On Election Day, the American people gave the Republican Party a mandate to chart a new path forward on complex issues facing our country, not the least of which is energy. The good news, though, is we don’t have to wait until January to make progress. Passing legislation on permitting reform before the end of...
SCOTUS hears arguments in case that could reshape environmental law
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Tuesday on a case that could reshape a key environmental law and determine the future of an oil railway project in the west. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) requires federal agencies to conduct a review of environmental impacts before making any decisions and then issue a “detailed statement” of the review. SCOTUS...
FERC rejects plan to shift PJM’s transmission planning protocol in win for state regulators
Concerned about a loss of regional transmission organization independence, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Friday rejected proposals that would have given PJM Interconnection transmission owners more control over the grid operator’s transmission planning process. “We are concerned that these provisions violate the Commission’s independence requirement by providing a single stakeholder group, specifically, the PJM [transmission owners,]...
USDA must do more to regulate genetically modified crops, judge rules
The court’s ruling reverses an effort by the Trump administration to overhaul regulation of biotechnology products with the goal of streamlining the review process to accelerate innovation in agriculture. The changes meant that genetically modified crops would be subject to regulation if they’re deemed to be “noxious weeds,” which is determined based on traits from...
The aging U.S. power grid is slowing Big Tech’s data centers and AI’s future
The Trump administration and state policymakers should ease regulations on utilities The United States holds a commanding lead in data-center capacity, hosting 37% of the world’s facilities, and being home to the largest data center providers – Amazon.com (AMZN,) Microsoft (MSFT) and Alphabet (GOOG). These data centers are more than just infrastructure; they are the...
Low-Energy Fridays: Loan guarantees for energy innovation is an interesting idea ruined by politicians
In 2009, then-Vice President Joe Biden was stumping for what was known as the stimulus bill. To paint a picture of the administration’s successes, he was championing a half-a-billion-dollar clean energy innovation project supported by the Department of Energy Loan Programs Office (LPO). That project was called Solyndra, and it promised a novel type of solar power generation. Solyndra...
Regulatory red tape holds back the carbon capture opportunity in Texas
We all know Texas is the energy capital of America, and we know that our ability to lead the country in so many types of energy production — oil, natural gas, wind, solar, battery storage and soon geothermal — is often in spite of federal regulations that are designed to delay and obstruct. Thankfully, the incoming Trump...
Five Bipartisan Actions on Energy Security as Trump Returns to the White House
After a long and divisive election year, it’s tempting to view every policy issue as deeply polarized. Republicans see the world one way, Democrats see it another way, and never the twain shall meet. That may be true for some issues, but it doesn’t have to be true for the complex set of issues that...
Renewable energy transition goals impossible without permitting reform
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management recently expanded Nevada’s electricity grid by giving NV Energy the greenlight to build the 472-mile long Greenlink West Transmission Project that stretches from Reno to Las Vegas. Greenlink West will connect dozens of solar projects to the grid, making it pivotal to Nevada’s clean-energy plan. BLM received more than 200 public comments on...
Takeaways from C3 Solutions’ Energy and Environmental Policy Discussion
The event hosted by C3 Solutions underscored the importance of streamlining permitting processes, reducing bureaucratic red tape, and unlocking domestic resources.