iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

Data Centers and the Rules We Have Not Written Yet: Should we ban data centers? Science cannot answer that, but it can sharpen the trade-offs. New Amped Up post on prices, emissions, air quality, and four questions policymakers should be asking. #energysky open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Data Centers and the Rules We Have Not Written Yet

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 04/05/2026

Beneficiary-pays cost allocation has been a rare point of analytical convergence in transmission policy. EPRA (2024) gestured toward it. FERC’s Order 1920 operationalized it. The FAIR Act would unwind it. #EnergyPolicy #Transmission #FERC open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

When “Fair” Isn’t: The FAIR Act and the Erosion of Beneficiary-Pays Cost Allocation

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 14/04/2026

Federal rules keep the lights on today. No federal authority ensures enough capacity to keep them on tomorrow. My new Amped Up post explains why resource adequacy has become a central gap in US electricity policy, and why the current patchwork can’t hold. #Energy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Why Resource Adequacy Is the Gap in Federal Reliability Policy

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

The Federal Power Act was written for a grid that no longer exists. In my latest Amped Up newsletter, I describe a framework for amending it to establish federal resource adequacy standards for the first time #ElectricityGrid #ResourceAdequacy #FederalPowerAct open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Closing the Gap in the Federal Power Act

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Should I feel guilty about wanting permanent daylight saving time? I reviewed the evidence supporting the scientific consensus against it. It’s narrower than it appears in the public debate. #DaylightSavingTime #SciencePolicy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Should I Feel Guilty About Wanting More Evening Light?

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 02/03/2026

New on Amped Up: The U.S. charges zero royalties for hardrock mining on public lands. If we’re going to fix that, let’s design a system that also incentivizes domestic processing and strengthens the supply chain. #CriticalMinerals #Mining #SupplyChain #EnergyPolicy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

If We're Going to Mine, Let's Make It Count

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 15/02/2026

The endangerment finding was always a workaround. Its rescission underscores the need to amend the Clean Air Act to include greenhouse gases as regulated pollutants. My latest Amped Up post explores what that could look like. #climate #endangermentfinding open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

It’s Time to Amend the Clean Air Act

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Congress has introduced several critical minerals bills, but nearly all focus on mining and international supply. What's missing? Recycling infrastructure, producer responsibility, and design standards. Read more in my recent essay. #energy #climate #ciruclareconomy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Mining Isn't Enough: The Other Half of Critical Materials Strategy

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

The ‘Affordable HOMES Act’ eliminates standards that would save low-income families $177-$475/year in energy costs. Who benefits from making housing less efficient? Not the people who need help most. #EnergyEfficiency #HousingPolicy #EnergyPoverty#ClimateEquity open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Energy Efficiency for Whom?

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

The House will hold a vote on the SPEED Act this week. Read my review of the bill and why it is not a good-faith approach to permitting reform. #EnergyPolicy #PermittingReform #NEPA open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The SPEED Act Gets Faster: What Changed in the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 17/12/2025

There’s a myth that fossil fuels run 24/7/365. Reality: They’re vulnerable to extreme weather, while battery and renewable systems become cheaper and more reliable. Policies that prop up fossil fuels based on this myth hurt consumers. #EnergySky #EnergyPolicy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Myth of 24/7/365 Fossil Fuel Reliability

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 02/12/2025

We forgot the smog and burning rivers because our laws worked. But they weren’t written for climate change. Time to modernize for the crisis ahead. #environmentalpolicy #climatepolicy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Environmental Amnesia Mustn’t Stop Progress: Modernizing Our Laws for Climate Action

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

Rep. Westerman released changes to the SPEED Act. The new version would still establish a framework designed to expedite projects regardless of environmental consequences. There are better ways to reform the permitting process. #energypermitting #energypolicy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The SPEED Act Gets Faster: What Changed in the Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 17/11/2025

We need more effective planning processes to ensure grid reliability. @fernandez.house.gov introduced the Integrated Resource Planning Modernization Act, which I helped draft during my AAAS Fellowship. #electricity #reliability #IRP #gridplanning open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Congress Takes Aim at Outdated Grid Planning: The IRP Modernization Act

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

The 1.5°C target is dead. That makes carbon removal MORE urgent, not less. Climate advocates have rallied for clean energy but stayed silent as Trump canceled CDR projects. Democrats must embrace all climate solutions the climate crisis demands. #Climate #COP30 open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The 1.5°C Dream Is Over. The Case for Carbon Removal Grows Stronger.

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 01/11/2025

I thought we’d moved past corn ethanol. Science has evolved more than I realized. New post on the messy climate debate around biofuels, and why our focus still needs to be EVs. #ClimatePolicy #Biofuels #Agriculture #ClimateChange #Sustainability #EnergyPolicy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Ethanol Question I Wasn’t Expecting

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Reposted by Paulina Jaramillo

Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

Your electricity bill is up, and data centers are a big reason why. However, the question of who should pay for the AI boom’s massive power appetite exposes deep cracks in America’s fragmented electricity governance. #EnergySky #ElectricityPolicy #DataCenters open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Data Centers Are Driving Up Your Bill. The Real Problem Runs Deeper.

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 14/10/2025

open.substack.com

Data Centers Are Driving Up Your Bill. The Real Problem Runs Deeper.

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 05/10/2025

Data centers could consume 12% of U.S. electricity by 2028. Paradox: they could also stabilize the grid they’re straining. Will they? Probably not in time. #EnergySky open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Can Data Centers Help the Grid They’re Straining?

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 28/09/2025

The federal retreat on hydrogen is frustrating, but it must not be the end of the story. States acting decisively now could position themselves as leaders in the hydrogen economy climate science tells us we desperately need. #hydrogen #climate #energypolicy open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Hydrogen Crisis: How Political Winds Are Stalling Our Energy Future

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

We just submitted comments to EPA on their proposed rescission of the greenhouse gas endangerment finding. The science is clear: GHGs are air pollutants that harm public health through multiple pathways. Policy should follow evidence, not ideology. #Climate #CleanAirAct #EPA

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

I have concluded that Democrats should not shut down the government. Why get in the way of letting the system collapse under the GOP's hands? Voting has consequences. Let the country feel them. I am sad that so many will suffer, but I don’t see another way to escape this chaos.

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Reposted by Paulina Jaramillo

Lindsey Cormack @dcinbox.bsky.social · 15/09/2025

Use of the word "evil" in official congressional e-newsletters, over time, by party

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 16/09/2025

Data centers could increase US electricity costs by 8% and emissions by 30% by 2030. These trends create fundamental challenges for grid planning. Solutions exist, but policymakers must act now. Read more at Amped Up! #Energy #DataCenters #Climate open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Digital Infrastructure Boom is Driving Up Everyone’s Electric Bill

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 11/09/2025

The Environmental Protection Agency is attacking science and threatening to reverse a foundational climate protection. Join scientists and experts in speaking out in defense of science, public health, and climate science. act.ucsusa.org/4okjCyf

act.ucsusa.org

Scientists & Experts: Stop the EPA's Attack on Climate Science & Public Health

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

New Post. Republicans can’t have their cake and eat it too. open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Great Republican Energy Contradiction

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 10/09/2025

Americans could learn some things from the French.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

Republicans are against considering race in college admission reviews, but get excited about considering race in immigration enforcement.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

House witnesses this week will claim energy efficiency standards hurt consumers. But research shows the opposite: these policies help families achieve lower bills, healthier homes, and energy security while boosting US clean energy leadership. Read more in Amped Up! open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Beyond the Industry Talking Points: The Real Case for Efficiency Standards

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 05/09/2025

Two actually good permitting bills heading to House committee: ePermit Act (digital tools + coordination) and NEPA Data Act (empirical analysis of review timelines). Bipartisan, evidence-based, working within existing frameworks. New post: open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Two Promising Bills Signal Some Progress on Permitting Reform

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

Republicans are trying to innovate America back to the 19th century. Republicans would gut environmental reviews and expand coal mining while black lung disease resurges. It’s a stunning failure of imagination from the party that claims to champion innovation. open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Return to Coal: How Republicans Are Dismantling Environmental Progress

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 02/09/2025

The DOE published a climate report that abandons science for ideology. My CMU colleagues and I called it out in our public comments: it’s not serious research, it’s a document designed to serve those who profit from climate inaction. Read our comments on Amped Up. open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Fighting Back Against Federal Climate Misinformation

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 27/08/2025

“Thoughts and prayers” don’t seem to be working.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 25/08/2025

America’s property insurance crisis could make 2008 look small. Insurers fleeing entire states, premiums tripling, millions of homes becoming uninsurable. $1.47T in property losses projected by 2055. The hardest truth: managed retreat is inevitable. New post: open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

America’s Property Insurance Crisis: An Economic Catastrophe in the Making

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 23/08/2025

If you haven’t done so yet, check out my new Substack Newsletter: Amped Up - Energy Policy Talk. I have already published a few essays about permitting reform and grid planning. I will soon write about capacity markets, data centers, and hydrogen. Subscribe now! paulinajllo.substack.com

paulinajllo.substack.com

Amped Up: Energy Policy Talk | Substack

My personal Substack. Click to read Amped Up: Energy Policy Talk, a Substack publication. Launched 16 days ago.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 22/08/2025

🔌💡 The lights come on when you flip the switch, but we may not be ready for what’s coming. NERC warns of electricity shortages ahead while we’re juggling exploding demand, renewables, and climate change with broken governance. Why our planning is failing: open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Great Electricity Planning Challenge: A Story of Change and Uncertainty

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 17/08/2025

Final post in my permitting series! A Path Forward: One Way to Fix America’s Overburdened Permitting System. From consolidating agency authority to cutting paperwork bloat, here’s what sensible reform could look like. Too bad we have a dysfunctional Congress. open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

A Path Forward: How to Fix America’s Broken Permitting System

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 12/08/2025

New post: Congress rejected bipartisan permitting reform in 2024 that would have helped clean energy. Now we are facing the SPEED Act, legislation that would gut environmental review entirely. Sometimes imperfect compromise beats purity. 🔌💡 open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

The Road Not Taken: Did Democrats Miss Their Chance on Permitting Reform?

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 09/08/2025

Program managers indeed make the final award decisions based on recommendations from the review panels. However, program managers are typically career scientists and not political appointees.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 09/08/2025

Senior appointees are political appointees: “Senior appointees and their designees shall not ministerially ratify or routinely defer to the recommendations of others in reviewing funding opportunity announcements or discretionary awards, but shall instead use their independent judgment.”

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 09/08/2025

Peer review is mentioned. The EO says explicitly that agency leads are not required to follow the recommendations from review panels when making award decisions. The order gives final granting authority to political appointees. Here is a helpful summary: arstechnica.com/science/2025...

arstechnica.com

New executive order puts all grants under political control

All new funding on hold until Trump administration can cancel any previously funded grants.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

Here is my first essay on Permitting Reform. I am still struggling with this subject and will expand my thoughts in future posts. open.substack.com/pub/paulinaj...

open.substack.com

Why Do We Need Permitting Reform? (And Are We Asking the Right Questions?)

Paulina Jaramillo, Ph.D.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

I used to know someone who thought cars are utterly unnecessary and we don’t need home refrigerators because we should eat fresh food every day. I used to call it “developed world privilege syndrome.” Fortunately, its sufferers will soon be healed as these luxuries become unavailable in the US. 🤦‍♀️

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

Oh, and awards should go to institutions with the lowest indirect cost rates. Basically, we are in a race to the bottom in research. I am starting to question the point of staying here, working in a university, and trying to do research.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

It also establishes that grantees conform to Trump’s politics on gender, immigration, and the country’s exceptionalism. It specifically calls for grants to “be given to a broad range of recipients rather than to a select group of repeat players.”

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

🧵I have been operating under the assumption that I will not be able to get federal funding for the next 3.5 years. This EO just confirms my assumption. The order effectively removes scientific review from the grantmaking process.

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Paulina Jaramillo @paulijllo.bsky.social · 07/08/2025

I did not know you had to be brave to say that AC is good. Seriously, who is arguing against AC? Maybe they should spend some time in poor tropical countries without AC. Or they could spend time at my kids’ HS in June. The building doesn’t have AC, and my kids get home with headaches and are tired.

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