FERC must reject big power rate hikes that hurt people.
S. 5306 — Affordable Electricity Rates Act of 2026 · Filed by Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) · Introduced Aug 6, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill changes the Federal Power Act. It tells FERC to think about whether rates will make power too costly. If a rate goes up more than 5%, FERC must say no. A company can try to prove the rate is okay. People get a new legal way to fight rate hikes.
Who it affects
People who buy power gain a new shield. FERC must think about cost when it approves rates. FERC must reject rates that jump 5% or more unless a company proves it is fine.
One thing to notice
The bill does not say what proof a company needs to show a rate hike is okay. The bill does not explain how FERC should balance cost against other goals like grid safety.
From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.
Where it stands
- Aug 6, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
- Aug 6, 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.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (1,322 characters) on Aug 13, 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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