As electricity demand surges across the United States due to the electrification of transportation, heavy industry, and the rapid expansion of data centers, the nation's aging power grid is failing to keep pace.
In a Policy Forum paper published in Science, energy policy experts from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of California San Diego warn that the U.S. faces one of the most severe power transmission bottlenecks in the world.
Despite strong evidence that large, interconnected grids lower consumer costs and prevent catastrophic blackouts, the continental U.S. has built only about 500 miles of high-voltage transmission lines per year over the last half-decade. This represents just 10% of the 5,000 annual miles that studies suggest will be needed to triple the interregional grid by 2050 and meet future energy needs.
The authors (Madeline Yozwiak, David G. Victor, and M. Granger Morgan) state that the central issue is not primarily technological. Instead, it stems from a fragmented political and regulatory landscape that grants powerful veto rights to stakeholders at local, state, and regional levels. In addition, incumbent utilities often face economic incentives to limit regional connections that could undercut local market power.
To fix the transmission crisis, the paper outlines a three point action plan:
Maximize existing authorities and modern technologies: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the Department of Energy (DOE) should exercise existing statutory powers to designate national-interest transmission corridors and overcome state-level siting impasses. Using advanced technologies, such as line reconductoring and newer High-Voltage Direct Current (VSC-HVDC), can double or triple capacity. Buried HVDC can also allow massive amounts of power to move along existing highway and railroad rights-of-way, bypassing traditional siting barriers.
Learn from international precedents: The U.S. lags behind international peers in deploying long-distance HVDC lines and cross-border planning. Operators in peer countries have successfully navigated political veto points and deployed underground HVDC technologies at scale. The U.S. could establish a cross-national forum, led by bodies like the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC), to adapt proven global regulatory and technological strategies.
Establish a Presidential-Congressional Transmission Commission: To break decades of regulatory gridlock, Congress and the White House should form a joint commission modeled on successful bipartisan task forces of the past that puts all key players together to hammer necessary tradeoffs. This body would then recommend state and federal legislation, evaluate expanding FERC's siting authority, and structure financial bonus incentives to reward first-mover developers and local host communities.
"The fundamental challenge isn't technical, it's jurisdictional. Authority is divided among federal, state, and private entities, each with distinct priorities. When every stakeholder possesses the power to say no, even high-value projects that benefit the entire nation struggle to move forward," the authors warn.
The authors conclude that muddling through with the current patchwork system will fail to solve the crisis, risking long-term damage to the nation's economy and electric reliability.
