To amend the Federal Power Act to adjust the requirements for orders, rules, and regulations relating to furnishing adequate service, to require owners or operators of generating facilities to provide notice of planned retirements of certain electric generating units, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
Passed HouseReceived; read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy …
Passed House (inferred from eh version)
Additional sponsors: Mr. Carter of Georgia, Mr. Obernolte, Mr. Onder, …
Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the …
Mr. Griffith introduced the following bill; which was referred to …
On Passage
Power Plant Reliability Act
On Motion to Recommit
Power Plant Reliability Act
Summary
What This Bill Does
The Power Plant Reliability Act of 2025 gives the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) new authority to prevent power plants from shutting down if doing so would threaten grid reliability. It requires power plant operators to give 5 years advance notice before retiring any generating unit over 5 megawatts, giving grid planners time to prepare alternatives.
Who Benefits and How
Fossil fuel power plant operators (coal, natural gas) benefit significantly. If FERC orders them to keep operating, they receive guaranteed compensation for their costs plus a liability shield protecting them from environmental law violations while complying with the order. This effectively allows aging power plants to continue operating past their planned retirement dates with government-mandated payments and legal protection.
Who Bears the Burden and How
Environmental regulators and advocacy groups lose enforcement power, as power plants ordered by FERC to continue operating cannot be held liable for violating federal, state, or local environmental laws. Communities near these plants may face continued pollution exposure. Renewable energy developers face increased competition from plants that would otherwise retire, potentially slowing the clean energy transition. Power plant operators also face new 5-year advance notice requirements for planned retirements.
Key Provisions
- FERC can order power plants to continue operating for up to 5 years (renewable) if interstate electric service is inadequate or at risk
- Power plant operators must submit retirement notices 5 years in advance for units over 5 MW connected to the bulk power system
- Plants ordered to continue operating receive compensation for additional costs and are shielded from environmental liability
- State commissions and transmission organizations can petition FERC when they believe service is inadequate
- FERC cannot force expansion of generating facilities but can mandate continued operation of existing units
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Amends the Federal Power Act to give FERC authority to prevent power plant retirements that would cause inadequate electricity service, require 5-year advance notice of planned retirements, and provide environmental liability protection for units required to continue operating.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Enhance grid reliability by giving FERC authority to prevent premature power plant closures and requiring advance notice of planned retirements"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Fossil fuel power plant operators (coal, natural gas) who may receive compensation to continue operating
- Electric grid operators and transmission organizations seeking reliability assurance
- Industrial and commercial electricity consumers dependent on reliable power
Likely Burden Bearers
- Environmental regulators (EPA, state agencies) who lose enforcement authority when FERC orders continued operation
- Environmental advocacy groups and communities near power plants seeking emission reductions
- Renewable energy developers who may face competition from plants that would otherwise retire
- Power plant owners required to give 5-year advance notice before retiring units
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "public_utility"
- → Electric utility providing interstate service
- "the_commission"
- → Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)
- "state_commission"
- → State public utility commission
- "transmission_organization"
- → Regional transmission organization or independent system operator
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
Has the meaning given such term in section 215(a) of the Federal Power Act (facilities and control systems for generation and transmission at 100 kV or more)
An electric energy producing unit that is a component of a generating facility, has a power production capacity of not less than 5 megawatts, and is interconnected to the bulk-power system
To, for an indefinite period of time: idle the electric generating unit; disconnect the electric generating unit from the bulk-power system; or otherwise make unavailable for sale all electric energy that is generated by the electric generating unit
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology