This bill summary was last updated April 17, 2025.
Public hearing – March 11
Includes -5 Amendment
Electricity demand is projected to increase by 30% in Oregon over the next decade, but we are not building new grid infrastructure fast enough to keep pace. A major problem is that state requirements for permitting new power plants and transmission lines are often complex or duplicative, slowing efforts to expand. This bill makes changes to administrative regulations that will speed the permitting process. Here are some of the most important changes:
- The EFSC (Energy Facility Siting Council) issues site certificates for new power plants and transmission lines; the certificates function like a master building permit for developers. However, the timelines allowed for building are much too short given the complexities of most projects, so developers are now forced to file time-consuming amendments. HB 3681 allows EFSC to grant an automatic extension of three years to the construction deadline, for projects that are in substantial compliance with their site certificates. The bill also allows minor site boundary changes to be accomplished without requiring an amendment to the certificate.
- EFSC site certificates are often contested by opponents of the project. HB 3681 requires EFSC to make every effort to shorten the timelines for these contested cases to a maximum of one year, and requires that all appeals of contested case decisions go directly to the Oregon Supreme Court. The bill also revises the laws governing EFSC to clearly specify which parties are eligible to appeal final site certificates, requiring that these project opponents satisfy traditional legal standing principles.
- For overhead transmission lines, HB 3681 narrows the criteria for Oregon Public Utilities Commission (OPUC) review of petitions for certificates of public convenience and necessity (CPCN). OPUC will still be responsible for conducting inquiries that focus on the public need for transmission lines. HB 3681 also directs OPUC to review petitions for CPCNs without first requiring the petitioner to obtain land use approvals.
HB 3681 changes the OPUC rule that presently requires developers to obtain all needed land use approvals before filing a petition for a CPCN. This sequencing requirement has been burdensome to the overall process of project development.