Many Washington observers shudder at the prospect of a new president elected by the narrowest of margins and a Congress that's almost equally divided. American Gas Association president David N. Parker thinks it could be more of an opportunity than a calamity for U.S. energy industries. "Energy is on everybody's mind. With the price issue, the public will demand a focus on these questions and a bipartisan effort. We see an early window in the 107th Congress that we intend to exploit," he says. One key initiative will be reauthorization of good pipeline safety legislation. The AGA is trying to work with other energy trade associations and the new Congress to develop a national energy plan that substantially includes natural gas. Fueling the Future, a midyear study by Washington Policy and Analysis Inc. for the AGA, emphasizes that all options need to be explored. Parker says the AGA believes U.S. demand could be greater than the National Petroleum Council's projected 30 trillion cubic feet per year by 2020. D.N. "Nick" Rose, incoming AGA chairman and president of Questar Gas Co. in Salt Lake City, says high gas prices are the result of normal supply and demand. "In 1998, the price was low and didn't encourage drilling. Now, it does. Normal economics will resolve this supply problem but it will take time. We may start to see some impact by next winter," he says. "There will be demand for gas because of its favorable characteristics. But there will be opportunities for other fuels."