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Incisive commentary from RAP experts
RAP experts keep their finger on the pulse of the energy sector and provide timely analysis of topics impacting stakeholders TODAY.
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July 21, 2021
In a Quickly Changing World, Gas Utilities and Regulators Need a Plan
- Megan Anderson
America’s favorite fictional salesman of propane and propane accessories, Hank Hill, may have said it best: “When you plan ahead, then when things happen, you’re prepared.” Changes in the energy sector have big ramifications for the way utilities… View Summary +
May 21, 2021
How Electrifying Trucks Can Help Roadside Neighborhoods Breathe Easier
We know that electrifying trucks, as we wrote last month, can reduce significant amounts of air pollution; it can also have significant health benefits, particularly for frontline communities. Analysis by Alexander Meitiv and Ann Xu for Texas A&M’s… View Summary +
April 13, 2021
Use Less, Save More: Adding a Conservation Incentive to Percentage of Income Payment Programs
- Janine Migden-Ostrander
For low-income households, being able to afford utility service is a constant struggle. The average American household spends 2-3% of its income on its energy bills, but for a low-income family, the energy burden can be more like 15-20% (or… View Summary +
March 12, 2021
Be Strategic with Your EV Funding: The Essential Charging Network
As the Rolling Stones once told us, “You Can’t Always Get What You Want.” That idea might certainly apply to jurisdictions that would love to have the resources to build out a comprehensive charging network for electric vehicles, but find… View Summary +
March 10, 2021
A Next-Generation Approach to Energy Resource Procurement
- Megan Anderson ,
- Carl Linvill
Three trends in the power sector are converging to drive rapid and unprecedented change. State and utility climate goals are driving significant investment in clean energy. Fossil-fueled generation is aging and retiring at the same time that renewable energy and… View Summary +
February 24, 2021
RGGI’s Program Review Offers a Chance to Revisit Local Air Quality Needs
While there is substantial evidence that the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) has been very successful at reducing carbon and other emissions across the multi-state region, there is still important work to be done to document and ensure air… View Summary +
January 25, 2021
Why Rate Design in New England Needs a Refresh
- David Littell ,
- Donna Brutkoski
Looking ahead to 2030 and then beyond to 2050, the majority of New England states have set ambitious clean energy goals. The growing adoption of new technology empowers energy customers to play a direct role in making these goals happen… View Summary +
November 12, 2020
Choose Your Own Road Trip: A Toolkit for Transportation Electrification
Electrification of the transportation sector provides an opportunity for states to save citizens money on fuel, improve the local economy, address national security concerns, improve public health and combat climate change. Some of these attributes have more urgency than ever,… View Summary +
October 26, 2020
Revisiting the Public Good, Part 2: What Do We Mean by “Good”?
Simple terms can provide a useful framework and help us understand complex things. Raising children, for example, is a highly involved, lengthy and expensive undertaking, but can be reduced to a couple of words: You want your kids to grow… View Summary +
October 23, 2020
Revisiting the Public Good, Part 1: A Better Understanding of “Public”
Ensuring the “public good” has been a central regulatory goal since the US Supreme Court decided Munn v. Illinois in 1876, a case in which the court determined that grain elevators — because of their key role in the… View Summary +