Lawmakers proposing idea of burying powerlines to reduce outages at 89th Texas Legislature

The study, if passed and signed into law, would look at the Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio areas. The goal of the study is to answer the following questions: (1) potential costs of burying existing overhead distribution power lines, including costs that could be passed on to ratepayers; (2) potential costs of maintaining and repairing underground distribution power lines; (3) potential cost savings associated with reduced power outages after burying distribution power lines; and (4) anticipated effects of burying distribution power lines on the environment, such as land use and water quality, on public safety, and on emergency response.