Contact: Regina Davis, 202-898-9382, rdavis@naruc.org

WASHINGTON (September 30, 2021) — The National Regulatory Research Institute examines a host of benefits that will likely result from state participation in the new Joint Federal-State Task Force on Electric Transmission in its latest Insights offering.

In “A New State-Federal Cooperation Agenda for Regional and Interregional Transmission,” Commissioner John C. Gavan, of the Colorado Public Utilities Commission, and Americans for a Clean Energy Grid Executive Director Rob Gramlich outline the benefits of state participation in transmission planning efforts at all levels throughout the process. The authors note that in recent decades, states, utilities, corporations, and the federal government have set increasingly ambitious renewable energy procurement and decarbonization goals. States have been leading the way in recent years with significant clean energy requirements and are uniquely positioned to help lead a transparent, coordinated process to achieve these goals.

“This paper brings ideas from the state and federal perspective to help inform transmission policy, which is a central focus of policy makers today,” said Carl Pechman, PhD, director of NRRI.

Issues such as resource choices, transmission siting, and cost allocation agreements are areas where states can leverage their leadership to avoid planning missteps and constructively engage the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission as it implements transmission plans and makes final cost allocation decisions. The Task Force is a “critical first step” to create policies consistent with the goals of achieving a resilient, low-carbon grid.

To read this Insights article, visit bit.ly/3A2gKvK.

Also see https://pubs.naruc.org/pub/FF5D0E68-1866-DAAC-99FB-A31B360DC685.

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About NRRI

The National Regulatory Research Institute (NRRI) was founded in 1976 by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). NRRI serves as a research arm to NARUC and its members, the utility regulatory commissions of the fifty states and the District of Columbia in the United States. NRRI’s primary mission is to produce and disseminate relevant and applicable research for NARUC members.