	Introduction and Organization

This report discusses electric power transmission and related policy issues. Proposals before the 111 th Congress for changing federal transmission law and regulations to meet these and other objectives include S. 539 , the Clean Renewable Energy and Economic Development Act, introduced on March 5, 2009; and the March 9, 2009, majority staff transmission siting draft of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee (the "Senate Energy Majority Draft"). Renewable energy-focused transmission planning could accelerate the development of renewable power. Second, new transmission projects included in the interconnection-wide plans would include preferential permitting and financing. Transmission Planning: Summary of Policy Issues

In summary, transmission planning issues for Congress include: 
What should be the objectives of the planning process ? Should the planning process extend beyond transmission planning narrowly defined to a include a broader array of solutions to power system issues, such as demand response, distributed power, or conventional power plant construction. These benefits could lead developers to add unnecessary features and costs to qualify proposals to meet plan criteria (e.g., proposing only high voltage lines if the plans have a minimum voltage threshold). Transmission Permitting: Summary of Policy Issues

In summary, in considering how much additional transmission siting authority, if any, the federal government should assume, Congress may want to consider the following policy questions:
Should the grid be viewed from a national perspective? How important is it to accelerate the construction of new transmission lines? Whether FERC or another agency is assigned a federal permitting role, it will need the resources to expeditiously process applications. Cost Allocation

Perhaps the most contentious transmission financing issue is cost allocation for new interstate transmission lines – that is, deciding which customers pay how much of the cost of building and operating a new transmission line that crosses several states. Some proposals call for the federal government, possibly acting through the federal utilities, to help pay for new transmission lines, pay for expanding projects to meet future needs, or actually build new transmission. Federal Support for the Smart Grid

The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) articulated a national policy to modernize the power system with smart grid technology, and authorized research and development programs, funding for demonstration projects, and matching funds for investments in smart grid technologies. Transmission System Reliability

This section of the report will discuss the reliability of the transmission system from three perspectives:
Problems in evaluating the current reliability condition of the grid; Modernization and reliability; Reliability and changes in the energy market. In considering new spending and planning approaches for the transmission system, Congress may wish to ensure that the right balance is struck between modernization and new construction. Congress may want to exercise oversight to ensure that FERC and NERC are developing reliability standards for a changing grid. Permitting of Transmission Lines

Transmission line permitting is primarily under the control of the states. Expanding federal authority over permitting is viewed as a means of accelerating the process. How far should the federal government go into financing the expansion of the transmission grid? Policy issues include:
Program oversight . Reliability and the changing power market.
This report provides background information on electric power transmission and related policy issues. Proposals for changing federal transmission policy before the 111th Congress include S. 539, the Clean Renewable Energy and Economic Development Act, introduced on March 5, 2009; and the March 9, 2009, majority staff transmission siting draft of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. The policy issues identified and discussed in this report include:
Federal Transmission Planning: several current proposals call for the federal government to sponsor and supervise large scale, on-going transmission planning programs. Issues for Congress to consider are the objectives of the planning process (e.g., a focus on supporting the development of renewable power or on a broader set of transmission goals), determining how much authority new interconnection-wide planning entities should be granted, the degree to which transmission planning needs to consider non-transmission solutions to power market needs, what resources the executive agencies will need to oversee the planning process, and whether the benefits for projects included in the transmission plans (e.g., a federal permitting option) will motivate developers to add unnecessary features and costs to qualify proposals for the plan.
Permitting of Transmission Lines: a contentious issue is whether the federal government should assume from the states the primary role in permitting new transmission lines. Related issues include whether Congress should view management and expansion of the grid as primarily a state or national issue, whether national authority over grid reliability (which Congress established in the Energy Policy Act of 2005) can be effectively exercised without federal authority over permitting, if it is important to accelerate the construction of new transmission lines (which is one of the assumed benefits of federal permitting), and whether the executive agencies are equipped to take on the task of permitting transmission lines.
Transmission Line Funding and Cost Allocation: the primary issues are whether the federal government should help pay for new transmission lines, and if Congress should establish a national standard for allocating the costs of interstate transmission lines to ratepayers.
Transmission Modernization and the Smart Grid: issues include the need for Congressional oversight of existing federal smart grid research, development, demonstration, and grant programs; and oversight over whether the smart grid is actually proving to be a good investment for taxpayers and ratepayers.
Transmission System Reliability: it is not clear whether Congress and the executive branch have the information needed to evaluate the reliability of the transmission system. Congress may also want to review whether the power industry is striking the right balance between modernization and new construction as a means of enhancing transmission reliability, and whether the reliability standards being developed for the transmission system are appropriate for a rapidly changing power system.
This report will be updated as warranted.