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ARTICLE · 05 JANUARY 2022

Will The Infrastructure Investment And Jobs Act Accelerate Transmission Development?

Winston Taylor
Explore more from Winston Taylor

On November 15, 2021, President Biden signed into law the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act...

United StatesEnvironment
Jonathan D. Brightbill
Jonathan D. Brightbill
Madalyn G. Brown
Madalyn G. Brown
Raymond B. Wuslich
Raymond B. Wuslich

On November 15, 2021, President Biden signed into law the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).1  Among the changes and funding set out in the IIJA, a provision granted FERC authority to supersede state siting decisions for electric transmission projects.  The Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct of 2005) first authorized the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to approve, if a state withheld its approval, interstate transmission projects in "national interest electric transmission corridors" identified by the Department of Energy.  The new statute clarifies and expands FERC's authority.

In this alert, we first examine whether such superseding approval by FERC would be subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and require an environmental impact statement (EIS).  Second, we explore how such backstop siting authority is likely to affect state Public Utility Commissions (PUCs) permitting decisions.  Overall, it is unlikely

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