By Dave Clark
Friends of the San Saba River (FOSS)
Landowners impacted by the Permian Basin 765kV transmission lines will benefit from the recent Texas election results. Governor-elect Gina Hinojosa raised concerns about the impact of 765kV transmission lines on property owners’ rights during the campaign.
Hinojosa is required to nominate three of the five Public Utility commissioners when she takes office, and she can designate a different PUC commissioner to serve as chair anytime. The new governor’s PUC commissioner appointments are likely to affect how the PUC handles pending 765kV transmission line applications and data centers.
Hinojosa explains her position about 765kV transmission lines on her campaign website:
“We know that the state needs improved grid reliability and better ways to get wind, solar, and other clean and affordable energy onto the grid, but we cannot simply trample on the rights of property owners to build 765kV transmission lines in record time because high-load users demand it. Gina wants to involve stakeholders, use least harm routes, and go through proper notice and comment timelines.”
Hinojosa also said she will direct the PUC to freeze residential customers rates until laws are passed to ensure data centers and other high-load users pay for themselves, saying she also wants an immediate moratorium on data centers until the legislature can put in place real protections for Texans.
Two of the five PUC Commissioners were appointed by Gov. Abbott after the legislature adjourned in 2025, and the term for one other PUC Commissioner has expired.
The Texas Constitution requires the governor-elect to appoint individuals to fill these three positions at the beginning of her term, and appointed PUC Commissioners are subject to advice-and-consent confirmation by two-thirds of the Texas Senate.
The PUC and the Texas Legislature oversee the Energy Reliability Council of Texas board of directors. The ERCOT board selection committee appoints eight of the 12 ERCOT directors, and the remaining four serve as ex-officio members. The governor, Lt. governor, and speaker of the house each appoint one of the three members of the ERCOT board selection committee.
Other Elected Officials
Lt Governor-elect Vikki Goodwin has also called for a pause on new data center construction until comprehensive legislation is passed and she aligned herself with rural Texas landowners and ranchers during her campaign.
Republican senators will control the Texas Senate next year, with 19 of the 31 seats. The Republican majority could change the senate’s internal rules to reduce the legislative power of the lieutenant governor.
Rep. Senfronia Thompson (D-Houston) said she has secured pledges from a majority of the 150 Texas House members to become the next speaker of the house. Thompson currently serves on the House State Affairs Committee, and she participated in the hearing on 765kV transmission lines on Aug. 19.
Attorney General-elect Nathan Johnson currently serves on the Senate Business & Commerce Committee, and he participated in the 15-hour hearing on the Texas Electric Grid and 765kV transmission lines on July 29.
Both Republican and Democratic senators on the committee concluded the approval process for 765kV transmission lines needs significant reform.
Chairman Charles Schwertner noted lack of proper notice from utilities, shortened timelines for the PUC proceedings, and due process concerns and he concluded “These concerns demonstrate the need for a complete overhaul of the process before these applications can advance.”
Agriculture Commissioner-elect Clayton Tucker opposes 765kV transmission lines and calls for no new 765kV lines until the legislature approves them and better grid planning practices are implemented. Tucker was a speaker at the landowner rally on the steps of the Texas Capitol for the Aug. 19 House State Affairs Committee 765kV hearing.
Permian Basin 765kV Transmission Lines
The PUC has extended the time they can act on the rehearing motions for the Dinosaur to Drill Hole north 765kV transmission line to Dec. 7, and for the Howard Solstice south 765kV transmission line to Dec. 28.
On Sept. 11, the PUC remanded (i.e. returned) the Bell County East to Sand Lake middle 765kV transmission line (Bell County East) to the State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) Administrative Law Judges (ALJs). It could be late November or December before the Bell County East 765kV application returns to the PUC.
On Aug. 20, the Bell County East ALJs recommended the PUC deny the applications for the middle 765kV line because Oncor and LCRA TSC, the applicants, (1) failed to show the middle 765kV line was needed, and (2) violated public meeting requirements for 1400 landowners located on 400 miles of new route links added when the application was filed.
The foregoing actions by the PUC could delay approval of all three Permian Basin 765kV transmission lines until December, which would be weeks before the next regular legislative session starts on Jan. 12, 2027. Legislators started filing bills on Monday, Nov. 9, 2026. Some legislators have said they will file reform legislation for 765kV transmission line applications.
765kV Landowners Benefit
Landowners impacted by the 765kV transmission lines will benefit from the recent Texas election results, the position of elected officials on 765kV transmission lines, and Governor-elect Hinojosa’s appointment of three PUC Commissioners and her possible designation of a new PUC Chair. Governor-elect Hinojosa’s PUC Commissioner appointments are likely to affect how the PUC handles pending 765kV transmission line applications and data centers.
