Frederick County Executive Jessica Fitzwater on Tuesday announced that the county intends to intervene in the state approval process for the Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project, a proposed power transmission line.

“Frederick County totally opposes MPRP, and our decision to intervene should send a clear message that we will use the legal tools at our disposal to protect our community,” Fitzwater said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project was selected by regional transmission organization PJM Interconnection from a number of proposals it solicited. If approved, it would run for 70 miles through Frederick, Carroll and Baltimore counties.

On Dec. 31, the New Jersey-based Public Service Enterprise Group applied to the state for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity, which provides authority to construct or modify generating stations or high-voltage transmission lines — in this case, the MPRP.

Applications for CPCNs are ruled on by the Maryland Public Service Commission, a quasi-judicial agency that oversees the provision of public utilities and transportation services in the state.

Tori Leonard, a spokesperson for the PSC, wrote in an email Tuesday that the deadline to file a petition to intervene in the agency’s review of PSEG’s proposal is Feb. 17. No petitions for intervention had been filed as of Tuesday afternoon.

If granted, a petition to intervene would allow an entity such as Frederick County to file as a party to the case, affording certain rights such as filing testimony and evidence, conducting discovery, calling witnesses and cross-examining other parties’ witnesses.

The PSC will most likely rule on petitions to intervene at the pre-hearing conference for PSEG’s case, Leonard wrote on Tuesday. That hearing has not yet been scheduled. In a phone interview on Tuesday, Fitzwater’s chief administrative officer John Peterson said the County Attorney’s Office will “take the lead” on the petition to intervene.

The administration is still evaluating whether the County Attorney’s Office has the capacity to handle the petition internally or if it will need to bring in outside counsel, Peterson said.

If the County Attorney’s Office requires additional resources to handle the petition, the Frederick County Council may be asked to approve a corresponding adjustment to this year’s budget. The County Council on Tuesday heard an update from Fitzwater’s administration about PSEG’s application and the county’s intent to intervene in the state approval process.

Also on Tuesday, the council began workshopping a separate resolution in opposition to the MPRP. That resolution will come back for a vote on Feb. 4, the council’s next legislative day.

In September, Fitzwater and the Frederick County Council approved a joint letter urging the PSC to reject any application for the MPRP. At that point, PSEG was still soliciting feedback on a number of possible transmission line routes.

The new resolution would specifically address the preferred route made public by PSEG in October 2024. Council Member Steve McKay, who is sponsoring the measure, said its language was based on a similar resolution passed by the Baltimore County Council.