Reliable Power Act
Officially: “Reliable Power Act” Read the full text
What it does
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1Short title
This section would let people refer to this Act as the Reliable Power Act.
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1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Reliable Power Act .
2Commission review and comment for covered agency actions
This section would amend Section 215 of the Federal Power Act. It would restructure the Electric Reliability Organization's (ERO) existing duty to conduct periodic reliability assessments by labeling that existing duty as paragraph (1), In general, and then add new requirements after it. The ERO's assessments would have to include an annual long-term assessment that analyzes whether the bulk-power system can supply enough electric energy to maintain an adequate level of reliability, taking into account the generation resource mix, transmission development, and energy demand trends; analyzes the risk of future electric energy supply shortfalls under both normal and extreme weather conditions, including the risk within each region of the bulk-power system; and determines whether additional generation resources are needed to maintain adequate reliability during the assessment period. If, in conducting that long-term assessment, the ERO finds that the bulk-power system is at risk of not having adequate generation resources to maintain an adequate level of reliability, the ERO would have to publicly notify the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (the Commission) that the bulk-power system is in a state of generation inadequacy. To conduct the long-term assessment, the ERO could collect information and data from users, owners, and operators of the bulk-power system. This section would also renumber the Federal Power Act's existing subsections (h) through (k) as (i) through (l), and would insert a new subsection (h) setting up a Commission review process for certain federal agency actions. If the ERO notifies the Commission that the bulk-power system is in a state of generation inadequacy, the Commission would have to promptly notify the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and any other federal agency the Commission determines appropriate. Once a federal agency receives that notice, the head of that agency would have to provide to the Commission, for review and comment, any covered agency action by that agency, either on the first date the action is provided to the Office of Management and Budget or any other federal agency for review and comment, or, if it is never provided for that kind of review, not later than 90 days before the date the action is published in the Federal Register or otherwise made available for public inspection or comment. The Commission, in consultation with the ERO, regional entities, and transmission organizations, would then issue an order to the agency head providing comments on the covered agency action, which could include an assessment of the action's effect on rates, terms, and conditions for services under the Commission's existing authority under sections 201 and 206 of the Federal Power Act, and, if applicable, recommendations for changes to the action to prevent a significant negative impact on the bulk-power system's ability to supply enough electric energy to maintain an adequate level of reliability. The head of the federal agency could not finalize a covered agency action that was provided to the Commission until the agency head responds in writing to the Commission explaining how the agency head modified the action, or why the agency head decided not to modify it, in response to the Commission's comments and recommendations, and until the Commission finds that the covered agency action is not likely to have a significant negative impact on the bulk-power system's ability to supply enough electric energy to maintain an adequate level of reliability. The agency head would have to make any comments, recommendations, and responses about the covered agency action public whenever the agency submits the action to the Federal Register for publication or otherwise makes it available for public inspection or comment. For this new subsection, a covered agency action would mean a regulation that both relates to, or otherwise directly affects, a generation resource in the bulk-power system, and is still under development to be proposed, or is otherwise under consideration in a rulemaking, and has not yet been finalized on the date the federal agency receives the Commission's notice. A federal agency for this purpose would mean an Executive department, as defined in section 101 of title 5 of the United States Code, or any other Executive agency that is in the President's cabinet.
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2. Commission review and comment for covered agency actions Section 215 of the Federal Power Act ( 16 U.S.C. 824o ) is amended— (1) in subsection (g)— (A) by striking The ERO and inserting the following: (1) In general The ERO ; and (B) by adding at the end the following: (2) Annual long-term assessment The assessments under paragraph (1) shall include an annual long-term assessment, which shall include— (A) an analysis of the ability of the bulk-power system to supply sufficient electric energy necessary to maintain an adequate level of reliability, taking into account generation resource mix, transmission development, and energy demand trends; (B) an analysis of the risk of future electric energy supply shortfalls under normal and extreme weather conditions, and the risk of any such shortfalls within each region of the bulk-power system; and (C) a determination of whether additional generation resources are necessary to supply sufficient energy to maintain an adequate level of reliability during the assessment period. (3) Notice of generation inadequacy In conducting a long-term assessment under paragraph (2), if the ERO finds that the bulk-power system is at risk of not having adequate generation resources to supply sufficient electric energy to maintain an adequate level of reliability, the ERO shall publicly notify the Commission that the bulk-power system is in a state of generation inadequacy. (4) Data collection To conduct a long-term assessment under paragraph (2), the ERO may collect information and data from users, owners, and operators of the bulk-power system. ; (2) by redesignating subsections (h) through (k) as subsections (i) through (l), respectively; and (3) by inserting after subsection (g) the following: (h) Commission review and comment for covered agency actions (1) Notice to federal agencies If the ERO notifies the Commission under subsection (g)(3) that the bulk-power system is in a state of generation inadequacy, the Commission shall promptly notify the Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, and any other Federal agency the Commission determines appropriate of such state of generation inadequacy. (2) Submission Upon receiving notice under paragraph (1), the head of each Federal agency that received such notice shall provide to the Commission for review and comment any covered agency action by the Federal agency— (A) on the first date on which such covered agency action is provided to the Office of Management and Budget or any other Federal agency for review and comment; or (B) if such covered agency action is not provided to the Office of Management and Budget or any other Federal agency for review and comment, not later than 90 days before the date on which the covered agency action is published in the Federal Register or is otherwise made available for public inspection or comment. (3) Commission comments The Commission, in consultation with the ERO, regional entities, and transmission organizations shall, by order, provide to the agency head that provided to the Commission a covered agency action under paragraph (2)— (A) comments on such covered agency action, which such comments may include an assessment of the effect of the covered agency action on rates, terms, and conditions for services pursuant to the authority of the Commission under sections 201 and 206; and (B) if applicable, recommendations for modifications to the covered agency action to prevent a significant negative impact on the ability of the bulk-power system to supply sufficient electric energy necessary to maintain an adequate level of reliability. (4) Agency response The head of a Federal agency may not finalize a covered agency action that is provided to the Commission under paragraph (2) until— (A) the agency head responds in writing to the Commission with an explanation of how the agency head modified, or why the agency head determined not to modify, such covered agency action in response to any comments and recommendations provided by the Commission under paragraph (3); and (B) the Commission finds that the covered agency action will not be likely to have a significant negative impact on the ability of the bulk-power system to supply sufficient electric energy necessary to maintain an adequate level of reliability. (5) Public availability of comments and responses An agency head shall include any comments, recommendations, and responses for the covered agency action when— (A) submitting the covered agency action to the Federal Register for publication; or (B) otherwise making the covered agency action available for public inspection or comment. (6) Definitions In this subsection: (A) Covered agency action The term covered agency action means a regulation that— (i) relates to, or otherwise directly affects, any generation resource in the bulk-power system; and (ii) is under development to be proposed or otherwise under consideration in a rulemaking prior to finalization on the date on which the Federal agency receives notice from the Commission under paragraph (1). (B) Federal agency The term Federal agency means an Executive department (as that term is defined in section 101 of title 5, United States Code) or any other Executive agency that is in the President’s cabinet. .
Where it is
In the House.