EXTRACTED: Daily News Clips 6/6/25

PIPELINE NEWS

• Press release: Landowners & Advocates React to Eighth Circuit Ruling Finding Federal Pipeline Law Preempts County Ordinances

• Iowa Capital Dispatch: Appellate court upholds decisions favoring Summit over county pipeline ordinances

• Cedar Rapids Gazette: Federal appeals court rules against county pipeline ordinances

• Iowa Farm Bureau: Farm Bureau challenges eminent domain approval

• Telegraph Herald: Iowa Legislature protects grain farmers, advances contentious pipeline bill

• Canadian Press: B.C. gives green light to LNG pipeline, with no need for new environmental assessment

• Michigan Public: Pipeline permit changes could help protect Kirtland's warblers in Michigan state park

• Press release: USDOT Enhances Pipeline Enforcement Policies to Protect Due Process, Refocus Agency

• Natural Gas Intelligence: Has Supreme Court Eased Path for Advancing Natural Gas Infrastructure?

• Hart Energy: Kinder Morgan's Fore on the US' 'Golden Age' of Pipeline Construction

• Interior Journal: TC Energy proposes 40-mile pipeline through Lincoln and Pulaski Counties

WASHINGTON UPDATES

• The Hill: Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ losing momentum in Senate

• Politico: Who’s meeting who

• E&E News: Daines, Lee discuss compromise on public land sales

• North Dakota Monitor: Long-thwarted efforts to sell public lands see new life under Trump

• Politico: Senate EPW bill targets IRA funds, pauses methane fee for 10 years

• The New Republic: Trump’s Attacks on Climate Policy Are Even Hitting Exxon

• RBN Energy: Changes to 45V Tax Credit Would Deal a Major Blow to Low-Carbon Hydrogen

• Associated Press: Trump EPA moves to roll back rules projected to save billions of dollars and thousands of lives

• Floodlight: Support for renewables shrinks as fossil fuel interest grows

STATE UPDATES

• Source NM: New Mexico Appeals Court orders dismissal of oil and gas pollution lawsuit

• Alabama Daily News: Two Alabama clean energy grants canceled

• Athens Independent: Carbon sequestration bills draw rebuke from activists, oil and gas producers

• NJ Spotlight: Officials weigh final decision on giant petroleum storage caverns

• Guardian: ‘Putting profit over people’: big gas is waging war on a California clean air rule

• Texas Tribune: Data centers are building their own gas power plants in Texas

• Dallas Morning News: Port of Corpus Christi nears completion of $625 million improvement project after 35 years

• San Antonio Business Journal: Texas lawmakers approve 15-year deadline to plug idle wells

• Public News Service: New alert system brings oil and gas spill data directly to Colorado residents

• San Francisco Chronicle: Investigation into East Bay refinery fire highlights role of contract workforce

• Associated Press: Crews clean up 2,000-gallon fuel spill in Baltimore's harbor

EXTRACTION

• DeSmog: Carbon Capture ‘Not Going to Happen,’ Top Fossil Fuel Advocate Predicts

• Inside Climate News: Gas Leaks Can Have Significant Spillover Impacts on Neighboring States, Study Finds

• Canadian Press: Competition Bureau releases final anti-greenwashing guidelines

• Upstream: ExxonMobil unveils two oil discoveries offshore Canada

• Canadian Press: Vermilion Energy selling U.S. assets for $120 million in cash

CLIMATE FINANCE

• Canadian Press: Infrastructure Bank ready to play a role in national-interest projects

OPINION

• Iowa Capital Dispatch: A legacy-defining moment for Gov. Kim Reynolds
  

PIPELINE NEWS

Press release: Landowners & Advocates React to Eighth Circuit Ruling Finding Federal Pipeline Law Preempts County Ordinances
6/5/25

“Landowners and advocates expressed disappointment with Thursday’s decision by the Eight Circuit Court of Appeals that limits local control over pipeline routing, emergency response, and abandonment. In the face of federal inaction, states and counties have worked hard to enact commonsense laws that protect their communities from risky pipeline projects. The court’s majority opinion found that ordinances enacted by Shelby County and Story County in Iowa related to carbon dioxide pipeline setbacks, consideration of safety when routing pipelines, and pipeline abandonment are preempted by the federal Pipeline Safety Act. The court’s anti-local government ruling means the county ordinances that address these “safety” issues overstepped their authority. Meanwhile, the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) has not enacted any meaningful routing standards, has failed to take local emergency response information needs into account, and has never issued any safety standards for pipelines after abandonment – leaving landowners in limbo to fend for themselves. While the case was initially brought by Shelby County and Story County in Iowa, Bold Alliance supported a friend of the court brief aligned with the counties’ arguments. Parties to the case are reviewing the ruling and examining their legal and legislative options. The two Iowa counties subject to this order are free to amend their ordinances to comply with the findings by the Eighth Circuit. Notably, the court stated its ruling “does not prohibit local governments from considering safety, nor prevent them from enacting all zoning ordinances… This court emphasizes the distinction between safety standards—which the PSA preempts—and safety considerations—which the PSA does not preempt.” Additionally, a dissenting opinion issued from the court disagreed that setbacks and pipeline abandonment are necessarily preempted by federal law. Under the ruling, determining what types or ordinances or regulations may or may not be preempted by federal law must be made on a case-by-case basis. In the meantime, the landowners, impacted community members, county and state elected officials who worked for months or years to develop ordinances and state regulations are witnessing their hard-won efforts to enact common sense protections for their communities stripped away by judicial fiat. “While we had hoped for a more decisive ruling affirming local control, the Court clearly acknowledged that counties can consider safety and implement zoning ordinances. We’re committed to continuing to advance protections for landowners and communities within the scope of that authority,” said Emma Schmit, Pipeline Fighters Director for Bold Alliance.”

Iowa Capital Dispatch: Appellate court upholds decisions favoring Summit over county pipeline ordinances
Cami Koons, 6/5/25

“A federal appeals court on Thursday upheld lower court decisions barring counties from imposing safety standards on a pipeline subject to federal safety standards,” the Iowa Capital Dispatch reports. “...Summit sued the counties in 2022 for enacting ordinances that required county-specific setback requirements and other regulations the company argued were preempted by federal pipeline safety laws. A federal judge ruled in favor of Summit in Dec. 2023 and issued permanent injunctions, stopping the counties from enforcing the regulations, which would have impacted the carbon sequestration pipeline and other pipelines… “The counties argued that local land use and zoning regulations are not “preempted standards” under the Pipeline Safety Act. Writing for the appeals court, U.S. Circuit Judge Duane Benton wrote that the county ordinances “focus” on safety and “repeatedly” mention safety risks associated with the pipeline, which “undermines” the Pipeline Safety Act’s goal of preempting state regulations on safety… “Circuit Judge Jane Kelly, however, dissented on those elements and wrote she does not believe that PSA preempts setback and abandonment provisions. Kelly said that while the counties’ setback requirements are “animated in part by safety considerations” they do not have the “direct and substantial” effect on safety that is reserved for federal regulation. Kelly also wrote that per her understanding, the Pipeline Safety Act “does not cover pipelines that have been abandoned” and therefore the Shelby County abandonment provision is not “expressly preempted.” The court affirmed the lower court’s decision in both cases, but ordered the federal court for the Southern District of Iowa to reconsider an additional ordinance that’s at issue in the Story County case… “A press release from Bold Alliance, a group representing landowners opposed to the pipeline project, called the order an “anti-local government ruling” and said the parties involved in the case are examining their “legal and legislative options” in response to the decision. “The landowners, impacted community members, county and state elected officials who worked for months or years to develop ordinances and state regulations are witnessing their hard-won efforts to enact common sense protections for their communities stripped away by judicial fiat,” the statement read.”

Cedar Rapids Gazette: Federal appeals court rules against county pipeline ordinances
Jared Strong, 6/5/25

“County ordinances in Iowa that restrict the placement of carbon dioxide pipelines are overruled by the authority of state and federal regulators and cannot be enforced, a federal appeals court decided Thursday,” the Cedar Rapids Gazette reports. “The decision concerns ordinances adopted by Shelby and Story counties that, among other provisions, set minimum distances the pipelines must be laid from houses, schools, medical facilities and other sites with people and livestock. Summit Carbon Solutions, which sued the two counties in 2022, wants to build a pipeline system that would span more than 2,500 miles and transport captured carbon dioxide from ethanol plants in five states — including Iowa — to North Dakota for underground storage… “But it also must gain approval in South Dakota before it proceeds with construction, and that state has twice rejected its permit requests. Further, lawmakers there enacted a law this year that prevents the use of eminent domain to forcibly obtain land rights for the project, which imperils its future… “Importantly, the court’s Thursday ruling found that county ordinances that set rules for pipeline placement are trumped by federal authority over pipeline safety and state authority over pipeline routes… “The decision can be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. Summit, in a prepared statement, told the Gazette the ruling "supports a consistent, lawful permitting process for critical infrastructure projects like ours."

Iowa Farm Bureau: Farm Bureau challenges eminent domain approval
6/2/25

“The Iowa Farm Bureau Federation filed a brief in Polk County District Court last week arguing that the Iowa Utilities Commission (IUC) acted improperly in granting eminent domain authority without conditions to Summit Carbon Solutions for a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline. Farm Bureau’s brief is in support of petitioning landowners, including Greg and Erica Kracht and DAPEMA LLC to allege the IUC erred by granting Summit the use of eminent domain despite lacking key permits from neighboring states… “South Dakota’s Public Utilities Commission has rejected Summit’s permit applications twice, raising questions about the project’s viability. Iowa law requires a reasonable expectation that the applicant will achieve its public purpose before eminent domain can be used, Farm Bureau said it its opening brief. The petitioners are asking the court to limit Summit’s use of eminent domain until all permits are secured from all affected states. Other petitioners in the case include several Iowa counties, landowners, Republican legislators and the Sierra Club Iowa Chapter. Summit’s opening brief in the case is due July. 2.”

Telegraph Herald: Iowa Legislature protects grain farmers, advances contentious pipeline bill
Benjamin Fisher, 6/5/25

“The Iowa State Legislature agreed on many bipartisan funding and policy measures to protect both farmers and natural resources during its 2025 session. In between, it also passed a historically controversial eminent domain bill that awaits the governor’s approval or denial,” the Telegraph Herald reports. “...East-central Iowa lawmakers were mixed in their opinions — and particularly, votes — on the bill passed by the Legislature to permit the limited use of eminent domain for energy companies to install underground natural gas and carbon-capture pipelines. Mommsen was one of 10 representatives to dissent on the bill in the House, which received 85 aye votes from his colleagues, including from Reps. Steve Bradley, R-Cascade, Lindsay James, D-Dubuque, Shannon Lundgren, R-Peosta, and Jason Gearhart, R-Strawberry Point. “I’m not very pleased with how it ended up,” Mommsen told the Herald. “The bill that got passed in the House and then the Senate, I don’t think it does much for property rights. It doesn’t do anything with anything other than (natural) gas pipelines. And then in my district, here, wind turbines are a much bigger issue dealing with property rights. So that’s a much bigger issue.” Zimmer was the lone TH-area senator to vote in favor of the bill, the debate for which held up the Senate’s proceedings and pushed the legislative session weeks past its previously planned deadline. Though he, like every east-central Iowa lawmaker interviewed for this series, told the Herald he could not guess if Republican Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds will end up signing the bill.”

Canadian Press: B.C. gives green light to LNG pipeline, with no need for new environmental assessment
Brenna Owen, 6/5/25

“The B.C. government says a decade-old environmental assessment certificate remains valid for the construction of a natural gas pipeline in northern B.C., in a decision opposed by the province’s Green Party and environmental groups,” the Canadian Press reports. “The Environmental Assessment Office says it has determined the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline has “substantially started,” fulfilling a requirement of the 2014 certificate and allowing the project to proceed without a new assessment… “The pipeline was purchased by the Nisga’a Nation and Texas-based Western LNG last year to supply natural gas to their proposed Ksi Lisims LNG facility, a project the province says is still undergoing environmental assessment… “The B.C. Greens told CP that upholding the original certificate is “reckless,” prioritizing the project’s American financial backers over Indigenous rights, environmental protection and community well-being. “It’s outrageous that the government is allowing construction to proceed with no approved terminus, using an outdated plan, and threatening one of the province’s most sensitive salmon habitats, all to serve the interests of foreign-owned fossil fuel companies,” the Greens’ interim leader, Jeremy Valeriote, told CP… “The pipeline is partly financed by the U.S. private equity firm Blackstone, which the Greens described as a major Republican donor with ties to U.S. President Donald Trump… “The project is opposed by the Lax Kw’alaams First Nation and Ts’msyen hereditary chiefs, who the Greens say claim jurisdiction over Pearse Island, the site of the proposed Ksi Lisims terminal. Gitanyow hereditary chiefs have also opposed the project based on concerns over Nass River salmon, the Greens add.”

Michigan Public: Pipeline permit changes could help protect Kirtland's warblers in Michigan state park
Tracy Samilton, 6/5/25

“The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, at the request of an environmental group, has made changes to a company's right-of-way permit renewal for a pipeline that runs through Hartwick Pines State Park near Grayling in northern Michigan,” Michigan Public reports. “The changes are intended to help protect the Kirtland's warblers that nest there. The rare songbird was on the federal endangered species list for decades, but efforts by federal and state agencies and non-profit groups to stabilize its population and get it off the list were successful. Wendy Bloom is a senior attorney with the Environmental Law and Policy Center. She told MP when her group read the language in the proposed right-of-way permit renewal, they felt it was too vague. She told MP the Fish and Wildlife Service adopted the group's suggested changes. The new permit requires that the pipeline company must seek prior approval for maintenance activities involving the pipeline… “Bloom told MP the permit language now requires the company to get approval before many activities, including applying any pesticides over its pipeline.”

Press release: USDOT Enhances Pipeline Enforcement Policies to Protect Due Process, Refocus Agency
6/3/25

“The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) recently announced changes to its procedures for pipeline safety enforcement proceedings. The new procedures outlined in a memorandum from PHMSA’s Chief Counsel will ensure due process (legal sufficiency), including by holding parties accountable to the penalties that were in place during the time of an alleged violation and requiring the agency to provide requested records. These recent changes to PHMSA’s civil penalty policy and procedures reflect DOT’s commitment to following the law and protecting the legal rights of all Americans… “After four years of the Biden Administration’s misguided attempts to turn PHMSA into an environmental regulator, we are ensuring due process and putting safety front and center. These long overdue reforms will refocus our enforcement program, so the law is applied fairly, transparently, and in a way that respects the core legal principle of due process,” said PHMSA Acting Administrator Ben Kochman… “In a memo issued by the Chief Counsel, PHMSA announced changes to its policy for calculating civil penalties in enforcement proceedings. PHMSA updated this policy to require that operators be held to the penalties in place at the time a violation occurred rather than subjecting them to enhanced penalties instituted after-the-fact. PHMSA will also be disclosing all pertinent agency records, including potentially exculpatory evidence. Those subject to agency enforcement actions will have fair access to the agency’s records in order to mount an effective defense.”

Natural Gas Intelligence: Has Supreme Court Eased Path for Advancing Natural Gas Infrastructure?
Carolyn Davis, 6/5/25

“The U.S. Supreme Court has opened the door to faster environmental permitting for infrastructure, including natural gas pipelines and power plants, after limiting the scope of required assessments,” Natural Gas Intelligence reports. “The unanimous ruling issued last week, in which Justice Neil M. Gorsuch recused, found that the U.S. Surface Transportation Board (STB) had done enough to consider the environmental impacts of an 88-mile freight railway in northeastern Utah, proposed in 2020. STB in 2021 approved the railway, designed to connect Uinta Basin oilfields to a system that moves crude supply to the Gulf Coast.”

Hart Energy: Kinder Morgan's Fore on the US' 'Golden Age' of Pipeline Construction
Sandy Segrist, 6/5/25

“Joining me today is Allen Fore with Kinder Morgan, executive vice president of public affairs,” Hart Energy reports. “...This year we have two LNG projects that came online at the end of last year, and then Golden Pass LNG is expected to come online possibly by the end of the year or sooner than that. What does Kinder Morgan see as far as a need and [when] being able to meet that need for the demand for natural gas is going to be coming on?... “So you have LNG in an enormous way at a number of locations, a number of entities, but you also have all of the power generation, the AI, the data centers… “All that is going to require additional natural gas capacity, and as companies are looking to expand those facilities or locate those facilities—part of the reason that SpaceX and Tesla has an enormous facility outside of Austin is because of the availability of natural gas infrastructure adjacent to nearby. That's an absolute must that these companies have for the billions of dollars investment that's coming along with it. Our pipelines are very well situated in central Texas and many areas across the country. As I mentioned on the panel, we transport one-third of the natural gas in the country… “This is the time to build. I've said this previously with the administration and the Energy Dominance Council on working to make the United States the leader in energy production around the world. A necessary part of that is midstream and you have to have the pipelines and the facilities to get product to where it's needed. Some might call it the golden age of pipeline construction because it is a time to build, and we're seeing actual results from that too. It's not just talk out of Washington, it's actual action. And one of the problems that we've talked about at this conference is when projects need to have certainty about them. Most of the companies that build and spend billions building need to be risk averse. The risk comes in schedule bumps. So yes, you can plan for the various costs, but if you have a schedule bump and it has a regulatory hook to it, you could be looking at three or four months of delays, which could be project detrimental.”

Interior Journal: TC Energy proposes 40-mile pipeline through Lincoln and Pulaski Counties
Casey Roberts, 6/5/25

“TC Energy is proposing the construction of a 40-mile natural gas pipeline stretching from Lincoln County through Pulaski County as part of its newly announced Pulaski Project,” the Interior Journal reports. “The proposed pipeline would begin at the company’s existing Columbia Gulf Transmission (CGT) Main Line System in Lincoln County and extend south to a newly constructed delivery meter station near the East Kentucky Power Cooperative’s John Sherman Cooper Power Station in Pulaski County… “The Pulaski Project is part of TC Energy’s broader Columbia Gulf Transmission System, a major infrastructure network that connects to virtually every key pipeline in the U.S. Gulf Coast and Midwest… “TC Energy representatives will host two informational open houses for the public to learn more and ask questions… “According to the company’s projected timeline, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) filing is expected in the fourth quarter of 2025. A decision from FERC could follow by mid-2027. Pre-construction activities are planned for late 2027, with full construction beginning in early 2028. The facility is expected to go into service in the first quarter of 2029… “Through its social impact initiative, Build Strong, the company also plans to invest in community causes and organizations throughout the project area.”

WASHINGTON UPDATES

The Hill: Trump’s ‘big, beautiful bill’ losing momentum in Senate
Alexander Bolton, 6/5/25

“The sprawling bill to enact President Trump’s “big, beautiful” agenda is losing momentum in the Senate in the face of blistering attacks from Elon Musk and outspoken opposition from conservatives,” The Hill reports. “Senate Finance Committee Chair Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) warned colleagues at a special conference meeting Wednesday afternoon that there are two likely “no” votes against the bill within the Senate GOP conference, which means just one more defection would threaten to derail the legislation, according to a senator who attended the meeting. “Crapo just said, ‘I think [there] are two of us who are pretty definite no’s,’ which means we can’t lose anybody else,” the source told The Hill. Crapo did not name names, but colleagues assumed he was talking about conservative Sens. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.)... “The Congressional Budget Office projected Wednesday that the 1,116-page bill passed by the House will add $2.4 trillion to the deficit over the next decade. Trump has set a July 4 deadline for Congress to get the bill to his desk. But some GOP lawmakers say that’s looking increasingly unlikely because of a battle between Republican senators over cuts to Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the repeal of renewable energy tax incentives. “It won’t happen,” Johnson told The Hill… “The expectation that Paul and Johnson will vote against the bill could give more leverage to Republicans who want to make other changes, further delaying the effort. Those moderates include Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), who are warning against Medicaid spending cuts that would affect benefits.”

Politico: Who’s meeting who
6/5/25

“The American Petroleum Institute, which represents leading oil and natural gas companies, will be meeting with senators today to discuss provisions of the reconciliation bill,” Politico reports. “An API spokesperson told Politico the trade group will be advocating for ‘fair treatment for intangible drilling costs’ and the reinstatement of tax incentives for hydrogen development.”

E&E News: Daines, Lee discuss compromise on public land sales
Garrett Downs, Amelia Davidson, 6/5/25

“Sen. Steve Daines is negotiating a deal with Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Mike Lee to sell public lands in the Republicans’ tax cut, energy and national security megabill,” E&E News reports. “Daines, a Montana Republican who has repeatedly vowed that he will never support the sale of public lands, told reporters Wednesday that any agreed-to sales would be microscopic and that he needs significant changes from what Lee (R-Utah) is currently proposing. But that Daines is engaging in the discussions at all is likely to set off a firestorm from public lands advocacy groups, who were banking on him and the rest of the Montana delegation to kill Lee’s efforts.”

North Dakota Monitor: Long-thwarted efforts to sell public lands see new life under Trump
Alex Brown, Clark Corbin and Kyle Dunphy, 6/6/25

“Public outcry was swift and forceful after a U.S. House committee last month hastily approved an amendment directing the federal government to sell off more than half a million acres of public land,” the North Dakota Monitor reports. “A few days later, lawmakers advanced the larger bill — a sweeping list of President Donald Trump’s priorities — but stripped the federal lands provision. Yet leaders on both sides of the issue told the Monitor the battle over selling off federal lands is likely just heating up. Some conservatives in Western states have complained for decades that the feds control too much of the land within their borders. They see a long-awaited opportunity in a Trump administration that’s sympathetic to their cause. Public lands advocates are bracing for more attempts to turn land over to states, industry groups and developers. “The threat level is red alert,” Randi Spivak, public lands policy director with the Center for Biological Diversity, an environmental nonprofit, told the Monitor. “Some of these states have been champing at the bit for decades to privatize. They’re certainly not going to let this opportunity pass without an aggressive effort.” “...Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has repeatedly called federal lands America’s “balance sheet,” describing them as untapped assets worth trillions of dollars. He has launched an effort to identify federal lands suitable for housing development. Other proposals have centered around using land sales to pay for tax breaks or to finance Trump’s proposed government-run fund that could invest in stocks or real estate. For some state leaders, the newfound interest at the federal level to turn public lands into cash — along with Trump’s cuts to land management agency staff — aligns with a long-standing movement to reduce federal ownership. “I look at it as an opportunity to say, ‘Hey, turn it over to the state,’” Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz, a Republican, told the Monitor.”

Politico: Senate EPW bill targets IRA funds, pauses methane fee for 10 years
Alex Guillén, 6/4/25

“The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Wednesday released its reconciliation bill text targeting vast swaths of the Inflation Reduction Act for repeal,” Politico reports. “The bill would claw back unobligated funds across a variety of programs, including the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, as well as less contentious programs such as diesel emissions reduction, school air pollution and cleaner refrigerants… “It would also pause the methane emissions fee imposed under the IRA for 10 years until 2034 — in line with House action — while repealing hundreds of millions of dollars Democrats included to help oil and gas companies reduce leaks of the potent greenhouse gas.”

The New Republic: Trump’s Attacks on Climate Policy Are Even Hitting Exxon
Kate Aronoff, 6/5/25

“Earlier this week, the Department of Energy announced that it was clawing back $3.7 billion that its Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations had awarded, during Joe Biden’s administration, to 24 projects,” The New Republic reports. “...Among climate advocates, carbon capture has been the subject of fierce debate; many of them see it as a way for polluters to carry on with business as usual by promising to someday suck the carbon out of their carbon-intensive industries. But carbon capture faces bigger, more immediate challenges than either controversy or canceled DOE grants: It’s expensive, generally unprofitable, and still not all that great at actually capturing and storing carbon… “A substantial tax credit known as 45Q—offering a maximum of $85 per metric ton of captured CO2—was preserved in the budget proposal the House sent over to the Senate late last month. Yet it’s still not clear what version of the GOP’s megabill will eventually pass, and fiddling with certain conditions of that subsidy could make or break some companies’ ability to court financing… “Even with tax credits available, the longer-term economics of the technology remain uncertain. Rohan Dighe, an analyst at the energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie, told the Financial Times that 45Q “is and continues to be insufficient to justify widespread deployment of post-combustion carbon capture.” “...There are quiet signs that the Biden-era enthusiasm for carbon capture could be starting to cool… “Exxon hasn’t commented on the grant cancellation, but it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the company’s recent investments in carbon management. Exxon’s $5 billion acquisition of the pipeline firm Denbury in 2023 made it the largest owner and operator of CO2 storage in the U.S. Late last year, Exxon also secured a lease from Texas for the country’s largest offshore CO2 storage site… “Given Exxon’s size, moreover, an injection of federal dollars could set the company up to control whatever market for carbon storage does develop in the U.S., even if actual climate regulations are a long way off.”

RBN Energy: Changes to 45V Tax Credit Would Deal a Major Blow to Low-Carbon Hydrogen
Jason Lindquist, 6/5/25

“The U.S. outlook for low-carbon hydrogen was bright and sunny just a year or two ago, with billions in federal funding and policy support, but to no one’s surprise, things have darkened considerably this year,” RBN Energy reports. “Several clean-energy initiatives have faced resistance from Republicans in Washington, with the budget reconciliation bill currently making its way through Congress on track to produce the most significant changes yet… “The 45V tax credit has been considered critical to the broader development of low-carbon hydrogen, as those projects are uneconomic without it… “Changes to 45V would essentially kill low-carbon hydrogen production, according to an analysis published May 22 by the REPEAT Project, a joint effort of Princeton University’s ZERO Lab and Evolved Energy Research with funding provided by the Hewlett Foundation… “As we detailed in Way Down in the Hole, 45Q incentivizes the disposal of CO2 that would have otherwise been released into the atmosphere. The IRA raised those credits to $85/MT for CCS and $60/MT for enhanced oil recovery (EOR), a form of carbon capture use and storage (CCUS). The House bill does not change the tax credits under 45Q, which has generally enjoyed bipartisan support, although it does adjust its rules around transferability and foreign entity ownership. If the 45V tax credit were to go away, blue hydrogen producers would still have 45Q available to them — but that is no guarantee that it will make projects economic… “The changes to 45V could also kill off the development of seven regional hydrogen hubs, each funded by the IIJA and made up of numerous smaller projects that rely on the tax credit. The hubs already face additional uncertainty as their funding could be reduced or eliminated amid a DOE review of the program… “All of this has us wondering what the path forward for clean hydrogen looks like — or if there is one.”

Associated Press: Trump EPA moves to roll back rules projected to save billions of dollars and thousands of lives
Seth Borenstein, M.K. Wildeman, Melina Walling, Joshua A. Bickel, Matthew Daly, 6/5/25

“When the head of the Environmental Protection Agency announced a wide-ranging rollback of environmental regulations, he said it would put a “dagger through the heart of climate-change religion” and introduce a “Golden Age” for the American economy. What Lee Zeldin didn’t mention: how ending the rules could have devastating consequences to human health,” the Associated Press reports. “The EPA-targeted rules could prevent an estimated 30,000 deaths and save $275 billion each year they are in effect, according to an Associated Press examination that included the agency’s own prior assessments as well as a wide range of other research… “But experts told AP the numbers are conservative and that even a partial dismantling of the rules would mean more pollutants such as smog, mercury and lead — and especially more tiny airborne particles that can lodge in lungs and cause health problems. It would also mean higher emissions of the greenhouse gases driving Earth’s warming to deadlier levels. “More people will die,” Cory Zigler, a professor of biostatistics at Brown University who has studied air pollution deaths from coal-fired power plants, told AP “More of this type of pollution that we know kills people will be in the air.” “...Virtually all the benefits from the rules come from restricting the burning of coal, oil and natural gas. The fossil fuel industry was a heavy contributor to President Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign and Republicans overall. In announcing the proposed changes, the EPA repeatedly cited the costs of the rules and omitted the benefits in all but one instance… “The human body count and human health toll of particulate matter alone is just absolutely massive,” K. Sabeel Rahman, a Cornell law professor who was a top federal regulatory officer from 2021 to 2023, told AP. “Literally tens of thousands of people will lose their lives” if the standard is rolled back, he told AP.”

Floodlight: Support for renewables shrinks as fossil fuel interest grows
Pam Radtke, 6/5/25

“Republicans and Democrats alike are less likely to support renewable energy than they were five years ago, according to a survey released Thursday by the Pew Research Center,” Floodlight reports. “ The results mirror growing pockets of opposition to solar farms, reignited political support for coal plants and moves by President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans to kill federally funded clean energy projects. This shift in opinion dates back to before Democratic President Joe Biden took office, Brian Kennedy, Pew senior researcher and one of the study’s authors, told Floodlight… “I see this shift … a successful effort to link climate change and renewable energy to broader culture war issues,” Kenneth Gillingham, professor of environmental and energy economics at the Yale School of the Environment, told Floodlight. He added that in the past, “prominent” Republicans supported renewables and sought solutions to climate change, but those stances could now be seen as “disloyal” to Trump. The survey of 5,085 U.S. adults taken April 28 to May 4 revealed that while 79% of Americans favored expanding wind and solar production in 2020, that number has dropped to 60%. And 39% of Americans today support expansion of oil, coal and natural gas — almost double the 20% that supported it in 2020.”

STATE UPDATES

Source NM: New Mexico Appeals Court orders dismissal of oil and gas pollution lawsuit
Danielle Prokop, 6/4/25

“The New Mexico Court of Appeals ordered a lower court Tuesday to toss a case alleging that state officials failed to protect residents from oil and gas pollution in violation of the New Mexico State Constitution,” Source NM reports. “In the order issued Tuesday, justices in the New Mexico Court of Appeals reversed a lower court’s ruling and concluded that the judiciary does not have the power to address the plaintiffs’ claims. “The relief Plaintiffs seek—as presented by their complaint—exceeds the boundary of that which the judiciary is authorized to grant,” wrote Chief Judge Jacqueline Medina. Justices ordered the lower court to dismiss the complaint. The civil lawsuit was first filed in May of 2023 on behalf of environmental groups, youth activists and individuals from the Pueblos, the Permian Basin and Navajo Nation against the Legislature, New Mexico’s top officials and rulemaking bodies on oil and gas. The lawsuit alleged the state government failed to limit permitting of oil and gas production and did not adequately enforce pollution laws, which plaintiffs argued is a violation of a 1971 amendment to the state constitution, called the Pollution Control Clause… “Gail Evans, lead counsel for the Center for Biological Diversity, told Source plaintiffs plan to appeal Tuesday’s decision.”

Alabama Daily News: Two Alabama clean energy grants canceled
Alex Angle, 6/3/25

“The Department of Energy canceled 24 clean energy grants Friday, including two awarded in Alabama,” the Alabama Daily News reports. “Energy Secretary Chris Wright announced Friday that a $75 million grant for AMERICAN Cast Iron Pipe Company in Birmingham and a $75.5 million grant for United States Pipe and Foundry Company in Bessemer were among the terminated awards… “The projects were primarily focused on funding carbon capture and sequestration processes used to reduce carbon dioxide emissions… “The Department of Energy said the 24 terminated awards did not meet the “economic, national security or energy security standards” to justify the investment.”

Athens Independent: Carbon sequestration bills draw rebuke from activists, oil and gas producers
Dani Kington, 6/5/25

“On May 19, a combination of environmental activists, oil and gas producers, township trustees, water association employees and a state representative crowded into the same room at the Warren Water and Sewer Association in Marietta,” the Athens Independent reports. “The group came together over shared concerns with twin bills moving through the Ohio statehouse, Senate Bill 136 and House Bill 170. Both sponsored by Republicans, the bills would pave the way for Ohio to fast track the development of underground carbon sequestration technology… “The idea of carbon capture has been heavily rebuked by many environmentalists. At a webinar about carbon capture and sequestration hosted by the Buckeye Environmental Network on April 29, retired environmental scientist Randi Pokladnik, who holds a doctorate in environmental studies, spoke about concerns over the technology in light of the advancing Ohio bills. “Carbon is already captured and stored underground in fossil fuels,” Pokladnik said during the webinar. “We should be leaving it there, instead of spending billions of dollars trying to invent technology to solve the problem that’s our own creation.” If passed into law, the bills would help transition regulatory authority over carbon injection wells, known as Class VI wells, from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The bills would also establish the regulatory framework that the ODNR Division of Oil and Gas Resources Management would use to oversee the Class VI wells… “Poklandnik also said the technology as implemented so far in the U.S. is counterproductive in combatting climate change because carbon producers are often paid for the carbon captured, thereby incentivizing further production. “To jump on the bandwagon and talk about this as a solution to climate change is just crazy, because it actually ends up being more of a carbon dioxide producer,” Poklandnik said at the Marietta meeting. “We are incentivizing industries to put out CO2.” Additionally, Poklandnik said captured carbon is often used to enhance oil and gas extraction, thereby contributing directly to more carbon emissions… “Both S.B. 136 and H.B. 170 remain in committee and have yet to be heard by the full chambers.”

NJ Spotlight: Officials weigh final decision on giant petroleum storage caverns
Jon Hurdle, Inside Climate News, 6/3/25

“A controversial plan to build two giant caverns to store propane and butane beneath the community of Gibbstown on the Delaware River is going through its final public scrutiny. And it is hearing plenty from those hoping to stop it,” NJ Spotlight reports. “The state Department of Environmental Protection issued a draft permit for the Gloucester County project in April, and is now seeking public comment until June 16 before issuing a final decision on what would be New Jersey’s biggest complex of caverns for storing petroleum products. But since first proposed three years ago, the project has faced opposition from environmental groups that say it would expose local people to explosive and toxic materials and should never be built in a densely populated area. They have said it would also only worsen the climate crisis by stimulating the production of fossil fuels. “This is the wrong project in the wrong place at the wrong time,” said Tracy Carluccio, deputy director of Delaware Riverkeeper Network, at a public hearing held by the DEP in mid-May. “Storing liquid petroleum gas in underground caverns presents threats that are too great to allow,” she said. “The draft permit is based on assumptions, assertions and conclusions by the applicant, and rely on nothing going wrong over the many decades that these caverns would operate.” “...After the public comment period ends, DEP will issue a ‘Response to Comment’ document that will be published in the New Jersey Register along with its final decision on the application.”

Guardian: ‘Putting profit over people’: big gas is waging war on a California clean air rule
Hilary Beaumont for Floodlight, 6/4/25

“On a windy night in early January, Barbara Ishida, a second grade teacher, spotted the Eaton fire glowing in the hills behind her home in Altadena, California. Her mind turned to the deadly wildfires in Lahaina and Paradise and she thought, ‘Let’s get out – now.’ Ishida and her husband evacuated safely, but the flames destroyed their home,” the Guardian reports. “...Her vision is to build a fire-resistant home with no gas appliances. That approach is backed by a University of California Berkeley study in April that concluded all-electric construction is the best and most climate-friendly strategy to rebuild after the fires. But the gas industry is pushing back against this idea. Proposed rules that would have encouraged Ishida and other homeowners to buy furnaces and heaters that emit no nitrogen oxides (NOx) – a key pollutant from gas appliances – have been weakened and delayed by a coalition of groups that includes SoCalGas, the country’s largest gas utility. SoCalGas has a history of lobbying hard against regulations that hurt its bottom line. After a fierce opposition campaign, the rules are going to a vote on Friday, 6 June.”

Texas Tribune: Data centers are building their own gas power plants in Texas/
Dylan Baddour and Arcelia Martin, Inside Climate News, 6/5/25

“...The project is one of many others like it proposed in Texas, where a frantic race to boot up energy-hungry data centers has led many developers to plan their own gas-fired power plants rather than wait for connection to the state’s public grid,” the Texas Tribune reports. “Egged on by supportive government policies, this buildout promises to lock in strong gas demand for a generation to come. The data center and power plant planned across from Lindsey’s home is a partnership between an AI startup called CloudBurst and the natural gas pipeline giant Energy Transfer. It was Energy Transfer’s first-ever contract to supply gas for a data center, but not likely its last. In a press release, the company said it was “in discussions with a number of data center developers and expects this to be the first of many agreements.” Previously, conventional wisdom assumed that this new generation of digital infrastructure would be powered by emissions-free energy sources like wind, solar and battery power, which have lately seen explosive growth. So far, that vision isn’t panning out as desires to build quickly overcome concerns about sustainability.”

Dallas Morning News: Port of Corpus Christi nears completion of $625 million improvement project after 35 years
Lana Ferguson, 6/5/25

“Federal, state and local leaders gathered at the Port of Corpus Christi on Monday to celebrate the forthcoming completion of what officials have called a “milestone national infrastructure project” that increased the depth of the Corpus Christi Ship Channel,” the Dallas Morning News reports. “The project deepened the ship channel from 47 to 54 feet and widened it from 400 to 530 feet with additional barge shelves to accommodate the growing demand for large vessels. The Port of Corpus Christi is the largest U.S. crude oil export gateway and the third-largest in the world, moving more than 2.4 million barrels per day of crude oil to points outside the U.S., according to port officials… “The four-phase Channel Improvement Project was conceived more than three decades ago, according to a news release… “Construction on the $625 million initiative began in 2017. The expansion allows access to larger vessels and two-way traffic, which officials say will enable more efficient transport of crude oil, liquified natural gas and other commodities.”

San Antonio Business Journal: Texas lawmakers approve 15-year deadline to plug idle wells
Amber Serio, 6/4/25

“A bill to tackle abandoned oil and gas wells is headed to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott for approval,” the San Antonio Business Journal reports. “If signed into law, Senate Bill 1150, sponsored by Mayes Middleton of Senate District 11, will require wells to be plugged after 15 years of inactivity. Abbott has until June 22 to sign or veto SB 1150. If he takes no action by that date, the bill will automatically become law. A data survey conducted by the Interstate Oil and Gas Commission in 2024 revealed there are 140,000 orphaned wells across the United States, with more than 9,000 in Texas.”

Public News Service: New alert system brings oil and gas spill data directly to Colorado residents
Eric Galatas, 6/5/25

“Over the past 12 months, 884 oil and gas spills were reported near homes in Greeley, Fort Lupton, Kersey, La Salle and Platteville, according to Spilling the Truth, a new public alert system launched by Colorado Rising for Communities,” Public News Service reports. “Christiaan van Woudenberg, principal data analyst with EcoCarto, told PNS the goal is to make it easier for residents to know about the risks to agricultural land, livestock, water resources and community health. In April alone, 229 spills were reported in Weld County, more than six per day. ‘The number of spills that we’re seeing have just grown so dramatically,’ he told PNS. ‘Really in the last months, we’ve seen, again and again, a record number of oil spills reported in Weld County.’”

San Francisco Chronicle: Investigation into East Bay refinery fire highlights role of contract workforce
Julie Johnson, 6/3/25

“Scant supervision, inexperienced workers and even hard-to-read instructions contributed to a major fire that broke out at Martinez Refining Co., spewed cancer-causing chemicals into the air and forced nearby residents to hide in their homes, according to a new report released Tuesday,” the San Francisco Chronicle reports. “Consultants with JEM Advisors, a group hired by Contra Costa County health officials to root out the cause of the fire, said the refinery, also called MRC, provided inadequate monitoring of a contract workforce doing potentially dangerous work. They also blamed California regulations as a contributor to the refinery fire. Calling out long-standing state rules requiring refineries to hire contract workers affiliated with local unions and another law governing contract employee supervision, the report authors said regulatory issues hampered safe operations. “As a result of these two regulations, there is now a higher likelihood for human errors entering into maintenance work performed by contractor resources,” according to the report.”

Associated Press: Crews clean up 2,000-gallon fuel spill in Baltimore's harbor
6/5/25

“Crews were working Thursday to contain and clean up a 2,000-gallon (7,570-liter) diesel fuel spill in Baltimore’s harbor, according to state and city officials,” the Associated Press reports. “Initially, Johns Hopkins Hospital reported a contained 200-gallon diesel fuel spill at its East Baltimore facility on Wednesday morning, but a few hours later the fire department responded to a 911 call for a spill at a marina in Harbor East more than a mile away, officials said. The state, city and U.S. Coast Guard began coordinating a response to the spill. In an update around 7 p.m., Hopkins reported that 2,000 gallons had spilled, officials told AP.”

EXTRACTION

DeSmog: Carbon Capture ‘Not Going to Happen,’ Top Fossil Fuel Advocate Predicts
Geoff Dembicki, 6/5/25

“Bjorn Lomborg has for years promoted the idea that fossil fuels are crucial for humankind through syndicated newspaper columns, best-selling books and appearances on TV shows including HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher,” DeSmog reports. “...Yet the Danish political scientist — who acknowledges that climate change is real but denies that it’s a serious crisis — has a dim view of the oil and gas industry’s preferred solution to climate change: carbon capture and storage. That technology is favored by Alberta premier Danielle Smith and Liberal energy minister Tim Hodgson, both of whom recently floated the idea of a “grand bargain” where Canada’s oil and gas industry gets approval for new pipelines in exchange for moving forward with a $16.5 billion carbon capture project… “But speaking at a private event last week in Vancouver, exclusive audio of which was obtained by DeSmog, Lomborg argued that “carbon capture will always be a net cost” to oil and gas producers and the taxpayers that subsidize it. “In realistic terms, I don’t think it’s ever going to happen,” he added, referring to the prospect of prices for the technology coming down low enough that it can be rapidly and cost-efficiently deployed worldwide. On that point Lomborg might actually be in agreement with climate policy experts who are also critical of carbon capture. “There’s a lot of federal money and provincial money that could be thrown at this thing,” Dave Sawyer, principal economist at the Canadian Climate Institute, recently told DeSmog. “We’ve been looking at this option for almost 20 years and it hasn’t happened.” “The problem is you need to store it underground,” Lomborg said, referring to the carbon dioxide captured by the technology. And to do that on a meaningful scale worldwide, he argued, “you have to build at least an infrastructure equivalent to the infrastructure that we built in the last hundred years for oil and gas. And remember back then, we did it because it was incredibly profitable. This time we would just have to pay for it.” “...During his Vancouver talk, Lomborg argued that the main reason oil and gas companies are pursuing such prohibitively expensive climate projects is so they can be generously supported by governments. “What you can do is you can get a lot of subsidies,” he said.”

Inside Climate News: Gas Leaks Can Have Significant Spillover Impacts on Neighboring States, Study Finds
Lauren Dalban, 6/4/25

“A new study published this week in the journal Risk Analysis found that gas leaks are not only hazardous on a local level, but are also “a driver of broader regional pollution dynamics through spillover” to neighboring states,” Inside Climate News reports. “Even if the incidents are concentrated in some states, which are characterized by an old infrastructure, the impact could automatically affect other neighboring states, even if in that state, the infrastructure is good,” Younes Ben Zaied, a professor of finance at the EDC Paris Business School and a co-author of the study, told ICN. The study suggests that gas leaks, already known to have significant health impacts and to release the unburned greenhouse gas methane, can also have geographically far-reaching consequences… “Ben Zaied recommends that “states should coordinate their efforts,” ultimately establishing stringent regional, and ultimately national, environmental regulations. He also told ICN that states should expand access to renewable energy sources… “Weaknesses in gas infrastructure also disproportionately impact low-income residents and communities of color, according to a 2024 study. Through an examination of city and census data, sociologists at City College of New York determined that gas infrastructure is most frequently failing in segregated neighborhoods that are already overburdened with the effects of decades of environmental harm and disinvestment in infrastructure.”

Canadian Press: Competition Bureau releases final anti-greenwashing guidelines
6/5/25

“The Competition Bureau has released its final anti-greenwashing guidelines after considering more than 400 responses to the legislation that took effect about a year ago,” the Canadian Press reports. “While a lot of the feedback in the submissions is reflected in the final guidance, some is not,” the bureau said in a backgrounder accompanying Thursday’s announcement. For instance, some suggested the guidelines spell out for businesses exactly what environmental claims they can make in their marketing material and when. But the bureau said amendments to the Competition Act that passed in June 2024 include no such rules. “Instead, the act allows businesses to make whatever environmental claims they wish, as long as those claims are not false or misleading, and as long as those claims are adequately and properly tested or substantiated where required,” the bureau said. “This requires an assessment not only of the literal wording of a claim, but also of the general impression created by the advertisement as a whole, including the words, images and layout.” “...The bureau said it has taken enforcement action on two environmental claims over the past two years -- against coffee-pod maker Keurig and automaker Volkswagen -- under deceptive marketing practices provisions. Violations under those provisions can lead to fines of $10 million or higher. Energy sector players are among those who have raised concerns about the legislation, with many clamming up on their climate communications in response. Shortly after the law passed, the Pathways Alliance -- a group of oilsands majors planning to capture and store carbon dioxide emissions from their operations -- removed virtually all content from its website and social media feeds, citing uncertainty over the rules. “While Greenpeace would argue the oilsands’ greenwashing was always illegal, the new rules make it abundantly clear that the Pathways Alliance’s net zero claims do not pass the sniff test, which is likely why the companies so abruptly deleted them and their social media history,” Keith Stewart, senior energy strategist with Greenpeace Canada, told CP.”

Upstream: ExxonMobil unveils two oil discoveries offshore Canada
Iain Esau, 6/5/25

“ExxonMobil has discovered 75 million barrels of oil in recent months at its producing Hibernia and Hebron fields offshore Newfoundland & Labrador, according to the head of the supermajor's Canadian business,” Upstream reports. “...Kerry Moreland, president of ExxonMobil Canada, said two of these recent wells were successful: one discovering 50 million barrels at Hebron and another finding 25 million barrels at Hibernia.”

Canadian Press: Vermilion Energy selling U.S. assets for $120 million in cash
6/5/25

“Vermilion Energy Inc. has signed an agreement to sell its assets in the U.S. for $120 million in cash,” the Canadian Press reports. “The company says the deal includes about 5,500 barrels of oil equivalent per day of production and about 10 million barrels of oil equivalent of proved developed producing reserves.”

CLIMATE FINANCE

Canadian Press: Infrastructure Bank ready to play a role in national-interest projects
Lauren Krugel, 6/5/25

“The chief executive of the Canada Infrastructure Bank says the Crown corporation is looking forward to playing a role in Ottawa’s ambitions to push ahead major projects deemed in the national interest,” the Canadian Press reports. “...The infrastructure bank has already been involved in the planning around two contenders Carney rattled off to reporters after the meeting — the Pathways Alliance oilsands carbon capture and storage project in Alberta, and the Grays Bay Port and Road in the central Arctic… “The infrastructure bank, created in 2017 with $35 billion in capital, invests in revenue-generating projects that are deemed to be in the public good, but would have trouble getting off the ground with private-sector money alone… “Cory told CP it’s not up to the bank to decide whether new oil pipelines, for example, would be investments worth pursuing… “Like many big infrastructure projects, pipelines require huge upfront investment, have long payback periods and tend to have a lot of uncertainty getting off the ground. “And that’s very hard for the private sector alone to manage and absorb,” Cory told CP. “That’s the kind of shock absorber that the (infrastructure bank) can be.”

OPINION

Iowa Capital Dispatch: A legacy-defining moment for Gov. Kim Reynolds
Steve Kenkel is a fifth-generation corn grower who markets all his corn through ethanol… In the past four years, Steve and the Shelby County Board of Supervisors have been actively involved in protecting landowners’ property rights, comprehensive land use plans and public health issues related to the CO2 pipeline proposal, 6/5/25

“As she considers whether to sign legislation limiting the use of eminent domain for carbon pipelines, Gov. Kim Reynolds faces a decision that will forever define her legacy in the Iowa Republican Party: whether to uphold the constitutional rights and the property rights of Iowa landowners, or whether to put ethanol industry profits ahead of those rights,” Steve Kenkel writes for the Iowa Capital Dispatch. “The party platform unequivocally supports landowner rights. The Iowa House and Senate, both controlled by Republicans, have passed bipartisan legislation that would protect those rights. This should not be a difficult choice. However, there are many special interest groups urging the governor to veto House File 639, claiming it would harm the ethanol industry and derail future economic development opportunities in the state. But if those claims were true, why do nearly 30% of Iowa’s ethanol plants choose not to participate in this risky CO₂ pipeline venture? Why is Summit Carbon Solutions suing multiple Iowa counties over zoning ordinances, the very tools those counties use to guide and protect local economic growth? The self-serving arguments of the ethanol industry do not stand up to scrutiny. Privately owned carbon dioxide pipelines do not align with the constitutional definition of “public use” necessary for eminent domain, and they do not justify using the government’s “takings” power to force private landowners to participate in a speculative business enterprise. Essentially, these special interests are asking the governor to pick economic winners and losers at the expense of constitutional rights… “If this project truly serves a vital economic need and garners legitimate support, it can move forward through the free market—without coercion, and without undermining the rights of landowners… “By signing HF 639, Gov. Reynolds would uphold constitutional rights, curb the misuse of eminent domain for private profit, demonstrate her commitment to the Republican Party’s property rights platform, protect landowners from inadequate insurance coverage, and strengthen the public accountability of the Iowa Utilities Commission.”