Your frequently asked questions

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Well, it depends what you call "rarely". You can find a list of recent transmission line fires, including cost and casualties at this link. 

1. Statutory Rights Under California Code of Civil Procedure § 1245.010: Utilities often use private contractor land agents to approach rural landowners with friendly entry forms, sometimes creating the false impression that survey access is legally mandatory. In reality, a utility cannot enter private property without owner consent or a formal court-issued pre-condemnation order (which requires an evidentiary hearing and deposit of probable compensation for damages).

      > Think before you consent to any access...

2. Protecting Property Leverage: When landowners decline voluntary entry, SDG&E cannot conduct on-site soil borings, archaeological excavations, or boundary flagging. This forces the utility to rely on generalized public remote-sensing data for its initial application, preventing SDG&E from locking down a definitive alignment across private parcels.

    > Why would we make their life easier?

3. Strengthening CEQA Legal Standing: Landowners who maintain their property rights remain in the strongest possible legal position to challenge the sufficiency of the utility's Environmental Impact Report (EIR) before the CPUC, forcing the state to fully examine Non-Wire Alternatives (such as advanced composite reconductoring along existing highway rights-of-way) that require zero private land acquisition.

    > Protect what is yours!

• Legal advisors caution that signing voluntary "Right of Entry" or preliminary easement agreements prematurely waives private property rights, grants broad utility access for invasive heavy equipment testing, and damages land valuation.
• Remember that the third party who may be requesting access is just an employee, so be courtuous and simply refuse to sign.

 YOU, the public, the people from So Cal and around the world who visit the mountain are the most important aspect of our cause!  You have many way to help

1- Please leave your comments here of why Palomar is important to you as a year-round, Four Season playground for your family traditions and that you want it preserved for generations to come.  Do you have a photo to include?  Then, please share with all your social media groups and ask them to do the same!  

2- If you are in a pinch, you can just sign our change.org petition.

3- You want to do more, send a letter of opposition to CPUC. You can find a template here.

You can subscribe to and share our Instagram Page or Facebook Group and share with your network our updates.

You can print this POSTCARD to distribute to places you go with a call to action to go to Save Palomar Mountain to oppose the Powerlink.

You can print this FLYER to give more details on local risks resulting from this 500kV Powerline.

Yes, and as recently as May 2026, CAISO cancelled the Serrano-DelAmo-Mesa 500kV transmission line. You can read more here and here.

Save Temecula has an excellent analysis on its website.

In short,  using the 40-Year Capital Recovery Formula:
• A Meter Running for Decades: Transmission infrastructure is not a
one-time sticker expense. Under Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
(FERC) formula rates, utilities recover their capital investment through
an authorized ~10.3% return on equity (ROE) on a ~54% equity capital
structure, plus 40-year straight-line depreciation, operations and
maintenance (O&M at ~2%/year), and local property taxes.

• The $7.5 Billion Reality: When modeled across a standard 40-year
useful asset life, a $2.0B–$2.3B transmission line ultimately extracts
$7.5 billion to $8.5 billion from ratepayers. Roughly $3 billion of that
total constitutes pure shareholder profit—far exceeding the initial
construction cost.

• Compounding California's Highest Rates: SDG&E customers already pay
approximately 47.7¢ per kilowatt-hour—more than double the national
average and among the highest retail electric rates in the country,
rising roughly 10% annually. Because the statewide High Voltage
Transmission Access Charge (TAC) spreads ~91% of these capital costs to
SCE and PG&E customers, the line inflates utility bills statewide while
concentrating wildfire and aesthetic risks in local backcountry corridors. 

You can find the May 9th, 2024 report at this link: http://www.caiso.com/InitiativeDocuments/ImperialValley-NorthofSONGSProjectApprovedProjectSponsorReport.pdf 

Thanks for asking!  Yes, simply click here to donate to the non-profit charitable 501(c)(3) organization overseeing Save Palomar Mountain Task Force, the  Palomar Mountain Planning Organization (PMPO). Your donation is tax-deductible and much appreciated! 

 Yes, we do and you can learn more about Ted Beary here. He can assist you in understanding the latest news on the Mountain, as well as share his favorite activities on Palomar which he wants to strongly to preserve! 

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You can reach us directly by email as well.