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Author: John F. Farell Published: 12/5/2022 ILSR

Are Utilities Blocking Rooftop Solar From the Power Grid ? A great analysis by ILSR’s Katie Kienbaum on the problems of interconnection policy and practice
The Promise and Peril of Publicly-Owned Power, a six-part podcast series about public power takeovers of private utility companies
How the Inflation Reduction Act Makes it Easier to Go Solar — and Where it Falls Short by Katie Kienbaum
What the FTC could do to uncover monopoly utility abuses, a joint petition to the Federal Trade Commission
My interview with Freeing Energy author Bill Nussey
A story of clean energy innovation at a Colorado rural electric cooperative where they keep discovering they can go “twice as fast at half the cost” toward renewable energy
The States of Distributed Solar explains which states are leaders in rooftop and community solar, and which are not.
The 2022 Community Power Scorecard ranks states based on their policies to enable local energy democracy
Democratizing Power, a terrific online event featuring several speakers sharing stories of challenging utility monopoly power

Keep your energy local,
John

P.S. On the latest episode of ILSR’s Building Local Power podcast, three of my colleagues from the Independent Business team gathered to share the big takeaways from their work in 2022—including some exciting and heartening developments in the world of antitrust. Listen here.

The Latest News in Energy Self-Reliance

Looking back at the highlights of 2022…

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@JohnFFarrell

ilsr.org: Energy Democracy

In lieu of a “last week” update, I’m sharing a few highlights from our work in 2022 you might have missed:

Are Utilities Blocking Rooftop Solar From the Power Grid ? A great analysis by ILSR’s Katie Kienbaum on the problems of interconnection policy and practice
The Promise and Peril of Publicly-Owned Power, a six-part podcast series about public power takeovers of private utility companies
How the Inflation Reduction Act Makes it Easier to Go Solar — and Where it Falls Short by Katie Kienbaum
What the FTC could do to uncover monopoly utility abuses, a joint petition to the Federal Trade Commission
My interview with Freeing Energy author Bill Nussey
A story of clean energy innovation at a Colorado rural electric cooperative where they keep discovering they can go “twice as fast at half the cost” toward renewable energy
The States of Distributed Solar explains which states are leaders in rooftop and community solar, and which are not.
The 2022 Community Power Scorecard ranks states based on their policies to enable local energy democracy
Democratizing Power, a terrific online event featuring several speakers sharing stories of challenging utility monopoly power

Keep your energy local,
John

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The Latest News in Energy Self-Reliance

SURVEY: The Promise and Peril of Publicly-Owned Power

This fall, we embarked on a journey to tell stories about communities across the country that have sought to establish publicly-owned power utilities. In a special 6-part podcast series, we asked: what can we learn from public power efforts that succeed? And what about those that don’t? It was a different format for us (and, frankly, a lot more work), so we’d like to ask you, our listeners: was it worth it?

TAKE THE 2-MINUTE SURVEY –>

Tiny Laboratories of (Energy) Democracy

In this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, the founders of ZeroCarbonMA discuss the six provisions in the Municipal Climate Empowerment Plan, a package of state legislation that would enable Mass. communities to tackle their clean energy challenges with local solutions and greater local funding.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST –>

Public Power Pt. 6: Alternatives

For the final episode in our special series, The Promise and Peril of Publicly-Owned Power, we explore five alternatives to a public power takeover that can still advance a community’s clean energy and environmental justice aims.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST –>

Public Power Pt. 5: The Perils

Customers of four publicly-owned utilities explain some limitations of the public power model and share how they are organizing to increase accountability. This is part five of a special series: The Promise and Peril of Publicly-Owned Power.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST –>

How Cities Can Make the Most of IRA Dollars

In this episode of the Local Energy Rules Podcast, Lawyer Amy Turner joins John Farrell to explain how cities can use Inflation Reduction Act dollars to advance local goals — and why they should help their residents do the same.

LISTEN TO THE PODCAST –>

A Successful Transition to Clean Building Energy Requires Collective Action

In comments to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, ILSR argues that there is no future for gas in Minnesota and emphasizes the need for a collective solution to the collective problem of natural gas use.

READ THE ARTICLE –>

New Power Generation Quarterly: 2022 Q2

10 gigawatts of new power generation capacity went online in the second quarter of 2022. Most of this generation capacity buildout came from renewable resources, including record small solar installation, but 39% was from gas plant construction.

READ THE ARTICLE –>

The Local Energy Rules Podcast

Tiny Laboratories of (Energy) Democracy – Episode 171
Public Power Pt. 6: Alternatives – Episode 170
Public Power Pt. 5: The Perils – Episode 169

Listen In!

What do you want to know about the community renewable energy space? Email me at jfarrell@ilsr.org.