COAL: At a federal hearing in Chicago, residents and advocates plead with U.S. EPA officials to further expand the agency’s proposed coal ash storage rules and step up enforcement of existing regulations. (Energy News Network)
ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• Minnesota leads the Midwest with supportive policies to expand electric vehicle ownership, according to a new scorecard grading incentives, charging infrastructure and grid optimization. (Minnesota Reformer)
• Kansas ranks 31st in the scorecard and “can do more to accelerate the transition to EVs,” the report author says. (Kansas Reflector)
• Local leaders raise questions about the future of a GM assembly plant near St. Louis as the company transitions to electric vehicles. (St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
SOLAR:
• A South Dakota tribal energy job-training nonprofit is awarded $1.5 million in federal funding to grow the number of Indigenous women working in solar. (South Dakota Searchlight)
• Residents in an eastern Michigan township seek to overturn an ordinance that they view as too friendly to commercial solar development. (WJRT)
UTILITIES:
• The head of Detroit-based DTE Energy faces more scrutiny from state lawmakers questioning his $10 million salary and the utility’s ongoing grid reliability problems. (Bridge)
• ComEd is asking Illinois regulators to allow ratepayers to shoulder at least some of the higher insurance costs associated with the recent bribery scandal involving a former top lawmaker and utility executives. (Crain’s Chicago Business, subscription)
NUCLEAR: Michigan lawmakers pass a new state budget that includes $150 million to help restart a shuttered nuclear plant along Lake Michigan. (WSJM)
CARBON CAPTURE: A carbon pipeline developer says South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem was incorrect in stating that the company’s project received financing from Chinese companies. (KELO)
COMMENTARY:
• The president of the South Dakota Farmers Union says Gov. Kristi Noem remained silent as state lawmakers discussed a bill to limit the use of eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines. (South Dakota Searchlight)
• A Minnesota chamber of commerce president says carbon pipelines will help the state meet emission-reduction goals and benefit corn growers. (Marshall Independent)
• A board member of a centrist Democratic organization says Minnesota and other states should refrain from banning gas-powered vehicles to maintain political support among voters. (MinnPost)
More from the Energy News Network: Midwest | Southeast | Northeast | West