House lawmakers call for additional funding for transmission infrastructure

A coalition of 28 members of the U.S. House of Representatives recently urged the leaders of the House Energy and Water Appropriations Subcommittee to allocate additional funding for investments in transmission and grid infrastructure in the upcoming budget.

“The expansion and modernization of our national power grid is central to meeting our urgent climate and energy security goals. Through the recently enacted Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), the federal government invested $2.5 billion in direct spending for new transmission projects. However, studies demonstrate that deep decarbonization of our economy will require between $200 or $300 billion in investments for new interregional transmission to meet our climate goals,” the lawmakers wrote to Subcommittee Chair Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) and Ranking Member Mike Simpson (R-ID).

Specifically, the Congress members are calling for an additional $600 million in funding for the deployment of technologies to enhance grid flexibility, funding for Title XVII loan guarantees, and $100 million for funding a high voltage direct current (HVDC) moonshot initiative to support R&D.

“The expansion and modernization of our national power grid is central to meeting our urgent climate and energy security goals,” U.S. Rep. Scott Peters (D-CA), one of the 28 who signed the letter.

In addition, they seek funding for national studies on the benefits of establishing an energy conservation standard for overhead electricity conductors.

“Increased investment in transmission and grid infrastructure upgrades is essential to achieve a net zero economy. I thank the Subcommittee for its leadership in growing these important programs and urge the Subcommittee to provide more sustained funding to ensure we can deliver cleaner, cheaper energy to all Americans,” U.S. Rep. Sean Casten (D-IL) said.