U.S. Energy Foundation

In May, solar provided more electricity than coal in the U.S. for the first time—a milestone for the clean energy transition.

Solar provided 12.8% of the country’s electricity, while coal contributed 12.2%, down from 20% five years ago.

“We’re going to just keep seeing more and more renewables brought onto the grid,” said Patrick Drupp, director of climate policy at the Sierra Club. “That’s good for people’s wallets, it’s good for their health, it’s good for the planet.”
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For first time, Americans are getting more of their electricity from solar than coal Solar provides more than twice the share of electricity it did five years ago.

Across North Carolina, rural electric cooperatives are using aggregated battery systems to respond when high demand increases electricity prices and to enhance reliability during extreme weather events.

“What these battery systems have been able to do is really save folks money while increasing resilience, and helping with reliability sort of across the footprint…It’s really an economic story," said Rob Greskowiak, chief commercial officer for Lightshift Energy, a storage developer that has worked with cooperatives.

Why North Carolina’s electric co-ops are turning to grid batteries From the suburbs to the barrier islands, the state’s local cooperatives are using aggregated battery systems to weather outages and protect consumers’…

Parked electric school buses will charge overnight and send stored energy back to the grid during peak demand this summer in the Massachusetts towns of Acton and Boxborough.

This strategy will help lower the emissions and cost of the region’s electricity supply, and the Acton-Boxborough school district will earn revenue for the power it shares, potentially enough to cover the costs of charging the buses during the school year.

“The more we plug in batteries to the grid, the less we use peaker plants…They will help to stabilize the grid, help to reduce the cost of electricity for all ratepayers, and they’ll help make the grid cleaner,” said Kate Crosby, energy manager for the school district.
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In Massachusetts, parked EVs will start feeding the grid this summer Three electric school buses will kick-start the state’s groundbreaking vehicle-to-grid pilot program once school's out, with more EVs to be added in the…

The city of Ann Arbor, Michigan, is offering rebates to residents who buy a new all-electric vehicle from any state car dealer—a plan city leaders hope will inspire other municipalities across the U.S.

The rebate—which is shaped to mirror the federal electric vehicle rebates that are no longer available—is aimed at helping residents find relief from rising gas prices. The city currently offers rebates for many energy-saving purchases, such as heat pumps, e-bikes, and electric lawn mowers, as part of its climate action program.

Ann Arbor fights high gas prices with time-limited rebates for EVs Ann Arbor is offering a time-limited rebate for buying an electric vehicle.

The Portland Clean Energy Fund—aimed at reducing carbon emissions in Portland, Oregon, and helping the city’s most vulnerable residents adapt to climate change—has helped reduce carbon emissions by about 25,500 metric tons, the equivalent of removing about 6,000 gas-powered vehicles from the road for one year.

The fund is expected to complete its first five-year plan by mid-2029, investing $1.6 billion back into the city through funding efforts like community solar projects and energy efficiency retrofits.

"It's a fund that's intended to scale up local, community-based climate solutions that address our very real climate realities, community resilience and economic resiliency," said Sam Baraso, the Portland Clean Energy Fund program manager.
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How one Oregon city has raised a billion dollars for climate change The Portland Clean Energy Fund has raised a billion dollars for climate change action via a retail tax on large corporations in the city. Other cities are starting to shape similar funds.

City officials in Denver, Colorado, are repurposing parts of the city’s old, fossil fuel-powered steam system to create a thermal energy network to heat and cool downtown buildings, using a combination of water-source heat pumps, heat from the Earth, and energy from wastewater.

The ambient loop of energy is up to 75% cheaper than other ways of decarbonizing those buildings, and it will save taxpayers and customers money.

Officials believe success with the pilot can be adapted to thousands of gas customers near downtown, accelerating the city's push to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2040. It also could set an example for how to decarbonize a dense, downtown core in the U.S.

"If you can come to one of the most bustling, vibrant downtowns in the world and discover any one of those buildings is heated and cooled by water…that is a breakthrough for the city and, I think, a breakthrough for the country,” said Denver Mayor Mike Johnston.
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Denver has a plan to heat and cool buildings without fossil fuels. It involves … sewage? Like many cities, Denver's largest source of greenhouse gas emissions is its buildings. Heating and cooling skyscrapers requires a lot of fossil fuels. Now, the city is trying a surprising solution.

In Utah—where three-quarters of the state’s electricity is generated from coal and natural gas—a coalition of 19 communities aims to generate enough clean electricity—through renewable energy projects, like solar arrays and wind farms—to offset the power used in their homes and businesses.

The coalition plans to announce its first clean energy project this summer and begin generating power by 2030. The effort could be a model for other U.S. cities to take climate action at the local level.

"The fact that our efforts here have been happening over the course of multiple federal administrations already…it shows us that at the local level, you can continue to move on climate strategies regardless of the federal winds," said Emily Quinton, sustainability director of Summit County, one of the communities in the coalition.

In conservative Utah, some communities are ditching fossil fuel power for clean energy In conservative Utah, a coalition of cities and towns shows other communities how to bring new renewable energy to the electric grid in a unique way.

Officials in Multnomah County, Oregon, unveiled a new library powered by solar and built with other sustainable features, including mass timber construction, radiant floor heating, air-source heat pumps, and passive solar design that includes substantial daylighting from tall windows and north-facing skylights.

The East County Library is part of a series of new and improved libraries throughout the Portland metro area, many of which include solar installations.

Multnomah County, Oregon powers up new library with 188 kW solar installation The installation, featuring Qcells modules, CPS inverters and Sunmodo racking, is the latest in a series of Portland-area library buildings powered by solar panels.

A pilot program in New York City is giving residents plug-in batteries that can power their air conditioners during peak demand, helping to keep residents cool, reduce grid strain, and lessen the need for new infrastructure.

Initiatives like this could have a significant impact on power reliability and affordability.

“I can’t put solar panels on my roof,” said Bianca Pasternack, a New York City renter enrolled in the program. “This is at least something that’s accessible and easy. It was very set-it-and-forget-it.”

Air conditioning battery program for renters could help cities manage grid stress during heat waves A renter-friendly pilot program in New York City is aiming to reduce strain on the power grid while helping customers with power bills.

In Ann Arbor, Michigan—where some locals spend more than one-third of their household income on utility bills—a first-of-its-kind, supplemental municipal utility is installing solar and battery systems to reduce residents’ energy costs and boost grid reliability.

The solar and battery installations are the first step toward a future that could include microgrids, geothermal heating and cooling networks, and energy justice initiatives for residents.

A 2025 report found Michigan’s power grid experienced longer-duration outages over the past five years than all but a handful of other states. Energy storage from this initiative will help residents maintain power through outages and boost overall system reliability by “[minimizing] the need for distribution systems (e.g., poles and wires), which are currently the most vulnerable part of the existing energy system,” the utility reported.

‘Supplemental’ municipal utility begins solar-and-storage installs in Ann Arbor, Michigan The Ann Arbor Sustainable Energy Utility will use locally sited solar, batteries and other resources to improve reliability and lower costs for subscribers, city officials say.