CALIFORNIA: PG&E has reached an agreement with California Gov. Gavin Newsom that paves the way for the utility to emerge from bankruptcy. (New York Times)

UTILITIES:
• Colorado utilities seeking greater benefits of a regional transmission organization are split between western and eastern energy imbalance markets. (Energy News Network)
• Washington regulators deny Avista’s request to increase electric and natural gas rates to cover additional replacement power costs tied to the temporary shutdown of Montana’s Colstrip plant. (Spokesman-Review)

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: California utilities are urging state regulators to reconsider a new proposed electric vehicle framework, concerned that restrictions are too severe. (Daily Energy Insider)

NUCLEAR: Members of New Mexico’s congressional delegation want an extension of the public comment period for an environmental review of a proposed nuclear waste storage facility in the southeastern part of the state. (Associated Press)

EMISSIONS: A University of California at Berkeley professor of energy is among 10 signatories of a letter to congressional lawmakers, calling for the economy to be reshaped toward lower carbon emissions. (Washington Post)

COAL: A Northern Plains Resource Council member says workers and communities should be the priority for relief funding, not coal companies. (Associated Press)

OIL & GAS:
• A federal judge dismisses an environmental group’s lawsuit alleging Colorado is allowing natural gas drilling over the objections of resource owners. (Bloomberg, subscription)
• New data indicates oil drilling in the Permian Basin has dropped to its lowest level since the crude market crash of early 2016, resulting in thousands of layoffs. (Bloomberg)
• Colorado lawmakers are reconsidering oil and gas tax breaks due to concerns many of Colorado’s oil wells will owe the state $0 in severance taxes this year. (Colorado Sun)
• Alaska’s economy is in critical condition due to reliance on industries adversely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and falling oil prices. (Anchorage Daily News)
• Montana’s oil and gas industry is the latest to be hit hard by market volatility and the COVID-19 pandemic. (Montana Free Press)

OVERSIGHT: Two New Mexico departments are reportedly planning to release draft complimentary regulations for reducing methane emissions from the oil and gas sectors later this year. (Farmington Daily Times)

STORAGE: Tesla battery partner Panasonic is sending home roughly 3,500 workers from the companies’ Nevada Gigafactory to help limit the spread of COVID-19. (Reno Gazette)

COMMENTARY:
• An Oregon editorial board says the Jordan Cove liquefied natural gas export terminal in Oregon and its 230-mile feeder pipeline are likely to be tied up in court for a long time despite FERC’s approval. (Mail Tribune)
• An author says the Mormon church should consider converting some of its farms and cattle ranches to solar and wind farms to lessen the impact of climate change. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• An Oregon environmental justice organization says social and environmental justice should be incorporated into any proposals developed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions across the state. (Ashland Tidings)

Lisa is a Lenape and Nanticoke Native American freelance journalist, editor and writer currently based in the U.K. She has more than two decades’ experience working in corporate communications and print and digital media. She compiles the Western Energy News daily email digest. She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Temple University; her specializations include data journalism and visualization. She is a member of the Native American Journalists Association, Investigative Reporters & Editors, Society of Professional Journalists, and the National Union of Journalists (U.K.).