A consumer watchdog group is challenging the U.S. Department of Energy's newly streamlined electricity export rules, arguing they contradict the agency's own findings of nationwide energy emergencies that justify blocking power plant retirements, according to a rehearing request filed July 21. Public Citizen said the DOE should reconsider its final rule on power export authorizations issued June 22, in part because it bars people and organizations from intervening in export approval proceedings or protesting them. If the DOE dismisses the request, the group will "likely" sue the department to overturn the new rule, said Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen's energy program.
The dispute centers on actions the DOE has taken over the past two months. Starting in May 2025, the department began issuing emergency orders under section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act to prevent generating units at six power plants from shutting down as scheduled, citing inadequate power supply across regions. Some of those facilities sit in areas that export electricity to Canada. TransAlta's coal-fired Centralia plant in Washington is among those the DOE ordered to continue operating instead of closing Dec. 31 as planned, with the department pointing to an energy emergency in the Northwest. At the same time, the DOE is reviewing a dozen export authorization applications, including one from TransAlta Energy Marketing (U.S.) seeking to extend its authorization to send power to Canada across transmission lines in the Northwest, Midwest and Northeast.
The DOE's streamlined export authorization rule strips away timing, content and reporting requirements for export applications that the previous rule contained, and it limits the ability of organizations to take part in the authorization proceedings, Public Citizen said. Before utilities and power marketers can export electricity, section 202(e) of the Federal Power Act requires a DOE finding that the exports won't "impair the sufficiency of electric supply within the United States." In defending its rule change, the DOE rejected Public Citizen's argument that it conflicts with President Donald Trump's executive order declaring a national energy emergency. Power marketers that export electricity aren't obligated to serve a franchised territory or native load, the department said, adding that "exports are not drawn from resources earmarked for specific domestic customer obligations." The DOE also noted that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the North American Electric Reliability Corp. oversee grid reliability through mandatory reliability standards, with reliability coordinators and balancing authorities having "the authority and responsibility to manage power generation and transmission, ensuring adequate reserves and, when necessary, curtailing or denying scheduled flows, including exports."
Public Citizen countered that the department's reasoning contains flaws. Power marketers aren't the only entities allowed to export electricity, the group said, pointing to utilities such as El Paso Electric, which has two pending export authorizations, and Idaho Power, Portland General Electric and Puget Sound Energy, all of which hold existing export authorizations. "Any export of power (whether earmarked or not) necessarily makes that power unavailable to domestic customers," potentially contributing to inadequate supplies for a region, the group said. The old rules set specific content that export applications had to contain, and removing those requirements makes it difficult for an organization like Public Citizen to assess whether an application should be challenged, the group said. The new rule improperly creates a system under which the DOE will "consider" comments on applications but commenters "lack full party status with the right to seek a hearing or judicial review of adverse Department actions," Public Citizen said. The watchdog's challenge sets up a potential legal battle over whether the DOE can simultaneously declare energy emergencies while making it easier to approve electricity exports.