BUILDINGS: The nonprofit responsible for developing model building energy codes used by cities and states nationwide finalizes a controversial plan to strip voting rights from thousands of public sector members — a move clean energy advocates fear will slow progress on energy efficiency. (Energy News Network)

ALSO: The natural gas industry is aggressively fighting city efforts to limit gas hookups in new construction, while turning to landfill gas and other “renewable” sources to limit their emissions. (Inside Climate News / Seattle Times)

PUBLIC LANDS:
• Deb Haaland’s nomination to lead the Interior Department goes to the full Senate after a committee vote yesterday. (Politico)
• Haaland gained the support of a second Republican, Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who says she struggled over balancing a “historic nomination” with her concerns about the oil and gas industry. (Washington Post)
• Republicans questioning Haaland during confirmation hearings last week were relying on data from widely criticized industry reports. (The Guardian)

CLIMATE: The two Republican members of the Securities and Exchange Commission object to the agency’s “enhanced focus” on climate change, seeking more specificity on what that means. (E&E News, subscription)

GRID:
• An independent watchdog firm hired by the state says Texas’ grid manager overcharged power companies by $16 billion over two days during last month’s storm-driven energy crisis. (Bloomberg)
• Fallout from last month’s storm continues as power companies see $47 billion in related costs, much of which will likely be passed on to customers. (Reuters)
• The head of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission tells an energy conference he’ll focus on building long-distance power lines to bring renewable power to the grid. (Reuters)
• Utility executives say they’re working to strengthen residential power systems, expecting working from home to be a long-term trend. (Reuters)
• In his latest message to shareholders, Warren Buffett touts the benefits of a major transmission build-out to support clean energy. (Inside Climate News)

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE:
• Community advocates in Ohio work to make sure neither urban nor rural populations are left behind as the country transitions toward a carbon-free economy. (Energy News Network)
• Around 15,000 of the residents on the Navajo Nation reservation continue to live without access to electricity, despite the tribe being a significant energy exporter. (Grist)

SOLAR: Massachusetts solar developers are skeptical of a utility plan to enroll low-income customers in community solar projects, saying it may limit their marketing opportunities. (Energy News Network) 

CLEAN ENERGY: Wyoming lawmakers reject a pair of bills that would have increased taxes on wind and solar energy. (Casper Star-Tribune)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• A Korean electric-vehicle battery maker with a Georgia factory is scolded by an international commission for destroying evidence that it stole trade secrets from a rival company. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
• Lawmakers in Minnesota’s split legislature have found little common ground over the state’s approach to electric vehicles. (MinnPost)

PIPELINES: Experts say President Biden may have to get involved in a legal dispute over the Line 5 pipeline in Michigan as Canadian officials say a shutdown would threaten the country’s energy security. (CBC, Globe and Mail)

COAL: A Colorado ski resort operator says its project to convert coal plant waste methane to electricity is a financial success, and could provide a model to mitigate emissions from closed mines around the country. (Aspen Times)

COMMENTARY:
• Building a reliable grid in the face of climate change will take collaboration between the private sector, nonprofits, and the government, the director of the Environmental Defense Fund writes. (Forbes)
• As the energy landscape shifts dramatically, Texas must reconsider its reliance on the oil and natural gas industries to fund public education, writes a newspaper editorial board. (Beaumont Enterprise)
• A Wyoming advocate calls on lawmakers to reckon with the ongoing decline in fossil fuel usage and potential problems with carbon capture and storage technology in resolving the state’s budget crisis. (WyoFile)
• Indigenous advocates say “it is time to listen to our communities when it comes to our environment and climate change.” (Indian Country Today)

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Ken Paulman

Ken is the director of the Energy News Network at Fresh Energy and is a founding editor of both Midwest Energy News and Southeast Energy News. Prior to joining Fresh Energy, he was the managing editor for online news at Minnesota Public Radio. He started his journalism career in 2002 as a copy editor for the Duluth News Tribune before spending five years at the Spokesman-Review in Spokane, Washington, where he worked as a copy editor, online producer, features editor and night city editor. A Nebraska native, Ken has a bachelor's degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a master's degree from the University of Oregon. He is a member of the Society of Professional Journalists and Investigative Reporters and Editors.