CEO of Texas power grid operator terminated in aftermath of winter storm
Bill Magness is the latest official to depart following the winter storm catastrophe. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/64207813e98e49f35e471625a59c5162/Bill%20Magness%20ERCOT%20CEO%20TT.jpg)
-
![ERCOT CEO Bill Magness.]()
Credit: Texas A&M Smart Grid Center -
Gov. Greg Abbott taps new head of Texas utility regulator in wake of power outages
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. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/308d60bb400ad996f50fb17ea62d7cb9/Arthur%20D%20Andrea%20TT.jpg)
![Arthur D’Andrea Chair of Public Utility Commission of Texas.]()
Credit: Texas Public Utility Commission -
Public Utility Commission chair resigns after Texas officials criticize management of power outages
On Monday, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick called for PUC Chair DeAnn Walker and Electric Reliability Council of Texas CEO Bill Magness to resign. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/3a75d765fdd23b2f84530501cbddfc1a/DeAnn%20Walker%20PUC%20TT.jpg)
![Public Utility Commission Chair DeAnn Walker.]()
Credit: Texas Public Utility Commission -
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick calls for resignations at Public Utility Commission, power grid operator over winter storm
Patrick's statements come after the officials testified for hours late last week in committee hearings as state lawmakers grilled them over the power grid failures. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/aef557b9a2469d4c20b111c00caa0511/Senate%20Floor%20Dan%20Patrick%20MG%20TT%2010.jpg)
![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick at the dias in the Senate chamber on the second day of the 2021 legislative session on Jan. 13, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Griddy customers moved to other electricity providers after ERCOT boots it from Texas market
Griddy made headlines for sending massive bills to customers after a winter storm sent wholesale electricity skyrocketing. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/646535c4b955ef4e0f85a16b87d158c0/Winter%20Storm%20McKinney%20ST%20TT%2006.jpg)
![Scenes from McKinney during the winter storm affecting the entire state. The storm brought snow, ice, and freezing temperatures that are causing hazardous driving conditions and electrical outages.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Another ERCOT board member resigns as lawmakers criticize power grid operator for massive electricity outages
Texas lawmakers have questioned and criticized the Electric Reliability Council of Texas for days about the near-collapse of the state’s power grid last week. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/5d612b7d24f088f47ecb895357c5d923/ATX%20Snowstorm%20Feb%2017%20MG%20TT%2023.jpg)
![Firefighters clear snow and ice from a side walk outside of the Rebekah Baines Johnson Center in East Austin on Feb. 17, 2021. Elderly residents were evacuated because of a power outage.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Watch live: Texas House and Senate holding hearings about last week's winter storm
Lawmakers will continue asking a litany of officials and executives how last week's power outages happened. Legislators in both chambers spent more than 12 hours investigating the disruptions Thursday. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/35e1657aabc96e7bb8b90a423b6f5452/Capitol%20Opening%20Day%20JV%20TT%2012.jpg)
![A committee hearing room featuring plexiglass dividers on Jan. 4, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
Texas utility regulator to investigate indexed retail electric providers following massive electric bills
While these plans are allowed under state law, the Texas Public Utility Commission said that “an influx of complaints into our Customer Protection Division has caused concerns that questionable business practices might be exacerbating the situation.” Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/6b149ea6d40de0a261b5698adba837a5/ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20JV%2007.jpg)
![A car moves through a neighborhood in West Austin that is without power on Feb 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Jordan Vonderhaar for The Texas Tribune -
After Texans died during winter storm, Harris and Travis counties launch investigations into power outages
Harris County Attorney Christian D. Menefee said operators should have been prepared after 2011’s hard freeze. Travis County District Attorney José Garza told local media that his office will determine whether criminal charges should be filed against any person or entity. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/1af87bc8e8cd74227a57df01d2511c45/ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20SF%20TT%2022.JPG)
![Electrical workers repair a power line in Austin on Feb. 18, 2021. Many Texas residents are still without power and many don't have clean drinking water or working water.]()
Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune -
“Power companies get exactly what they want”: How Texas repeatedly failed to protect its power grid against extreme weather
Texas regulators and lawmakers knew about the grid’s vulnerabilities for years, but time and again they furthered the interests of large electricity providers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/0bb3e3da33232820654479ca024f11b3/ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20Feb%2018%20MG%20TT%2006.jpg)
![Jacob Duran prepares wood for a grill. Duran has been cooking meals outsides after his apartment lost power. Feb. 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Texans blindsided by massive electric bills await details of Gov. Greg Abbott's promised relief
Electric bills are likely to rise for everyone, experts and consumer advocates say, but some Texans on variable rate contracts have been hit with immediate, massive price spikes. Lawmakers and the governor have promised to help, but haven't said how. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/e8cf6f0de4f70260b84688f81d5a0443/Karen%20Knox%20-%20High%20Bills%20ST%20TT%2002.jpg)
![Karen Knox, a special education teacher at L.D. Bell High School in Hurst, received a bill of over $7K from Griddy for less than a week of electricity during the winter storm.]()
Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune -
Busted pipes, water damage, hotel bills: As power flickers on, costs loom for storm-weary Texans
Texans face a cascade of frustrations and expenses as the state tries to recover from the storm. Insurance companies are bracing for claims rivaling those after major hurricanes, and homeowners are trying to find plumbers and electricians. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c83570801c5479c65ff17fdc2eacddbc/Brodie%20Apartment%20Fire%20MG%20TT%2007.jpg)
![Fire damage at an apartment building at The Park on Brodie Lane. Feb. 18, 2021.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Working political angles instead of solving problems
As Texans struggle with terrible winter weather, electric utility failures affecting more than 4 million households, a pandemic and a botched vaccine rollout, a natural question arises: Do state leaders know what they're doing? Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c623dae9a850c18985c717f49da3056b/ATX%20Winter%20Storm%20EL%20TT%2018.jpg)
![Snow at the Capitol in Austin on Feb. 15, 2021.]()
Credit: Evan L'Roy/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Texas tries to make the connections on broadband internet
Texans stuck at home need high-speed internet for schooling, for work, for shopping, for medicine, for entertainment — the live, in-person activities we all took for granted a year ago. Sounds simple enough, but there’s a lot to untangle. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/a1811b4edad6305e365876dc682d6b24/Rackspace%20JW%20TT%2012.jpg)
![Rows of racks holding servers make up a test lab in San Antonio. Jan. 7, 2012.]()
Credit: Jennifer Whitney for The Texas Tribune -
Internet and phone services in rural Texas threatened as state slashes subsidies for providers
A state fund that subsidizes rural network service is bleeding money. Now the state is drastically cutting the amount of money that it typically pays out to these service providers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/12e275e66cba1b5fa9fcbda5f78819e7/Cactus%20Texas%20Rural%20MG%20TT%2005.jpg)
![The a road in the town of Cactus.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune -
Nearly 600,000 Texans will lose access to a program that prevented electricity shut-offs during the pandemic on Oct. 1
Once the program ends, customers could be on the hook for partial back payments. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/c480dc96220ca11f2fdd4bc881f6f301/Austin%20Power%20Plant%20EG%20TT%2024.jpg)
![Electrical power lines near the Austin Energy/Sand Hill Energy Center in Del Valle on March 24, 2020.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Analysis: Funding for rural broadband in Texas is in trouble. The pandemic might save it.
Rural Texans have been clamoring for high-speed internet services for years, and the requirements of a pandemic — work, schools and medicine — have raised the stakes. But a state fund that helps provide those services is in financial trouble. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/380592600268fa7955ad03e1b520334b/Edingburg%20Telephone%20Pole%20TT.jpg)
![A colonia, unincorporated neighborhoods that lack basic services such as street lights, proper drainage, paved roads or waste management, is seen near Edinburg on March 25, 2020.]()
Credit: Verónica G. Cárdenas for The Texas Tribune -
As Texas businesses reopen, a short-lived coronavirus safety net is dismantled
Evictions and debt collections have resumed, child care subsidies will be discontinued and those who are out of work will again have to prove they are searching for a job in order to receive unemployment benefits. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/841bf359b804080ac0bd765ec8d88763/ATX%20Food%20Drive%20April%2030%20EG%20TT%2006.jpg)
![The Central Texas Food Bank hosts a food drive at the Toney Burger Activity Center in Austin on April 30, 2020.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
Texas utility regulators have programs to prevent shutoffs during the pandemic. But some Texans are falling through the cracks.
Although some counties have moratoriums on disconnections, in most of the state customers need to apply for the benefit. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/bc59a045a1b3684e7aef7dcf6303ea05/Carly%20Eaves%20MF%20TT%2001.jpg)
![Carly Eaves poses for a portrait at her parent's home on April 15,]()
Credit: Mark Felix for The Texas Tribune -
Texas regulators vote to ban residential utility shut-offs during pandemic while buoying companies
The Texas Public Utility Commission approved an order Thursday that would ban disconnections of water and power service for Texans financially impacted by COVID-19 and put them on deferred payment plans. But advocates and experts say the real winner might be utility providers. Full Story
/https://static.texastribune.org/media/files/07af753fcbe8569fab87a9483bf22c12/Credit_Card_Debt_Money_FInancial_2.jpg)
![Credit card debt illustration.]()
Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune