While most of the attention in D.C. is focused on President-elect Donald Trump and the new Congress taking power in January, the current Congress has time to act on crucial legislation affecting electric co-ops in its final “lame duck” session until Christmas.
“There’s still a lot on the table before the new administration and new Congress take office — including the Farm Bill, disaster relief and funding the government at the very least,” said Hill Thomas, NRECA’s vice president of legislative affairs. “It’s still to be determined what exactly the appetite will be for taking action. A lot will be dictated by what the president-elect wants and what happens in the congressional leadership elections — both for caucus leaders and committee chairmen.”
Key co-op issues that the 118th Congress could take up in its final weeks
Farm Bill: This five-year bill — set to expire at the end of 2024 — is full of programs that are essential to co-ops, including funding for broadband, electric infrastructure and rural economic development. The House and Senate have struggled to reach a consensus on a bill, but it’s still possible for something to happen in the final weeks of Congress, even if it’s just extending current funding levels for another year.
Disaster relief: After the devastation caused by hurricanes Helene and Milton throughout the Southeast, an emergency relief bill is expected to be lawmakers’ top priority. Congress is looking at the possibility of providing billions more in aid to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which reimburses electric co-ops for the cost of rebuilding their systems, and the Small Business Administration, which provides disaster loans.
Federal government funding: With government funding set to expire Dec. 21, lawmakers have several options: pass individual appropriations bills, agree on one big spending bill, or extend current funding levels into next year and let the new Congress deal with the budget. At stake are dozens of important co-op priorities, including funding for the Rural Utilities Service Electric Program to modernize infrastructure and the ReConnect program to bring high-speed internet service to rural communities.
National Defense Authorization Act: This sweeping defense bill could help the more than 125 electric co-ops that serve military bases and installations by making them eligible for the first time to receive funding from the Defense Department’s Defense Critical Infrastructure Program, which would help co-ops make their systems more resilient. The bill, which is viewed by both Democrats and Republicans as must-pass legislation, could also serve as an important legislative vehicle to add on other co-op priorities, Thomas said.
Permitting reform: NRECA and its members have been urging Congress to pass a permitting reform bill that would make it faster and cheaper for co-ops to get federal approval to modernize their systems or simply manage vegetation around power lines. It also could limit legal challenges that further delay the permitting process. Thomas said NRECA will be watching closely to ensure that any permitting reform bill eases bureaucratic burdens on co-ops without imposing new government mandates on them. He said NRECA would oppose any proposals to give government agencies — such as the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission — more authority over co-ops.
Looking ahead to the new Congress, Thomas said that NRECA is well-positioned because the association has long maintained good relationships with lawmakers of both parties. “Any new Congress and new administration create new opportunities and new challenges,” he said. “Some doors close, and some doors open. We need to be well-placed to walk through the open doors and barge through the closed ones if we need to.”
