WASHINGTON, March 10 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has released the following public communication dated March 2, 2025, from Humane World for Animals and five collaborators. Here are excerpts: * * * To: U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD APHIS, Station 2C-10.16 4700 River Road, Unit 25 Riverdale, MD 20737-1238 Re: Interim Rule and Request for Comments, Payme  more

WASHINGTON, March 10 -- The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has released the following public communication dated Feb. 28, 2025, from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners: * * * To: Secretary Scott Turner U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 457 7th Street SW Washington, DC 20410 Re: Department of Housing and Urban Development Request for Information Regarding Resilience Measures and Insurance Coverage (FR-6505-N-01) * * * Dear Secretary Turner  more

AUGUSTA, Maine, March 5 -- The Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has adopted amendments to Chapter 313, the rule governing Net Energy Billing (NEB), to clarify the treatment of unused or expired credits, particularly those assigned to facility accounts. The decision, documented in Docket No. 2024-00356 and issued on March 5, 2025, aims to refine the implementation of a 2023 legislative act that directs expired NEB credits to fund low-income assistance. The amendments address a situation w  more

AUGUSTA, Maine, March 6 -- The Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has denied Penobscot River Solar, LLC's petition for reconsideration of its request for a good cause exemption, maintaining its stance that the company failed to demonstrate that delays were beyond its control. The decision, documented in Docket No. 2024-00091 and issued on March 6, 2025, reaffirms the PUC's commitment to enforcing the deadlines set by the 2023 amendments to the Net Energy Billing (NEB) statute. Penobscot Ri  more

AUGUSTA, Maine, March 5 -- The Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has granted full approval for the Maine Connectivity Authority's (MCA) Pole Attachment License, clearing the way for the construction of the MOOSE Net middle-mile broadband network. The decision, documented in Docket No. 2024-00110 and issued on March 5, 2025, removes the provisional status of the license and approves Sertex Broadband Solutions as the prime construction contractor. MCA initially filed its application in May   more

AUGUSTA, Maine, March 4 -- The Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has granted a good cause exemption to Hog Bay Solar 1, LLC, allowing the company to proceed with its 1.99 MW solar photovoltaic project in Franklin, Maine, despite missing a key statutory deadline. The decision, documented in Docket No. 2024-00131 and issued on March 4, 2025, addresses delays caused by utility mismanagement. The exemption, granted under 35-A M.R.S. Sec. 3209-A(9), was sought by Hog Bay Solar due to delays in  more

WASHINGTON, March 9 -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security issued the following news release: * * * Secretary Kristi Noem Announces Expanded Leadership to Revamp ICE WASHINGTON --Today, Secretary Kristi Noem announced new leadership to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to reinstitute a culture of results and accountability after four years of agency decay under the Biden Administration. Secretary Noem issued the following statement: "For the past four years, our brave me  more