Press Release: Mayor Hodges’ Budget Would Make Minneapolis a National Clean Energy Leader

Date: 12 Sep 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States, Press Release | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Cities across the country are grappling with extreme weather, rising sea levels, and an urgent need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Many of them have committed to address this crisis. But the City of Minneapolis, under a budget proposed by Mayor Betsy Hodges, is poised to do something novel: put real resources behind its climate and energy pledge. The mayor’s budget proposal would unlock roughly $3 million in new funding, leveraging more than $20 million in utility conservation funds, and expand access to energy savings to many more residents and businesses.… Read More

Minnesota Has the Best Community Solar Program — Here’s Why

Date: 30 Aug 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States, Media Coverage | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Our own Energy Democracy initiative director John Farrell penned this article for MinnPost‘s Community Voices section about the benefits of the state’s community solar program, here’s a sample: “As a long-time advocate for community-scale investment in renewable energy, I’m often asked about community solar: a burgeoning part of the solar industry and a model for its growth.”… Read More

Dumb and Dumber: Looking Beyond the Department of Energy’s Flawed “Baseload” Study

Date: 24 Aug 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Earlier this summer, the U.S. Department of Energy commissioned a study purportedly about grid reliability. In reality, it’s more likely the study is a fishing expedition searching for ways to buttress fossil fuel contributors to and allies of the Trump administration — folks squeezed by competition from less costly wind and solar power.… Read More

Energy and Policy Institute Exposes Three Ways Electric Utilities Stomp Innovation and Competition

Date: 15 Aug 2017 | posted in: Energy | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

If you work to secure Americans’ rights to solar energy or to accelerate the deployment of inexpensive renewable energy, you understand that not everyone is in favor. In particular, incumbent electric utilities tend to oppose competition in their (often monopoly) share of the electricity market. Where competition exists, it is plagued by unfairness. Below, we share … Read More

Three Forces Fighting Local Renewable Energy and Three Ways to Fight Back

Date: 24 Jul 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

If you’re reading energy news of late, you might have come across three new ways that forces are aligning against local renewable energy. State governments are increasingly pre-empting local authority on a range of issues, including energy. Utility companies are undercutting state regulation with their legislative lobbyists. And utilities are also bringing their monopoly market power to bear in previously competitive markets.

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Reminder: The Fight for 100 Percent Renewable is Political

Date: 28 Jun 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

As more cities pledge their commitment to purchase 100 percent of their power from renewable sources, some researchers question the feasibility of such energy policies. Read John Farrell’s response to such critiques about how politics, in city councils and statehouses across the country, have the power to make or break these decisions.… Read More

Report: Choosing the Electric Avenue – Unlocking Savings, Emissions Reductions, and Community Benefits of Electric Vehicles

Date: 7 Jun 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

The U.S. vehicle market will undergo a massive technology disruption from electric vehicles in the coming decades. Many analysts see the potential for surging sales of these efficient vehicles to enable smart grid management, but few have explored the local impact of electric vehicles: promoting energy democracy. Electric vehicles offer a natural use for solar energy, a pathway to pump more local solar power onto the grid, and a source of resilient power when the grid goes down. Ultimately, electric vehicles are another tool to miniaturize the electricity system, providing unprecedented local control.
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How States and Cities Can Unlock Local Clean Energy

Date: 2 Jun 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

Yesterday’s news about the Paris Climate Accords has provoked a groundswell of commitments for local action on climate change. But what can cities actually do in the absence of federal support? A lot. In fact, with the help of states, cities have many avenues to boost their economies and drive down energy costs with local clean … Read More

Would You Pay 5% More for Local Energy?

Date: 4 May 2017 | posted in: Energy, Energy Self Reliant States | 0 Facebooktwitterredditmail

In recent months, a raft of cities and states pushed up their renewable energy targets to 50%, 80%, or even 100%. But how will that energy be delivered? Will it be from the top down, by merchant wind and solar power plants? Or from the bottom up, by customers producing their own power? The answer likely … Read More

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