Last Week in ILSR’s Energy Self-Reliant States – Positive Change Purchasing Cooperative

Author: John Farrell Published: 2/15/2021 ILSR’s

Join the 30 Million Solar Campaign Launch on Feb. 17th..

Last week, we released a hopeful story of new renewable energy financing — a community bank in Iowa launches a new online branch, Greenpenny, that exclusively uses customer deposits to finance new solar, energy storage, energy efficiency, and other clean energy options. It’s no surprise to see, given that the bank has already been a key player in the incredible success of the Winneshiek Energy District (a rural Iowa county with more solar per capita than any U.S. metro area other than Honolulu) — we’ve got a podcast on that, too!

Also, securitization policy is on the move around the country, with an aim of letting utilities refinance power plants to lower the cost of closing coal (and other) power plants. But will it let utility management and shareholders off the hook? We offered brief testimony to the Minnesota legislature on securitization, highlighting a new report from Clean Energy Action in Colorado that suggests utilities should have to pay for bad decisions (for a basic overview of securitization, see ILSR’s 2019 securitization post).

Keep your energy local,
John

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The Latest News in Energy Self-Reliance

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Our country currently faces three major challenges: rebuilding the economy, addressing the climate crisis, and rectifying racial injustices. Building local solar to serve 30 million homes — the equivalent of one in four American households — can help us solve all three. We hope you’ll join us for the national launch of this campaign on Wednesday, February 17th, 2021.

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In Support of an Improved Securitization Bill in Minnesota

On February 2, 2021, ILSR’s John Farrell testified in favor of a securitization bill advancing in the Minnesota House. Farrell’s testimony at the informational hearing largely supported the bill (with a few tweaks) that is undergoing review by the House Climate and Energy Finance and Policy committee.

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Expanding Access to Energy Efficient Appliances

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