Click on the image to take action in favor of HB 1802.
Maryland legislators have passed a bill that requires utilities to disclose their votes at PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest power grid operator. The same legislation has passed the Delaware Senate unanimously and is currently active in three other states–and CUB hopes to pass similar legislation in Illinois.
For years CUB has been spreading the word that our electric bills are affected not just by the local utility, like ComEd, but also by power grid operators, like PJM.
As a Regional Transmission Organization (RTO), PJM coordinates the movement of electricity over large transmission lines and creates the markets in which electric wholesale prices are set for 65 million people from the Midwest to the East Coast. That includes ComEd customers in northern Illinois.
PJM is dominated by generators, transmission companies and electric utilities (like ComEd) that vote on power grid policies that have a huge impact on how reliable, clean and affordable our electricity is. But, amazingly, many of those votes are secret. That’s why consumer advocates across the PJM region are pushing transparency legislation. In Illinois, CUB supports House Bill 1802.
The legislation would require Illinois utilities like ComEd to submit a report to state regulators revealing the votes they cast at grid operator meetings. They also would have to explain how those votes are in the public interest. This is about healthy democracy and holding utilities and grid operators accountable: Please take Action.
This legislation would cover Ameren Illinois and MidAmerican Energy also. Those utilities are part of another power-grid operator called MISO, or the Midcontinent Independent System Operator. Unlike PJM, MISO considers all votes to be a matter of public record, except for the selection or removal of committee chairs and vice chairs. However, it is difficult to track down the voting information, so this bill improves access to information in MISO as well. (You shouldn’t have to be an expert to find voting data.)
This idea is gaining traction. Last year, several states, including Illinois, attempted to pass similar legislation and failed. This year, at least eight states pushed it (Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia). In a sign of progress, the measure passed the Delaware Senate, and it’s about to become law in Maryland: HB 121, the Utility Transparency and Accountability Act. sponsored by Del. Lorig Charkoudian.
“When utilities vote at regional transmission organizations, they have impacts on our clean energy transition and the cost of electricity,” said Rep. Joyce Mason, the chief sponsor of the Illinois bill, said when the idea was first proposed in Illinois last year. “My bill introduces better transparency for how utilities vote in our electric markets, which is part of a healthy democracy. As a legislator, my votes are public – it should be the same for utilities whose votes impact the affordability and cleanliness of our electricity. ”
To learn more about our special project to hold PJM accountable, visit our Consumers for a Better Grid website. Also, watch our video and our PJM 101 presentation.
