Author: Mark Jaffe
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Oil and gas bill helps and hurts Colo. mineral owners, critics say
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A bill before the Colorado legislature that would sharply limit the chances of a mineral owner sharing in the production profits of an oil well is slated to be heard in the state Senate Agriculture, Natural Resources and Energy Committee Wednesday. The legislation – Senate Bill 230, sponsored by Sen. Vicki Marble, R-Fort Collins, and…
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Oil and gas money flows into local elections seeking a bang for the buck
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Money from the oil and gas industry and its supporters has been flowing into municipal elections in the suburban oil patch north of Denver -but while the bucks have been big by local standards, so far the bang has been small. The most recent foray into community elections came in Erie on April 3, when $55,000…
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How EPA’s rollback of auto mileage rule would impact Colorado
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The rollback of federal auto-mileage standards – expected by the Trump administration in the coming days – could erase some of the progress being made in Colorado on cutting air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, according to analyses by environmental groups. “Having this rule yanked out from under us will send Colorado backward,” said Will…
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Colorado Senate committee unplugs bill to allow Xcel to build EV charging stations
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DENVER – The state Senate Transportation Committee Tuesday killed legislation what would have opened the way for Xcel Energy to build electrical vehicle (EV) charging stations to bolster the development of the alternative transport. It failed on a 3-2 vote along party lines. Senate Bill 216 aimed to remove a prohibition on investor-owned utilities from building…
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Cover Story: Pueblo and Black Hills Energy square off in an electric war
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The “straw that broke the camel’s back” for many on the Pueblo City Council was the unexpected bill from Black Hills Energy for the new, efficient street lighting – especially since the utility had been in on the planning for the $4.2-million project. “Black Hills leadership has declared a war of economics against Pueblo’s low-income…
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Colorado Public Utilities Commission green-lights plan to close 2 coal-fired power plants
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The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) Wednesday gave Xcel Energy the green light to develop a plan to close two coal-fired power plants and replace them with renewable or low-cost alternatives. Under the proposal, which Xcel calls its Clean Energy Plan or CEP, the utility would get 55 percent of its electricity from renewable sources…
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Oil and gas accident reporting bill clears committee over industry objections
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A bill to focus and enhance reporting of oil and gas industry spills and accidents cleared the House Transportation and Energy Committee Wednesday over the objections of the oil and gas industry. The bill, House Bill 1157, passed with the committee’s eight Democrats voting for it and the five Republicans opposing it. The legislation is a…
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Colorado set to become first state to let homeowners store energy in batteries
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A bill aimed at giving Colorado homeowners the right install electric storage batteries – a first in the nation -received final passage Monday with strong bipartisan support and is one its way to the governor. Sponsored by Sens. Stephen Fenberg, D-Boulder, and Kevin Priola, R-Henderson, the “Allow Electric Utility Customers Install Energy Storage Equipment” bill…
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Battle of the Booms: Feelings on oil and gas drilling continue to run high in growing Front Range suburbs
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In October, an overflow crowd of Front Range residents, brandishing signs and wearing surgical masks, descended on the Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC) meeting to voice opposition to a plan to drill oil wells in Broomfield. “We need a say. Tell the state it’s not OK,” they chanted. In January, when notice went…
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Colorado regional advisory councils for BLM frustrated with Trump administration
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The citizen councils in Colorado created to advise the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on local issues have been blocked from meeting for a year by Trump administration reviews and delays, setting off protests and resignations. The regional advisory councils, or RACs, were created by statute in 1995. There are three in Colorado-one each…