MRES entitled to legal fees tied to Minn. energy law case
By Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
Posted on August 21, 2018
Missouri River Energy Services, a public power joint action agency based in Sioux Falls, S.D., and several other plaintiffs are entitled to attorney’s fees of approximately $1.3 million related to a proceeding in which MRES and the other plaintiffs sued to stop Minnesota from enforcing an energy-related law called the Next Generation Energy Act.
The affirmation of a district court’s order was detailed in an Aug. 14 concurring opinion written by Judge Steven Colloton of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit.
In 2011, North Dakota sued Minnesota over the law, alleging that it violated the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution by restricting transmission of electricity generated in North Dakota and consumed in Minnesota unless the generation of that electricity met Minnesota's carbon dioxide emission requirements.
Corporate renewables procurement hits new record in 2018
By Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
Posted on August 21, 2018
Corporate renewable energy procurement reached a new record in 2018, with 3.57 gigawatts of renewable energy projects announced this year to date in the U.S., the Business Renewables Center recently reported.
WOTUS rule will go into effect in 26 states under judge’s ruling
By Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
Posted on August 20, 2018
A federal judge on Aug. 16 ruled that a final rule issued by the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers that adds an “applicability date” of Feb. 6, 2020 to the 2015 Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) rule must be set aside.
Lincoln Electric System to study EV charging habits
By Peter Maloney
APPA Author
Posted on August 17, 2018
Nebraska public power utility Lincoln Electric System has begun a campaign to recruit electric vehicle drivers in a study that the utility plans to use to better understand the impact electric vehicle charging will have on its system’s demand.
N.Y. utility gets OK for first-of-its-kind gas demand response pilot
By Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
Posted on August 17, 2018
The New York State Public Service Commission on Aug. 9 approved a $5 million program for Consolidated Edison Company of New York to reduce residential and commercial customer demand for natural gas.
The demand reduction program will demonstrate the ability for customers to reduce their demand for natural gas over the next three years.
Missouri court reverses PSC decision on EV charging stations
By Bob Matyi
APPA Author
Posted on August 16, 2018
A Missouri Court of Appeals ruling could set the stage for state regulators later this year to reconsider investor-owned Kansas City Power & Light's request to include electric vehicle charging stations in rate base.
The appellate court on August 7 reversed a Missouri Public Service Commission decision last October that found the charging stations are not "electric plant" under state law and, as a result, cannot be placed in rate base where all KCP&L customers would pay for them.
FERC orders halt to work on pipelines, clears path for others
By Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
Posted on August 14, 2018
In response to recent appeals court decisions, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently directed developers to stop work on two natural gas pipeline projects – the Mountain Valley Pipeline and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline.
Meanwhile, the Commission on Aug. 10 issued orders denying rehearing of prior decisions that gave the green light to pipeline projects in the Southeast and Northeast parts of the U.S.
Association voices opposition to pole attachment legislation
By Paul Ciampoli
APPA News Director
Posted on August 14, 2018
The American Public Power Association is voicing opposition to legislation that would effectively repeal the public power exemption from Federal Communications Commission (FCC) pole attachment regulations.
The bill essentially would impose a “one-size-fits-all” approach to pole attachment rates and regulations that may ultimately require public power utility customers to subsidize infrastructure deployment of for-profit communications providers, the Association said.
TVA touts reliability following call to sell off power line assets
By Ethan Howland
Author for APPA
Posted on August 13, 2018
The Tennessee Valley Authority maintains a highly reliable system that provides value for its business and utility customers, Bill Johnson, TVA president and chief executive officer said in response to a proposal to sell off TVA’s transmission assets.
Cybersecurity Scorecard
APPA News
Posted on August 10, 2018
Understanding and improving our collective cybersecurity posture is increasingly important in the face of increasing cyber threats to the electricity sector.