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chart solar cost and permitting 2013
Article filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | No Comments | Updated on Apr 26, 2013

Local Permitting Makes a Bigger Difference as Solar Gets Cheap

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/local-permitting-bigger-difference-solar-cheap/

Going solar keeps getting cheaper, but most of the cost savings have come from less expensive solar panels.  “Soft costs,” like permitting and inspections, are a rising share of the cost of a solar installation.  Several years ago, these permits could increase the cost of a residential solar project (then around $8.00 per Watt) by… Continue reading

Boulder Vote Yes 2B 2C banner
Article, Resource filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | No Comments | Updated on Mar 22, 2013

Susan Osborne and Boulder’s Clean Energy Takeover: Episode 5 of Local Energy Rules Podcast

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/susan-osborne-boulders-clean-energy-takeover-episode-5-local-energy-rules-podcast/

In this episode of Local Energy Rules, John Farrell and Wade Underwood talk with Susan Osborne, the former Mayor of Boulder, CO, about that city’s effort to take control of its energy future. Thanks to Susan’s leadership and the vision of Boulder’s citizens, the city adopted a ballot measure in the fall of 2011 to… Continue reading

CUB Retail Electricity Suppliers Report Card
Article filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | No Comments | Updated on Feb 28, 2013

Three Unequal Options for Local Energy Control

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/unequal-options-local-energy-control/

If we ignore self-generation, three policies are at the center of increasing local control of energy: deregulation (“customer choice”), municipal aggregation (“city choice”), and municipal utilities (“city ownership”).  Two recent articles highlight the relative value of these policies quite clearly. The Citizens Utility Board (CUB) of Illinois, a nonprofit ratepayer advocacy organization, just released a… Continue reading

Minneapolis Energy Options logo
Featured Article, Resource filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | No Comments | Updated on Feb 19, 2013

How a City Can Get More Clean, Local Energy

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/city-clean-local-energy/

Like many cities attempting to solve climate change at a local level, Minneapolis is finding the prospect more challenging that it may have imagined. The lion’s share of emissions (two-thirds in the case of Minneapolis) come from electricity and gas sold by two monopoly, corporate utilities. Minnesota’s state-level policy is helping: a renewable energy standard… Continue reading

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Article, ILSR Press Room, Resource filed under Broadband | Written by Lisa Gonzalez | 4 Comments | Updated on Jan 3, 2013

The Empire Lobbies Back: How Big Cable Killed Competition in North Carolina

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/killing-competition-nc/

After a city in North Carolina built a Fiber-to-the-Home network competing with Time Warner Cable, the cable giant successfully lobbied to take that decision away from other cities. The city of Wilson’s decision and resulting network was recently examined in a case study by Todd O’Boyle and Christopher Mitchell titled Carolina’s Connected Community: Wilson Gives… Continue reading

Wilson Gives Greenlight to Fast Internet
Article, Resource filed under Broadband | Written by Christopher | 1 Comment | Updated on Dec 5, 2012

Report: Community Network Leads North Carolina to Fast Internet Future

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/wilson-fiber-greenlight/

Following the collapse of key industries, a town of 50,000 in eastern North Carolina had to make a hard choice. It wanted to support existing businesses and attract new ones but the cable and telephone companies were not interested in upgrading their networks for cutting edge capacity. So Wilson decided to build its own fiber… Continue reading

Article, Resource filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | No Comments | Updated on Oct 18, 2012

More Clean Energy for Minneapolis

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/clean-energy-minneapolis/

Click here for a more detailed article. ILSR Senior Researcher John Farrell presents to a big crowd at “Green Ideas and Ham,” a breakfast policy forum in Minneapolis, about the opportunity for the city to dramatically increase its control over its energy future.  In a short time, the city’s monopoly energy contracts with its electric… Continue reading

screengrab susan osborne presentation
Article, Resource filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | No Comments | Updated on Oct 1, 2012

Boulder Mayor Tells Minneapolis How They Sought Clean Energy Options

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/boulder-mayor-tells-minneapolis-sought-clean-energy-options/

Now’s your chance to hear how Boulder finally came to municipalization of its electric system after many futile years of trying to work with Xcel Energy to get more clean, local power. I traveled to Boulder in April 2011 to talk with their city council and grassroots groups about their struggles (video), and the citizens… Continue reading

Minneapolis at an energy crossroads
Featured Article filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | No Comments | Updated on Sep 20, 2012

John Farrell Presents on Local Energy Options for Minneapolis

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/john-farrell-presents-local-energy-options-minneapolis/

What happens when a city’s franchise contracts with its incumbent electric and gas utilities expires?  A once-in-20-year opportunity to consider how its energy can be cleaner, more affordable, more reliable, and more local.  ILSR Senior Researcher John Farrell presents to Environment Minnesota’s Green Ideas and Ham policy breakfast, discussing the implications of an expiring franchise… Continue reading

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Article filed under Energy | Written by John Farrell | 2 Comments | Updated on Aug 23, 2012

California County’s PACE Program Could Get Feisty with FHFA

The content that follows was originally published on the Institute for Local Self-Reliance website at http://www.ilsr.org/california-countys-pace-program-feisty-fhfa/

Does a Riverside County, CA, residential energy financing program put thousands of homeowners on a collision course with the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA)? In a proposed rule-making, the FHFA has suggested that Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) policies represent a threat to the safety and soundness of mortgages held by government-backed Fannie Mae and Freddie… Continue reading