GOP state lawmakers ask Trump to weigh in on Wisconsin utility proposal

Two dozen GOP state lawmakers are asking President Donald Trump to weigh in on whether utilities already doing business in Wisconsin should be given first dibs on building new transmission lines.

The Republican legislators sent a letter to the Trump administration last week in response to a bill introduced in the state Legislature. It would give the state’s transmission utilities the right of first refusal to build new high-voltage lines that connect to their existing infrastructure. 

A similar proposal was introduced in the Legislature last session, passing in the Assembly before dying in the Senate. That bill had backing from the state utility industry, but was opposed by ratepayer advocates, clean energy groups and the conservative Americans for Prosperity. Another version was proposed in 2022, but also failed to advance.

It comes as the Midwest grid operator has approved billions of dollars worth of new transmission lines. The main utilities with transmission infrastructure in Wisconsin are American Transmission Co., Xcel Energy and Dairyland Power Cooperative.

Supporters argue the right of first refusal, or ROFR, will allow companies to build transmission projects faster and more cost effectively, while opponents argue that it unfairly limits competition.

This time around the bill was introduced in the state Senate by Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg. Speaking at a luncheon Tuesday, Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, also expressed support for the bill.

Vos said right of first refusal would help Wisconsinites avoid a roughly $1 billion increase in electricity costs because incumbent transmission utilities can export a chunk of their project costs across the Midwest service territory.

“A billion dollar rate increase, that is a bad thing for our state,” Vos said. “I don’t want to increase any costs.”

The bill also has the backing of Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein, D-Middleton. She calls it a “win-win,” saying giving first crack to in-state companies would help provide jobs to Wisconsin workers.

“We should have gotten this done last session,” she said. “There’s no good reason why we didn’t bring it to the [Senate] floor.”

Despite bipartisan support, lawmakers seek Trump’s input

More than 20 Republican state lawmakers expressed concerns about the legislation in their letter to the president. In the letter, they noted an increasing number of Midwestern states have adopted similar laws.

“We believe the current environment negatively impacts states that continue to protect competition,” the letter reads. “We believe ROFR legislation stands in stark opposition to numerous executive orders issued by you and your administration, which emphasized the critical importance of protecting and enhancing competition to foster innovation and reduce costs.”

State Rep. Dave Murphy, R-Greenville, signed onto the letter. He said he wanted guidance from the Trump administration because electric transmission is an “interstate type of issue.”

“I wanted to make sure that I was getting the federal administration’s take on what was the best way to proceed with this,” Murphy said. “I do have concerns about ROFR limiting competition.”

While Murphy had concerns about the bill, he also said he wasn’t yet sure on how he would vote.

“I’ve taken sort of an approach that if the bill were maybe amended properly or some changes made, I might be able to support it,” he said.

Vos said Tuesday he has “no idea” if the Trump administration will get involved in the debate.

Meanwhile, Hesselbein said she was disappointed in the letter and some of the rhetoric in it. She said she views it as an attempt to prevent the bill from moving forward.

“From day to day, Donald Trump’s administration just has complete chaos and confusion about every single thing that they are doing, so the idea that they are going to be able to read this and come up with an idea of what they’re going to do, I wouldn’t trust it,” she said.

Transmission bill expected to see heavy lobbying push

The previous ROFR bill was the most lobbied legislation last session. 

The new version has the support of the utility industry, chambers of commerce around the state, Kwik Trip and the Wisconsin Counties Association. Groups opposing ROFR include the Citizens Utility Board, the Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group and AARP, as well as includes conservative groups like Americans for Prosperity and the Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty.

Barring one of the sides backing down, Murphy said he expects the bill to be heavily lobbied again this year.

Tom Content, executive director of the Citizens Utility Board of Wisconsin, said he’s opposed to the legislation because it would prevent companies from competitive bidding on large-scale transmission line projects. He says competitive bidding can help prevent cost overruns.

“It’s really an opportunity for cost savings [that] is not to be trifled with,” Content said. “We don’t think it should be removed.”

The Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group, a nonprofit that advocates for large energy users, shares similar concerns. In a statement, Todd Stuart, the group’s executive director, said making the ROFR bill into law would “only add costs for customers in Wisconsin.”

“Wisconsin’s ratepayers simply can’t afford additional cost burdens,” he stated. “Wisconsin’s electric rates have been well above the Midwest average for over 20 years.”

But the utility industry argues the “clock is ticking” to pass the legislation. 

“If we want to maintain a safe grid and protect taxpayers from having an additional $1 billion expense, the Legislature needs to move forward with this critical reform,” said Joe Mesec, the director of government relations for the Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association, in a statement.

American Transmission Co. Executive Vice President and General Counsel Bill Marsan said that transmission utilities in Wisconsin would continue to competitively bid labor and materials for construction projects.

“We all know that in a pure market, of course, competition should lower ultimate prices to consumers,” Marsan said. “But the utility market is not a pure market. It’s nothing close to that. It’s heavily regulated, and it just works differently from pure competition for some commodity.”

Editor’s note: The Citizens Utility Board of Wisconsin and American Transmission Co. are sponsors of WPR.