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SD public defense duties shift from counties to state; SCOTUS appears skeptical of restricting government communications with social media companies; Trump lawyers say he can't make bond; new scholarships aim to connect class of 2024 to high-demand jobs.

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The SCOTUS weighs government influence on social media, and who groups like the NRA can do business with. Biden signs an executive order to advance women's health research and the White House tells Israel it's responsible for the Gaza humanitarian crisis.

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Midwest regenerative farmers are rethinking chicken production, Medicare Advantage is squeezing the finances of rural hospitals and California's extreme swing from floods to drought has some thinking it's time to turn rural farm parcels into floodplains.

Feds Seek Comments on Clean-Power Incentives for Rural Areas

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Friday, August 26, 2016   

ST. PAUL, Minn. - Just a few days remain for people to weigh in on a federal plan to help install more renewable energy in low-income and rural communities, in Minnesota and across the country. It's called the Clean Energy Incentive Program, or CEIP.

Local supporters say the voluntary project will match state dollars for installing wind and solar power in areas that need financial help to make the transition to cleaner energy.

Tara Ritter, program associate for climate and rural communities with the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, said CEIP could benefit parts of Greater Minnesota that tend to have higher poverty rates and lower average incomes.

"Rural communities have the potential to access a lot of these Clean Energy Incentive Program funds that will allow for energy efficiency upgrades, which then directly reduce energy bills and take off some of that burden," she said.

The Environmental Protection Agency is still taking suggestions for finalizing the plan and rolling out over the next two years. The public comment period ends on Monday, August 29th.

Ritter's group is urging the EPA to remove a requirement that states use what are known as "Emission Rate Credits." She explained these basically allow states to purchase the right to emit more pollution. Ritter argued that ends up disproportionately affecting lower-income neighborhoods closest to the sources of pollution, including carbon-emitting power plants.

"We think that the trading leads to rural and minority communities generally shouldering a lot of the pollution, which increases asthma and water pollution," she added.

The Clean Energy Incentive Program is part of President Obama's Clean Power Plan, which is currently on hold during a review from the U.S. Supreme Court. The CEIP is being allowed to move forward because it is a voluntary program.


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