The U.S. electric grid–the wires that connect power-plants to homes and businesses–could use a major facelift. In general, control over the flow of electricity on the grid has not kept pace with burgeoning communication improvements made in other areas of the economy, and the National Academies of Science and Engineering have characterized the U.S. grid as an “amalgamation of outdated technologies”  (America’s Energy Future: Technology and Transformation).

Implementation of “Smart Grid” technology at the distribution level could provide real-time information on electricity pricing to customers, who could then adjust electricity consumption patterns according to a varying price for electricity. On the long-distance electricity transmission end, the Co-chairs of the National Commission on Energy Policy, in an open letter to Senator Harry Reid, affirm that modernization of the long-distance electricity transmission system would encourage development of renewable wind and solar power resources.

Title IV of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act commits $4.5 billion in federal funding for stimulus projects related specifically to electricity delivery and reliability, and it is critical for government agencies to allocate these funds effectively, and follow-through with policy to encourage further investment. Wind farms and distributed generation solar panels have the potential to provide lots of clean power, but they need a robust, technologically-advanced, and well-funded electricity grid to fully connect supply with demand.