Latest news with #Calderon
Yahoo
13-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
California's war on rooftop solar: A new bill could dim homeowners' energy freedom
California has long been a leader in solar adoption in the U.S., but a new bill gutting the state's net metering policy would deal a sharp blow to solar homeowners in the Golden state. With the help of favorable government policies and incentives spurring the expansion of solar deployment, California became a solar-friendly state for homeowners looking to save money while living more sustainably. But now, the state is poised to renege on its commitment to solar customers with the potential passage of Assembly Bill 942, a bill that would repeal net metering rules that had previously grandfathered in homeowners who had already gone solar years earlier. This May, the California State Assembly Commission passed an amended bill, known as AB 942, that proposes to sunset existing net metering contracts beginning in July 2026. Net metering is a policy that allows homeowners to send the excess electricity produced by their solar panels back to the grid and receive a credit for that energy on their utility bill. This practice is designed to return excess output to the grid, which in turn benefits local economies and reduces homeowners energy bills. Stay informed on the latest industry news—delivered to your inbox each month. Sign up for EnergySage's newsletter. All told, NEM programs have proved wildly successful at spurring solar adoption, with over 2 million households installing solar panels —, totaling 17 gigawatts. According to one industry study from a solar and storage trade group, those installations have produced $1.5 billion in cumulative savings for all customers. Net metering was first made available to Californians 30 years ago, and in subsequent years and revisions to the program, the state uncapped net energy metering (NEM) to allow new systems to produce more than a previously mandated limit of 1,000kW. While some of the other benefits of NEM were rolled back over the past few years, the program still greatly benefited solar homeowners. If AB 942 passes it will be a different story: Existing net metering contracts (under NEM versions 1.0 and 2.0) would be voided once a home is sold or its deed is transferred. That home and its system would then be regulated under the most recent version, NEM 3.0. According to the bill's author, Assemblyperson Lisa Calderon, AB 942's purpose is to address the financial shortfall of grid maintenance costs that are being covered largely by non-solar customers. 'Our energy bills are becoming increasingly unaffordable, and we must address this ratepayer inequity,' Calderon said in a recent press release. The environmental imperative of renewable energy aside, a key motivation for homeowners who want to go solar is to save course, lower utility bills piques anyone's interest, and is one of the reasons reason net metering has become so popular in one state after the next – it helps homeowners conserve energy and money at the same time. But according to critics, California had already strayed from its original mission. With the introduction of NEM 3.0 in April 2023, California swapped out net metering for a net billing tariff program (aka net billing), an arguably inferior system that substantially reduces the credits customers receive for sending excess energy to the grid, averaging about 5 to 6 cents per kilowatt hour. This is because the energy offsets are now valued based on the avoided costs to the utility company. In previous versions of NEM, the credits' value was equal to those deducted whenever energy had to be imported from the grid; a simple 1:1 exchange rate. Should AB 942 become law, homebuyers would be unable to inherit the benefits of existing contracts under NEM 1.0 or 2.0. (Under these versions, net metering contracts have a 20-year term and are tied to the installations, not homeowners.) Instead, those contracts would automatically shift to NEM 3.0. 'People made huge financial decisions to put solar on their roofs, with guaranteed paybacks because of these agreements,' Jeremy Nicholson, CEO of Sunergy, a California-based solar installer, told EnergySage. 'Changing that midstream would be a huge disservice. It completely erodes consumer confidence. Whatever agreements you have in place, you need to ride out to the finish line.' A key feature of those older agreements is the guarantee that one homeowner can pass savings onto the next. That alone is a huge selling point for buyers in a state like California where electricity rates seem to increase exponentially. Assemblyperson Calderon, a democrat representing California's predominantly suburban 56th State Assembly district, claims AB 942 is a question of economic equity. Her office cites a recent study conducted by the state's Public Advocates Office, which claims that in 2024 alone net metering shifted excess costs totaling $8.5 billion to non-solar ratepayers. 'Without modifications, the cost shift will continue to escalate as retail rates for electricity increase,' according to the study. It's also worth noting that Calderon herself is a former long-time employee of Southern California Edison, a large investor-owned utility and understands how they operate. While it is true that electricity rates in California are well above the national average—30 cents/kWh versus 19 cents nationally—the data for these figures comes directly from the utility companies themselves—an obvious conflict of interest. Other reports found different results: A 2021 counter study conducted by Solar United Neighbors denies the claim that cost shifting is hurting regular Californians. 'The utility's cost shift claim is false,' the Solar United report says 'Research on the issue concludes that rooftop solar more often provides a net benefit to all ratepayers.' 'Utility companies are forced monopolies, and what they're trying to do is get rid of the competition,' Nicholson says. 'An apt analogy is the U.S. Post Office versus FedEx, it's utility companies versus solar. We are the industry disruptor. And even with that competition, even with all the solar in California, rates have gone up over 50% in the last seven years.' Large utilities have made the case that increased rates are needed to help offset the costs of upgrading the U.S.'s aging electrical grid. But that,too, has been called into question, given that transmission and distribution spending on the part of California's three largest utilities has increased exponentially in recent years while electricity usage has remained relatively steady. The conclusion many critics have drawn is that, as investor-owned businesses, the utilities are motivated more by profit margins and keeping shareholders happy than providing value to their customers. 'The claim here is people who went solar are placing an undue burden on the rest of consumers, but that's not a fluid argument,' Nicholson told EnergySage. 'It may have held water if consumption remained the same across the nation and across utilities, but demand has only increased … people say you can't see the future, but I disagree. Solar takes strain off the grid and gives resiliency to customers. It's not even an ROI or cost-saving argument anymore. This is insurance.'
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Yahoo
Rapid City man gets 25-years for dealing meth
RAPID CITY, SD (KELO) — A federal judge on Friday sentenced a Rapid City man, tied to a Mexican drug cartel, to 25-years in prison. 38-year-old Guillermo Calderon pleaded guilty in March to Conspiracy to Distribute a Controlled Substance. Prosecutors say Calderon was the leader of the conspiracy that trafficked significant amounts of methamphetamine to Rapid City and Pine Ridge from Mexican cartel operatives. Authorities in Iowa arrested Calderon in January 2024, while he was allegedly driving 20-pounds of meth into South Dakota. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Savings accounts for babies in One, Big Beautiful Bill really are beautiful, experts say
Start early and take advantage of compound growth is the mantra of almost every financial adviser. That's why the new savings account for children included in the One, Big, Beautiful Bill , with a one-time deposit of $1,000 from the federal government, is truly beautiful to the investment community. The "proposal reflects a growing consensus: investing early in every child's future is a smart and necessary step," said Marisa Calderon, president and chief executive of Prosperity Now, a national nonprofit organization focused on expanding economic opportunity for low-income families and communities in the United States. Originally called the Money Account for Growth and Advancement, or MAGA Account, but changed last night by the House to the Trump Account, would create a federally funded savings account with a $1,000 deposit for children born between Jan. 1, 2025 and Jan. 1, 2029. Parents also could contribute up to $5,000 annually to the tax-deferred account to be invested in a diversified fund that tracks a U.S.-stock index. Qualified withdrawals, including for education expenses or credentials, a down payment on a first home or as capital to start a small business, are taxed at the long-term capital-gains rate. There are no income requirements and everyone is eligible, as long as the child is a U.S. citizen, and both parents have Social Security numbers. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), who proposed the savings account initiative, has said for those who don't own any stocks or bonds, these accounts will give everyone a stake. By saving early, the invested money has time to grow. "Research shows that lasting change comes from scale," Calderon said. "Deposits must grow over time and be available when they matter most, such as paying for college, starting a business, or buying a first home." After 25 years, $1,000 invested in the S&P 500 would grow to approximately $10,835, for example. The average stock market return is about 10% per yearfor nearly the last century, as measured by the S&P 500 index. The Trump account isn't a new idea, but it's a new move for the federal government if it passes into law. The enormous tax bill still needs approval from the Senate, which may demand changes before passage. About seven years ago, Sen. Cory Booker (D-New Jersey) proposed a savings account dubbed 'baby bonds,' with $1,000 seed money for newborns based on family income, with potentially larger initial deposits for lower-income families. The proposal never gained bipartisan traction and died. However, the intent of these savings accounts are the same: "Giving children a financial foundation from birth," Calderon said. Some states like Connecticut and Iowa have baby bond programs, which are publicly funded child trust accounts and all have different rules and amounts. Connecticut, for example, only offers its program to babies whose birth was covered by the state Medicaid program and invests $3,200 once at the start. Iowa funds its account with $500 initially and then annually up to 18 years. Some cities have also launched programs that offer seed money to kids in kindergarten to be used for college. HOPE Child Savings Account Program in Atlanta, Georgia launched in May 2022 and San Francisco's Kindergarten to College (K2C) program kicked off in 2011 and sent its first students to college in 2023. A child with a college savings account, no matter the dollar amount in it, is 6 times more likely to go to college, according to a Center for Social Development study. The children are also 4 times more likely to graduate. That's because psychological benefits are associated with having a college fund. Just having the fund establishes a belief that college is possible and an expectation that the child is going to college. "We've long supported this kind of forward-looking policy because we know what works, and because a child's financial future shouldn't be determined by the zip code they're born into," Calderon said. "We are encouraged to see lawmakers taking steps to reflect the principles of baby bonds." Medora Lee is a money, markets, and personal finance reporter at USA TODAY. You can reach her at mjlee@ and subscribe to our free Daily Money newsletter for personal finance tips and business news every Monday through Friday. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump Accounts seen as a 'beautiful' thing for kids in giant tax bill Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Latin Music Festivals Scramble Amid Visa Uncertainty: ‘It's Scary'
When Michelada Festival canceled its 2025 festival last week over the uncertainty around artist visas, the situation rang the alarm for several other Latin music festivals around the country. Michelada, a Chicago-based event, became the first of its kind to cancel over the 'rapidly changing political climate.' The festival wrote on May 6, 'We're no longer able to guarantee the full experience we had dreamed up for you with all your favorite artists. Although we tried to push through, it became clear that we wouldn't be able to deliver the full lineup as planned.' More from Rolling Stone Trump Is Trying to Take Control of Congress Through Its Library Trump Claims Qatar Is Giving Him $400 Million Jet Out of Goodness of Their Heart Trump Gives In, Rolls Back China Tariffs Just a month earlier, organizers had unveiled a lineup that included Grupo Firme, Luis R. Conriquez, Los Alegres Del Barranco, and Netón Vega. They quickly replaced Los Alegres — whose visas were revoked by the State Department over their depiction of a cartel kingpin at a show in Mexico — with Gabito Ballesteros. But with visa statuses for both Ballesteros and Conriquez now uncertain, organizers were forced to act quickly and cancel the event altogether. 'It's not fair to the consumer to go through those changes,' says Miguel Torres, one of Michelada's owners. 'You want to deliver on what you promise, and not create the question of, 'Will the artist be there or not?'' 'It was too big of a gamble and a risk to move forward,' adds Fernando Nieto, Michelada's co-founder. Since taking office, the Trump administration has made securing work visas incredibly difficult for international artists. (FKA Twigs canceled a U.S. run over the issue.) And, on top of that, there's a growing fear of visa revocations among artists who perform narcocorridos, over what happened to Los Alegres del Barranco. At the time of Los Alegres' revocation, Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau accused the group of 'glorifying' criminals and terrorists with their performances. Promoter and new Jalo Fest organizer Ricky Calderon has also had to deal with these issues in the last few weeks. Calderon noticed how difficult securing visas has become under the presidential administration for many artists, and moved quickly to address the problems at two of his own events last month. The organizer had booked both Alegres del Barranco and Gabito Ballesteros for a pair of shows in Northern California in late April. Just days before, he was forced to replace them with other artists. 'Everyone wants to go to these shows, but it really affected us,' Calderon says. 'What can I say?' Calderon says the situation also affects promoters' credibility with ticket buyers, who are already struggling to cover the rising costs of shows. With the concern around artists being able to stick on the lineup, fans are choosing to wait until closer to the event to purchase tickets. As he deals with the repercussions at one-off shows, Calderon has also been slowly rolling out Jalo Fest, the first-ever Latin music festival in Sacramento, slated for this summer. He's already confirmed appearances from El Tri, Tucanes de Tijuana, Eslabón Armado, and Santa Fe Klan, among others, but the visa problems have affected three artists he planned to feature: Alegres, Ballesteros, and Edición Especial. The setback forced him to postpone his fest's lineup announcement multiple times, preventing his organization from getting a head start on sales. 'We were supposed to announce and go on sale two months back,' Calderón says of the event, scheduled for Aug. 30 and 31. 'People don't want to buy tickets knowing that things might get canceled down the line. It's really affecting us. It's a big investment for both the people and also for us as business people.' After Michelada's cancellation, it's unclear how Chicago's Sueños Fest will fare later this month, given that the lineup prominently features corridos acts such as Peso Pluma, Tito Double P, and Oscar Maydon. BottleRock's La Onda Fest will also showcase similar artists the following weekend in Napa. (Reps for those festivals did not respond to Rolling Stone's request for comment.) Abel DeLuna, founder and board member of Latino promoter collective Promotores Unidos, has his act Sonora Tropicana performing at the NorCal event. He says the delay in visa issuance (and the narcocorrido conversation) is unprecedented, and will likely have lasting effects on the industry. As demand for the artists in the genre continues to grow, so too does the uncertainty around booking them. 'I think this is going to affect us as long as this president is in office. And now, with Mexico prohibiting corridos… The government hasn't prohibited it here, but we're scared that it could happen,' explains DeLuna. 'You never know what to expect with Donald Trump.' DeLuna says that as an organization, the association of promoters has discussed how to help each other out, but ultimately, 'we don't have a solution to this,' he says. 'What we are going through now is something I have never seen before.' Ramiro Bojorquez, organizer of Belico Fest in Phoenix, which debuted last year with several artists known for their narcocorridos, is proceeding with caution, but remains committed to delivering a top-tier show. After hosting Gerardo Ortiz, Junior H, and Luis R. Conriquez in 2024, he feels a responsibility to keep the Mexican music event alive and ensure it lives up to the 'Belico' name. 'I'm investing a lot of money in this and I'm a bit scared, but it's a passion project for me,' says Bojorquez. Slowly, he's been announcing acts confirmed for the fall event: Xavi and Clave Especial, who are all U.S. citizens, and Netón Vega, who had his work visa confirmed last month, he says. Bojorquez 'had to pull back' on announcing other acts for the festival, and ultimately decided not to re-book Conriquez, the leader of the belico subgenre. 'We're very, very cautious about who we book, and not taking away from the whole experience, because our name is based on that genre and culture of Mexican music,' says Bojorquez. 'It's a movement that we started, and now we have to continue. We can't let government restrictions stop us. We gotta work with what we have and give the audiences what they want.' As Belico Fest continues filling out their lineup, Bojorquez explains that he's going to focus on booking artists who are either from the United States or already have their visas confirmed, contending that it's not worth the risk of having to pull out an artist. 'It's scary because you're investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in a festival and you're dependent on the outcome of the festival,' he says. Bojorquez also pointed to a troubling double standard that seems to specifically target Mexican musicians, while other media portraying narcoculture, like Netflix's Narcos, which explores the drug trade and depicts figures like El Chapo Guzmán, face no scrutiny. 'I can't stay quiet. I can't keep my arms closed,' says Bojorquez. 'It's happening on Netflix and in other parts of the media. You can't blindfold people because you don't like the way they talk.' Best of Rolling Stone The 50 Greatest Eminem Songs All 274 of Taylor Swift's Songs, Ranked The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
IOL News
09-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
AngloGold Ashanti reports 671% increase in headline earnings in its first quarter for 2025
AngloGold Ashanti CEO Alberto Calderon said the gold mining group had performed very strong in its first quarter to March 31, 2025. Image: Twitter AngloGold Ashanti's headline earnings soared by 671% to $447 million following a 22% increase in production in the first quarter to end March, good cost management and a rising gold price, the group said Friday. In addition to these numbers that indicate a very strong performance, AISC (all-in sustaining costs) increased by only 1%, while free cash increased by 607% to $403m. The previous guidance for the remainder of the year was reaffirmed. "This is a very strong start to the year, particularly at our managed operations," CEO Alberto Calderon said in a statement. An interim dividend of $63m or 12.5 US cents a share was declared for the first quarter, in line with the new quarterly dividend policy. AngloGold's share price had traded higher by 2.94% on Friday afternoon to R808.88 per share, a price already 77.3% higher than a year ago. The performance was supported by a 28% rise in gold production from managed operations year-on-year, primarily driven by the first-time contribution from the recently acquired Sukari Gold Mine in Egypt and solid output improvements at Siguiri and Tropicana. The average gold price received increased to $2,874/oz in the first quarter, well up from $2,063/oz in the first quarter of 2024. "We've seen strong growth in production with the addition of Sukari, and our cost control efforts continue to offset inflation, which has ensured that we capture the benefit of the higher gold price," said Calderon. AngloGold Ashanti remained committed to closing the valuation gap with its North American peers by driving continuous improvements in operating performance, enhancing cash conversion, extending life-of-mine, and maintaining a disciplined approach to capital allocation. Its portfolio continued to be actively managed to sharpen focus on its operations and projects in the US. Last week, the sale of the Doropo and ABC Projects in Ivory Coast was announced. The balance sheet also continued to strengthen. Adjusted net debt fell 60% year-on-year to $525m in the first quarter, from $1.322 billion in the first quarter of 2024. There was about $3bn in liquidity, including cash and cash equivalents of $1.5bn, at quarter end. Gold production for the group increased substantially by 22% year-on-year to 720 000 ounces, which reflected the first full-quarter contribution of 117 000 ounces from Sukari, Egypt's largest gold mine, and a 'notable uplift in consistency and reliability across the legacy portfolio,' said Calderon. The strong result was driven by a strong performance from managed operations, partially offset by operating challenges at the non-managed joint ventures.
