Good morning. Data centers are driving fights across North Carolina, New Jersey, Georgia and Missouri, while utility bills are turning into the clearest political pressure point on the grid. Transmission, geothermal, offshore wind and interconnection rules fill out the rest of the map.
Top Stories
DEMOCRATS SPLIT OVER AI BUILDOUT
Axios
Progressive Democrats are sharpening their case against AI infrastructure, turning data centers, utility bills, water use and AI-linked political money into a national campaign argument.
GEORGIA POWER BILLS HEAD LOWER IN JUNE
WSB-TV
Regulators approved a Georgia Power plan that will cut average customer bills by about $4.04 per month, even as storm-cost recovery and data-center-driven grid spending stay in the background.
MISO PUSHES BACK ON TRANSMISSION COMPLAINT
Utility Dive
MISO told federal regulators utilities are overstating how much competitive bidding slows transmission projects, while states, consumer advocates and at least one major data-center company line up around the fight.
NEW YORK TAKES AIM AT SOARING ENERGY BILLS
Lohud
New York is pairing rebate checks with proposals aimed at utility profits and executive pay, a sign that rate pressure is becoming a broader political liability.
CLEAN-ENERGY BUILDOUT SURGES AS CANCELLATIONS MOUNT
Electrek
E2 counted 54 new utility-scale clean-energy projects in the first quarter, but also 38 cancellations, a split-screen moment for a grid that still needs more supply.
Power & Grid
765-KV MIDWEST LINE PROMISES BILLIONS IN BENEFITS
Business Wire
Utilities behind PowerOn Midwest say the 765-kilovolt backbone would support nearly 4,900 Minnesota jobs during construction and unlock more than 12 gigawatts of new generation.
HOUSE LINES UP GEOTHERMAL PERMITTING VOTE
E&E News
A bipartisan House package would speed Interior Department reviews and expand permitting shortcuts for geothermal projects, giving the resource another push in Congress.
OFFSHORE WIND FACES NEW INSPECTION FEE HIT
E&E News
A House spending bill would impose new per-turbine inspection fees on offshore wind projects, a structure critics say could add millions in costs to existing projects.
NEW MEXICO TOPS DISTRIBUTED-ENERGY INTERCONNECTION SCORECARD
Utility Dive
New Mexico was the only state to earn an A in the latest Freeing the Grid report, while most states still scored C or worse on distributed-energy interconnection rules.
WASHINGTON CLEAN-ENERGY ADVOCATES LOOK TO TEXAS
KNKX
Clean-energy advocates say Washington has roughly $150 billion in projects stuck in limbo, and some are looking to Texas for lessons on faster permitting and buildout.
Data Centers
NORTH CAROLINA DATA-CENTER BILL TESTS GOVERNOR
E&E News
A GOP-backed bill would make data centers pay more of their own way, but it also includes coal and climate provisions that put Gov. Josh Stein in a political bind.
VERMONT GOVERNOR VETOES DATA-CENTER SUSTAINABILITY BILL
MyChamplainValley
Gov. Phil Scott vetoed a data-center sustainability measure, keeping Vermont in the national mix of states trying to decide how much control to place on AI infrastructure.
NEW JERSEY WANTS DATA CENTERS TO PAY THEIR WAY
NorthJersey.com / AOL
Gov. Mikie Sherrill rolled out a four-part framework that would make data centers bring power, report energy and water use, fund community benefits and support long-term jobs.
GEORGIA LEADERS MAKE THE CASE FOR DATA CENTERS
Macon Telegraph
At a Georgia Chamber energy conference, utility and business leaders argued data centers are part of the state's next infrastructure transition, even as land and ratepayer fights intensify.
MISSOURI DATA-CENTER BACKLASH TRIGGERS RECALL VOTES
First Alert 4
Festus opponents submitted enough signatures to trigger recall votes for the mayor and two council members after the city approved a controversial data-center project.
Stat of the Day
90%
Georgia Power says data centers account for 90% of new load growth
That figure is why local land fights, transmission upgrades and ratepayer politics are now colliding in Georgia.
Macon Telegraph report ↗