Today we review a draft of an article that covers, in our view, an obvious oversight in the 2026 National Electrical Code. It is an expansion of a proposal already submitted to the National Electrical Code Technical Correlating Committee and will support challenges to its adoption into the 2029 NEC revision. Use the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.
Restore the NESC to the Front End of the NEC
Michael A. Anthony | Glenn T. Keates
Abstract. It may seem like a small thing — to restore the cross-reference to the IEEE National Electrical Safety Code (NESC) at the front end of the NFPA National Electrical Code (NEC) where it used to be — but it is not. This paper explains why restoration of the NEC’s peer document is necessary in the 2029 Edition of the NEC, now under development.
The reasons are both technical and cultural, touching on a minefield of sensitivities about safety, sustainability, and economic development associated with the data center (artificial intelligence) zeitgeist.
Customer owned interactive sources are not new. Customer-owned load-side electric services at transmission voltages for private developers and university-adjacent hyperscale installations present consideration are new.[x]
The NESC, in contrast, maintains a clear “handshake” reference to the NEC in its Scope statement (Section 011). This paper argues for the restoration of a prominent NESC cross-reference in NEC Article 90.2(A)(2) for the 2029 edition. The proposal (Public Input No. 3687-NFPA 70-2026) has already been submitted to NFPA Technical Committee CMP-1.
Mike Anthony and University of Michigan Electrical Engineer Colleagues
Glenn Keates with University of Michigan IEEE Students during March 2026 Scoreboard Tour
