Latest news with #ElizabethFiedler
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pennsylvania school districts request over $90 million from Solar for Schools grant program
(WHTM) — Lots of schools across the Commonwealth want solar power. Pennsylvania school districts requested almost $90 million from the Solar for Schools grant program, more than triple the amount of available funding. The Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) now has to decide which applications to approve. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler (D) introduced the legislation. She says schools in the program have the potential to save millions. 'It really is a program that could benefit all of our schools,' said Rep. Fiedler. 'We just need to provide the funding for it so that schools can make it happen, and then they have savings and budget predictability for many, many years to come.' Rep. Fiedler says the DCED will release its recommendations for grant applications in May, and an additional $25 million for Solar for Schools is proposed in the governor's next budget. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New bill proposes net neutrality for ‘fair Internet access' in Pennsylvania
(WHTM) — A new bill proposes providing 'fair Internet that provides equal access' to Pennsylvanians. The bill, circulated by Rep. Ismail Smith-Wade-El (D-49) and Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler (D-184), aims to regulate large companies providing Internet services and ensure their services will be transmitted fairly without manipulating Internet access and prices consumers pay. In a memo, Rep. Smith-Wade-El and Fiedler cite a previous decision to strike down the Federal Communication Commission's net neutrality rule on January 2 as the government removing necessary federal protections that caused consumer prices to increase. The memo says the rule required all Internet service providers (ISPs) to treat all consumers equally. The memo says the bill will make it illegal for ISPs to block lawful Internet content, impede Internet traffic, or engage in any activity that would negatively affect the experience of Pennsylvania Internet users. The bill has not been submitted for introduction to the state legislature, yet. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
05-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
House Energy Committee holds hearing on Solar for All Program
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – Pennsylvania has federal money for a solar installation program, but lawmakers have to pass a bill for it to be used. The newly formed House Energy Committee held its first-ever public hearing on Tuesday for House Bill 362. The Environmental Protection Agency awarded $156 million to the Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority for the Solar for All Program in April 2024. The legislature needs to give its approval in order for the federal taxpayer dollars to be used. House Bill 362 authorizes the administration and distribution of the funds. House Energy Committee Chair Rep. Elizabeth Fiedler says despite some uncertainty from the federal government, it is important to have this hearing. 'The President has issued a number of executive orders prompting review and pausing the issuance of federal moneys for EPA programs,' says Rep. Fiedler (D) Philadelphia County. The Solar for All Program would finance solar installations for low-income households in rural, suburban and urban areas across the Commonwealth. Electricity bills would be reduced by at least 20 percent. Advocates say the program would create jobs and improve the power grid as a whole. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now 'In Philadelphia, we've done over 3700 rooftop solar projects and 39 percent of those are low and moderate income,' says Philadelphia Energy Authority CEO Emily Schapira. 'We find that solar is a tool for long term affordability and the more we can put that in the hands of low and moderate income households, the better. If you have no electricity bill, you're much more likely to be able to stay in your home to create generational wealth.' Republican Representative Jamie Barton of Schuylkill and Berks Counties says government policies like this are what PJM has warned could cause a grid reliability crisis, 'forcing premature closure of reliable power plants and increasing mandates for unreliable weather dependent wind and solar, why in heaven's name would we continue to invest taxpayer dollars, whether it's state or federal?' Governor Shapiro's budget speech filled with promises, gratitude, and expensive plans 'Having a solar powered home with battery storage ensures that families have a backup source of power, especially during power outages, which are more frequent in rural regions,' says Justin Mason with Pennsylvania Conservative Energy Forum. Republican Representative Dallas Kephart of Clearfield and Cambria Counties raised concerns about inflation, 'to inject more money into the economy itself or its going to continue to create more spending and in aggregate demand and so forth.' Rep. Fiedler says the next step is for the House to take the bill up for a vote. She says that likely won't happen until March. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
