March 14, 2024
Dr. Marilyn A. Brown, of Georgia Institute of Technology in partnership with the Sierra Club in Georgia released an energy burden report highlighting the oversized financial burden black households face in Georgia.
energy-efficiency
November 1, 2023
Washington, DC – Today, during a stop on the White House’s Investing in Rural America event series, President Biden will announce more than $5 billion in funding for rural communities, made possible largely through the landmark Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
June 23, 2022
Kansas City, KS – The Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC), which regulates utilities like Evergy, will hold a virtual public hearing to receive feedback from customers about the utility’s first-ever energy efficiency program.
May 10, 2022
Boston, MA – On Monday, Mayor Wu announced two new programs to increase access to renewable energy and energy efficiency in East Boston, an environmental justice neighborhood facing some of the highest levels of industrial pollution in the region.
April 14, 2022
EUGENE, OR - Yesterday, the Eugene City Council voted unanimously to move forward conversations regarding their efforts to regulate methane “natural” gas in the city in what would be a first-in-the-state ordinance. A clear majority of council members expressed support for an ordinance to electrify all new construction in the city with limited exemptions, creating a precedent for cities across the state.
April 13, 2022
Sierra Club launched a first-of-its-kind tool that allows individuals to calculate their household energy burden. Memphis is one of the top five energy-burdened cities in the United States.
April 12, 2022
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Sierra Club launched a first-of-its-kind tool that allows individuals to calculate their household energy burden. The calculator is available in both desktop and mobile versions.
February 14, 2022
AUSTIN, TEXAS -- A new report published today by the Sierra Club identifies key lessons to be learned from 2021’s Winter Storm Uri, which left over seven hundred people dead and caused approximately $200 billion in damages.
January 19, 2022
ATLANTA, GA – Today, the Sierra Club is announcing its intention to participate in the 2022 Georgia Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) process. During this process, Georgia Power (owned by Southern Company) will propose its plan for how it will procure energy over the next two decades, which must be approved by the Public Service Commission (PSC).
November 16, 2021
AUSTIN, TX -- The February winter storm Uri killed hundreds of Texans. Now, state regulators at the Public Utility Commission (PUC) are following Governor Abbott and allowing the same fossil fuel companies and utilities that caused our suffering to determine the solutions for “fixing” the electric grid. State leaders must listen to everyday Texans and actually fix the electric grid - not to add more of the same old dirty fossil fuels that already left Texans in the cold.
April 8, 2021
Milwaukee, WI -- Keeping the lights on. That’s what utilities and energy providers proclaim they do. But what happens when utility bills become a burden – or more precisely, an over-burden? That is what’s occurring for many Black and Latinx households in Milwaukee according to a new analysis, Energy Burden in Milwaukee: Study Reveals Major Disparities & Links to Redlined Areas, from Alliance for Climate Education, Black Leaders Organizing for Community, Citizen Action of Wisconsin - North Side Rising Co-op, the Sierra Club, and Voces de la Frontera. Census data from 2013 to 2018 reveal stark contrasts in energy burdens - the percentage of income households pay for their energy bills. Households in well-off white neighborhoods may have an average energy burden of 1% or less, versus the 7 - 10% (or higher) many in predominantly Black or Latinx neighborhoods pay.
May 1, 2018
DES MOINES, IA -- Last night, the Iowa State Legislature passed a bill that will eliminate energy efficiency programs and reduce regulatory oversight for the state’s electric utilities, which will increase costs for electricity customers and shift risks from the utilities themselves to everyday ratepayers. The bill, Senate File 2311, was contentiously debated and prompted widespread opposition from Iowa families and businesses. Despite broad and vocal opposition from constituents, the bill passed the House with a 52-42 vote on Friday then in the Senate last night. The bill proposes changes that are in direct conflict with the Governor’s State Energy Plan. Opponents are strongly urging Governor Kim Reynolds to veto the bill.