Utility Dive covered state ballot initiatives for carbon tax/renewable energy investments, deregulation and RPS measures inWashington, Nevada and Arizona. Commentary by J.R. Tolbert, vice president of state policy at AEE, was included. Link to the full article here.

Excerpts of the Utility Dive story are below:     

Across the United States, the general trend is toward clean energy resources and away from carbon-emitting generation. But in some states there is a sense that regulators and utilities are not moving fast enough — leading to ballot initiatives that could abruptly change the course of state policy…

Utilities in each state have raised concerns about the measures, but according to J.R. Tolbert, vice president of state policy at Advanced Energy Economy, advocacy groups may increasingly turn to the ballot box if they do not believe they are seeing progress.

A ballot question "allows advocates to avoid many of the obstacles that exist in state legislatures and regulatory commissions across the country and in theory puts citizens on the same footing as their utilities," Tolbert told Utility Dive.

"They all have the opportunity to reshape each of the states' electric systems," [said Tolbert]. 

So what to make of ballot questions as a tool of clean energy advocacy? That's a tricky question, said Tolbert. 

"Ballot measures are certainly a strategic approach to expanding clean energy on the electric grid in the states," he said. But ultimately it will come down to the details and execution. "The implementation of these initiatives is absolutely critical," Tolbert said…

See the complete breakdown of the ballot initiatives with J.R. Tolbert’s commentary in the full UD piece here.