Electric Power Transmission: Background and Policy Issues (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
April 14, 2009 |
| Report Number |
R40511 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Stan Mark Kaplan, Specialist in Energy and Environmental Policy |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
This report provides background information on electric power transmission and related policy issues. Proposals for changing federal transmission policy before the 111th Congress include S. 539, the Clean Renewable Energy and Economic Development Act, introduced on March 5, 2009; and the March 9, 2009, majority staff transmission siting draft of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The policy issues identified and discussed in this report include:
Federal Transmission Planning: several current proposals call for the federal government to sponsor and supervise large scale, on-going transmission planning programs. Issues for Congress to consider are the objectives of the planning process (e.g., a focus on supporting the development of renewable power or on a broader set of transmission goals), determining how much authority new interconnection-wide planning entities should be granted, the degree to which transmission planning needs to consider non-transmission solutions to power market needs, what resources the executive agencies will need to oversee the planning process, and whether the benefits for projects included in the transmission plans (e.g., a federal permitting option) will motivate developers to add unnecessary features and costs to qualify proposals for the plan.
Permitting of Transmission Lines: a contentious issue is whether the federal government should assume from the states the primary role in permitting new transmission lines. Related issues include whether Congress should view management and expansion of the grid as primarily a state or national issue, whether national authority over grid reliability (which Congress established in the Energy Policy Act of 2005) can be effectively exercised without federal authority over permitting, if it is important to accelerate the construction of new transmission lines (which is one of the assumed benefits of federal permitting), and whether the executive agencies are equipped to take on the task of permitting transmission lines.
Transmission Line Funding and Cost Allocation: the primary issues are whether the federal government should help pay for new transmission lines, and if Congress should establish a national standard for allocating the costs of interstate transmission lines to ratepayers.
Transmission Modernization and the Smart Grid: issues include the need for Congressional oversight of existing federal smart grid research, development, demonstration, and grant programs; and oversight over whether the smart grid is actually proving to be a good investment for taxpayers and ratepayers.
Transmission System Reliability: it is not clear whether Congress and the executive branch have the information needed to evaluate the reliability of the transmission system. Congress may also want to review whether the power industry is striking the right balance between modernization and new construction as a means of enhancing transmission reliability, and whether the reliability standards being developed for the transmission system are appropriate for a rapidly changing power system.
This report will be updated as warranted.
