Legislative

President Donald Trump’s proposed budget, which cuts funding for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) by 31%, will not be received favorably by the American people, former EPA Administrators Gina McCarthy and Carol Browner said March 17 during a call with the press. “This is clear what’s happening. The White House has made a decision that […]

The Trump administration released a blueprint of its proposed 2018 budget on March 16, likely setting off a major battle with Congress. The budget proposal, “America First: A Budget Blueprint to Make America Great Again” makes major cuts in non-defense discretionary spending over 2017. While funding for the Department of Defense is boosted $52.3 billion, […]

Texas has filed a lawsuit in federal court to stop the Department of Energy (DOE) from spending tax dollars on consent-based siting activity, and to force the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) and other relevant federal agencies to complete licensing proceedings for the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste permanent repository. The lawsuit filed with the U.S. Court […]

Maria Korsnick, president and CEO of the Nuclear Energy Institute (NEI), told POWER on March 9 that the U.S. nuclear industry is optimistic this Congress will work to resolve the nation’s long drawn out spent fuel predicament. Speaking at CERAweek by IHS Markit last week, Korsnick said that optimism was based on Republican domination of […]

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) administrative priorities will be reined in to focus on process, rule of law, and cooperation with states, the agency’s new head Scott Pruitt told attendees at CERAweek by IHS Markit on March 9. Since the former Oklahoma Attorney General was sworn in as EPA administrator in late February, the agency has […]

Bipartisan lawmakers in Minnesota want utilities in that state to procure 50% of power sold by 2030 from renewable sources. The measure, if passed, could put the state’s renewable efforts on par with California’s. The bipartisan bill introduced in the Minnesota Legislature on February 27 seeks to double the state’s renewable energy standard, which is […]

A bill signed by Minnesota’s Gov. Mark Dayton (D) on February 28 allows Xcel Energy to build a 786-MW combined cycle gas-fired power plant without approval from state regulators. The governor signed Chapter 5, House File 113, a bill that had bipartisan support of the state’s legislators, to allow the Minneapolis-based power company to move […]

In a final 52–46 vote, the Senate on Friday confirmed Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt as Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The vote was mostly along party lines. Every Republican present except Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) voted for Pruitt (Sen. John McCain [R-Ariz.] did not vote because he is at […]

A state court ordered Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt to turn over more than 2,500 emails his office withheld from open records requests relating to communications with coal, oil, and gas corporations. The order came a day before the Senate is poised to confirm him as President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Environmental Protection […]

A group of power companies have filed a federal lawsuit against the State of Illinois, challenging a recently enacted law that creates subsidies for Exelon’s uneconomic nuclear power plants. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit filed on February 14 in the Northern District of Illinois are the Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA), Dynegy, Eastern Generation, NRG […]