Working toward updating America’s transmission system, the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee on July 21 voted 49-0 to approve a bill proposed by U.S. Rep. Julie Fedorchak (R-ND) to modernize America’s transmission system by requiring new interstate transmission lines and rebuilds to use best-available conductor technology.
“I’m grateful to my colleagues on the Energy and Commerce Committee for supporting this legislation, and I look forward to securing its passage on the House floor,” said Rep. Fedorchak, who in December 2025 sponsored the High-Capacity Grid Act, H.R. 6633.
If enacted, the bill would establish a best-available transmission conductor standard for certain transmission projects under the Federal Power Act, and provide for presumptions regarding cost recovery for such conductors, according to the bill’s text.
“America’s electricity demand is growing at the fastest pace in decades. To meet this demand, we must optimize our existing transmission infrastructure,” Fedorchak said. “The High-Capacity Grid Act is a common-sense solution that will help us move more electricity over existing rights-of-way, improve grid reliability, and manage costs for consumers.”
Current standards and return-on-equity methodologies do not incentivize the use of advanced transmission conductors, even when they carry significantly more electricity with lower line losses, leading to lower capacity lines, more line losses requiring maintenance, and increased costs for American families, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmaker’s office.
H.R. 6633 would require the use of the highest-capacity, highest-efficiency, and lowest-sag commercially available conductors for new interstate transmission projects and major rebuilds, and increase transmission capacity within existing rights-of-way to connect and carry more electricity, reducing the need for additional corridors and new transmission lines.
The measure also would improve grid reliability while helping keep electricity affordable for consumers, and promote cost-effective utility investments through the deployment of proven, high-performance transmission technologies, the summary says.