Best of July 2026

Volts published eight conversations in July on subjects with nothing obvious in common: an Arizona utility board election, Minnesota smart meters, land value taxes in Spokane, silicon battery anodes. Yet six of them arrived at the same constraint. What stops energy infrastructure from getting built in the United States is more often written into law than into physics. On this episode, David Roberts pulls one stretch from each July conversation into a single hour, with two Minnesota utility regulators, a Spokane city council member, a Hawaii state senator, a co-founder of a battery materials company, and more.Chapters:00:00 Introduction: a new format for Volts01:22 Arizona: winning the utility elections nobody watches07:04 Minnesota: the smart meter data nobody uses12:40 Spokane: how property taxes reward empty lots17:31 Hawaii: the education gap in state energy policy22:13 The data center backlash is a politics story27:41 Why America can't build transit: procurement32:41 Clean energy after the IRA: the glass debate38:26 Silicon anodes: the other half of the battery44:47 Closing: tell me if this worked This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe