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The document argues that federal light-duty vehicle standards set by the EPA and NHTSA in 2012 provide significant financial and environmental gains for Colorado. By 2030, the average Colorado household is projected to be $2,700 richer due to gas savings. To date, Colorado has saved $550 million, and the standards have eliminated global warming emissions equivalent to three times those required to provide electricity to Boulder. Nationally, these standards are expected to increase GDP by up to $30 billion and create 650,000 full-time jobs by 2030.

Fort Collins Utilities implemented the Efficiency Works-Neighborhood Pilot to accelerate the city's goal of eliminating 80 percent of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. By replacing an 'à la carte' approach with bundled service packages, third-party audits, and 100 percent on-bill financing over 20 years, the program more than tripled customer participation and achieved 60 percent greater carbon savings. The initiative received the Energy Innovator Award from the American Public Power Association (APPA) for its transferable model of removing financial and procedural barriers for residential consumers.

The Door-to-Downtown (d2d) pilot in Boulder, Colorado, tested a public-private partnership to shift residents and visitors from personal vehicles to shared mobility services. By offering a $5 discount on inbound trips, the program attracted 5,400 registrants and generated nearly 2,500 trips, primarily peaking on Fridays. The pilot demonstrated that MaaS can alleviate downtown parking pressure and provide a scalable model for future electric and autonomous vehicle integration to meet carbon reduction goals.

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) developed the Clean Energy Momentum State Ranking to evaluate how US states are driving the transition to clean energy. The ranking uses 12 metrics across three categories: technical progress (renewable energy generation, energy savings, and electric vehicle sales), direct effects (job creation and pollution reduction), and future-oriented policies (renewable energy, energy efficiency, and carbon reduction). California is identified as the overall leader, while Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Hawaii also rank in the top five. The analysis concludes that state-level leadership is critical for national momentum, particularly in creating jobs and improving public health, and recommends that states facilitate business involvement and improve energy equity for low-income communities.

The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) evaluated the 50 US states using 12 indicators to rank their progress in clean energy, focusing on renewable energy generation, energy efficiency, and transport electrification. California leads the ranking, followed by Vermont and Massachusetts. The analysis highlights that clean energy progress is tangible across the US, with wind farms in 41 states and over half a million electric vehicles on the road. The report argues that state-level leadership is critical for job creation and public health improvements, and recommends that states adopt multi-dimensional policies, facilitate corporate participation, and improve energy equity for low-income and minority communities.

The Southwest Power Pool (SPP) has emerged as a leader in renewable energy, offering significant opportunities for corporate buyers through wind power purchase agreements (PPAs). Market improvements since 2014, including the integration of the Integrated System (IS) transmission system, have increased dispatch efficiency and reduced energy costs. The region possesses some of the highest wind resource quality in the U.S., with nine of the top 10 states for high-capacity-factor wind generation located within the SPP footprint. This high capacity factor allows for lower unit costs and more competitive PPA prices. While there is a strong pipeline of planned wind capacity—including an estimated 19 GW of planned additions and nearly 7 GW expected in 2017—corporate buyers are cautioned to monitor the pace of transmission infrastructure investment to avoid curtailment risks and track regional policy changes, such as potential tax credit eliminations in Oklahoma.

The Clean Air Task Force opposes the repeal of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Methane Waste Rule via the Congressional Review Act. The organization argues that the rule saves up to 41 billion cubic feet of natural gas annually, increasing royalties for states and tax revenue for the federal government. Furthermore, it claims the rule supports small businesses specializing in waste mitigation technology, such as infrared cameras, and notes that a majority of voters in Western states oppose the rollback.

The document details the health impacts of oil and gas air pollution in Colorado, noting that over 380,000 people in six counties face cancer risks exceeding EPA levels of concern. It highlights that more than 32,000 children annually suffer asthma attacks due to industry-related ozone, with significant concentrations in the Denver area and Northern Front Range. While Colorado has implemented regulations, the report argues that federal standards are essential because state measures cannot control pollution drifting from Utah and New Mexico or emissions on tribal lands.

The report details how the US oil and gas industry emits methane, toxic air pollutants (such as benzene, formaldehyde, and acetaldehyde), and ozone precursors that cause cancer and respiratory illnesses. It provides state-specific data for Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia, highlighting that ozone pollution travels across state borders, affecting residents even in states with little to no local industry activity. The document emphasizes the vulnerability of children and low-income communities and argues for the necessity of strong federal standards from the EPA and the Bureau of Land Management to protect public health.

The report identifies a significant investment opportunity in U.S. community-scale solar (CSS), estimated by NREL to be between $8.2 and $16.3 billion by 2020. It argues that CSS, typically sized between 0.5 and 5 MW, offers a cost-effective middle ground between residential and utility-scale solar. To unlock this potential, the document suggests adapting existing project finance and securitization models, utilizing innovative tools like New Markets Tax Credits, and implementing risk mitigants such as anchor tenants and subscription cushions to address customer attrition and regulatory uncertainty.

The report analyzes the climate impact of electric vehicles (EVs) based on the electricity sources used for charging across different U.S. regions. It finds that while EVs generally produce fewer emissions than gasoline cars, their full potential depends on decarbonizing the power grid by shifting from coal and natural gas to renewable energy. The document also highlights the inherent efficiency of electric drive and the synergistic potential between EVs and renewable energy integration.

The document reports significant job growth in the U.S. clean energy sector as of early 2016. It highlights that solar and wind industries are expanding rapidly, with solar jobs growing 17 times faster than the overall economy and wind-turbine technicians projected as the fastest-growing occupation. Energy efficiency employs the largest volume of workers at 2.2 million. Geographically, Texas leads in wind jobs, while California leads in solar and energy efficiency jobs.

The City of Boulder implemented the 'Door to Downtown' (d2d) pilot program, offering $5 discounts on rides via Lyft, Uber, and zTrip to encourage the use of mobility services over personal vehicles. The program aims to address immediate parking challenges and test the long-term price elasticity of demand for Mobility as a Service (MaaS). By bringing the cost of rideshare services down to the estimated $0.60 per mile cost of owning and operating an internal-combustion vehicle, the pilot explores whether consumers will switch to shared mobility when it reaches cost parity with car ownership.

Earthjustice supports the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM) finding that federal coal accounts for 11 percent of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and urges the U.S. government to transition from a fossil fuel economy to renewable energy by ending new coal leases on public lands.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is conducting a comprehensive review of the Federal coal program via a Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS). This scoping report identifies key areas for reform, including increasing royalty rates to ensure fair market value, accounting for greenhouse gas emissions through carbon budgets or royalty adders, and improving lease process efficiency. The document summarizes extensive public input and proposes several combination packages of policy options to be analyzed in the Draft PEIS, alongside 'no action' and 'no leasing' alternatives.

The legal marijuana industry in the US creates significant electricity demand due to high-intensity lighting and climate control, with Colorado's industry consuming 300 GWh in 2015. To mitigate the impact on carbon goals and grid stability, the document recommends that utilities support LED adoption through rebates and on-bill financing to overcome capital limitations. It further suggests using time-varying rates to shift lighting schedules to periods of low net load—such as midday in California for solar or nighttime in Colorado for wind—to avoid peak demand and reduce reliance on fossil fuel generation.

The statement asserts that the shift toward renewable energy is an economic inevitability, citing corporate commitments from companies like Walmart and General Mills and the cost-competitiveness of wind and solar power over fossil fuels in various global regions. It emphasizes that the drive to decarbonize the US energy economy will persist through the actions of states, cities, and businesses, and calls for bipartisan cooperation to protect climate policies like the Clean Power Plan.

The policy brief examines the mismatch between the 'top-down' institutional architecture of the UNFCCC and the critical role subnational governments play in implementing climate mitigation and adaptation. It highlights how rapid global urbanisation increases the importance of cities, yet these entities often lack the legal mandate, finance, and direct access to international negotiating tables. The author discusses the role of transnational actors like ICLEI and C40 in bridging this gap and recommends moving toward a 'co-production' model of governance between national and subnational levels.

The report finds that millions of Latinos in the US are disproportionately exposed to toxic air pollutants and ozone from oil and gas infrastructure, leading to significant health burdens. It highlights that 1.81 million Latinos live within a half-mile of such facilities and 1.78 million live in counties where cancer risks exceed EPA concern levels. The document argues that poverty and lack of health insurance exacerbate these risks, and calls for the EPA to regulate existing facilities, not just new ones, to protect public health and address climate change.

The report finds that millions of Latinos are exposed to toxic air pollutants and ozone smog from oil and gas facilities, leading to elevated cancer risks and childhood asthma attacks. These health threats are exacerbated by higher poverty rates and lower health insurance coverage within Latino populations. The authors argue for comprehensive EPA regulations covering both new and existing oil and gas infrastructure to reduce methane and toxic emissions.