Colorado State Government Honing in on Renewables

Yesterday, we highlighted Iowa's focus on renewable energy development in the coming legislative session; as one commenter noted, the Hawkeye State isn't the only one looking to greener energy for environmental and economic boosts. In fact, the situation in Colorado is very similar to that in Iowa, as incoming governor Bill Ritter also made renewables a centerpiece of his campaign. The incoming legislature seems warm to Ritter's goals. Calling his plan "Colorado's New Energy Economy," Ritter has established several areas of focus, including:

Requiring gas utilities to adopt conservation and energy-efficiency programs.
Boosting the use of ethanol.
Seeking ways to make it easier for utility companies to build transmission capacity from the remote areas of the state where wind and solar power would be collected.
Adding energy-efficiency requirements to the construction standards for new state-owned buildings.
Seeking ways to create a state fund that would assist with major renewable energy or conservation efforts.

Ritter also doesn't have plans for new officials focused on renewable energy; he is, however, waiting to fill top slots in state offices before further fleshing out his plan. Given that Colorado voters have already approved a renewable energy portfolio standard, this ought to be a winner for Ritter (one might guess that it already has been). Of course, the devil will be in the details. ::Denver Post