119-hr3616

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3616 Reported in House

    (RH) ]

<DOC>

 Union Calendar No. 256
119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 3616

 [Report No. 119-302]

 To require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to review 
 regulations that may affect the reliable operation of the bulk-power 
 system.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 May 29, 2025

 Mr. Balderson (for himself, Mr. Weber of Texas, and Ms. Fedorchak) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
 Energy and Commerce

 September 17, 2025

 Additional sponsors: Mr. Carter of Georgia, Mrs. Miller of West 
 Virginia, Mrs. Harshbarger, Mr. Allen, Mr. Joyce of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
 Downing, Mr. Rulli, Mr. Langworthy, Mr. Bilirakis, Mr. Bresnahan, Mr. 
 Griffith, Mr. Moore of North Carolina, Mr. Hudson, Mr. Meuser, Mrs. 
 Miller-Meeks, Mr. Mann, Mr. McDowell, and Mr. Onder

 September 17, 2025

 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
 House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
 in italic]
[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on May 29, 
 2025]

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to review 
 regulations that may affect the reliable operation of the bulk-power 
 system.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Reliable Power Act''.

SEC. 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 electric 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 
 electric 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 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.''.
 Union Calendar No. 256

119th CONGRESS

 1st Session

 H. R. 3616

 [Report No. 119-302]

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

 To require the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to review 
 regulations that may affect the reliable operation of the bulk-power 
 system.

_______________________________________________________________________

 September 17, 2025

 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole 
 House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed