Congressmen Cohen and Burchett Reintroduce the TVA Increase Rate of Participation (IRP) Act

WASHINGTON -- Congressmen Steve Cohen (TN-9) and Tim Burchett (TN-2) today reintroduced the TVA Increase Rate of Participation (IRP) Act to require greater transparency and accountability in the Tennessee Valley Authority’s Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) process. The IRP process is a comprehensive study projecting how the nation’s largest federal utility meets energy needs. The measure would increase public participation and input and make the process more transparent in an effort to ensure the most efficient, affordable, and reliable plan for meeting customers’ energy needs in all or part of its seven-state service area. 

Congressman Cohen made the following statement:

“Transparency is critical in making public policy but, for too long, TVA’s decision-making has been obscure and opaque, such as its current IRP process in which organizations were hand-picked to participate in a policy working group. This bill requires the TVA to take into consideration the interests and informed views of affected stakeholders, including ratepayers and subject-matter experts, as is commonplace for other major private and public utilities. TVA needs outside guidance to meet the changing needs of utility customers as it addresses resiliency and other foreseeable disruptions to its planning.”

Congressman Burchett made the following statement:

“For too long, TVA has operated behind closed doors to hide from the public. The establishment of an Office of Public Participation will help restore trust in the TVA, and will give East Tennesseans an opportunity to offer input in their decisions.”

“The Tennessee Valley Authority energy planning process is much less transparent than state-regulated utilities, which must allow for stakeholder input under independent oversight,” said Appalachian Voices Director of Public Power Campaigns Brianna Knisley. “Since President Trump’s actions have indefinitely delayed the most recent TVA IRP, ratepayers and impacted stakeholders are left even more in the dark about their energy future. Congressman Cohen and Burchett’s TVA IRP bill will not only make TVA more accountable to its customers and impacted communities, but will also vastly improve the quality of the resulting plans. Public accountability is essential for a strong public power model.”

“TVA’s energy planning impacts everything from electricity bills to water and air quality, yet the public has had virtually no meaningful pathway to make their voices heard. Representatives Cohen and Burchett’s act would make TVA more transparent and accountable at a time when the communities of the Tennessee Valley are struggling under rising energy bills,” said Sierra Club Beyond Coal Campaign Manager Amy Kelly.

“For far too long, TVA’s planning process has fallen short of the transparency and public involvement expected of a public power utility,” said Jake Duncan, Southeast Senior Regulatory Director for Vote Solar. “The TVA Increase Rate of Participation Act is an essential reform that brings meaningful community input and real accountability into the heart of TVA’s decision-making. It’s a critical step toward a fairer, more modern energy system that puts Tennesseans first.”

“TVA was created to serve the public good, not operate behind closed doors. This legislation is a necessary step toward restoring accountability, transparency, and meaningful public engagement across the Tennessee Valley. The people paying TVA’s bills deserve to see how decisions are made and to have a seat at the table, especially as the region faces enormous energy and affordability challenges. We strongly support this effort to modernize TVA’s governance and bring public participation back where it belongs: front and center.” - Daniel Tait, Executive Director, Energy Alabama

The TVP IRP Act would open up the energy planning process and ensure meaningful public participation and the inclusion of third-party expert advice. Specifically, it would:   

• Establish an Office of Public Participation to engage with the public through direct outreach and education and solicit broader participation in issues affecting the Valley including by:
  • Acting as a liaison to members of the public by providing ongoing process information on individual proceedings and responding to requests for technical assistance;
  • Making recommendations to improve processes to ensure they are inclusive, fair and easy to navigate; and
  • Facilitating a process for meaningful and open public engagement in the IRP process including opportunities for intervention, discovery, filed comments and an evidentiary hearing.
• Require the IRP to include standard information, such as:
  • A long-term forecast of TVA’s sales and peak demand under various reasonable scenarios;
  • A summary of electrical transmission investments planned by TVA;
  • Resource portfolios that fairly evaluate demand-side and supply-side technologies;
  • Sensitivity analyses related to fuel costs, environmental regulations, electrification, distributed energy resources, and other uncertainties or risks;
  • Disclosure to intervening parties the modeling assumptions used in developing the IRP, including costs and constraints on the model; and
  • Details of how and where public input informed the plan; and
• Require the Board of Directors to issue a decision approving, denying or modifying the plan, like every other utility regulator, according to the least cost and reliability requirements in the Energy Policy Act of 1992, and require consideration of resilience, extreme weather risk, and public health impacts. 

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