Legal & Regulatory

Distributed generation (DG) is receiving much attention as a resource that can facilitate the development of a smarter, more resilient, and more sustainable electric grid. Several jurisdictions, including New

Regulatory attention is rarely welcome in the best of times. When the attention is focused on a practice that has been standard operating procedure for more than a century—especially a practice that has left

Use of natural gas for power generation in the U.S. is skyrocketing. From 2005 to 2015, the share of energy produced from gas has increased over 80%, with gas now comprising about 35% of the fuel mix. This

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the final version of the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) on Oct. 23, 2015, and within hours more than two dozen challenges were filed

There’s an old saying in Washington that when everyone is upset, you’ve probably done something right. By that measure, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) latest update to the National

On August 8, 2005, the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct) was signed into law. It remains, arguably, the last significant piece of energy legislation to be enacted in the U.S. The changes wrought by EPAct are far-reaching and controversial, and for the gas and electric industry, perhaps no change has been more significant than […]

Rate design is sexy again. On July 3, 2015, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) issued its long-awaited decision altering California’s residential rate structure. Most of the focus on the CPUC’s decision has understandably been on the move from a four-tiered to a two-tiered rate structure and the introduction of a Super-User Electric Surcharge for […]

On June 29, much of the power sector rejoiced when the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) rule, finding that the EPA had

Is the sky falling? No, but are there lessons we can learn from Chicken Little? Absolutely. False alarms and fear mongering consume energy we can ill afford to waste, but should some sort of alarm be sounding

For decades, renewable energy sources—primarily wind and solar—have been touted as the answer to continued reliance on fossil fuels. The technology has substantially improved, reducing unit costs, and state-imposed requirements have increased demand, enabling increased production to be sustainable. This expansion has come with the recognition that it also has environmental consequences. Wind farms threaten […]