UTILITIES: Maryland regulators decide to let utilities access certain federal grants without public input, a move the state’s consumer advocate says goes against the commissions’ oversight obligation. (Inside Climate News)

ALSO:
• New Hampshire utility regulators approve community power formation rules that some observers call “transformative” for municipalities’ budgets and renewable energy goals. (New Hampshire Bulletin)
• As state legislators consider giving the New York Power Authority greater ability to build renewables to reduce ratepayer costs, utility officials say they don’t want that power. (Utility Dive)

TRANSIT:
• Amtrak resumes service to Burlington, Vermont, after a seven-decade pause, extending the rail route into New York City by almost 70 miles. (Vermont Business Magazine)
• The National Transportation Safety Board joins the investigation into an electric bus that combusted at a CTtransit maintenance facility, leading the state to pull the rest of its electric bus fleet from roads. (News Times)

CLIMATE:
• Massachusetts lawmakers give their governor some, but not all, of the 19 pages worth of amendments he wanted added to a compromise climate bill, including ending an offshore wind procurement price cap. (Commonwealth Magazine)
• Drought conditions persist in New England, including in much of Maine and in Massachusetts, where some communities are restricting water use. (Portland Press Herald, Tribune News Service)
• Burlington, Vermont, has one of the most intense heat islands in the country, leaving its homeless population vulnerable during heat waves. (Burlington Free Press)

GAS: Two Pennsylvania energy companies partner on a gas-hydrogen blending project. (Observer-Reporter)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Tesla will look to construct a showroom in another Connecticut town instead of complying with East Windsor’s request to build next to existing car dealerships, according to the company’s local developer. (CT Post)

SOLAR:
• A New Jersey township council authorizes a plan to build a roughly 3 MW solar farm on a former Superfund site, with about half of that power earmarked for local low-to-middle-income households. (My Central Jersey)
• New Jersey is one of a handful of states participating in a new federal website to help low-income residents sign up for lower-cost community solar projects. (NJ Advance Media)
• A Maryland county starts construction on 1.3 MW worth of rooftop solar canopies and panels, which will supply the vast majority of power needed for a utility operations complex. (news release)
• A Pittsburgh-area borough adds rooftop solar panels to a municipal building to save thousands of dollars every year on its power bill. (TribLive)

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Bridget is a freelance reporter and newsletter writer based in the Washington, D.C., area. She compiles the Northeast Energy News digest. Bridget primarily writes about energy, conservation and the environment. Originally from Philadelphia, she graduated from Emerson College in 2015 with a degree in journalism and a minor in environmental studies. When she isn’t working on a story, she’s normally on a northern Maine lake or traveling abroad to practice her Spanish language skills.