A growing chorus of Texas lawmakers is calling on the state’s electric grid managers and utility regulators to halt an expansive and increasingly controversial project to build transmission lines that would cut through several thousand acres of private property to deliver electricity to oil companies in the West Texas oil fields.
State Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, on Friday said that the Public Utility Commission of Texas should reject the applications to build the infrastructure. The Legislature would work on changing the application process — that they first created in 2023 — next year, when lawmakers meet for their 90th legislative session, he added in a letter.
“These concerns demonstrate the need for a complete overhaul of the … process before these applications can advance,” Schwertner, who chairs the Senate Committee on Business and Commerce, wrote.
Backing Schwertner’s letter on Friday, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on X wrote that while the transmission lines were necessary, they should not come at the expense of private property rights.
“The testimony made it abundantly clear the current process being utilized by the PUC for proposing and approving transmission lines is broken and must be reformed,” Patrick wrote, referring to a legislative hearing earlier this week. “If these lines are going to be built, which many believe must be built, then the PUC’s transmission approval process must not only prioritize strengthening the grid, but also protect Texas landowners and communities.”
Schwertner’s and Patrick’s comments follow a tense legislative hearing earlier this week regarding the Permian Basin Reliability Plan, a transmission project designed by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, the state’s grid managers. More than 100 people testified — Tanya Tucker, the American country singer, broke out in song — for 15 hours before a panel of lawmakers, saying residents did not have sufficient notice from utilities or the administrative process surrounding the proposal.
Many called for regulators to reject a proposal to build three 765kv transmission lines to carry electricity from East to West Texas and satisfy the growing electricity demands of the state’s oil and gas industry. If built, such lines would be the biggest transmission lines in Texas. And residents expressed concerns about the damage construction of these lines would cause along some of the routes, including swaths of Central Texas, where many rivers cut through Hill Country. It is estimated to cost about $33 billion, a cost that ratepayers will foot.
“I joined hundreds of landowners who waited all day to testify at the Capitol. Multigenerational landowners and new property owners alike delivered the same message: These lines are misguided, the routing options are poor, and they threaten Texas and our way of life,” said Jada Jo Smith, founder and president of Hill Country Preservation Coalition, a group consisting of landowners whose property is in the route the lines would cross. “We hope the PUC heeds the concerns of the Legislature and thousands of Texas landowners by denying the current applications.”
The utility commission did not respond to requests for comment by the time of publication.
Mark Bell, president of the Association of Electric Companies of Texas, said the group supports further review of the proposed routes for the transmission lines.
“As we heard during Wednesday’s hearing, it’s become clear that the existing transmission routing process has been inadequate for the geographic expanse of these projects, and we will continue to work with affected landowners, communities, legislative leaders and all stakeholders as we meet our shared goal of a stronger, more reliable Texas grid,” Bell said.
Oncor Electric, a transmission company building much of the planned lines, said it was reviewing the comments made by state officials today and emphasized the need to proceed with construction as planned.
“As emphasized by state regulators and grid operators during this week’s Senate hearing, the timely implementation of these projects remains critical for meeting Texas’ growing energy needs and maintaining the reliability of our state’s electric grid,” said Kerri Dunn, senior communications director for Oncor. “We have consistently engaged with state officials and landowners throughout the development of these projects and are committed to continuing to work with them to help address concerns while supporting the infrastructure essential to Texas’ future.”
The plan to build the transmission lines was approved by lawmakers during the 2023 legislative session. The bill directed ERCOT to draw the blueprint for new transmission lines, and the utility commission to approve it. At the time, it received little pushback. The proposal passed with near-unanimous support in the Texas House and Senate.
The oil and gas industry has spent years pushing for the proposal in Austin, arguing that there is not enough electricity to power fossil fuel production. Industry leaders told the Texas Tribune that the project should not be delayed.
Todd Staples, president of the Texas Oil and Gas Association, an industry trade group, said there is a critical shortage of electricity transmission in the Permian Basin that is preventing new production.
“This has been needed for more than 10 years, and while West Texas’ needs have not been met, West Texans have been paying for build-out of new transmission in Houston, in San Antonio, in the Rio Grande Valley, and West Texans have been paying for that. And West Texas producers who are fortunate enough to be connected to the grid have been paying for that,” Staples said. “And now, when it’s time to build-out West Texas, we’re saying let’s wait. But every year, hundreds of billions, if not billions, are built around this state. This is not a new concept.”
On Wednesday, lawmakers said they didn’t believe the bill called for a project of this magnitude. They pressed regulators for hours about its scale and costs and questioned whether the timeline residents have to consider such projects is enough.
“If we’re going to confiscate people’s property, we need to make sure that we have taken every opportunity … any other possible ways that we can solve the problem before we do that,” said state Sen. Kevin Sparks, R-Midland, whose district would stand to benefit from the proposal.
State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brennan, said that the proposal should be paused.
“I just want to make sure that we are fully aware. We voted on House Bill 5066, and I’m not sure we knew what that was going to become,” Kolkhorst said. “I just want to make sure we’re doing this right.”
— Paul Cobler contributed to this story.
The Texas Oil & Gas Association has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in The Texas Tribune’s journalism. Find a complete list of them here.
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
Photo: Texas lawmakers said they need to rewrite a plan to get more energy to West Texas after residents aross the state raised concerns over proposed high-voltage lines. Evan L’Roy/The Texas Tribune
Topics Texas Legislation