The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Monday approved plans by New England and New York grid operators to pass on to utilities the cost of any import tariffs at the U.S.-Canada border, and those utilities in turn could raise consumer prices.
In unanimous orders, FERC accepted tariff revisions that empower the New York Independent System Operator and ISO New England to collect and allocate costs for any federal import duties they may be required to pay under a Trump administration directive imposing 25 percent tariffs on most Canadian products and a 10 percent tariff on “energy resources.” The order emphasizes that the procedures would only be triggered if grid operators are required to pay import taxes.
It is not yet clear if the declared tariffs will apply to electricity, who will have to pay them or if they will be implemented at all.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) called New England’s plan, which is broadly similar to New York’s, “irresponsible” and asserted that it would “make it harder for consumers to pay their electricity bills.”
