News

Charged EVs highlighted MCPS' electric school bus contract with Highland Electric Transportation, quoting AEE’s Nat Kreamer on how the deal can aid in Biden’s EV pledge. Read excerpts below and the full story here.

Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland has approved a contract with Highland Electric Transportation, a provider of turnkey electric fleet solutions, to convert its school bus fleet to all-electric, starting with 326 school buses over the next four years. This project is said to be the largest single procurement to date of electric school buses in North America.

AZ Republic outlined Arizona lawmakers’ move to limit the Arizona Corporation Commission’s authority, quoting AEE’s Shelby Stults on the consequences for ratepayers and state business investment. Read excerpts below and the full story here (sub req).

Lawmakers moved Wednesday to strip the Arizona Corporation Commission of its power to make rules about clean energy in the state, following regulators' move to require electric companies to get all of their energy from carbon-free sources by 2050.

Arizona bill HB2248, passed by House, revokes the Arizona Corporation Commission’s authority over critical electrical generation rules and policies; SB1459 passed by Senate adds uncertainty in administrative review of ACC rule-making.

PHOENIX, March 3, 2021 – Today, national business group Advanced Energy Economy reacted to Arizona House passage of HB2248* (31-28-1) and Senate passage of SB1459* (16-14 along party lines). HB2248 would revoke the authority to create or enforce rules and policies on “critical electrical generation” from the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC), the state’s elected regulatory body for utilities and electricity. SB1459 makes it easier for investigations brought forward by the legislature easier to apply to the ACC, disrupting and duplicating current admin review processes.

Arizona Senate passes SB1108 by a vote of 17-13. The bill would levy the highest annual tax in the nation on electric vehicle owners.

PHOENIX, March 3, 2021 — Today, national business group Advanced Energy Economy reacted to Arizona Senate passage of SB 1108* today, an omnibus tax bill that levies an annual tax of $110 on electric vehicle owners. The bill presents an overall net decrease in taxes, allowing it to avoid requirements for a two-thirds supermajority passage. The final Senate vote was 17-13.

Politico outlined FERC’s options for preventing future grid failure in Texas following the February winter blackout, quoting AEE’s Jeff Dennis on Chairman Glick’s expected course of action. Read excerpts below and the full story here (sub req).

Texas' second major power failures in a decade could spur FERC to take the rare step of ordering new reliability standards, experts say.

Florida Daily published AEE’s Ebo Entsuah's opinion piece on Florida’s opportunity to bolster economic recovery through championing advanced energy. Read excerpts below and the full piece here.

As Florida works toward economic recovery from the crisis wrought by COVID-19, we have an opportunity to champion something that will bring in jobs and jump-start our economy: deploying advanced energy, like energy efficiency, solar, energy storage and electric vehicles...

Virginia Mercury quoted AEE’s Harry Godfrey on the General Assembly’s failure to fund an electric vehicle rebate program. Read excerpts below and the full story here.

While Virginia’s General Assembly has committed to adopt stricter transportation emissions standards by 2025 that will encourage more widespread use of electric vehicles, lawmakers’ final budget includes no funding for a rebate program intended to bring down the vehicles’ cost for consumers...

WASHINGTON, D.C., February 24, 2021— Today, national business group Advanced Energy Economy (AEE) reacted to the U.S. Postal Service's (USPS) decision to procure internal combustion engine fleets rather than all electric vehicles for its next-gen strategy.

"The decision by USPS to start off its next-generation delivery vehicles with last-generation technology is a missed opportunity," said Leah Rubin Shen, federal policy director at national business group Advanced Energy Economy. 

The Washington Post highlighted AEE member Highland Electric Transportation’s innovative electric school bus contract with the Montgomery County school district in Maryland, quoting HET CEO, Duncan McIntyre, cost benefits of electric buses. Read excerpts below and the full story here (sub req). This story was also covered in Green Tech Media and Axios.

Hundreds of electric school buses are about to hit the roads in Montgomery County in an effort to cut tailpipe emissions that warm the planet and can affect student health.

Washington Examiner detailed Highland Electric Transportation’s school bus electrification contract with Montgomery County Public Schools, quoting AEE’s Nat Kreamer on President Biden’s larger plan to electrify U.S. school buses. Read excerpts below and the full story here.

The Montgomery County public school district in Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C., is switching its bus fleet over to electric models at no additional cost in a first-of-its-kind move that could serve as a model for President Biden.