Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 465.
Congressional Research Service
Official summary
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Mar 25, 2004
Electric Reliability Act of 2004 - Amends the Federal Power Act to extend Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) jurisdiction for purposes of approving reliability standards and enforcing compliance with this Act over a FERC-certified electric reliability organization (ERO), a regional entity, and users, owners, and operators of a bulk-power system.
Prescribes procedural guidelines for: (1) certification as an ERO; (2) filing of reliability standards; and (3) imposition of penalties by either an ERO or FERC for noncompliance with this Act.
Requires an ERO to file with FERC for approval of any proposed rule or rule change.
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
Read full official summaryShow less
Urges the President to negotiate international agreements with the governments of Canada and Mexico to provide for effective compliance with reliability standards and the efficacy of the ERO in the United States, Canada or Mexico.
Requires an ERO to assess periodically the reliability and adequacy of the interconnected bulk-power system in North America.
Directs FERC to establish a regional advisory body upon the petition of at least two-thirds of the States within a region that have more than half of their electric loads served within the region.
Declares this Act inapplicable to Alaska or Hawaii.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 18, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Explore the bill from different angles
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Neutral evidence review
Objective
Analyze S.2236 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
View full prompt & sources
Fairness and public impact
Progressive lens
Examine S.2236 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
View full prompt & sources
Institutions and government scope
Conservative lens
Examine S.2236 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
View full prompt & sources
Individual rights and government power
Liberty lens
Examine S.2236 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.