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Daily Archives: September 2, 2014

Residential electricity prices are rising

EIA: “U.S. retail residential electricity prices for the first half of 2014 averaged 12.3 cents per kilowatthour, an increase of 3.2% from the same period last year. This is the highest year-over-year growth in residential prices for the first half of the year since 2009. Average prices rose in all areas of the country except for the Pacific Census Division (excluding Alaska and Hawaii). Electricity customers in New England experienced the largest price increases, averaging 11.8%. Beyond taxes, fees, and other charges, there are two main components of electricity bills: the generation component, which reflects the costs of generating the electricity, and the delivery portion, which reflects the costs of transmitting and distributing that electricity. All New England states, with the exception of Vermont, have restructured the industry so that residential customers have the option of choosing an alternative retail electricity supplier for the generation (energy) component of their electricity bill. More than one-quarter of all residential customers in New England pay a retail supplier other than the regulated utility for the generation of their electricity. Customers of both full-service utilities and restructured retail suppliers have experienced similar rate increases of just under 12% so far this year.”

Additional 2013 Characteristics of New Housing

“The U.S. Census Bureau’s Survey of Construction, which is jointly funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, has released new annual characteristics tables. This release includes never before published data on age-restricted developments, presence of homeowners association, sewer and water systems, framing material and laundry. The report provides estimates of new privately owned… Continue Reading

Implementing Juvenile Justice Reform: The Federal Role

“In the past decade, a number of state, local, and tribal jurisdictions have begun to take significant steps to overhaul their juvenile justice systems – for example, reducing the use of juvenile detention and out-of-home placement, bringing greater attention to racial and ethnic disparities, looking for ways to engage affected families in the process, and… Continue Reading

Digital Transformations: Wiring the Responsive City

Via Harvard Kennedy School – “This is the fifth in an article series based on Stephen Goldsmith’s paper “Digital Transformations: Wiring the Responsive City.” Click here to read the report in full. “For decades, criminal-justice officials, advised by the results of good research, used data to drive performance. As a district attorney 30 years ago in Indiana, I used… Continue Reading

Minimum Wage Legislation Database – NCSL

National Conference of State Legislatures: “Minimum wage bills from the current legislative session are available in a searchable database. You can search by state, bill number, author, status or keyword, or track all minimum wage-related bills by leaving the search boxes blank. You also can track specific issues, by selecting a topic, including proposed increases to the… Continue Reading

Decline in Prosecutions for National Internal Security and Terrorism

Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse: “Criminal prosecutions in the area of national internal security and terrorism have declined steadily since fiscal year 2002. According to the latest available data from the Justice Department, there were 128 such prosecutions recorded in the first eight months of FY 2014. At this pace, 192 individuals will be prosecuted for… Continue Reading

40 Percent of Countries with Largest Shale Energy Resources Face Water Stress

Paul Reig and Andrew Maddocks, World Resources Institute: “…extracting natural gas and tight oil from shale poses environmental risks, especially when it comes to water. Hydraulic fracturing requires up to 25 million liters of fresh water per well, meaning shale resources can be hard to develop where fresh water is hard to find—including in some of the world’s fastest-growing… Continue Reading