Grid Reliability Requires Permitting Reform – Publications
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The National Taxpayers Union submitted a letter to the Subcommittee on Energy advocating for energy grid resilience, reliability, and affordability, with a focus on permitting reforms. The letter highlighted the importance of baseload power, provided by sources like nuclear, coal, hydropower, and gas-fired plants, as demonstrated during Winter Storm Fern when 80% of U.S. electricity was generated from fossil fuels. The NTU is urging the Subcommittee to reform federal and state permitting processes to meet growing energy demands, emphasizing that reform does not mean weakening environmental protections but making the process more efficient, predictable, and transparent while maintaining environmental standards.
National Taxpayers Union Calls for Permitting Reforms to Strengthen Electric Grid
Amid growing concerns about the resilience and reliability of the US electric grid, National Taxpayers Union (NTU), the country’s oldest taxpayer advocacy organization, has proposed permitting reforms as a key step to fortify the grid. The call came ahead of the Subcommittee on Energy’s meeting, “Winter Storm Fern Lessons: Supplying Reliable Power to Meet Peak Demand.”
NTU’s viewpoint was shared by its Vice President of Federal Affairs, Thomas Aiello, in a letter to the Subcommittee’s Chairman, Bob Latta, and the Ranking Member, Kathy Castor. The organization emphasizes the importance of baseload power, which supplies constant, reliable electricity irrespective of weather, time, or seasonal fluctuations.
Baseload power, traditionally supplied by nuclear, coal, hydropower, and gas-fired plants, is crucial in ensuring uninterrupted power supply that keeps hospitals, factories, homes, and small businesses running even during periods of high demand and extreme weather.
Winter Storm Fern Case Study
A recent example of the critical role of baseload power was seen during Winter Storm Fern when approximately 80% of the US electricity generation came from fossil fuels. Despite severe weather conditions that disrupted local systems and caused damage to the transmission infrastructure, the grid remained resilient. As pointed out by the Energy Information Administration, “Grid operators can call upon the coal fleet to increase electricity generation in extreme weather events and other times when demand surges or output falls from other generation sources.”
The NTU argues that over-reliance on any single source of energy, including renewable sources, could compromise the reliability and stability of the grid. It also pointed out the irony of New England, despite having some of the most aggressive anti-fossil fuel policies, generating more power from wood burning than solar and wind combined during the said storm.
Grid Challenges Intensifying
As the US experiences its fastest electricity demand growth since the early 2000s, the challenges to grid reliability are expected to escalate. Total demand is projected to increase by about 25% by 2030 and as much as 78% by 2050. This growth, fuelled by artificial intelligence, data centers, advanced manufacturing, and electrification, requires dependable, scalable energy supplies that intermittent resources alone cannot consistently provide.
Calling for Permitting Reforms
In this context, NTU highlights the need for permitting reforms to expand baseload capacity. These reforms are essential to ensure that transmission lines, pipelines, and power generation facilities can be built in line with accelerating energy needs. This, NTU argues, offers a more durable and cost-effective solution than reliance on subsidies directed towards selected technologies, as seen in the Inflation Reduction Act.
However, permitting reform does not mean diluting environmental safeguards. It implies a more efficient, predictable, and transparent process that maintains rigorous environmental standards, whereas the present system results in fewer completed projects, higher consumer costs, and missed opportunities to bolster US energy security and economic competitiveness.
NTU cites the example of how the environmental impact statement (EIS) for significant infrastructure projects can take over two years on average, and often longer, as illustrated by the Dakota Access Pipeline case. Comprehensive reform would set clear deadlines for environmental reviews, improve coordination among federal agencies, limit duplicate analyses, and more.
Embracing permitting reforms like those proposed in the House’s SPEED Act, NTU believes, could help the American energy sector meet the rising electricity demand and bolster resilience against sudden extreme weather events. The organization urges bipartisan collaboration for advancing comprehensive permitting reform during this Congress.
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