Thirteen states, at least 80 mayors, and more than 100 businesses will task themselves to meet ambitious climate-change goals—with or without federal participation. The newly formed United States Climate Alliance—which so far has support from more than a dozen states including New York, California, and Massachusetts—says it will... Climate resistance grows; 3 states ally to flout Trump, commit to Paris accord
Thirteen states, at least 80 mayors, and more than 100 businesses will task themselves to meet ambitious climate-change goals—with or without federal participation. The newly formed United States Climate Alliance—which so far has support from more than a dozen states including New York, California, and Massachusetts—says it will... 
Fulfilling a campaign pledge, President Donald Trump said yesterday that he will set in motion plans to pull the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Pact that it joined last fall. In turn, Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded that he will have to pull out of Trump's business advisory councils of CEOs and executives, which he had joined in January. Musk was... 
Fuel economy and emission standards have been a contentious issue in recent months as the auto industry and government officials clash over regulations and their potential benefits. Earlier this year, one of the largest pieces of evidence against more stringent fuel economy regulations came from former Ford CEO Mark Fields. Fields told President... 
Under the new administration of President Donald Trump, the EPA has reopened comments on its decision to finalize emission rules for 2022 through 2025 vehicles. Meanwhile, the NHTSA—which sets fuel-economy rules that have to correspond to EPA limits on carbon-dioxide emissions—hasn't yet issued its corporate average fuel-economy rules... ![The White House, Washington, D.C. [Creative Commons license by dcjohn]](http://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/white-house_100170583_t.gif)
While the news headlines on President Donald Trump mostly address potential scandals, his administration has also lagged significantly in appointing top-level officials to run government agencies. Those that have been appointed often have an adversarial relationship to the missions of the agencies they run. Scott Pruitt, for example, is now... ![Smog obscures George Washington Bridge, 1973 [From EPA Documerica series]](http://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/smog-obscures-george-washington-bridge-1973-from-epa-documerica-series_100594067_t.gif)
Much of the news out of Washington, D.C., these days has to do with the possibility of political scandal. But the wheels of government keep turning, and significant changes are happening at numerous agencies charged with missions as diverse as collecting intelligence, supporting education, and protecting the environment. Few groups are seeing... 
California began regulating vehicle emissions within its boundaries before the Environmental Protection Agency was even a gleam in President Richard Nixon's eye. Since that agency was founded in 1971 with an executive order by Nixon, the state has retained the right to set its own—more stringent—emission rules. Now, under President... 
It's difficult to invest in renewable, alternative sources of energy when state-run oil pays the bills. And it's even harder for renewable energy when gasoline is all but free, courtesy of the same state. Now The Financial Times has taken a look at Russia's growing lag in embracing renewable energy to offer a serious alternative to oil and... 
The best way to change perceptions about electric cars is to put novices in the driver's seat—quite literally in this sense. The advocacy group Plug In America went to Capitol Hill recently, with a barrage of plug-in electric and pure battery electric vehicles, in an effort to educate lawmakers on their importance. Hundreds of senate members... ![Tesla Store Los Angeles [photo: Misha Bruk / MBH Architects]](http://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/tesla-store-los-angeles-photo-misha-bruk-mbh-architects_100449435_t.gif)
Another month, another Tesla battle with auto-dealer lobbyists in another state—or so it seems in the company's ongoing battle to sell electric cars online directly to buyers. This time, the action is in Connecticut, where on Monday the legislature's finance committee approved a bill letting Tesla do just that. That bill is expected to lead... 
If you're a journalist, it's almost impossible to ignore political news these days. So if readers can resolutely avoid national and local coverage of politics, consider yourselves lucky. That said, sometimes a new political angle can make a dry story on car-buyer data more interesting than expected. DON'T MISS: Sales of 'green' cars remain low; is... ![Natural gas flaring from oil well [licensed under Creative Commons from Flickr user Sirdle]](http://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/natural-gas-being-flared-from-oil-well-licensed-under-creative-commons-from-flickr-user-sirdle_100443858_t.gif)
While much of the nation's capital is preoccupied with the unpredictable Trump administration and its possible ties to Russia, the fate of the Environmental Protection Agency generates less news coverage. That's not to say there hasn't been news. Administrator Scott Pruitt is proceeding swiftly with a radical plan to restructure—critics... 
On Saturday, tens of thousands of people joined a Science March in Washington, D.C., to support use of data-based science to set government policy on climate change. The day before, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency removed detailed climate data and scientific information because it appeared to conflict with the "beliefs" of the Trump... ![Donald J. Trump in November 2016 [photo: The Trump Organization]](http://images.hgmsites.net/tmb/donald-j-trump-in-november-2016-photo-the-trump-organization_100590012_t.gif)
As the Trump Administration nears its 100th day, it seems fair to say that it is still emitting mixed messages on multiple issues, from foreign policy to climate change. On that latter, it's important to reiterate that the president and many of his appointed agency and department heads deny the science of climate change. On the campaign trail, the... 
It is widely accepted in the energy industry that U.S. coal production will fall as a percentage of the total electric grid mix. That has little to do with its high carbon footprint per kilowatt-hour generated; it is largely due to far greater supplies of much cheaper fracked natural gas. It is also widely accepted that renewable energy sources... 
Despite some alarmist reporting, President Donald Trump hasn't abolished the EPA's vehicle emission limits. Nor has he wiped out corporate average fuel-economy rules, set by the NHTSA. So far, he's done two things: signed an executive order reopening the comment period for 2022-2025 EPA emission limits, and proposed a budget that would slash EPA...