Lawmakers Call on FERC to Ensure States Can Engage Meaningfully in Regional Grid Governance

Washington, D.C. (July 20, 2026) — Today, a group of 98 state legislators from 10 states filed a formal comment letter with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). The legislators request reforms to ensure their states can participate meaningfully in decision-making at the PJM Interconnection, the nation’s largest regional grid operator.

PJM operates the electric grid and wholesale electricity markets across 13 states and the District of Columbia. While the Federal Power Act recognizes states’ authority over key energy policy issues, the letter notes that the lack of state perspectives in PJM decision-making directly impacts states’ ability to implement their policy objectives.

Based on these concerns, the lawmakers call on FERC to improve PJM governance by creating meaningful opportunities for state participation. The letter requests that several reforms and practical modifications be made:

• Regional State Organization: Establish a formal governance role for a regional state organization to represent the interests of PJM states, similar to what exists in other regions, such as New England and the Southwest.
• Alternative Proposals: Provide the regional state organization with the ability to present alternative proposals to FERC when stakeholder processes do not reach consensus.
• PJM Leadership: Provide states and customers a voice in deciding and participating in future PJM leadership. 
• Public Interest Mandate: Codify an explicit public-interest mandate within PJM, requiring the organization to balance system reliability and market efficiency with public interest objectives such as affordability and state policy alignment.
• Stakeholder Transparency: Increase transparency by recording and publishing stakeholder meetings and votes, allowing media access, and enabling public officials to access closed-door meetings. 
• Effective Decision-Making: Implement sector-weighted voting in Standing Committees and require cost impact analyses at certain meetings to improve effectiveness and efficiency within decision-making processes.
• Independent Transmission Monitor: Establish an Independent Transmission Monitor to help control rising transmission costs and efficiently advance needed projects.

“PJM’s decisions have massive consequences for household electricity bills and state energy goals,” said Maryland State Delegate Lorig Charkoudian. “We cannot build a modernized, affordable grid without giving our states a meaningful voice in how PJM is run. Transparency and accountability are essential.”

The letter emphasizes that the requested reforms would strengthen alignment between PJM decision-making and state policy objectives. The lawmakers end the letter by stating their commitment to continue working with both PJM and FERC to lower consumer costs and ensure long-term system reliability.

The letter was spearheaded by Maryland State Delegate Lorig Charkoudian, and the full letter is available here: https://www.ncelenviro.org/app/uploads/2026/07/NCEL-Comments-on-Docket-No.-AD26-7-000.pdf

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About NCEL: Created by and for state legislators, the National Caucus of Environmental Legislators is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that organizes over 1,300 environmentally committed state legislators from all 50 states and both parties. NCEL provides venues and opportunities for lawmakers to share ideas and collaborate on environmental issues.