Tennessee U.S. Representatives Tim Burchett (R-TN-02) and Steve Cohen (D-TN-09) reintroduced a bipartisan bill in the House of Representatives that would require the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) to work to ensure its decision-making process is publicly available.
The Tennessee Valley Authority Transparency Act would require TVA to hold all of its board of director meetings in public and “provide public notice of no fewer than 6 calendar days” before any meetings. The bill, HR404, would also require the TVA to make minutes and summaries of each meeting accessible to the public.
“The TVA has recently been working to improve its transparency, and I was proud to introduce this bill last year to ensure those efforts continued,” Congressman Burchett said in a statement. “TVA transparency is no less important this year than it was last year, so I’m happy to bring this bill back to the House as part of our efforts to improve transparency across the board.”
“I have found the TVA’s lack of transparency in matters of public interest very troubling, so I am proud to cosponsor my friend Tim Burchett’s legislation. This is a commonsense and overdue reform that will give TVA’s customers, including ratepayers in Memphis, a better understanding and insight into its operations,” Congressman Cohen added.
The bill was referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, which Congressman Burchett was recently appointed to serve on.
The reintroduction of the bill comes just weeks after TVA issued rolling blackout mandates for 153 local power companies in response to cold temperatures driving up the power demand during the holidays. As a result, TVA announced that a “thorough review” is in place of the events leading up to its rolling blackout mandates, The Tennessee Star previously reported.
The bill also comes shortly after TVA announced that it will be retiring its Cumberland Fossil Plant and replacing it with a natural gas plant.
We will build a 1,450 MW combined cycle natural gas plant on the Cumberland site to replace one retired coal unit to maintain reliable power to our customers. Natural gas enables the integration of renewables, such as solar & battery storage.
More info: https://t.co/FTSqDalUpI pic.twitter.com/LRrWdkSo1Z— Tennessee Valley Authority (@TVAnews) January 10, 2023
Congressman Cohen argued TVA’s replacement plan would “lead to more pollution, more blackouts and more disasters.”
TVA plans to build a NEW gas plant despite pleas from hundreds of constituents and the @EPA.@TVAnews claims gas is a “bridge” to more renewable but this bridge is falling apart and will lead to more pollution, more blackouts and more disasters.https://t.co/xd1lp4CiPk
— Steve Cohen (@RepCohen) January 10, 2023
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Photo “Tim Burchett” by Congressman Tim Burchett. Photo “Steve Cohen” by Congressman Steve Cohen. Background Photo “U.S. Capitol” by JamesDeMers.
