Dane County Board: a BECI resolution on the agenda (2026 RES-130)

A resolution on the BECI transmission project is on the Dane County Board’s agenda. The Dane County Board of Supervisors meets on Thursday, September 10 at 7:00 pm. Item 5 is 2026 RES-130, “Urging Midcontinent Grid Solutions and the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin to Provide Additional Review and Opportunities for Public Input on the Bell Center-Columbia-Sugar Creek-IL/WI State Line 765 kV Transmission Project.” The Board is scheduled to take it up; the agenda records the resolution as pending Executive Committee action the same day.

What the resolution asks. It notes that BECI has not yet been submitted to the Public Service Commission, and asks that when it is, the Commission delay consideration until further research, analysis and public review are complete. It then sets out twelve requests, among them an independent analysis of whether the project is needed for Wisconsin, a full accounting of cost to Wisconsin ratepayers, a comprehensive environmental assessment comparing routes, an evaluation of routing alternatives against the corridor priorities in Wis. Stat. § 1.12(6), a farmland-preservation analysis, a comparison of overhead and underground construction, property-specific information to affected landowners at least 30 days before any formal PSC proceeding, and a schedule of further engagement sessions. It is sponsored by Supervisors Brandmeier, Marren, Lewis, Miles and Doolan.

How to attend. This is a hybrid meeting. You can attend in person at the City-County Building, Room 201, 210 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, Madison, or join by Zoom or telephone. To speak, or to register support or opposition on an agenda item, register at board.danecounty.gov/attendmeeting. Virtual registrations close 30 minutes before the meeting begins; in-person paper registration is accepted throughout. You can also watch without registering.

Background. BECI is a proposed 765 kV transmission line of roughly 190 miles running from Crawford County east across southern Wisconsin to the Illinois state line, developed by Midcontinent Grid Solutions, a joint venture of Transource Energy and BHE Transmission. Dane County is inside the study area the developer has published. No route has been chosen and no application has been filed; the developer’s published schedule points to an application to the Wisconsin Public Service Commission in early 2027. The developer’s announced comment window on its 78 study segments closed September 7, 2026, and the company is still accepting written comments. See what this means locally on our Dane County page.

Four Dane County town boards have already adopted resolutions on BECI. See which towns, villages, cities and counties have acted on our Resolution Tracker.

Date, time, location, agenda item and sponsors as published on the Dane County Board’s meeting agenda (checked September 9, 2026). This is Dane County’s meeting, not a No 765 Line event; confirm details on the county’s site before attending.