Transmission Permitting Tracker
A centralized, public view into the permitting status of major planned transmission lines across the United States — helping bring clarity to a process that often spans years and multiple agencies.
Americans for a Clean Energy Grid (ACEG), in partnership with Grid Strategies, developed this tracker to make permitting information for large, high-voltage transmission projects easier to find, understand, and follow over time. The tool builds on the Our Grid Future database of planned transmission projects, which is maintained by Horizon Energy Systems in association with Great Plains Institute, and adds a permitting layer that can be explored by project, region, or status category.
Transmission permitting is often lengthy and fragmented across multiple agencies and overlapping state and federal processes, making it difficult to track — even for experienced stakeholders. By bringing this information together in one place, the tracker offers a clearer snapshot of where key lines stand today — and how projects are (or are not) advancing as the grid evolves.
Explore the Map and Database
Click on the map below to explore planned high-capacity transmission projects and view their permitting status. Click on any line to see a concise permitting summary and basic project information.
Use the options menu to display lines by permitting status including projects that have not yet begun permitting, are currently under review, or have completed major permitting steps.
Explore the full interactive permitting map → https://ourgridfuture.org/
What the Tracker Includes:
The Permitting Tracker was informed by the hard-won lessons of past transmission efforts that underscored just how opaque and protracted the process can be, including projects like the Boardman-to-Hemingway line, SunZia line, and other major high-voltage proposals that faced years of legal, regulatory, and siting challenges across multiple jurisdictions.
Although those projects show progress in the permitting, those lengthy experiences revealed how even projects critical to reliability and affordability can stall without clear visibility into where decisions sit, which agencies are involved, and what hurdles remain.
For each planned high-capacity line, users can view:
- State permitting status
- Federal permitting status (where applicable)
- Lead agencies and key milestones
- Links to public dockets and environmental review pages
- Basic project details identified by Great Plains Institute (length, voltage, planning authority, expected in-service year)
Many projects are still early in development and have not begun the permitting process. ACEG and Grid Strategies will update the tool periodically to add newly planned lines and reflect new information as projects advance.
For questions or requests related to specific projects, please contact: alex.domb@cleanenergygrid.org