United States Government Publishing Office publisher pbl distributor dst United States Government Accountability Office author aut Government Organization text government publication eng GAOREPORTS Legislative Agency Publications gao legislative 2010-08-12 U.S. Government Printing Office 2002-05-24 monographic deposited born digital GA 1.13:GAO-02-427 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-427 P0b002ee180392f90 f:d02427 DGPO 2010-08-12 2011-03-23 GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-427 machine generated eng fdlp REPORT GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-427 GAO-02-427 Competition Electric powerplants Electric utilities Energy marketing Utility rates California Pennsylvania Texas Other Written Product A03409 Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have restructured electricity markets by shifting from service provided through a regulated monopoly to service provided through open competition among the local utilities and their competitors. The restructuring was intended to boost competition and expand consumer choice, increase efficiency, and lower prices. Of the three states GAO studied, Texas had the greatest need for additional electric power, and it added the most new capacity from 1995 through 2001. In contrast, California added 25 percent of the forecasted need for capacity over this period. Although Pennsylvania added less than half of its forecasted need for capacity, the state continues to be a net exporter of electricity to nearby states. The three states have similar processes for approving applications to build and operate new power plants. In all three states, state and local agencies must review the applications to ensure that the developer complies with environmental, land use, and other requirements before issuing the permits necessary to build and operate a power plant. California also has a state energy commission that reviews each power plant application to determine whether the benefits of additional electricity outweigh its likely negative environmental or other effects. Texas' rules for connecting new power plants to the electricity transmission system are less costly for independent developers and are administratively simpler than the approaches used in California and Pennsylvania. In deciding where to build new power plants, independent developers said they weigh a market's risks, including uncertainty about changes in a state's market rules, against expected profits. Higher risks require higher expected profits. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-427/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-427.htm GAO-02-427 https://www.govinfo.gov/app/details/GAOREPORTS-GAO-02-427 Other Written Product GAO-02-427; Restructured Electricity Markets: Three States' Experiences in Adding Generating Capacity; Competition Electric powerplants Electric utilities Energy marketing Utility rates California Pennsylvania Texas