Wind Farm KUT

Energy & Environment

As Texas legislative session nears end, Republican lawmakers try one last push against renewables

Posted on · Proposals considered damaging to Texas’ wind and solar sectors, many of which had been introduced in standalone bills earlier in the session but failed to win enough support to become law, have now been resurrected and added as amendments to a make-or-break piece of legislation to continue the operation of the state's Public Utility Commission.

A power plant

Energy & Environment

Texas could connect to national power grids without losing autonomy, former grid regulator says

Posted on · Texas has long refused to connect its decentralized grid to two national power networks, but Hunt Energy Network CEO Pat Wood said the state could do so without additional oversight — and without state Legislature approval.

Houston Matters

The First Day Of School Amid COVID’s Fourth Wave And Battles Over Masks (Aug. 23, 2021)

Posted on · On Monday's show: Students and teachers go back to class at HISD today amid a fourth wave of COVID-19, reimbursing companies that made money during the February power failure, a local veterinarian answers your questions, and an update on local sports.

Energy & Environment

Texas Legislature Approves Bills To Require Power Plants To ‘Weatherize,’ Among Other Measures To Overhaul Electric Grid

Posted on · The Texas House and Senate both approved negotiated versions of Senate Bill 2 and Senate Bill 3, the two sweeping bills to change the state’s power grid and the people who oversee it.

Texas Power Grid

Energy & Environment

ERCOT Hires Interim CEO And President As Major Grid Reforms Stall In Legislature

Posted on · ERCOT doesn’t have the power to mandate major changes. That’s the job of the Public Utility Commission (PUC), which oversees ERCOT and regulates the grid, as well as the Railroad Commission, which regulates the natural gas sector. The Texas legislature oversees all of the organizations, and its efforts to mandate weatherization have stalled.

Energy & Environment

Gov. Greg Abbott Taps New Head Of Texas Utility Regulator In Wake Of Power Outages

Posted on · Arthur D'Andrea replaces DeAnn Walker, who resigned earlier this week as chair of the Public Utility Commission. The governor appoints commissioners to lead the PUC, which oversees the state’s grid operator, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.

Houston Matters

As Houston Heats Up, What’s Happening With Your Electricity Bill?

Posted on · Starting next month (Sept. 1, 2016), CenterPoint Energy customers will begin seeing a change on their bill. The energy company recently raised the price it charges for transporting electricity from the provider to customers' homes by about 65 cents per month. As Houston Public Media reported back in May, CenterPoint wanted to charge more — […]

Houston Matters

When it Comes to Paying for Electricity, it Might Pay to Complain

Posted on · A new report from the Texas Coalition for Affordable Power says complaints filed with regulators about electric companies and utilities fell to their lowest point since Texas deregulated its power market in 2002. But long-term data show consumers complain more than they did before the market was deregulated. We talk with News 88.7’s Dave Fehling […]

Houston Matters

Who’s Getting The Best Deals On Electricity In Texas?

Posted on · During a meeting of the Texas Public Utility Commission, its former chairman, Barry Smitherman, gave Texans one more reason to love their state and for others to envy it: low, low prices for electricity. “If you use the best available price in the market place from a retail electric provider Houston and Dallas have the […]