Leaders of nonprofit electric cooperatives called on the federal government this week to eliminate greenhouse gas standards for gas-fired power plants, arguing the regulations block their ability to respond to soaring electricity demand from data centers and other large users, according to a report published August 20, 2026, by Utility Dive. The rule in question, finalized by the Environmental Protection Agency in 2024, uses a power plant's capacity factor to set emissions limits. Jim Matheson, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, told reporters his group backs the Trump administration's push for a full repeal and is "anxious" to see progress.
The EPA rule targets new gas-fired plants with a capacity factor above 40%, requiring them to meet carbon dioxide standards based on highly efficient combined cycle combustion technology and install carbon capture equipment to capture 90% of all CO2 emissions by 2032, according to notes from law firm Holland and Hart. The agency sent a proposed "Carbon Pollution Standards Repeal" rule to the Office of Management and Budget for review in May 2026, but the 90-day review deadline passed in August with no action from OMB. The three co-op executives who joined Matheson on Wednesday's call represent organizations covering roughly 60% of the cooperative family across the United States, according to CEO David Tudor of Associated Electric Cooperative.
Matheson said the rule's 40% capacity threshold and carbon capture requirement are "untenable," and he doesn't believe the regulation can be modified "in a way that makes sense." He told reporters carbon capture and sequestration technologies "are not commercially viable." Oglethorpe Power Corp. CEO Annalisa Bloodworth called the rule "deeply flawed" and "genuinely … the most irrational environmental regulation I've personally encountered in my career," adding that a complete repeal is "what we need to be able to plan and to invest with confidence." Todd Brickhouse, CEO of Basin Electric Power Cooperative, said meeting data center demand with renewable energy backed by diesel isn't practical because of data centers' "very high load factor" — if it's a 1,000-MW facility, it will consume close to 900 MW or 1,000 MW around the clock.
The co-op leaders' frustration centers on a mismatch between the rule's design and the operational reality of serving data centers, which run at near-constant load. Brickhouse explained that while renewables make up 30% of Basin's generation portfolio, wind turbines in his region have capacity factors around 40%, making them unreliable for data centers that operate at 95% to 100% load factor year-round. From a reliability standpoint, he said, co-ops need generating units like combined cycle facilities that can match that constant demand. Matheson acknowledged the Trump administration "clearly understands our issues" but said he lacks "insight on what goes on behind closed doors" regarding the repeal's status, describing the situation as "a significant threat to our ability to do our job."
The co-ops' push comes as the proposed repeal sits in regulatory limbo, with no public timeline for OMB action despite the missed deadline. Matheson framed the stakes plainly: "We all understand all the factors that are driving increased demand for power in this country. We all understand that natural gas is the go-to for new generation in this country." Without a repeal, co-op executives warn they can't confidently plan or invest in the gas-fired capacity they say is essential to keeping pace with data center growth and other large loads that require round-the-clock, reliable power.