Earthjustice Applauds Reintroduction of CHARGE Act

Today Senator Ed Markey (D-Mass.) reintroduced the Connecting Hard-to-Reach Areas with Renewably Generated Energy (CHARGE) Act. The bill would implement various reforms in the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to quickly and efficiently build out the energy grid capacity and infrastructure we need for a clean energy future. After the bill’s introduction, Earthjustice Vice President of Policy and Legislation Raúl García issued the following statement:

“The CHARGE Act is a critical part of the solution to rapidly building out the clean energy infrastructure of the future we need to fight climate change, while respecting and upholding important environmental laws that safeguard our air, water, and land. Heat waves, dangerous storms, and catastrophic floods exacerbated by climate change are already wreaking havoc on our daily lives and endangering vulnerable communities. When it comes to accelerating our energy transition, we don’t have to make a false choice between clean energy and protecting communities impacted by energy development. We thank Senator Markey for introducing this legislation that will help us transition away from dirty fossil fuels, produce more clean energy here at home, and lower consumer energy bills.”

In June 2023, Earthjustice joined a coalition of environmental and environmental justice organizations in releasing a set of transmission principles providing actionable steps policymakers can take to meet growing demand for renewable energy while protecting communities. The CHARGE Act includes many of those solutions.