In Other News · United States · Politics

Source: Axios

Data: Resources for the Future; Note: Central RFF scenario ; Chart: Ben Geman/AxiosThe Senate permitting plan would cut emissions from power plants in the near term and help keep electricity prices down, a new analysis finds.Why it matters: The study from scholars at Resources for the Future, a nonpartisan think tank, offers some of the most detailed independent modeling yet of the bill's effects.It will help inform lobbying and advocacy around the bill ahead of a test vote looming on Nov. 9.Driving the news: The analysis models how the bill would affect the power sector compared with current law and policies. Among the findings from its central scenario:It would drive "robust" transmission expansion (see above), enabling "use of additional clean energy and existing resources of all types."Overall electricity system costs are an estimated 3.5% to 7% lower each year through 2041 compared to a no-bill baseline, saving over $350 billion total through 2050 in present-value terms.That should translate into lower electricity bills for people, co-author Kevin Rennert tells Axios, though the study does not directly model retail prices.The bill would boost the build-out of renewables, partly enabled by expansion of transmission, with added clean energy displacing fossil fuels even though...