Cooperatives Seek Congressional Action on Coal Ash
Posted on Jun 22, 2015 in Environmental, Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Cooperatives Seek Congressional Action on Coal Ash
Electric cooperatives are asking Congress to legislate on the issue of coal ash. The call for Congressional action comes in light of an EPA rule, taking effect October 14, which coops believe will lead to duplicative and conflicting oversight at the federal and state levels. Coops say they would rather Congress simply set minimum requirements and then allow the states to administer...
Arkansas Electric and Others Seek Intervention in Suit over Haze Abatement Plan
Posted on Jun 12, 2015 in Environmental, Litigation, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Arkansas Electric and Others Seek Intervention in Suit over Haze Abatement Plan
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in March settled a suit with environmental group Sierra Club over an Arkansas Department of Environmental Quality haze plan required by federal law. A coalition of companies, including Arkansas Electric Cooperative Corp. and Entergy Arkansas, has filed a motion to intervene in the suit that has already settled. Click here for more.
EPA Deemed “Ultimate Authority” For Ozone NAAQS
Posted on Jun 10, 2015 in Climate Change, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on EPA Deemed “Ultimate Authority” For Ozone NAAQS
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has ruled that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has the “ultimate authority” to determine whether an area is in attainment with national ambient air quality standards (NAAQS) for ozone. Many industry and environmental groups, along with states and counties, were challenging nonattainment designations finalized by...
EPA Finalizes Definition of Waters to be Covered under the Clean Water Act
Posted on May 28, 2015 in Environmental, Land Use, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on EPA Finalizes Definition of Waters to be Covered under the Clean Water Act
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers finalized a redefinition of the “Waters of the U.S.” under the Clean Water Act. The EPA did so without consulting stakeholders, including rural electric cooperatives. The EPA maintains that it is not required to consult stakeholders, or to conduct small business analysis under the Regulatory Flexibility Act before...
USDA Announces $100 million in Loans for Rural Electric Coop Utilities
Posted on May 12, 2015 in Financing, Grid & Infrastructure, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on USDA Announces $100 million in Loans for Rural Electric Coop Utilities
Today the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced $106.3 million in electric system infrastructure loans to rural electric cooperative utilities in four states. The loans include $9 million for smart grid improvements. The announcement comes during the 80th anniversary of the creation of the Rural Electrification Administration. Click here for more...
Indiana Levels the Playing Field for Electric Utilities
Posted on May 7, 2015 in Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Indiana Levels the Playing Field for Electric Utilities
Indiana Governor Mike Pence recently signed Indiana’s electric service territory legislation. The legislation, which goes into effect later this month, will stop municipal electric utilities from seizing territory from both electric cooperatives and investor-owned utilities. Before now, municipal electric utilities had the power to expand by seizing territory from other utilities,...
NERC Study Finds EPA’s Clean Power Plan Unworkable
Posted on Apr 30, 2015 in Climate Change, Environmental, Grid & Infrastructure, Legislative & Politics, Project Development, Regulation & Policy, Renewable Energy | Comments Off on NERC Study Finds EPA’s Clean Power Plan Unworkable
A recent North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) study finds that the Clean Power Plan of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) would require that electric cooperatives shut down approximately 21 percent of their coal generation by 2025. The study also found that the generation and transmission projects necessary to fill the void left by coal generation would not be...
Congressional Legislation Preserves Large Water Heater Use
Posted on Apr 22, 2015 in Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on Congressional Legislation Preserves Large Water Heater Use
As we have previously noted, the Department of Energy implemented regulations on April 16 to ban the manufacture of large water heaters that can be controlled by smart meter technology. To prevent adverse effects of these regulations on electric cooperatives, Congress passed legislation on April 21 enabling cooperatives to continue to use large capacity grid-enabled water heaters for...
Ban on Large Capacity Grid-Enabled Water Heaters Takes Effect April 16 Unless Congress Acts
Posted on Apr 14, 2015 in Legislative & Politics, Regulation & Policy, Technology | Comments Off on Ban on Large Capacity Grid-Enabled Water Heaters Takes Effect April 16 Unless Congress Acts
A federal ban on large capacity, grid-enabled water heaters will take effect April 16 unless the U.S. House pushes forward with legislation that would allow for continued manufacture of water heaters above 75 gallons. The bill was approved in the Senate on March 27. For more information, please click here.
D.C. Cir. Approves EPA Greenhouse Gas Regulation at Some Power Plants
Posted on Apr 14, 2015 in Climate Change, Environmental, Regulation & Policy | Comments Off on D.C. Cir. Approves EPA Greenhouse Gas Regulation at Some Power Plants
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) won a case before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (D.C. Cir.) that will allow it to continue to regulate existing power plants for greenhouse gases if they are being regulated for other pollutants as well. The Court also vacated portions of the EPA’s Tailoring Rule which attempted to address emissions of...
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