Biden Administration
The Republican Energy and Climate Agenda
With many polls predicting a ‘red wave’ on Election Day, we take a look at the energy and climate agenda of the 118th Congress under Republican control.
Use or Misuse of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve?
Rising gasoline prices prompted President Biden to announce on October 19 that he was authorizing the release of 15 million barrels of crude oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Two New Clean Energy Programs Funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Unveiled
The U.S. Department of Energy announced two new programs last month that are funded by the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act: $7 billion to create regional ‘hydrogen hubs’ and $4.9 billion to ‘manage and store carbon pollution.’
The Inflation Reduction Act's 'Inadequate' Reliance on Electric Vehicles
Electric vehicles can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but not enough to prevent the worst of climate change and not as much as walkable cities with far fewer cars on the road.
$1.5 Billion Awarded for Transportation Projects, Including $100 Million to Remove a Detroit Freeway
The latest round of federal infrastructure funding includes the largest contribution to emerge, so far, from the 2021 infrastructure bill for the removal of an urban freeway.
How Locals Are Planning to Spend $2.2 Billion in RAISE Transportation Grants, Part Two
Part two of a series of post providing specific information for 164 of the 166 projects recently awarded funding by the U.S. Department of Transportation's RAISE grant funding program.
How Locals Are Planning to Spend $2.2 Billion in RAISE Transportation Grants
The U.S. Department of Transportation earlier this month announced $2.2 billion in RAISE grants. The Biden administration has promised that the RAISE grant program will improve equity and sustainability in the nation's transportation systems.
$2.2 Billion in RAISE Grant Funding Announced for Transportation Projects
The Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) competitive grant program, supersized by the federal infrastructure bill in 2021, just announced a new round of funding.
Biden Administration Proposes New Rule to Track Emission Reductions by State DOTs
Some skepticism is warranted about the potential impact of a proposed federal rule for states and regional planning agencies to track greenhouse gas reductions from transportation investment.
Biden’s Environmental Legacy (So Far)
President Biden campaigned on promises to restore many of the environmental regulations rolled back by the previous administration, while promising new efforts to tackle environmental injustice and climate change.
$1 Billion ‘Reconnecting Communities’ Program Accepting Applications to Repair Damage of Racist Transportation Planning
The Biden administration has talked about the need to repair the damages of a racist history of transportation planning in the United States. The time has finally come to put their money where their mouth is.
Energy Department Resumes Loan Program with Hydrogen Storage
The Energy Department's loan office, known for a bad loan to the solar panel startup Solyndra in 2011, will loan $504 million to a company that will use renewable energy to create 'green hydrogen' and store it in salt caverns in Utah.
L.A.'s San Fernando Valley $909 Million Closer to Light Rail
The last time rail transit crossed L.A.'s San Fernando Valley was in the early 1950s.
New White House Housing Initiative Includes Zoning Reform Incentives
The Biden administration this morning released a new program of actions intended to spur housing construction around the United States.
$6 Billion to Keep Uncompetitive Nuclear Plants Alive
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes $6 billion to create a credit program to extend the life of existing nuclear power plants, the largest source of carbon-free energy in the nation. The first deadline to bid for credits is May 19.
After Waiting Two Days, Justice Department Appeals Transit Mask Ruling
Mystery surrounds the decision by the Biden administration to not ask for an immediate stay of an unanticipated district court ruling to vacate the CDC's masks-on-transit rule. Two days later they appealed as coronavirus cases increase nationwide.
Sanctioning Russian Energy Exports
European leaders chose not to join the U.S. in an embargo of Russian energy products largely because of dependence on natural gas. Similarly, the world needs the 11% of crude oil that Russia exports. What can the U.S. do to lessen this dependence?
Senate Vote Illustrates America's Polarized Response to Pandemic
A Senate joint resolution to roll back the Biden administration's only vaccine mandate to be upheld by the Supreme Court passed on a party-line vote on March 2. In Europe, the legislative branch often needs to approve these measures to become law.
U.S. DOT's 2022 RAISE Grants to Target Emissions Reductions, Racial Equity
The RAISE grant program continues to make history as a distinct departure from U.S. transportation planning tradition.
Feds Toss the Environmental Assessment for Portland Controversial Freeway Widening Project
It's back to the drawing board for the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Wisconsin Rapids
Harvard University Graduate School of Design
KFH Group Inc.
The Architects Foundation
University of Cincinnati Online
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello
