Pallone urges FERC to shield PJM customers with strong rules for data centers

Congressman Frank Pallone Jr. (D-NJ), Ranking Member of the Energy and Commerce Committee, formally urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) on September 28 to use its authority to approve and strengthen recent proposals from PJM Interconnection regarding data center management. Pallone expressed significant concern that the rapid and ongoing development of data centers is causing Americans' monthly energy bills to increase, claiming a nearly $30 billion rise in PJM capacity market costs since summer 2024, with data centers driving an expected 4% annual increase in peak electricity demand over the next decade.

PJM Interconnection, a regional transmission organization serving 13 states and D.C., had filed a proposed framework to connect new data centers and other large load customers. While supporting PJM's objectives, such as requiring data centers to fund new power plants, bring their own generation capacity online, and establish a registry, Pallone believes these proposals are insufficient. He advocates for FERC to ensure data centers are responsible for all associated costs, make the requirement for new generation capacity permanent, and make the data center registry public.

This federal intervention follows New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill's signing of legislation in August, which mandates data centers within the state to self-report their water and energy consumption every six months to the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities. Pallone has consistently called for substantial federal