Hot News and Updates:

Regional Northeast News:

• 11 States Are Eyeing Laws to Make Fossil Fuel Industry Pay for Climate Crisis (Truthout) 

• Gas bans gain steam despite industry wins (E&ENews)

• Voters balked on natural gas bans, but climate advocates are hoping to withstand court challenges (Just the News)

• Environmental agencies in nine Northeast and Western states pledge to have heat pumps make up 90% of residential heating, air conditioning and water heating sales in their states by 2040. (Energy News Network)

• EVs, heat pumps seen creating Northeast grid crunch (E&E News)

• How a Landmark Supreme Court Decision Will Reshape the U.S. Energy Sector (Scientific American) 

• Ten Republican governors, including New Hampshire’s Chris Sununu, band together to oppose renewable power mandates; an advocate says the group’s call for “energy choice” is “thinly veiled code” for natural gas. (The Hill)

• Commentary: Wood-stove industry seeks consistent regulations, in-home testing (Boston Business Journal)

Connecticut:

• With deadline approaching, CT lawmakers’ energy bill comes into focus (CT Mirror) 

• The Connecticut House approves a bill setting a goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and establishing new incentives for solar canopies, electric heat pumps, and green job creation. (CT Mirror) 

• In CT, Lamont pledges focus on climate resiliency (Hartford Business)

• Climate change all but ignored by the CT legislature in 2023 (CT Mirror) 

• New Haven, CT receives $3 million in federal funds to plant 5,000 trees for climate mitigation, a project the city’s climate czar calls “hackneyed” but effective. (New Haven Independent)

Maine:

• Maine will wait to see how other states’ climate superfunds fare before considering its own (Maine Morning Star) 

• Maine energy prices, already costly, expected to rise as Trump tariffs take effect (Press Herald)

• Maine still relies heavily on fossil fuels but calls zero-carbon goals 'achievable' (Yahoo!news)

• Mainers Pass $25 Million Bond for Science, Renewable Energy

• Maine launched its first Inflation Reduction Act rebates. What’s next? (The Maine Monitor) 

Massachusetts:

• Mass. Gov. Healey Introduces Energy Affordability Bill (RTO Insider) 

• Trump says the solution to high New England energy costs is a natural gas pipeline project. It’s not nearly that simple. (Boston Globe) 

• Massachusetts homeowners say state is ignoring cost in push toward all electric heat (WCVB)

• Massachusetts earns an F on new homebuilding and affordability (Boston)

• Mass. orders utilities to spend less ratepayer money on natural gas pipelines (WCVB)

• Mass. to reassess emissions mandates amid Trump's climate policy changes? (Wbur)

• Massachusetts home-electrification pilot could offer a national model (Canary Media)

• Gov. Maura Healey deflects blame for surge in Massachusetts utility delivery rates, utility bills (WCVB)

• Massachusetts Energy Cost Crisis: Governor Demands Action as State’s Push To Phase Out Natural Gas Leads to Soaring Utility Bills (NY Sun)

• Massachusetts residents fuming over skyrocketing gas bills (WCVB)

• Massachusetts cities embrace voluntary green building codes (Canary Media) 

• Healey Adds Clean Energy Reforms To Closeout Budget - Massachusetts (NEHPBA Blog)

New Hampshire:

• Following Trump’s executive order, New Hampshire House votes to roll back offshore wind‬(Seacoast Online)

• Several climate bills stall out in the New Hampshire House (NPR)

• New Hampshire will finally fix its property assessed clean energy law (NH Business Review)

• NH is drafting a new climate plan. But it's on track to remain an outlier in New England (NHPR)

New York:

• NY Senator warns new state budget ignores affordability crisis (Finer Lakes 1) 

• Deep blue state is swinging 'aggressively to the right' and there's polling to prove it (MSN)

• Justice Department sues Hawaii, Michigan, Vermont and New York over state climate actions (AP News)

• Study: As Use of Natural Gas Rose, Carbon Emissions Fell (DV Journal)

• Businesses sue Hochul over ‘illegal and misguided’ $75B climate law, claiming it will cause a spike in costs to consumers (MSN)

• How Trump’s trade war could impact US electricity prices — and state climate plans (Grist)

• New York advances gas ban, sidelines other green building rules (Syracuse)

• Hochul Administration Stalls on All-Electric Building Code (New York Focus)

• Hochul approves more natural gas pumping to meet cold-weather demand despite NY’s green push – and Con Ed’s proposed hikes (NY Post)

• 22 states sue New York, alleging environmental fund is unconstitutional (AP News)

• New York earns worst-ever ranking on U-Haul's annual migration report (Spectrum News 1)

• Push against New York's natural gas ban on new builds continues (Audacy)

Rhode Island:

• Are R.I.’s clean energy programs costing too much? This panel is looking for the answer? (PBN) 

• A Rhode Island clean heat program plans to add $25 million in incentives for residents, small businesses, public buildings and other organizations to switch away from fossil fuels or help develop the HVAC industry workforce. (ecoRI) 

Vermont:

• Justice Department sues Hawaii, Michigan, Vermont and New York over state climate actions (Apnews)

• Trump takes Vermont’s climate superfund law to court (VTDIGGER)

• Clean Heat Standard put on back burner and looks to be over — for now (NBC5)

• Vermont Faces Potential Retrenchment in Climate Ambition (Inside Climate News)

• Controversial clean heat standard detailed in proposed rules by Vermont regulators (NHPR)

• With few paths for climate action, Vermont Democrats consider changes to state’s landmark climate law (VTDigger)

• House Republicans to introduce repeal of Clean Heat Standard (VermontBiz)

• With new draft rules, Vermont’s clean heat standard faces murky future (Canary Media)

OTHER RESOURCES:

• Grills. Who is buying them? Why are they buying them and are they going to continue buying them? We have some answers. To access this report, please login to the HPBA website and download your copy from under the Resources tab or by clicking HERE. 

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