Do you need a license to be a lineman in Texas?

Often, yes. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issues a Journeyman Lineman license that takes 7,000 hours in a Department of Labor approved apprenticeship or 3.5 years of lineman experience in Texas, plus an exam. Work on equipment under the exclusive control of an electric utility, electric cooperative or power generation company is exempt, and people doing exempt work don't need the license.