A city in the sunny southwest, Tucson is wondering how it can maximize its use of cost-effective, economy-boosting solar power. Is a partnership with the electric utility, as seen in Minneapolis, the answer? ILSR’s Director of Democratic Energy gave this presentation to several audiences on a recent (delightful) visit to Tucson, Arizona, to explore the dissonance … Read More
I’m visiting the wonderful folks from Sustainable Tucson in Arizona next week to talk about the opportunities that solar and clean energy offer their local economy. In preparation, I’m looking at their current monopoly electricity provider, Tucson Electric Power. Remarkably, the utility acquires just 4% of its electricity from renewable resources (and over 70% from coal), … Read More
In the first half of 2014, distributed local solar power constituted over 25% of new power plant capacity. This impressive growth continues several years where solar power has grown by leaps and bounds, producing power right where it’s needed and juicing up local economies. But many states have limited how much of their electricity can come … Read More
The Walton family — majority owners of Walmart — are impeding America’s transition to a clean energy future, a new study by ILSR finds. At a time when more than 500,000 households and businesses are generating their own solar electricity, and the U.S. solar industry is employing 143,000 people, the Waltons are funding nearly two dozen organizations working to roll back renewable energy policies, while a Walton-owned company is pushing for regulations aimed at hindering the growth of rooftop solar power.… Read More
A presentation I gave last Friday to the Arizona Corporation Commission.
For years local business owners and their supporters in the Arizona legislature have tried to put an end to the massive subsidies that cities in the Phoenix metro routinely dole out to chain retail developers. Bills to prohibit the giveaways were introduced in session after session, only to fail. But this year, lawmakers at last endorsed a measure that outlaws subsides for retail projects in Maricopa and Pinal counties, which encompass the Phoenix metro and include two-thirds of the state’s population. … Read More
“The practice of competing to see who will kick-back the most taxpayer money to certain mega-businesses has gotten obscene,” declared Arizona State Representative Rick Murphy, one of several lawmakers pushing for a ban on retail subsidies.… Read More
Arizona Chain Reaction (AZCR), a coalition of nearly 600 independent businesses, has launched a campaign of phone calls and emails to urge state lawmakers to enact legislation that would curtail cities’ ability to offer tax breaks and subsidies to chain retail developments. “We’ve got bidding wars going on among cities out here,” said Kimber Lanning, owner of Stinkweeds, a music store in Tempe, and founding member of AZCR. … Read More
On a 5-2 vote, the City Council in Flagstaff, Arizona, a city of 53,000 people about two hours north of Phoenix, approved an ordinance controlling the size, location, and community impacts of big-box stores. The action is "important to the long-term vitality of Flagstaff," said Becky Daggett, director of Friends of Flagstaff’s Future, a citizens group that worked for the ordinance’s passage.… Read More
