North Dakota landowners ask court to toss JETx power line review over 'blurbs in the newspaper'

A legal fight is unfolding in North Dakota over a high-voltage transmission line that is proposed to be built between Jamestown and Ellendale. 

Landowners and townships along the project's route are arguing that regulators didn't fully fulfill their review of the power line because they did not speak with communities that will be affected by the project. 

What's happening?

The North Dakota Monitor reported that landowners, farm partnerships, townships, and the Willowbank Hutterian Brethren Association have asked the state Supreme Court to set aside part of the approval process for JETx, the high-voltage transmission line project. 

At the center of the case is a certificate of public convenience and necessity, a key determination by the North Dakota Public Service Commission (PSC) that a major transmission line is needed and serves the public interest.

The plaintiffs are asking the Supreme Court to halt all of the PSC proceedings related to JETx, including the routing permit. 

Attorney Doug Nill, who is representing the landowners and townships, argued that regulators relied on the wrong statute and failed to directly notify communities that would be affected, which he said left his clients without a meaningful chance to participate.

According to Nill, the only public notices about the power line were "blurbs in the newspaper." These affected communities should be directly notified, presented with information and evidence, and allowed to make their own decisions, he said. 

The PSC maintains its decision to issue a certificate in November 2024 and maintains that the decision was sound. Residents and townships appealed the decision, and the PSC denied the appeal in June 2025. 

In February, a district court judge ruled in favor of the state and utility companies' claims that the landowners and townships did not meet the deadline to appeal the JETx certificate. 

If approved, JETx would cross Dickey, LaMoure, and Stutsman counties on towers reaching 150 feet. 

Why does it matter?

The dispute extends beyond a single power line.

Transmission infrastructure can help improve grid reliability and make it easier to move cleaner electricity, including wind power, to areas where it is needed. Otter Tail Power and Montana-Dakota Utilities, the companies behind the project, say the line is meant to strengthen electric reliability around Jamestown, according to the North Dakota Monitor.

Opponents say the process shut out affected communities and turned the project into a fight over property rights, public trust, and environmental stewardship. Some believe the line could help serve data centers or move North Dakota wind energy to Minnesota, though the utilities have maintained that the project is intended to address reliability.

The outcome could shape the level of notice and participation communities receive before future pipelines, substations, and transmission corridors are approved.

What's being done?

The North Dakota Supreme Court has not yet ruled, as of reporting. 

After hearing arguments, the justices took the case under advisement and will later decide whether regulators followed the law or whether the process must be revisited.

The PSC is continuing its separate routing and siting review. During oral arguments, Justice Douglas Bahr, as reported by the North Dakota Monitor, asked why landowners had not raised those objections there.

In response, two plaintiffs, Susan Long and Richard Long, told the North Dakota Monitor they had tried to do so but were told the issue was outside the scope of those hearings.

The case also comes as North Dakota lawmakers, according to the North Dakota Monitor, weigh steps to ease clashes between developers and landowners.

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