POLITICS: The Inflation Reduction Act has successfully supercharged clean energy investments, but not enough yet to put the country on track for its emission targets, analysts say. (Politico, The Hill)

ALSO:
• Republicans are struggling to manufacture a scandal around the Inflation Reduction Act, in part because GOP congressional districts have captured most of the jobs and private investments from the law. (Inside Climate News)
• A Republican president could derail the Inflation Reduction Act by using executive action to revise Treasury Department rules, tightening limits on tax incentives, and withdrawing some of its loans and grants. (Politico)
• A year after casting the critical vote to pass it, Sen. Joe Manchin criticizes the Biden administration’s implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act and promises an “unrelenting fight” against efforts to use it to advance a “radical climate agenda.” (Guardian)

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CLIMATE:
• Worsening Atlantic hurricanes caused about 20,000 excess deaths between 1988 and 2019, with the highest death counts coming in counties with majority Black, brown and Indigenous residents, scientists find. (Guardian)
• Washington state’s new carbon-pricing program exceeds expectations by bringing in more than $900 million so far. (Seattle Times)

OIL & GAS:
• U.S. House Democrats ask federal regulators to deny an extension of the Mountain Valley Pipeline into North Carolina. (Augusta Free Press)
• Texas regulators move to allow oil and gas drillers to discharge more wastewater into nearby waterways even as the health impacts remain unstudied. (Inside Climate News)
• A Democratic U.S. lawmaker introduces a bill that would require oil and gas companies to reimburse workers for health costs associated with air pollution and heat-related illnesses. (Associated Press)

ELECTRIFICATION:
• Heat pumps, solar thermal resources and other electric appliances could decarbonize U.S. food and beverage processing by 2035, a report finds. (Utility Dive)
• States and territories look to take advantage of $8.8 billion in federal dollars to create home efficiency and electrification programs. (Canary Media)

JOBS: Energy jobs grew in nearly every county last year, with solar leading the way in the electric power generation sector with jobs created in 74% of counties, a U.S. Energy Department study finds. (news release)

CLEAN ENERGY: A nonprofit partners with a historic Black church in Savannah, Georgia, to build a microgrid that includes solar panels, electric vehicle charging and battery storage, and hopes to help other Black churches follow suit. (Current)

UTILITIES:
• Multiple lawsuits accuse Hawaiian Electric of delaying grid modernization projects that could have prevented the deadly Maui wildfires blamed on the utility’s equipment. (NBC News)
• Trump administration Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette will lead utility lobbying group Edison Electric Institute as it ramps up its fight against the EPA’s proposed power plant emissions rules. (The Hill)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:
• A planned $2.4 billion electric vehicle battery manufacturing plant in rural Michigan is emerging as a test case for the complexities of climate change politics. (HuffPost)
• New York City’s taxi commission proposes requiring all for-hire vehicles in the city be either zero-emission or wheelchair-accessible by 2030. (SI Live)
• Automaker Stellantis plans to invest more than $100 million in a geothermal brine lithium extraction project at the Salton Sea in southern California. (Detroit News) 

SOLAR: Prince William County, Virginia, has had some of the region’s highest fees and longest delays for solar panel permits, but that’s starting to change after frustrated stakeholders confronted officials. (Energy News Network)

COMMENTARY: California researchers call on the state and federal governments to cover irrigation canals with solar panels to conserve water and meet clean energy goals. (Los Angeles Times)

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Kathryn brings her extensive editorial background to the Energy News Network team, where she oversees the early-morning production of ENN’s five email digest newsletters as well as distribution of ENN’s original journalism with other media outlets. From documenting chronic illness’ effect on college students to following the inner workings of Congress, Kathryn has built a broad experience in her more than five years working at major publications including The Week Magazine. Kathryn holds a Bachelor of Science in magazine journalism and information management and technology from Syracuse University.