CONGRESS: The U.S. Senate hopes to wrap up work on a sweeping, bipartisan energy bill this week. (E&E Daily)

CLEAN POWER PLAN:
• Backers of a plan to extend a freeze of Ohio’s clean energy standards for three more years say it’s due to the legal uncertainty around the federal Clean Power Plan. (Midwest Energy News)
Groups challenging the Clean Power Plan in federal court say the U.S. EPA is downplaying its “radical” approach to power plant regulation. (EnergyWire)

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CLIMATE: An administrative law judge in Minnesota recommends that the state use updated cost-of-carbon estimates that factor in health and societal costs. (Minnesota Public Radio)

SOLAR:
Solar still has economic obstacles to overcome before it becomes the world’s dominant electricity source. (Vox)
A North Carolina advocacy group is hit with a $60,000 fine after trying to sell solar power to a church in a challenge to the state’s third-party sales law. (Greentech Media)

NATURAL GAS:
 Another leak was reported at the Aliso Canyon natural gas field over the weekend. (KTLA)
Homeowners near the facility are seeking $3.5 million each in damages from the four-month-long gas leak at the facility over the winter. (Reuters)

FRACKING:
Oklahoma researchers explore using algae to clean up drilling wastewater. (Oklahoman)
Fracking weighs heavily in the race for attorney general in Pennsylvania. (NPR)

OIL: The drilling downturn means Texas has nothing to show for a $12 million state subsidy for a new Chevron office building. (Texas Tribune)

COAL:
Central Appalachia coal production has been cut in half over the past five years. (SNL)
• Before its bankruptcy, Peabody Energy was making plans to “right-size” its coal mining operations amid the vastly shrinking industry. (SNL / Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis)

CLIMATE: New Hampshire is “looking into” whether to join a multi-state investigation of ExxonMobil’s climate disclosures. (Concord Monitor)

NUCLEAR:
A Georgia utility discloses it has purchased land about 140 miles south of Atlanta to explore building a new plant there. (Atlanta Business Chronicle)
Local zoning officials push back against a Pennsylvania nuclear plant’s effort to build a waste storage facility on site. (Scranton Times-Tribune)

GRID:
Connecticut is spending $23 million to develop microgrids as part of a climate resiliency effort. (Harford Courant)
How grid CEOs respond to the question “what keeps you up at night?” (EnergyWire)
• Federal regulators are seeking input from grid operators on how energy storage can be a part of wholesale energy markets. (RTO Insider)
Federal officials sign off on a Nevada energy storage project that utilizes rail cars pulled up and down a hill. (Greentech Media)
Texas regulators are considering artificially inflating wholesale prices to improve reliability. (Houston Chronicle)

COMMENTARY:
“The left is turning anti-science”: How liberal biases could block progress on climate change. (New York Times)
Are political aspirations driving state attorneys general in high-profile climate cases? (Forbes)
Montana leaders working to keep the state’s largest coal plant running are “taking this train in the wrong direction.” (Missoulian)

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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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