Washington Creates a New Tool to Address Transmission Bottlenecks

In a bold move to help meet the demand for clean energy and improve electric reliability, Washington state has launched the Washington Electric Transmission Authority (WETA). The goal of the WETA legislation (SB 6355), which was signed into law at the end of March and went into effect in June, is to expand the state's electric transmission capacity, particularly that needed to bring wind and solar output from eastern Washington across the Cascades to the growing load centers in western Washington.

The WETA legislation is significant not because it immediately solves Washington's transmission constraints, but because it creates a new institutional tool to address problems that have become increasingly difficult to ignore: Demand for electricity is rising, the grid is under strain, and transmission capacity and interconnection delays are a limiting factor for reliability, affordability, and clean energy deployment. But whether WETA is enough to break the transmission logjam that has plagued the state and the region for decades is very much an open question.

The Pressures Behind SB 6355

The WETA legislation aims to address three converging pressures:

First, Washington is pursuing an increasingly decarbonized electricity supply, with carbon-neutral and carbon-free milestones that require the retirement of fossil-fueled resources and the integration of more renewable and nonemitting generation. But given transmission constraints, it currently takes years for new renewable energy projects to interconnect to the existing transmission system.

Second, electricity demand is rising due to electrification in transportation, buildings, and industry, as well as the growth of large commercial loads.

Third, the existing transmission network is not well positioned to absorb that growth or to respond to increasingly severe weather-related reliability risks. Existing transmission line developers, primarily the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA), are not building transmission infrastructure as quickly as needed to accommodate new and proposed clean energy projects.

While BPA owns and operates roughly 75% of the transmission lines in the Pacific Northwest, it has built almost no new transmission lines since the 1970s. This is in part due to the slow demise of the region's aluminum smelting industry in the succeeding decades, creating a growing surplus of transmission capacity. But that surplus has since been absorbed by other forms of increased electrification throughout the region. As a result, BPA's transmission constraints and interminable interconnection queues have helped push Washington to dead last in bringing new renewable resources onto the electric grid. WETA is a step toward rectifying that problem.

WETA Structure and Core Functionalities

WETA will be an independent body overseen by a 10-member board of directors appointed before January 1, 2027, by the governor. The Department of Commerce will provide administrative support until the board hires an executive director by June 30, 2027. The structure is designed to give the state a centralized entity that can coordinate transmission planning and development across utilities, developers, agencies, tribes, local governments, and regional institutions rather than leaving transmission advancement entirely to utilities and developers.

WETA will primarily operate through partnerships with transmission developers, including both consumer-owned and investor-owned utilities, on eligible projects in high-priority transmission corridors identified by the Department of Commerce through a public process. The authority may help identify and advance new corridors, support upgrades to existing lines, coordinate siting and development activity, assist with permitting processes, pursue financing tools, own transmission facilities in appropriate circumstances, and ultimately sell projects or project interests. WETA must also consider nonwire alternatives, community microgrids, distributed energy resources, and energy conservation as part of broader transmission and capacity expansion efforts.

Importantly, WETA will have eminent domain authority under RCW 8.04 (Eminent Domain by State) to secure rights-of-way for new transmission corridors if negotiations with landowners are unsuccessful. As a result, WETA will be able to help independent transmission developers build projects that might otherwise be prevented due to land acquisition disputes. Likewise, while WETA may own transmission facilities, the statute encourages transitional rather than permanent ownership. Before taking ownership of an asset, WETA must identify the public purposes served, the conditions under which state ownership would no longer be needed, and a plan for divestiture when economically prudent. In that sense, WETA is intended to be a developer of last resort rather than a long-term transmission owner.

Notably, the WETA legislation requires the Governor's Office of Indian Affairs, in coordination with the Department of Commerce and the Department of Ecology, to work with Native American tribes in the state to develop a tribal consultation framework for statewide transmission planning and implementation, as well as any corresponding statutory or administrative changes. A report that summarizes the recommended framework and identifies proposed statutory or administrative changes is due to the Legislature and Governor by December 1, 2026.

Limits of the New Law and Authority

For all its significance, SB 6355 does not eliminate several real-world obstacles that have historically slowed transmission development. Notably, the legislation does little to accelerate the permitting process for siting transmission lines. Project siting must still be permitted by the Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council (EFSEC) or local jurisdictions (depending on the size and scope of the transmission project). It does not designate transmission facilities as essential public facilities under RCW 36.70A.200, which would prevent local jurisdictions from prohibiting (but still allow for imposing conditions on) the siting of transmission infrastructure.

SB 6355 also does not include language that would have provided a categorical exclusion from environmental review under the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) for the reconductoring of transmission lines in existing rights-of-way. This exclusion likely would have shortened the siting process by years. Legislation addressing some or all of these issues is likely to be in play when the Legislature convenes in January.

Further, WETA will not serve as a financing entity. Instead, it will serve as a coordinating entity that may connect eligible partners seeking transmission financing with the Washington Economic Development Finance Authority.

Ultimately, while WETA may improve the state's ability to organize around transmission needs, its success will depend heavily on project selection, execution, stakeholder buy-in, and the willingness of public and private entities to use (rather than fight) the authority's tools.

What WETA Could Mean for Clients and Market Participants

If implemented to its full potential, WETA could support the efforts of various stakeholders:

• Energy generation and storage developers: WETA could help shorten the years-long timeline currently facing new projects for interconnection to the existing transmission network.
• Utilities: WETA may offer a vehicle for partnership on projects that cross service territories, present financing challenges, or otherwise fall outside traditional development models.
• Independent transmission developers: WETA will collaborate with independent transmission developers, including use of its eminent domain authority, to expand and improve electric transmission in the state.
• Infrastructure investors and lenders: WETA creates a potential new public-sector participant with authority to partner, own, coordinate financing, and transfer transmission assets.
• Large-load Customers: The law signals the state's intention to relieve the transmission constraints that increasingly limit where and how new electric load can be served.

Key Takeaway: WETA Is a New Tool, not a Guaranteed Fix

WETA has the potential to help break a decades-long logjam in improving the state and regional transmission system. Whether WETA does so will depend on the quality of its leadership, the projects it chooses to support, and how effectively it works with utilities, developers, tribes, EFSEC, and local communities. 

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Megan Raymond is an associate in DWT's Seattle office, Caroline Cilek is an associate in the firm's Portland office, Elaine Albrich is a partner in our Portland office, and Craig Gannett is senior counsel in our Seattle office. We are closely tracking the implementation of SB 6355 and development of WETA and will continue to keep clients updated. We will also monitor 2027 Oregon legislative efforts to establish a transmission authority that could complement WETA. Please reach out to the authors or another member of our land use & development and energy, natural resources & environmental teams if you have questions or would like to discuss. To stay informed, sign up for our alerts.