Senate business committee considers renewable energy regulation bill ...Middle East

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This story is supported by the Pulitzer Center and is part of the “Texas Energy Crossroads” project, a partnership between The Hill and Nexstar Texas stations examining the oil and gas industry and the politics surrounding it following President Trump’s second inauguration.

AUSTIN (KXAN) – Senators on the Business and Commerce Committee will discuss Thursday the merits of a bill that could place additional fees, permitting rules and regulatory requirements on new utility-scale solar and wind generation projects in Texas.

Sen. Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, authored Senate Bill 819. She has described the law as protection for landowners, the environment and “the right thing to do for Texas.”

Kolkhorst filed similar legislation in 2023 without success. Critics of the measure back then said legislation would hamper the growth of renewables at a time when Texas is experiencing significant population and power demand growth.

Texas is the nationwide leader in renewable energy production, according to federal and state data. At 2 p.m. on March 26, over half the energy generated in the state came from solar and wind power, records from the Electric Reliability Council of Texas show.

From Kolkhorst’s perspective, that’s not necessarily a badge of honor.

“We’re number one in wind, number one in solar; I’m not sure that’s something to brag about,” she told KXAN in February.

Bill breakdown

Kolkhorst’s bill would require notice of applications and a public meeting on new wind and solar projects over 10 megawatts, which is enough to power about 2,500 homes during peak use, according to ERCOT. The law would also require Public Utility Commission permitting and environmental impact reviews by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

Fees would be put in a “renewable energy generation facility cleanup fund.” Wind turbines would have to be set back at least 3,000 feet from neighboring property lines, unless a neighbor agreed to a waiver. Solar arrays would need to be at least 100 feet from next-door property lines and 200 feet from habitable structures.

The new permitting rules would not apply to projects existing before Sept. 1, 2025, unless they increased power output by 5 megawatts, or “materially” changed the placement of the generation facilities, according to the bill.

Nine additional senators have signed onto the bill as authors. All of them are Republicans except one, Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, a South Texas Democrat.

Federal pressure

Kolkhorst’s latest renewable regulation bill comes at a time of keen focus on such projects by President Donald Trump.

On his first day in office, Trump singled out wind power in an executive order that paused new leases for wind projects on federal lands and waters. Speaking at his inauguration, Trump stated “we’re not going to do the wind thing. Wind – big ugly windmills.”

And, in February, Trump created a National Energy Dominance Council that would focus on expanding “all forms of reliable and affordable energy production.” The executive order establishing the council lists nearly a dozen of the country’s “amazing national assets,” including oil, natural gas, uranium, coal, biofuels, flowing water, geothermal heat and more.

Solar and wind didn’t make the cut.

Kolkhorst said she agrees with Trump’s moratorium on new federal wind projects. As a senator with a district that stretches to the Texas coast, Kolkhorst said she doesn’t want to “see them out in our bays and estuaries, these big windmills.”

Texas’ history of renewables

Texas’ leadership has fostered renewable energy production for decades. In 2010, former Gov. Rick Perry – who would later serve as U.S. Secretary of Energy in Trump’s first term – touted Texas as the country’s largest renewable producer and praised forward-thinking Texas legislation that paved the way for renewable energy to blossom.

 In April 2024, Gov. Abbott also championed the state’s wind energy production as the overarching “all-of-the-above energy strategy.”

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