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Your weekly resource to learn what the environmental movement is saying about the news of the day and the political fight of our generation. This week, we’re covering Democrats’ plan to fight Trump and lower energy costs and clean energy wins in the states.
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“One of the best things we can do long term is tackle the climate crisis. Climate change makes everything expensive—groceries, healthcare, energy, property insurance. I will never waiver on this responsibility to tackle climate change head on.”
— Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (NY) during his speech unveiling Senate Democrats’ plan to cut American families’ energy costs.
“As this Administration drives up the cost of health care, groceries, gas, and energy bills, Congress should be focused on the cost of living for American families. Instead, Republicans chose to spend the last two weeks debating a bill to make it harder for eligible Americans to register to vote, stay registered to vote, and cast their ballot.”
— Sen. Alex Padilla (CA) pushing back against Republican efforts to pass the SAVE Act 2.0 which would disenfranchise millions of eligible voters.
“With Administrator Lee Zeldin at the helm, EPA has abandoned its mission, creating damage that will take decades to address.”
— 160 environmental and public health organizations, including LCV, in a letter calling for EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s resignation.
MAINE GOVERNOR SIGNS ENERGY FAIRNESS ACT INTO LAW: Maine governor Janet Mills signed a new law aimed at tackling high energy costs by requiring state energy regulators to prioritize affordability for consumers in their decision-making and increase transparency around how customers are billed to help protect households struggling with rising energy bills.
MCV TAKE: Maine Conservation Voters Legislative Director Sarah Woodbury said, “Yesterday, in a move that will help make electricity more affordable for Mainers, Governor Mills signed LD 1949, the Energy Fairness Act, into law. This bill is a win for Mainers across the state, as it puts the voices and budgets of Maine households squarely in the center of the conversation for regulators.”
DATA CENTER REGULATIONS PASS PENNSYLVANIA HOUSE: The Pennsylvania House Representatives passed a bill creating the state’s first-ever regulatory framework for data centers. If enacted, the law would prohibit utilities from passing on costs related to data centers to ratepayers and require the industry to cover the full cost of their energy infrastructure needs. It would also set increasing clean energy targets for data centers, and establish a new low-income energy assistance fund that data centers would be required to contribute to.
CVPA TAKE: Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania Executive Director Molly Parzen said, “Today, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives chose people over Big Tech profits by passing House Bill 1834. As our commonwealth faces an unprecedented stampede of data center development, this bill serves as a vital first step in shielding working families and local businesses already struggling in the midst of a growing affordability crisis. This legislation is more than just a consumer protection measure; it models how to respond to the threats posed by data centers. By mandating that 32% of the energy for these facilities come from clean energy, we are limiting the impacts on our air quality and on families’ energy bills. And because of critical amendments, this clean energy will be built right here in Pennsylvania, creating high-quality, family-sustaining jobs that stay in our communities. The job, however, is only half finished. The Senate must act swiftly to pass HB 1834. In a moment where every dollar counts for Pennsylvania families, we cannot afford to let Big Tech exploit our grid and our environment for their profits. The Senate must move this bill to Governor Shapiro’s desk immediately to start providing the relief and accountability communities deserve.”
UTAH’S NATION-LEADING PROGRAM TO DELIVER 100% CLEAN ENERGY TO COMMUNITIES GETS FINAL APPROVAL: The Utah Public Service Commission approved the Utah Community Clean Energy Program, which allows municipalities to collaborate with Rocky Mountain Power to receive 100% clean electricity community-wide by 2030. Nineteen communities across the state have elected to participate in the program, representing more than a fifth of Utah’s electricity usage.
MASSIVE OFFSHORE WIND FARM DELIVERS CLEAN ENERGY: The country’s largest offshore wind project, Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind, started delivering affordable, clean energy to the Virginia power grid for the first time. The project will generate enough energy to power at least 660,000 homes and deliver $3 billion in energy cost savings for consumers during its first decade of operation.
NEW JERSEY EXPANDS CLEAN ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE: New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill signed legislation to accelerate the development of large-scale battery storage projects by expanding eligibility for incentives under the Garden State Energy Storage Program. Expanding capacity for clean energy storage will help reduce the state’s dependence on fossil fuels, increase energy reliability, and stabilize energy prices.
MARYLAND HOUSE PASSES MAJOR ENERGY COST RELIEF BILL: The Maryland House of Delegates approved the Utility RELIEF (Reducing Energy Loan Inflation for Everyday Families) Act, an omnibus energy bill designed to lower utility costs and support clean energy initiatives. The bill now moves to the Senate for consideration.
PLUG-IN SOLAR BILLS GAINING MOMENTUM IN MULTIPLE STATES: Nearly three dozen states have introduced legislation to legalize plug-in solar this year. Also known as balcony solar, this small scale, affordable technology makes solar power more accessible and can help customers reduce their electricity bills. Utah was the first state to enact enabling legislation in 2025 and earlier this month, Virginia became the second state to pass a plug-in solar law, which Governor Spanberger is expected to sign. Maine is poised to be the next to authorize plug-in solar, and bills are moving with momentum across New England. Additionally, the Illinois Senate Energy and Public Utilities Committee passed a similar bill earlier this month, joining a long list of states considering plug-in solar legislation. You can view a full list of states with active plug-in solar bills and their current status here.
CTLCV TAKE: Connecticut LCV Deputy Director Connor Yakaitis said, “The advantages are for the consumer, for one, you’re able to charge or power some of your biggest [appliances] like a refrigerator. I think it ties in very well to energy efficiency. If people are aware of even a little amount of power that they’re producing, they’re more conscious of the power that they’re using.”
IEC TAKE: Illinois Environmental Council said, “Plug-in solar typically consists of one to four small solar panels designed for simple self-installation by homeowners or renters. The system connects to the home’s electrical system via a plug into a standard wall outlet. The panels usually rest propped up in yards and on balconies – no roof access required. Unfortunately, outdated local permitting red tape is shutting families out of access to plug-in solar, an approachable way to keep energy affordable, reliable, and clean. SB3104 allows families to plug small solar systems (i.e. one panel) into an outlet without needing to make changes to the home’s wiring. This provision is essential to keeping costs down and enabling renters to use plug-in solar.”
SCHUMER UNVEILS DEMOCRATIC ENERGY AND CLIMATE AGENDA: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer outlined a new Democratic energy agenda during the LCV Capital Dinner on Wednesday night. His five-point plan includes lowering household energy costs by restoring clean energy tax incentives that Trump and Republicans rolled back last year, improving our grid, and simplifying permitting for wind, solar, batteries, and other renewable energy sources. His proposal also called for energy cost accountability for data centers and strengthening consumer protections against rising utility bills.
OUR TAKE: LCV President Pete Maysmith said, “Last week, our champions in the House built on this momentum to introduce the Energy Bills Relief Act – an important step forward in clean energy as the solution to high energy costs. Last night, Senator Schumer unveiled the Senate’s ambitious policy agenda focused on clean energy solutions, a more efficient and resilient grid and protecting consumers. Senator Schumer’s announcement is exactly the leadership our country needs at this pivotal moment. As families across America struggle with rising energy bills, Senate Democrats are stepping up with a solutions-focused agenda that puts people first—delivering real relief and a vision for a cleaner, more affordable energy future.
“This is not only the right policy approach—it’s a clear political winner. Clean energy solutions are overwhelmingly popular with the public, and Americans are demanding action to address high costs and protect their communities. This is our movement at work. LCV will be taking this message directly to the people—talking with families and communities across the country about who is responsible for their rising costs by taking clean energy off the table, and who is offering real solutions that address both immediate needs and long-term benefits for everyone. Trump’s policies have prioritized polluters and corporate profits over families, forcing utilities to keep expensive, dirty power plants online and rolling back efficiency standards that save consumers money. Leader Schumer and the Senate Democrats have made it clear these broken promises have real consequences for our wallets and our health.”
LCV LAUNCHES ACCOUNTABILITY EFFORT ON RISING ENERGY COSTS: LCV and Unrig Our Economy have launched a new six-figure ad campaign in New Jersey targeting Congressman Tom Kean, Jr. for supporting Republicans’ “Big Ugly Bill,” which has caused families’ energy costs to skyrocket. The ad highlights the experience of a resident whose electricity bills have surged while the law gives tax breaks to large corporations and cuts incentives for clean energy projects.
OUR TAKE: LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Sara Chieffo said, “By voting to pass the Republican Tax Law, Congressman Tom Kean, Jr. voted to raise energy prices for hardworking families, block clean energy sources, and prioritize polluters over people. Now more than ever, we need clean energy – the most affordable and fastest to deploy energy source– to keep up with increasing demand. Congressman Kean broke his promise to his constituents to lower costs and New Jersey residents deserve to know who is to blame for their skyrocketing costs.”
TRUMP SPENDS $1 BILLION TO CANCEL OFFSHORE WIND AND EXPORT MORE METHANE GAS: The Trump administration has struck a nearly $1 billion agreement with French energy company TotalEnergies to cancel two offshore wind projects off the coast of New York and North Carolina. Under the deal, the federal government will reimburse TotalEnergies for the cancellation of the project leases, while the company redirects that investment into oil and gas development and export in Texas and the Gulf of Mexico.
OUR TAKE: LCV Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Sara Chieffo said, “This unprecedented deal is a lose-lose-lose for the American people. The Trump administration is taking $1 billion of our taxpayer money to stop affordable clean energy from coming online and to expand dirty, expensive, and volatile fossil fuels. We should be investing in homegrown, unlimited, renewable energy that helps insulate working families from price spikes. Instead, the Trump administration is lining the pockets of fossil fuel billionaires, and driving even more toxic pollution into frontline communities.”
NYLCV TAKE: New York LCV President Julie Tighe said, “This is a reckless, short-sighted blow to America’s affordable clean energy future. Canceling offshore wind leases while reimbursing a fossil fuel giant with nearly $1 billion in taxpayer dollars is the exact opposite of smart energy policy. Offshore wind is critical to powering New York’s electrical grid, and cancelling these projects will do nothing to reduce rising demand nor ease the strain families are feeling from sky-high utility bills. Instead, the results will force New Yorkers to contend with dirtier air and the roller coaster ride of fossil fuel costs. Critically, this action also sends a chilling message to investors and threatens the long-term stability of our energy markets. While the federal government retreats, New York must stay the course and continue advancing the clean energy projects our grid and economy depend on.”
NCLCV TAKE: North Carolina League of Conservation Voters Senior Director of Public Affairs Dan Crawford said, “While North Carolinians face skyrocketing energy bills, President Trump is continuing to block the cheapest and quickest forms of energy production: solar and wind.”
NJLCV TAKE: New Jersey LCV said, “The Trump administration plans to pay TotalEnergies nearly $1 billion to abandon offshore wind development along the East Coast and instead invest in dirty fossil fuel projects. We condemn this payout which represents a direct attack on America’s clean energy future and a misuse of taxpayer dollars. Instead of advancing job-creating offshore wind projects that would power millions of homes, strengthen energy independence, and reduce climate pollution, this deal redirects critical investment into dirty oil and gas expansion which will lead to decades of additional harmful emissions and undermining clean energy progress already underway. At a time when climate impacts are intensifying and energy demand is rising, the federal government should be accelerating NOT dismantling offshore wind development.”
NORTH CAROLINA COMMUNITIES FIGHT HARMFUL METHANE PIPELINE: Environmental and community groups in North Carolina are stepping up opposition to the Transco Southeast Supply Enhancement Project (SSEP) methane pipeline after recent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approvals cleared the way for its construction. One organization challenging the pipeline, 7 Directions of Service, launched a “Toxic Tour” along the pipeline corridor to visit communities directly affected by the pipeline and establish “watch teams” to protect land, water, sacred sites, and public health.
NCLCV TAKE: North Carolina LCV Director of Clean Energy Campaigns Michelle “Meech” Carter said, “This tour is important because the SSEP has already begun obscuring their construction activities like tree felling in local communities. Residents have been unclear when Transco’s operators are entering their properties, so monitoring areas that will be impacted by the pipeline will be critical. Transco needs to follow the claims outlined in their proposals and permits, and community observations and feedback are critical to protecting the environment even though permits have already been issued.”
MAJOR NEW JERSEY VOTING RIGHTS ACT HEADS TO SENATE: The New Jersey General Assembly has approved the John R. Lewis Voter Empowerment Act, legislation designed to expand voting access and strengthen protections against discrimination. The bill would prevent discriminatory voting changes, expand assistance at the polls, increase language access, and prohibit voter intimidation. If signed into law, New Jersey would become one of several states to adopt its own voting framework amid weakening federal protections for voting rights.
NJLCV TAKE: New Jersey LCV Interim Executive Director Allison McLeod said, “Today’s vote is a victory for every New Jerseyan who believes that power rests with the people. We are seeing an alarming, coordinated effort in Washington to dismantle the foundations of our democracy, including the SAVE Act — a bill designed to create massive hurdles for eligible voters.”
ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS CALL FOR LEE ZELDIN’S REMOVAL: A coalition of more than 160 environmental groups and public health organizations, including LCV, called for the resignation of Trump’s EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. Zeldin has undermined the agency’s core mission to protect the environment and human health by slashing agency staffing and funding, attacking long-established science, keeping the public in the dark, and implementing policies that benefit polluters over families and communities.
COALITION TAKE: From the letter, “Enough is enough. Administrator Zeldin must go. This EPA’s agenda is dangerous. Because of Zeldin’s directives, we will suffer more health damaging air pollution and be exposed to more toxic chemicals in our homes, in our food, in our products, and in our water. Zeldin’s rollbacks will lead to more carbon dioxide and methane pollution that will contribute to worsening climate disasters. Families across the country, whether rural or urban, are already struggling with the consequences of Zeldin’s actions. The damage he is doing will span generations. Zeldin is deepening environmental injustices and will leave a terrible legacy for our children and grandchildren. EPA’s mandate is clear: Protect human health and the environment. By corrupting EPA’s mission, Administrator Zeldin has abandoned his sworn duty and betrayed the trust Congress and the American people placed in him.”
DEMOCRATS FIGHT BACK AS SAVE ACT DEBATE CONTINUES: This week, Sen. Alex Padilla and Senate Democrats successfully pushed back against the Republican effort to advance the SAVE Act 2.0 which would restrict voting access for millions if passed.
SENATOR PADILLA TAKE: Senator Alex Padilla said, “No matter how Republicans try to spin it, the SAVE America Act is a voter suppression bill, plain and simple. It is a desperate, un-American attempt to avoid accountability in the next election — even Donald Trump admits the goal is to ‘guarantee the midterms.’”
WORKERS, ENVIRONMENTAL GROUPS, AND MEMBERS OF CONGRESS SPEAK OUT AGAINST TRUMP EPA’S ROLLBACK OF CHEMICAL DISASTER SAFEGUARDS: This week, the Coalition to Prevent Chemical Disasters, affected workers, and community members participated in a press conference alongside Representatives Paul Tonko (NY-20) and Mark DeSaulnier (CA-10) to publicly oppose the Trump EPA’s rollback of the 2024 Safer Communities Risk Management Program (RMP) rule. The Safer Communities rule was already helping protect workers and communities from toxic chemical disasters and better inform firefighters, other first responders, and community members when accidents happened.
OUR TAKE: LCV Government Affairs Advocate for Healthy Communities Lizzy Duncan said, “With this proposal, Trump’s EPA is actively endangering people’s lives. They are abandoning over 177 million people who live near and work in facilities using extremely hazardous chemicals by weakening safety protections and accident prevention measures. Removing the Risk Management Program’s requirements for safer technologies and community notifications after a chemical disaster is another giveaway to corporate polluters and chemical industry lobbyists, at the expense of the health and safety of our communities, workers, and first responders. We urge Trump’s EPA to stop prioritizing polluters over people and abandon this reckless proposal that will inevitably lead to more illness and death caused by chemical disasters.”
COALITION TAKE: Refinery Worker Dawn Andreoli said, “Let me be clear: refinery workers want strong, effective regulations. We want rules that protect us, protect our neighbors, and protect the environment we all share. We are the ones who run these units. We are the ones who respond when something goes wrong. We are the ones who carry the risk on our backs every single day. The EPA’s proposed rule takes away tools that workers rely on to prevent disasters. It weakens oversight at a time when the industry is getting more complex, not less. And it sends a message that worker safety is optional. We’re here today to say: Our lives are not optional. Our safety is not optional. And we will not stand by while protections are stripped away.”
ON THE BLOG: People nationwide are coming together to defend democracy at the March 28 No Kings protest. We’ve got you covered with creative sign ideas, how to find a rally near you, and how to spread the word on social media. Meanwhile in Taft, Texas, Mayor Elida Castillo is standing up to corruption and Big Polluters. Plus, don’t miss our “Lessons from Running for Local Office” series featuring Utah Councilmember Jessica Wignall and North Carolina Mayor Alex Joyner who share some insights on their own grassroots campaigns.
ON OUR SOCIALS: Trump doubled down on his grudge against offshore wind this week, pushing his dangerous dirty energy agenda that puts Big Oil profits over people. Meanwhile, Republicans are doing everything they can to pass the SAVE Act 2.0 and strip us of our voting rights. Show up and speak out at a No Kings rally near you to remind them this is a democracy, and power belongs to the people.
MARCH 28: No Kings rallies across the country.
APRIL 1: Passover begins at sundown.
APRIL 3: Good Friday.
APRIL 5: Easter.
APRIL 22: Earth Day.
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