CenterPoint says new transmission poles are resiliency upgrade; city says Public Utility Commission has approval authority

CenterPoint Energy representatives told the Stafford City Council on March 19 that the company is replacing about 2.2 miles of a transmission circuit and expects work to be finished by September, part of a broader resiliency plan filed with the Public Utility Commission of Texas.

The company’s government-affairs director, Paul Bloch, said the project began in January and is intended to strengthen infrastructure so outages are fewer and crews can restore service faster after storms. "This is just a transmission project to replace 2.2 miles of circuit," Bloch said. "The project started in January, and we expect to be completed by September." He added the new poles are designed to resist 120-mile-per-hour winds.

Council members and residents raised concerns about towers’ proximity to houses and whether transmission lines could affect property values and health. Council legal counsel and staff said the city lacks permitting authority over CenterPoint’s work in utility easements and that the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) is the regulator for transmission lines. "The Public Utilities Commission is who has control over these things," a city attorney told the council. "We don't have any regulatory authority in those areas."

Bloch said CenterPoint engineers decide pole placement in company right-of-way and that he is not aware of credible studies showing health impacts from transmission lines. "I'm not familiar with any studies showing any impacts to human health due to transmission lines," he said. He added the project is part of a legislatively-driven resiliency plan the company filed with PUCT; Bloch described the company’s statewide resiliency filing as a multibillion-dollar program that includes vegetation management and pole upgrades.

Residents asked for clearer local communication about timing and impacts. Council members and CenterPoint staff agreed to improve local outreach: Bloch and company representatives said they would provide a brief written timeline the city could post on its website and follow up with right-of-way staff about individual complaints. City staff said some work in state-controlled right-of-way will also require TxDOT approvals, and that signs or walk/bike paths near lines are decided by local governments in coordination with utilities.

The discussion did not include any city action to block or modify the project; council members framed the session as informational. The record shows residents and council members pressed for more proactive notice about truck traffic and where crews will stage equipment during construction.