Harmonizing the Electricity Sectors across North America: Recommendations and Action Items from Two RFF/US Department of Energy Workshops

To address a number of the recommendations included in the US Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Quadrennial Energy Review (QER), Resources for the Future—in concert with DOE, two partners (the International Institute for Sustainable Development and Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México) and two host institutions (Boise State University and the University of New Mexico)—held two workshops in October 2015, looking at the electricity sectors in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The workshops had several purposes. First, to identify gaps, best practices, and inconsistencies with regulations and electricity system planning across the three large North American countries; second, to inform the creation of legal, regulatory, and policy roadmaps for harmonizing regulations and planning; and third, to bring together individuals who can help implement greater harmonization, and also others who can offer helpful input. The two workshops examined policies, regulations, and planning associated with the electricity sector, and within this sector, environmental regulations (for air pollution, greenhouse gases, and renewables), and regulations and processes associated with the operation and planning of the electricity system, including generation and transmission. This paper summarizes recommendations and observations of workshop participants. The recommendations include action items for DOE, other government agencies in all three countries, research groups, academics, stakeholders, and others, to move toward greater harmonization of policy and planning affecting the electricity system.