Modernizing electricity systems is critical to achieving state energy goals such as reliability and resilience, affordability, economic development, clean energy resources, transportation electrification, and other environmental goals. Electric distribution system planning assesses needed physical and operational changes for the local grid. State and Territory Energy Offices develop plans, programs, policies, and projects that have a substantial impact on electric distribution systems. State Energy Offices also can participate in distribution system planning (DSP) processes to help ensure that utilities - consumer- and investor-owned - meet the state’s future energy needs. Distribution system plans provide a utility's strategic roadmap for investing in grid technologies and systems to achieve the state's energy goals and objectives.

The joint NARUC-NASEO DER Integration and Compensation Initiative (DER I&C Initiative) is designed to support state policymakers in addressing policy and regulatory challenges related to the integration, operation, and compensation of distributed energy resources (DERs) within the distribution grid, bulk power system, and wholesale energy markets. The Initiative will support implementation of FERC Order 2222 in RTO/ISO regions. State oversight of transmission-distribution-customer (TDC) coordination and of aggregated DERs outside of RTO/ISO regions is also included in the scope of this initiative.

DERs are connecting to electric grids at unprecedented rates and are forecast to accelerate. DERs will affect almost every aspect of the utility, wholesale, and retail arrangements. To optimize benefits for states and customers, policy makers will need to consider new technical and economic issues such as how to measure and value the benefits DERs provide; how to compensate DERs for these benefits; grid planning for increased DER penetration; maximizing the value of federal funding; and how aggregated DERs can be managed and leveraged to support resource adequacy and resilience at lower cost than other infrastructure solutions.

The DER I&C Initiative will equip regulators and policy makers with tools, best practices, and peer networks to inform decision making on DERs in their states.

Who
The Initiative and its activities are open to commissioners and staff of all public utility commissions and the staff of state energy offices and state consumer advocates.

What
In 2023-2024, the DER I&C Initiative will build on the latest practices and literature through a three-part curriculum. You will learn through: ​

  • Review of best practices: learn from others to develop practical and actionable policies
  • Peer-to-peer collaboration: foster a trusting cohort of participants to work together on DER challenges
  • Practical problem solving: work with experts to understand challenges and create actionable solutions
  • Resource toolkits: documentation from each module will support ongoing regulatory and policy decisions

The first module, The Modern Landscape, will focus on best practices and lessons learned from actual implementations of aggregated DERs. Module 2 will cover Hot Topics in the aggregated DER space today, while Module 3 will facilitate a Deep Dive into a pressing topic or challenge.

The NARUC-NASEO DER I&C Initiative is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Offices of Electricity and Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy, and facilitated by RMI.

NASEO and the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC)'s initiative "Comprehensive Electricity Planning in an Era of Load Growth" will develop state-led pathways toward a more resilient, efficient, and affordable grid that meets current and future electricity needs across the U.S. This initiative builds on past work by the NARUC-NASEO Task Force on Comprehensive Electricity System Planning.

For the first time in decades, utilities are projecting significant load growth due to rising power requirements from data centers, manufacturing facilities, transportation, and buildings. Emerging technologies, evolving cost profiles, consumer preferences, energy provider options, and state and local efforts are driving the need for a variety of electricity sources and responses. Investment decisions increasingly require comprehensive electricity system planning that considers customer, distribution system, resource, and transmission needs and capabilities. States can establish planning frameworks to guide how a full range of options are considered to promote economic growth and avoid unnecessary costs. The joint NASEO-NAURC Comprehensive Electricity Planning Initiative is designed to support state in better understanding forecasting, modeling, planning techniques, and both demand- and supply-side options for meeting projected load growth.

NASEO and NARUC thank the U.S. Department of Energy for supporting this initiative.

Who?

Any NASEO state member is invited to join the initiative! The Initiative and its activities are open to State Energy Offices, public utility commissions, and state consumer advocates. ​

What?

  • The Comprehensive Electricity Planning Initiative will host two in-person workshops, starting in spring 2025. Participants will benefit from virtual peer sharing and expert learning sessions throughout 2025-2026.
  • Participants will be guided through an educational, creative, and collaborative process to develop multiple approaches for aligning distribution, resource, and transmission planning to respond to new loads.
  • Members will receive expert support for select modeling runs to improve their understanding of capabilities and options.
  • Outputs will include updated roadmaps and resources for comprehensive electricity planning and modeling for all state decision-makers.
  • The series will be professionally facilitated and supported by technical experts.
  • Opportunities for input from stakeholders and regulated entities will be provided.

For more information or to apply, please submit an expression of interest to:

Previous Efforts:

  • From 2019 to 2020, 15 state teams of NARUC and NASEO members developed innovative visions for how electricity system planning could be improved through the NARUC-NASEO Task Force on Comprehensive Electricity System Planning. Members created five distinct roadmaps and related resources that describe how the building blocks of historically siloed resource, distribution, and transmission planning processes can be reconfigured for greater alignment, increased transparency, and more robust stakeholder engagement.
  • NASEO-NARUC Training for States on Integrated Distribution System Planning 1.0: Planning for Load Growth and Local Resources (April 30 - May 1, 2025):
  • NASEO-NARUC DER Integration and Compensation Initiative Module 3 Workshops
    • Workshop 1: Foundations of Modern Distribution Planning, August 13, 2024 (presentations, summary report)
    • Workshop 2: Tools & Analyses for Distribution Planning, September 17, 2024, and October 10, 2024 (presentations, summary report)
    • Workshop 3: Leveraging Grid Planning to Inform Decision Making, November 20, 2024 
  • NASEO-NARUC DER Integration and Compensation Initiative Module 2 Workshops
  • NASEO-NARUC DER Integration and Compensation Initiative Module 1 Webinars:​
  • NASEO-NARUC DER Integration and Compensation Initiative Webinar: Grid Modernization Strategies to Accelerate Deployment of DERs, April 2023 (recording, presentation)
  • NARUC-NASEO Webinar: Grid Investments for FERC Order 2222, January 27, 2023 (recording, presentation)
  • NARUC-NASEO Distributed Energy Resource Integration and Compensation Workshop
    • DER-Bulk Power System Coordination, September 20, 2022 (presentation)
    • DER Integration through Advancing Interconnection, September 21, 2022 (presentation)
  • Distribution, NASEO Event Recordings: DER Aggregation Participation in Electricity Markets: NASEO and NARUC Webinar on EPRI Collaborative Forum Final Report and FERC Order 2222 Roadmap Confirmation, June 2, 2022 (recording, report)