Legalectric

Reports are disappearing, like the WRAO report, and the WIREs Phase II and Appendices below, so here they are for posterity! These Meta boxes are really irritating, I deleted from the upload, but they reappear. To get rid of them, click the grey thing in the upper left:

Remember when so many potentially affected landowners did not get notice of the Mankato-Mississippi River Transmission Project?

Public Hearings & NO NOTICE to 1,341 newly affected landowners May 11th, 2025

More on the 1,341 Landowners May 14th, 2025

Earlier today, a post came over the interwebs, TODAY, of a letter written by the Mayor of Faribault on June 3, 2026, “RECEIVED June 24, 2026” and posted in eDockets today, JULY 8, 2026:

The City of Faribault didn’t weigh in during the Hearings or Comment Periods, weren’t an Intervenor. But… NO NOTICE to 1,341 newly affected landowners. Did Faribault get notice? And if no official notice though, I do wonder how “the City” would not know of meetings and hearings in Faribault. I know I went to at least one at the American Legion, a VERY hot day, and I think it was… IT WAS! It was TWO YEARS AGO tomorrow, July 9, 2024!

And this letter filed in eDockets today? Well, the ORDER ADOPTING ADMINISTRATIVE LAW JUDGE REPORT AS MODIFIED, FINDING ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT ADEQUATE, GRANTING CERTIFICATE OF NEED, AND ISSUING ROUTE PERMIT was issued April 14, 2026:

Inquiring minds want to know. Failure of Notice, Failure to Notice, or ????

Rules? Who needs ’em?

My rulemaking petition is before the Public Utilities Commission tomorrow:

There have been a few filings in this docket. In chronological order, starting at the beginning, oh, with the statute first and then filings (and note, the statute does say “may.”):

• Rulemaking Petition – Minn. R. ch. 7850 & 7849 April 13th, 2026
• Comment on 7849 and 7850 Rulemaking Petition April 16th, 2026
• 7850 Rulemaking – Reply Comments May 7th, 2026

And here we go — they say it won’t start before 12:30 pm — that’s appreciated!

Routing the most massive of transmission lines through Minnesota without rules?

Or is it time for an award:

Interesting filings today in PUC Docket R-26-172 — how can anyone oppose rulemaking, and how can anyone think it’s reasonable to route transmission and site generation without rules? The Public Utilities Commission is tasked with regulating utilities, and how does one regulate without regulations?

Here’s what has come in today — the deadline is 4:30 but I’ll have to hit the road soon — if others come in I’ll post later. This first one is choice:

The next two, not so much — how convoluted can they get?

And here’s what I had to say, on my behalf, and also clients North Route Group and NO765MN (CN-25-117 and CN-25-121) and the Andersens (CN-25-109), after seeing some of the comments:

Take a good look at what the legislature did to the rules. And those that say “renumbered,” click on those and you’ll see they were moved and repealed as well!

CHAPTER 7850, SITE OR ROUTE PERMIT; POWER PLANT OR LINE

PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION

Did you know that thanks to the 2024 Energy Omnibus (Ominous) Bill, there are virtually NO rules for routing and siting of utility infrastructure? The good news is that the “Prime Farmland Exclusion” was preserved, but where’d everything else go???? Yeah, it’s really bad, so I filed this Petition for Rulemaking, on eDockets, via email, and as above, tomorrow, U.S. Mail:

Really, take a look for yourself and see how little is left after the 2024 legislative purge. Really, take a look for yourself and see how little is left after the 2024 legislative purge — all that remains of Minn. R. ch. 7850 is “Standards and Criteria” which says nothing, and Prohibited Routes and Prohibited Sites:

I’ve filed a few of these, and have been on 2, maybe 3, rulemaking advisory committees, the most important was R-12-1246, where we worked for almost a decade, and the PUC tossed it! That was SO frustrating and infuriating.

• Minn. R. ch 7849 & 7850 Rulemaking? DEAD! March 1st, 2022

Here we go again, I hope?