[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 603 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 603
To direct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to improve
interregional electricity transfer capability between immediately
adjacent transmission planning regions, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 22, 2025
Mr. Casten introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Energy and Commerce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To direct the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to improve
interregional electricity transfer capability between immediately
adjacent transmission planning regions, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Reinforcing the Grid Against Extreme
Weather Act of 2025''.
SEC. 2. IMPROVING INTERREGIONAL ELECTRICITY TRANSFER CAPABILITY.
Part II of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 824 et seq.) is amended
by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 224. IMPROVING INTERREGIONAL ELECTRICITY TRANSFER CAPABILITY.
``(a) Rulemaking.--Not later than 24 months after the date of
enactment of this section, the Commission shall issue regulations to
establish a process for--
``(1) calculating existing transfer capability between each
transmission planning region and its immediately adjacent
transmission planning region, such that--
``(A) each transmission planning entity for a given
transmission planning region and the transmission
planning entities for any immediately adjacent
transmission planning region shall use the same method
to calculate the transfer capability between them; and
``(B) each shared method of calculation shall
comply with requirements established by the Commission;
``(2) determining a minimum transfer capability between
each transmission planning region and its immediately adjacent
transmission planning region in order to--
``(A) ensure that each transmission planning region
has sufficient electric transfer capability with
immediately adjacent transmission planning regions to
ensure reliability during impacts associated with
weather events, physical events, or cyberattacks to the
transmission planning region; and
``(B) optimize achievement of the transmission
benefits;
``(3) identifying, selecting, and allocating costs for
individual interregional transmission projects needed to
achieve each minimum transfer capability identified pursuant to
paragraph (2); and
``(4) preventing the disclosure of information pertaining
to cyberattacks that may compromise the security of the
electricity system.
``(b) Filing a Plan.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 3 years after the date of
enactment of this section, and at least every 5 years
thereafter, the transmission planning entities for each pair of
immediately adjacent transmission planning regions shall file
with the Commission, and receive approval for, a plan that, in
accordance with the regulations issued under subsection (a)--
``(A) evaluates and selects interregional
transmission projects based on consideration of the
transmission benefits; and
``(B) achieves minimum interregional transfer
capability.
``(2) Duty of commission.--The Commission shall approve or
deny a plan filed pursuant to paragraph (1) in consideration of
the factors described in subsection (a)(2).
``(c) Report.--Not later than 48 months after the date on which the
regulations are issued pursuant to subsection (a), and annually
thereafter, the Commission shall publish in the Federal Register a
report on the results of implementing this section.
``(d) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Greenhouse gas.--The term `greenhouse gas' includes
each of the following:
``(A) Carbon dioxide.
``(B) Methane.
``(C) Nitrous oxide.
``(D) Sulfur hexafluoride.
``(E) Any hydrofluorocarbon.
``(F) Any perfluorocarbon.
``(G) Nitrogen trifluoride.
``(H) Any fully fluorinated linear, branched, or
cyclic--
``(i) alkane;
``(ii) ether;
``(iii) tertiary amine; or
``(iv) amino ether.
``(I) Any perfluoropolyether.
``(J) Any hydrofluoropolyether.
``(K) Any other fluorocarbon, except for a
fluorocarbon with a vapor pressure of less than 1 mm of
Hg absolute at 25 degrees Celsius.
``(2) Transmission benefit.--The term `transmission
benefit' means a broad range of economic, operational, safety,
security, resilience, public policy, environmental, and other
reasonably anticipated benefit of constructing, modifying, or
operating a transmission facility, including any benefit
realized when real-time energy prices and operational
conditions differ from those anticipated in the 48-hour ahead
or day-ahead time frame. Such benefits include--
``(A) improved reliability;
``(B) improved resilience;
``(C) improved safety;
``(D) reduced congestion;
``(E) reduced power losses;
``(F) greater carrying capacity;
``(G) reduced operating reserve requirements;
``(H) improved access to lower-cost electricity
generation;
``(I) improved access to electricity generating
facilities with no direct emissions of greenhouse
gases;
``(J) improved public health from the closure of
electricity generation facilities that emit harmful
pollution;
``(K) increased competition and market liquidity in
electricity markets;
``(L) improved energy resilience and reliability of
Department of Defense installations;
``(M) optimizing use of existing transmission
assets, including any existing rights of way;
``(N) other transmission costs avoided by the
proposed transmission solution; and
``(O) other potential benefits of increasing the
interconnectedness of the electric grid.
``(3) Transmission planning entity.--The term `transmission
planning entity' means an entity responsible for planning for
the deployment of electric transmission for a given
transmission planning region.
``(4) Transmission planning region.--The term `transmission
planning region' means a geographic area that the Commission
finds sufficient to satisfy its requirements for the scope of
regional transmission planning, as established in or in
compliance with the following orders issued by the Commission:
``(A) `Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation by
Transmission Owning and Operating Public Utilities'
published in the Federal Register on October 12, 2012
(77 Fed. Reg. 64890); and
``(B) `Building for the Future Through Electric
Regional Transmission Planning and Cost Allocation'
published in the Federal Register on October 24, 2012
(77 Fed. Reg. 64890).''.
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