By Julie Tomascik
Editor
Texas lawmakers heard concerns about the potential impacts of proposed 765-kilovolt (kV) transmission projects on farms, ranches and private property.
Stephen Bauer, Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) District 10 state director and a Kerr County rancher, testified on behalf of the organization before the House Committee on State Affairs Aug. 19.
The committee is studying the impacts of proposed 765-kV transmission lines on private property rights.
“Texas Farm Bureau understands the importance of a reliable electric grid. Our members depend on electricity every day, and we recognize that Texas will need infrastructure investments to support continued growth,” Bauer said. “However, projects of this size can have permanent impacts on private property, agricultural operations and rural communities.”
Bauer said those impacts warrant a rigorous demonstration of need and stronger protections for affected landowners before projects are approved.
Landowners have raised concerns that proposed transmission projects are advancing based on long-term forecasts and planning assumptions rather than demonstrated, immediate needs.
The Public Utility Commission of Texas should independently determine whether a project is reasonable and necessary, according to TFB, and thoroughly evaluate reasonable alternatives before approving a project.
Those alternatives could include upgrades to existing infrastructure, advanced technologies and generating electricity closer to where it is needed.
The substantial right-of-way required for a 765-kV transmission line can significantly impact agricultural operations, Bauer said. It can affect irrigation systems, aerial application, pasture management, future improvements and overall productivity. Landowners also face the potential loss of productive acreage, fragmentation of farms and ranches and restrictions on future land use.
Bauer noted concerns TFB and other agricultural organizations have raised about the eminent domain process.
The concerns today echo those debated during previous efforts to reform the eminent domain process. TFB and other agricultural organizations advocated for advance notice to landowners, public meetings along proposed routes and adequate time for affected landowners to participate. Those provisions were not included in legislation passed in 2021.
“It seems, based on the current situation, that those concerns remain just as relevant today,” Bauer said.
The size of the proposed transmission projects also poses questions about how damages to remaining property would be determined through eminent domain proceedings and whether landowners should receive ongoing payments for the long-term impacts of transmission lines.
“Our members believe this is justified to compensate them for the long-term inconvenience created by the transmission line,” Bauer said. “This concept of adequate and fair compensation seems to be particularly appropriate considering the enormity of these transmission lines.”
Projects that cross multiple counties and affect thousands of acres require greater landowner involvement throughout the transmission planning and siting process, Bauer noted.
“The current process simply does not match the size and complexity of these massive transmission projects,” he told the committee. “When routes can cross multiple counties and affect thousands of acres, landowners need more than a notice in the mail.”
TFB urged lawmakers to strengthen requirements for demonstrating need, ensure alternatives are evaluated, improve notice and public participation and consider whether projects of this magnitude warrant another look at the eminent domain process.
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