Earlier this year, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the Commission) issued Order 1977 to address its limited backstop siting authority for electric transmission lines. On October 17, 2024, FERC issued Order 1977-A, adding a new requirement mandating that siting applicants seeking rights of way on Tribal lands must include their Tribal Engagement Plans within their project proposals.
Power & Pipes
FERC, CFTC, and State Energy Law Developments
The US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources has advanced the Energy Permitting Reform Act of 2024, a bipartisan energy bill that would facilitate permitting for energy infrastructure and mining projects.
The DC Circuit has affirmed FERC’s application of the “cost causation” principle to prevent a public utility (the Utility) from allocating costs for facilities to customers that did not benefit from the facilities. The Utility had asked the court to overturn FERC’s order preventing the Utility from recovering transmission costs from customers located near the facilities because those facilities were built and intended to serve solely a separate group of customers located 300 miles away.
FERC has issued its final rule paving the way for incentive-based rate treatment for electric utilities that make certain voluntary cybersecurity investments. As we first noted in 2020 when describing the proposed rule, the final rule provides a new mechanism for promoting cybersecurity of the bulk-power system by rewarding utilities for proactively enhancing their cybersecurity programs beyond the mandatory requirements of the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) Critical Infrastructure Protection (CIP) reliability standards.
There are no unimportant North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) reliability standards, but from time to time, NERC and the Regional Entities (Regions) place greater emphasis on certain reliability standards in response to events affecting the grid. With headline-grabbing physical attacks on power substations across the country in recent months, one of NERC’s greatest current priorities is evaluating the effectiveness of its physical security standards, most notably CIP-014.
More than a decade since issuing Order No. 1000, FERC is formally developing new rules for regional transmission planning and cost allocation after what FERC calls “mounting evidence” that existing planning processes are inadequate to meet transmission needs of the future. In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) issued on April 21, 2022, FERC proposed a series of reforms to build on its existing body of landmark transmission rulemaking.
More than a decade since issuing Order No. 1000, FERC is formally developing new rules for regional transmission planning and cost allocation after what FERC calls “mounting evidence” that existing planning processes are inadequate to meet transmission needs of the future. In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) issued on April 21, 2022, FERC proposed a series of reforms to build on its existing body of landmark transmission rulemaking.
More than a decade since issuing Order No. 1000, FERC is formally developing new rules for regional transmission planning and cost allocation after what FERC calls “mounting evidence” that existing planning processes are inadequate to meet transmission needs of the future. In a notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) issued on April 21, 2022, FERC proposed a series of reforms to build on its existing body of landmark transmission rulemaking.
To address changing system needs, FERC ordered each Regional Transmission Organization and Independent System Operator (collectively, RTO/ISO) to submit information to the Commission regarding changes to wholesale markets within 180 days.
FERC initiated show-cause proceedings on April 21, 2022, to investigate the justness and reasonableness of the formula rate protocols of five public utility transmission providers in the West.