Red Tape and Rising Demand: Governors Talk Energy

At the 2026 Winter Meeting, Politico reporter Josh Siegel moderated a discussion with Alaska Governor Mike Dunleavy, North Dakota Governor Kelly Armstrong, U.S. Virgin Islands Governor Albert Bryan Jr. and West Virginia Governor Patrick Morrisey on the pressing energy challenges and opportunities facing their states and territories. The discussion focused on strategies to streamline regulations, expand infrastructure, and deliver reliable, affordable power for the future.

Here are some key takeaways from the discussion:

• States and territories are leaning into their natural advantages for energy development, such as unique climates, available infrastructure like gas and fiber optics, and abundant land and fresh water, to expand energy and attract AI data center investment.
• Consumer cost protection is non-negotiable. Every Governor stressed that rising energy demand from data centers must not result in higher rates for everyday consumers, or they risk losing public support for development entirely.
• Federal permitting must be streamlined. All panelists agreed the federal permitting process is too slow, duplicative, and unpredictable. As a result, it is a major bottleneck to both energy and data infrastructure buildout.
• Permit uncertainty across federal administrations is the central challenge. Governors expressed frustration at the pendulum swing on project approvals, agreeing that long-term investment in large projects requires stability that transcends election cycles.
• Energy agnosticism is the key to a lasting deal on permitting. Governors repeatedly said that permitting reform only works politically if it applies equally to all energy sources so neither side can weaponize it.
• Linear infrastructure is uniquely vulnerable to permitting uncertainty. Pipelines and transmission lines are especially exposed to permitting delays because a single point of opposition can stop an entire multi-state project.
• Congress must codify reforms into law. Executive orders and Administrative actions are seen as fragile. Permitting reform and anti-lawfare measures need to be locked into statute to give investors a runway of certainty.
• The stakes are geopolitical, not just economic. Noting that we are in a world-wide technological competition, the Governors believe America's ability to build energy and data infrastructure quickly is a national security issue, not just a policy debate.

Watch the full session below, or on YouTube.