Citing German privacy laws, Volkswagen has refused to provide emails or other communications among its executives to attorneys general in the United States, impeding American investigations into the company’s emissions-cheating scandal. [The NY Times] Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today awarded $46 million in assistance to the Vermont Energy Investment Corporation to support energy efficiency and… Keep reading →
As previously reported in the PK Law Newsletter, tax planning for the end of 2015 was hampered by the expiration of a number of “temporary” tax provisions routinely extended for a one or two year period by Congress.
As any child of the ’80s knows, October 21, 2015 is “Back to the Future Day” – the day that the film’s protagonist, Marty McFly, travels to the future in his DeLorean. Though it would no doubt be useful to have access to flying cars (think of the traffic one could avoid), Californians are seeing… Keep reading →
Nearly two weeks ago, Congress passed the omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 and the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015.
Just in time for the holidays, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) quietly gave the gift of more affordable electricity to millions of Pennsylvanians. PECO Energy Company, a leading Pennsylvania utility, had requested a significant distribution rate increase – meaning higher bills for its approximately 1.6 million electric customers. After months of discussion, last week… Keep reading →
As a bustling metropolis and the biggest city in Texas, Houston has a lot of buildings – and that equals a lot of opportunity to make these facilities more energy- and water-efficient. Houston grabbed headlines last month when it became the first in Texas to adopt a citywide Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program. PACE… Keep reading →
Representatives from 195 countries signed a climate agreement on Saturday at the COP21 United Nations climate summit in Paris.
With a unanimous City Council vote, San Diego, has become the largest American municipality to transition to using 100 percent renewable energy. [The NY Times] Congressional negotiators scrambled to bridge energy policy differences and strike a deal for a $1.15 trillion spending bill. [Yahoo News] Even after a steady drop in energy prices through the… Keep reading →
It’s a race to the end of the year, and the end of this week, for Congress, at it wraps up negotiations on tax extenders, the omnibus appropriations package, and other end of the year measures.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz released the following statement regarding the conclusion of the COP21 climate change negotiations: “This agreement shows that the world is ready to move towards an innovative era of reductions in heat-trapping emissions that will put us on a path to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. President Obama,… Keep reading →
