Plugged In

Adam Thierer, a Senior Research Fellow at George Mason's Mercatus Center, joins the show to discuss how the precautionary principle has shaped today's energy landscape and the profound benefits of permissionless innovation. Links: • The latest from Adam: https://www.mercatus.org/scholars/adam-thierer#0 • More about the Mercatus Center: https://www.mercatus.org/ • More from Adam about permissionles...

David T. Stevenson, of the Caesar Rodney Institute, joins the show to discuss the Transportation and Climate Initiative and what a regional tax on energy would means for consumers in New England and the Mid-Atlantic region. Links: • TCI 101, a brief explainer of the Transportation and Climate Initiative: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/regulation/tci-101/ • An in-depth policy brief on T...

Andrew Wheeler, Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, joins the show to discuss recent changes to federal regulations, his views on the proper role of the agency, and the dramatic betterment of air quality in America. Links: • More from Administrator Wheeler on the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule change: https://www.epa.gov/newsreleases/epa-and-army-deliver-president-trump...

Kenny Stein, IER's Policy Director, provided testimony before the Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives House Natural Resources Committee regarding the "Transparency in Energy Production Act of 2020" on 1/28/20. The Congressional video record begins several sentences into his testimony. Read his full testimony form the link below. • Read his written testimo...

The team talks with IER Board of Directors member professor Steven Hayward about the issues facing California’s electric grid and why he thinks the environment is too important to be left to the environmentalists. Links: • Read more from Hayward here: www.powerlineblog.com/archives/author/steven • More on California's grid issues here: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/the-grid/pge-servic...

Paige Lambermont joins the show to discuss hurdles preventing greater development of America's hydro-electric capabilities. The team also takes a look at the history of American hydropower and possible paths for greater expansion. Links: • A Review of the Impacts of Government on Hydroelectric Power Generation and Development: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/renewable/water/a-review-of-...

George Stark, the director of external affairs at Cabot Oil & Gas, joined the show to discuss how American natural gas is powering communities across the globe even as politicians put up roadblocks to energy security at home. Links: • Learn more about Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation: https://www.cabotog.com/ • Learn more about Cabot’s community outreach initiatives: https://www.cabotog.com/our-communi...

Jennifer Fielder, CEO of American Lands Council and the incumbent state senator fo Montana's 7th senate district, joins the show to discuss the problems associated with federally owned public lands and free-market-oriented solutions. Links: • More about the American Lands Council: http://www.americanlandscouncil.org/ • Entrust our public lands to local management that cares: https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx...

Bill desRosiers, the external affairs manager of Cabot Oil & Gas, joined the show to discuss how technological innovation has unleashed American energy and the impacts developing the Marcellus Shale has had on the surrounding areas. Links: • Shale Gas News radio show: https://soundcloud.com/shalegasnews • Learn more about Cabot Oil & Gas Corporation: https://www.cabotog.com/ • Learn more about Cab...

Government regulations often encompass far more than they were initially intended to, and that is especially true in the energy space. Many energy regulations have grown to encompass adjacent industries. Nuclear technology has numerous applications beyond the weapons and energy sectors. One such application is nuclear medicine, where isotopes produced in a nuclear reactor are used for medical imag...

Kenny Stein, IER's Policy Director, provided testimony before Indiana’s 21st Century Energy Policy Development Task Force on 10/17/19 on the dangers of adding unwarranted renewables to the electric grid. • IER's study on the levelized cost of electricity: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/IER_LCOE2019Final-.pdf • More on wind and solar tax credits from IER: http...

Kenny Stein, IER's Policy Director, joins the show to discuss the recent events in Saudi Arabia that disrupted global oil markets and how growing domestic production has made America energy secure. • More on the American oil production here: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/fossil-fuels/gas-and-oil/the-u-s-is-awash-in-oil/

Robert Bryce, a Senior Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, joins the show to discuss how New York state's electric grid is struggling due to artificial barriers blocking desperately needed natural gas erected by state politicians. Links: • More from Bryce on this issue: https://www.nationalreview.com/2019/06/andrew-cuomo-natural-gas-pipeline-permits-blocked/ • Bryce's latest from the Manhattan Inst...

Professor David Dismukes joins the show to discuss his recent findings highlighting the need for reforming outdated provisions of the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA) passed in 1978. • Full text of Dismukes' paper(The Urgency of PURPA Reform to Assure Ratepayer Protection): https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/purpa-report-2019_df.pdf • Summary of the...

IER founder and CEO Robert L. Bradley, Jr. joins the show for a wide-ranging discussion on the history of American energy policy from the 1970s and the 73' Oil Crisis to today and the Green New Deal. Links: • MasterResource.org, a free-market energy blog curated by Bradley: https://www.masterresource.org/ • PoliticalCapitalism.org, a website providing additional resources related to Bradley's book...

Kenny Stein, IER's Policy Director, joins the show to discuss the recent Affordable Clean Energy(ACE) rule from the Trump administration's EPA and what the future looks like for American coal. • More on the ACE rule here: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/renewable/epa-rolls-back-the-clean-power-plan-creating-the-affordable-clean-energy-rule/

Mary J. Hutzler, a Distinguished Senior Fellow at IER, discusses the recently released report on the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE), published by IER and the American Coalition for Clean Coal Energy, which found the true cost of renewable energy to be higher than popularly portrayed. • One page overview of the LCOE study: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/...

Jordan McGillis, a policy analyst at IER, discusses his recent paper on problems with carbon tax proposals. • Jordan's paper on carbon taxes: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Carbon-Tax-Policy-BriefFinalText-1.pdf • More on problems with carbon tax proposals from IER's Robert Murphy: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/climate-change/new-study-admits-eve...

Mark P. Mills, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, joins the show to discuss his recent report on the so-called "new energy economy" and the realities that make plans like the Green New Deal completely unrealistic. Links: • Full Report: "The 'New Energy Economy': An Exercise in Magical Thinking" https://www.manhattan-institute.org/green-energy-revolution-near-impossible • Learn more about...

IER's senior economist Bob Murphy recently visited Connecticut College to present on the economics of climate change. His lecture addresses the disconnect between "mainstream" climate models and proposals like the Green New Deal. Links: • More from the talk: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/climate-change/what-i-told-college-students-about-the-economics-of-climate-change/ • Robert Murphy...

Hunter Pearl joins the show to discuss the trend of cities across the country suing producers of fossil fuels in an attempt to get fast cash. The team also dives into the potential harms of the practice known as atmospheric trust litigation, through which activist groups are seeking political change on climate through court order. • Read more on atmospheric trust ligation: https://www.institutefor...

Kenny Stein, IER's Policy Director, provided testimony before the Energy Subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Science, Space, and Technology regarding solar and wind technologies on 5/15/19. Along with his testimony is an extended conversation on the role the federal government plays in supporting the wind and solar industries. • Read his written testimony here: https://w...

Rob Allerman, the senior director of power analytics at Pattern Recognition Technologies, joins the show to discuss the importance of forecasting for energy producers and the challenges renewable energy sources create for forecasters. Links: • More about PRT: https://prtforecast.com/about/ • More from IER on challenges created by renewables: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/renewable/the...

The team sits down with Chris Brown, director of policy & research at Common Sense Policy Roundtable, to discuss what the passage of SB-181 could mean for energy producers in Colorado and consumers around the country. Links: • More about CSPR: https://commonsensepolicyroundtable.org/ • A comprehensive study on the effects of SB-181: https://commonsensepolicyroundtable.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/0...

Allen Gilmer, founder and executive chairman of Drillinginfo, joins the show to discuss why and how he created the service and the important role that data serves in oil and gas development. Links: • More about the Drillinginfo: https://info.drillinginfo.com/ • IER's latest on growth in oil and gas production: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/climate-change/u-s-greenhouse-gas-emissions-d...