Some day when Gov. John Hoeven or his successors flip on their bedroom light, they could be tapping into electricity from a wind turbine.

According to a study released Wednesday, the North Dakota Governor's Residence is the fifth best in the nation for its potential to run on wind power. The ratings, conducted by a Michigan company called Choose Renewables, found the most wind-friendly executive residences using a computer program that measures the wind potential of any location in the U.S.

The governor's mansion in New York ranked first, with Hawaii, Illinois and Massachusetts running second, third and fourth, respectively. Ohio, Iowa, Rhode Island and Oklahoma round out the top 10 list.

Don Larson, a spokesman for Hoeven, said he was surprised to learn that such a survey existed, but unsurprised that North Dakota ranked well given the state's "great potential for wind power generation."

He said the idea of equipping the governor's residence with wind turbines has never come up before and probably isn't something that could be done on a whim anyway.

"I think that would have to be approved by the Legislature," Larson said.

Feeling railroaded?

As the wheat harvest began in earnest last month, farmers and elevator operators across the state reported that they were having trouble getting their wheat picked up. In some cases, late trains led to hundreds of bushels piled on the ground, waiting to hitch a ride from BNSF Railways.

Over the next two weeks, Congress will begin work on two bills to address the problem.

One, called the Railroad Antitrust Enforcement Act of 2007, would place railroads under the same anti-trust laws as other industries and give the Federal Trade Commission more power to enforce rate agreements and oversee future industry consolidation.

A second bill, the Railroad Competition and Service Act of 2007, would require railroads to provide service at established rates between any two destinations on their system and give regulators more power to investigate complaints by shippers.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., is a co-sponsor of the anti-trust act. Rep. Earl Pomeroy, D-N.D., is a co-sponsor of the competition and service act.

"I believe (these bills) would substantially strengthen the rights of our shippers in both the agriculture and energy industries," Pomeroy said.

However, Tom White, a spokesman for the Association of American Railroads, said more regulation would put us closer to the pre-1980s system, where government had more say over rates and many railroads went out of business. Such a system could lead to less competition, not more, he said.

"The people who are seeking more regulation of railroads have very short memories," White said.

Pat Hiatte, a spokesman for BNSF, referred all questions to the Association of American Railroads.

Farm bill delayed

The farm bill that passed the U.S. House this summer likely won't be worked on in the Senate until October, Dorgan said this week. Originally, the Senate had planned to begin work on the bill after returning from August recess at the beginning of this month.

Re-authorized every five years, the farm bill is the main vehicle of U.S. agriculture policy. It sets federal policy on everything from crop subsidy payments to food stamp programs.

(Reach reporter Jonathan Rivoli at 223-8482 or jonathan.rivoli@bismarcktribune.com)