Virginia SCC data center transmission cost order (2026)
Virginia — SCC Order Directing Dominion to Develop Direct Assignment of Transmission Costs to Large-Load Data Centers (2026)
Virginia · Va. State Corp. Comm'n, Dominion Energy Va. Rider T-1 proceeding (2026)
- Status
- In effect
- Took effect
- July 15, 2026
- Applies to
- Dominion Energy Virginia, which must develop the direct-assignment policy; data centers and other large-load customers interconnecting to transmission facilities.
- Enforced by
- Virginia State Corporation Commission
The Virginia State Corporation Commission ordered Dominion Energy to develop a policy directly assigning the cost of transmission infrastructure to data centers and other large-load customers that connect to it — with the stated goal of an acceptable and symmetrical approach to assigning costs in those circumstances. The order came out of Dominion's proposed change to Rider T-1, the line item recovering transmission investment, which the utility wanted increased to recover roughly $1.5 billion. The numbers make the effect legible: under Dominion's original filing a residential customer using 1,000 kilowatt-hours would have paid about $2.90 more per month. Under the new allocation methodology that falls to about $0.94. The Piedmont Environmental Council described it as a first step toward requiring large-load data centers to pay for transmission facilities built solely to serve them. Virginia had already established a separate rate class for large data centers by regulatory action in 2025, and the 2026 General Assembly passed SB 253 and HB 1393 requiring that large load customers have no adverse effect on other customers' rates. This order is the SCC applying that principle to transmission specifically, in the state with by far the largest data center concentration in the country.
Who is protected: Virginia residential and general-service ratepayers on the Dominion system, whose transmission rider exposure is reduced from roughly $2.90 to roughly $0.94 per month at 1,000 kWh by assigning large-load transmission costs directly.
Legal detail
Virginia State Corporation Commission order in Dominion Energy Virginia's Rider T-1 proceeding, argued July 14, 2026. Directs Dominion to develop a policy — reported elsewhere as a new tariff — directly assigning the cost of transmission infrastructure to data centers and other large-load customers interconnecting to those facilities, with the stated objective of an acceptable and symmetrical cost-assignment approach. Quantified effect on residential bills: Dominion's original filing sought recovery of more than $1.5 billion in transmission costs, which would have added approximately $2.90 per month for a residential customer at 1,000 kWh; the revised allocation methodology reduces that to approximately $0.94 per month. Regulatory lineage: Virginia regulators established a separate rate class for large data centers with stronger long-term payment requirements in 2025; the 2026 General Assembly enacted SB 253 / HB 1393 mandating that large load customers have no adverse effect on rates paid by other customers (see VA Data Center Cost-Allocation Law, effective 2026-07-01). This order applies that statutory principle to transmission cost allocation. Distinct from New GS-5 Data Center / Large Load Rate Class, DEV 2025 Biennial Review… (2025-11-25), an earlier SCC matter already indexed. Case number and the precise order date were not obtained; effective_date is recorded as the day after the July 14 argument and should be confirmed against the docket.
Key facts
| Jurisdiction | Virginia |
|---|---|
| Level | State |
| Strength | Moderate |
| Enacted | July 15, 2026 |
| Citation | Va. State Corp. Comm'n, Dominion Energy Va. Rider T-1 proceeding (2026) |
| Private right of action | No, agency enforcement only |
| Penalties | Cost assignment is enforced through the approved tariff; no separate penalty provision |
| Topics | data-center siting and energy · consumer protection · government use of AI |
| Legal analysis | The Virginia SCC takes important first step of requiring large-load data centers to pay for transmission facilities constructed solely to serve them — Piedmont Environmental Council |
More AI rules in Virginia
- Virginia FY2026-2028 Biennial Budget: Data Center Electricity Tax… · Enacted (not yet in effect)
- Virginia § 15.2-1723.2 (facial recognition by local law enforcement, eff. July 1, 2026) · In effect
- Virginia IVO AI Safety Study (SB 384/HB 797, 2026) · In effect
- Virginia VITA EA400 AI Utilization Policy (Executive Branch AI deployment standard, 2026) · In effect
- Virginia § 15.2-2209.5 data center siting disclosure law (2026) · In effect
- Virginia EO 22 (2026) — data center accountability + AI task force · In effect
Related data-center siting and energy rules elsewhere
- Superior WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Dane County WI Hyperscale Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- Madison WI Data Center Moratorium (1-year) · In effect
- Manitowoc County WI Data Center Moratorium · In effect
- WA SB 5982 (Data Center / Clean Energy) · In effect
- Dayton OH data center moratorium (180-day, Apr 2026) · In effect
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