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Overview
For decades, the cost of upgrading the power grid was spread across everyone's electric bill. On June 18, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) acted on a rule that could put much of that cost on the data centers that trigger it.
The rule sets national terms for plugging giant electricity users into the interstate grid. It decides how fast they connect, who pays for new wires, and whether Washington or the states call the shots. The outcome shapes electricity bills and AI buildout for years.
Why it matters
How fast AI data centers get power, and whether their grid costs land on your electric bill or theirs, now turns on this federal rule.
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People Involved
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FERC is the U.S. agency that regulates the interstate transmission and wholesale sale of electricity.
The Department of Energy sets national energy policy and used a rare statutory power to push this rule.
Timeline
October 2025 June 2026
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FERC acts on the rule
Latest RegulatoryAt its monthly open meeting, FERC took up the large-load docket, moving a national framework for data-center grid connections from proposal toward execution.
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FERC commits to a June deadline
ProcessFERC issued an order saying it intended to deliver a legally durable order on the docket by the end of June 2026.
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FERC order on PJM co-located loads
LegalFERC issued an order in a related case on large loads sharing sites with generators in the PJM grid region.
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Public comment deadline
ProcessUtilities, states, manufacturers, and tech firms filed comments. They split over the 20 MW threshold, cost allocation, and federal authority.
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DOE directs FERC to act
DirectiveEnergy Secretary Chris Wright used a rare statutory power to direct FERC to write rules speeding large-load connections. A draft proposal came attached.
Historical Context
3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.
FERC Order 1000 (2011)
FERC required regions to plan transmission together and to allocate the cost of new lines to those who benefit. States and utilities objected that the agency was dictating how local grids get built and paid for.
Dozens of parties challenged the rule in court.
A federal appeals court upheld it in 2014, cementing FERC's role in regional cost allocation.
The current fight is again about who pays for grid upgrades. Order 1000 shows FERC can win cost-allocation battles, but only after years of litigation.
FERC v. Electric Power Supply Association (2016)
The Supreme Court reviewed a FERC rule paying electricity users to cut demand. Challengers said FERC had crossed into retail markets reserved for states. The Court disagreed, 6-2.
The ruling let FERC keep regulating demand response in wholesale markets.
It set the boundary for how far FERC can reach toward the customer side of the meter.
The large-load rule tests that same line. This case is the precedent both sides will cite on whether FERC can regulate big loads.
FERC Order 2222 (2020)
FERC ordered grid operators to let small, distributed resources like home batteries compete in wholesale markets. States and utilities warned it intruded on their control of local distribution systems.
Grid operators spent years rewriting market rules to comply.
Implementation is still rolling out region by region, slowed by the federal-state seam.
Like the large-load rule, Order 2222 pushed federal authority toward resources states had managed. It shows how slow these national frameworks are to take effect.
