SOLAR:
• An Arizona utility claims it is absorbing an average of $67 per month in costs for each solar array in its territory. (Phoenix Business Journal)
• A consortium of nonprofits in Massachusetts signs a deal with a solar company to develop small-scale projects. (Boston Globe)
• Mississippi regulators extend their timeframe for studying net metering. (Mississippi Business Journal)

OIL AND GAS:
• A new study links proximity to fracking operations with an increased risk of premature birth. (Tulsa World)
• California regulators acknowledge multiple failures in overseeing oil and gas operations in the Los Angeles basin. (Los Angeles Times)

COAL:
• A judge approves a West Virginia businessman’s plan to buy certain Patriot Coal assets and launch a unique reforestation venture with carbon credits. (The Roanoke Times)
• Several West Virginia counties are divided over whether to take federal aid to diversify their coal-dependent economies. (Charleston Gazette-Mail)
• Parties involved with the Patriot Coal bankruptcy back off a plan that would have diverted $18 million for health insurance from retired Indiana coal miners. (ProPublica)
• Why federal prosecutors are leaning on fraud to take down coal boss Don Blankenship. (SNL)

CLIMATE:
• California Gov. Jerry Brown signs a bill requiring the state’s pension funds to divest from coal. (Los Angeles Times)
• Advocates push for a ballot measure in Washington state that would establish a carbon fee for polluters. (Puget Sound Business Journal)

CLEAN POWER PLAN: Rather than close certain coal-fired power plants, North Carolina may push utilities to increase their efficiency to meet its Clean Power Plan targets. (EnergyWire)

NUCLEAR: Republican lawmakers in Wisconsin look to end the state’s 32-year-old ban on the construction of new nuclear plants. (LaCrosse Tribune)

GRID: Federal regulators are investigating whether market manipulation took place at a capacity auction earlier this year that spiked prices in eastern and southern Illinois. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

UTILITIES: Exelon agrees to establish a corporate presence in Washington D.C. to secure a $6.8 billion merger with Pepco. (Chicago Business Journal)

POLITICS: Democrats plan to filibuster a popular federal energy bill as part of an ongoing standoff with Republicans over budget negotiations. (E&E Daily)

EFFICIENCY: A new program in Chicago aims to help residents install one million “smart” thermostats. (Midwest Energy News)

ENERGY STORAGE: A municipal utility in southern Kentucky taps energy storage devices to reduce emissions during times of peak power demand. (Transmission & Distribution World)

TECHNOLOGY: General Electric is spinning off a new company to develop new energy technologies. (New York Times)

WASTE-TO-ENERGY: Washington D.C.’s water utility is the first in North America to use new technology from Norway to convert sewage sludge into electricity. (Washington Post)

COMMENTARY: Low-income communities that have borne the brunt of pollution deserve better access to clean energy. (Sacramento Bee)