In virus talks, Pelosi holds firm while Mnuchin wants a deal

Monday brought no new talks between Trump’s team and negotiators on Capitol Hill as the president tries a go-it-alone strategy. Over the weekend, he launched a series of executive actions that give the appearance of a White House taking charge but may end up providing little help for ordinary Americans. The president’s orders seek to reverse the devastating fallout from unemployment assistance, eviction protections and other aid that has expired. But there are limits, and legal pitfalls, in trying to make an end run around the legislative branch. Pelosi dismissed Trump’s proposals Monday as an “illusion”. Trump acknowledged he’s still quite open to a deal with Congress. “So now Schumer and Pelosi want to meet to make a deal. Amazing how it all works, isn’t it,” he tweeted Monday. “They know my phone number.”

Trump acknowledged he’s still quite open to a deal with Congress. “So now Schumer and Pelosi want to meet to make a deal. Amazing how it all works, isn’t it,” he tweeted Monday. “They know my phone number.”
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Relief proposals waiting for a home

Senate Republicans are directly urging Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to prioritize assistance for the clean energy sector, and House Democrats have also vowed to prioritize assistance to the sector in future packages. The GOP lawmakers say they would like policies that benefit “renewables, nuclear, carbon capture, efficiency, advanced transportation, and energy storage.” [ read more … ]

Electricity shut-offs hit 800K low-income homes, report warns

More than one in six Americans living at or below the federal poverty level said they were unable to pay an energy bill in April when many states enacted stay-at-home orders, with people of color hit the hardest, according to new research. But the researchers who conducted the survey suspect that the findings are an understatement of conditions during the pandemic and that the problem has gotten worse as COVID-19 relief benefits and moratoriums on utility service shut-offs expire, said David Konisky, the report’s co-lead author and a professor of public and environmental affairs at Indiana University. [ read more … ]

In renewable energy boom, Great Lakes states struggle to kick fossil fuels

Coal still dominates the power generation sector in many Great Lakes states like Indiana, Illinois and Ohio. But they are beginning to embrace renewable energy, as well. And some believe that the region has the potential to become the next hot spot for renewable energy development. A recent Ball State University study found that expanding the use of renewable energy in Indiana will “stabilize energy prices, offer more permanent supply, reduce the local labor demand shocks associated with shifting fuel extraction and move energy production into more Indiana communities than is the current experience.” [ read more … ]

FERC provides course to Congress on building transmission

 Staff of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission delivered a report to Congress Friday outlining the opportunities and challenges of building large-scale transmission lines. The report, required as part of an appropriations law enacted in December, reiterated the importance of transmission in helping meet clean energy goals by delivering wind and solar from oftentimes rural areas where the power is generated to population centers. Transmission is also poised to play a more important role as policymakers look to electrify other parts of the economy, such as transportation and buildings. [ read more … ]

Shale Job Losses Accelerating and the Worst May Be Yet to Come

Roughneck job cuts accelerated in July and the outlook may worsen as new Covid-19 cases stifle economic activity, according to the Petroleum Equipment and Services Association.
The U.S. oilfield-services sector shed 9,344 jobs last month, a 43% increase from June’s losses, the industry-funded trade group said in a report released Monday. That pushed the industry’s total job casualties since the pandemic emerged to 99,253. [ read more … ]

Coal spree suggests China might loosen CO2 goals

China is a world leader on renewable energy, on electric vehicles and in setting carbon dioxide reduction goals. But it’s also under pressure to build more coal-fired power plants over the next five years. “This is a study in contrasts,” explained David Sandalow, a researcher at Columbia University who specializes in China’s energy policy. [ read more … ]

Biden’s potential VP picks sound off on climate

A political advocacy group is giving Democratic vice presidential contenders a platform to tout their climate credentials. Climate Power 2020 has posted videos in recent weeks from Sens. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.); former Ambassador to the United Nations and national security adviser Susan Rice; New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham; and Stacey Abrams, who unsuccessfully ran for governor of Georgia. [ read more … ]