Resource Center: Energy

Overview

The IIJA will invest $73 billion to rebuild the electric grid, calls for building thousands of miles of new power lines, and expanding renewable energy.

Overall, the IIJA meets several solutions that are outlined for the nation’s energy sector in the 2021 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure. Solutions that were identified include improving grid resilience, developing a national hardening plan, and the construction of additional transmission grid infrastructure, all of which are included in the bill.

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Legislation Summary

The bill includes several provisions aimed at reinforcing the resilience of the electric grid, such as a nationwide grid reliability program that would have to be established within 180 days of the bill being enacted. That new program would be authorized at $5 billion over five years for projects, activities, technologies, equipment and hardening measures that reduce the likelihood and consequences of disruptive events. Some eligible projects include weatherization technologies, fire-resistant technology, utility pole management, undergrounding of electrical equipment, the relocation of power lines, and microgrids. State and tribal governments that receive funding will be required to match 15 percent of the amount provided by the grant, with exceptions for small utilities.

The bill would also establish a new program called, Program Upgrading Our Electric Grid and Ensuring Reliability and Resiliency, in order to provide competitive grants for projects that demonstrate innovative approaches to transmission, storage, and distribution infrastructure to harden and enhance resilience and reliability. This newly created program is also authorized at $5 billion over five years. Another new program at the Department of Energy is the Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation (SMART) Grant Program to carry out demonstration projects focusing on advancing smart community technologies. The SMART grant program will be funded at $3 billion over five years and eligible projects include planning activities and environmental reviews, pre-engineering and design work, procurement of property, and construction phase activities.

Next, the IIJA would allocate $1 billion over five years to modernize and improve rural grid resilience. Those funds would be authorized to upgrade transmission lines, improve energy efficiency, develop microgrids, and reduce emissions. Furthermore, the bill directs the Department of Energy to work in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and other interested energy stakeholders to develop a common framework, tools and metrics to assess the reliability and resilience of the nation’s energy infrastructure. The bill would also establish a Transmission Facilitation Program to facilitate the construction of electric power transmission lines and $10 billion over five years.

Beyond grid resilience, the IIJA also aims to increase energy efficiency and smart grid functions in the building industry, through a number of new programs and grants for states to create loan funds for building energy upgrades, as well as grants to incentivize states to develop updated building codes. The bill would also authorize $250 million in FY22 to create an Energy Efficiency Revolving Loan Fund Capitalization Grant program for states to conduct energy audits and upgrades. The new Smart Grid Investment Matching Grant Program would be funded at $3 billion over five years and the state energy program would receive $500 million over five years.

Additional Provisions Include:

Provides $100 million annually, over five years for the Safeguarding Tomorrow through Ongoing Risk Mitigation (STORM) Act. ASCE strongly advocated for increased appropriations for the STORM Act, which was enacted earlier this year and created a Resilience Revolving Loan Fund.
An additional $1 billion is available in grants for the FEMA Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) Program. BRIC is FEMA’s pre-disaster hazard mitigation program that replaces the existing Pre-Disaster Mitigation (PDM) program and a program that ASCE continues to strongly advocate for.

Report Card Wins

The passage of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act – IIJA – represents a historic, once-in-a-generation investment in our roads, bridges, water and wastewater networks, ports, electric grid, dams, and more. It increases funding, makes smart improvements to policy such as streamlining permitting, and creates new programs targeted at all 17 categories in the 2021 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure. The bill is a significant down payment on the $2.5 trillion infrastructure investment gap that was identified in the 2021 Report Card and will benefit American businesses and families for years to come.

IIJA addressed 2 of ASCE’s recommendations concerning energy. ASCE’s recommendations focused on improving grid and pipeline reliability and the development of a national hardening plan that considers investment in production/ generation and delivery. IIJA invests $5 billion over five years for grid reliability programs supporting activities, technologies, equipment, and hardening measures that reduce the likelihood and consequences of disruptive events.