I 
112TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3280 
To amend the Federal Power Act to establish a regional transmission planning 
process, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 27, 2011 
Mr. SENSENBRENNER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Federal Power Act to establish a regional 
transmission planning process, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Powering America for 
Tomorrow Act’’. 
SEC. 2. AMENDMENT OF THE FEDERAL POWER ACT. 
Section 216 of the Federal Power Act (16 U.S.C. 
824p) is amended as follows: 
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(1) By amending the section heading to read as 
follows: ‘‘REGIONAL TRANSMISSION PLANS FOR 
THE INTERSTATE TRANSMISSION SYSTEM’’. 
(2) By striking subsection (i) and redesignating 
subsections (j) and (k) as subsections (k) and (l), re-
spectively. 
(3) By redesignating subsections (d) through 
(h) as subsections (f) through (j), respectively. 
(4) By striking subsections (a), (b), and (c) and 
inserting the following: 
‘‘(a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are as 
follows: 
‘‘(1) To ensure electric reliability, fuel diversity, 
and wholesale power price stability across the elec-
tric transmission grid. 
‘‘(2) To reinforce, strengthen, and enhance elec-
tric transmission infrastructure as an integrated net-
work system. 
‘‘(3) To facilitate the development of clean en-
ergy resources that cannot be located near an exist-
ing transmission facility or load center. 
‘‘(4) To assist States and electric energy service 
providers in meeting the requirements of applicable 
renewable portfolio standards. 
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‘‘(5) To take maximum advantage of smart grid 
technologies to promote electric grid improvements, 
energy efficiency, and demand response. 
‘‘(6) To coordinate regional planning and local 
siting of interstate high-voltage electric transmission 
systems. 
‘‘(b) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘bulk-power system’ has the 
meaning given such term in section 215(a)(1). 
‘‘(2) The term ‘designated region’ means a re-
gion designated under subsection (c)(1). 
‘‘(3) The term ‘Electric Reliability Organiza-
tion’ has the meaning given such term in section 
215(a)(2). 
‘‘(4) The term ‘Interconnection’ has the mean-
ing given such term in section 215(a)(5). 
‘‘(5) The term ‘regional entity’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 215(a)(7). 
‘‘(6) The term ‘regional transmission plan’ 
means a comprehensive plan required under sub-
section (c)(3) for the development of the interstate 
electric transmission system in a designated region. 
‘‘(7) The term ‘regional transmission planner’ 
means a person or entity approved under subsection 
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(c)(2) to develop and maintain a regional trans-
mission plan required under this section. 
‘‘(8) The term ‘regional transmission project’ 
means an overhead or underground transmission fa-
cility, consisting of conductors or cables, towers, 
manhole duct systems, phase shifting transformers, 
reactors, capacitors, substations, and any ancillary 
facilities and equipment necessary for the proper op-
eration of the facility— 
‘‘(A) that— 
‘‘(i) operates at or above a voltage 
of— 
‘‘(I) 230 kilovolts alternating 
current; or 
‘‘(II) 300 kilovolts direct current; 
‘‘(ii) is a very high current conductor 
or superconducting cable that operates at 
or above a power equivalent to the power 
of a conventional transmission cable oper-
ating at or above 230 kilovolts alternating 
current or 300 kilovolts direct current; or 
‘‘(iii) is a renewable feeder line; and 
‘‘(B) that is included in a regional trans-
mission plan submitted to the Commission 
under subsection (c)(3). 
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‘‘(9) The term ‘renewable feeder line’ means a 
transmission line that— 
‘‘(A) operates at or above a voltage of 100 
kilovolts; and 
‘‘(B) is identified in a regional trans-
mission plan submitted to the Commission 
under subsection (c)(3) as a facility that is to 
be developed to facilitate collection of electric 
energy produced by renewable energy. 
‘‘(10) The term ‘transmission organization’ has 
the meaning given such term in section 215(a)(6). 
‘‘(c) REGIONAL TRANSMISSION PLANS.— 
‘‘(1) DESIGNATION
OF
REGIONS.—Not later 
than 12 months after the date of enactment of this 
subsection, the Commission, in consultation with the 
Electric Reliability Organization, regional entities, 
transmission organizations, transmission owners, 
State regulatory authorities of the States comprising 
the Eastern Interconnection, and State regulatory 
authorities of the States comprising the Western 
Interconnection, shall designate one or more regions 
within the Eastern Interconnection and one or more 
regions within the Western Interconnection, to be 
represented by regional transmission planners ap-
proved under paragraph (2). In determining the ap-
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propriate size and scope of a region, the Commission 
shall consider the optimal scope needed to ensure 
comprehensive regional transmission planning and 
operational efficiency, the size and scope of existing 
Regional Transmission Organizations and operating 
bulk-power systems, and methods for interregional 
coordination agreements to ensure a sufficiently 
broad regional transmission planning process. 
‘‘(2) REGIONAL TRANSMISSION PLANNERS.— 
‘‘(A) APPLICATION AND APPROVAL.—Any 
person or entity, including a Regional Trans-
mission Organization or other regionally-based 
planning entity with an established regional 
transmission planning process, as determined 
by the Commission, may submit an application 
to the Commission for approval as the regional 
transmission planner for a designated region. 
Not later than 18 months after the designation 
of a region under paragraph (1), the Commis-
sion shall approve one such regional trans-
mission planner for each such designated region 
to develop and maintain a regional transmission 
plan required under this section. 
‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—In approving a re-
gional transmission planner under subpara-
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graph (A), the Commission shall consider the 
existing or reasonably anticipated capabilities of 
any regionally-based planning entity described 
in such subparagraph in regional transmission 
planning. 
‘‘(C) CONTENTS OF APPLICATION.—An ap-
plicant entity shall include in an application for 
approval as the regional transmission planner 
for a designated region the operating proce-
dures of such applicant entity and any method 
such applicant entity will use to adhere to the 
requirements for a regional transmission plan-
ning process described in paragraph (5). 
‘‘(D) COMPLIANCE.—The Commission may 
review the compliance of a regional trans-
mission planner approved under subparagraph 
(A) with the requirements of this section and 
any regulations thereunder. If the Commission 
finds such a regional transmission planner has 
failed or is failing to comply with such require-
ments or regulations, the Commission may re-
voke the approval of such regional transmission 
planner for a designated region and accept ap-
plications for a new regional transmission plan-
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ner for such region to be approved in accord-
ance with this section. 
‘‘(3) 
REGIONAL
TRANSMISSION
PLAN
RE-
QUIRED.—Not later than 2 years after the approval 
of a regional transmission planner under paragraph 
(2), and every 2 years thereafter, such regional 
transmission planner shall submit to the Commission 
an initial or updated regional transmission plan that 
meets the requirements of this section. The Commis-
sion shall ensure that each such plan is the result 
of a planning process that adhered to the require-
ments for a regional transmission planning process 
described in paragraph (5). The Commission shall 
make all regional transmission plans submitted 
available to the public. 
‘‘(4) REGIONAL TRANSMISSION PLAN DESIGN.— 
A regional transmission plan required under this 
section shall, with respect to a designated region— 
‘‘(A) be designed to— 
‘‘(i) maintain and enhance the eco-
nomic, reliability, and energy security ben-
efits of the regional electric transmission 
system, including remediation of electric 
grid congestion; and 
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‘‘(ii) anticipate and facilitate develop-
ment of electric energy generation from di-
verse energy resources; and 
‘‘(B) consider whether proposals to expand 
and upgrade high voltage electric transmission 
in the designated region and across the bound-
aries of the designated region will minimize 
congestion and promote service reliability, mar-
ket integration and efficiency, economic devel-
opment, deployment of smart grid technologies, 
lowest cost delivered electric energy at whole-
sale, and the goals of applicable renewable port-
folio standards. 
‘‘(5) 
REGIONAL
TRANSMISSION
PLANNING 
PROCESS.—The Commission shall ensure each re-
gional transmission planning process conducted by a 
regional transmission planner is consistent with the 
purposes of this section. The Commission shall en-
sure any such planning process— 
‘‘(A) is non-discriminatory, independent, 
and conforms with the planning standards of 
Commission Order No. 890 or any successor 
order; 
‘‘(B) solicits and considers the input of 
local and State policymakers, transmission facil-
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ity owners and electric utilities, and market 
participants; 
‘‘(C) is sufficiently broad in geographic 
and market scope to produce economic and 
operational efficiencies; 
‘‘(D) is designed to meet the need for the 
timely construction or modification of regional 
transmission projects; and 
‘‘(E) takes into account— 
‘‘(i) all applicable laws and regula-
tions governing the procurement of electric 
energy generation; 
‘‘(ii) the potential effect on the future 
operation of the electric transmission sys-
tem or on the regional transmission plan of 
rejection or withdrawal of a proposed re-
gional transmission project; 
‘‘(iii) the development of transmission 
facilities for which a completed application 
for authorization has been filed and ac-
cepted by a State regulatory authority or 
other applicable authority before the date 
of submission of a regional transmission 
plan under paragraph (3) but not origi-
nating from the planning process; 
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