The same week state senators have planned to hear testimony on the impact 765-kilovolt transmission lines will have on private landowners, a transmission company is moving forward with its proposed transmission line and is holding a public meeting in Wharton County.
Another company has scheduled its own public meeting the evening before in Refugio County.
This centers on the Electric Reliability Council of Texas’ (ERCOT’s) 765-kilovolt Strategic Transmission Expansion Plan (STEP), a key part of the Permian Basin Reliability Plan (PBRP). Phase one is the STEP-Permian, which proposes three extra-high-voltage transmission lines, spanning over 1,200 miles to move power from East Texas into the natural gas-rich Permian Basin, with routes crossing North, Central, and South Texas. A pro-landowner group called this “akin to hauling water to the sea.”
The ERCOT board endorsed STEP’s two other phases in December 2025. These are the STEP-Western and STEP-Eastern 765-kV lines.
This week, State Sen. Kevin Sparks (R–Midland) and State Rep. Brad Buckley (R–Salado) asked PUCT to delay a final decision on “all the 765-kV segments” until after the 2027 legislative session. A coalition of transmission companies that stand to profit from these lines opposed this request.
Despite lawmakers asserting themselves, transmission companies appear to be pressing on in defiance.
