Gluesenkamp Perez, Newhouse Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Support BPA Recruitment, Retention, and Resiliency to Reduce Costs for Ratepayers

Today, Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (WA-03) and Rep. Dan Newhouse (WA-04) introduced the bipartisan Reliability for Ratepayers Act. The legislation will direct the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to develop a comprehensive compensation plan for all employees.

The compensation plan, reviewed annually, would be based on prevailing compensation in the public sectors of the electric industry and be comparable to consumer-owned utilities in the Western Interconnection. It will help BPA recruit and retain skilled workers, supporting system-wide reliability and helping address a years-long backlog of utility projects that could bring down costs for ratepayers.

“When I go out and speak with skilled workers across our communities, I see a lot of gray hair. To continue to recruit and retain folks in essential public energy jobs, we’ve got to honor their hard work through appropriate compensation,” said Rep. Gluesenkamp Perez. “By introducing the Reliability for Ratepayers Act with Congressman Newhouse, we’ll be able to address critical workforce shortages in our federal power system and begin addressing long-overdue projects that can help keep rates down for Southwest Washington families.”

“Ensuring reliable and affordable energy for our communities requires a strong and capable workforce at the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA),” said Rep. Newhouse. “This bill provides BPA with the flexibility to offer competitive compensation, address hiring and retention challenges, and tackle the backlog of critical projects that impact families and businesses across the Pacific Northwest. By updating BPA’s compensation structure to match industry standards, we can ensure the agency is well-positioned to deliver the reliability ratepayers deserve while strengthening our region’s energy future.”

“The local communities and regional economy of Southwest Washington depend upon a reliable power supply and high voltage grid managed by BPA,” said Cowlitz PUD General Manager Gary Huhta. “Maintaining and operating this complex system requires skilled workers who can be recruited and retained in a highly competitive labor market. The success of BPA and its workforce in performing their critical mission directly impacts the vitality of the communities and industries served by Cowlitz PUD. Congresswoman Gluesenkamp Perez’s legislation will ensure BPA’s workforce is compensated similarly to other public sector electric utilities and strikes the right balance between staying appropriately competitive and not falling behind.”

“BPA plays a critical role in our nation’s energy infrastructure, and reliability, making its performance essential to energy security, national security, and economic vitality. As the energy sector becomes more competitive, BPA’s ability to recruit and retain top talent is fundamental to ensuring the reliability of the Pacific Northwest’s power grid and its contribution to the broader national grid. However, the current compensation structure hinders BPA’s capacity to attract and retain the skilled workforce needed to fulfill this mission,” said Pacific PUD Power Resources Manager Humaira Falkenberg. “This adjustment will ensure BPA remains a strong, reliable leader in advancing national energy security, safeguarding critical infrastructure, bolstering domestic energy supply, and supporting the resilience of the national power system. Pacific PUD supports the goal of this important legislation and looks forward to working with Reps. Gluesenkamp Perez and Newhouse towards its enactment.”

“The mission of the Public Power Council is to preserve and enhance the benefits of the Federal Columbia River Power System marketed by the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) for both consumer-owned utilities and the communities they serve.  In recent years, the ability of BPA to recruit and retain talented employees has become increasingly more difficult given that BPA salaries are not commensurate with similar positions throughout the region,” said Scott Simms, CEO and Executive Director of the Public Power Council. “The legislation introduced today by Reps. Gluesenkamp Perez and Newhouse goes a long way toward encouraging a competitive and talented workforce for the betterment of the region. PPC applauds bipartisan work and the continued commitment of ensuring reliable, affordable power for the Northwest.”

“Providing BPA with the authority to competitively compensate its staff is one of the single most important changes Congress can make to improve the power sector in the Northwest, particularly for creating the transmission system that the region needs,” said Spencer Gray, Executive Director of the Northwest and Intermountain Power Producers Coalition.

“Independent power producers and marketers deeply appreciate the bipartisan leadership in both chambers to enact this reform,” said Nicole Hughes, Executive Director of Renewable Northwest. “Renewable Northwest believes supporting our region’s largest owner of electricity transmission to hire and retain a well trained workforce is a top priority for supporting our goals of electricity system decarbonization.”

Full text of the bill is available here.