Bipartisan Senate permitting bill bolsters FERC transmission siting authority, requires interregional planning

“Bipartisan permitting and transmission reform is a welcome development to keep energy costs down and supplies reliable,” Devin Hartman, director of energy and environmental policy at the R Street Institute, said in an email Tuesday. Moving the legislation will be “challenging” this year, and the best odds of action may be during the “lame duck” session after the election, Hartman said.

If the bill doesn’t pass this year, it moves permitting and transmission reform up the agenda for the next Congress, Hartman said, pointing to buy-in from the previous Congress that made last year’s permitting reform possible.

“As grid reliability authorities continue to reveal the merits of transmission expansion, I would expect momentum for interregional transmission reform to build as well,” Hartman said.