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Joshua Basseches

@joshuabasseches.bsky.social

13K followers 1.8K following 2.8K posts

Renewable energy and climate politics and policy. Assistant Professor at Tulane University. Forthcoming book about utilities and state-level renewable electricity policymaking. More at joshuabasseches.com

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · Aug 19

In a new Op-Ed for @technologyreview.com, I draw on research from my forthcoming book to suggest a playbook for clean energy advocates in these backwards times:
www.technologyreview.com/2025/08/19/1...

How to make clean energy progress under Trump in the states—blue and red alike

Cheaper energy bills are a nonpartisan issue—no matter where you live.

www.technologyreview.com

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 11h

#ClimateInTheCourts
www.eenews.net/articles/tru...

Trump admin advances bid to block Michigan climate lawsuit

DOJ wants to stop Michigan from suing the oil industry over climate change before the state actually goes to court.

www.eenews.net

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 12h

In Delaware, a single data center mega-project is projected to use TWICE the electricity per hour as ... wait for it ... every single home in the state. (2/2)
www.eenews.net/articles/del...

Delaware eyes limits on data centers as megaproject looms

A data center development known as Project Washington could use twice as much electricity as is consumed by every home in the state.

www.eenews.net

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 12h

Data centers are all the rage these days, but there are also very strong economic and environmental arguments for placing limits on their growth, as Delaware is considering in an era of skyrocketing electric bills. (1/2)

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 12h

Demand-side management is a winning issue politically. One can guess who the "unregistered opposition" might have been ... (2/2)

Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 12h

What's interesting to me isn't the governor's decision to veto this bill (one would have to imagine some behind-closed-doors conversations to be responsible for that), but rather that the bill enjoyed bipartisan support and no "registered opposition." Wow! (1/2)
www.eenews.net/articles/cal...

California governor nixes bill on demand-side electricity savings

Gov. Gavin Newsom said in his veto message that AB 44 would create uncertainty around energy planning and procurement.

www.eenews.net

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 1d

Union of Concerned Scientists report out with some nice recommendations for how to avoid captive residential customers paying for the infrastructure needs of data centers owned by tech giants (which is currently happening):

Customers in 7 PJM states paid $4.4B for data center transmission in 2024: report

Transmission lines built for data centers fall into a "regulatory gap,” with utility customers on the hook for the costs, the Union of Concerned Scientists said.

www.utilitydive.com

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

Another instance of a Trump-appointed federal judge ruling against his current administration's lawlessness:
www.politico.com/news/2025/09...

Judge orders Trump administration to preserve $233M in FEMA grants it attempted to pull from blue states

The administration’s abrupt effort to repurpose the funds mere days before the end of the fiscal year appears to be illegal, the judge said.

www.politico.com

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Reposted by Joshua Basseches

AG Rob Bonta @agrobbonta.oag.ca.gov · 2d

TODAY at 5:00: Watch live as I make an announcement about a legal action challenging Trump’s redeployment of California National Guard troops to Portland.

Tune in at oag.ca.gov

State of California - Department of Justice - Office of the Attorney General

oag.ca.gov

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

“They’re way better at capturing politicians than they are at capturing emissions." -Al Gore
www.eenews.net/articles/al-...

Al Gore: Fossil fuel industry exploiting Europe’s energy crisis

The former U.S. vice president warned that the EU risks locking into long-term dependence on dirty energy.

www.eenews.net

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

... governors lack the full toolkit they'd need to get electric utility bills under control. FERC indeed should play a more active role in RTO governance, which is all the more reason for FERC to maintain its independence! (2/2)

Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

Kudos @seancasten.bsky.social. RTO governance is indeed a big problem, which is why you have governors (in PJM, for instance) threatening to pull their states' regulated utilities from RTOs. Because the grid itself doesn't conform to state borders ... (1/2)

Democratic House bill would reverse Trump energy policies, bolster RTO oversight

The Trump administration is driving up the cost of electricity by creating barriers to clean energy investment to support higher-cost fossil fuel sectors, Rep. Sean Casten said.

www.utilitydive.com

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

I feel like many people post on social media for the likes and reposts, but as a scholar, it’s the bookmarks that I’m after.

Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

Perhaps these "various unique corporate ownership structures" are the problem, as opposed to CARB's efforts to regulate them? (3/3)

Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

"The ... list 'is almost certainly both overinclusive & underinclusive of companies that have undergone ... business combinations, restructurings, or renamings ... and likely fails to ... account for various unique corporate ownership structures...'" (2/3)

Utilities on ‘preliminary’ list of entities subject to California climate disclosure rules

So far, California’s climate reporting laws have survived court challenges. But the Trump administration’s retreat from climate data collection and monitoring could complicate enforcement.

www.utilitydive.com

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 2d

The multi-layered subsidiary structure of the electric utility industry is making CARB's efforts to regulate the industry under CA's corporate emissions disclosure law more difficult. (1/3)

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

I'll give red state leaders credit where it's due. Big Tech companies misleading us about their energy use helps nobody, and certainly not the climate.
www.eenews.net/articles/red...

Red states probe tech companies’ renewable energy claims

The states allege that tech giants like Meta and Amazon are misleading consumers about their energy use.

www.eenews.net

Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

A "vehicle miles traveled" tax may be the better way to go here, but that requires a level of administrative capacity that Oregon does not have:
www.eenews.net/articles/ore...

Oregon legislators raise gas tax, add EV fee

Democrats criticized the bill for not including subsidies for e-bikes or electric vehicles.

www.eenews.net

Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

#ClimateInTheCourts
www.eenews.net/articles/mai...

Maine wins early victory in climate lawsuit against oil companies

A federal judge rebuffed the fossil fuel industry's bid to move the case to a more favorable court.

www.eenews.net

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Reposted by Joshua Basseches

Don Moynihan @donmoyn.bsky.social · 3d

This is an administration that does sizzle reels of ICE abusing communities. They want the visuals of dominance, regardless of the law.

Anna Bower @annabower.bsky.social · 3d

I don’t understand the supposed legal basis for this.

DOJ requested a summons—*not* an arrest warrant—under Rule 9 of the FRCrP.

Are they going to go back to the magistrate and ask for a warrant, even though Comey hasn’t failed to appear? If not, what’s the exigency for a warrantless arrest?

The FBI is now actively working to put together a team to arrest Comey between now and his court appearance on Thursday, but other FBI supervisors have also refused to cooperate, said a source knowledgeable about the conversations and a law enforcement source familiar with the situation. The expectation is that the FBI will eventually find somebody.
CBS News has reached out to the FBI for comment. Comey's lawyer, Patrick Fitzgerald, declined to comment to CBS
News.
Reuters was first to report that an FBI agent was sidelined for refusing to help with a perp walk.

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

"Either we have a resource adequacy issue or we don’t."
www.utilitydive.com/news/ncel-la...

Lawmakers urge PJM to take steps so clean energy projects can meet tax credit deadlines

“Either we have a resource adequacy issue or we don't — and I believe we do — so we need to be getting all of this energy online as quickly as possible,” Maryland Delegate Lorig Charkoudian said.

www.utilitydive.com

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

For literally decades, the political right accused the political left of subsidizing new industries that offered a product that was valuable: power production without atmospheric pollution. Now, they're literally subsidizing the opposite, with your money:
www.utilitydive.com/news/doe-bea...

DOE announces $625M for ‘beautiful, clean coal’ and gas

The U.S. Department of Energy did not immediately respond to questions about the structure of the funding, including whether it would be made available as loans or grants.

www.utilitydive.com

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

Exciting stuff happening out west!
www.utilitydive.com/news/a-la-ca...

Á la carte energy market will give Western states choice, flexibility and reliability

The new Regional Organization for Western Energy will offer affordable, reliable energy services, and states can take what they need, writes Advanced Energy United’s Brian Turner.

www.utilitydive.com

Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

All the more reason why we must elect serious leaders rather than ideologues or those willing to act as pawns of powerful incumbent industries. So voters serious about this issue might want to read up, and ask the tough questions whenever they have the opportunity to do so. (5/5)

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

However, the policymaking system is much more fragmented than the grid is. Decision-makers operate at multiple levels of gov't, and unfortunately, much of the decision-making has been privatized, and is guarded by those with a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. (4/)

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Joshua Basseches @joshuabasseches.bsky.social · 3d

The electricity industry functions -- to varying degrees depending on the state -- as a regulated monopoly. This means that policymakers (i.e. regulators) have a large toolkit with which to address these thorny issues. (3/)

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