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Transmission line easements and eminent domain in Texas: a landowner guide

Updated September 26, 2026 · About 7 minutes

New solar, wind, and storage projects need new transmission lines, and many Texas landowners are getting notice letters about proposed routes. You have more say than you might think, especially early. Here is how the process works.

Who decides where a transmission line goes?

Most utilities must get a Certificate of Convenience and Necessity (CCN) from the Public Utility Commission of Texas to build a new transmission line. The PUC decides whether to approve the line and which route it takes (PUC landowner brochure). New routes can also be developed during the case, so a line can end up affecting property differently than any route first proposed (PUC). The route review can take up to six months (PUC).

How can I take part?

Intervene. Becoming an intervenor makes you a party to the case, heard before a judge and the commissioners. You can testify and may be cross-examined. You must file your request by the date in your notice letter (PUC).
File comments. If you do not want to intervene, you can send written comments about the routes (PUC).
Get help. Intervenors may represent themselves or hire an attorney. The PUC's Legal Division can explain the process but cannot give legal advice (PUC).

The notice letter deadline matters. Once the PUC orders a route, the question becomes the easement and compensation, not whether the line crosses your land. Find your case with the five-digit docket number on the letter (PUC).

Can the utility take an easement if I say no?

Utilities can buy easements by agreement, but they also have the power of eminent domain (condemnation) under Texas law. Local courts, not the PUC, decide easement disputes (PUC).

What must the utility give me?

Any entity trying to condemn your property must give you the Landowner's Bill of Rights, set by Government Code 402.031 and Property Code Chapter 21 (Texas Attorney General). For an offer to count as a bona fide offer, the entity must, among other things, give you at least 14 days to respond to its final offer (Property Code Chapter 21).

What terms must the easement include?

Since a 2021 law (HB 2730), easement documents that private entities with eminent domain offer for pipeline or electric transmission line easements must address certain terms, and the Landowner's Bill of Rights includes an addendum listing them and the terms you can negotiate (HB 2730 bill analysis; Property Code 21.0114). The required terms include, for example, how gates and fences that cross the easement are removed, used, repaired, and replaced; the addendum lists them all (Property Code 21.0114). The easement terms can be changed by agreement between you and the utility (Texas Attorney General).

Check a spot

Click your land on the map to get its free land report: flood zone, wetlands, nearest power line, soils, survey location, and the half-mile, 500-acre standout test. In Texas, parcel acreage fills in automatically.

Questions to ask

What is the deadline in my notice letter to intervene, and should I hire an attorney?
Which proposed routes cross my land, and could new routes be added?
Did I receive the Landowner's Bill of Rights with the easement addendum?
What is the offer based on, and does it cover damage to the rest of my property?
Which of the required easement terms can I negotiate, such as gates, fences, access, and restoration?

More landowner resources: Texas Farm Bureau eminent domain resources. General information from the PUC, the Attorney General, and the statutes linked above, not legal advice. An eminent domain attorney can advise on your case.