Eminent Domain: They Can Take Your Land

Eminent domain is the government's power to take private property for public use. California hands that power to electric utilities: under Public Utilities Code § 612, an electrical corporation “may condemn any property necessary for the construction and maintenance of its electric plant.” SDG&E — which took over this project as its builder and owner — would wield it. ^{[1] [2]}

That power is not limited to a thin strip. Eminent domain can take a full ownership interest in land — the parcel, and the house on it — when the utility deems it necessary. In practice it more often condemns a permanent right-of-way across part of a property and pays for the damage; but either way, the owner cannot simply say no. ^{[1] [3]}

There is a gate, and it is the place to stop this. Before SDG&E can condemn anything, the CPUC must grant it a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (required for any line at or above 200 kV). SDG&E is expected to apply later in 2026 — and only once that certificate issues does the condemnation door open. ^{[4] [2]}

A 500 kV line needs a wide right-of-way — on the order of 150 to 250 feet — cleared and kept clear across every parcel it crosses. Structures and uses inside that corridor have to go. ^[5]

California requires SDG&E to negotiate first and pay “just compensation” — fair market value, plus “severance damages” for the lost value to the rest of your property. But the owner's leverage is thin: a utility's finding that it needs your land is nearly impossible to overturn, and SDG&E can deposit its own estimate and take possession before a jury ever decides what the land was worth. ^[3]

It is not hypothetical. Building the Sunrise Powerlink, SDG&E condemned a 300-foot right-of-way across a San Diego County property; a jury rejected SDG&E's roughly $701,000 offer and awarded the owners about $8.0 million — most of it severance damage to the land left behind. ^[6] Independent research likewise finds transmission easements measurably depress property values. ^[7]