By Lauren G. Sepulveda

Several bills related to the permitting, siting, and removal of battery energy storage systems (“BESS”), solar energy generation (“Solar”), and wind energy generation (“Wind”) are making their way through the Texas Legislature this session. A quick summary of key bills is below, and we will continue to monitor these as they progress.

  • Removal, Restoration, and Financial Assurance for BESS, Solar and Wind
    • HB 3228 – Recycling and disposal requirements for Wind and Solar leases
      • HB 3228 was filed on February 24, 2025 and proposes amending Chapters 301 and 302 of the Texas Utilities Code to require recycling and disposal provisions in leases where landowners authorize lessees to operate Wind and Solar facilities on the leased property (“Wind and Solar Leases”).
      • This bill would require Wind and Solar Leases to include provisions requiring lessees to collect, reuse or recycle, or ship for reuse or recycling, all components of the Wind or Solar facility that were practically capable of being reused or recycled, including wind turbine blades, photovoltaic modules, and components of battery storage facilities used to support the operation of a wind turbine generator. It would also include the cost of recycling or disposing of these components in the calculation of financial assurance that must be posted for facility removal and restoration of the leased property under the Texas Utilities Code.
    • SB 1478 – Restoration and financial assurance requirements for BESS, Solar and Wind leases
      • SB 1478 was filed on February 20, 2025 and proposes restoration and financial assurance requirements that must be included in leases where landowners authorize lessees to operate an electric energy storage facility on the leased property (“BESS Leases”), as well as other leases authorizing the operation of the operation of facilities using renewable energy technology to generate electricity, to include Solar and Wind (collectively with BESS Leases, “Renewable Energy Leases”).
      • This bill would revise the current Solar and Wind lease decommissioning and financial assurance statutes in Chapters 301 and 302 of the Texas Utilities Code. The proposed bill states it is meant to amend Chapter 301 of the Texas Utilities Code, which currently applies to wind leases, and redesignate it as Chapter 375 of the Health and Safety Code; however, the proposed bill also seems to amend and replace Chapter 302 of the Texas Utilities Code, which applies to solar leases, though the bill text does not explicitly state this.
      • BESS Leases would be required to include provisions making lessees responsible for removing BESS facilities and restoring the property to as near as reasonably possible to its condition on the lease’s effective date. Removal and restoration requirements for Wind and Solar would remain largely the same as they are under the current Texas Utilities Code.
      • Financial assurance requirements for Renewable Energy Leases would include the delivery of financial assurance (which must be at least equal to the amount by which the cost of removing renewable energy facilities from the landowner’s property and restoring the property to as near as reasonably possible to its condition on the lease’s effective date exceeds the salvage value of the facilities) directly to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (“TCEQ”) within 30 days of the effective date of the lease. This requirement represents a departure from the existing requirements in Chapters 301 and 302 of the Texas Utilities Code, which require wind and solar leases to contain provisions stating financial assurance will be delivered directly to the landowner. To obtain a release of the financial assurance from the TCEQ, a Renewable Energy Lease lessee would need to file an application with the TCEQ, and the TCEQ would conduct an inspection and evaluation of the removal and restoration work performed. After the inspection, the TCEQ would release all or part of the financial assurance to the lessee, depending on whether all decommissioning requirements were satisfied.
      • If a Renewable Energy Lease lessee fails to complete its restoration obligations, the landowner could apply to the TCEQ for forfeiture of the financial assurance to the landowner to cover the cost of the landowner completing the restoration work. TCEQ would then notify the Public Utility Commission of Texas (“PUCT”) of the forfeiture, and the PUCT would not issue or renew any permit, certificate, or registration to the lessee who did not complete restoration obligations.
  • Solar, Wind, and BESS setbacks
    • HB 3056 – Solar and Wind setbacks
      • HB 3056 was filed on February 19, 2025, and would allow counties and cities to prohibit the installation of a Solar or Wind facility within 500 yards of real property owned by a person other than the Solar or Wind facility owner without obtaining written consent from each owner of the real property.
    • HB 1378 – BESS setbacks
      • HB 1378 was filed in November 2024, and would allow counties and cities to prohibit the installation of a BESS facility within 500 yards of real property owned by a person other than the BESS facility owner without obtaining written consent from each owner of the real property.
  • Siting permits for BESS, Solar and Wind
    • HB 1343 and SB 1519 – BESS siting requirements
      • HB 1343 was filed back in November 2024, and would require a permit from the PUCT to install electric energy storage equipment or facilities intended for use in selling energy or ancillary services at wholesale in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (“ERCOT”) power region. BESS facilities could only be installed in a location that was far enough away from other BESS facilities to mitigate the risk of a fire spreading and would not block an access point to a residential area in the case of a fire. BESS owners would be required to file an application with the PUCT and provide written notice to county fire or first responder officials of the owner’s intent to install BESS facilities. The PUCT would be able to hold public meetings on the permit application in the county where the BESS is proposed to be installed for reasons that include substantial public interest in the proposed permit.
      • SB 1519 was filed on February 21, 2025 and is a companion bill to HB 1343. A companion bill is a bill filed in one chamber that is identical, or very similar, to a bill filed in the opposite chamber; filing a companion bill is a method used to expedite passage of a bill, since committee consideration of the bills can occur simultaneously in both chambers. In this case, SB 1519 is identical to HB 1434 and could be an indication of legislators’ desire to push this through.
    • HB 553 – Permit for Wind and Solar operation
      • HB 553 was filed in November 2024 as well, and would require Wind and Solar owners to obtain a permit from the PUCT to operate their facilities. The application would be required to include a description of the facility and its location, an environmental impact station from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, site leases, and an affidavit that lists names and addresses of people who may be affected by the application, among other information. After the application is filed, the PUCT would give notice of the application to the affected properties, to include any owner of property within 25 miles of the boundary of the facility, and if requested, would hold a hearing to discuss the application. Conditions of an issued permit would include boundaries for the Wind or Solar facility, a maximum number of Wind or Solar facilities, and monitoring or reporting requirements prescribed by the PUCT.