California advocates say utility bill guts low-income energy programs

UTILITIES: Advocates push back on proposed California legislation aimed at reducing utility bills, saying it would gut low-income clean energy programs without significantly increasing affordability. (Canary Media)

ALSO:

• Southern California Edison seeks regulators’ authorization to recover up to $2.7 billion in losses related to 2017 and 2018 wildfires from ratepayers. (Reuters)
• Portland, Oregon’s mayor urges regulators to reject a utility’s proposed rate hike, saying it would place an undue burden on the city’s most vulnerable residents. (KOIN)
• Colorado utilities look to stave off an increasing number of power line-related bird electrocutions that spark wildfires. (Denver Post)

SOLAR:

• The U.S. Agriculture Department loans a Nevada electric cooperative $80.3 million to build a 37 MW solar-plus-storage installation. (Nevada Current)
• Observers say a growing number of Western water managers are considering covering irrigation canals with solar panels to generate power and reduce evaporation. (Water Education)
• Industry tentatively lauds the Biden administration’s finalization of its Western solar plan for federal lands, while advocates praise and criticize it. (news releases)

WIND: The Biden administration plans to auction offshore wind leases on nearly 200,000 acres on two sites along Oregon’s southern coast in October. (Oregon Capital Chronicle)

POLITICS: Democratic and Republican contenders for Alaska’s congressional seat vie to be the most loyal to the oil and gas industry, with incumbent Rep. Mary Peltola opening a debate by shouting, ​“Willow!” (Alaska Public Media)

CLIMATE: Arizona launches a program aimed at assisting residents who are vulnerable to extreme heat by installing electric heat-pumps in low-income households. (KJZZ)

STORAGE: Developers bring a 50 MW battery energy storage system online near Phoenix, Arizona. (news release)

GRID: California lawmakers pass legislation requiring utilities to study the feasibility of deploying grid-enhancing technologies such as advanced conductors. (Solar Power World)

OIL & GAS: 

• Democratic federal lawmakers ask a congressional watchdog to investigate oil and gas leasing and abandoned well cleanup on federal lands. (E&E News, subscription)
• ExxonMobil looks to sell its conventional oil and gas facilities in the Permian Basin for $1 billion to focus on its growing unconventional shale production. (Bloomberg)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES:

• The U.S. Transportation Department awards a northern California transit agency $14 million to install an undetermined number of level 2 electric vehicle chargers. (East Bay Times)
• Washington’s trucking industry pushes back on a state program aimed at replacing diesel trucks with zero-emission vehicles, saying the timeline is unrealistic. (RTO Insider, subscription)
• A rural, oil and gas-producing region in Colorado seeks federal electric vehicle charging station funding, saying it is a form of economic development. (Glenwood Post-Independent)

COMMENTARY: A Montana columnist calls on the state’s largest utility to build trust by being more transparent and increasing public involvement in its planning processes. (Daily Montanan)