Energy & Fuel

"Among dozens of federal programs proposed for elimination in the Trump administration’s newly revealed budget proposal is the federal Weatherization Assistance Program, or WAP, a grant program housed under the Department of Energy that helps states improve the energy efficiency of the homes of low-income families. It’s one of several climate and energy-related initiatives that, if erased, could actually hurt consumers in ways that seem inconsistent with the economy-boosting action the administration claims to seek."

"Lawyers for a group of teenagers suing the U.S. government in a climate change case have asked the government and the oil industry's leading trade group to turn over emails sent and received by U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson using an alias address while he was running Exxon Mobil."

"The GOP’s effort to roll back contentious Obama-era regulations is hitting a snag. Some Republican senators are coming out against a resolution that would repeal an Interior Department regulation governing oil and natural gas drilling on federal land. The rule is designed to cut down on the release of methane, a potent greenhouse gas."

"German officials included the offices of both Volkswagen’s chief executive and the head of the Audi division when they raided company premises last week as part of an investigation into emissions fraud, according to a copy of the search warrant."

"RENO — Sierra Club lawyers who've preached against the environmental evils of coal-burning power plants for decades are trying to force the closure of the last significant one in renewable energy-rich Nevada with arguments based on a different sort of green: money."

"In a stunning reversal, Gov. Larry Hogan (R) on Friday called for lawmakers to pass legislation permanently banning the natural gas drilling technique known as 'fracking' in Maryland."

"A U.S. judge formally approved Peabody Energy Corp's plan to emerge from bankruptcy late Friday after the coal producer struck a settlement with the U.S. government over legacy environmental claims at a gold and metal mining subsidiary."

While the Energy Department's nuclear weapons program get an 11% increase under the Trump budget, "clean energy, smart grid and electric vehicle initiatives favored under the Obama administration are singled out for elimination or sharp cutbacks."

"The Trump administration plans to withdraw and rewrite a 2015 rule aimed at limiting hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” on public lands, the Interior Department indicated in court filings Wednesday."

"President Trump came to the heart of the auto industry on Wednesday with a manifesto for American manufacturing: to remove the shackles of regulation and restore an age of industrial glory."