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Monthly Archives: April 2015

What is a “QER?” Outline for Energy Policy

This week, the Obama administration rolled out its first Quadrennial Energy Review (QER), a broad study of the nation’s energy policies that calls for programs aimed at making the electric grid more resilient, accelerating the replacement of aging pipelines, improving measurement of methane emissions, coordinating products shipped by rail and reviewing the release authorities of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

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Pennsylvania Watershed Improvement Act – Encourage Realistic Credits, Competitive Bidding

In an effort to facilitate compliance with federal nutrient management requirements, Sen. Elder Vogel Jr. (R-Beaver) introduced SB 724, the Watershed Improvement Act. Filing the legislation followed release of a special report by Auditor General Eugene DePasquale on economic consequences of failure in Pennsylvania’s efforts to meet EPA requirements for clean up of the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

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Can Work Groups Solve the State’s Budget Mess?

In early March, Governor Wolf proposed his ambitious vision for Pennsylvania, with promises of increased education funding, property tax reductions, and a variety of income, sales and shale gas tax hikes to support his plans. Supporters called his proposal bold, and opponents called the plan dead on arrival. All agreed that the proposal was historic in one way or another, and all agreed that the state was facing a budget deficit of at least $1.8 billion.

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EnergyWorks Turning Waste Into Watts

Turning chicken waste into energy is not easy. And it probably won’t pay for itself, at least not in the near future. Patrick Thompson is doing it anyway.

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DEP Extends Public Comment Period, Schedules More Public Hearings on Environmental Protection Performance Standards at Oil and Gas Well Sites

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is providing more opportunity for the public to comment on revisions to the Environmental Protection Performance Standards at Oil and Gas Well Sites (Chapter 78 and 78a). DEP is extending the current public comment period by an additional 15 days, to 45 days, and adding three public hearings.

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Hearings Finished, Now the Negotiations Begin/Wolf Predicts June 30 Deadline Will Be Missed

The House and Senate completed their budget hearings with the Wolf Administration agency heads last week, and appear ready to get serious about looking at the budget itself. But even before the first formal meetings among the House and Senate Leadership and the Governor, it appears all parties expect a contentious couple of months before the June 30 deadlines for a balanced state budget.

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