Bill funds microgrids to make power grids stronger and more reliable.
S. 5159 — STRONG GRID Act of 2026 · Filed by Peter Welch (D-VT) · Introduced Jul 29, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
The bill gives $500 million over five years to states. States use the money to help build microgrids. Microgrids are small power systems that can work alone if the main grid fails. The bill also sets up a $200 million federal program. This program tests new microgrid ideas. States must think about new rules for microgrids and report back. States do not have to follow the rules.
Who it affects
Rural areas and low-income communities get priority for the money. State energy offices will run the grant programs. Electric companies, microgrid builders, and engineering firms can apply for grants.
One thing to notice
States can reject the microgrid standards without any penalty. Rural and low-income areas may have trouble getting grants. They must pay 25 percent of the cost themselves.
From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.
Where it stands
- Jul 29, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
- Jul 29, 2026 — Referred to Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
Words to know
- microgrid — A small power system that can make and store electricity and work alone.
- standards — Official rules that say how something must be built or how it must work.
- grants — Money the government gives to states or groups to pay for a project.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (19,673 characters) on Aug 12, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,707 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-23.
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