The Trump administration is withholding $330 million in previously approved federal grant awards for about 30 Maryland transportation projects, according to the state Transportation Department, which is urgently asking the administration to reconsider.
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More DMV News
Funding for Rural EV Charging Stations Clears Legislature, Heads to Governor’s Desk
Cardinal News
Del. Rip Sullivan, D-Fairfax County, has carried the bill for four years, arguing that most of Virginia’s EV charging stations are within a mile of interstates 81, 64, 66 and 95. With more EVs on roads and more to come, it makes sense to provide charging stations in farther-flung areas, he says.
Trump Funding Freeze Shakes Maryland Farmers’ Trust in Government
Baltimore Banner
In an industry where margins are already razor-thin and vulnerable to market swings and a changing climate, the funding freeze has undermined trust in one of agriculture’s most vital and stable supports: the federal government. Farmers don’t know if promised USDA funding will materialize for projects ranging from solar panels and windbreaks to online marketing. And they’re unsure when they’ll be able to rely on it again.
Maryland Residents Want a Menu of Energy Generation Options, Poll Shows
Maryland Matters
The survey by the Institute of Politics at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, comes as lawmakers in Annapolis are scrambling to expand electricity generation in the state, and residents are receiving utility bills with sharp increases.
Virginia Awards $2.3 Million in Grants to Help Promote Forest Health
The Bay Journal
The Virginia Department of Forestry is issuing more than $2.3 million in grants to help 60 localities support forested land in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
National and International News
After a Month of Trump’s Pro-Oil and Gas Moves, Dems Target His Energy Emergency
AP News
President Donald Trump began dismantling his predecessor’s climate change and renewable energy policies on his first day in office, declaring a national energy emergency to speed up fossil fuel development – a policy he has summed up as “drill, baby, drill.”
Dems Vow Fight on EPA Bid to Roll Back Endangerment Finding
E&E News
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin’s move to challenge the endangerment finding — which gives the agency its authority to regulate greenhouse gases by finding they threaten public health — is setting off a firestorm among Capitol Hill’s climate hawks, who warn it would erode years of climate policy victories.
Congress is Reversing a Tax on This Climate Superpollutant
Washington Post
The Senate voted Thursday to overturn a Biden-era rule that required oil companies to pay a fine for emitting methane, a powerful greenhouse gas that has significantly contributed to climate change.
Why Trump’s Clean Energy Rollbacks Could Derail a Factory Boom
New York Times
American manufacturing has been in the doldrums for years, battered by high borrowing costs and a strong dollar, which makes exports less competitive. But there has been a bright spot: billions of dollars flowing into factory construction, signifying that a potential rebound in production and employment is around the corner.
Republicans Once Embraced ‘Green Banks.’ Trump is Trying to Raid Them
Grist
Lee Zeldin, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, announced last week that he had uncovered evidence of a massive fraud perpetrated by the Biden administration. In a video posted to social media, the former Republican congressman from New York said that Biden’s EPA had “parked” roughly $20 billion at a private bank, “rushing to get billions of your tax dollars out the door before Inauguration Day.”