CLEAN ENERGY: Advocates say Minnesota has leapfrogged Illinois as a climate leader by passing a suite of new equitable clean energy transition legislation this session. (Inside Climate News)
CLIMATE: Some Ohio State University students worry that a new state law designating climate change as a “controversial belief or policy” will jeopardize future student recruitment. (Inside Climate News)
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GRID: Michigan’s two major investor-owned utilities face unprecedented scrutiny for more frequent and extended outages despite claims from executives that they are improving grid reliability. (Crain’s Detroit Business)
UTILITIES: The University of Iowa countersues the private entity operating the school’s utilities, claiming the company is withholding information, failing to properly perform duties and inflating fees. (Cedar Rapids Gazette)
OIL & GAS: Environmental groups celebrate a $40 million penalty against a BP subsidiary for allegedly violating federal pollution laws at an Indiana oil refinery. (Indianapolis Star)
PIPELINES: A federal judge is considering whether to shut down a section of Line 5 based on soil erosion in Wisconsin that could cause a catastrophic oil spill in the Great Lakes and on tribal land. (E&E News)
NUCLEAR: A Canadian utility plans to build a small nuclear reactor along the North Dakota border, surprising some state officials who had not yet heard of the proposal. (Inforum)
TRANSPORTATION:
• Communities can now apply for a share of $400 million in federal grants to pay for electric, propane and compressed natural gas buses. (Utility Dive)
• Indiana drivers are set to face escalating taxes on gasoline as well as higher fees on hybrid and electric vehicles. (Indiana Public Radio)
RENEWABLES: A central Michigan county will pause development on utility-scale wind and solar projects for a year as local officials craft new zoning regulations. (WLNS)
BIOFUELS: Nebraska lawmakers unanimously pass a bill to expand access to gasoline with higher blends of ethanol while increasing tax incentives for fuel retailers that sell higher ethanol blends. (Omaha World-Herald)
COMMENTARY:
• An Ohio climate advocate says renewable energy aggregation has been a key factor in helping Columbus meet its climate goals. (Columbus Dispatch)
• Michigan’s top energy regulator says a “reliability-plus” approach to oversight can address “chronic reliability challenges while ensuring we’re preparing for an electrified future.” (Crain’s Detroit Business)
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