Since November of 2025, news of the proposed 765kV electric transmission line to run through Driftless Region counties, down to the Illinois state line, has kept citizens and municipalities on their toes. In a recent development, Transource and Berkshire Hathaway Energy unveiled a website for the proposed project. These corporations leading this project announced their intent to file an application with the Public Service Commission of Wisconsin as early as February of 2027.
BECI is the second section of the line to run 190 miles from Bell Center in Crawford County, east to the Columbia Substation near Portage, and then south to the Illinois state line. The first segment, MariBell, will run from Marion, Minnesota, to Bell Center in Crawford County, Wisconsin.
‘No 765 Line’ educator Rob Danielson has announced a meeting for landowners, who could be impacted by the BECI portion of the line, is scheduled for Thursday, July 16, at 6 p.m. at the Phoenix Center in Richland Center.
Legal proceedings
Another group formed to oppose the line, ‘Citizens Against MariBell 765,’ continues to pursue opposition through the courts. The group is composed of potentially impacted landowners on the primary route announced by line developers Dairyland Power Cooperative and GridLiance earlier this year. Those landowners’ properties are located in Vernon and Crawford counties.
A case filed in Vernon County Circuit Court in May of 2026 has ended in voluntary dismissal on June 29. That was because of an error in the language of the filing. This error was quickly corrected, with the case re-filed on June 30, 2026. As yet, no court dates have been announced.
No 765 Line has been facilitating connection to experts experienced in intervention for citizens wishing to serve as intervenors once the MariBell application is filed with PSC. They are also fundraising to hire expert witnesses in the proceedings before PSC.
County collaboration
Vernon and Crawford counties continue to discuss a limited, one-time shared legal consultation with an attorney experienced in coaching counties wishing to act as intervenors in the PSC proceedings.
At the July 1 meeting of the Vernon County General Government Committee that topic was addressed. Retiring county corporation counsel Nikki Swayne informed the board she had a brief conversation with a Madison attorney, Frank Jablonski of the Progressive Law Group, about potentially consulting with the counties.
“My first impression was that he is very well versed in the area, and may be a good fit for at least that initial consultation,” Swayne told the committee. “What I would foresee is Frank meeting with the board. The board would likely invite Crawford County, who could participate in this session as well. Frank could use that time with the board to confirm what your goals are, like, do you want outright prohibition, and then do you have in the alternative goals if prohibition is something that's just not attainable? So having that conversation with Frank about what the goals are, and then Frank will be well equipped, I believe, to be candid with the board as to what the what the odds are of accomplishing each goal, and what the paths are to accomplish those goals.”
Swayne said from her initial conversation with Jablonski, he sounded like a very affordable alternative, and that those details could be worked out with the county’s new corporation counsel.
According to the Progressive Law Group website, founding attorney Frank Jablonski has an impressive legal background:
“Frank Jablonski (Madison, WI) founded the Progressive Law Group LLC-Madison law firm in 2004. He focuses on trials and related work (litigation, mediation, and arbitration). He has represented persons harmed by corporate malfeasance, communities, non-profit organizations, businesses and business shareholders, and individuals, including both individual consumers and landowners subject to condemnation ‘takings’ by utility companies. He has a broad legal and policy background, having worked on legislation and rules as a lobbyist for environmental and industry organizations. He has been honored twice for his work on public policy issues through Wisconsin Legislative Council Special Committees (1985 and 1993). He has also managed small and medium businesses, including a wood products manufacturing division within a Wisconsin manufacturing, distribution and energy services company, and a subsidiary of Puget Sound Power and Light Company, an investor-owned utility. Over the last 27 years, he has been lead counsel in administrative, regulatory, trial and appellate court actions too numerous to recount. These have involved both individual and class consumer matters, ranging from misrepresentation to telecommunications to contaminated pet food. They have also included environmental matters such as regulated industries, energy facilities development and impacts, (e.g. planning dockets, power plants, transmission lines, stray voltage, EMF), licensing and permitting, transportation, land use, and business disputes (contracts, fair competition, stockholder disputes, and the duties of owners to each other and to the shared enterprise). (J.D., University of Wisconsin, 1983). Licensed to practice in Wisconsin.”
Crawford County
At their meeting on Tuesday, July 14, the Crawford County Land Conservation Committee also briefly addressed the topic during the Land Use portion of their meeting. While the committee was aware the two counties were talking, there were no updates since the one provided at the committee’s June meeting.
