GOLDEN CRESCENT AND 1000 ISLAND NEWS

  Francis Menton   We’re now more than three weeks past the mandatory April 1 deadline for New York’s annual state budget. So far, few details have emerged about the reasons for the delay. Negotiations are supposedly taking place among the Governor and the leaders of the two houses of the State Legislature. But what are the sticking points? It is likely that by far the biggest, if not the only significant sticking point is what to do about the impending deadlines of the troublesome Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act of 2019, or CLCPA. This Act sets required “renewable” energy and emissions reductions targets, with the earliest deadlines for those things in 2030. The Act also set a separate deadline in 2024 for issuing certain regulations. The latter deadline has been completely blown off. Emissions reduction deadlines and related regulations may seem non-germane to the budget, but then this is New York.  The budget process gives the politicians a way to concl...

  by  Megan Brenan WASHINGTON, D.C. — Majorities of Americans continue to prefer that the U.S. put more emphasis on solar and wind power for domestic energy production, but fewer now hold that view than in any of five measurements over the past 13 years. At the same time, support for greater emphasis on nuclear power has risen to its highest point to date, at 46%. Levels of support for increased use of fossil fuels like oil, coal and natural gas remain well below their highs. Democrats are more likely than Republicans to favor more emphasis on renewable energy sources, while Republicans are more likely to back greater emphasis on fossil fuels. Partisans’ views are most similar on nuclear energy. Even as there is growing support for more emphasis on nuclear energy, a majority of Americans remain broadly resistant to the construction of a nuclear power plant in their area. The latest findings are from Gallup’s March 2-18 annual Environment poll. When asked whether the U.S. shoul...

  In New York State, the annual budget is due by April 1. Here we are on April 7, and no budget has yet emerged. Word is that the Governor and legislative leaders are hidden away behind closed doors hammering out the details. Word also is that somewhere in this “budget” process, the seemingly unrelated matter of the deadlines of the Climate Act (for starters, 70% of electricity from “renewables” by 2030) are about to get extended. When the Climate Act (officially “Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act,” or CLCPA) was enacted back in 2019, the deadlines, beginning in 2030, seemed so very far away. The legislation was almost entirely activist-driven, with a willing audience of gullible and innumerate “progressive” useful idiots controlling the Legislature.  Normal people generally paid no attention and had little idea what was about to hit them.  However, as the deadlines have gotten a little closer, and as the costs of renewable generation have begun show up in u...

It’s the feel-good story of the week, if you don’t mind taking joy from others’ misfortunes. When it comes to the wind and solar energy grifters, I don’t mind a bit taking joy from their misfortunes. The last few days bring the news that apparently the majority of the remaining wind and solar electricity projects still in development in New York State are under imminent threat of cancelation. At this point the details are sketchy, and nobody is attributing the news to any named source as far as I can find. Nevertheless, the story is sufficiently widely-reported from normally reliable sources that I’m ready to give it credit. The Albany Times-Union appears to have been the first with the story in a piece from April 12 with the headline  “Clean energy projects in NY on hold as battle over costs escalates.”   The gist is that the developers of some two dozen “clean energy” (wind and solar) projects in upstate New York have approached the State and demanded more money above agreed...

  Speed running deployment US states are moving to establish a pipeline of large-scale renewable energy projects that can qualify for billions of dollars in expiring federal tax credits. California, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey and Oregon are among the states  expediting renewable energy projects  eligible for a 30% investment tax credit. Those subsidies can help lower power prices as soaring electricity bills become a top issue in the 2026 elections and data centers drive up energy demand.  But solar and wind farms need to start work by July 4 of this year and have four years to complete construction in order to qualify. Mountains stand beyond solar modules in California . “It is critical to get projects that qualify for these credits, primarily for customer affordability,” said William Walsh, vice president for energy procurement and management at utility Southern California Edison Co. The California Public Utilities Commission earlier this year ordere...

  The landscape for U.S. solar and storage tax credits has shifted dramatically following the implementation of  Foreign Entity of Concern (FEOC) restrictions . In a recent Currents podcast hosted by Norton Rose Fulbright, partner Keith Martin detailed  the three-pronged nature of these restrictions, which are designed to systematically decouple the U.S. renewable sector from Chinese involvement.   The framework consists of distinct hurdles that can disqualify a project from claiming technology-neutral tax credits under Sections 48E and 45Y. These include a material assistance limit on equipment  provided by prohibited foreign entities,  a ban on U.S. taxpayers with excessive Chinese equity or debt participation , and a  prohibition on projects that enter into contracts giving majority Chinese-owned entities effective control over project aspects . The rules target projects placed in service in 2025 or later . Martin clarified ...