SENATE DOCKET, NO. 77 FILED ON: 1/7/2025
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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PRESENTED BY:
Bruce E. Tarr
_________________
To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
An Act relative to electricity reliability and capacity.
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PETITION OF:
NAME: DISTRICT/ADDRESS:
Bruce E. Tarr First Essex and Middlesex
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 SENATE DOCKET, NO. 77 FILED ON: 1/7/2025
SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No.
[Pin Slip]
[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE SENATE, NO. 2181 OF 2023-2024.]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
(2025-2026)
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An Act relative to electricity reliability and capacity.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
of the same, as follows:
1 SECTION 1. The Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs, in consultation with
2 the Department of Public Utilities and the Department of Telecommunications and Energy, shall,
3 initially by not later than 1 year following the passage of this act, and every three years
4 thereafter, conduct an assessment of the infrastructure serving the commonwealth for the
5 transmission and distribution of electricity (infrastructure), based on the demand estimates
6 contained in the energy plan required by executive order 569. Said assessment shall include
7 factors including, but not limited to;
8 1. The capacity of current infrastructure to meet current and projected demand for
9 electricity.
10 2. The reliability of the infrastructure to deliver electricity, particularly with regard to
11 adverse weather events and periods of peak demand.
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12 3. The ability of the infrastructure to accommodate the input of electricity from
13 renewable sources, including distributed generation and storage, in a timely, efficient, and
14 effective manner.
15 4. Any and all identifiable current and foreseeable vulnerabilities of the infrastructure .
16 SECTION 2. The secretary, in consultation with the department of public utilities, the
17 department of telecommunications and energy, and the massachusetts clean energy center, shall,
18 based on the assessment produced pursuant to the provisions of section 1, and within nine
19 months following the completion of each such assessment, develop a plan to ensure that the
20 infrastructure described in section 1 has the ability to meet the demand for electricity in the
21 commonwealth reliably, cost-effectively, and with sufficient capacity. Said plan shall incorporate
22 and detail any and all policy, regulatory, statutory, and other actions necessary to achieving these
23 goals in a timely manner, while minimizing, to the greatest extent possible, costs to consumers,
24 and disruptions to existing service. Said actions may include, but not be limited to:
25 1. Requirements for the submission and approval of infrastructure upgrade plans by
26 utilities on an annual or other periodic basis.
27 2. Requirements for the development and approval of necessary studies and plans for the
28 interconnection to energy sources, including storage, within a specified time frame.
29 3. Recommendations for relevant state investment or other financing mechanisms.
30 4. Modified or additional standards or requirements for electric service providers in the
31 commonwealth.
32 5. Any and all other relevant actions, measures, or requirements.
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33 The development of said plan shall include not less than three public hearings in
34 geographically diverse regions of the state, and consultation with stakeholders including but not
35 limited to, utility entities serving the commonwealth, environmental organizations in the
36 commonwealth, consumer advocacy organizations in the commonwealth, organizations
37 representing organized labor, suppliers of electricity to Massachusetts consumers, and, to the
38 extent possible, the Independent Systems Operator for New England. Said plan shall be filed,
39 not less than ninety days before any action contained in the plan is initiated, with the Joint
40 Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy, and the clerks of the House and
41 Senate, whom shall post it electronically for public inspection.
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