New rules, regulations, and legislation are changing the way U.S. utilities generate electricity. First, there was the Clean Power Plan (CPP), which was passed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2015. This was replaced in 2019 by the EPA’s Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule. Both policies aim to reduce and limit carbon dioxide emissions at coal-fired generating units.
Many states have adopted renewable portfolio standards that establish the minimum percentage of a utility’s electricity generation that must come from renewable resources. Plus, to reduce the cost and encourage investment in renewable energy generation, the federal government has included production tax credits for wind resources and investment tax credits for solar resources in recent legislation.
