Georgia could be model for politicized utility board elections

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POLITICS

• The election of two Georgia Democrats over Republican incumbents on the state’s utility regulatory board last year could be a bellwether for public utility elections across the U.S. this year as parties debate energy affordability and high power bills. (E&E News)

• New York Democrats point to Texas’ booming clean energy sector in a debate over attempts to delay New York’s mandate to shift entirely to clean energy by 2040. (Times Union)

• A Kentucky lawmaker sponsoring a bill to reshape the state utility regulatory board eliminates provisions to raise the standard for the public to intervene in cases and designate the attorney general as the sole advocate for ratepayers. (Kentucky Lantern)

TRANSITION

• A Kentucky county board affirms its decision to withdraw from a contract with a waste management company to build a mega landfill on an abandoned coal mine, revealing a current of distrust over governance amid an economic crisis triggered by coal’s collapse. (Lexington Herald-Leader)

FOSSIL FUELS

• Advocates and Texas officials in the petrochemical hub of Corpus Christi warn of a ​“water emergency” within months that could disrupt fuel supplies, lead to a spike in gasoline prices, and cause an economic crisis. (Inside Climate News)

• Virginia officials approve Virginia Natural Gas’ plan to build a compressor station at a site surrounded by historically Black neighborhoods. (WHRO)

WIND

• Arkansas residents organize against a proposed wind farm in a county located in the Ozarks. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette)

SPILLS

• South Carolina regulators order Silfab Solar to halt operations at its factory pending an investigation of two chemical leaks. (The Herald, WCNC)

• A February oil spill at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port is much larger than was initially thought, but officials say more than three-quarters of the oil has been recovered. (The Advocate, WWL)

• Tennessee officials order residents to shelter-in-place for an hour due to a fire and chemical release at Wacker Chemical’s facility. (Chattanooga Times Free Press)

CLEAN ENERGY

• A new report finds clean energy jobs in North Carolina have climbed 13.8% since the pandemic and continued to grow last year, largely due to the manufacturing sector. (WFAE)

CARBON CAPTURE

• Kentucky lawmakers advance legislation to create a regulatory framework for carbon capture and storage. (Kentucky Lantern)

SOLAR

• Zelestra begins construction of two Texas solar farms totaling 441 MW, with all of the power going to social media company Meta. (Solar Power World)

DATA CENTERS

• The question of whether to end a key tax break for data centers has become a sticking point in Virginia lawmakers’ consideration of a state budget as the legislative session is set to conclude this week. (Cardinal News)

• Virginia lawmakers filed more than 60 data center-related bills in this year’s legislative session, but at least half will fail to pass, leaving advocates worried about the sector’s rampant growth and voracious appetite for energy and water. (Virginian-Pilot)

• Georgia lawmakers consider multiple bills to regulate data centers but instead pass a measure to phase out tax breaks ahead of schedule that critics say will mostly maintain the status quo. (Georgia Recorder)

• Texas now accounts for a third of planned data centers in the U.S. along with about 40 GW of new gas-fired power plants to power them, which could help it surpass Virginia as the top state for data centers by 2030. (Fort Worth Report)

UTILITIES

• Florida lawmakers pass legislation to override a pair of votes by residents of Gainesville to retain control of their public utility, moving instead to shift oversight to a state-appointed authority. (WUSF)

EMISSIONS

• Florida lawmakers pass a bill to block local governments from reducing greenhouse gas emissions using net-zero policies. (Florida Phoenix/​Invading Sea)

GRID

• A copper theft at an Appalachian Power substation leads to a power outage that affected thousands of West Virginia residents. (Intelligencer)