A bipartisan Senate duo is unveiling permitting reform legislation Friday that aims to supercharge the country’s electric transmission capacity as data centers increasingly strain the grid.
The proposal, dubbed the ‘‘REWIRE Act,” would ease environmental permitting requirements for certain projects that increase grid capacity as part of a broader strategy to upgrade transmission lines with more advanced and efficient conductors.
The ‘‘Reconductoring Existing Wires for Infrastructure Reliability and Expansion (REWIRE) Act,” is sponsored by Sens. Dave McCormick (R-Pa.) and Peter Welch (D-Vt.).
It is one of many legislative proposals now winding its way through Congress as lawmakers scramble to address rising energy demand and increasing utility bills — especially amid an explosion of energy-intensive data centers across the country.
