PJM Interconnection acts as a marketplace for utility companies across 13 states and the District of Columbia to purchase the electricity that powers our homes and businesses. The cost ratepayers pay for electricity is directly impacted by PJM’s annual capacity auction, which sets the prices utility companies pay to purchase their electricity from electricity generators. Last year’s auction resulted in historically high prices, which in turn resulted in higher electric bills for ratepayers across the PJM region, including Pennsylvanians. The July 2025 auction saw an additional 22% increase, which would have been even higher without a price cap negotiated by Gov. Shapiro earlier this year.
Pennsylvania families and businesses are already feeling the strain of rising energy bills. As demand for electricity continues to grow, it’s imperative that we find ways to increase the supply of reliable and affordable energy. But just when we should be accelerating the connection of new energy sources to protect ratepayers from volatile price spikes, PJM is instead sitting on a backlog of energy projects ready to be added to the grid, blocking progress, inflating prices, and putting grid stability and reliability at risk.
Our communities deserve a grid operator that works for the people, not one that delays critical projects while forcing residential ratepayers to disproportionately foot the bill for exploding demand, driven by large corporate entities like data centers and AI. If PJM can’t deliver the affordable and reliable energy future Pennsylvanians need, then we must be ready to pursue other alternatives.
My legislation would direct the Public Utility Commission (PUC) to work collaboratively with our neighboring states to explore alternatives to PJM’s capacity and transmission market, ensure the electric grid is prepared for future capacity, and determine the best path forward for a possible withdrawal from PJM. Importantly, this legislation would allow the PUC the flexibility to recommend whether Pennsylvania and its neighboring states should establish their own marketplace or join a different, already existing, marketplace. Their findings and recommendations would then be reported to the Governor and the General Assembly.
Please join me in taking a new approach to protecting Pennsylvania ratepayers and finding workable solutions that put ratepayers and the public interest first.