Bud Brigham

The 2-minute electricity case for BAAJA If we look at the overall effects of BAAJA on electricity compared to the other options on the table, it is a major improvement—above all because it helps unleash electricity supply. Republican influencers are calling for changes to BAAJA on electricity that will kill it Most Republicans acknowledge that overall BAAJA (the Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act) by unleashing the freedom to build, will be great for America’s economy. But some Republican influencers are calling for House Republicans to challenge and change BAAJA—specifically its electricity transmission provisions—to help American electricity. Given the 20 days of floor-time remaining and many competing priorities, these calls for significant changes will almost certainly kill the bill. We need to compare BAAJA’s overall effects to the other options on the table The criticisms of BAAJA by Republican influencers tend to cherry-pick aspects of BAAJA that are imperfect, sometimes very imperfect. When we have a binary option—pass a freedom-to-build bill virtually as-is or not at all, we need to look at its overall effects compared to the (very bad) status quo. If we look at the overall effects of BAAJA on electricity, let alone our economy, it is a big improvement on the status quo. BAAJA unleashes cost-effective electricity, which is priority number 1 Strangling reliable electricity supply is by far the biggest problem we need to address. If we don’t, prices will skyrocket as demand rises from computing, electrification, and new industry. BAAJA unleashes supply across the board: power plants, pipelines, and power lines. BAAJA places real but incomplete limits on wasteful utility spending BAAJA includes multiple provisions designed to limit utilities’ ability to force ratepayers to pay for wasteful transmission infrastructure. BAAJA’s limits on ratepayer-financed transmission are on paper much better than the status quo, but not tightly defined enough to stop all wasteful lines. But today’s limits on wasteful spending are looser than BAAJA’s—enabling a lot of wasteful local trasmission—while strangling cost-effective transmission and electricity in general. For pro-reliability administrations, BAAJA will make our transmission situation much better—more cost-effective transmission and less wasteful spending. Given the options on the table, BAAJA is worth adopting on electricity grounds alone—and an absolute no-brainer given that it also unleashes development throughout the economy. Answering electricity objections to BAAJA Myth: BAAJA dramatically expands federal infringement on legitimate state authority over transmission. Truth: The federal government already has the (constitutionally valid) authority to overrule states on interstate transmission. BAAJA actually limits that authority by setting new, stricter standards for what lines it can be used to approve. Myth: BAAJA undermines state authority by letting FERC investigate local transmission spending—and this is unnecessary because states already oversee local utility projects. Truth: Utilities are getting away with a lot of wasteful local spending because state regulators lack the resources and expertise to scrutinize every project. BAAJA increases state authority by giving states the option to ask FERC to investigate local spending. Myth: BAAJA’s interconnection provisions give a future anti-fossil-fuel administration the power to block natural gas power plants from connecting to the grid. Truth: BAAJA adds an explicit fuel-neutrality requirement and preserves existing protections against discrimination. Myth: BAAJA favors certain forms of energy over others. Truth: It’s a remarkably technology-neutral bill that increases all forms of energy’s freedom to develop and compete. Myth: The House needs to demand major changes to BAAJA so the House “uses its voice.” Truth: BAAJA overwhelmingly incorporates ideas and language led by the House, such as the SPEED Act and the PERMIT Act.

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JUST IN: Momentum is building behind the bipartisan permitting reform bill ahead of Monday’s Senate vote, with Democrats reportedly making progress in negotiations, clean-energy groups endorsing the revised legislation, and conservative Rep. Chip Roy urging Congress to pass permitting reform before January 3. The developments could provide a positive catalyst for data center, power infrastructure and renewable energy stocks that have faced selling pressure following the Democratic sweep in the midterms. The revised bill would accelerate federal permitting and transmission construction, require new qualifying data centers to cover their incremental electricity and grid costs rather than passing them on to consumers, establish financial guarantees for operators, and expand oversight of data center electricity and water consumption. It also includes four nuclear provisions addressing licensing, uranium enrichment, NRC staffing and DOE transparency. The most significant development may be the emergence of broader political support for energy infrastructure development, including solar and wind projects that previously faced Republican opposition. Faster permitting and transmission expansion could benefit renewable developers, grid equipment suppliers, utilities and data center operators, although new cost-sharing requirements could pressure data center economics. Nuclear developers could also benefit from regulatory reforms. The bill potentially offers a policy catalyst for several recently pressured sectors, but Monday’s 60-vote threshold remains the immediate hurdle.