climate-change legislation touching almost every corner of the energy industry, a number of lawmakers shaping the debate have investments in companies that would be affected by the results.
Rep. Edward J. Markey (D., Mass.), one of the lead authors of a House bill that would favor alternative-energy sources, had investments of between $51,000 and $115,000 in the Firsthand Technology Value Fund at the end of last year. Three of the top 10 holdings in the Ohio fund are solar-energy manufacturers.

Republican Rep. Joe Barton was paid by Carrizo Oil and Gas Inc for oil exploration on his property.
Texas Rep. Joe Barton, the ranking Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, was paid between $2,500 and $5,000 by Carrizo Oil and Gas Inc. for oil exploration on his property in 2008. In April 2008, Mr. Barton also sold shares in Reliant Energy Inc., a Houston power-plant operator, and bought stock in EOG Resources Inc., which calls itself one of the largest independent oil and gas companies in the U.S. Mr. Barton is a strong advocate for the oil industry, and has opposed the limits on emissions of so-called greenhouse gases that Mr. Markey has advocated.
Jeff Duncan, a spokesman for Mr. Markey, said the congressman has a diverse portfolio of mutual funds and doesn't exercise any individual discretion over fund investments. A spokesman for Mr. Barton declined to comment.
According to congressional financial-disclosure forms released last week, more than a quarter of the 48 members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee spearheading climate-change legislation had investments in energy, oil and natural-gas companies at the end of 2008, the most recent information disclosed. (See related article.)
It is legal for lawmakers to own shares in companies affected by their legislation. House and Senate ethics laws allow members of Congress to hold a financial interest in a company unless a law they pass would benefit only themselves.
Bloomberg News
Democratic Sen. Jeff Bingaman had at least $22,000 invested with energy companies.
Top members of the Senate's Energy and Natural Resources Committee, which is handling the legislation in that chamber, also held stakes. Chairman Jeff Bingaman (D., N.M.) had at least $22,000 invested in energy companies. As of Dec. 31, Mr. Bingaman, under his wife's name, held between $15,000 and $50,000 in Energy Future Holdings Corp., a Dallas energy holding fund with former Secretary of State James A. Baker III on its board. In 2008, the senator bought and sold between $2,000 and $30,000 in coal holding company Arch Coal Inc. and in Tulsa, Okla., energy company Helmrich & Payne Inc.
Mr. Bingaman's office declined to comment.
The lawmakers' financial-disclosure forms don't provide precise values of their stakes, only ranges for the value of the investments.
Some House and Senate leaders also held stakes in the energy sector. In 2008, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D., Calif), in her husband's name, owned between $15,000 and $50,000 in Clean Energy Fuels Corp., a Seal Beach, Calif., natural-gas company. Ms. Pelosi sold her stake in Quest Energy Partners Ltd., an Oklahoma City natural-gas properties holding company, on Dec. 31.
Bloomberg News
Republican Sen. Richard Burr owns shares in Chesapeake Energy Inc
Republican House Whip Eric Cantor (R., Va.) sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in Ecology & Environment Inc., a sustainability company, in February 2008, and the same amount of Energy Conversion Devices Inc., a solar-energy parts maker, in May 2008.
In August 2008, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid (D., Nev.) sold part of his $15,000 to $50,000 investment in the Dow Jones U.S. Energy Index Fund, which holds shares in Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips and Occidental Petroleum Corp.
A spokesman for Ms. Pelosi didn't return several calls seeking comment.
A spokesman for Mr. Cantor declined to comment. Mr. Reid's spokesman, Jim Manley, referred to a letter attached to Mr. Reid's disclosure forms from the Wells Fargo Wealth Management Group saying that the investment adviser managed the senator's investments "without input" from Mr. Reid.
Democrats are promoting policies boosting reliance on natural gas to help curb oil imports. Energy committee members Rep. Anthony Weiner (D., N.Y.), Rep. Fred Upton (R., Mich.) and Sen. Richard Burr (R., N.C.) all had shares in Chesapeake Energy Inc., an Oklahoma City company that says it is the largest independent producer of natural gas and the most active driller of new wells in the nation. Mr. Weiner also holds shares in Teco Energy Inc., a Tampa, Fla., energy utility holding company.
Associated Press
Democratic Rep. Edward J. Markey is among lawmakers with energy investments.
A spokesman for Mr. Weiner said the investment presents no conflicts for his boss. "Anthony is a middle-class person with a few thousand dollars in these stocks, and it is clear from his strong environmental record that it doesn't affect his votes," spokesman John Collins said.
Spokesmen for Messrs. Burr and Upton declined to comment.
California Democratic Rep. Lois Capps, an Energy panel member, owns between $1,000 and $15,000 in Wilder Hill Clean Energy Fund, which holds shares in the solar-energy company Yingli Green Energy Holding Co. and Cosan Ltd., a large alcohol and ethanol producer.
Ms. Capps, a four-term House member, has been an opponent of new oil and gas drilling off U.S. coasts and a supporter of new solar-energy initiatives. Rather than seeing the purchases as a conflict of interest, Ms. Capps made a choice to rearrange her portfolio to "reflect her personal values and belief," said spokeswoman Kirstin Walker.
Write to Jake Sherman at Jacob.Sherman@wsj.com