Texas voters to decide whether to put billions toward gas power plants [View all]

[Eugene]

Source: The Hill

Texas voters to decide whether to put billions toward gas power plants

by Rachel Frazin - 11/05/23 6:00 AM ET

This Election Day, Texas voters will decide whether or not to open up billions of dollars to support natural gas power plants.

Proponents of the measure tout it as a way to improve the state’s electric grid — which infamously failed in a massive winter storm in February 2021, leading to the deaths of 246 people, or over 750 by one investigation.

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Opponents argue that it’s a taxpayer giveaway to the polluting fossil fuel industry, and they raise doubts about whether it will actually improve reliability.

The measure, known as Proposition 7 or “Prop 7” creates the “Texas Energy Fund.”

This fund would provide $7.2 billion in low-interest loans for the construction of new gas-powered plants, completion bonuses for that construction and for repairs to existing gas plants. This would apply to the majority of the grid that is controlled by the power operator known as the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT).

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Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/energy-environment/4292920-texas-voters-proposition-7-gas-power-plants/