This is the time of year when the legislature is very busy drafting bills to improve government – and improve the lives of Virginians. The Virginia Senate, and the Virginia House of Delegates, have until February 18 to develop and pass proposed legislation within their chambers. Their proposed legislation then goes to the other chamber, which needs to act by the legislature’s adjournment on March 14. Everything approved then goes to the governor.
Legislators appear to clearly recognize that providing enough affordable energy within Virginia is a priority. Energy costs have been rising, even as energy demand increases. Much of the largest new demand for energy is for data centers, with Virginia leading the world. Northern Virginia handles about 70 percent of the world’s internet traffic – an astounding amount! As AI continues to develop and grow, more data centers are being built in Virginia, all needing enormous amounts of energy. This obviously imposes many challenges in generating enough energy and distributing energy over our electrical grid.
We will know soon which energy legislation will move forward, although some big-picture issues seem clear. Very prominent are bills to make better use of the existing electrical grid. For example, Lily Franklin’s bill to provide for a “virtual power plant pilot program” passed unanimously through the House of Delegates. Several similar bills revolve around this issue of making better use of the electrical grid that we already have. More controversial may be Virginia again becoming an active member of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). We were members of a group of 11 eastern states actively reducing carbon emissions from power production, while providing cost relief for low-income power users. Ex Governor Youngkin discontinued Virginia’s membership in this group in 2023, an action that the court declared illegal because it was not within his authority. He appealed, and it has been tied up in the appeals court ever since. Governor Spanberger intends to rejoin this group, an action which may be completed as early as this spring.
It is very clear that the world is turning to renewable energy as the least expensive way to produce more electricity. The most recent reliable source of information I could find shows that globally in 2024 renewable energy contributed 38 percent of new energy growth. Clearly, the entire world is turning to renewables, as the cheapest and best way to produce electricity. It doesn’t require new pipelines or large-scale polluting industrial facilities. Perhaps best of all – the fuel is free! And we will never run out! Current Virginia legislation appears to be recognizing that making this transition is important. Although hard numbers are not available, many claim that Virginia’s lack of participation in the RGGI has cost us a lot of money over the past several years. Others claim that it would have been too expensive. Clearly though we know that by not investing over the past several years, we made no progress in reducing future costs so we will be paying more. The trend is clear around the world that renewable energy is the best way to go forward in meeting current and future energy needs. Our current legislators seem to agree, and it will be interesting to follow over the next few months how Virginia moves forward in meeting its energy needs.
