Amidst news of upcoming severe weather, Texas Representative Greg Casar (D) promoted his “Connect the Grid Act” to help protect Texans from power outages during brutal weather.
“After the 2021 storm, Republican officials said they'd fix the grid. They didn’t. Texans shouldn’t worry about mass power outages — or their lives — because of failed leadership. That’s why I’m finalizing the Connect the Grid Act to make sure Texans can keep the lights on,” tweeted Rep. Casar.'
After the 2021 storm, Republican officials said they'd fix the grid. They didn’t.
Texans shouldn’t worry about mass power outages — or their lives — because of failed leadership.
That’s why I’m finalizing the Connect the Grid Act to make sure Texans can keep the lights on. 💡
— Congressman Greg Casar (@RepCasar) February 8, 2024
The Texas grid has been a continuous issue for several years. After the storm in 2021, in which millions in Texas lost power, the GOP began to face serious national criticism for failures to manage the state’s grid system.
Despite Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) taking much of the criticism from Texans, it was Texas Senator Ted Cruz (R) who took the most criticism for fleeing to Cancun during the storm before returning to Texas.
Texas’s power grid has been heavily affected by the cold as well as the heat, which is why Casar has pushed for his grid-protecting legislation.
“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,” said Casar.
According to the 2023 statement, close to 90% of Texas’s electricity is run solely through the state grid.
Because of the state’s brutally extreme weather conditions, Casar believes it is crucial that Texas is connected to the national grid.
Furthermore, cities like El Paso and Jasper are connected to the national grid and did not suffer mass power outages in the rough Winter Storm Uri in 2021.
“Whether we’re in the middle of a heat wave or a winter storm, Texas should be able to keep the lights on. That’s why I’m drafting federal legislation to require Texas to connect to the national grids,” said Casar in 2023.
The congressman continued, “We have to stop playing the political blame game. We have to stop playing to the biggest corporate interests that want to have a monopoly in this state and do the right thing, interconnect to the grid. It will save us billions of dollars. It will save us from these kinds of blackouts, and it will actually be good for our economy. I'm drafting up the first bill ever in the Congress to finally require that interconnection.”
