By Karen Gleason
The 830 Times
Val Verde County Commissioners Court members voted unanimously Wednesday to file as intervenors in a case involving the proposed placement of a high-voltage transmission line across portions of the county.
The court took the action during its March regular term meeting after discussing the proposed transmission line and hearing from several county property owners who voiced their opposition to the placement of the line across long swaths of central and northern Val Verde County.
The Howard-Solstice Transmission Line, which would be Texas’ first 765-kV transmission line, is proposed to run 370 miles from south San Antonio to Fort Stockton. Proponents of the line say it will bring needed energy to an area of Texas’ Permian Basin region that is poised for additional development of oil and gas, data centers and other industries.
After listening to about an hour of public comment, County Judge Lewis G. Owens Jr. said the court would move to the agenda item dealing with the Howard-Solstice line.
Owens began the discussion by acknowledging landowners’ requests for the county to intervene but raised concerns about potential liability.
County Attorney David Martinez addressed the court, saying, “The letters that this court has sent do not necessarily fall on deaf ears, but obviously as an intervenor, if the county were to intervene formally, that basically does give the county a seat at the table.”
Martinez cautioned that intervening would come with additional obligations.
“One of the key obligations when you’re talking about civil litigation is participating in discovery. If AEP were to send us a written discovery request, as an intervenor, you’re basically a party to the litigation, and you have to participate. I reached out to several county attorneys along the proposed route; I’ve not seen that any other county has formally intervened as of yet. That doesn’t mean they won’t. The deadline is April 1, and it is not a difficult process to file the paperwork,” Martinez said.
He added, “We really don’t know what to expect thereafter. I can tell you that if the court wants us to be an intervenor, wants our office to be involved, we’re prepared to do that.”
Owens asked whether the county could withdraw if costs became too high.
“We could. When you choose to participate in a lawsuit, you can choose to get out of the lawsuit as well. There are no cross-actions at this point, and I don’t anticipate there would be,” Martinez replied.
Owens said he would have difficulty supporting intervention without a clear exit option.
He also noted that not all landowners oppose the project.
“I’ve talked to landowners who have no problem with any proposed transmission line routes in Val Verde County, but they’re not here,” Owens said.
He added, “We’re fixing to get into a lawsuit that has two sides, and who are we screaming for?”
Martinez said concerns raised by residents — including potential impacts to military operations — warranted attention.
Owens said the county has Laughlin Air Force Base flight pattern data and proposed transmission routes and could overlay the two to identify possible conflicts.
“It’s the same issue we ran into with the wind farms,” Owens said.
Commissioner Pct. 1 Kerr Wardlaw said the county’s earlier letters of protest would likely carry more weight if the county formally intervenes.
Owens then raised questions about funding the effort.
“You could start by passing a hat around here, judge,” Martinez quipped, drawing laughter from the audience.
Owens said he would prefer to set aside funds immediately and reiterated his concerns about potential long-term costs.
“I can’t emphasize enough how much heartburn I have with being an intervenor,” Owens said. “We represent 49,000 people. Is this really our fight, or is it the landowners’ fight?”
Owens suggested setting aside $25,000 for the county attorney’s office to begin the process.
Martinez said the funds would likely be necessary, noting he may need to travel to Austin to meet with state officials, including those with the Texas Natural Resource Commission.
He also encouraged landowners to remain involved.
“I would fully expect the landowners that are here … would be ready, willing and available to assist in this process,” Martinez said.
Commissioner Pct. 2 Juan Carlos Vazquez made the motion for the county to intervene and to allocate $25,000. Wardlaw seconded the motion.
Before the vote, Commissioner Pct. 2 Fernando Garcia expressed caution.
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions,” Garcia said. “We start incrementally increasing this to the point that now we’re in too deep. Maybe we bit off more than we can chew.”
Garcia said he supports landowners but questioned whether county intervention is necessary for them to have their day in court.
Martinez responded that the county would be acting on its own behalf, not directly on behalf of landowners.
Garcia said he would support the motion but warned the county may need to reassess if costs escalate.
Commissioner Pct. 4 Gustavo “Gus” Flores also expressed concern about potential costs.
“I would feel more comfortable if the property owners and ranchers would file lawsuits themselves, protecting their properties, and the county supporting that process,” Flores said.
Owens reiterated his reservations but emphasized the need for a clear exit strategy if the situation becomes too costly.
The court then approved the motion unanimously.
Owens thanked the attendees for participating in the meeting.
“I want to thank you all for coming. You don’t know how much this means to us,” Owens said.
