Arizona, Nebraska
The energy future of fossil-fuel dependent Phoenix could be reshaped by some clean-energy advocates who just won seats on the board of a public power utility. Grist
California
Over the past year, California regulators have kneecapped small-scale solar needed to hit the state's climate goals. These lawmakers are trying to bring it back. Canary Media
California
The case involves NEM 3.0, a rate structure that went into effect in April 2023. The California Public Utilities Commission approved a request by the state's largest investor-owned utilities to cut compensation to customers that export excess solar generation to the grid pv Magazine
Colorado
Senate Bill SB24-207, introduced by Senate President Steve Fenberg (D-Boulder), comes at a time of unprecedented federal funding opportunities through the Biden administration's Inflation Reduction Act. Solar Power World
Georgia
After several years of not holding elections for the Georgia Public Service Commission, the 11th Circuit will allow new elections using a method that the lower court found violates the Voting Rights Act. This order comes as voters recently took their case -- originally filed in 2020 -- to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing that the state's at-large method for selecting members of the body that is responsible for regulating public utilities in Georgia violates Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. Democracy Docket
Georgia
Elections for Georgia's powerful utility board have already been canceled. Now, the five Republicans on the Public Service Commission could stay in office for years to come until they have to face the voters again under House Bill 1312, approved by the General Assembly. Gov. Brian Kemp has not indicated whether he intends to sign or veto the bill. The Atlanta Journal Constitution
International
Latest World Energy Trilemma report highlights that energy security now encompasses reliability of renewables. reNEWS.biz
International
General Mills details the roles that regenerative agriculture, the electrification of transport, and a switch to renewables can playing in reaching a long-term target of net-zero emissions by 2050. Edie
International
The terminology of the energy transition is important and "clean" is a word that can be used to obscure important differences between electricity sources. Inside Climate News
International
More aggressive policy and faster investment needed Wood Mackenzie
International
Science alone won't stop the planet from overheating. But science coupled with political science just might. That's the theme of a new book, Thomas Hale's "Long Problems: Climate Change and the Challenge of Governing Across Time." Hale argues that people are too quick to throw up their hands because the political will to stop climate change is lacking. For political scientists, he writes, "this is not the end but rather the start of the intellectual challenge," writes New York Times opinion writer Peter Coy. The New York Times
Maine
After initial disagreement between Maine's House of Representatives and Senate, a bill needed to continue the permitting process for the state's desired location for an offshore wind port appears to have prevailed. Yahoo
Montana
The Montana Public Service Commission has fielded comments from more than 80 people weighing in on a petition that asks the PSC to incorporate climate impacts into its regulatory oversight of monopoly utility companies. Most comments came from Montanans who had packed the commission's chambers to ask the state's utility board to factor in the social, economic and environmental costs of greenhouse gas emissions as it regulates shareholder-owned power companies. Proponents, many citing a district court judge's ruling for the plaintiffs in the Held v. Montana youth climate lawsuit, pointed to climate change's impacts on their livelihoods, health and recreational traditions. Montana Free Press
New Hampshire
In a move not often seen, the justices essentially stamped the project, which would sit on about six acres of a 96-acre former Franklin golf course, approved by issuing a "builder's remedy," which allows a project to move forward if it meets zoning ordinances. New Hampshire Bulletin
New Mexico
A New Mexico district judge heard arguments to dismiss a civil lawsuit alleging that the state has failed to meet its constitutional duty to protect air, water and environment from oil and gas pollution. First District Judge Matthew Wilson said he would issue a written order at a later date to determine the fate of the lawsuit Mario Atencio, et al v. the State of New Mexico, et al. It's unclear when Wilson's judgment will come down. Source NM
New York
Homeowners with incomes over $50,000 are two-and-a-half times more likely to have rooftop solar panels than those who earn less than that, according to the report by the think tank Win Climate and Columbia University. Gothamist
New York
The Build Public Renewables Act was hailed as a model for socialist green energy policy. But now the New York Power Authority is asking McKinsey to come up with an implementation plan. The New Republic
Ohio
Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted is refusing to say whether he was aware of a $1 million contribution in 2017 to a political group that was supporting his bid for governor. Instead, his office is only reiterating that the group wasn't affiliated with the Husted campaign. The massive donation came from Akron-based FirstEnergy, which over the next two years ponied up more than $60 million in bribes in exchange for a $1.3 billion ratepayer bailout -- a law that Gov. Mike DeWine signed just hours after it passed. Ohio Capital Journal
Pennsylvania
Labor leaders and environmentalists stood together recently as members of the Pennsylvania House Blue-Green Caucus announced a legislative agenda they said would create renewable energy jobs for union workers and protect the commonwealth's air and water. For Robert Bair, president of the Pennsylvania State Building & Construction Trades Council, the event marked a yearslong shift away from a belief that the interests of organized labor and environmental advocates are mutually exclusive. Bair met with Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler (D-Philadelphia), the Blue-Green Caucus chairperson, and said he gained an understanding that the building trades can be partners in reinventing Pennsylvania's energy economy. The Pennsylvania Capital-Star
U.S.
His stance poses a potential threat to one of the linchpins of America's clean-energy transition, according to more than a dozen Trump allies, energy experts and offshore wind industry officials. Washington Post
U.S.
The EPA released $20 billion through the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, one of the most significant clean energy funding programs created through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. World Resources Institute
U.S.
Honolulu's climate lawsuit is an existential threat to Big Oil. So they're buying Republican attorneys general to defend them in court. Heated
U.S.
From airlines to pork sellers, corporate brands face legal and regulatory challenges for misleading the public with lofty climate claims. The New York Times
U.S.
The company plans to file for 45V tax credits even though their hydrogen would not qualify under draft IRS guidance, Executive Vice President Kathleen Barron said. Utility Dive
U.S.
While the NRC conducts its own oversight process for these facilities - largely based on historical data - that process does not currently consider potential increases in risk from climate change. Daily Energy Insider
U.S.
The House Financial Services Committee has held a hearing to begin the markup process for a congressional rebuke of the Securities and Exchange Commission's paused climate-risk disclosure rule. The rule was finalized last month without proposed requirements for companies to disclose scope 3 emissions and a slimmer universe of scope 1 and 2 reporting companies. However, legal challenges were immediately filed despite the changes. ESG Dive
U.S.
Given the federal government's long history of exploiting Native American resources without tribal consent, we're following FERC's actions for further evidence before assuming that a new era has begun. The Conversation
U.S.
E3 identifies state policy trends and recommendations for siting renewable energy in a way that benefits people and nature. The Nature Conservancy
U.S.
A strong rule will help spur the transmission lines necessary to meet America's growing energy needs, while also setting the table for an interregional rule to mitigate the effects of extreme weather, writes Ray Long, CEO of the American Council on Renewable Energy. Utility Dive
U.S.
Fossil fuels and renewables are not mutually exclusive -- America is stronger with a combination of both, writes Katie Mehnert, founder and CEO of ALLY Energy. The Hill
U.S.
Puerto Rico led the nation in per-capita residential solar installations last year, but continued progress is threatened. pv Magazine
U.S.
Utilities should provide upfront support to low- to moderate-income customers for residential electrification and decarbonization measures to prevent them from being stuck on fossil fuel systems, writes Dan Bakal of Ceres. Utility Dive
U.S.
When it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and watershed protection, several down-ballot elections this year in a handful of states could have a major effect in the transition away from fossil fuel. The elections come amid growing concern about the role of money in such races and in the wake of headline-grabbing corruption scandals at utilities across the country. Utility fraud and corruption -- in Florida, Illinois, Mississippi, Ohio and South Carolina -- have cost electricity customers at least $6.6 billion, according to an analysis by news nonprofit Floodlight, which noted that "some power companies embrace -- or seek to block -- the transition away from fossil fuels toward wind, solar, hydrogen and nuclear, which produce fewer greenhouse gasses." Capital & Main
U.S.
The strategy is outlined in a governing playbook known as Project 2025 that was written by the Heritage Foundation and dozens of other conservative organizations. It's designed to serve as a road map for a second Trump administration. E&E News
U.S.
The Fusion Energy Act would ensure the development of a tailored NRC regulatory framework geared toward supporting the growth of commercial fusion. It would also require the NRC to report to Congress within a year about licensing commercial fusion machines. Reuters
U.S.
The fossil fuel industry says higher rates will harm the economy. The administration says they will pay for the environmental costs of drilling and mining. New York Times
Virginia
Opponents of the measures maintain the bills have ratepayers fronting the risk of an unproven technology. VPM News
Wyoming
But the agency's "programmatic" environmental impact statement at least provides a high-level blueprint to avoid piecemeal leasing decisions that often lead to conservation and energy development conflicts, they say. Gilette News Record Return to Top |