SUPREME COURT: As a Senate committee plans to advance Amy Coney Barrett’s nomination to the Supreme Court, she continues to elude questions on climate change. (The Hill)

ALSO:
• While some Democratic senators plan to boycott today’s committee vote, it won’t prevent Republicans from moving ahead with a Senate confirmation vote expected Monday. (Los Angeles Times)
• The impact that Barrett will have on environmental cases isn’t entirely clear, but it is likely the court will be more skeptical of regulatory powers, creating a potentially significant obstacle to climate policy. (Vox)

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CLEAN ENERGY:
• A new report says corporate power purchase agreements will drive as much as 72 GW in new U.S. wind and solar over the next decade. (Utility Dive)
• A report from an organization pushing for electrification says an aggressive shift to renewable energy would save Americans billions of dollars on energy costs. (The Guardian)
• Cities are seeing mixed results in meeting their pledges to cut emissions, according to a new analysis. (Greentech Media)
• Data shows that clean energy jobs tend to pay more than fossil fuel industries, and are less susceptible to boom-and-bust cycles. (NPR)
• Experts say an acquisition agreement between New Mexico’s largest electricity utility and a renewable energy development company could help it build a renewable energy economy. (Albuquerque Journal, Albuquerque Business First)

OVERSIGHT:
• A former EPA official files a lawsuit claiming he was retaliated against for raising concerns about former administrator Scott Pruitt’s financial mismanagement. (E&E News)
• The Interior Department says a former official committed an ethics violation by meeting with an organization he had once volunteered for. (The Hill)

TRANSPORTATION:
• The International Code Council decides not to include a provision in its building code update that would require new buildings to be able to accommodate electric vehicle charging. (E&E News, subscription)
• Echoing a California plan, House Democrats introduce a bill that would require all new cars sold by 2035 to be zero-emissions. (E&E News, subscription)

UTILITIES:
• If passed by voters next month, a ballot initiative in Columbus, Ohio, would create the state’s largest community aggregation program and significantly boost renewable energy purchases. (Energy News Network)
• Connecticut regulators begin three day of hearings to examine utility response to outages from Tropical Storm Isaias that lasted more than a week in some areas. (Hartford Courant)
• Gulf Power seeks to recoup $200 million that it spent to restore power after Hurricane Sally from ratepayers. (Pensacola News Journal)

NATURAL GAS: A coalition of Minnesota clean energy and environmental advocates launches a campaign to shift public opinion on natural gas, arguing that it is neither a clean or cheap alternative to coal. (Energy News Network)

COAL: A Kentucky community is still waiting for promised jobs to materialize from a proposed tourism center funded by a federal program designed to redevelop former coal mining sites. (Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting)

SOLAR: An Indiana utility plans three large-scale solar and battery storage projects totaling 900 MW in the coming years. (Times of Northwest Indiana)

COMMENTARY:
• A Vox journalist says geothermal energy has strong potential in Western states and could provide a lifeline for oil and gas workers.
• Efforts to discredit climate science underscore the need for “sound, science-based, interdisciplinary climate-change education and training of teachers,” says the executive director of a Minnesota climate advocacy organization. (Duluth News Tribune)

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.