Texas lawmakers file bills to increase accountability of energy companies

Texas lawmakers want to increase the accountability of energy companies after widespread power failures last month.

Bill Magness, President and CEO of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), right at table, testifies as the Committees on State Affairs and Energy Resources hold a joint public hearing to consider the factors that led to statewide electrical blackouts, Thursday, Feb. 25, 2021, in Austin, Texas. The hearings were the first in Texas since a blackout that was one of the worst in U.S. history, leaving more than 4 million customers without power and heat in subfreezing temperatures. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)(Eric Gay)

Representative Lyle Larson filed a bill to consolidate the state’s oil, gas and electric regulators into one elected group called the Texas Energy and Communications Commission.

State Senator Judith Zaffirini filed a bill that would make the Public Utility Commission an elected body, and another that would set standards for winterizing power systems.

These actions come after winter storms caused massive power outages and extremely high energy bills across the state.