US infrastructure bill

tahanson43206 · 2021-11-18 11:06:17

This post is primarily for SpaceNut re US Infrastructure bill just passed...

I was not aware of this provision of the bill. Your household may not be eligible but please find out:

It appears that the bulk of funds are intended for renters. However, it appears that ? 4 billion USD may be available for home owners.

I regret that the provisions of the bill do not extend to our European friends.

It appears (as I read the report) that it is up to the home owner to write to the utility to see what funds might be available for a particular customer.

NEWS / WINTER WEATHER
White House says billions available for heat, power aid for needy this winter
By Clyde Hughes, UPI,
Published Nov. 18, 2021 10:02 AM EST | Updated Nov. 18, 2021 10:03 AM EST
Nov. 18 (UPI) -- The White House announced on Thursday that it's offering several billion dollars in aid for winter heating and utility bills, and calling on power companies to avoid shutting off service to needy Americans over the coming months.
The move is intended to avoid "devastating" utility terminations and takes the aid funds from the American Rescue Plan, which was passed early this year.
The plan makes available several programs that state and local utility companies can use to help needy customers.
"States and localities have the flexibility to use Fiscal Recovery Funds to help deliver energy relief to families, including for middle-class households that may not be eligible for programs directed to the lowest income consumers," the White House said in a statement.
<snip>
"The White House also calls on utility companies that receive public dollars to prevent devastating utility shut-offs this winter and help expedite the delivery of unprecedented federal aid."
Officials said, for example, the pandemic-era Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program has up to $4 billion available to help several million U.S. households and the Emergency Rental Assistance program has $21.5 billion to help renters.
The White House said utilities must be proactive in using the programs so those who need help this winter can receive it. The Treasury Department will assist in identifying people eligible for available programs.
"Utilities and energy providers should inform customers of energy assistance programs, screen customers for benefits eligibility, and facilitate referrals to available benefits programs prior to any shut-offs," the White House added.
"Energy providers should be critical partners by proactively working to establish the processes and data-sharing relationships needed to speed benefits to their eligible customers as quickly as possible."

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tahanson43206 · 2021-11-18 11:33:23

Nearby is a state-of-the-art in 2019 system that can still access the Internet. I posted the text in the post # 10 from the newer system, and have returned to the primary workstation to edit the text.

However, I can give you (and others) a preview ... this post is about the Infrastructure bill just passed and signed into law. That bill has a few Republican votes, although not nearly as many as would seem appropriate, since the contents is about bridges, roads and other traditional infrastructure.

Thanks again for your early feedback.

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SpaceNut · 2021-11-18 14:41:34

tahanson43206, there is a lot in the bill to help fix many things in the country but it takes a while to see the results.

A similar road bridge repair was done back when Obama was in office and it took 10 years to complete. It expanded the road from one bridge with 4 lanes to 2 bridges with 4 lanes on each. It also expanded the highway interface from the toll booth going south with additional lanes on both sides of the bridges.

I suspect that it will be that long for all of the work which must be done to remove many bridges from the red list.

SpaceNut · 2021-11-18 15:26:13

Here is the link to that bill
https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-con … -bill/3684

Introduced in House (06/04/2021)
Investing in a New Vision for the Environment and Surface Transportation in America Act or the INVEST in America Act
This bill addresses provisions related to federal-aid highway, transit, highway safety, motor carrier, research, hazardous materials, and rail programs of the Department of Transportation (DOT).
Among other provisions, the bill
extends FY2021 enacted levels through FY2022 for federal-aid highway, transit, and safety programs;
reauthorizes for FY2023-FY2026 several surface transportation programs, including the federal-aid highway program, transit programs, highway safety, motor carrier safety, and rail programs;
addresses climate change, including strategies to reduce the climate change impacts of the surface transportation system and a vulnerability assessment to identify opportunities to enhance the resilience of the surface transportation system and ensure the efficient use of federal resources;
revises Buy America procurement requirements for highways, mass transit, and rail;
establishes a rebuild rural bridges program to improve the safety and state of good repair of bridges in rural communities;
implements new safety requirements across all transportation modes; and
directs DOT to establish a pilot program to demonstrate a national motor vehicle per-mile user fee to restore and maintain the long-term solvency of the Highway Trust Fund and achieve and maintain a state of good repair in the surface transportation system.

tahanson43206 · 2021-11-18 18:26:05

SpaceNut re topic ... I think you have to take action on your own to prod the utility to pull down funds. They won't do anything on their own.

It is remotely possible your community includes highly motivated people who want to try to help bring any available funds down to the community.

If you don't want to do the work yourself, you may be able to offer support to someone who does.

I'm assuming (just a guess) a good place to start is the Mayor's office.

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SpaceNut · 2021-11-21 21:31:56

It seems that some will do anything to stop cheap power from entering the US when its not lowering that states rates but is just passing through.
2017
Back 5 years ago the hydro power was slated to pass through part of the upper vermont and through NH to Mass. but that was defeated in time
https://www.nhbr.com/national-grid-prop … sion-line/
proposed path

2019
NH Supreme Court Rejects Northern Pass Transmission Line

So the business attempted to pass through Maine instead.
Construction Temporarily Halted on Maine's $1B Transmission Line

In my town there has been 4 solar array projects that at the start of the last administration were a go until the tariffs went into place and along with the towns own property nonsence basically these are all dead at this time.

So seeing news of a New England's biggest solar project is catching some rays even if its in Maine...

SpaceNut · 2021-11-21 22:00:31

From the text

Subtitle D--Hydropower
Sec. 40334. Pumped storage hydropower wind and solar integration and
system reliability initiative.
Subtitle E--Miscellaneous
Sec. 40341. Solar energy technologies on current and former mine land.

Sounds like gravity storage using pumped water, wind or solar....

Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin is risking the planet's future to protect a dwindling pool of 14,000 coal mining jobs in his home state of West Virginia seems like a lot but they do not need to stop mining the coal just use it differently....

SpaceNut · 2021-11-24 19:52:50

The next battle for America comes with It took half a year but Democrats have driven President Joe Biden’s $2 trillion package of social and climate initiatives through the House. It gets no easier in the Senate, where painful Republican amendments, restrictive rules and Joe Manchin lurk.

They're negotiating further changes for a final version they hope will win approval by Christmas in the 50-50 Senate, where they'll need every Democratic vote. House passage of the altered bill would still be needed.

Mars_B4_Moon · 2021-12-07 13:59:30

Senators weigh one-time move to raise debt ceiling as deadline nears
https://nypost.com/2021/12/07/senate-we … t-ceiling/

GAO Report On NASA And Its Big Telescopes
http://nasawatch.com/archives/2021/12/g … n-n-4.html

SpaceNut · 2024-02-25 10:00:10

Had to really search about the hydro power coming from Canada called the northern pass now attempting a new corridor through Maine.

Inside a clean energy titan’s fight to kill a climate project

Florida-based NextEra Energy has fought to block a transmission line for Canadian-generated hydropower by opposing it at two state supreme courts, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the ballot box — twice. Its tactics, overseen in part by a public relations firm with a history of defending coal, recently led a Maine ethics agency to issue its largest-ever fineagainst an organization working on NextEra’s behalf.
NextEra’s campaign has delayed the power line’s construction for almost two years, leaving the region overwhelmingly dependent on natural gas. Its opposition highlights an uncomfortable reality for climate advocates: Powerful allies can turn into cutthroat adversaries when their profits are threatened.

Causing power rates to climb.

tahanson43206 · 2024-02-25 12:05:54

For SpaceNut re funds for your community ...

When these funds first became available I pointed out that funds were set aside for communities to request ...l

It requires action by citizens to make anything happen.

If no citizen has the energy or time or boldness to ask, it is practically guaranteed that the funds will go to communities where there are such people.

This topic was opened: 2021-11-18 13:06:17

It is now well over two years later. That is plenty of time for funds to have been requested.

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SpaceNut · 2024-02-25 15:04:16

Some of these dates back to 2106 when the PSNH was bought by Eversource which is now a NH company but is from Connecticut. From what I see in the first and follow up of the bill is that state, county and city/town can get the funds for this but when companies block the forward motion to use and create from them little or no change will happen.

Many must get the application through the various agency that is in control of the particular area of work efforts.
Most towns have applied and been delayed or denied through this process.

The PUC had more power before the company was bought as well as the deregulation change.
https://www.puc.nh.gov/Electric/electric.htm

Effort to change the balance of power control seems to have only hit a small part of use of Five years later, New Hampshire’s community power law is reshaping the electricity market

Member towns in New Hampshire’s year-old Community Power Coalition are reaping the benefits of banding together to buy electricity on their own.
As of Feb. 1, residential and small commercial customers in the coalition’s 16 active member communities will pay a base electricity rate of 8.1 cents per kilowatt-hour, a 26 percent reduction from their already-competitive rate of 10.9 cents per kWh.
Another 29 communities are planning to enjoy the lower rate after they launch their own programs this spring, effectively making the statewide coalition the second-largest electrical supplier in the state.
“The community power program has been a great success,” said Jackson Kaspari, resilience manager for the city of Dover and a member of the coalition’s board of directors. Since Dover launched its program last October, for example, residential and commercial customers have saved an estimated $500,000, he said.
The new rate, which will be in effect through July 31, is lower than the default residential rate offered by every other electric utility in the state: 24 percent below Unitil, 20 percent below the New Hampshire Electric Co-op, 17 percent below Liberty, and 2 percent below Eversource.

While power has been deregulated the use of the wires are still owned by the company that had the majority of them which is now Eversource.

List of power stations in New Hampshire

Here is the list for the other infrastructure
https://www.energy.nh.gov/utilities-pro … -city-town

My Town still is working on the blocked solar farm for the land fill in the neighborhood of 1.7 MW but its going to be a while.

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#1 2021-11-18 11:06:17

US infrastructure bill

#2 2021-11-18 11:33:23

Re: US infrastructure bill

#3 2021-11-18 14:41:34

Re: US infrastructure bill

#4 2021-11-18 15:26:13

Re: US infrastructure bill

#5 2021-11-18 18:26:05

Re: US infrastructure bill

#6 2021-11-21 21:31:56

Re: US infrastructure bill

#7 2021-11-21 22:00:31

Re: US infrastructure bill

#8 2021-11-24 19:52:50

Re: US infrastructure bill

#9 2021-12-07 13:59:30

Re: US infrastructure bill

#10 2024-02-25 10:00:10

Re: US infrastructure bill

#11 2024-02-25 12:05:54

Re: US infrastructure bill

#12 2024-02-25 15:04:16

Re: US infrastructure bill

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