Lawmakers have introduced energy reform legislation known as the 2025 Wisconsin Energy Reform Act or WERA. It has an agriculture element.
WERA addresses farmland preservation by taking a new approach to wind and solar siting. For each acre of high-productivity farmland used for renewable energy projects, multiple acres of farmland must be protected for future agricultural use.
The chair of the Assembly Agriculture Committee, Rep. Travis Tranel, spearheaded this line item. Tranel tells Mid-West Farm Report that his constituents are not opposed to renewable energy. He says people take issue with where the projects go. Tranel says the consensus is that prime farmland shouldn’t be converted to solar or wind farms.
“I worked hard to strike the right balance to protect prime farmland for generations of farmers to
come, while still recognizing the need to protect private property owners and the reality that energy
generation in Wisconsin will likely always include renewable sources,” he said.
WERA encourages utilities to put wind and solar arrays on marginal land by requiring that they purchase four acres of agricultural conservation easements with every one acre of renewable energy. The ratio falls to 2-to-1 in areas with more marginal land than farmland, Tranel explains. The land must be in an easement for the duration of the energy project.
There’s More:
This farmland conservation element is a part of the grander bill that:
- requires competitive bidding on transmission projects and prevents favoritism in awarding construction bids
- protects ratepayers by lowering profits for companies that go over budget or don’t competitively bid projects
- encourages utilities to adopt nuclear energy, providing reliable energy for all Wisconsin residents and businesses
- requires solar, wind, and battery developers to inform nearby residents of the projects, not just the owners of the land
- reduces blinking lights on transmission lines and windmills in rural areas
The lead author, Rep. Jerry O’Connor, says the legislation intends to secure a more competitive landscape for energy companies and ratepayers in Wisconsin. He notes it’s the “most comprehensive energy reform package brought forward in Wisconsin in decades.”
The Energy and Utilities Committee will need to pass the bill before it’s brought to the full Assembly.
