# 119-s-3926: E-Access Act

119-s-3926, E-Access Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-10).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3926
- As of: 2026-09-10
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-3926
- Congress: 119
- Title: E-Access Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-02-26
- Sponsor: Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Energy
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-10

## Summary

**Expands consumer access to utility energy and gas usage data** by creating federal model rules for data sharing, privacy, and third-party access to spur apps and smarter energy use. It would also set state certification and support mechanisms and require a report on using meter data in wholesale market settlements. - Households and consumers would gain standardized, privacy-protected access to retail electric and natural gas usage and cost information so they can use third-party apps to manage energy and bills. - State energy offices could seek federal certification that their rules meet the model guidelines and be eligible for technical and grant-like support, backed by a $10 million appropriation for fiscal year 2026. - Utilities, developers, and market operators would follow jointly issued model data-sharing guidelines due within 180 days that specify formats, consent, security, and use Green Button Connect My Data as the exchange standard, and a required one-year report would analyze sending meter data to wholesale markets for settlement. *Would authorize $10 million for FY2026 to support state implementation, increasing federal spending by $10 million.*

## Cosponsors (1)

- Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD] (D-MD), 2026-02-26T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- National rules for utility data: benefit, high. This bill would require the Energy Department and FERC to issue joint national rules within 180 days for sharing electric and gas customer data. The rules would require machine-readable access at no extra charge, at least 24 months of history, and near-real-time data where practicable. They would s…
- More competition for energy apps: benefit, medium. This bill would add a new federal program to promote competition in digital energy management tools. The program would aim to give consumers access to their residential and commercial electric and gas usage data and to support apps and services that help manage energy use and bills. It would also s…
- Grants to states for energy data: benefit, low. This bill would let State energy offices seek certification that their consumer data access policies meet the national guidelines. States the Secretary certifies would be eligible for federal assistance to implement consumer energy information programs. The bill would authorize $10,000,000 for fisc…
- Study on meter data settlement: mixed, low. This bill would require the Energy Department and FERC to jointly report within one year on the costs and benefits of sending customer meter data to wholesale electricity markets for settlement. The report would count customers with advanced metering, estimate customers and megawatts lacking meter-…

## Related bills

- 119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act
- 119-s-5283: Momnibus Act
- 119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-s-2823: FAMILY Act
- 119-s-2763: Keep Billionaires Out of Social Security Act
- 119-s-3869: Healthy Families Act

## Sources
- [119-s-3926 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/3926)

## Related
- [119-s-2819: Head Start for America's Children Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2819)
- [119-s-5283: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5283)
- [119-s-3990: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3990)
- [119-s-2823: FAMILY Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2823)
- [119-s-2763: Keep Billionaires Out of Social Security Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2763)
- [119-s-3869: Healthy Families Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3869)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3926 (as of 2026-09-10).