CATF analysis identifies opportunities to strengthen BAAJA interconnection provisions and connect more power to the grid

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The need to bring more power online quickly in the United States is growing amid rising electricity demand, decarbonization requirements, and concerns around energy affordability. The draft Bipartisan American Affordability and Jobs Act (BAAJA) includes provisions that aim to help address longstanding barriers to connecting new power to the grid, known as interconnection. A new report from Clean Air Task Force (CATF) examines opportunities to strengthen these provisions and improve the efficiency, affordability, and predictability of the interconnection process.

CATF’s report examines why interconnection processes across much of the country remain costly, inefficient, and time-intensive, and outlines practical reforms to reduce delays, improve planning, and make more efficient use of grid infrastructure. It establishes a set of principles for evaluating interconnection proposals, with the goal of bringing new generation online more quickly and lowering costs for consumers. In a companion piece, CATF assesses how BAAJA’s proposed Consolidated Planning Process (CPP) aligns with these principles and identifies opportunities to strengthen the bill’s approach.

“Today’s interconnection process creates a cycle of uncertainty that slows the deployment of new generation and raises costs for everyone,” said Wilson Ricks, Manager, Electricity at CATF. “Developers often enter the queue without knowing how much they will ultimately be asked to pay for grid upgrades or how long the process will take. When projects withdraw, grid operators frequently have to revisit studies for other projects, creating a domino effect of delays. Processes that provide greater upfront certainty or reduce the requirements for interconnection can help break that cycle.”

Long interconnection queues, years-long study timelines, uncertain network upgrade costs, and frequent project withdrawals have created significant delays in bringing new power online. In PJM, for example, projects that entered commercial operation in 2025 waited an average of eight years between submitting an interconnection request and beginning operation.

“Over the past several decades, efforts to expand and modernize the grid have too often been slowed by fragmented planning processes and growing interconnection backlogs,” said Veronica Saltzman, Attorney at CATF. “Interconnection reform is critical to meeting growing electricity demand affordably, and better coordination between transmission planning and interconnection can help ensure the grid is prepared to connect new resources where and when they’re needed.”

CATF’s report outlines seven principles to guide policymakers in designing more effective interconnection processes:

• Ensure federal reforms work across diverse market structures. Reforms should address common constraints across U.S. electricity markets.
• Link transmission and generator interconnection planning. Coordinate long-term grid planning with anticipated generation needs.
• Clear queues and bring power online quickly. Simplify studies, improve timelines, and reduce uncertainty.
• Allocate interconnection costs early, efficiently, and transparently. Establish predictable costs and fairly allocate upgrade expenses.
• Identify and proactively use surplus grid capacity. Enable projects to connect where existing capacity can accommodate them.
• Create a level playing field between incumbent generators and new entrants. Ensure fair access to transmission infrastructure.
• Prioritize equal treatment across resource types and sizes. Improve the process without relying on preferential fast-tracking as a substitute for broader reform.

CATF’s analysis applies these principles to two interconnection frameworks: Southwest Power Pool’s CPP, approved by FERC in March 2026, and Connect-and-Manage, which is implemented in the Electricity Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) market.

In the companion analysis, CATF evaluates BAAJA’s interconnection-related provisions against these principles, including its proposed “Consolidated Planning Process” requirement, and identifies opportunities for Congress to strengthen the legislation. CATF recommends clearer direction for integrating transmission and interconnection planning, establishing set planning cycles, and ensuring planned interconnection locations and associated costs are informed by long-term system needs.

“Long-term grid investments depend on durable, predictable rules,” said Alan Mitchell, Associate Director, Federal Policy at CATF. “BAAJA points in the right direction, but clearer Congressional direction will help ensure its reforms deliver coordinated planning, reduce delays, and lower costs for consumers.”

Read the full report here and CATF’s supplementary analysis of BAAJA’s interconnection provisions here.