CHICAGO – Attorney General Kwame Raoul joined a coalition of 12 attorneys general in filing an amicus brief in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit supporting the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in defending its “Building for the Future Through Electric Regional Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation” order.
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The order requires electric transmission providers to engage in long-term planning for regional transmission facilities and consider evolving demands and sources when proposing how to pay for those facilities. In their amicus brief, filed in Appalachian Voices v. FERC, Raoul and the coalition explain that the order’s sensible long-term planning requirements will help support the development of the transmission infrastructure needed, improve the grid’s reliability, incorporate state engagement and reduce future costs to consumers.
“Long-term transmission planning is necessary to ensure electricity is not only reliable, but affordable for Illinois consumers,” Raoul said. “I will continue to work with my fellow attorneys general to protect common sense policy like FERC’s transmission planning and cost allocation order.”
FERC approved the order in May 2024 after it properly identified deficiencies with the past model of transmission planning, which included concerns about grid reliability, affordability, and growing electricity needs.
Raoul and the attorneys general state the order’s transmission-planning reforms will generate several significant affordability and reliability benefits for consumers. For example, the order requires transmission providers to undertake long-term regional planning and then regularly update those plans. It also requires providers to incorporate economic and reliability benefits when choosing new transmission infrastructure projects, consider electrical grid-enhancing technologies, and improve state and interregional cooperation.
In the brief, Raoul and the coalition explain that the order will:
- Accelerate upgrades for new, less expensive renewable projects and provide a critical foundation for realizing the greenhouse gas emission reduction benefits from various state and local climate and energy initiatives adopted by the coalition.
- Spur the replacement of aging facilities and infrastructure that otherwise would have been avoided or deferred. This will improve affordability and reliability of the power sector, which too often relies on narrow decision-making that develops local power lines in an inefficient fashion.
- Include several mechanisms specifically designed to reduce consumer costs. Doing so requires providers to incorporate economic benefits into the planning for new facilities, and it also provides a mechanism to reevaluate approved transmission projects to prevent or minimize cost overruns.
- Respect the important role played by states in developing and sighting new power sources.
Joining Raoul in sending this letter are attorneys general of California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington.
