Rep. Travis Tranel: Rep. Tranel Thanks No 765 Line Advocates for Standing Up for Rural Wisconsin

MADISON, Wis. — State Representative Travis Tranel (R-Cuba City) thanked landowners, local officials, and members of No 765 Line for coming to the State Capitol to speak out against the proposed MariBell and BECI 765-kilovolt transmission projects and to demand a greater voice for the communities that could be affected.

“These families and communities deserve to be heard,” said Rep. Tranel. “They are being asked to accept massive transmission infrastructure across farms, private property, and some of the most beautiful country in Wisconsin. We have to ask whether these projects are necessary, affordable, and in the best interest of Wisconsin families and that is why I support a public informational hearing on MISO’s Tranche 2.1 plan and its adverse impacts on rural communities.”

Rep. Tranel said the proposed 765-kV lines cannot be separated from Wisconsin’s broader energy policy.

“For years, Governor Evers and Democrats have promoted policies aimed at expanding industrial, intermittent wind and solar energy resources,” Rep. Tranel said. “Now we are seeing one of the consequences of shifting away from traditional, baseload power: the need for massive new transmission lines to move electricity across the region. We cannot keep pursuing energy policies that drive up costs and then tell rural Wisconsin that it must bear the burden.”

MISO’s long-range transmission plan includes a proposed 765-kV transmission backbone across the Midwest, including the MariBell and BECI projects in Wisconsin. “We need to stop looking at these issues one project at a time,” Rep. Tranel said. “If Wisconsin wants to prevent the next 765-kV line, we have to address the policies that create the demand for these massive transmission projects in the first place.”

Rep. Tranel has repeatedly advocated for comprehensive energy reform and greater local control over large-scale energy development. He has authored 2025 Senate Bill 3 and ASA 1 to Assembly Bill 493 (passed Assembly Ag Committee 9-6) in order to restore a meaningful role for local governments in the siting of large industrial wind and solar projects.

“The people who live in the affected areas should have a seat at the table,” Rep. Tranel said. “Their farms, homes, businesses, and way of life matter. Energy policy should be built around reliable and affordable electricity, protecting property rights, and respecting local communities.”

Rep. Tranel also noted that opposition to the proposed transmission projects has increasingly crossed party lines, with lawmakers from both parties raising questions about the projects and calling for greater scrutiny.

“That bipartisan concern is important,” Rep. Tranel said. “When Republicans and Democrats representing rural communities are hearing the same fears from their constituents, policymakers should listen and meet with colleagues across the aisle to develop bipartisan legislation that reforms energy policy in Wisconsin.”

Rep. Tranel thanked those who traveled to Madison to make their voices heard.

“I appreciate everyone with No 765 Line and the affected individuals who came to the Capitol,” Rep. Tranel said. “Standing together against one transmission line is important, but we also need to fix the policies that brought us here. Wisconsin needs an energy policy that puts reliability, affordability, property rights and local control first.”