Maryland Lawmakers Urge Federal Regulators to Stop Shifting Data Center Costs to State Ratepayers

July 28, 2026

Maryland's entire Democratic congressional delegation has formally requested that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission prevent approximately $2 billion in electricity transmission infrastructure costs from being allocated to Maryland ratepayers. These expenses stem from a $22 billion regional transmission expansion driven primarily by data center construction in neighboring states to support artificial intelligence operations. The delegation argues that current cost-allocation rules by PJM Interconnection unfairly burden Maryland consumers with infrastructure costs that primarily benefit wealthy technology companies operating outside the state.

Who is affected

Maryland households and residential customers (facing approximately $823 million in costs)
Maryland businesses and commercial ratepayers
Maryland's Democratic congressional delegation (Senators Chris Van Hollen and Angela Alsobrooks; Representatives Steny Hoyer, Kweisi Mfume, Jamie Raskin, Glenn Ivey, Sarah Elfreth, April McClain Delaney, and Johnny Olszewski)
Data center companies operating in neighboring states
PJM Interconnection (the regional grid operator)
Maryland Office of People's Counsel

What action is being taken

Maryland's congressional delegation is urging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to require PJM Interconnection to revise its cost-allocation rules
The Maryland Office of People's Counsel has filed a complaint with FERC (Docket EL26-63) challenging PJM's transmission cost-allocation methodology
FERC has recently directed PJM and five other regional grid operators to justify or revise how they allocate costs associated with serving large electricity users

Why it matters

This issue has significant financial implications for Maryland consumers already facing rising electricity costs, potentially forcing them to subsidize infrastructure that primarily serves wealthy technology companies in other states. The situation highlights a fundamental fairness question about who should bear the costs of the massive infrastructure buildout required to support artificial intelligence and data center expansion. With forecasts predicting tens of thousands of additional megawatts of data center demand over the next two decades, the precedent set by this case could determine whether Maryland ratepayers face billions of dollars in additional transmission costs for services they don't directly benefit from, and reflects broader national concerns about AI infrastructure's impact on local communities and energy systems.

What's next

The delegation is urging FERC to act expeditiously to provide relief from these costs for Maryland ratepayers
The delegation seeks relief from the billions in costs that PJM has already assigned but have not yet appeared on customer bills
FERC will consider the Maryland Office of People's Counsel's complaint filed in Docket EL26-63

Read full article from source: The Washington Informer