ILLINOIS: Advocates try to gauge where Illinois is heading on energy under Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner. (Midwest Energy News)

ALSO: A state agency is expected to decide today whether to investigate an Integrys subsidiary for alleged abuse of a state gas line replacement program. (SNL)

***SPONSORED LINK: Join venture capitalists, civic leaders, and industry executives on April 14 at the Clean Energy Challenge in Chicago to watch fourteen cleantech startups compete for $1 million in total funding.***

COAL: Developers have pulled the plug on a controversial Indiana coal gasification plant. (Indianapolis Star) 

SOLAR: Owens Corning plans to build 2.4 MW worth of solar canopies over a Toledo parking lot, and could solar power surpass natural gas in the U.S.? (Toledo Blade, Quartz)

OIL AND GAS:
• Iowa lawmakers seek an independent environmental review for a proposed crude oil pipeline. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
• A Minnesota county may buy a piece of property to block oil trains from going into Minneapolis. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
• Minnesota lawmakers call for a tax on railroads to pay for safety improvements on oil train routes. (Minnesota Public Radio)
• A citizen lawsuit challenges a Wisconsin rail expansion. (Madison Capital Times)
• Ohio lawmakers amend a bill to require “zero surface impact” from fracking in state parks, but reject further protections. (Columbus Dispatch)
• Researchers develop a technique to treat drilling wastewater that also generates electricity. (Christian Science Monitor)
• A brine spill may have contaminated a North Dakota creek. (UPI)

KANSAS: Wind energy supporters urge Kansas lawmakers not to repeal the state’s renewable energy standard. (Topeka Capital Journal)

UTILITIES: A Missouri proposal would use tax credits instead of rate reductions as an incentive for new companies. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)

TRANSMISSION: A Wisconsin regulator says he’s taken no position on a proposed transmission line despite he and his father owning land near one of the proposed routes. (La Crosse Tribune)

TECHNOLOGY: Wisconsin researchers combine solar and biomass technologies to develop a new energy storage technique. (Tech Times)

EPA: Wisconsin and EPA officials debate carbon regulations at a forum in Milwaukee. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

***SPONSORED LINK: Join Wind on the Wires March 19 for the “Energizing the Future” gala featuring former FERC Chair Jon Wellinghoff & former Congressman Bob Inglis. Reduced rates for NGOs.***

TRANSPORTATION: Electric vehicles are a hot topic at a Minnesota energy conference. (St. Cloud Times)

COMMENTARY: A Michigan lawmaker “must think the arcane nature of energy policy allows him to hide his polluter and utility wish list masquerading as legislation in plain sight.” (NRDC Switchboard)

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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.

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