PUC Establishes New ‘Clean Heat’ Targets Designed to Crack Down on Natural Gas
The regulatory noose around Colorado’s natural gas utilities just got a whole lot tighter, and captive ratepayers stand to bear the brunt of the economic pain. The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) on Monday issued a formal decision updating the state’s emissions targets under its first-in-the-nation “clean heat plan” law. The decision established by rule […]
Denver’s Flavor Ban a Poor Solution Looking for a Problem
Voters residing in a city home to more than 70 breweries, 2,000 liquor-licensed establishments, 300 cannabis dispensaries, and psychedelic mushroom clinics will soon decide if they’re willing to prevent consenting adults from purchasing at least one commonly used substance: flavored nicotine products. As part of their 2025 ballots, Denver voters will be asked to weigh in on Referendum […]
The Case Against a ‘Progressive’ Income Tax in Colorado
The battle over Colorado’s future tax system has officially begun, and the stakes for families, businesses, and the state’s economy couldn’t be higher. Backed by a coalition of advocacy groups that consistently push for higher taxes as the solution to Colorado’s challenges, the Bell Policy Center submitted proposed language for the 2026 ballot that would […]
Independence Institute Tells the Public Utilities Commission to Reconsider Forced Electrification Rulemaking
In the 2021 legislative session, the Colorado General Assembly passed SB21-264, a first-in-the-nation law requiring the state’s gas distribution utilities to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions by 4% by 2025 and by 22% by 2030, from a 2015 baseline, by filing “Clean Heat Plans” with the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). Since then, Colorado gas utilities like […]
Colorado Utilities Signal Pain Ahead for Energy Transition
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Fast Facts About Colorado’s Electricity Sector in 2024
Note: This post represents the latest edition of Independence Institute’s annual analysis of federal electricity data distilled for Colorado. Click here to see past editions. While Colorado’s electric grid has been in flux for years, 2024 may come to be remembered as the turning point for Colorado’s energy future. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) […]
Unpacking Colorado’s Electric Vehicle Triumphalism
Newly released electric vehicle sales data has Colorado policymakers patting themselves on the back for a job well done. The reality of the state’s vehicle market is slightly more complicated. According to a recent report from the Northeast States for Coordinated Air Use Management, electric vehicles made up 25.3 percent of all new cars sold […]
Fast Facts About Electricity in Colorado in 2023
Newly released federal government data offers insights into Colorado’s electricity sector last year. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) recently published its latest Electric Power Monthly report with additional data gathered through December 2023. The data is preliminary and will continue to be refined by the agency until it releases its final Electric Power Annual report […]
Colorado Lawmakers Reignite the State’s ‘Oil and Gas Wars’
Upon signing legislation to usher in a new regulatory paradigm for the industry, Governor Jared Polis famously declared an end to Colorado’s oil and gas wars in 2019. The state’s saber-rattling legislature has other ideas in mind for 2024. Emboldened by historic majorities in the legislature, Colorado Democrats have introduced Senate Bill 159, a measure to […]
Pricey Electrification Gets a Boost from Local Media
Many Democratic lawmakers, climate activists, and progressive academics see so-called beneficial electrification as the wave of the future for climate action. As such, there has been a growing chorus among this community in recent years calling for the end of natural gas heating systems and appliances and propping up their electric alternatives as superior options. Occasionally, […]
Colorado Lawmakers to Consider Pro-Nuclear Bill
Colorado lawmakers are set to consider their first nuclear energy bill of the 2024 legislative session later this week. SB24-039, dubbed “Nuclear Energy as a Clean Energy Resource,” is scheduled to go before the Senate Transportation and Energy Committee for first reading on Wednesday. The bill seeks to level the playing field for carbon-free energy […]
Colorado PUC Trims Xcel’s Unprecedented Renewables Plan
Ratepayer interests received a small win from Colorado regulators overseeing Xcel Energy’s latest resource plan. The Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) pared back Xcel’s $15 billion request to build wind, solar, batteries, and new transmission lines by around $3 billion last week. The PUC’s trimming of Xcel’s request came as it approved an alternative resource […]
