The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission voted unanimously on June 18 to issue Section 206 show-cause orders against all six regional transmission organizations under its jurisdiction, giving PJM, MISO, SPP, CAISO, ISO-NE, and NYISO sixty days to justify or rewrite their large-load interconnection tariffs. Together those grids serve roughly 200 million Americans across more than 30 states and the District of Columbia. ERCOT, which sits outside FERC’s reach, is untouched.

The procedural choice is the story. Rather than open a multi-year notice-of-proposed-rulemaking, FERC reached for a region-specific enforcement tool that’s harder to attack in court as federal overreach. It’s a faster path than the uniform national standard the Department of Energy had pushed for after Secretary Chris Wright’s October 2025 letter asking the commission to accelerate data center connections.

Each RTO also has 30 days to file an informational report explaining how it’ll secure adequate generation for incoming large loads. FERC staff reviewed more than 3,500 pages of public comments before acting, and the orders identify four reform areas: transmission study efficiency, ratepayer cost-shift transparency, generation studies for co-located or electrically proximate loads, and pro forma cost recovery agreements.

“We take historic action to push our country’s electric markets and economy into the future,” Chairman Laura Swett wrote in a concurring statement. Commissioner David LaCerte was blunter, telling the RTOs that “while you may not like our remedies,” the commission will impose them if the operators don’t move first.

A separate July conference on PJM’s governance structure is already on the calendar. The pattern is familiar from earlier FERC eras: when grid institutions can’t metabolize a load shock on their own timeline, Washington shortens the clock.

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