Chapter 216I — Minnesota Energy Infrastructure Permitting Act

216I.01 Citation This chapter is called the Minnesota Energy Infrastructure Permitting Act, a law that took effect July 1, 2025. It … 216I.02 Definitions This section defines the key terms used throughout the Minnesota Energy Infrastructure Permitting Act. It defines what … 216I.03 Siting Authority This section establishes that the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has the authority to decide where large energy … 216I.04 Applicability Determination This section allows a developer to ask the Public Utilities Commission whether a proposed energy project meets the … 216I.05 Designating Sites and Routes This section sets out the main permit application process for large energy facilities. No one may build a large power … 216I.06 Applications; Major Review This section describes the 'major review' process, the most thorough permitting path for large energy projects. The PUC … 216I.07 Applications; Standard Review This section establishes a faster 'standard review' process for certain types of energy projects, including smaller … 216I.08 Applications; Local Review This section allows certain smaller energy projects to seek approval from local government rather than the state PUC. … 216I.09 Permit Amendments This section establishes how a facility owner can get approval to modify or upgrade an existing permitted energy … 216I.10 Exempt Projects This section lists the energy projects that do not need a PUC permit at all. Projects exempt from state permitting … 216I.11 Permitting Requirements; Exceptions for Certain Facilities This section lists specific types of work on existing energy facilities that do not require a new permit from the PUC, … 216I.12 Emergency Permits This section allows a utility to get an emergency permit to build a large energy facility quickly when a major … 216I.13 Permit Transfer This section sets out the process for transferring a site or route permit from one company to another, such as when an … 216I.14 Permit Revocation or Suspension This section describes the process for revoking or suspending a permit to build or operate a large energy facility. The … 216I.15 Annual Hearing This section requires the Public Utilities Commission to hold an annual public hearing where anyone can comment on … 216I.16 Public Participation This section requires the PUC to treat broad public participation as a core principle in its work on energy facility … 216I.17 Public Meetings; Transcripts; Written Records This section requires all PUC meetings, including hearings on energy facility permits, to be open to the public. The PUC … 216I.18 Application to Local Regulation and Other State Permits This section establishes that a PUC site or route permit is the only local land use approval needed for a large energy … 216I.19 Wind Turbine Lighting Systems This section requires large wind energy conversion systems (wind farms) that received permits after July 1, 2021 to … 216I.20 Improvement of Sites and Routes This section allows a permit holder to begin construction or site improvements on an approved energy facility site or … 216I.21 Eminent Domain Powers; Power of Condemnation This section preserves utility companies' power of eminent domain — the legal right to take private property for public … 216I.22 Sites and Routes; Recording Survey Points This section requires utilities to record the permanent location of survey monuments and markers placed during a … 216I.23 Failure to Act This section gives applicants and affected persons a legal remedy if the PUC fails to act on a permit application within … 216I.24 Revocation or Suspension This section lists the grounds for revoking or suspending a large energy facility site or route permit. A permit may be … 216I.25 Judicial Review This section allows applicants, parties, and aggrieved persons to appeal PUC decisions on site and route permits, minor … 216I.26 Rules This section authorizes the PUC to adopt rules needed to carry out the energy infrastructure permitting law. The rules … 216I.27 Enforcement, Penalties This section sets out the penalties for violating the Minnesota Energy Infrastructure Permitting Act. A first violation … 216I.28 Route Application Fee; Appropriation; Funding This section requires energy project applicants to pay fees to cover the PUC's costs of processing their permit …