The House on Tuesday passed a bill aimed at shielding Americans from increased electricity costs associated with data centers. The bill requires states to consider taking up standards that would force tech companies to shoulder the electricity cost increases associated with large data centers but doesn’t actually require them to regulate. Read more in The...
Articles by The Hill
Trump signs order allowing ranchers to kill wolves to protect herds
President Trump signed an executive order Friday directing the Interior Department to assess whether gray wolves should lose their endangered-species protections as part of his administration’s efforts to address livestock depletion and bring down domestic beef prices. The president also ordered the Interior and Agriculture departments to allow ranchers to kill these animals, if necessary, to protect their herds. ...
Federal government proposes Colorado River water use cuts for California, Arizona and Nevada
The federal government is proposing potentially steep cuts to water used by California, Arizona and Nevada, a major step toward figuring out the management of the dwindling Colorado River. The river provides water to states throughout the West, including drinking water and water for agricultural, industrial and municipal uses. As the West becomes drier, figuring out...
A Supreme Court climate case meets a changing scientific consensus
Americans are worried about energy costs, grid reliability and falling behind China. The Supreme Court is about to weigh in on something that touches all three. The case, Suncor Energy v. Boulder County, is one of the numerous climate litigation cases seeking to hold energy producers financially responsible for the purported consequences of climate change. Supporters...
New York imposes first-in-the-nation statewide freeze on ‘hyperscale’ data centers
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) is imposing the nation’s first-ever statewide freeze on new “hyperscale” data centers. Hochul is pausing state-level environmental permits for “up to” a year to give the state time to put together a framework to protect the environment, the energy grid and New Yorkers’ electric bills, her office said. Hochul aides told...
US moves to eliminate longtime radiation safety principle for nuclear power
The federal government is proposing to overhaul radiation safety regulations for nuclear power, including by eliminating a long-term principle for nuclear safety. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) this week proposed to get rid of the requirement for nuclear plants to ensure that radiation exposure is “as low as is reasonably achievable.” Read more in The Hill here.
Energy Department issues emergency orders for mid-Atlantic power grid amid heat wave
s an electric grid operator warns of potential power shortages amid this week’s heat wave, the Trump administration is issuing emergency orders aiming to maximize output. Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued orders directing grid operator PJM to dispatch more power generation from various fossil fuel plants, as needed, despite environmental restrictions that are typically in place. Read more...
Interior moves to relax rules for drilling on public lands
The Trump administration is proposing to relax rules to make it easier for companies to drill for oil and gas on public lands. The Interior Department, which oversees federal lands, said that it would propose to loosen two Biden-era regulations that sought to rein in planet-warming methane and ensure that energy companies are on the...
Regulators greenlight plan for quick AI data center grid connections
Federal regulators on Thursday took steps aimed at both speeding up the buildout of AI data centers and reducing costs. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) directed regional electric grid operators to reform various processes related to the connection of these and other large sources of power demand to the grid. “We are charting new...
Trump auctions off rights to drill in Alaska wildlife refuge, but gets few bidders
The Trump administration on Friday auctioned off rights to drill in a pristine wildlife refuge in Alaska, but the lease sale attracted only two bidders on a few tracts of land. Of the about 60 tracts of land opened up for leasing by the Trump administration, only five received bids. Only Hex Energy and the...









