FERC Commissioner David LaCerte, a Republican confirmed in May to a term ending June 2031, said the US can escape its electricity affordability problem by building more generation and transmission. "The only way we're going to get out of the affordability mess is by building more things," he told Utility Dive in an interview published Wednesday.
For allocators holding PJM-connected generation and transmission, LaCerte's stated preference is for deliverability over resource mandates. He said if a market demands natural gas, regulators should find a way to get it there. He criticized state choices to block pipelines or favor one resource such as offshore wind. Those comments are a stated view rather than a ruling.
LaCerte cited the 73-25 Senate vote this week to advance a permitting bill and called it a compromise, as Private Infrastructure Daily previously reported. He said the midterm results were helpful because they aired affordability concerns, and he wants more congressional oversight hearings on FERC's work.
Reported by the Energy Transition desk from Utility Dive and Private Infrastructure Daily archive. Published . Corrections