Tesla hasn’t given up on California after all

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Elon Musk announces Tesla will open a new engineering headquarters in California, 15 months after the company’s high-profile departure to Texas. (KTLA)

ALSO:
• Advocates, citing the health impacts of diesel pollution, say California isn’t moving fast enough to electrify heavy trucks. (Grist/​KCET)
• Federal regulators seek more information on a fatal weekend crash in California, part of a broader investigation of Tesla’s ​“Autopilot” driver-assist system. (Bloomberg)

COAL ASH:
• A report from the operator of Montana’s Colstrip power plant says that ​“despite significant efforts,” the company has not found a viable way to reuse coal ash stored at the site. (Billings Gazette)
• The U.S. EPA has denied an Arizona utility’s request to continue dumping coal ash into an unlined pond. (Cronkite News)

COAL: New Mexico lawmakers advance a bill that would require an assessment of cleanup needs for the San Juan Generating station and the San Juan Mine. (NM Political Report)

GEOENGINEERING: A startup that hopes to release sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere to block sunlight begins testing balloons in Nevada after being banned by Mexico. (CNBC)

DIVESTMENT: A Colorado Senate committee removes a provision from a climate bill that would have required the state’s pension system to ​“align with” emissions goals. (Colorado Newsline)

OIL & GAS:
• Colorado lawmakers consider legislation to study the oil and gas industry’s impact on the Front Range’s persistent ozone pollution. (Colorado Public Radio)
• A Texas company has been increasing the amount of fuels it moves through a Portland export terminal, contrary to assurances it made to Oregon regulators to win approval for an expansion project. (Oregonian)
• Some California lawmakers express skepticism about Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal to cap oil industry profits. (Politico)

GRID:
• California installed 2.4 GW of battery capacity in 2022, accounting for more than half of the total installations in the U.S. (Scientific American)
• Utah lawmakers consider tougher penalties for attacks on the power grid and other infrastructure. (Standard-Examiner)

WIND:
• Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon vetoes a bill that would have prohibited wind farm developers from using eminent domain. (Cowboy State Daily)
• The Bureau of Land Management will host a series of public meetings on a proposed wind farm in southern Idaho. (KIVI)

BUILDINGS: New Mexico lawmakers advance a bill that would require new homes to be built to support solar panels and electric vehicle charging, and another that would block local natural gas moratoriums. (NM Political Report)

UTILITIES: Nevada regulators hear from Southwest Gas customers about high bills, as lawmakers across the West try to find ways to protect consumers from volatile natural gas prices. (Las Vegas Review-Journal, E&E News)

COMMENTARY: A climate advocate says a Utah bill to tax electric vehicles will further complicate efforts to control air pollution. (Salt Lake Tribune)