The Maryland Public Service Commission will hold a virtual public comment hearing on Baltimore Gas and Electric Company’s application for adjustments to its electric base rates. The company is seeking an annual increase in base rate revenue of approximately $156.1 million, with a return on equity of 10.4 percent. If approved, the adjustment would result in an overall increase of 2.8 percent in total electric bills, with impacts varying by rate schedule and customer. The average residential customer, using 851 kilowatt-hours, would see a monthly bill increase of about $8, or roughly 4 percent. Additional hearings are scheduled for Nov. 4 and 18. 9888

The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority seeks proposals for a $35 million funding opportunity under the Charge Ready NY program for public sector EV charging projects. Public sector entities, including state agencies, local governments, and public university systems, can apply for grants funded through the state’s $2 billion Sustainable Future Program to install Level 2 chargers on publicly owned property. Selected projects will receive awards ranging from $1 million to $15 million to install chargers at one or more sites. Proposers may request up to 80 percent of eligible purchase and installation costs of EV supply equipment.

The New York Department of Public Service staff is due to file a comprehensive Grid of the Future Plan. The first iteration of the plan, issued in March 2025, was based on the Grid Flexibility Study, which assessed the cost-effective, achievable potential for grid flexibility in 2030 and 2040. The initial plan leverages insights from the study to provide an actionable path for the use of flexible resources to help meet the state’s climate and energy goals on time and at the greatest value for customers. These efforts stem from a proceeding initiated in 2024 to develop a comprehensive plan establishing targets for the deployment of flexible resources, such as virtual power plants, and to identify utility investments required to enable the grid of the future. In the initiating order, the Public Service Commission directed staff to review the first iteration and file an updated plan. New York has more than 8 gigawatts of statewide cost-effective, achievable grid flexibility potential by 2040, according to the study. READ MORE

The Hawaii Public Utilities Commission will hold a public informational meeting to discuss Hawaiian Electric’s service reliability and recent weather-related impacts on the island. The meeting will include presentations from Hawaiian Electric, the Consumer Advocate, and commission staff on service impacts from the Kona Low storms, Hurricane Lala, and Hurricane Lowell, as well as resiliency and reliability solutions under consideration. An additional meeting is scheduled for Nov. 4.

The California Energy Commission will host a staff workshop to discuss the implementation of Senate Bill 767, enacted in 2025, establishing new reporting requirements for crude oil pipelines that supply California refineries. The law directs the commission to work with stakeholders to identify “reportable pipelines,” referring to pipelines that deliver domestic crude oil to in-state refineries and whose closure could significantly reduce refinery processing capacity. Beginning March 30, 2027, operators of those pipelines must submit monthly data on operating volumes, crude deliveries, operating hours, and capacity. The law was enacted to help maintain the reliability of California’s crude oil supply by preventing the shutdown of low-flow pipelines. 26-OIR-02