TEXAS — Rep. Greg Casar, D-Texas, on Wednesday joined several fellow lawmakers, many of them from Texas, to introduce a bill that would require the Lone Star State to connect to the national power grids.
The Connect the Grid Act, according to a news release from Casar’s office, is being introduced on the third anniversary of the winter storm that left much of Texas without power and resulted in the deaths of at least 246 people.
The bill would require the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, or ERCOT, to connect the state’s isolated power grid to the nation’s major grids. The limitations of the grid were painfully exposed in February 2021 when thousands of Texans lost power in freezing weather.
According to Casar, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, is the one carrying the bill in the Senate and he has frequently collaborated with Ocasio-Cortez on environmental legislation.
Power cannot be redirected from neighboring states to Texas in the event of a mass outage.
“By connecting the ERCOT grid, all Texans and Americans would have more reliable electricity, saving lives in future natural disasters. The U.S. would also be better-able to reach its climate goals with Texas’ clean energy production,” the news release states.
The grid has held up since the winter storm; however, this has not occurred without numerous calls from ERCOT for residents to conserve power during peak periods.
The bill proposed by Casar would also subject ERCOT to the oversight of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
Casar had a press conference at 1 p.m. CST Wednesday. He was joined by Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, and bill co-lead Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York, among others.
Rep. Troy Carter, D-Louisiana, also attended the press conference to support Casar and the legislation. He added that, “in Louisiana we know all too well—we know storms come faster, they stay longer, they come stronger, and they leave more havoc in their path and people suffer. We know that many people die more from the lack of electricity than the storm itself.”
“Whether we’re in the middle of a heat wave or a winter storm, Texas should be able to keep the lights on. This legislation will help consumers, improve the economy, generate more clean power, and save lives,” Casar said as he was drafting the legislation in September 2023.
The official death toll from the winter storm of 2021 is 246. Numerous homes went without power or drinkable water for days after subfreezing temperatures, failing power plants and record demand for heat pushed Texas’ electric grid to the breaking point.
The deaths, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services, involved Texans between the ages of 1 and 102 and spanned 77 counties.
Most of the deaths involved prolonged exposure to extreme cold, with 158 attributed to hypothermia and three to frostbite. Other causes of death included exacerbation of pre-existing conditions, such as disruption to dialysis treatment, oxygen treatment and hospice care, as well as hazardous road conditions. A total of 22 deaths were attributed to vehicle accidents.
“The state has long refused to connect its grid in an attempt to avoid federal standards and consumer protections. The U.S. Congress has the legal authority to require Texas to connect to the national grids to protect consumers, improve electric reliability nationwide and safely regulate commerce,” Casar said.