skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Monday, July 15, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

After the Trump assassination attempt, defining democracy gets even harder; Trump picks Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, a once-fierce critic turned loyal ally, as his GOP running mate; DC residents push back on natural gas infrastructure build-up a new law allows youth on Medi-Cal to consent to mental health treatment.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Former President Trump is injured but safe after an attempted assassination many condemn political violence. Democrats' fears intensify over Biden's run. And North Carolina could require proof of citizenship to vote.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Enticing remote workers to move is a new business strategy in rural America, Eastern Kentucky preservationists want to save the 20th century home of a trailblazing coal miner, and a rule change could help small meat and poultry growers and consumers.

MN coalition: Give residents a voice in phasing in clean heat sources

play audio
Play

Monday, January 29, 2024   

A regulatory hearing dealing with energy policy does not seem like a setting for most Minnesotans but a new coalition is recruiting voices who want affordable clean heating sources in homes and businesses to speak up on such decisions.

Clean Heat Minnesota is backed by dozens of organizations representing a range of causes, including environmental, consumer advocacy, and racial justice.

Brynn Kirsling, senior manager of advocacy campaigns for Fresh Energy, a key contributor to the coalition, said climate change and the link to fossil fuels is often thought of in global terms. She argued as community impacts emerge, indoor air pollution cannot be ignored, and people outside the energy sector deserve to be heard.

"If you live, work, go to school in a building or cook food, you have a stake in what this looks like," Kirsling asserted.

The coalition wants to help draft a roadmap to expanding the availability of electric heating sources and appliances, including removing cost barriers for underserved populations. The Latino advocacy organization Communities Organizing Latino Power and Action-Minnesota is also leading efforts. Kirsling acknowledged challenges, such as political backlash over regulatory discussions about natural gas stoves as research builds on their negative health effects.

Annie Levenson-Falk, executive director of the Citizens Utility Board of Minnesota, which has been a driving force behind the coalition, said they want to help residents feel comfortable participating in hearings led by the state's Public Utilities Commission.

"It's kind of bureaucratic, it's [a] very expert-driven process and there are benefits to that," Levenson-Falk noted. "But it makes it hard to participate if it's not your full-time job."

The Citizens Utility Board said the Public Utilities Commission is poised to accelerate long-term planning for gas utilities under the clean energy transition, much like electric utilities have. Levenson-Falk warned it could be a challenge to keep customer bills lower because gas companies have spent a lot of money on infrastructure over the years. If there are demand shifts to sources like electric heat pumps, there are fewer customers to cover expenses.

Disclosure: Fresh Energy contributes to our fund for reporting on Climate Change/Air Quality, Energy Policy, Environment, and Environmental Justice. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
"I truly love our Country, and love you all, and look forward to speaking to our Great Nation this week from Wisconsin," wrote Former President Donald Trump on social media. (Gage Skidmore/Flickr)

Social Issues

play sound

Gov. Spencer Cox is calling for unity as well as the condemnation of political violence in light of the assassination attempt on former President …


Environment

play sound

Last week, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee heard testimony on the state and federal response to the collapse of the Key Bridge…

Environment

play sound

Forecasters are warning New Englanders to prepare for an "above-normal" number of hurricanes this summer. Hurricane Beryl was already the strongest …


Line 5, an Enbridge pipeline that was built in 1953, runs for 645 miles from Wisconsin, under the Straits of Mackinac, through Michigan to Sarnia, Ontario. (Jorge Moro/Adobe Stock)

Environment

play sound

A Michigan environmental group is addressing an appeal challenging the state's decision to approve the enclosure of the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline…

Social Issues

play sound

Civil rights groups are sounding the alarm about potential threats to American democracy posed by Project 2025, a roadmap created by the Heritage …

In a 2024 report from the National Education Association, South Dakota ranked 49th in the U.S. for average teacher salary, at about $53,000 a year. (Adobe Stock)

Social Issues

play sound

A coalition of South Dakota groups is voicing its opposition to a ballot measure intended to end a state sales tax on consumables. If passed this …

Social Issues

play sound

North Dakota officials will highlight a new project today to boost childcare access for parents with nontraditional work hours. A local provider …

Social Issues

play sound

With just over a month before Indiana university students return, a new law affecting college professor tenures is in full effect. The law targets …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021