Alabama

Policy Progress

July 11, 2025

• Alabama Governor Kay Ivey signed SB 304, establishing the Alabama Energy Infrastructure Bank and two new funds to provide financing for energy infrastructure projects in the state — the Alabama Energy Infrastructure Fund (AEIF) and the Strategic Energy Infrastructure Development Fund (SEIDF). Notably, 40 percent of AEIF funds and 50 percent of SEIDF funds are reserved for projects in rural areas.

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Alaska

Policies to Watch

September 5, 2025

• Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Federal Permitting Council to speed up permitting of in-state infrastructure projects under the federal FAST-41 Program. Eligible projects range from liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities and natural gas pipelines, to offshore oil and gas, wind and solar, energy storage, transmission, and mining.

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Arizona

Policy Progress

October 3, 2025

• Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs signed Executive Order 2025-13, establishing the Arizona Energy Promise Taskforce (Taskforce). The Taskforce is directed to develop three reports for the Governor: (1) a policy framework to manage large load customer growth, while protecting ratepayers; (2) an energy plan identifying opportunities for emerging energy technologies, such as geothermal; and (3) a strategic plan to streamline the deployment of electric generation and transmission projects, including through the co-location of transmission in existing rights-of-way. The order also directs state agencies to: (1) identify opportunities to streamline energy permitting on state land; (2) support tribal energy sovereignty and economic development; (3) support energy and manufacturing projects that are affected by expiring federal tax credits; and (4) work with utilities to plan for increased energy demand from electric vehicle adoption.

Policies to Watch

July 11, 2025

• The Arizona State Legislature approved SCR 1004, adding a Constitutional amendment to ban state and local governments from imposing a fee on vehicle miles traveled to the 2026 ballot for voter approval.

August 22, 2025

• The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) voted to begin the process of repealing the state’s Renewable Energy Standard and Tariff (REST) rules, passed in 2007, which require utilities to generate 15 percent of their electric load from renewable energy no later than 2025, with 30 percent of the requirement coming from distributed renewable resources. The ACC will hold public comment sessions later this year, before taking a final vote to repeal the rules.

October 3, 2025

• The Arizona Corporation Commission unanimously voted to begin repealing its energy efficiency resource standard for electric utilities. The standards, established in 2010, required electric utilities to achieve 22 percent in cumulative energy savings by 2020. The Commissioners cited lingering reporting requirements, which they worried were costing ratepayers, as a key driver for their vote, but ultimately opted to repeal the rules instead of updating them.

December 17, 2025

• The Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) voted to reduce the Arizona Public Service’s (APS) annual energy efficiency budget from $79.4 million to $40 million. APS had requested an increase in their annual budget to $91 million to meet increased customer demand. The ACC voted to defund several programs, including:
  • Incentives for home builders, contractors, installers, and businesses to comply with ENERGY STAR, install EV chargers, or achieve energy efficiency goals;
  • Incentives for efficient HVAC systems and building envelope improvements in commercial and industrial facilities; and
  • Technical assistance programs for building code compliance.
• Among the retained programs are those that support virtual power plant development, providing rebates to customers that adjust their smart thermostats during times of high demand, energy efficiency programs in Tribal communities and for schools, and a pilot program that pays customers for contributing stored battery power back to the grid during high demand.

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Arkansas

Policies to Watch

April 18, 2025

• Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed SB 416 into law last week. The legislation repeals the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Grant Program and Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund to attempt to stop the deployment of electric vehicle charging facilities in the state.

May 2, 2025

• Last week, Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed the Arkansas Wind Energy Development Act (AB 437) into law, establishing stringent siting and permitting regulations for the state’s wind industry. AB 437 directs the Public Service Commission (PSC) to develop permit requirements for the construction, operation, and redevelopment of wind energy facilities, including setback and height requirements, public safety considerations, decommissioning standards, and mandatory insurance coverage for landowners. Developers must get approval from the PSC (and local legislative bodies, if applicable), and local governments can also adopt their own, more stringent regulations.

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California

Policy Progress

January 24, 2025

• On January 13th, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) withdrew its requests for outstanding emissions waivers from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for four diesel vehicle standards. The standards include California’s Advanced Clean Fleet rule, which would have phased out diesel trucks by ending the sale of new fossil fuel-powered trucks in 2036 and required large trucking companies to convert their fleets to zero-emission vehicles by 2042. The state withdrew three other measures regulating emissions from diesel-powered locomotives, commercial harbor craft and refrigeration unit engines that are hauled by trucks and rail cars.

February 7, 2025

• Last week, the California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approved new rules to streamline transmission permitting. Key rules focus on decreasing redundancy in approvals and requiring early meetings with developers and commission staff to streamline the review process, and aim to meet the expected transmission infrastructure investments needed to reach state clean energy goals, which CAISO estimates will be upwards of $63 billion in the next 20 years.

March 21, 2025

• Last month, the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) released the Climate Action Plan for Transportation Infrastructure (CAPTI) 2.0, a follow-on to CAPTI 1.0, both of which identify strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the state’s top emitting sector. CAPTI 2.0 introduces 14 “key actions” to reduce transportation emissions, including:
  • Developing a climate adaptation framework for state highways
  • Investing in zero-emission freight
  • Aiming to invest in programs with neutral or decreasing Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), creating a VMT exchange program, seeking targeted rural project guidance, and establishing guidelines for mitigating VMT impacts from the movement of goods
  • Accounting for environmental justice impacts by supporting Tribal governments’ transportation projects and programs and mitigating displacement in disadvantaged communities

June 13, 2025

• The California Independent System Operator (CAISO) approved the ISO’s 2024-2025 transmission plan. The plan includes a $4.8 billion transmission buildout over the next 10 to 15 years, recommending 31 infrastructure projects to meet expected load growth. Notably, the plan includes the use of grid enhancing technologies, adding transmission capacity without the cost of building new lines.

August 8, 2025

• The California Public Utilities Commission approved a new interim rule for Pacific Gas and Electric’s (PG&E) large load customers, including data centers. Electric Rule 30 allows PG&E to connect new data centers (as well as large electric vehicle charging facilities) through a standardized tariff. The new large-load customers are required to pre-fund 100 percent of necessary transmission network upgrades, so those costs are not shouldered by ratepayers. The interim rule seeks to speed up the permitting and interconnection process with this new mechanism. A final ruling from the PUC is forthcoming.
• The California Air Resources Board approved amendments to the state’s Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) standards, adding flexibility to the rules to assist manufacturers with compliance. Key amendments include: 1) Adding a “pooling” option so manufacturers can transfer zero-emission vehicle credits between the 13 states that have adopted ACT; 2) Allowing manufacturers to offset deficits with different vehicle classes to account for fluctuations in the market; 3) Adjusting the minimum all-electric range requirements for near zero-emission vehicles in later years; and 4) Giving manufacturers flexibility on the order they retire credits. These amendments were approved despite recent federal actions under the Congressional Review Act to revoke California’s authority to implement the Advanced Clean Trucks standards, which are still facing legal opposition.

September 5, 2025

• California state agencies released a report mandated by Governor Gavin Newsom’s June Executive Order (EO) directing agencies to assess state action for zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) uptake. The EO was issued after three Congressional Review Act Resolutions revoked California’s Clean Air Act (CAA) waivers to implement its light- and heavy-duty ZEV programs. The report outlines key strategies to expand electric vehicle (EV) adoption, including:
  • Maintaining private investment in the ZEV market through the state’s low carbon fuel standard
  • Offering incentives to replace expiring federal tax credits
  • Building out EV charging infrastructure
  • Reducing EV charging costs
  • Developing a statewide indirect source rule (using existing authority from the CAA) to limit transportation emissions in overburdened communities
  • Designing consumer protection measures to bolster ZEV buyer confidence
  • Directing state agencies to prioritize ZEVs when purchasing vehicles and supporting local government fleet electrification
• The California Energy Commission announced the Fast Charge California Project, a $55 million incentive program covering up to 100 percent of installation costs for EV fast chargers. Businesses and public sites, such as gas stations, retail locations, and parking lots, are eligible for funding, but the program prioritizes projects located in tribal, disadvantaged, and low-income communities.
• Governor Newsom also signed an Executive Order directing state agencies to take advantage of federal tax credits before they expire. The order directs the Infrastructure Strike Team’s Energy Working Group to identify projects eligible for Inflation Reduction Act tax credits and can begin construction before July 2026 or come online by December 2027 (to align with tax credit timelines). The order also outlines agency actions necessary to accelerate the development of eligible projects, such as streamlining siting and permitting, and prioritizing the interconnection of energy and storage projects that can come online in the next three years.

October 3, 2025

• California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of climate and energy bills into law:
  • AB 825: Furthering the aims of the West-Wide Governance Pathways Initiative, this law allows California’s utilities to participate in an expanded western regional electricity market.
  • AB 1207: Extends the state’s cap-and-invest program through 2045, while making several smaller programmatic changes, including how customer bill credits are distributed, how program revenue is spent, and offset credit mechanisms.
  • SB 840: Requires the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to evaluate the integrity of offsets used within the cap-and-invest program, with a report due by December 31, 2026. The law also outlines how program revenue will be invested, focusing on clean transit, pollution reduction, and forest management and wildfire prevention. The law sets aside $1 billion annually for high-speed rail and $1 billion annually for legislators to appropriate through the budget.
  • SB 352: Codifies the Bureau of Environmental Justice within the Department of Justice and requires CARB to implement a community air monitoring plan that deploys monitoring systems in disadvantaged communities experiencing high exposure to air pollution.
  • SB 254: Establishes an Energy Unit within the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, which is required to create a Transmission Infrastructure Accelerator (Accelerator). The Accelerator must develop a financing strategy for transmission projects in the state and coordinate the state’s transmission planning and development. The bill also creates a Transmission Accelerator Revolving Fund,  and authorizes the state’s Infrastructure Bank to provide financial assistance for eligible transmission projects through the Revolving Fund.

October 17, 2025

• Following the enactment of a suite of climate laws last month, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed several more climate and energy bills into law this month:
  • AB 39: Requires cities and counties with populations over 75,000 to develop local electrification and decarbonization plans by 2030.
  • AB 531: Expands eligibility for streamlined environmental review by state agencies to geothermal power plants.
  • AB 663: Eliminates the exemption for some reclaimed hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) under the state’s HFC regulations, by adopting new conditions for “certified” reclaimed refrigerants based on EPA regulations for refrigerant recycling. This effectively tightens California’s restrictions on high-global warming potential refrigerants.
  • AB 1167: Prohibits utility companies from spending ratepayers’ money on political activities, such as lobbying and advertising, and requires utility companies to disclose whether public messaging is paid for by shareholders or ratepayers. The bill also outlines reporting requirements to the Public Utilities Commission and penalties for violations.
  • AB 1280: Authorizes the California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank (I-Bank) to provide financial assistance for projects that enable the decarbonization of industrial facilities, including industrial heat pump and thermal energy storage projects.
  • SB 57: Authorizes the California Energy Commission (CEC) to study: (1) how large loads from data centers may result in cost-shifting to other customers and (2) the electricity infrastructure investments to serve large loads from data centers.
  • SB 79: Overrides local zoning restrictions in urban counties and allows the construction of buildings up to nine stories within a half mile of transit stops, including major rail, subway, and bus stops.
• In addition, the CEC announced $136 million in clean energy investments across the state, including:
  • $19 million to support electric vehicle charging access, including to low-income and affordable housing complexes, as well as along major travel corridors and reliability upgrades.
  • $42.75 million for five port upgrades to support offshore wind projects. This pot of money is part of $225.7 million authorized for offshore wind port development through the enactment of SB 105 last month, funded by a $10 billion Climate Bond approved by voters in 2024.
  • $25 million for a battery storage system.
  • $3.1 million for virtual power plant pilot programs.
  • $35 million for new clean energy technology research and development.

December 17, 2025

• The California Air Resources Board voted unanimously to update the state’s Landfill Methane Rule for the first time since 2010 to align with a requirement to reduce methane emissions 40 percent below 2013 levels by 2030. The updated rules, which will take effect in 2027 include: increased pollution control measures; shortened timelines for responding to pipeline leaks; and more thorough investigation of leaks using third-party technology, such as satellite imaging.

Policies to Watch

July 11, 2025

• In late June, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) voted unanimously to revoke the in-use locomotive rule, designed to eventually require the switch to zero-emission locomotives by 2035. In January, CARB announced they had withdrawn the rule from consideration for an EPA waiver in anticipation of having the waiver denied.
• Governor Newsom signed a pair of bills that exempt certain projects from California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review, which requires government agencies to consider environmental impacts before approving plans and projects. The first bill, SB 130, exempts high-density projects (such as apartment buildings) from CEQA review as long as they are not on environmentally sensitive sites. The second, SB 131, exempts nine types of projects from environmental reviews, including farmworker housing, wildfire prevention, water infrastructure, public parks and trails, and advanced manufacturing.

July 25, 2025

• The California Energy Commission announced a plan for lowering gas prices in the state, which includes supporting in-state crude oil production, increasing imports of refined oil, and pausing the 2023 profit cap on refineries. The policy shift resulted from two refineries announcing their closure due to declining demand. The plan notes the state still aims to phase out oil by 2045.

September 5, 2025

• The California Energy Commission (CEC) resolved it would delay penalties for excessive oil company profits from 2026 until 2030. The CEC had previously outlined a plan for lowering gas prices in the state by supporting crude-oil production and increasing imports after two refineries announced their closure due to declining demand. The CEC still aims to phase out oil by 2045.

October 3, 2025

• The California Air Resources Board (CARB) voted to repeal the zero-emissions purchasing rule for private fleets, a provision of the state’s Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) regulation, while delaying similar requirements for state and local fleets. The vote was the final administrative step to repeal the rules after CARB withdrew its request for a Clean Air Act waiver before the Trump administration could deny it.
• Also in California, Governor Newsom signed SB 237 into law, which aims to reduce fuel prices in the state by bolstering oil production. The law awards up to 2,000 permits for oil wells annually in Kent County, with the goal of California oil producers supplying 25 percent of in-state crude oil supply to refineries. The law also implements more stringent oil spill prevention and gas pipeline specifications while limiting offshore drilling. The new law affirms California’s intention to phase out oil, which will be necessary to meet the state’s 2045 carbon neutrality target.

October 17, 2025

• California Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 710, ending property tax breaks for solar projects starting on January 1, 2027. The new law states that newly constructed solar systems qualify for tax exemptions up until the sunset date, unless there is a change in property ownership. The expiring tax breaks were originally established in 1980.

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Colorado

Policy Progress

January 10, 2025

• On December 20th, the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission (AQCC) adopted a new rule aimed at limiting emissions from “midstream” facilities in the oil and gas sector — those that are responsible for transporting, storing, and processing oil and gas. The rule requires midstream facilities to begin taking steps to reduce emissions by February 14th, 2025, and facilities must meet emissions limits for the overall sector and individual company by 2030 and subsequent years, prioritizing emissions reductions in disproportionately impacted communities. The rule allows eligible midstream companies to participate in a credit trading program.
• The Colorado Energy Office released a Colorado Microgrid Roadmap on January 1st that evaluates different types of microgrids and their associated benefits and challenges. The Roadmap also recommends key policies to facilitate microgrid development, such as incentive programs, updating interconnection standards, and offering technical assistance and planning support for microgrid projects.

February 7, 2025

• In December, the Colorado Electric Transmission Authority released a study, as ordered by SB23-016 in 2023, addressing how increased electricity capacity can meet forecasted demand and emission reduction goals, improve transmission flows, and enhance the reliability of the grid. The study found that the state will need at least $4.2 billion in new transmission investment to meet growing electricity demand from data centers and building and vehicle electrification.

March 6, 2025

• Last month, the Colorado Air Quality Control Commission (AQCC) finalized a rule to enact stricter requirements for leak prevention at oil and gas sites. The rule updates AQCC Regulation 7 and phases out natural-gas powered pneumatic controllers and pumps by 2029. The Denver Metropolitan and North Front Range Nonattainment Area, which has struggled to meet Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for decades, must phase out these pumps by 2027.

May 2, 2025

• Last week, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed an Executive Order to reduce emissions and promote conservation across state government operations. The order directs state agencies to improve energy and water use efficiency, and to electrify state vehicles and lawn maintenance equipment. The Order also outlines key reduction targets to be met by 2034, when compared to a 2019 baseline:
  • Reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in state operations by 50 percent
  • Reduce GHG emissions of the state fleet by 32 percent
  • Reduce energy use per square foot in state facilities by 20 percent

May 16, 2025

• Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed HB 25-1280 into law. The bill requires the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to adopt rules for advanced leak detection on natural gas pipelines.

May 30, 2025

• Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed the following bills into law earlier this month:
  • HB 25-1292: Establishes a framework for co-locating high-voltage transmission lines within state highway rights-of-way (ROWs), with coordination between transmission developers and the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT).
  • SB 25-161: Aims to improve transit service and sets new requirements for the Regional Transportation District (RTD), including the development of a ten-year strategic plan and performance measures that align RTD with the state’s climate, ridership, and transit-oriented development goals.
  • SB 25-030: Requires CDOT and Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to each create transit and active transportation project inventories to identify infrastructure gaps by July 2026, and prioritize projects that reduce emissions and vehicle miles traveled, increase mode choice, and improve transportation access in disproportionately impacted communities.
  • SB 25-055: Adds youth representation to the Environmental Justice Advisory Board.
  • HB 25-1269: Updates the state’s building performance standard (BPS) program to better assist building owners in complying with energy reporting and emission reduction requirements. The bill also establishes a process to set 2040 BPS targets, and creates a new Building Decarbonization Enterprise to provide technical assistance, financing, and other support for covered building owners.
  • SB 25-182: Makes construction materials with low embodied carbon eligible for the state’s Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing program and Industrial Clean Energy Tax Credit.

June 13, 2025

• Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed a number of clean energy bills into law, including:
  • HB 25-1267: Requires the state to adopt rules for retail electric vehicle (EV) charging by July 2026, with enforcement beginning one year later. The bill also expands the state’s electric vehicle grant fund to support EV charging and adoption, and supplying clean electricity for EVs.
  • SB 25-037: Directs the Just Transition Office to prioritize investments in tier two coal transition communities, which lack coal infrastructure, but are still indirectly impacted by coal plant closures. These investments will occur alongside existing tier one investment requirements (communities with direct ties to coal plant closures).
  • SB 25-181: Extends the Just Transition Advisory Committee until 2030, and requires the Just Transition Office to consult with the Advisory Committee on labor impacts related to coal facility closures to ensure impacted workers are supported during and after the coal transition.
  • SB 25-299: Establishes customer engagement rules for solar sales companies. Key rules require that companies: 1) provide disclosures to customers entering purchase or lease agreements, 2) offer a grace period for customers to cancel agreements without penalty, and 3) provide warranties for solar system installation. Investor-owned utilities are also required to provide information on financial incentives to customers who use solar systems.

August 8, 2025

• Colorado released a multi-agency report highlighting the state’s progress in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The report is required by a 2024 Executive Order that directs state agencies to communicate annual progress towards meeting requirements of the Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmap 2.0. The new report projects that Colorado will be the first state to achieve a 50 percent reduction in emissions (2031) from its 2005 baseline.
• Colorado Governor Polis directed state agencies to remove “redundancies and inefficiencies in deployment of wind, solar, and battery storage resources to the electrical grid” to ensure these projects can receive federal tax credits before they expire.

August 22, 2025

• The Colorado Energy Office announced $5 million in state funding to build 56 new fast charging electric vehicle (EV) ports at nine locations across the state. First launched in 2020, the Direct-Current Fast-Charging (DCFC) Plazas program supports Colorado’s goal of 940,000 light-duty EVs on the road by 2030, and has been funded through state and federal National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) funds. See our Federal Funding section for the latest update on NEVI.

September 5, 2025

• The Colorado Energy Office published the Model Low Energy and Carbon Code, a modified version of the 2024 IECC standards designed to support the state’s 2050 net-zero target. The state’s new minimum building code will take effect on July 1, 2026. Any municipality or county that updates any of its building codes after that date must adopt the model code, or a code that will achieve greater energy efficiency and pollution reductions. Under the new code, larger homes over 7,500 square feet must achieve net-zero energy and cover all energy use with on-site renewable options, such as solar panels or a community solar garden. Homes under 5,000 square feet must meet base-level efficiency standards, and homes between 5,000 and 7,499 square feet must meet more stringent efficiency standards. The code also encourages heat pump adoption.

October 17, 2025

• Colorado announced higher electric vehicle (EV) rebates through its Vehicle Exchange Program (VXC), an initiative to help middle- and low-income residents replace older, gas-powered vehicles with EVs. Starting November 3rd, VXC rebates will increase from $6,000 to $9,000 for new EV purchases and leases, and from $4,000 to $6,000 for the purchase or lease of a used EV.

December 17, 2025

• The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) decided in a 2-1 vote to require investor-owned gas utilities to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions 41 percent below 2015 levels by 2035. The Commission rejected weaker targets proposed by utilities and state agencies. The new target strengthens the clean heat standard set in 2021 that required a four percent GHG reduction by 2025 and a 22 percent reduction by 2030, both relative to 2015 levels.

Policies to Watch

April 18, 2025

• Last month, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed SB 25-039 into law. The bill exempts certain agricultural buildings from annual energy use reporting required by state law.

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Connecticut

Policy Progress

June 13, 2025

• The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection launched the Community Renewable Energy Siting Tool (CREST), as required by Public Act 24-31. The tool allows users to map potential solar project sites over existing grid interconnections, forestry and wildlife considerations, potential critical water areas, land use factors, and demographic characteristics, including environmental justice community locations.

June 27, 2025

• Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed HB 5004, an energy omnibus bill with the following provisions:
  • Updates the state’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction targets, requiring net-zero GHG emissions by 2050, with an interim target of 65 percent below 2001 levels by 2040.
  • Requires the Commissioner of Energy and Environmental Protection to publish an annual GHG emissions inventory and report on quantifiable emissions reductions every three years, starting in 2026.
  • Mandates research on heat pumps, solar canopies, and nature based solutions.
  • Provides incentives for climate-friendly businesses and sustainable purchasing guidelines.
  • Enables state agencies to use the social cost of GHGs when making policy decisions.
  • Creates the Connecticut Clean Economy Council to support workforce development in the green jobs transition.

September 19, 2025

• The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) published its latest Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory, reporting emissions from 1990 to 2023. The inventory reports that overall emissions rose 1.5 percent from 2022-2023, primarily driven by increased power sector emissions caused by a prolonged outage of one of the state’s nuclear reactors. The state saw slight declines in emissions from the two largest sources, transportation and buildings, which DEEP attributes to more fuel-efficient light-duty vehicles on the road and a milder winter.

October 3, 2025

• The Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) approved Connecticut’s most recent energy efficiency plan. The $705 million 2025-2027 Conservation & Load Management Plan will result in energy savings equivalent to 0.8 percent of electricity sales and 0.31 percent of natural gas sales over the three-year period, primarily through weatherization, incentives for energy efficient appliances, and heat pump installation.

Policies to Watch

July 11, 2025

• Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed SB 4 into law, which primarily focuses on lowering electricity bill prices. The law also:
  • Promotes grid enhancing technologies, and lowers subsidies for solar and other renewable energy sources
  • Gives utilities more flexibility in power purchase agreements
  • Authorizes state bonding to cover the cost of unpaid electricity bills from the COVID-19 pandemic (up to $125 million annually), the costs of installing advanced metering technology, and funding for electric vehicle charging infrastructure ($50 million over two years)
  • Creates a grant and loan program for thermal energy networks
• The law also includes provisions that reduce the ambition of the state’s Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS), lowering the required share of Class I renewable energy sources from 32 percent to 25 percent starting in 2026, and adjusting the subsequent Class I targets to ultimately land at 29 percent, rather than 40 percent, by 2030.

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Delaware

Policy Progress

January 10, 2025

• In December, Delaware released its first State Energy Plan since 2009, as required by the Delaware Energy Act. The 2024–2028 State Energy Plan includes 82 recommendations and strategies in five key areas to meet the state’s energy and climate goals while modernizing the grid and preparing its workforce for the clean energy transition. The five areas are: (1) energy justice; (2) renewable energy and clean technologies; (3) energy efficiency and beneficial electrification; (4) grid modernization; and (5) workforce development.

July 25, 2025

• Delaware Governor Matt Meyer signed several energy bills into law:
  • HB 50: Creates the Delaware Energy Fund to provide energy assistance to low-income households, with qualifying households required to participate in energy efficiency and energy savings programs.
  • SB 175: Requires utilities to carry over excess net metering credits to customers rather than reclaiming them, ensuring that customers receive the benefit.
  • SJR 3: Directs the Delaware Sustainable Energy Utility (DSEU) to study the costs and benefits of public utilities in the state adopting energy storage systems, both in front of and behind the meter. The DSEU is also directed to conduct at least one battery energy storage pilot program, with findings from the pilot program and the cost-benefit study due before June 1, 2026.
  • HJR 3: Directs the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control and the DSEU to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of grid enhancing technologies across all electric utilities in the state, assessing ratepayer costs, feasibility, and implementation, with a final report due to the legislature and Governor on July 31, 2026.

September 19, 2025

• The Delaware Public Service Commission (PSC) voted to stop “large-load consumers,” such as data centers, from connecting to the electric grid until the PSC approves a new, higher electricity rate for them. Delmarva Power, the sole electric utility the PSC has jurisdiction over, must propose the new rate, and the PSC will then decide whether to approve it.

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Florida

Policy Progress

July 11, 2025

• Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed HB 1143 into law, preventing oil drilling in counties designated as rural areas of opportunity for sites within 10 miles of a national estuarine research reserve. The law is designed to prevent drilling at the Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve in the northern part of the state, where, until recently, exploratory drilling was under consideration.

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Georgia

Policy Progress

December 17, 2025

• The Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) board voted to expand the definition of “Developments of Regional Impact” (DRI) to include data centers. Under the new rules, data centers will be classified as “technological facilities,” which standardizes how regional planners review new projects and determine their potential impacts. The rules outline communication procedures and the role of local governments and regional commissions during the DRI process. The DCA had previously paused new data center proposals from entering the DRI process until a standard procedure could be developed. Proposed projects can be viewed online.

Policies to Watch

July 25, 2025

• Georgia utility regulators approved Georgia Power’s 2025 Integrated Resource Plan. The plan anticipates 8,500 megawatts (MW) of load growth over the next six years, and calls for keeping a combined 4,000 MW of coal power online to meet anticipated data center demand. The coal plants were planned to shut down in 2028, but will remain online, and eventually co-fire with natural gas, through 2038. The plan also adds 268 MW of gas capacity, and calls for the procurement of up to 4,000 MW of renewable energy by 2035, an additional 1,100 MW of competitive utility-scale and distributed energy procurements, and 1,500 MW of battery storage.

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Hawai’i

Policy Progress

February 7, 2025

• Hawaiʻi Governor Josh Green, MD signed Executive Order 25-01, which calls for the counties of Hawaiʻi, Kauaʻi, and Maui to achieve 100 percent renewable electricity production by 2035, and for Oʻahu to reduce its electricity sector emissions 70 percent below 2005 levels by 2035. The order also sets a goal of 50,000 distributed renewable installations by 2030, and encourages faster permitting, prioritizing budget requests, and increased agency-utility collaboration for renewable projects.

May 2, 2025

• The Hawai‘i state legislature enacted SCR 110, directing the State Energy Office to study the feasibility of establishing a statewide green bond program and, in response to January’s  executive order accelerating renewable energy targets in select counties, evaluate clean energy initiatives that may benefit from funding generated through the program. The State Energy Office will submit a report to the legislature before the 2026 session.

May 30, 2025

• Hawaiʻi released an updated greenhouse gas emissions inventory with statewide emissions from 1990 through 2022. The inventory shows the state is currently not on track to meet its 2030 or 2045 statewide greenhouse gas emissions targets.

June 13, 2025

• Hawaiʻi Governor Josh Green signed two bills related to climate and agriculture:
  • SB 1396: Establishes the first Green Fee in the country, collecting a surcharge for the climate impacts of tourism. The law increases the transient accommodations tax (TAT) — or hotel tax — by 0.75 percent starting next year. The increased revenue, estimated at $100 million annually, will fund projects to protect the environment, improve climate resilience, and promote sustainable tourism.
  • HB 778: Requires the Office of Planning and Sustainable Development to prepare an integrated land-use study of agricultural land in the state, and determine the feasibility of such land areas meeting established state-level climate, sustainability, and housing plans, such as the Hawaiʻi 2050 Sustainability Plan.

July 11, 2025

• Hawai‘i Governor Josh Green signed SB 589 into law, codifying goals set in his January executive order. The law requires the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to set a goal of installing 50,000 new customer-sited distributed energy resources — such as rooftop solar and battery storage — by 2031. The PUC must also establish tariffs for grid services, microgrids, community-based renewables, and “wheeling” (transmitting renewable power from an energy generating or storage system through the utility meter so that a different customer can use that electricity) by 2027.

July 25, 2025

• Hawai‘i Governor Josh Green signed HB 1051 into law, establishing updated energy efficiency resource standards in the state. The new law requires electric utilities to achieve a 6,000 gigawatt-hour reduction in electricity use by 2045. The Public Utilities Commission is also required to establish additional interim targets for the reduction of electricity use by 2035 and 2040.

September 19, 2025

• Wisconsin and Hawai‘i became the latest states to join the Affordable Clean Cars Coalition, bringing membership to thirteen states. The Coalition, formed in May 2025 in response to federal rollbacks, collaborates on policies and programs to deploy affordable clean vehicles and reduce transportation emissions.

October 31, 2025

• The Hawai‘i Department of Transportation (HDOT) released the final version of the Energy Security and Waste Reduction Plan. The Plan outlines strategies to achieve net-zero transportation emissions by 2045, as required by Act 226 (SB 1024) and the Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation constitutional climate settlement agreement. The plan outlines priority actions over the next five years across the aviation, marine, ground transportation, and administrative sectors, including to: (1) expand electric vehicle (EV) public charging; (2) provide financial incentives for EV adoption; (3) expand pedestrian, transit, and bicycling networks; (4) study and implement a clean fuel standard or equivalent policy; and (5) develop tools to estimate greenhouse gas emissions and vehicle miles traveled for HDOT projects.

November 21, 2025

• The Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation (HDOT) announced the Priority Multimodal Network, containing 113 transportation projects — including 50 new miles of bike paths, bike lanes, and shared roadways; 42 new miles of pedestrian sidewalks and paths; 24 new or improved bus stops; and eight busway improvements — that address transit and active transportation gaps. HDOT will invest over $358 million on the projects through 2034. The Network, alongside the Energy Security and Waste Reduction Plan released last month, will support the state’s target of net-zero transportation emissions by 2045, as required by Act 226 (SB 1024) and the Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation constitutional climate settlement agreement.

Policies to Watch

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Idaho

Policies to Watch

October 17, 2025

• The Idaho Public Utilities Commission issued a final order in response to Idaho Power Company’s request to decrease net metering compensation, or export credit rates, for rooftop solar customers. Idaho Power had originally requested a decrease of 60 percent, but the Commission ruled on 31 percent, citing concerns with bill increases. Lowered rates will apply to systems installed after December 20, 2019 for residential customers and December 1, 2020 for industrial and irrigation customers.

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Illinois

Policy Progress

February 21, 2025

• The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that the Regional Transit Authority (RTA) and Pace, a regional division of RTA, will receive grant funding totaling $58 million to purchase 57 new, all electric, zero-emission buses. The grants cover 75 percent of the eligible cost per electric transit bus, and are funded through the state’s allocation of the Volkswagen (VW) Settlement.

March 6, 2025

• Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed HB 587 into law last month. The final version of the Electric Transmission Systems Construction Standards Act did not include many proposed provisions on battery storage policy and energy efficiency programs, but includes the following key provisions:
  • Guarantees that contracts with renewable energy projects, approved under the state’s renewable portfolio standard (RPS), will be paid regardless of whether the state’s renewable energy surcharge can cover those costs, by first requiring utilities to spend any unspent zero energy credit funds, and then allowing utilities to collect any additional shortfall from electric utility customers.
  • Gives the Illinois Power Agency flexibility to meet their 2030 RPS requirements, with 55 percent coming from solar, and discretion in meeting the remaining percentage with wind and hydropower.
  • Requires the Illinois Commerce Commission to host workshops to plan for the procurement of 1,500 megawatts (MW) of battery energy storage.
  • Creates tax incentives for new battery energy storage projects with at least 20 MW of storage capacity and 40 megawatt hours (MWh) of storage capability.

May 16, 2025

• The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) submitted a report on energy storage procurement to the Governor and the General Assembly, as required by Public Act 103-1066. The report sets procurement targets for the summer and recommends 3 GW of installed storage by 2030 and also recommends contract and procurement structures.

September 5, 2025

• Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker signed SB 2463, which requires oil well operators to clean up abandoned sites once operations have ended. The new law ensures the Department of National Resources, and subsequently taxpayers, will not be on the hook to pay cleanup costs. The law issues third-party-backed bonds for future wells ranging from $10,000 for one well to $100,000 for 100 wells. Once all wells have been plugged and all well sites are restored, or ownership of wells covered by a bond is transferred, then the bond is released.

October 31, 2025

• The Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) approved updates to the 2024-2026 Illinois Power Agency’s Long-Term Renewable Resources Procurement Plan (LTRPP) in order to increase solar access in the state before federal Investment Tax Credits (ITC) expire. The ruling expands the megawatt (MW) capacity of the state’s solar incentive program, Illinois Shines (referred to as the Adjustable Block Program in the Order), up to 100 percent (with Equity Eligible Contractors receiving an expansion over 100 percent, from 64 MW to 169 MW) and doubles targets for community, commercial, and small-scale solar deployment, while adding additional utility-scale procurement opportunities.
• The ICC order: (1) allows for more flexibility in how the credits can be allocated, such as to rooftop solar, commercial solar, community solar, or equity-focused projects; (2) removes the requirement that half of credits go to wind and half to solar; and (3) allows for rapid allocation of credits to ensure projects are quickly built.

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Indiana

Policy Progress

April 18, 2025

• Indiana Governor Mike Braun signed SB 422 into law last month, requiring electric utilities to incorporate advanced transmission technologies (ATTs) into their integrated resource plans starting in 2026. SB 422 also instructs the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) to study ATT use and deployment and include those findings in its 2026 annual report.

August 22, 2025

• Go Electric Vehicle Indiana (GOEVIN) announced $3.3 million in funding for 36 EV charging stations across the state. Half of the chargers will be direct current fast charging stations placed along Alternative Fuel Corridors, as determined by the U.S. Federal Highway Administration.

Policies to Watch

April 18, 2025

• Indiana Governor Mike Braun issued a flurry of executive orders and signed several bills relating to electricity generation and climate policy in the state:
  • EO 25-50: Directs the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) to evaluate all coal plants in the state and consider extending the life of each plant. The order also directs the Secretary of Energy and Natural Resources and the IURC to collect electricity demand data, monitor dispatchable electricity, assess natural gas supply, add energy generation sources where needed, and improve energy reliability and affordability.
  • EO 25-48: Directs the Secretary of Energy and Natural Resources to establish a Nuclear Indiana Coalition to facilitate nuclear energy development in the state through cost reduction, stakeholder engagement, policy development, and education and outreach.
  • EO 25-49: Prohibits state agencies from developing any plans, regulations, or pricing mechanisms for greenhouse gases or integrating the social cost of carbon into state activities. The order also directs agencies to streamline permitting, consider rescinding climate plans developed under federal programs, and “identify and pursue opportunities to eliminate or reduce harmful federal climate policies.”
  • SB 424: Allows utilities to recover development costs for small modular nuclear reactors from ratepayers before project construction.
  • SB 178: Expands the definition of “clean energy” and “green energy” to include natural gas and propane, in addition to wind, solar, photovoltaic cells and panels, hydropower, fuel cells, hydrogen, geothermal, and nuclear energy.

May 16, 2025

• Indiana Governor Mike Braun signed SB 425, establishing Energy Production Zones to streamline the construction of electric generation facilities. The Zones encompass former power plant sites or mining operations, and any new power plants built in these Zones may bypass certain local zoning laws. The bill specifically exempts wind and solar farms from bypassing such laws.

July 11, 2025

• Indiana Governor Mike Braun signed Executive Order 25-66, which creates a Strategic Energy Growth Task Force that will develop a State Energy Growth Plan with four objectives: 1) improve energy reliability and affordability, 2) make the state an energy exporter, 3) maintain existing energy generation, including coal plants, and develop new generation, and 4) deploy nuclear energy. The Task Force will also support the creation of clean energy industrial hubs, streamline permitting, prioritize dispatchable resources, improve grid capacity, and support long-range transmission plans.

October 3, 2025

• The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) approved Northern Indiana Public Service Company’s (NIPSCO) proposal for recovering costs for building data center infrastructure. The IURC will allow NIPSCO to establish a secondary company, GenCo, to charge data centers for their new infrastructure, ideally protecting existing customers from rate increases. Critics have raised concerns about the lack of detail in the plan and the limited oversight that IURC will have on the new subsidiary company.

November 21, 2025

• The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission (IURC) approved Duke Energy Indiana’s $3.3 billion plan to build two new natural gas units to replace two coal-powered units at the Cayuga Generating Station, which would add more than 470 megawatts to the plant’s existing capacity. The project was approved as a “clean energy” project with financial incentives, including the ability to recover costs from ratepayers while the units are under construction, based on the state’s definition of a “clean energy resource”. The final order also included a settlement agreement with coal producers to study third-party operation of the retired coal units.

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Iowa

Policy Progress

October 3, 2025

• The Iowa Utilities Commission approved a settlement that authorizes the largest utility-scale solar project in the state’s history. The 800-megawatt (MW) solar project will quintuple MidAmerican Energy’s solar resources and reportedly power 144,000 homes.

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Kansas

Policy Progress

November 21, 2025

Utility regulators in Kansas and Missouri separately approved large-load tariffs for Evergy, a utility with customers in both states, which are designed to prevent ratepayers from covering costs to serve large load customers, including data centers. The Kansas settlement agreement and Missouri order establish lower rates for new facilities using more than 75 megawatts (MW) of peak load each month or existing customers expanding by at least 75 MW, as well as the following requirements:

• Payment of at least 80 percent of the contract demand, regardless of actual usage
• Collateral equaling two years of minimum monthly bills
• Twelve-year contracts, at minimum, with a five-year load ramp period
• Payment for any transmission upgrades

Policies to Watch

August 8, 2025

• The Missouri Public Service Commission approved a $2.75 billion dollar project to build three natural gas plants totaling 1,860 megawatts (MW) and two solar farms totaling 182 MW across Missouri and Kansas to address increased expected load growth, including from data centers. The Kansas Corporation Commission approved the project in July.

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Kentucky

Policy Progress

September 5, 2025

• The Kentucky Public Service Commission (PSC) approved the first phase of a proposal to build a $1 billion, 800 megawatt (MW) solar park at the site of a former coal mine. This approved phase will cover 1,980 acres and 210 MW.

Policies to Watch

April 4, 2025

• Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear signed HB 137 into law last month to alter enforcement actions for Clean Air Act (CAA) violations. The CAA allows “any credible evidence” to be considered in determining emissions violations. However, Kentucky’s new law allows only evidence gathered via methods approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to be used in enforcement proceedings. (CAA sections 111 and 112 allow state, local, or tribal regulatory agencies to implement and enforce most federal standards within their jurisdictions.)

November 21, 2025

• The Kentucky Public Service Commission approved a $3 billion gas power plant buildout for Louisville Gas and Electric and Kentucky Utilities. The approval funds two new 645 MW gas plants, which the utilities argued are necessary to meet future energy demands from data centers. The Commission also requested environmental upgrades for a 485 MW coal-fired power plant to bring it in compliance with Clean Air Act Ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards and allow it to run year-round. However, the Commission left ambiguous whether utilities were allowed to keep another coal plant running past its 2027 retirement date, and temporarily denied cost recovery mechanisms for both the coal and natural gas projects, pending further development or the creation of large load tariffs next year.

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Louisiana

Policy Progress

September 19, 2025

• The Louisiana Public Service Commission (PSC) approved new rules that will increase investor-owned utilities’ annual spending on efficiency programs by about 50 percent in 2026 and double it by 2030. The Louisiana Energy Efficiency Program (LEEP) rules include a mandatory low-income program, requiring at least 15 percent of funding be allocated to low-income households. The new LEEP rules replace an energy efficiency program that the PSC repealed in May.

Policies to Watch

May 2, 2025

• Earlier last month, Louisiana regulators voted 3-2 to repeal the state’s energy efficiency resource standard, which was finalized in 2023 after it had been under consideration for more than 14 years.

June 27, 2025

• Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed HB 600, lowering the tax rate for oil extracted from certain wells in the state, including lower-producing and newly-completed wells starting in July.

July 11, 2025

• Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed HB 692, redefining natural gas as “green energy.” The bill emphasizes the use of dispatchable sources to meet energy demands and directs state agencies to prioritize fuel sources produced domestically.
• Governor Landry also signed SB 244 into law, which, in addition to reorganizing the Department of Energy and Natural Resources, addresses “legacy lawsuits” that oil and gas operators face for environmental damages. The new law requires that companies responsible for environmental damage (or found liable in court) must submit cleanup proposals to the (new) Department of Conservation and Energy. The law caps damages, preempts judicial review unless a much stricter legal standard is met, and puts plaintiffs on the hook for legal costs if a defendant is found not liable. The rules will not apply to cases filed before September of 2027.

September 5, 2025

• The Louisiana Public Service Commission (PSC) voted to allow Entergy to build three new gas-fired power plants to power Meta’s $10 billion data center facility, which will consume roughly three times the electricity of the City of New Orleans annually and cover an area the size of Manhattan. Advocates claim that Meta’s agreements with Entergy will cause substantial rate increases for other customers. Prior to the PSC vote, Entergy reached a non-legally binding agreement with environmental groups, agreeing to provide an additional 1,500 MW of renewable energy to the grid.

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Maine

Policy Progress

January 24, 2025

• Maine released an updated State Energy Plan, along with a technical report outlining pathways to achieving 100% clean energy by 2040, with actions and strategies to advance affordable, reliable, and clean energy in Maine. The plan has five objectives: (1) deliver affordable energy; (2) ensure grid reliability and resiliency; (3) advance clean energy; (4) deploy efficient technologies; and (5) expand clean energy career opportunities.

February 7, 2025

• The Maine Public Utilities Commission adopted a regulation that requires electric, gas, and water utilities to file annual reports describing their political activities, charitable contributions, educational spending, and other similar activities, and prevents those expenses from being passed on to ratepayers. The regulation is based on a law enacted in 2023 aimed at increasing utility accountability.

April 4, 2025

• Last month, the Maine Governor’s Energy Office released the 2024 Maine Clean Energy Industry Report. The report notes that Maine is over halfway to its goal of 30,000 clean energy jobs by 2030, with energy efficiency roles making up 58 percent of the workforce. Maine’s workforce development goals support the state’s target of 100 percent clean energy by 2040.

May 16, 2025

• The Maine Public Utilities Commission approved Efficiency Maine Trust’s Triennial Plan VI. The Plan outlines Efficiency Maine’s strategy for implementing energy efficiency programming in the state through technical support, incentives, and information dissemination. By 2028, the Plan is expected to heat 38,000 homes with heat pumps, weatherize 9,000 homes (6,500 low-income), reduce summer peak grid-load by 137 MW, and save customers an average of $600 per year on their heating bills.
• Maine Governor Janet Mills signed LD 585, allowing the state to use Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) payments to fund electrification measures — such as heat pumps and electric vehicles — that reduce electricity rates in the state.

June 13, 2025

• Maine Governor Janet T. Mills signed multiple clean energy and electricity bills into law:
  • LD 300: Directs the Governor’s Energy Office to study expanding hydroelectric and geothermal power in the state, with findings due to the legislature in January 2027.
  • LD 946: Requires that Efficiency Maine Trust directs half of EV rebate funding and energy efficiency funding to low- and moderate-income residents when implementing its Triennial Plan VI.
  • LD 197: Requires the Governor’s Energy Office to study and report on the state’s future electric transmission infrastructure needs, incorporating stakeholder input and best practices. Recommendations are due by September 1st, 2026.

June 27, 2025

• Maine Governor Janet T. Mills signed several bills into law, including:
  • LD 1868: Updates the state’s renewable portfolio standard (RPS) to require 100 percent clean electricity by 2040, accelerating the target by 10 years. Specifically, 90 percent of retail electricity sales must come from renewable sources by 2040 and the remaining 10 percent must come from certain “clean resources” specified by state law.
  • LD 810: Removes the requirement that high-impact transmission projects receive legislative approval after the Public Utilities Commission has already reviewed a project, which was initially established by a 2021 referendum vote.
  • LD 1619: Directs the Governor’s Energy Office (GEO) to issue a request for information regarding the creation of a thermal energy network program in the state. The GEO will prepare a report and recommendations, which will be presented to the legislature in January 2026.
  • LD 1726: Standardizes grid planning by incorporating energy forecasting into the state’s comprehensive energy plan. The bill also requires that utilities consider the use of grid enhancing technologies (GETs) and advanced transmission technologies (ATTs) to improve grid reliability and efficiency in future planning exercises.

July 11, 2025

• Maine Governor Janet T. Mills signed LD 1270 into law, which establishes a new cabinet-level Department of Energy Resources (DER) to oversee the planning and procurement of clean energy projects in the state.

July 25, 2025

• Maine Governor Janet T. Mills signed L.D. 1065 into law, requiring businesses and institutions that generate certain amounts of food waste to divert the waste from landfills or incineration. Requirements start in 2030 for institutions with two tons of food waste per week, and expand to institutions with one ton of food waste per week by 2032. In addition, the Department of Environmental Protection may adopt composting rules for any person or facility that generates between 100 pounds and one ton of food waste per week by July 2035.

August 8, 2025

• Maine’s Public Utilities Commission issued a Request for Proposals to procure up to 1,563,026 megawatt-hours (MWh) of renewable energy before the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s deadlines.

August 22, 2025

• Maine will restart its EV rebate program in response to LD 585, enacted in April, which allows the state to expand the use of Regional Transmission Organization (RTO) payments to fund EVs. The resumed rebate program will now require customers to purchase off-peak chargers at a reduced rate to be eligible for an EV rebate, and will offer low-income households up to $7,500 and all other groups (moderate-income households, businesses, nonprofits, and government entities) up to $2,000 for a new EV.

Policies to Watch

July 11, 2025

• Maine Governor Janet T. Mills signed LD 1777, making community solar and other front-of-the-meter projects ineligible for net metering. The law tasks the Governor’s Energy Office (now the Department of Energy Resources) with creating a successor program for front-of-the meter projects. Community solar owners will also be required to pay a fee starting January 2026, with resources smaller than five megawatts (MW) paying increasing fees in subsequent years, starting in 2027.

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Massachusetts

Policy Progress

February 7, 2025

• The Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) released its 2024 Climate Report Card on January 17th, which assesses the state’s progress towards meeting its climate and environmental justice goals. The report card highlights seven areas of ongoing initiatives and new policies the state is pursuing to further advance these goals.

March 6, 2025

• On February 25th, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) released a roadmap to build out the state’s climatetech industry and invest in green workforce development to meet its climate goals. The plan outlines actionable steps to strengthen Massachusetts’ climatetech industry over the next decade, highlights examples from other states, identifies funding needs and systemic barriers, and lists milestones over the next two years to execute the strategy.
• On February 28th, the Department of Public Utilities (DPU) approved the latest three-year energy efficiency plan for the state’s Mass Save program, with amendments. The 2025-2027 Three‑Year Energy Efficiency Plan outlines goals such as installing heat pumps in 119,000 households (with a focus on low- and moderate-income households and rental units), weatherizing more than 184,000 homes, and reducing emissions by one million metric tons of carbon dioxide. To minimize ratepayer impacts, the DPU’s Order lowered the proposed Mass Save budget by $500 million.

May 2, 2025

• To help increase heat pump adoption and meet the state’s goal of 500,000 heat pump installations by 2030, Massachusetts regulators approved plans from Unitil and National Grid that lower electricity rates for heat pump owners during the coldest months of the year. In March, the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities opened a generic proceeding to evaluate seasonal heat pump rates among all its utilities going forward.

May 16, 2025

• The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU) released orders outlining changes to the Gas System Enhancement Plan (GSEP), a program that incentivizes gas companies to fix pipeline leaks. The DPU’s changes include: reducing total annual repair expenses, slashing interest fees passed onto customers, prioritizing critical leaks, and incentivizing pipe retirement and installing alternatives (such as electric heat pumps), which are more aligned with the state’s net-zero goals.

August 22, 2025

• Massachusetts recently announced $46 million in state funding for EV charging infrastructure for workplace, public, and multi-unit chargers, as well as medium- and heavy-duty charging at strategically located hubs. The funding announcement coincides with the state’s Electric Vehicle Coordinating Council’s Second Assessment, which outlines the current status of EV charging and strategies to meet the goal of 900,000 light-duty EVs on the road by 2030. The new funding seeks to address gaps identified in the assessment: fast charging in secondary corridors, on-street charging, and medium- and heavy-duty charging.
• The Department of Public Utilities (DPU) issued an order requiring new gas customers to pay for upfront connection costs, unless there are no viable alternatives to natural gas. Prior to the rule, gas utilities could subsidize new customer connections by spreading the costs across ratepayers. The order is part of a broader DPU docket focused on aligning natural gas regulations with the state’s 2050 net-zero greenhouse gas emissions target.

September 5, 2025

• The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources updated the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) program after a review that examined the cost of solar and overall program effectiveness. The SMART 3.0 update includes:
  • A new annual assessment to set program capacity and incentive rates that consider progress towards climate and land use goals, ratepayer impacts, development costs, and the regional and national cost of solar
  • Expansion of the program’s low-income adder, which is an additional incentive for  solar projects serving low-income households, to additional types of housing, and requiring that all community solar projects enroll a minimum of 40 percent low-income customers
  • A mitigation fee for solar projects of 250 kilowatts (kW) or more — designed to offset impacts to previously undeveloped land

October 17, 2025

• To help address the state’s housing shortage, Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey announced a plan to limit environmental review of housing projects to 30 days. To qualify for streamlined review, housing projects must meet seven criteria, including requirements to be transit-oriented and meet stretch code energy efficiency standards.

Policies to Watch

April 18, 2025

• This week, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection announced delayed enforcement of electric truck sales requirements under Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT). Manufacturers will not be penalized for failing to meet Model Year 2025 and 2026 ACT sales targets.

May 30, 2025

• The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection announced a two-year pause on enforcing Advanced Clean Cars II. The rules would have required 35 percent of cars sold in the state in 2026 be zero-emission models.

August 22, 2025

• The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources announced it would delay its fifth round of wind procurement until at least 2026, citing uncertainty with federal policy, permitting obstacles from federal memoranda and subsequent legal challenges, availability of tax credits, tariffs, and ongoing negotiations from the previous procurement round.

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Maryland

Policy Progress

January 10, 2025

• On December 20th, Maryland Governor Wes Moore signed Executive Order 01.01.2024.39 to boost economic growth and competitiveness in the state. The order establishes the  Maryland Coordinated Permitting Review Council to facilitate interagency coordination and streamline permitting and environmental review processes.
• The Maryland Commission on Climate Change released its 2024 annual report, which includes strategies to generate revenue needed to meet the state’s climate goals, such as adopting a cap-and-invest program, as well as opportunities for grid reliability, building and transportation electrification, and green workforce development. The Maryland Department of Environment also released climate plans submitted by 25 agencies that identify over 100 priority actions to implement the state’s 2023 climate plan, as required by a June executive order.

May 30, 2025

• Maryland Governor Wes Moore signed several energy and climate bills into law, including:
  • H.B. 0004: Prohibits land use restrictions that increase installation costs and reduce the efficiency of solar collector systems. Community associations are granted authority to manage solar collector system installations — to prohibit their installation or to install their own.
  • H.B. 0352: Outlines uses for the Strategic Energy Investment Fund, which will develop and implement climate mitigation, energy efficiency, and demand response programs; renewable and clean energy resources; support low- and moderate-income energy efficiency and bill payment; encourage combined heat and power at industrial facilities; and provide rebates for EV charging equipment, among other uses.
  • H.B. 1035/S.B. 0937: Includes procurement of up 1.75 GW of battery storage, requiring gas companies to demonstrate “cost effective” strategies for pipeline replacement, and prohibiting utilities from charging ratepayers fees to recoup membership fees to lobbying organizations.
  • H.B. 1036/S.B. 0931: Creates uniform standards for solar energy projects, requires local governments to expedite review, and gives the state the authority to approve certain solar farms and energy storage sites over local objections.

June 27, 2025

• The Maryland Public Service Commission announced an Order ending subsidies for natural gas service connection, citing that gas line extension funding counters the state’s GHG emissions reduction and electrification policies. Customers may choose their preferred fuel, but must pay the full cost of connecting to the gas system.

July 25, 2025

• Maryland Governor Wes Moore signed Executive Order 01.01.2025.17, advancing environmental justice (EJ) in the state by:
  • Creating the Interagency Environmental Justice and Equity Advisory Council, with representatives from 13 state agencies and staff from the Maryland Department of Environment, to coordinate EJ efforts across the state.
  • Requiring each agency in the newly-created Council to use the state’s Environmental Justice Mapping Tool.
  • Requiring each member-agency to appoint an Environmental Justice Officer to lead agency-wide EJ efforts, including implementation of their agency’s biennial Environmental Justice Strategic Plan, which will be publicly-accessible online.

November 21, 2025

• Maryland Governor Wes Moore announced $17 million in Community Solar Grant Program funds to expand solar access for low-income customers. $12 million will be dedicated to siting solar panels on landfills and brownfields. All energy generated on the sites will be directed to low-income households, half of which will be free and the other half at a 25 percent discounted rate. Projects not on landfills or brownfields will require 15 percent of the site’s electricity be directed to low-income households at a minimum discount of 12 percent. Projects on landfills and brownfields are eligible for grants up to $6 million, while other projects can receive grants up to $1 million.

Policies to Watch

April 18, 2025

• Earlier this month, Maryland Governor Wes Moore issued an executive order easing enforcement of zero emission vehicle (ZEV) sales requirements under Advanced Clean Cars II (ACC II) and Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT). The state will delay penalty enforcement against manufacturers that fail to meet ZEV sale requirements for model years 2027 and 2028, unless certain conditions are met.

May 16, 2025

• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved a request to keep two coal-fired power plants in Maryland operational until 2029. The plants were previously set to retire at the end of the month.

June 13, 2025

• HB 0049 became public law in Maryland, updating the state constitution. The final version of the bill scales back the state’s building energy performance standard (BPS), exempting certain buildings from its requirements, including hospitals and buildings that contain classified information protected by security technology. The law also establishes a reporting fee on each covered building to pay for administrative BPS program costs. In addition, the law allows the Maryland Department of the Environment to certify county-level BPS programs, thereby waiving state-level requirements, even when they are more stringent than county requirements.

October 3, 2025

• Maryland’s environmental justice (EJ) community mapping tool, MDEnviroScreen, has been updated after the state lost access to key federal data showing communities overburdened by pollution and underserved by government services. The updated tool has data on pollution exposure, income, and health indicators, but no longer includes race, ethnicity, language proficiency, or age indicators in its EJ scoring. State law requires applicants seeking a permit to include the EJ score for the census tract where they are seeking a permit.

October 17, 2025

• The Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) launched a fast-track permitting process for new dispatchable and/or large-scale energy resources, including natural gas, in response to the Next Generation Energy Act of 2025 (HB 1035). Under the expedited process, the PSC may grant a certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) within 295 days for eligible projects.

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Michigan

Policy Progress

January 24, 2025

• Michigan released its 2024 annual report highlighting progress towards climate goals outlined in the state’s 2022 climate plan. The annual report provides a summary of climate-related policy actions taken in 2023 and 2024, including federal funding implementation, supporting environmental justice and a just transition, and deploying clean energy, electric vehicles, and building decarbonization technologies.

May 16, 2025

• The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs adopted the International Code Council’s (ICC’s) 2021 building codes. The state was previously using the council’s 2015 codes. The new codes will make buildings more energy efficient, reduce emissions, lower energy bills, and stimulate job growth in the energy efficiency sector.

November 21, 2025

• The Michigan Public Service Commission (PSC) unanimously approved a proposal from Consumers Energy establishing rules for new data centers and other large loads over 100 MW. The rules set a 15-year minimum contract term, with penalties for terminating early. Large load customers are also required to pay 80 percent of their expected monthly demand, regardless of actual usage, and pay for any needed transmission infrastructure upgrades. The PSC also requires Consumers Energy to show that other ratepayers are not subsidizing costs from large load customers, supported by modeling and cost of service studies.

October 31, 2025

• The Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC) released a report on the Status of Renewable Energy, Distributed Generation, and Legacy Net Metering in Michigan, examining the state’s progress in meeting the updated renewable and clean energy standards established by SB 271 in 2023. The report highlighted several key findings:
  • Renewable energy capacity increased 28.9 percent from 2023 to 2024, from 5,882 MW to 7,580 MW.
  • Electric providers met the 15 percent renewable portfolio standard required in 2023.
  • By 2025, the state will have a renewable energy capacity of approximately 8,300 MW, and is expected to reach approximately 17,800 MW by 2030.
  • Distributed generation capacity increased by 17 percent from 2023 to 2024, from 189.6 MW to 222.4 MW.

Policies to Watch

July 25, 2025

• Michigan delayed implementation of updated residential energy codes amidst ongoing legal challenges from building industry groups trying to block the new energy efficient code requirements. Until the courts reach a decision, Michigan will use the 2015 IECC code with amendments.

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Minnesota

Policy Progress

February 7, 2025

• Minnesota released an updated greenhouse gas emissions inventory with statewide emissions from 2005 through 2022. The inventory shows overall emissions increased 6.4 percent from 2020 to 2022, however, emissions from sectors including transportation, electricity generation, and agriculture remain below 2019 levels.
• The state’s green bank, the Minnesota Climate Innovation Finance Authority (MnCIFA), will begin lending at least $25 million for clean energy and greenhouse gas reduction projects, including projects that help the state meet its Climate Action Framework goals.

March 6, 2025

• Last month, the Minnesota Public Utility Commission (PUC) approved Xcel Energy’s 2024-2040 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). The provisions outlined in the IRP would allow Xcel to meet the state’s 100 percent clean electricity standard five years early, in 2035. Key components of the plan include:
  • Retiring all coal facilities by 2030.
  • Extending the life of two nuclear plants into the 2050s.
  • Adding 3,200 megawatts (MW) of wind and 400 MW of solar by 2030.
  • Adding 600 MW of battery storage by 2030.
  • Adding approximately 2,100 MW of peaking and dispatchable resources by 2029, with nearly half coming from wind, solar, and batteries, and the rest from a new gas peaking plant, subject to future review. The state’s clean energy law allows Xcel to burn natural gas to meet peak demand as long as it also generates enough carbon-free power to cover its annual customer demand.
  • Incorporate at least 1,800 MW of distributed energy resources, such as distributed solar, energy efficiency, and demand response programs by 2030.

April 4, 2025

• Last month, Minnesota launched the Large Building Energy Benchmarking program, requiring commercial and multifamily buildings over 50,000 square feet to submit annual energy-use data to the state. The program may support Minnesota in establishing a building performance standard (BPS), which they received Inflation Reduction Act funding for last year.

June 27, 2025

• Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed the following bills into law:
  • HF 16: Repeals the electricity tax exemption for data centers and expands other exemptions from 20 to 35 years. The bill also sets more stringent water use requirements for data centers seeking permits, ensuring that projects will not harm public health or safety and that facilities utilize water conservation and efficiency measures. The bill further directs the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to establish a new class or subclass for “very large customers” (utilities providing electric service to data centers), and requires the PUC to offer an optional clean energy and capacity tariff for commercial and industrial customers.
  • SF 2: Appropriates funding to the Department of Commerce and the PUC for support and oversight of the state’s clean energy transition and expands funding for solar access in low-income households. The bill also authorizes securitization for gas utilities to recover costs in extreme events and prevent customer bill increases. Notably, advocates were able to remove bill language that would have phased out the state’s community solar program, saving 500 megawatts (MW) of planned projects.

Policies to Watch

June 27, 2025

• Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed HF 14, setting the state’s transportation budget, which includes an increase in electric vehicle (EV) fees from $75 to at least $150 to supplement the state’s declining gas tax revenue. The exact cost will depend on the year and price of the EV. The funding will ultimately support road and bridge repair.

August 22, 2025

• A Minnesota appeals court ruled that Xcel Energy could lower its community solar payments to around 30,000 customers. The ruling affirms the state’s Public Utilities Commission orders from May 30 and August 16, 2024, reducing compensation for legacy community solar garden subscribers. The utility argued that payments increase costs to non-subscribers, while opponents argued that reducing the credit will increase energy costs to the general public.

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Missouri

Policy Progress

November 21, 2025

• Utility regulators in Kansas and Missouri separately approved large-load tariffs for Evergy, a utility with customers in both states, which are designed to prevent ratepayers from covering costs to serve large load customers, including data centers. The Kansas settlement agreement and Missouri order establish lower rates for new facilities using more than 75 megawatts (MW) of peak load each month or existing customers expanding by at least 75 MW, as well as the following requirements:
  • Payment of at least 80 percent of the contract demand, regardless of actual usage
  • Collateral equaling two years of minimum monthly bills
  • Twelve-year contracts, at minimum, with a five-year load ramp period
  • Payment for any transmission upgrades

December 17, 2025

• The Missouri Public Service Commission approved a large-load tariff proposal from Ameren Missouri, the largest electric provider in the state. The proposal establishes a new tariff for customers using at least 75 megawatts (MW) of electricity or existing customers expanding by at least 75 MW, as well as the following requirements:
  • Payment of at least 80 percent of the contract demand, regardless of actual usage
  • Collateral equaling two years of minimum monthly bills
  • Exit fees and early termination fees, with two years notice required for contract termination or reducing energy need
  • Twelve-year contracts, at minimum, with a five-year load ramp period to ensure the data centers actually pay for most of the power they contracted for in the first few years of development
  • Payment for any transmission upgrades
  • Subscription program for customers who want to pay more for a specific type of energy, such as wind, solar, or nuclear
• The stipulations of this proposal are similar to a Kansas settlement agreement and Missouri order approved for Evergy, a utility serving both states, last month.

Policies to Watch

April 18, 2025

• Last week, Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe signed SB 4 into law, significantly altering the state’s utility regulations. The bill includes both support for ratepayers and provisions with more uncertain impacts:
  • Prohibits utilities from disconnecting service during extremely hot or cold weather due to bill nonpayment.
  • Establishes a special residential customer rate for financially-burdened groups.
  • Utilities must replace existing capacity with dispatchable energy sources prior to shutting down power plants.
  • Utilities can recover costs during plant construction through customer rates.
  • Utilities can recover depreciation expenses from new natural gas facilities through customer rates.

August 8, 2025

• The Missouri Public Service Commission approved a $2.75 billion dollar project to build three natural gas plants totaling 1,860 megawatts (MW) and two solar farms totaling 182 MW across Missouri and Kansas to address increased expected load growth, including from data centers. The Kansas Corporation Commission approved the project in July.

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Montana

Policies to Watch

May 16, 2025

• Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signed a flurry of legislation designed to alter state agency authority to regulate GHG emissions under the Montana Environmental Policy Act (MEPA), among other environmental regulatory provisions.
  • HB 270: Removes MEPA language invalidated by the recent Held v, Montana decision and adjusts MEPA environmental review guidelines to stipulate when a GHG emissions assessment is appropriate. 
  • HB 285: Asserts that MEPA is procedural and not designed to control or set regulations.
  • HB 291: Restricts the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) from setting air quality standards more stringent than federal levels.
  • HB 346: Exempts Department of Commerce grants and loans from environmental review.
  • HB 703: Exempts state agencies from analyzing GHG emissions from appliances, vehicles, and engines based on federal preemption.
  • SB 221: Stipulates how GHG emissions will be considered under MEPA, while directing the Montana DEQ not to regulate GHGs.

May 30, 2025

• Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signed HB 939, which creates new setback standards for wind turbines over 500 feet tall, including limiting their construction within 1,500 feet of an occupied residence.

June 13, 2025

• Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signed HB 31 into law, strengthening decommissioning bond requirements for wind and solar facilities. These are financial guarantees a project must provide that cover the cost of restoring the project site to its original state in the event it is decommissioned.
• Governor Gianforte also signed HB 424, which will expand data center incentives, such as lowering property tax rates, and encourage on-site energy production at these facilities, including fossil-fired generation. The bill extends the timeframe for data centers to qualify for these incentives by 10 years.

September 19, 2025

• The Montana Public Service Commission (PSC) unanimously voted against declaring that the state constitution requires it to consider the impacts of climate change, as requested by a February 2024 petition following the Held v. Montana ruling that upheld the constitutional right to “a clean and healthful environment.” The order states that making this declaration exceeds the PSC’s authority, since it is an “administrative agency” subject only to powers granted by the Montana Legislature, and that “it is well established that the Montana Constitution does not allow administrative agencies to issue declarations interpreting the Constitution.”

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Nebraska

Policy Progress

October 3, 2025

• Nebraska released an updated Climate Change Assessment for the first time since 2014, as required by 2022 legislation. While the assessment is primarily focused on current and future climate impacts, the report also has recommendations to avoid the worst impacts, including boosting soil health, water conservation efforts, and decreasing greenhouse gas emissions. The report identifies accelerating the decarbonization of Nebraska’s energy systems, including by transitioning to 100 percent renewable electricity by 2040, as a key opportunity to mitigate climate change.

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Nevada

Policies to Watch

October 3, 2025

• The Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) approved billing changes for NV Energy’s customers. Effective April 2026, the utility will apply a new demand charge to customers based on the highest amount of electricity used during a 15-minute period each day. Net metering customers will also be subject to the same “daily demand charge” in the utility’s Nevada Power territory. In the utility’s southern territory, the Commission approved Sierra Pacific Power Company’s request to calculate credits for excess energy returned to the grid by rooftop solar systems every 15 minutes rather than monthly. The request aims to recoup utility revenue shortfalls from net energy metering customers.
• Customers will also pay for a $4.2 billion transmission project known as Greenlink through bill increases estimated around $4 monthly. Southern territory customers will cover 70 percent of the project and northern territory customers will cover 30 percent.

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New Hampshire

Policy Progress

March 6, 2025

• New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte signed SB 4 into law last month, which establishes a Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) loan program to support commercial building developers in financing clean energy and energy efficiency projects. C-PACE law was originally passed in New Hampshire in 2010, but policy design kept the loan program from being utilized. SB 4 replaces the previous policy and allows the state to facilitate more affordable, energy-efficient housing.

Policies to Watch

July 25, 2025

• New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte signed the state’s 2025-2027 budget, HB 2, into law. The budget redirects $15 million in surplus funds and incoming revenue from the state’s Renewable Energy Fund (REF) to the general fund. The REF is funded through utility renewable energy noncompliance payments and is used to provide grants for municipalities, school districts, and small businesses to implement clean energy projects. The REF will now be allocated $1 million annually, but has historically operated on a budget ranging from $2 million to $5 million annually.
• Governor Ayotte also signed HB 690, directing the Department of Energy to investigate the state’s withdrawal from their electricity grid operator, ISO-New England. The bill also directs the Department to further investigate and “assure that New Hampshire ratepayers do not pay for public policy initiatives of other New England states.”

August 22, 2025

• New Hampshire Governor Kelly Ayotte signed a number of bills into law, including:
  • HB 672: Defines “off-grid electricity providers” and exempts them from pricing and renewable regulations so long as they remain independent from the grid. The bill ultimately seeks to attract data centers to the state.
  • HB 682: Restructures the Office of Offshore Wind Industry Development and Energy Innovation, removing the Wind Industry Development arm and repealing the Offshore Wind Industry Workforce Training Center Committee and the Offshore and Port Development Commission. The new Office of Energy Innovation will include councils on grid modernization and hydrogen.
  • SB 232: Amends net metering laws for renewable energy generators in ISO New England, allowing them to continue market participation while qualifying for net metering tariffs. To remain eligible for tariffs, generators must transfer any market revenue from energy, capacity, and ancillary services, to the electric distribution utility. Since net metering rates should already include the cost of paying for these other services, allowing customers to participate both in markets and net metering might be considered a kind of “double dipping” for those customers.

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New Jersey

Policy Progress

March 6, 2025

• Last week, the New Jersey Economic Development Authority announced two programs offering $100 million in total funding to expand medium- and heavy-duty zero emission vehicle (ZEV) adoption. Phase III of the New Jersey Zero Emission Incentive Program offers $75 million to offset the cost of purchasing ZEVs. The program will offer incentives for school buses, small businesses, and women-, minority-, and veteran-owned businesses. Half of these funds will be allocated to small businesses in overburdened communities. Second, the New Jersey Zero Emission Vehicle Financing Program offers $25 million in loans up to $500,000 to support businesses procuring ZEVs. Both programs are funded through the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.

June 13, 2025

• On May 21st, the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) approved updates to grid modernization rules that aim to reduce delays in the distribution grid interconnection process. The changes include a pre-application and verification process to provide applicants with an early indication of project feasibility and costs, and a requirement for utilities to have a web portal to make interconnection application processes more consistent across service territories.

June 27, 2025

• The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities approved Phase 1 of the Garden State Energy Storage Program, which will expand energy storage capacity in the state to 2,000 MW by 2030, as mandated by the Clean Energy Act of 2018. Phase 1 outlines a strategy for procuring at least 1,000 MW of large projects connected to the grid through competitive bidding.

August 8, 2025

• New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed Executive Order No. 393, directing state agencies to review One Big Beautiful Bill Act’’s impact on their budgets, operations, and programs, with a preliminary report due on October 1st and recommended measures due by November 15th.

September 5, 2025

• New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed two solar and storage bills into law, with the goal of powering one million homes with solar energy by 2028:
  • A.5267/S.4289: Creates a 1,000 MW utility-scale energy storage incentive program to support the state’s goal of 2,000 MW of energy storage by 2030. Eligible projects can receive incentives of $100,000 per MW, up to $10 million total, funded by an existing three percent societal benefits charge on energy bills
  • S.4530/A.5768: Allows the Board of Public Utilities to register an additional 3,000 MW of community solar capacity

November 21, 2025

• New Jersey released a Strategic Roadmap for Building Decarbonization, as required by a 2023 executive order. The Roadmap outlines key strategies to meet the state’s goal to electrify 400,000 residential and 20,000 commercial buildings by 2030, including:
• Exploring the development of a clean heat standard, building performance standard, and zero-emissions standard to space and water heating.
• Establishing statewide heat pump adoption targets.
• Implementing policies identified in the state’s Future of Gas proceedings, such as changes to pipeline replacement practices, implementing non-pipeline alternatives, and proactive electric system planning to accommodate increased electrification.
• Updating building energy codes and developing a stretch code that promotes electrification and net-zero building emissions.
•  Prioritizing environmental justice communities to expand access to building decarbonization benefits.
• Expanding workforce development focused on building decarbonization.
• New Jersey also announced the Reducing Emissions through Retrofits, Optimization, Fuel-Switching and Innovating Technologies (RETROFIT NJ) Grant Program. The $75 million program, funded by the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, will offer grants ranging from $2.5 million to $12.5 million to commercial, industrial, or institutional (non-profit or public-use) buildings implementing Thermal Energy Networks or at least three clean energy or electrification retrofits, including on-site renewables, energy storage, heating electrification, replacing refrigerants, and energy efficiency upgrades. Half of funds are designated for projects located in overburdened communities or institutional buildings. Grants will cover project design, engineering, equipment, construction, and commissioning.

December 17, 2025

• New Jersey released the 2024 Energy Master Plan (EMP) which outlines a roadmap for meeting climate and energy goals in the state, including an 80 percent reduction in GHG emissions by 2050, mandated by the 2007 Global Warming Response Act and 100 percent clean electricity sales by 2035, established in a 2023 Executive Order. The updated plan builds on the 2019 EMP, with appropriate updates for new technologies and policy. The Plan outlines “No Regrets Strategies” for meeting energy goals, including:
  • Accelerating clean energy deployment, including solar, wind, nuclear, and battery storage.
  • Expanding decarbonization and efficiency projects, including heat pump targets, utility reform, workforce development, and efficient appliance and equipment implementation, as outlined in the recently released Strategic Roadmap for Building Decarbonization.
  • Improving grid modernization, including fast-tracking interconnection of distributed energy sources, while maintaining reliability.
  • Electrifying transportation by increasing zero-emission vehicle deployment, building out charging infrastructure, financing fleet electrification, offering charging incentives for multi-unit dwellings, and incorporating medium- and heavy-duty vehicle and charging incentives.
  • Ensuring energy affordability, equity, and environmental justice through expanding bill assistance, time-of-use rates, heat pumps, and electric vehicle access for low- and moderate-income customers.
• Governor Phil Murphy conditionally signed A.5264 which requires the creation of an automated residential solar permitting platform within the next 18 months. The bill allows the platform to automatically review applications and instantly release a permit or permit revision. The Governor recommended changes to the automated permitting system, how it reviews permits, and extended the effective date, which the legislature ultimately approved.

Policies to Watch

July 11, 2025

• New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed S.2026, the 2026 state budget, into law. The budget notably diverted $190 million from the Board of Public Utilities’ Clean Energy Fund (CEF) to fill gaps in the state’s transportation budget.

November 21, 2025

• New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation issued two permits for the controversial Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) Project, after three previous denials in 2018, 2019, and 2020 due to the project’s inability to meet water quality standards. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection also approved project permits, and  New York’s Public Service Commission had previously approved the project in September, citing the need to increase reliability. The NESE Project is an expansion of existing natural gas pipeline capacity running through Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. The project will ultimately provide 400,000 dekatherms per day of natural gas power to New York, despite the state’s 2050 net-zero emissions target and a law requiring all-electric heating and appliances in new buildings by 2029.

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New Mexico

Policy Progress

April 18, 2025

• New Mexico’s legislative session ended last month, and Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed several climate bills into law, including:
  • HB 128: Establishes the Local Solar Access Fund and appropriates funding to support solar energy planning, design, construction, purchase, installation, and funding for eligible groups, including counties, municipalities, school districts, Indian nations, Tribes, and pueblos.
  • HB 218: Authorizes changes to the state’s tax system, notably creating tax incentives for sustainable energy projects such as heat pumps, agricultural biomass, solar market development, sustainable building construction, and LEED certification.
  • SB 48: Creates the Community Benefit Fund to finance state projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions, improve grid reliability and capacity, promote renewable energy and energy efficiency, reduce combustion vehicle reliance, support the transition away from fossil fuels, and promote economic and workforce development. The bill also calls for developing a data tool to identify overburdened communities.
  • SB 83: Establishes the Innovation in State Government Fund to support state agencies in developing master plans and increasing capacity to implement climate change policies.
  • HB 91: Allows public utilities to request low-income utility rates from the New Mexico Public Regulation Commission.
  • HB 93: Allows larger utilities to include advanced grid technology projects, such as advanced conductors, advanced power flow controllers, and dynamic line ratings in their grid modernization planning and integrated resource plans.
  • HB 361: Authorizes the state to convert empty oil and gas wells into energy storage or geothermal facilities.
  • SB 23: Raises the royalty rate that future leaseholders will pay to extract oil from state land. Revenue from royalties is distributed to public schools, state universities, and specialty schools through the Land Grant Permanent Fund.

May 2, 2025

• Earlier last month, New Mexico Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham signed HB 2, the General Appropriation Act of 2025, which sets aside funding for key climate initiatives:
  • $20 million for the Local Solar Access Fund established by HB 128 to support solar energy planning, design, construction, purchase, installation, and funding for eligible counties, municipalities, school districts, Indian nations, Tribes, and pueblos.
  • $10 million for geothermal project development.
  • $209.8 million for the Community Benefit Fund established in SB 48 to finance projects that support fossil fuel transition, improve grid reliability, promote renewable energy and energy efficiency, or increase economic and workforce development. Funding will support the development of a data tool to identify overburdened communities. The fund also includes $10 million to finance the state’s green bank.
  • $13.5 million total to the Innovation in State Government Fund established in SB 83 to support state agency master plan development and increase capacity to implement climate change policies.

October 31, 2025

• The New Mexico Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD) announced a $70 million grant program for grid modernization projects that transition the state towards 100 percent zero-carbon electricity. Eligible projects include “those that make improvements to electric distribution or transmission infrastructure to accommodate or facilitate the integration of renewable electric generation resources with the electric distribution grid or otherwise enhance electric distribution or transmission grid reliability, grid security, demand response capability, customer service or energy efficiency or conservation.” The state is accepting applications from municipalities, county governments, state agencies, universities, public schools, post-secondary education institutions, and Indian nations, Tribes, and pueblos.

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New York

Policy Progress

January 10, 2025

• On December 23rd, 2024, the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) finalized regulations to reduce hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) emissions. The regulations use a 20-year global warming potential (GWP) value, rather than the 100-year GWP, for both greenhouse gases and significantly phase out the use of both gases over the next 15 years.

• Governor Hochul also signed the following climate bills into law in December:
  • S.2129-B/A.3351-B: Also known as the “Climate Change Superfund Act,” the legislation creates a Climate Change Adaptation Cost Recovery Program and would charge fossil fuel companies for their share of historical greenhouse gas emissions. The funds will be invested in climate resilience projects across the state. New York became the second state to establish a climate superfund, after Vermont did in May 2024.
  • A8866/S8357: Bans drilling and fracking for natural gas and oil extraction using carbon dioxide.
  • S5331A/A5906A: Expands New York’s Food Donation and Food Scraps Recycling Program by gradually scaling down the threshold of food waste produced that determines which require generators must join the program, and expanding coverage to food scrap generators within 50-miles of a food waste recycling center.

January 24, 2025

• New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced $100 million in state funding is available for transit providers to support the transition to zero-emissions vehicles. Through the state’s Zero-Emission Transit Transition Program (ZETT), funding is available to support planning activities, purchase zero-emission transit buses, and build out the necessary facilities and utility infrastructure for vehicles.

February 7, 2025

• In December, the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) launched the Clean Heat for All: Packaged Terminal Heat Pump (PTHP) program. Through the program, NYSERDA will partner with heat pump manufacturers to develop new PTHP technology that will lower building sector emissions, improve grid reliability, and improve occupant comfort and air quality in multifamily buildings.

March 6, 2025

• The New York State Public Service Commission approved the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority’s (NYSERDA) retail and residential energy storage program Implementation Plan for 2024-2030. As directed by the 2024 Energy Storage Order, NYSERDA was tasked with outlining a plan to implement 1,500 megawatts (MW) of retail energy storage and 200 MW of residential energy storage by 2030. These benchmarks are part of a larger goal for New York to deploy six gigawatts of storage by 2030 and save the state $2 billion on electricity system costs.

April 4, 2025

• New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed S801 into law last month. The bill directs the State Fire Prevention and Building Code Council to promulgate standards requiring newly-constructed buildings to equip off-street parking with electric vehicle (EV) ready infrastructure and EV charging stations, with requirements starting in 2027 and varying by building type.

May 16, 2025

• New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the 2025-2026 state budget (S3004D) last week, and while cap-and-invest, solar tax credits, and the NY Heat Act were left out of the bill, the state allocated $1 billion to climate initiatives:
  • $450 million for reducing building emissions, including thermal energy network projects, energy efficient equipment installation (such as heat pumps), and supporting the Clean Green Schools program.
  • $200 million for renewable energy projects and grid upgrades.
  • $250 million for electric vehicle development, including electric school buses, EV fast charging stations, and public EV chargers.
• The Division of Housing and Community Renewal was also granted $2 million for the Green Affordable Pre-Electrification Program, which will help low-income households address “structural deficiencies, health hazards, or code violations” that prevent home efficiency upgrades.

August 8, 2025

• New York approved an all-electric building standard, prohibiting the use of fossil fuels in most new building construction, as required by the All-Electric Buildings Act (2023). The 2023 law was subject to legal challenges, with a federal district court ruling that the state has the authority to implement the All-Electric Buildings Act. The new standards will take effect on December 31, 2025 for all buildings up to seven stories, and commercial and industrial buildings up to 100,000 square feet, with larger buildings subject to the standards starting in 2029.

October 3, 2025

• New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced a new $1 billion climate initiative to fund projects that will reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, buildings, and the power sector. The initiative, called the Sustainable Future Program, includes $200 million for expanding thermal energy networks, $200 million for zero-emission school buses and electric vehicle charging stations, and $150 million for energy-efficient building upgrades.

October 17, 2025

• New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced a $24 million grant opportunity for projects that support soil health and reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions through the Climate Resilient Farming Grant Program.

October 31, 2025

• New York’s Albany County Supreme Court ruled that the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) violated state law by not promulgating 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) regulations by the January 1, 2024 statutory deadline. The CLCPA requires that the DEC issue regulations ensuring the state will meet its GHG emissions reduction targets of 40 percent below 1990 levels by 2030 and 85 percent by 2050. The state has been working on cap-and-invest regulations to meet such requirements, but those efforts have stalled. The Court now requires the DEC to promulgate regulations to ensure CLCPA compliance by February 6, 2026, unless the state legislature changes the law. The DEC is reviewing the ruling and could appeal the decision.

November 21, 2025

• The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) awarded $7.2 million to projects that co-locate solar on agricultural land, also known as agrivoltaics. $2.2 million was distributed to four projects studying the costs and benefits of incorporating agrivoltaics and $5 million was allocated to Cornell University to construct experimental agrivoltaics projects.

December 17, 2025

• The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) finalized regulations for the Mandatory Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program required under the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA). The new regulations require covered facilities to report annual GHG emissions data to the DEC starting in June 2027. Entities required to report their emissions include:
  • Owners and operators of electricity generation, stationary combustion, landfills, waste-to-energy, natural gas compressor stations and other infrastructure;
  • Fuel suppliers that provide end-users any type of fuel that generates GHG emissions;
  • Waste haulers and transporters;
  • Electric power entities that emit any GHGs or import emitting electricity into the state;
  • Agricultural lime and fertilizer suppliers; and
  • Anaerobic digestion and liquid storage at waste facilities, such as wastewater treatment plants or concentrated animal feeding operations.
• These new regulations follow the Albany County Supreme Court’s ruling that the DEC violated state law by not promulgating CLCPA regulations by the January 1, 2024 statutory deadline.

Policies to Watch

July 25, 2025

• The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) announced it would cut EmPower+ program funding by $140 million by 2027 due to federal and state budget cuts. The EmPower+ program was launched in 2023 to provide low- and moderate-income residents with free energy assessments and energy efficiency upgrades.

November 21, 2025

• New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation issued two permits for the controversial Northeast Supply Enhancement (NESE) Project, after three previous denials in 2018, 2019, and 2020 due to the project’s inability to meet water quality standards. The New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection also approved project permits, and  New York’s Public Service Commission had previously approved the project in September, citing the need to increase reliability. The NESE Project is an expansion of existing natural gas pipeline capacity running through Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. The project will ultimately provide 400,000 dekatherms per day of natural gas power to New York, despite the state’s 2050 net-zero emissions target and a law requiring all-electric heating and appliances in new buildings by 2029.
• New York will not enforce its all-electric buildings standard, which would have taken effect on December 31st, until the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals makes a decision on a lawsuit challenging the law. The plaintiffs (New York State Builders Association, National Association of Home Builders, and National Propane Gas Association) appealed a federal district court ruling that the state has authority to implement the law, arguing that federal law preempts the state-level all-electric buildings law. Advocates expect the law to be delayed at least until fall of 2026.

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Nevada

Policy Progress

June 27, 2025

• Nevada Governor Joe Lombardo signed AB 458 into law, allowing developers to install solar panels on low-income multifamily units. This means tenants can benefit directly from solar power and net metering, while establishing consumer protections and equitable distribution of financial benefits.

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North Carolina

Policies to Watch

August 8, 2025

• The North Carolina legislature overrode Governor Josh Stein’s veto of SB 266, which repeals Duke Energy’s 2030 deadline to reduce its emissions 70 percent compared to 2005 levels. The 2050 carbon neutral target still remains in effect. The bill also allows Duke Energy to charge ratepayers in advance for power plants before they are built and allows the utility to charge its residential customers more for electricity to meet excess demand. Research indicates the bill could cost ratepayers up to $23 billion in added fuel costs through mid-century, cut an average of 50,700 jobs annually, and cause over $1.4 billion in lost tax revenue and $47.2 billion in lost power sector investment from 2030-2035.
• The legislature also overrode Governor Stein’s veto of HB 402, which requires a two-thirds legislative approval for regulations with a projected cost of at least $1 million over a five-year period and unanimous legislative approval for regulations with $10 million in projected costs over a five-year period. Critics have raised concerns that the law will halt environmental rulemaking in the state.

September 5, 2025

• North Carolina Governor Josh Stein signed Executive Order No. 23, establishing an Energy Policy Task Force. The Task Force, which includes stakeholders from state agencies, electricity ratepayers, nonprofits, colleges and universities, large-load data center customers, and others, will recommend policies and actions to reduce carbon emissions and maintain affordable and reliable electricity, while managing growing electricity demand in the state. The Task Force will include Load Growth and Technical Advisory Subcommittees, which will focus on issues of energy demand and applicable policy solutions, with reports due to the Governor and General Assembly by February 15th, 2026.

October 31, 2025

• The North Carolina Department of Commerce released a three-part report on the future of the state’s energy economy. The reports focus on factors contributing to economic growth that impact the electricity sector, namely demand from data centers, in-state manufacturing, and population growth. Part one outlines how an “All of the Above” energy strategy is key for the state’s economic growth, citing the need for natural gas, nuclear, wind, and solar, as well as microgrids and transmission infrastructure investments. Part two discusses the state’s current energy mix, which is mostly reliant on natural gas and nuclear, and outlines the current status and potential opportunities for solar, hydroelectric, wind, and nuclear development. Part three outlines how the “All of the Above” energy strategy can reshore the manufacturing industry, in particular energy supply chain manufacturing, such as batteries, solar panels, small modular reactors, transformers, and more.

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North Dakota

Policy Progress

April 18, 2025

• North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong signed SB 2360, which calls for a study on geothermal energy feasibility and opportunity in the state. Findings and recommendations will be presented in the 2026 legislative session.

May 2, 2025

• North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong signed HB 1258 into law last month. The bill allows a state agency to supersede local zoning authority on proposed transmission line projects when those local regulations are deemed too restrictive or not in compliance with federal law.

Policies to Watch

May 2, 2025

• Last week, North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong signed HB 1483, which creates incentives for new oil drilling in the state. The bill offers tax breaks for oil drilled in areas with production potential that are outside of the state’s top-producing areas. The bill also increases the amount of oil that can be produced over a longer period of time to receive the tax break.

May 30, 2025

• North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong signed several bills concerning oil and gas:
  • S.B. 2014: Funds rail infrastructure in the state as well as hydrogen energy research and oil and gas research. The bill also appropriates funding for oil and gas well plugging and site reclamation.
  • S.B. 2397: Introduces tax exemptions for oil and gas wells that implement techniques and systems to avoid flaring.

August 22, 2025

• The North Dakota Public Service Commission (PSC) approved plans for Basin Electric to build a $4 billion, 1,490 megawatt (MW) combined-cycle natural gas plant. In a January announcement, the utility noted that the new gas plant will help the region meet load growth from “industrial work, manufacturing, data processing, residential customers, and small businesses, including farms and ranches,” which could include data centers and the oil and gas industry. The plant will be operational in 2030.

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Ohio

Policy Progress

May 30, 2025

• Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed H.B. 15 into law, ending the customer-funded subsidies for two coal-fired power plants as part of the H.B. 6 bailout law from 2019. The bill also contains provisions to expand behind-the-meter generation, study and promote grid enhancing technologies, create accelerated energy siting on brownfields, and publish hosting capacity maps to help accelerate project development.

July 25, 2025

• Ohio’s Public Utility Commission (PUC) ordered that data centers must pay penalties if they cease operations before paying for a share of the grid capacity upgrades necessary to serve them. The rules apply to new data centers with a peak demand of 25 megawatts and require that data centers pay for at least 85 percent of the power plant capacity they expect to use. Note that Ohio’s PUC website appears to be down. If you have trouble accessing the order and rules, see more information in this Inside Climate News article.

September 19, 2025

• The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) upheld its July order that directs AEP Ohio to apply a new tariff for data centers, by denying a rehearing request filed by the Data Center Coalition. Data centers with a load greater than 25 megawatts (MW) must pay at least 85 percent of their highest previous monthly electricity use, even if they use less, to cover associated infrastructure costs. The order also established a maximum four-year “load ramp period” to determine monthly billing, gradually forcing data centers to pay for an increasing portion of the maximum capacity they contracted for, regardless of their actual use. Data centers may pay an exit fee after five years of a contract with AEP, excluding the “load ramp period,” and revenue from the fee will be used to benefit AEP’s retail customers over the remaining period of the data center contract, subject to PUCO approval.

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Oklahoma

Policies to Watch

May 2, 2025

• Last week, Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt signed SB 460 into law, establishing natural gas as the preferred fuel for new electricity generation. Any generating facility that opts for a fuel source other than natural gas must provide evidence to state regulators that it is “in the best interest of this state’s electric consumers.” Further, the bill declares an emergency to fast-track implementation.

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Oregon

Policy Progress

February 21, 2025

• On February 10th, the Rhode Island Executive Climate Change Coordinating Council (EC4) released a report on building performance standards (BPS) and energy benchmarking. The study was commissioned by legislators in 2024 in a joint resolution to inform the legislature’s strategy for adopting a BPS. The report identified challenges with adopting a BPS, such as a lack of infrastructure and data on buildings in the state, and recommended the state start with a pilot BPS and benchmarking program for large, state-owned buildings before implementing a statewide program that covers municipal and privately-owned large buildings.

June 13, 2025

• Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed SB 827 into law, expanding the Solar and Storage Rebate Program to offer rebates for energy storage systems paired with previously-installed solar electric systems.

June 27, 2025

• Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed a handful of bills into law, including:
  • HB 3336: Requires electric companies within the state to develop strategic plans that include a timeline for deploying ATTs and GETs in an effort to improve transmission capacity and reliability.
  • HB 3546: Directs the PUC to create a separate service classification and tariff schedule for large energy use facilities, such as data centers, to avoid passing costs onto other customer classes.
  • HB 3681: Streamlines permitting for renewable energy and transmission projects by (1) establishing approval timelines, (2) consolidating judicial review for contested cases, and (3) clarifying aspects of the certificate of public convenience and necessity process.

July 11, 2025

• Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed the Climate Resilience Investment Act (HB 2081) into law, directing the Oregon Investment Council and the State Treasurer to manage and report on climate-related financial risks to the Public Employees Retirement System and to show preference to investments that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

July 25, 2025

• Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed two microgrid bills into law:
  •  HB 2065 allows third-party consultants to evaluate customer requests to connect to the grid and allows utilities to deny microgrid connection requests if they are deemed to inhibit safety or reliability.
  • HB 2066 directs the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) to develop a regulatory framework for microgrids, requires the Department of Consumer and Business Services to establish rules for integrating buildings with community microgrids, and allows localities to designate microgrid-zones to encourage development and establish special land-use regulations.
• Governor Kotek also signed SB 688, updating how utilities set rates and directing the PUC to create a performance-based regulation framework, which would include incentives and penalties that encourage utilities to reduce emissions, expand distributed energy resources, support low-income bill payment, and reduce ratepayer costs.

October 17, 2025

• Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed an executive order to accelerate renewable energy development for projects that can take advantage of federal clean energy tax credits, which require project construction to begin by next July. Executive Order 25-25 directs state agencies to prioritize, authorize, and accelerate the permitting and development of eligible solar and wind energy projects.

October 31, 2025

• Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed Executive Order No. 25-26 that promotes climate resilience and conservation of natural and working lands, including forests, wetlands, farms, ranches, commercial timberlands, and waterways. The order calls upon state agencies to:
  • Protect 10 percent more climate-resilient lands and waterways over the next 10 years by researching and prioritizing key areas and developing innovative mitigation solutions.
  • Streamline the process for farmers, foresters, fishers, businesses, and other landowners to adopt climate-friendly practices, such as improving grant applications, speeding up permitting, and increasing access to funding and technical assistance.
  • Increase the climate resilience of publicly-owned lands such as parks, forests, wildlife areas, and coastal areas.
  • Improve community resilience to climate threats, including wildfires and flooding.

November 21, 2025

• The Oregon Department of Energy released the state’s 25-year energy strategy, required by HB 3630 (2023). The report highlights key strategies to achieve state climate and energy policies, including:
  • Improving building energy efficiency programs, with a focus on low- and moderate-income households.
  • Expanding access to public transit, biking, and walking infrastructure.
  • Enabling customers to shift their electricity consumption for smaller, flexible loads like electric vehicles and water heaters, and larger commercial and industrial loads.
  • Collaborating closely with Tribal communities around energy development by identifying their energy priorities, establishing targeted funding programs, and limiting energy development impacts on cultural resources.
  • Electrifying transportation and accelerating electric vehicle charging infrastructure and grid readiness to ensure the state can meet its zero-emission vehicle targets.
  • Electrifying the residential, commercial, and industrial sectors.
  • Supporting low-carbon fuel developments in hard-to-electrify sectors, such as aviation, rail, marine transport, long-haul trucking, agriculture, and industry.
• Through modeling, researchers found that energy demand in the state will likely double by 2050, driven by data centers in the near-term and electric vehicles, and commercial, industrial, and agricultural demand in the longer-term. Electrification and energy efficiency are therefore highlighted as practical, least-cost solutions for addressing the state’s climate targets and energy needs. The report also highlighted that the average household could lose approximately $12,000 in annual income each year due to the effects of greenhouse gas emissions.

December 17, 2025

• Oregon Governor Tina Kotek signed Executive Order 25-29 directing state agencies to speed up energy permitting and connect more renewables to the grid, developing strategies by September 2026. Some key aspects of the Order include:
  • Directing state agencies to adopt and implement GHG reduction strategies aligned with the Oregon Energy Strategy, namely (1) increase energy efficiency across new and existing buildings; (2) invest in clean electricity; (3) increase vehicle and building electrification; (4) strengthen the low-carbon fuel standard to a 50 percent reduction in carbon intensity by 2040; and (5) improve grid resilience through grid enhancing and advanced transmission technologies.
  • Directing agencies to implement a coordinated approach to building clean energy projects by removing barriers, identifying opportunities for accelerated deployment, and recommending opportunities to streamline siting and permitting. The order also establishes a goal of deploying eight gigawatts of energy storage capacity by 2045.
  • Directing agencies to explore opportunities for public-private partnerships and assessing opportunities to utilize emerging technologies.

Policies to Watch

May 30, 2025

• The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued a memo delaying enforcement of electric truck sales requirements under Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) by two years.

October 31, 2025

• The Oregon Department of Energy released updated model results from the Transformational Integrated Greenhouse Gas Emissions Regulation Project (TIGHTER 2.0). New modeling shows that the state will miss its 2035 GHG emission reduction target by two years due to increased data center demand and the cancellation of federal Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards enforcement. The modeling also shows a larger gap between Oregon’s 2050 emissions target and projected emissions.

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Pennsylvania

Policy Progress

September 19, 2025

• The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) approved an order that aims to accelerate the replacement of older plastic natural gas lines that are prone to cracks and leaks. According to the PUC Chairman’s statement, gas utilities must now differentiate older plastic pipes, installed between the 1960s and 1980s, from modern pipes in their Long-Term Infrastructure Improvement Plans and Distribution Integrity Management Plans. These plans outline how a utility ensures the integrity of their gas distribution systems.

Policies to Watch

November 21, 2025

• Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro signed the state’s FY2025-2026 budget after a nearly five-month delay, which includes language to formally withdraw the state from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The state joined RGGI in 2019 via executive order, but its participation was halted in July of 2022 by the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania, which ultimately determined in two rulings that joining the regional cap-and-invest program requires legislative authorization. Governor Shapiro appealed this decision, but filed to discontinue the appeal this month.

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Rhode Island

Policy Progress

June 13, 2025

• The Rhode Island Senate passed SR 327, which will place a Green Amendment on the next general election ballot. The constitutional amendment, if approved by voters in 2026, will enshrine the right to a healthy environment, including clean air, clean water, uncontaminated soil, and a stable climate for all, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, or socioeconomic status.

September 19, 2025

• Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee announced that $10 million in Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) proceeds will fund Clean Heat RI, a statewide incentive program that helps low- and moderate-income households transition from fossil fuel-based heating to electric heat pumps.

December 17, 2025

• The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management released the 2023 Greenhouse Gas Inventory, which offers a sector-by-sector analysis of emissions across the state. The highest-emitting sectors in the state are transportation, residential buildings, and electricity. The report found that Rhode Island emitted 1.4 percent more in 2023 than in 2022, as a result of rising vehicle miles traveled, but overall emissions have decreased 19.5 percent below 1990 levels. The report notes that while emissions have dropped 5.4 percent between 2018-2023, a similar rate of decrease from 2024-2030 would not be sufficient to meet 2021 Act on Climate emissions reduction targets, which include 45 percent reduction below 1990 levels by 2030.

Policies to Watch

July 11, 2025

• Rhode Island Governor Daniel McKee signed the state’s fiscal year 2026 budget, HB 5076. The $14.34 billion budget notably includes key transportation initiatives. Facing a budget shortfall, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority will receive partial funding through a gas tax increase of two cents per gallon, which is expected to generate $15 million. In addition, electric vehicle (EV) owners will pay new annual registration fees ranging from $50 for hybrids to $200 for battery EVs.

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South Carolina

Policies to Watch

May 16, 2025

• South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster signed HB 3309 (the South Carolina Energy Security Act) into law this week. The bill includes some positive reforms to the state’s energy policy and some reforms with more uncertain impacts:
  • Allows Dominion Energy and the state-owned utility, Santee Cooper, to partner and build a 2,000 MW natural gas plant at a former coal site.
  • Allows utilities to seek annual expedited customer rate increases outside of rate cases.
  • Allows for the development of distributed energy resource programs for customers.
  • Enhances the procurement process for utility-scale renewable projects.
  • Permits the Public Service Commission to set energy efficiency targets for utilities.

• Governor McMaster also signed SB 0275 this month, adding definitions for EVs and direct current (DC) fast charging stations into the state law. The bill prohibits utilities, local governments, and electric cooperatives from offering any “unreasonable advantage” via DC fast charging rates and prohibits these entities from using revenue from other services to subsidize DC fast charging station investments.

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South Dakota

March 21, 2025

• South Dakota regulators voted unanimously to award a permit to a 260 megawatt (MW), 68-turbine wind project in the northeastern part of the state. The project is estimated to cost $62l million and is expected to be operational by December 2026.

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Tennessee

April 18, 2025

• Last week, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed HB 1143 into law, combining the state’s definitions of “clean energy” and “green energy.” The now expanded “clean energy” definition includes: solar, wind, hydropower, hydrogen, nuclear, natural gas, fuel cells, waste-to-energy facilities, energy storage systems, geothermal, crops grown for energy, industrial byproduct technologies, combined heat and power, pumped storage hydropower, compressed air energy storage, biomass, and “renewable natural gas.”

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Texas

Policy Progress

May 2, 2025

• Last week, the Public Utility Commission of Texas voted to build the state’s first 765-kilovolt high transmission lines, dramatically raising the voltage carried through existing infrastructure. This grid modernization project will ensure the Electric Reliability Council of Texas can meet estimated future demand growth while improving efficiency and reliability of the grid.

May 30, 2025

• Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed S.B. 1697 into law, mandating the Public Utility Commission to develop and update a guide for customers on solar home energy devices.
• Governor Abbott also signed S.B. 783, allowing the State Energy Conservation Office to adopt new editions of the International Residential Code and the International Energy Conservation Code for residential and commercial buildings every six years.

June 13, 2025

• Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed SB 1146 into law, reducing legal liabilities for plugging orphaned wells. Property or mineral rights owners of an orphaned well may plug wells without facing legal risks or assuming liability for environmental harms or damages that occur after plugging.

June 27, 2025

• Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed several bills at the end of the legislative session, including:
  • HB 3619: Requires land restoration after plugging oil and gas wells, while immunizing land owners from civil liability for performing this work.
  • HB 5323: Establishes the Texas Energy Waste Advisory Committee, where members from the PUC, Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality can coordinate to reduce energy waste and improve efficiency and grid reliability in the state.
  • SB 6: Gives ERCOT authority to shut off power to large load facilities, such as data centers, during a grid emergency. In addition, prospective large load customers are required to pay utilities $100,000 to conduct transmission screening studies to determine the cost of infrastructure required for grid connection.
  • SB 1150: Requires that oil and gas wells must be plugged after 15 years of inactivity.
  • SB 1202: Streamlines home solar and energy storage installations by allowing third parties (such as a licensed engineer) to conduct inspections and reviews in place of a state regulatory authority.
• Two bills became law without Governor Abbott’s signature:
  • SB 1036: Creates a regulatory framework for residential solar retail transactions in the state, requiring salespersons to register, pay fees, obtain insurance, and develop educational materials. The bill also establishes civil penalties for solar retail companies making misleading claims to customers.
  • SB 1252: Streamlines permitting by restricting municipalities from regulating residential energy backup systems.

October 17, 2025

• The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) authorized Entergy, which operates outside of Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), to develop the Southeast Texas Area Reliability Project, which includes a 145-mile, 500-kV transmission line to increase reliability in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator area. The PUCT also selected six projects to receive roughly $381 million in funding from the Texas Energy Fund’s Outside ERCOT Grant Program.

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Utah

Policy Progress

May 16, 2025

• Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed HB 212, promoting the use of advanced transmission technologies (ATTs). The bill requires large utilities proposing transmission expansion to conduct a cost-effectiveness analysis of ATTs and determine if they would increase grid capacity, efficiency, and reliability and reduce congestion.

Policies to Watch

April 4, 2025

• Utah Governor Spencer Cox signed several bills into law at the end of the state’s legislative session:
  • HB 249: Creates the Nuclear Energy Consortium and the Utah Energy Council (UEC) to promote energy development in the state.
  • HB 70: Adds powers to the newly-created UEC and outlines new regulations for decommissioning electric generation facilities.
  • HB 201: Modifies how utility Integrated Resource Plans are evaluated, requiring that utilities adding wind and solar resources to their plans have additional resource capacity – that is, more dispatchable power plants, including fossil-fired generation – to offset variability in renewable supply.
  • HB 378: Levies taxes on wind and solar facilities to fund the Department of Natural Resources’ Species Protection Account.
  • HB 57, HB 264, HB 340, and SB 192 amend solar generation and clean energy policies, including updated tax incentive requirements for commercial renewables to include storage. The policies span small portable solar generation devices and residential solar panels to commercial clean energy systems.
  • Other notable bills include HCR 9, a resolution to create an energy compact with Idaho and Wyoming (including on subjects related to fossil fuels, advocating against federal regulation, and carbon capture), and HB 313, which updates the State Construction Code to align with the International Residential Code (IRC) and the National Electric Code (NEC), while removing water heater standards in regions that meet air quality criteria.

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Vermont

Policy Progress

January 24, 2025

• The Vermont Public Utilities Commission (PUC) submitted proposed rules for a clean heat standard to the state legislature, as required by a 2023 law, which now require approval by the legislature in order to move forward. In the report, the PUC noted that, while feasible, a clean heat standard may not be well-suited for Vermont because of its regulatory complexity, and offered possible alternatives to lawmakers, including a fuel tax on heating fuels to subsidize existing thermal efficiency programs.

 March 6, 2025

• Vermont recently released a report in accordance with Act 148, enacted in 2024, which tasked the Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) and the Agency of Transportation (AOT) with studying cap-and-invest and any complementary programs to support the Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA). The Interim Legislative Report was released in November, and the Final Technical Report was released in January. The Final Report notes that benefits of a cap-and-invest program would not be fully realized until the mid-2030s, and could not contribute to the 2030 GWSA target, but would more likely to support the 2050 target. The State Treasurer will use the Final Technical report to make recommendations to the General Assembly during the 2025 legislative session.

June 13, 2025

• Vermont Governor Phil Scott signed S.50 into law, which increases the size limit for solar net metering projects that qualify for expedited permitting to 25 kilowatts. The bill also  allows customers to modify the REC ownership from their installation once, and increases setback requirements for larger projects.

July 11, 2025

• Vermont’s Climate Council released the state’s updated 2025 Climate Action Plan, as required by the 2020 Global Warming Solutions Act (GWSA). Some priority recommendations to meet GWSA milestones include: 1) Increasing funding to meet climate goals for farms and forests; 2) Weatherizing homes, prioritizing low- and moderate-income households; 3) Joining a cap-and-invest program; 4) Reducing emissions from vehicles and buildings with electrification; and 5) Implementing a Climate-Ready Workforce initiative.

July 25, 2025

• Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources released its annual Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory, evaluating the state’s progress in meeting Global Warming Solutions Act requirements to reduce emissions 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. The report, which covers emissions from 1990 to 2022, notes that while transportation and heating fuel for buildings remained the largest sources of emissions, both sectors’ emissions declined slightly since 2021, resulting in a moderate decrease in the state’s total emissions from 2021-2022.

Policies to Watch

May 16, 2025

• Vermont Governor Phil Scott issued Executive Order 04-25, delaying enforcement of Advanced Clean Carts II and Advanced Clean Truck rules. The rules would have required 35 percent of cars sold in the state in 2026 be zero emission models.

October 3, 2025

• Vermont Governor Phil Scott signed Executive Order No. 06-25, aiming to speed up new home construction. The order includes expedited permitting, relaxed environmental review around wetlands, an inventory of state land that could be used for housing development, coordination across state agencies, and updated monitoring and performance metrics. Notably, the order rolls back 2024 building energy codes to the 2020 versions for residential and commercial buildings, loosening energy efficiency and insulation requirements and removing electric vehicle charging provisions. The 2024 standards are now voluntary.

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Virginia

Policy Progress

March 21, 2025

• Earlier this month, a Virginia circuit court temporarily suspended its November 2024 ruling that the state illegally withdrew from the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). The court granted the suspension in response to the Governor’s appeal of the 2024 ruling. Virginia first joined RGGI in 2021 after the passage of the Clean Energy and Community Flood Preparedness Act, but the state’s Air Pollution Control Board withdrew from the program in 2023, resulting in ongoing legal challenges since.

April 4, 2025

• Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin signed two energy-related bills into law at the close of the legislative session:
  • HB 1819: Expands the definition of “property owner” in the state’s Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) loan program to include lessees. The bill also extends the time period in which a loan application can be submitted.
  • HB 1822: Requires the State Corporation Commission to consider the use of grid enhancing technologies (namely, advanced conductors) when evaluating applications for constructing transmission lines of 138 kilovolts or more, to improve the reliability and efficiency of the state’s transmission network.

May 2, 2025

• While many of the climate and energy bills passed in Virginia’s legislative session were sent to Governor Glenn Youngkin’s desk, only a few have been enacted into law. One bill, HB 2266, requires the State Corporation Commissions (SCC) to establish a cost-sharing program for distributed grid connections. The bill specifically targets interconnection disputes that have slowed down solar projects in the state. The SCC approves system upgrades needed to connect any distributed generator between 250 kW and 3 MW to the grid, and utilities are required to calculate the cost and capacity increase resulting from these upgrades. The costs are then spread across all projects that benefit from the increased capacity.

May 16, 2025

• Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin had a May 2nd deadline to approve, veto, or amend a handful of energy bills — the following were signed into law:
  • HB 2346/SB 1100: Directs Dominion Energy to propose a 450 MW virtual power plant pilot program to the State Corporation Commission (SCC) by December 2025.
  • HB1934/SB 1192: When a utility cannot meet its low-income qualifying projects requirement under the state’s renewable portfolio standards (RPS), it may substitute them with solar projects on or near public elementary or secondary schools.
  • SB 1316: Adds geothermal to the list of RPS-eligible sources.
  • HB 1821: Allows 1) utility customers to voluntarily pay the costs associated with bundled Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) purchases by accelerated renewable energy buyers, and 2) for those accelerated buyers to offset their capacity needs with energy storage resources.
  • HB 2663/SB 1336: Increases electricity consumption tax rates based on kilowatt hours (kWh) delivered, with higher rates for greater kWh — effectively raising taxes on data centers with high energy consumption.
  • HB 2084: Requires the SCC to examine whether existing utility rate classes are fair, and if new classes should be established.

July 25, 2025

• Virginia’s State Corporation Commission (SCC) released an order on Dominion Energy’s 2024 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP). The Commission found that the IRP was “legally sufficient,” but noted that the plan must comply with Virginia Clean Economy Act (VCEA) requirements. The SCC noted key compliance metrics for the utility’s next IRP, including:
  • Providing one modeling pathway retiring all carbon-emitting generation by 2045, as required by the VCEA.
  • Including a modeling scenario where Virginia participates in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative.
  • Modeling achievement of the SCC’s energy efficiency targets.
  • Including a discussion of grid enhancing technologies and advanced conductors.

December 17, 2025

• Virginia’s State Corporation Commission approved a new rate class for large load customers, including data centers, using over 25 megawatts at a load factor of more than 75 percent monthly. Large load customers will be required to sign 14-year contracts to ensure they will pay for their proposed energy costs, even if they use less or if the data centers aren’t built. They must also pay a minimum of 85 percent of contracted transmission and distribution demand charges, and 60 percent for generation demand.

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Washington

Policy Progress

January 10, 2025

• Washington released an updated greenhouse gas emissions inventory with statewide greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 through 2021. The inventory shows emissions increased 8.8 percent from 2020 to 2021, mostly due to a rebound in transportation emissions after a significant drop in 2020 from the COVID-19 pandemic.

January 24, 2025

• In a ratemaking case for Puget Sound Energy (PSE), the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission approved a proposal that requires PSE to consider “non-pipeline alternatives” before making major investments in the gas system, to better align utility planning with the state’s climate goals. The Commission rejected a proposal for an electrification pilot program and reduced financial incentives for investments in the gas system, in light of voter approval of Initiative 2066, which prohibits the Commission from adopting rate plans that incentivize the termination of gas service. The Commission directed PSE to propose voluntary electrification projects in future proceedings.

February 7, 2025

• Washington Governor Bob Ferguson signed Executive Order 25-05 on February 4th, creating a Data Center Workgroup to evaluate how data centers affect Washington’s economy, tax revenue, energy use, and environment. The Workgroup is tasked with making policy and action recommendations related to data centers by December 1st.

March 21, 2025

• The Washington State Department of Transportation and the Department of Commerce recently launched the Electric Vehicle Mapping and Planning (EV-MAP) Tool. The interactive map combines 100 datasets to support policymakers and planners in determining the best locations for EV charging stations.

April 4, 2025

• A Washington state judge overturned Initiative 2066, a voter-approved ballot measure that blocked the state’s transition away from natural gas. The judge ruled in favor of the plaintiffs’ arguments in the case, determining that the Initiative was unconstitutional for a number of reasons, namely because it did not focus on a single subject and did not contain the full text of the portion of state laws it would alter (video of the judge’s ruling from the bench can be viewed here). The ruling also stated that the Initiative misled voters on its intention. The ruling will be appealed to the state’s Supreme Court.

May 2, 2025

• Washington Governor Bob Ferguson signed SB 5391 last week, modifying the state’s Sustainable Farms and Fields Grant Program, which promotes sustainable agricultural practices. The bill outlines specific grant funding criteria, with priority given to projects that enhance soil carbon; integrate native vegetation into agricultural lands; reduce carbon, nitrous oxide, and methane emissions; support efficiency and reduced fuel use; and support pollinator habitats.
• The Governor also signed HB 1715 last week, which requires the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Committee to review the costs for complying with the state’s building performance standard (BPS). The review will include items such as: the timeline in which capital investments will become cost-effective, funding sources for capital upgrades, costs incurred in the absence of a BPS, energy savings, energy audit trends, and job creation. The report will enhance the 2024 Clean Buildings Workgroup Report to the Legislature, which provided recommendations to successfully implement the Clean Buildings Law and assist building owners in attaining compliance. A final report will be due in June 2027.

May 16, 2025

• Washington Governor Bob Ferguson signed SB 5036, which requires annual reporting of statewide greenhouse gas emissions while reemphasizing the state’s net-zero goal by 2050. The bill also requires similar reporting from natural gas utilities that receive no-cost allowances.

May 30, 2025

• Washington Governor Bob Ferguson signed a flurry of climate bills into law this month, including:
  • H.B. 1409: Strengthens the state’s clean fuels program by increasing the carbon  intensity reduction required by 2038 for transportation fuels from 20 percent to 45 percent below 2017 levels, with higher interim targets. The bill also introduces new penalties for noncompliance.
  • H.B. 1462: Prohibits the sale of bulk hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) with a global warming potential (GWP) of 1,500 by 2030 and 750 by 2033. The bill also establishes a task force to study the transition to low- and ultra-low GWP refrigerants by 2035. The bill further increases the supply of reclaimed HFC to offset new HFCs.
  • H.B. 1514: Encourages thermal energy network deployment and brings certain thermal energy companies under the authority of the Utilities and Transportation Commission. Utilities can provide discounted rates for thermal energy companies that improve energy efficiency.
  • H.B. 1543: Revises the state’s building performance standards, allowing it to implement alternative metrics and reporting timelines, and imposes energy efficiency requirements, including the necessity for implementation plans based on investment-grade energy audits and life-cycle cost analyses.
  • H.B. 1975: Amends the state’s cap-and-invest program, the Climate Commitment Act (CCA), to update carbon market analyses, price controls, models, and forecasts, and facilitate linking with other jurisdictions.
  • HB 1912: Requires the Department of Ecology to provide easily accessible information about where farmers can buy fuel exempt from the cap-and-invest program. The bill also clarifies which fuels are exempted and extends the exemption for an additional two years.
  • S.B. 5445: Incentivizes distributed energy development by expediting review for certain solar and wind projects and exempting farms that implement agrivoltaics from additional taxation. Utilities may also count new distributed facilities at four times their electrical output for meeting renewable energy credit targets.

November 21, 2025

• The Washington Department of Commerce announced $19.4 million in state funding to expand electric vehicle charging infrastructure through the state’s Electric Vehicle Charging Program. Eligible applicants include public agencies, Tribal entities, retail electric utilities, nonprofits, and private entities with additional application requirements. Level 2 chargers (reserved for rural and Tribal locations) can receive up to $12,500 per port and Level 3 chargers (reserved for any locations in the state) can receive $150,000 per port.

Policies to Watch

May 30, 2025

• Washington Governor Bob Ferguson signed H.B. 1329, amending the Clean Energy Transformation Act, which eliminates coal-fired resources by 2025. The amendment would clarify that utilities can buy unspecified electricity to meet demand, even though some of the electricity may have been generated by coal.

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West Virginia

Policies to Watch

May 16, 2025

• West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey signed HB 2014 last month, promoting data center development in the state. The bill exempts data centers from certain zoning ordinances and allows them to produce and use their own power using microgrids. While the bill is expected to generate economic growth and lessen grid strain, it also eliminates renewable energy requirements in business development districts and directs a percentage of bill revenue to fund coal and natural gas projects.

September 5, 2025

• The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) approved a permit for Fundamental Data to build a 1,655 MW gas-fired power plant and a diesel generator of equivalent size to provide electricity for several data centers expected to be built in the vicinity. The DEP approved the project permit despite receiving more than 1,600 written public comments, most in opposition, expressing concern about the environmental impacts of the facility.

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Wisconsin

Policy Progress

September 19, 2025

• Wisconsin and Hawai‘i became the latest states to join the Affordable Clean Cars Coalition, bringing membership to thirteen states. The Coalition, formed in May 2025 in response to federal rollbacks, collaborates on policies and programs to deploy affordable clean vehicles and reduce transportation emissions.

October 3, 2025

• The Wisconsin Public Service Commission (PSC) approved the first large-scale wind farm since 2011. The Badger Hollow Wind Project is a 118-MW wind farm that is expected to come online by the end of 2027. The PSC also approved a 180-MW solar project.

Policies to Watch

June 13, 2025

• Wisconsin state regulators approved a utility plan to add nearly $1.5 billion of new gas-fired generation to meet expected data center demand while the utility shutters its coal-burning facilities. The PSC posted a video of the meeting where the plan was approved.

Wyoming

Policy Progress

March 21, 2025

• The Wyoming legislative session ended earlier this month, and Governor Mark Gordon signed SF0138 into law on February 28th. The legislation directs the Wyoming Energy Authority to author a study on the economic impacts of the state’s energy industry by October 1st, 2025, including information on mineral production in each region and across the state, and information about the industry’s taxes, employment, and payroll over the last five to ten years. The study must also identify innovations in the energy industry over the past decade.

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Multi-State

January 10, 2025

• In December, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator’s (MISO) board approved a $30 billion package of new electric transmission and upgrades across the nation’s central region. The MTEP24 plan represents the largest portfolio of transmission projects in the nation’s history, with 488 projects spanning more than 5,000 miles across 15 states in the MISO region, and would enable more than 100 gigawatts of new generation. The centerpiece of the plan is $21.8 billion for two dozen new regional power lines creating a high-voltage “backbone” in the Midwest.

April 4, 2025

• ISO New England recently released the 2050 Transmission Study: Offshore Wind Analysis. Key report findings include:
  • Relocating possible points of interconnection further south — from Maine to Massachusetts — can reduce necessary upgrades and transmission costs.
  • If correctly sited, roughly eight 1,200 megawatt (MW) wind farms (9,600 MW total) could operate simultaneously at full power without the need to construct new transmission infrastructure and without supply and demand imbalances.

May 2, 2025

• This week, the Northeast States Collaborative on Interregional Transmission released a Strategic Action Plan, which outlines near- and mid-term strategies for the nine-state collaborative to promote interregional transmission projects that improve reliability and reduce costs in the region. The Plan outlines steps the Collaborative can take in the near-term (next year) and long-term (by the end of 2027) with a particular focus on regulatory improvements, equipment standardization, and developing offshore wind generation.

May 30, 2025

• Eleven governors from the U.S. Climate Alliance announced the Affordable Clean Cars Coalition to support the transition to cleaner cars in the wake of federal rollbacks. Key goals from the coalition include collaborating across states, defending state authority under the Clean Air Act, and developing solutions to make clean cars more affordable.

June 13, 2025

• The Organization of Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) States released the 2025 MISO Survey Results, with a five-year outlook that found:
  • The region can utilize existing interconnections to support 25 percent of expected new capacity additions.
  • Economic growth in the region is attracting data centers, manufacturing, and industry while straining resource adequacy, with a 2.2 percent annual load growth rate expected over the next five years.
  • The region will need 3.1 gigawatts (GW) of additional capacity to meet reserve margin targets.
  • Shifting to seasonal demand and a Reliability-Based Demand Curve has helped mitigate resource concerns.

June 27, 2025

• Attorneys General from a 12-state coalition issued a multi-state guidance that affirms the need and legality of environmental justice (EJ) initiatives. The guidance notes that public and private entities can still legally engage in EJ efforts despite pushback from the Trump administration.

July 25, 2025

• The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a 10-state cap-and-invest program aimed at reducing emissions from the electricity sector, announced program changes as a result of its third program review. The updated RGGI model rule lowers the allowance cap on power sector emissions, with a high annual emissions reduction rate from 2027 to 2033 and a lower reduction rate from 2033 to 2037. The updated program establishes new methods to maintain energy affordability and protect against price volatility, and offset allowances will no longer be awarded starting in 2027. States also agreed to launch the next program review no later than 2028.

October 3, 2025

• The Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management (NESCAUM) released an action plan identifying strategies to accelerate heat pump deployment, building on actions already taken by many states in the coalition. The “Multistate Action Plan: Accelerating the Transition to Zero-Emission Residential Buildings” roadmap includes strategies such as increasing access for low-income households, implementing building performance standards and clean heat standards, and reforming utility rates to promote electrification.

November 21, 2025

• The Southwest Power Pool (SPP) approved 50 transmission projects totalling $8.6 billion. The projects, approved as part of SPP’s 2025 Integrated Transmission Plan (ITP), were selected to improve grid reliability, stimulate the economy, and address rising demand, which is predicted to double to 109 gigawatts (GW) in the next decade. The projects were selected to build out 765 kilovolt (kV) transmission lines in the SPP region, which has historically relied on 345 kV lines.

Return to List

Federal Policy Updates

January 10, 2025

• On December 19th, President Biden announced updated nationally determined contributions (NDCs) for the United States. The new climate goals include cutting emissions 61–66 percent by 2035, compared to 2005 emissions levels, and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. The NDC also includes a goal to reduce methane emissions by at least 35 percent by 2035.
• President Biden also banned new oil and gas drilling off most U.S. coasts, including the entire East and West Coasts, the eastern Gulf of Mexico, and a portion of the Bering Sea, to protect nearly 630 million acres of federal ocean from drilling.
• On January 7th, the Department of the Treasury announced its finalized rules for the Clean Electricity Production Credit and Clean Electricity Investment Credit, replacing the decades-old production tax credit for wind and investment tax credit for solar. The final rules provide clarity around which clean electricity zero-emissions technologies qualify for the credits — including wind, solar, hydropower, marine and hydrokinetic, geothermal, nuclear, and certain waste energy recovery properties — and provide guidance on how combustion and gasification technologies can qualify in the future.
• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted California six emissions waivers for the following rules:
  • Advanced Clean Cars II: Requires all new light-duty cars and trucks sold in the state to be zero-emission vehicles by 2035.
  • The Low NOx Omnibus Regulation: Establishes emissions standards for nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles starting in model year 2024.
  • The small off-road engine (SORE) rule: Requires sales of spark-ignition engines such as leaf blowers, lawn mowers, and portable generators to be zero-emissions.
  • The Transport Refrigeration Unit (TRU) Regulations: Require refrigerated trucks to use lower-emitting refrigerants and require non-truck units to meet stricter particulate matter standards.
  • The In-Use Off-Road Diesel Fueled Fleets rule: Starts phasing out the oldest and highest-emitting heavy-duty engines from operation, such as mining trucks and bulldozers.
  • Commercial Harbor Craft (CHC) Regulation amendments: Establishes emissions standards and other emissions-related requirements for new and in-use diesel engines on commercial harbor craft, including new zero-emission and advanced technology (ZEAT) requirements for ferries and new excursion vessels.

January 24, 2025

• On his first day in office, President Donald Trump issued a flurry of Executive Orders to reshape federal climate and energy policy. While many of these EOs are of interest to states with climate policies that may be impacted, doubts have been raised about their precise meaning and legal enforceability. Agency heads and courts alike will be examining these announced policy shifts in the days ahead.
• The Orders include:
  • Putting America First In International Environmental Agreements: Withdraws the United States from the Paris Agreement.
  • Unleashing American Energy: Aims to expedite permitting of energy projects, restart liquified natural gas terminal approvals, and pause the disbursement of funds appropriated through the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (around 84% of which, per the Biden Administration, had been legally “obligated” before the change in Administration). The order also calls for the elimination of stricter vehicle emission and energy efficiency standards finalized by the Biden Administration, and to revoke emissions waivers that allow states to set stricter emissions standards and require electric vehicle sales. The order also attempts to revoke President Biden’s ban of offshore drilling off of most U.S. coasts announced earlier this month.
  • Temporary Withdrawal of All Areas on the Outer Continental Shelf from Offshore Wind Leasing and Review of the Federal Government’s Leasing and Permitting Practices for Wind Projects: Prevents federal agencies from issuing or renewing “approvals, rights of way, permits, leases, or loans for onshore or offshore wind projects” pending a “comprehensive assessment” of the industry’s impacts on the economy, environment, and energy costs. The order also specifically bans wind energy development at the site sought after for the Lava Ridge wind project in Idaho.
  • Declaring a National Energy Emergency: Aims to increase domestic energy production and lowering energy costs by declaring a “national energy emergency” and directing agency leaders to use all authorities to increase the nation’s energy supply.
  • Initial Rescissions Of Harmful Executive Orders And Actions: Rescinds a series of executive orders issued by former President Biden, including ones that required climate and environmental justice to be incorporated into agency decision making, established the Justice40 Initiative, and set federal procurement targets for clean energy technologies.
  • Unleashing Alaska’s Extraordinary Resource Potential: Aims to boost Alaska’s energy production, including by rescinding President Biden’s 2023 protection of major Alaskan coastal areas from drilling.

February 7, 2025

• U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy signed an order that directs the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to “commence an immediate review and consideration of all existing fuel economy standards” — also known as the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Standards — for light-duty and medium- and heavy-duty vehicles starting Model Year 2022 and onwards. The NHTSA must also propose the rescission or replacement of any fuel economy standards to bring the CAFE program in compliance with President Trump’s January Executive Orders.
• Another memorandum gave all administrations and agencies operating under DOT’s purview ten days to produce a written report listing any policies relating to the Executive Orders, including those focused on climate change, greenhouse emissions, racial equity, environmental justice, and Justice40. Following which, they will have another ten days to “initiate all lawful actions necessary to rescind, cancel, revoke, and terminate” any DOT policies and programs that are subject to the Executive Orders and “are not required by clear and express statutory language.” The memorandum canceled three DOT Departmental Orders: establishing the DOT Equity Council, requiring all agencies to consider climate change adaptation and resilience in planning, and integrating environmental justice into DOT programs, policies, and activities.
• A January 30th DOT memo updates standards for reviewing the costs of policies, programs, and activities including grantmaking and lending. It specifically calls out the social cost of carbon as being “marked by logical deficiencies, a poor basis in empirical science, [and] politicization,” and states that DOT will follow 2003 guidance until EPA revises its social cost of carbon.
• U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright also signed an order on February 5th directing DOE to conduct a review of existing policies and programs to align with President Trump’s Executive Orders. This includes:
  • A review of DOE research and development, to ensure a focus on “affordable, reliable, and secure energy technologies including fossil fuels, advanced nuclear, geothermal, and hydropower.”
  • Resuming consideration of pending applications to export liquified natural gas (LNG).
  • Initiating a comprehensive review of the DOE Appliance Standards Program.
  • Refilling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
  • Strengthening grid reliability and transmission.
  • Streamlining permitting for new energy infrastructure.
• U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum signed several orders to align the DOI with President Trump’s Executive Orders. Notable orders include:
  • Order No. 3415, Temporary Suspension of Delegated Authority prohibits DOI staff (except for a few senior officials) from permitting new renewable projects on public land. This Order mirrors an early directive from the Biden Administration that suspended new permits for oil and gas projects. Order No. 3415 also suspends hiring in the DOI, land sales, and any altering of land management plans.
  • In response to President Trump’s national energy emergency declaration, Order No. 3417, instructs the DOI to use emergency and legal authority to identify, permit, lease, develop, transport, and distribute domestic energy resources and critical minerals to increase energy supply.
  • Order No. 3418 encourages the DOI to explore energy options on federal lands and waters, aligning with President Trump’s Unleashing American Energy Order. This Order also calls for a review of all funds appropriated through the IRA and the IIJA.
  • Order No. 3422 aligns with President Trump’s Order to increase Alaska’s energy production and reinstate drilling in coastal areas. This Order rescinds President Biden’s Order 3401 that cancelled oil and gas leases in Alaska.

February 21, 2025

• On February 14th, President Trump signed an Executive Order establishing the “National Energy Dominance Council” (Council) to promote select energy industries and centralize oversight of energy policy within the Executive Branch. The Council will advise President Trump on improving energy permitting, production, generation, and regulation, and on the actions each federal agency can take to prioritize increasing U.S. energy production. The Order specifically names crude oil, natural gas, liquified natural gas, refined petroleum, uranium, coal, biofuels, geothermal, hydropower, and critical minerals as energy assets. The Council will be run by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, and is made up of Cabinet positions and other heads of federal departments and agencies.
• Last week, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced it would postpone the implementation of efficiency standards finalized under the Biden Administration for seven categories of home appliances: Central Air Conditioners, Clothes Washers and Dryers, General Service Lamps, Walk-in Coolers and Freezers, Gas Instantaneous Water Heaters, Commercial Refrigeration Equipment, and Air Compressors. The DOE will also create a new energy efficiency category for natural gas tankless water heaters, exempting them from existing water heater efficiency standards. As a reminder, Climate XChange identifies where states have regulated appliances that are not federally preempted.
• Earlier this week, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy sent a letter to New York Governor Kathy Hochul reversing the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) approval of New York City’s Congestion Pricing Program. However, New York and the Metropolitan Transportation Authority are pushing back against the reversal and challenged the decision in federal court. There is still some uncertainty in the finality of the reversal, as the fate of the pricing scheme will depend on the court ruling and legal implications of rescinding previous federal approval.

March 6, 2025

• Last week, the PJM interconnection board approved a $6.7 billion Regional Transmission Expansion Plan. The plan includes $5.9 billion for new transmission projects. Notably, the plan directs American Electric Power, Dominion Energy Virginia, and First Energy to build a 260-mile, 765-kV transmission line between West Virginia and Maryland and a 155-mile, 765-kV transmission line across Virginia. The plan will improve grid reliability and improve west-east power transfers, according to PJM’s analysis.
• Last month, Mark Uyeda, the Acting Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that the Commission would not enforce the climate disclosure rule (Rule) adopted in March 2024, requiring public companies to disclose climate-related risks in their annual reports. Despite a less stringent final Rule, with both the type of companies and the scope of emissions required to report weakened from previous versions, the Rule still faced legal challenges. Acting Chairman Uyeda directed the SEC to notify the U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals not to schedule any arguments under the Rule. Notably, California’s climate disclosure laws (SB 253 and SB 261) are still in effect, though they are also facing legal challenges — the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and a coalition of business groups filed a lawsuit in January 2024 that claims the laws violate their first amendment rights. The lack of federal enforcement on climate disclosure puts California’s laws under greater scrutiny.
• On March 1st, President Trump signed an Executive Order titled, “Immediate Expansion of American Timber Production.” The Order directs the Departments of Interior and Agriculture, the Bureau of Land Management, and the Forest Service to expand timber production on 280 million acres of national forests and public lands. Agencies are directed to streamline the permitting process, determine which components of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA) can be excluded to expedite approvals, and determine which components of the ESA serve as barriers to increased timber production. The Order also convenes the Endangered Species Committee, which has the authority to override the ESA for development projects even if that project results in species extinction.

March 21, 2025

• Last month, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved two PJM Interconnection reforms designed to address anticipated energy supply shortages — which could begin as early as 2026 — due to coal plant retirements and increased demand from data centers.
  • The first approval, the Reliability Resource Initiative (RRI), allows 50 shovel-ready power projects, including nuclear and gas-fired generators, to jump ahead in the interconnection queue. The decision sparked criticism from renewable energy proponents, noting that fossil fuel projects will jump ahead of hundreds of delayed renewable projects in the queue. Renewable proponents further noted that renewables and battery storage can effectively address supply concerns.
  • The second FERC-approved measure supports additional grid capacity by reassessing Surplus Interconnection Service (SIS) rules. SIS allows a new resource to use any unused portion of an existing generating facility’s interconnection service — such as battery storage being added to a renewable resource’s interconnection. The SIS process takes less than half the time to complete compared to new interconnection requests.
• In response to two of President Trump’s January Executive Orders, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy rescinded a 2021 Biden administration memorandum, and its superseding 2023 update, that sought to prioritize climate change mitigation and include disadvantaged groups in the planning, selection, and design of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law projects.
• The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a decision reinforcing the Biden administration’s approval of three California emission waivers under the Clean Air Act (CAA) to set stricter vehicle emission standards, as well as a similar GAO decision made in 2023. The GAO determined that the CAA waivers are not formal rules, and therefore are not subject to review or repeal under the Congressional Review Act (CRA).

April 4, 2025

• President Trump signed House Joint Resolution 35 on March 14th, which repeals the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final rule for Waste Emissions Charge for Petroleum and Natural Gas Systems. A provision of the Inflation Reduction Act, the rescinded EPA rule imposed a fee on excess methane and other greenhouse gas emissions from the oil and gas sector.
• Last week, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced it had withdrawn energy efficiency standards for electric motors, ceiling fans, dehumidifiers, and external power supplies. The DOE further postponed the effective dates for water heater and walk-in cooler and freezer rules, which were established during the Biden Administration. This is the second time the DOE has announced a postponement on Biden-era appliance mandates. See our State Climate Policy Dashboard for more information on which states have adopted Appliance Standards outside of federal purview.
• Last week, the Department of Justice announced the Anticompetitive Regulations Task Force, which advocates for the elimination of state and federal regulations that could limit market competition and impact consumers. The Task Force will gather information through public comment, ultimately recommending, revising, or removing agency regulations that have been deemed anticompetitive.
• Where the federal government lacks jurisdiction over state regulations, it is unclear how the Task Force will proceed, though the announcement notes that it will explore “other ways to advocate” for deregulation, including by supporting private litigants. The DOJ outlines possible areas of impact within the transportation, agriculture, and energy sectors, including: shipping, travel, fuel, agricultural production, and energy reliability and affordability. This announcement aligns with President Trump’s deregulatory agenda, as outlined in Executive Orders 14192 and 14219.

April 18, 2025

• Last week, the White House issued several executive orders to reshape energy use, production, regulations, and state authority to implement climate policy. The scope and impact of these orders has been questioned, particularly an Order aiming to challenge state climate and equity policies.
• The orders include:
  • Strengthening the Reliability and Security of the United States Electric Grid: Orders the Secretary of Energy to develop new analyses of what “reserve margin” (expected surplus of energy capacity available to the grid) is appropriate in different regions, and then use emergency authority to keep generators online, at full capacity, or on their original fuel source, wherever that analysis is not satisfied.
  • Reinvigorating America’s Beautiful Clean Coal Industry: Aims to increase domestic production of coal and seeks to remove federal barriers in coal production. The order directs agency heads to enable coal mining on federal lands, including by invoking emergency powers, and expedite the leasing process. Department and agency heads must identify, then consider revising or rescinding, policies and regulations that phase out coal and discourage investment in coal production and generation. The order also directs agencies to explore categorical exclusions for coal under the National Environmental Policy Act. Agency heads are further directed to identify regions where coal can be used to power data centers.
  • Regulatory Relief for Certain Stationary Sources to Promote American Energy: Exempts coal-fired power plants from the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2024 Mercury Air Toxics Standards (MATS). The executive order paves the way for select plants to be granted a two-year break on the more stringent MATS standards, amounting to 37 percent of the U.S. coal fleet.
  • Zero-Based Regulatory Budgeting to Unleash American Energy: Adds to President Trump’s deregulatory agenda by directing federal agencies, including the EPA, the Department of Energy, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commissions (FERC) to sunset (set an expiration date for) a large number of existing regulations, mainly focused on energy and environmental matters. The order itself names over 20 laws that enabled agencies to pass those regulations in the first place, such as the Energy Policy Act, the Federal Power Act, and the Endangered Species Act. Agencies are directed to identify the regulations established through these 20+ laws and sunset them within one year. However, the order exempts any permitting regulation directly authorized within federal legislation, which should protect most environmental law. The order also asks the EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers to identify additional laws to add to the list for deregulation. The practical impact of this order remains highly uncertain.
  • Protecting American Energy from State Overreach: Directs the U.S. Attorney General to identify and “take all appropriate action to stop the enforcement of” state and local laws that address climate change, environmental, social, and governance (ESG) initiatives, environmental justice, greenhouse gas emissions, and carbon taxes. The order specifically mentions superfund laws in New York and Vermont, as well as carbon pollution pricing in California. The Attorney General has 60 days to take action to stop enforcement of such laws and identify any further necessary action to comply with the order. Read Climate XChange’s statement on what this Order means for states.

May 2, 2025

• The Department of Transportation repealed the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Measure requiring State Departments of Transportation and Metropolitan Planning Organizations to report transportation GHG emissions and establish declining reduction targets. The rule was finalized in 2023 by the Biden administration.
• The Department of the Interior (DOI) implemented emergency permitting procedures in response to President Trump’s Executive Order, Declaring a National Energy Emergency. The new procedures aim to “accelerate the development of domestic energy resources and critical minerals,” including oil, natural gas/natural gas liquids, refined petroleum, uranium, coal, biofuels, geothermal energy, kinetic hydropower, and critical minerals.
• The new procedures include Alternative Arrangements for National Environmental Policy Act Compliance, which shortens environmental assessments from one year to 14 days and full environmental impact statements from two years to 28 days. The DOI will also implement expedited consultations under the Endangered Species Act and a shortened notification and comment period under the National Historic Preservation Act. These timelines will likely be challenged in court, and developers that opt into these truncated review processes may find their projects vulnerable for failing to satisfy the requirements of these Acts.

May 16, 2025

• President Trump signed four Congressional Review Act resolutions to roll back energy efficiency standards from the Biden Administration:
  • HJR 20: Rescinds standards for tankless water heaters.
  • HJR 24: Rolls back efficiency standards for walk-in coolers and walk-in freezers.
  • HJR 42: Rescinds efficiency certification, labeling, and enforcement requirements for 20 different household and commercial products (such as washing machines, dishwashers, or computer room air conditioners).
  • HJR 75: Rolls back efficiency standards for commercial refrigerators and freezers.

• The Department of Energy announced they would rescind 47 agency regulations deemed “burdensome and costly,” rolling back decades of progress. Among those actions, the DOE will rescind standards for external power supplies, commercial ice makers, ovens, cooktops, and clothes washers and dryers. The agency will also rescind regulations for minority businesses seeking loans for DOE contracts and rescind DOE certification for voluntary GHG reporting. The legality of these deregulatory efforts have been questioned and will likely be challenged in court.
• The Office of Management And Budget released a memo directing federal agencies to stop utilizing the social cost of carbon when writing regulations. The memo provides specific guidance in implementing Section 6 of EO 14154, which initially called for eliminating the social cost of carbon in federal permitting and regulations. The order notes that if a state requires GHG emissions accounting, the federal government should “limit their analysis to the minimum considerations required to meet such a statutory requirement.”

May 30, 2025

• Last week, the White House issued four executive orders that aim to quadruple nuclear energy capacity by 2050. The orders include:
  • Reinvigorating the Nuclear Industrial Base: Directs the Department of Energy (DOE) to expand existing nuclear reactors’ capacity by five gigawatts (GW) and put ten new large reactors into construction no later than 2030 with the support of the DOE’s Loan Programs Office.
  • Reforming Nuclear Reactor Testing at the Department of Energy: Directs the DOE to reform National Laboratory processes and establish a pilot program to approve at least three advanced reactor test sites outside the labs, with operations targeted by July 4, 2026. The Order requires expedited reviews, new environmental exclusions, and DOE-wide coordination to ensure qualified test reactors can be operational within two years of application.
  • Ordering the Reform of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission: Orders the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to speed up its project approval — within 18 months for projects that would construct and operate a new nuclear reactor, and within one year for projects that would continue operating an existing nuclear reactor.  The Order also sets a goal that U.S. nuclear capacity will grow from 100 GW in 2024 to 400 GW by 2050.
  • Deploying Advanced Nuclear Reactor Technologies for National Security: Directs the Secretary of Defense to explore using federal lands and military bases as potential nuclear reactor sites, and to have at least one operational reactor at a domestic military base no later than September 30, 2028.
• The Department of the Interior (DOI) announced updates to a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) policy designed to expedite the oil and gas leasing process on public lands. The updated policy requires BLM to complete lease parcel reviews, which consider whether oil and gas leasing is aligned with regional land use plans, within six months.

June 13, 2025

• The White House Council on Environmental Quality formally withdrew Biden-era interim guidance that required the federal government to consider the effects of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change when conducting National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews, citing inconsistencies with EO 14154, Unleashing American Energy.
• The Supreme Court further narrowed the scope of NEPA in an 8-0 ruling. The case centered on whether the federal Surface Transportation Board should consider climate change impacts when approving a Utah project to connect crude oil to the national network of railroads, and ultimately to refineries on the Gulf Coast. The Justices found that regulators do not need to consider certain upstream or downstream impacts of proposed infrastructure projects and should defer to an agency’s decision about where to draw the line for environmental review.
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released a report “understanding the barriers to starting and keeping small family farms viable.” The report states that solar projects on farmland prevent agricultural expansion and notes that the USDA will disincentivize the use of federal funding to install solar panels on productive farmland.
• Energy Secretary Chris Wright issued two emergency orders directing MISO and PJM to keep fossil-fuel plants open beyond their retirement dates. The first order directs MISO to keep a 1,560 MW coal-fired power plant in Michigan open past its shutdown date, which would have been May 31st. The second order directs PJM to continue operating 760 MW of oil and gas-fired peaking capacity in Pennsylvania, which was planned for deactivation the day after the order was issued.
• Both orders cite President Trump’s energy emergency declaration, concerns surrounding grid capacity shortfall, and the potential for blackouts during the summer months as justification for the extensions. Experts and advocates have cast doubt on the existence of an energy emergency and reliability concerns, and have further stated that the costs to keep these plants open will fall on customers.
• Department of the Interior (DOI) Secretary Doug Burgum announced that the agency would rescind 18 “obsolete or redundant” Bureau of Land Management regulations, citing alignment with President Trump’s deregulatory agenda and the previous DOI Order 3421. The list of rescinded regulations center on mining claims and geothermal leasing on public lands with regulations surrounding: 1) prospecting within national forests, 2) disposal of minerals, 3) mineral locations within national forests, 4) managing the use and occupancy of public lands for mining, and 5) numerous geothermal leasing regulations (§ 3200.7, § 3203.10, § 3212.26), among others.

June 27, 2025

• President Trump signed three Congressional Review Act (CRA) resolutions repealing California’s Clean Air Act waivers, which allowed the state to set its own zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) standards. The resolutions include:
  • H.J.Res.87: Rescinds the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) waiver that allowed California to enforce its Advanced Clean Trucks rule requiring an increasing percentage of new trucks sold to be electric.
  • H.J.Res.88: Revokes the EPA’s waiver that allowed all new passenger cars, trucks and SUVs sold in California to be zero-emission by 2035, also known as Advanced Clean Cars II.
  • H.J.Res.89: Repeals the EPA’s waiver for the Low NOX Omnibus Rules, which were finalized in 2024 and set more stringent emissions standards for heavy-duty vehicles.
• In response, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Executive Order N-27-25 which:
  • Reaffirms the state’s commitment to accelerate ZEV deployment.
  • Directs the California Air Resources Board to develop and propose Advanced Clean Cars III regulations that align with state and federal law.
  • Updates state purchasing requirements to align with manufacturers that comply with clean car regulations.
  • Continues Clean Truck Partnership work, outlining progress reporting requirements every six months.
• The same day, Governor Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta, alongside 10 other states, filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the revoked waivers, arguing that the Administration had violated the CRA, the separation of powers, the Tenth Amendment, and structural principles of federalism.
• The EPA submitted a proposed rule to the Federal Register calling for the repeal of all GHG emissions standards for fossil fuel-fired power plants. The rule proposes that such plants “do not contribute significantly to dangerous air pollution” and since those plants make up a “small and decreasing part of global emissions” they are not subject to regulations under the Clean Air Act.
• The Department of Energy is reestablishing the National Coal Council, an advisory body that lapsed in 2021. The Council will provide recommendations to the Secretary of Energy regarding the coal industry.

July 11, 2025

• President Trump issued an Executive Order to support the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Act’s solar and wind tax credit repeal. The Order directs the Department of Treasury to strictly enforce the Act’s changes to solar and wind tax credits (facilities need to begin construction in one year to obtain subsidies) and will only grant subsidies to projects where “a substantial portion of a subject facility has been built.” The Order also directs the DOI to review and revise any policies where solar and wind projects are perceived to have “preferential treatment” over other energy sources. A more in-depth discussion of the budget reconciliation bill’s impacts on climate can be found by watching our webinar with Evergreen Collaborative.
• The Department of Energy (DOE), in a final regulation published in the Federal Registrar,  announced they would delay implementation of 2022 efficiency standards for manufactured homes. The announced delay will be 180 days after enforcement guidelines are published, although there is no set release date for the guidelines. Companies will now use insulation standards from 1994 to build homes.
• The DOE also announced its Report on Evaluating U.S. Grid Reliability and Security, which was required by Executive Order 14262. The report justifies keeping fossil-fuel-powered plants online, stating that blackouts could increase by 100 times by 2030 if such plants are shuttered. The report also cites concerns about increased demand from data centers and promotes increased use of dispatchable, fossil-fuel sources.
• Multiple federal agencies, including the Department of Agriculture, Department of Energy, Department of the Interior (DOI), Department of Transportation, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced they had revoked their National Environmental Policy Act regulations. In place, the agencies have either replaced their environmental review guidelines with inter-agency-specific guidelines or added nonbinding compliance measures. These rollbacks come in the wake of President Trump’s deregulatory agenda and Unleashing American Energy Order.

July 25, 2025

• The Department of the Interior (DOI) issued a memo requiring the Office of the Secretary to approve all aspects of wind and solar project permitting. The memo outlines 69 aspects of permitting that now fall under federal scope —  from notices to proceed, to memoranda of agreement and impact assessments. The memo comes after President Trump’s Executive Order to support the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Act directed the DOI to review and revise policies where solar and wind were deemed to receive “preferential treatment.”

August 8, 2025

• President Trump issued an Executive Order to expedite federal permitting of data center infrastructure. The Order outlines agency-specific actions to streamline data center permitting, financing, leasing, and environmental review across the executive branch.
• In parallel, the White House also released an AI Action Plan, expanding on the provisions in the Executive Order. The Plan outlines key strategies for data center development on federal land, including:
  • Develop new Categorical Exclusions under the National Environmental Policy Act, which would allow data centers to bypass environmental impact assessments.
  • Expand FAST-41 permitting (established in Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act of 2015) to include data centers.
  • Explore the need for a nationwide Clean Water Act permit for data centers.
  • Expedite permitting under the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, and other related laws.
  • Ensure federal lands are available for data center construction.
  • Prioritize “reliable, dispatchable power sources,” like coal and gas, and expand geothermal and nuclear capabilities to power the centers.
• The Trump Administration issued an interim final rule extending Biden-era compliance deadlines that aim to limit methane emissions from new and existing oil and gas wells, including by requiring leak monitoring and repairs and phasing out flaring at new wells. The interim final rule extends the Biden-era deadlines for control devices, leak detection, storage vessels, process controllers, and covered/closed vent systems by 18 months, and extends the deadline for states to submit compliance plans by approximately 10 months.
• Secretary Burgum announced policy measures to end the “preferential treatment” of wind, complying with President Trump’s July Executive Order. The measures include:
  • SO 3437, which calls for identifying policies that favor wind and solar and stop supporting energy supply chains “controlled by foreign rivals.” The Order directs assistant secretaries to review all regulations, guidance, policies, and practices that are not in alignment with the Secretary and President’s guidance.
  • Consider withdrawing areas of public land with high potential for wind development.
  • Enhance stakeholder engagement for offshore wind development to understand possible impacts on commercial fishing and tourism.
  • Review the impacts of wind turbines on migratory birds.
• Secretary Burgum further issued SO 3438, directing the DOI to consider how solar and wind per-acre energy generating capacity compares to fossil fuels and nuclear when issuing permits. The Department will not issue solar and wind permits unless the projects can generate as much energy per acre as coal, gas, or nuclear plants; however, solar and wind generate less power per acre than each of those sources, according to federal data. The Order states that wind and solar are “highly inefficient uses of Federal lands.”
• In addition, the DOI announced that the Bureau of Land Management rescinded three Biden-era policy documents restricting oil and gas drilling in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve. One of the rescinded documents is a request for information seeking stakeholder input on which areas of the Reserve should be considered for protection. The announcement is aligned with President Trump’s Order to increase Alaska’s energy production and the subsequent SO 3422 aligning with the President’s directive.
• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved temporary expedited interconnection processes proposed by the Midcontinent Independent System Operator and the Southwest Power Pool to address resource adequacy concerns and bring power sources online quickly. Critics argue that the expedited review process will disproportionately benefit gas-fired power plants and stall renewable projects that have waited years to connect to the grid.
• FERC also ordered PJM to make changes to its interconnection process to fully comply with Order 2023. FERC’s Order 2023 establishes guidelines for regional transmission organizations to reduce interconnection delays and conduct interconnection studies, with penalties for failing to meet guidelines. Notably, PJM is required to evaluate the use of grid enhancing technologies in its interconnection studies. FERC also required further information about cost sharing and allocation and incorporating battery storage projects in interconnection evaluations.  

August 22, 2025

• The Department of Transportation (DOT) is implementing a 1.2 mile setback requirement for wind turbines built near highways and railroads. The DOT cites a report written by a railroad industry consulting firm that suggests wind farms could impact radio signals, but the report does not recommend a setback requirement for highways. Secretary Duffy also directed the Federal Aviation Administration to “thoroughly evaluate proposed wind turbines to ensure they do not pose a danger to aviation.”
• The Department of Energy (DOE) cancelled a $4.9 billion loan guarantee for the Grain Belt Express transmission project, the largest transmission line project in the U.S. The project, approved by the Biden administration in November 2024, was designed to carry wind and solar energy through Kansas and Missouri and eventually through Illinois and Indiana. The decision is expected to face legal challenges.
• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ruled, in two separate decisions, that fossil-fuel plants subject to DOE emergency orders to remain open can recover costs from ratepayers. FERC ruled that the cost of keeping a 1,560-MW Michigan coal plant open will be shared across the MISO North and Central regions. Further, FERC ruled that the cost of powering two, 380-MW oil and gas plants in Pennsylvania will be spread across the PJM region.
• The Treasury Department released guidance for wind and solar projects seeking federal tax credits in response to President Trump’s Executive Order directing the Treasury to “strictly enforce” the One Big Beautiful Bill Act’s (OBBBA) changes to renewable tax credits. New rules, which apply to projects that begin construction after September 2, 2025, remove a previous five percent investment requirement and now require renewable developers to begin construction of a “significant nature” by July 2026 to obtain credits. No other investment or percent completion thresholds are mentioned. Smaller solar facilities must still comply with the five percent threshold.

September 5, 2025

• The Department of the Interior (DOI) ordered work on the $4 billion Revolution Wind project off the coast of Rhode Island to stop until the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) authorizes construction to resume. The project had previously received approval under the Biden Administration and was 70 percent complete according to Orsted, the project’s builder. The DOI also submitted a court filing outlining its intention to revoke approval of the 2.2 gigawatt U.S. Wind project off the coast of Maryland and Delaware. In addition, the DOI filed a motion with the D.C. District Court challenging previous approval of a project off the coast of Massachusetts.
• The Department of Transportation announced it would withdraw or terminate $679 million in funding for 12 offshore wind development projects across the country. The projects were funded through the Port Infrastructure Development Program and the Nationally Significant Freight and Highway Projects (INFRA) Program. State responses to these actions include:

• The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (BPU) unanimously voted to delay $1.1 billion in transmission infrastructure upgrades intended to connect offshore wind energy in the state by 30 months, citing federal funding uncertainty and increased ratepayer costs.

• The Governors of Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Jersey released a joint statement urging the Trump administration to uphold offshore wind permits already granted and allow project construction. The statement cites concerns surrounding job loss, stranded investments, decreased investor confidence, and grid reliability if projects within the states are cancelled.
• The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced it would halt subsidies for solar energy projects built on farmland and would not allow solar panels built by “foreign adversaries” to be used in USDA-funded projects. Secretary Rollins was joined by representatives from Tennessee, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Illinois, Georgia, Wyoming, Wisconsin, South Carolina, and Nebraska, all citing the need to protect national security, access to farmland, food supply, and the agricultural economy.
• Immediate USDA actions include:

• Rescinding wind and solar projects from Rural Development Business and Industry (B&I) Guaranteed Loan Program eligibility
• Rescinding eligibility under the Rural Development Rural Energy for America Program Guaranteed Loan Program (REAP Guaranteed Loan Program) for solar projects greater than 50 kilovolts or solar projects that cannot document historical energy use

• The Department of Energy extended emergency orders keeping two fossil-fueled power plants online past their retirement date:
  • The Eddystone oil-and-gas plant in Pennsylvania was set to retire on May 31st, when the DOE issued an initial emergency order keeping the plant open until August 28th. The DOE subsequently reissued the emergency order, extending the plant’s retirement a second time, until November 26, 2025.
  • The J.H. Campbell coal plant in Michigan was set to also retire on May 31st, when the DOE issued its first emergency order keeping the plant open until August 21st. The reissued order now keeps the plant open until November 19, 2025.
• The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) authority under the 2020 American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act to phase down hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) through a cap-and-trade program. The AIM Act mandates an 85 percent reduction in HFC production and consumption by 2036. The HFC allowance calculations under the program were first challenged by the refrigerant industry after they were updated in 2024.

September 19, 2025

• The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed a rule to permanently remove requirements for most emissions reporting under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP), starting next year. The GHGRP currently requires large sources of emissions, fuel and industrial gas supplies, and carbon dioxide injection sites to report their greenhouse gas data annually. Under the proposal, 46 source categories would no longer be required to report emissions under the GHGRP, including stationary fuel combustion sources, electricity generation, municipal solid waste landfills, manufacturing, and many other sources of pollution.
  • According to the proposed rule’s factsheet, only the petroleum and natural gas source category (subpart W) would still be required to report emissions, since they are subject to the Waste Emissions Charge. However, the proposed rule would eliminate reporting requirements for the natural gas distribution sector, and suspend program reporting requirements for the remaining sectors under subpart W until reporting year 2034, in accordance with the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an order ending a proceeding that would have updated interstate gas pipeline rules under section 7 of the Natural Gas Act. The Certification of New Interstate Natural Gas Facilities proceeding would have implemented a new formula that weights the environment more heavily than the existing methodology — written in 1999 — when assessing the value of new interstate gas lines.

October 3, 2025

• A federal judge lifted President Trump’s stop-work order for Rhode Island’s Revolution Wind project that was issued in August. A U.S. District Court judge granted a motion for a preliminary injunction, allowing construction to continue as the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management conducts a review of its concerns over the project.
• The Trump administration announced a suite of actions to help boost the U.S. coal industry. This includes $625 million in Department of Energy (DOE) funding to boost coal production in rural communities, recommission or modernize coal power plants, and support wastewater management projects that enable coal plants to extend their service lifetime. In parallel, the Department of the Interior (DOI) announced it is opening 13.1 million acres of federal land for coal mine leasing, lowering royalty rates, and streamlining project approval in western and southern states. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also announced it will delay seven deadlines related to wastewater pollution from coal-fired power plants.

October 17, 2025

• The Department of the Interior released a Contingency Plan for the government shutdown, stating that the agency will continue to permit oil and gas, transmission, and related rights-of-way projects. Personnel who permit such projects will be classified as “Exempt,” allowing them to continue work during the shutdown. Such operations will continue with money generated from permit fees.
• The Department of the Interior also cancelled National Environmental Policy Act review of the 6.2 gigawatt (GW) Esmeralda 7 Solar Project located on federal land in Nevada. The Esmeralda 7 project comprises seven individual solar projects. A spokesperson from the Bureau of Land Management stated that the project is not cancelled, but that each of the seven solar projects will need to submit individual proposals for review.
• The Environmental Protection Agency submitted a proposed rule to loosen regulations on hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phaseout, which were established in 2023 and required by the 2020 American Innovation and Manufacturing Act. The 2023 rules prohibit the production and import of HFC products with high global warming potential (GWP), and a ban on the sale, distribution, and export of those products three years thereafter. The proposed rule is a response to industry petitions claiming supply chain issues and concerns meeting compliance deadlines.
• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced it would repeal 53 regulations in response to President Trump’s April Deregulation Executive Order. FERC’s Final Rule outlines each repealed rule, which are justified as being outdated, redundant, or previously repealed. All 53 regulations will sunset within one year, unless the agency votes for an extension. Repealed rules include: phased electric rate increases, calculating rate of returns for hydroelectric projects, ratemaking for emissions allowances, smart grid standards, gas supply charges, power plant and fuel use rules, reporting on proposals, and others.

October 31, 2025

• The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved the Southwest Power Pool’s (SPP) proposed provisional load process, which will enable the regional transmission organization to proactively plan for potential new load additions, such as data centers, even when there is not enough existing power to serve the new additions. Previous SPP rules required that the transmission customer must show it has sufficient resources to serve its existing load plus any requested load addition, documented in its 10-year forecast.
• DOE Secretary Chris Wright directed FERC to initiate rulemaking that accelerates the interconnection of large loads, including data centers, and issue a final rule by April 30, 2026. The proposed rule grants FERC jurisdiction over interconnection of new loads greater than 20 MW to speed up connection to the grid, which is currently managed by states and utilities. The rule would allow customers to file joint, co-located load and generation interconnection requests and would reduce study times, grid upgrade costs, and time needed for additional generating power to come online. Wright’s request also emphasized the need for uniform interconnection standards while rewarding curtailable, dispatchable, and hybrid facilities (large load customers with on-site power) through expedited review.
• In addition, the DOE Loan Program Office announced it had closed a $1.6 billion loan guarantee under the Energy Dominance Financing (EDF) Program created by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The guarantee, the first closed through the EDF, will be granted to a subsidiary of American Electric Power (AEP) to reconductor and rebuild nearly 5,000 miles of transmission lines across Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Oklahoma, and West Virginia. AEP estimates the guarantee will save customers $275 million on their utility bills and will create around 1,100 construction jobs.
• The DOE renewed an emergency order to allow an oil-fired power plant in Maryland to operate beyond an annual time limit, which is designed to reduce pollution, through the end of the year. The order states another renewal can be requested in the future.
• The Department of the Interior (DOI) announced actions to boost energy development in Alaska, namely reopening 1.56 million acres of the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas leasing, which reverses a policy established by the Biden administration that restricted drilling in the refuge.

November 21, 2025

• The Department of the Interior (DOI) announced a final rule rescinding a 2024 Bureau of Land Management rule that limited oil and gas leasing on 13 million acres in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. The original rule, finalized in May 2024, limited the expansion of oil and gas development within designated “Special Areas” and provided guidelines to protect wildlife. This announcement follows an October announcement that the Department is reopening 1.56 million acres of the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska to oil and gas leasing.
• A federal court upheld DOE rules that mandate a 95 percent efficiency standard for gas-fired commercial water heaters and consumer furnaces. Finalized in 2023, the efficiency standards will take effect in 2028.
• In a 3-0 decision, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ordered the Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO) to specify when and how merchant transmission projects — transmission facilities that don’t rely on direct ratepayer support — are incorporated into its transmission planning models. The October 2025 order gave MISO 90 days to specify when and how merchant high-voltage, direct-current transmission projects will be incorporated into the grid operator’s planning processes.

December 17, 2025

• A U.S. District Court judge ruled that President Trump’s January executive order targeting wind energy projects is illegal and vacated the order entirely. Seventeen states and D.C. sued the Trump administration over the order, and the judge found that the states had “produced ample evidence demonstrating that they face ongoing or imminent injuries due to the Wind Order,” including project delays that “reduce or defer tax revenue and returns on the State Plaintiffs’ investments in wind energy developments.”
• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized rules to delay Biden-era compliance deadlines that aim to limit methane emissions from new and existing oil and gas wells, including requiring leak monitoring and repairs and phasing out flaring at new wells. The final rule, first proposed in July, extends the Biden-era deadlines for control devices, leak detection, storage vessels, process controllers, and covered/closed vent systems until January 2027.

Return to List

Federal Funding

January 24, 2025

• On January 10th, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded $635 million to deploy electric vehicle charging and alternative fueling infrastructure through the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure (CFI) Program. The grants fund 49 projects across 27 states, D.C., and four Tribes.

February 21, 2025

• Earlier this month, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) issued a letter to state Departments of Transportation (DOTs) declaring that program guidance for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program is rescinded and the FHWA suspended approval of all state deployment plans until new NEVI guidance is issued. Established by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, NEVI provides $5 billion through fiscal year 2026 to state DOTs to build a national network of electric vehicle charging stations. The letter states that no new obligations will occur until new guidance is issued and new state plans are submitted and approved. It also states that existing obligations can be reimbursed. Prior to the freeze, $3.3 billion had been allocated to states, $511 million had been awarded in contracts between states and charging developers, and only $40 million had been spent. The move has some states halting programs, while others are moving forward with projects utilizing NEVI funds that have already been obligated.

June 13, 2025

• The DOE announced the cancellation of 24 awards issued by the Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED), totaling $3.7 billion in federal funding. The OCED awards were authorized under the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. Terminated projects were from the Industrial Demonstrations Program, which primarily focused on industrial decarbonization, such as decarbonizing cement production, lowering emissions from iron and steelmaking, reducing emissions from glass production, and replacing fossil-fuel powered heating with clean heat, heat pumps, electric boilers, and thermal energy storage systems.

June 27, 2025

• A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction lifting the Trump Administration’s freeze of federal funding for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. The injunction will unfreeze roughly $1 billion in funds by July 1st for 14 states that have challenged the Trump administration’s NEVI freeze: Washington, Oregon, Colorado, California, Arizona, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin. The ruling did not apply to the District of Columbia, Minnesota and Vermont, as they did not provide evidence that they would suffer immediate harm.

July 11, 2025

• The DOI announced $725 million in funding for the 2025 fiscal year to clean up abandoned coal mines. Twenty-two states and the Navajo Nation will receive funding, which was based on historic coal production. Over half of the funding will go to Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and Illinois, Kentucky, and Ohio will each receive over $45 million.

August 22, 2025

• After previously suspending the disbursal of funds and launching a review of the program, the Department of Transportation issued revised National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) guidance designed to “streamline applications, provide states with more flexibility, and slash red tape.” The DOT has published Interim Final Guidance, which may be further revised after public comment. States can submit their NEVI plans and apply for funding within 30 days of when the guidance was issued. Changes to the guidance include:
  • Minimizing content requirements and shortening the approval process for state plans.
  • Allowing states to determine the distance between stations along alternative fuel corridors.
  • Allowing states to use funds on public roads across their state, instead of only along designated Alternative Fuel Corridors.
  • Reducing requirements for states to consider electric grid integration and renewable energy.
  • Removing requirements for states to consider consumer protections, emergency evacuation, environmental siting, resilience, and terrain considerations.
  • Removing requirements that plans be developed to support rural, underserved, and disadvantaged communities.
• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it would rescind all $7 billion in Solar for All (SFA) grants, a program that was established through the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act and sought to install residential solar on 900,000 low-income households. In total, 60 grant recipients had received funding. The EPA states that the OBBBA repealed the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, effectively blocking the agency’s authority in dispersing SFA funding. However, all $7 billion of SFA funds have been obligated and $53 million have already been spent. The move is expected to face legal challenges.

October 17, 2025

• The Department of Energy (DOE) announced the termination of 321 financial awards, totalling $7.56 billion in cancelled funding. This funding supported 233 clean energy projects, 201 of which were funded by the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The cancellations came after Secretary Wright announced new standards for evaluating financial awards: projects must be “financially sound and economically viable, aligned with national and economic security interests, and consistent with Federal law and this Administration’s policies and priorities and program goals and priorities.”

October 31, 2025

• The Department of Energy (DOE) cancelled $718 million in battery and manufacturing awards from the Manufacturing and Energy Supply Chains Office. The awards were originally funded through the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Projects across Missouri, Kentucky, Alabama, Nevada, and Michigan were impacted. The cancellations were originally reported to Politico’s E&E News.

November 21, 2025

• In October, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced $100 million to refurbish and modernize existing coal power plants. The funding will support projects that “improve efficiency, plant lifetimes, and performance of coal and natural gas use,” such as advanced wastewater management systems and retrofits that enable plants to co-fire with natural gas.