State Rep. Tara Johnson tells Vernon County board she co-authored bill to prioritize underground/HVDC corridor options for big transmission lines

State Representative Tara Johnson (speaker 13) briefed the Vernon County Board on a recently introduced legislative reference bureau filing she said would change how large transmission lines are sited in Wisconsin.

"We introduced a piece of legislation, last week... LRB 6500And27," Johnson said. She told the board the proposed change would add a criterion at the top of the state statute’s existing list, directing siting to consider "mega transmission systems use consolidated utility corridors and HVDC high voltage direct current or other underground solution co-located with existing ... lines, highways, and railroads." Johnson said the intent is to encourage less visually disruptive and more consolidated transmission alignments.

Johnson told supervisors the bill will require bipartisan cosponsors to advance, asked residents to contact legislators and offered to provide advocacy packets. When asked whether the bill could be enacted quickly, she said she had not yet held widespread conversations with other lawmakers but expected some members on both sides might sign on.

Board members asked about the link between transmission siting and the broader data-center debate; Johnson said the two issues are hard to decouple and emphasized continued public input as the most practical influence on utility project planning. She described the filing as a "rare legislative fix" to a process largely overseen by the Public Service Commission and encouraged residents and elected officials to engage.