Energy Prices Are Now an Affordability Issue. What Is DC Doing About It?

This is an election about affordability, and energy prices are playing a pivotal role on the campaign trail. Energy policy in DC has been a climate debate, a jobs debate, a national security debate, and now it’s squarely an affordability debate.

What’s changed? Cheap, predictable power was a big part of energy flying below the radar over the last decade. Ample natural gas, expanded renewable energy, and efficiency gains paired with permitting hurdles meant that utilities weren’t rushing to build new generation. That changed rapidly over the last few years with data centers, domestic manufacturing, and electrification leading to higher electricity demand.

Congress and the administration are reacting, although not fast enough for voters. Here are a few ways that DC is trying to address energy prices as an affordability crisis.

Data centers paying their fair share. Tech companies signed President Trump’s Ratepayer Protection Pledge to pay for all new electricity to power data centers. The House passed a bill to codify this pledge, which the Senate was unable to pass in the final week of session this month. While many sectors are stressing the grid, AI data centers have taken the bulk of the pushback, with over 150 bills related to data center energy use introduced this Congress.

Permitting reform bill introduced. Key Senate leaders introduced their highly anticipated Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act. This comprehensive bill makes changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), Clean Water Act (CWA), Endangered Species Act (ESA), and National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) to encourage more energy development.

FERC is considering big changes. The agency overseeing interstate energy connection is considering action on interconnection and large-load rules. The commission is weighing how big new customers connect to the transmission system and how the cost of that connection gets allocated.

Voter concerns around energy prices aren’t going away anytime soon. This is an opportunity for elected officials and stakeholders to think through out-of-the-box solutions to keep energy affordable while still fueling economic development. Between permitting reform, potentially big regulatory changes, and sector-specific constraints, there are a lot of opportunities to engage and think through additional creative solutions going into the 120^th Congress.