Texas lawmakers are working to address grid reliability in the opening days of the 2025 legislative session, following the statewide blackout caused by Winter Storm Uri in 2021.
On Wednesday, January 29, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick outlined his top 25 priority bills for the session. Among them is SB 6, which aims to increase the reliability of the Texas electric grid.
While the text of the bill is not yet available, Patrick and Gov. Greg Abbott have made grid reliability a focus. Last year, they issued a joint statement calling for more funding for the Texas Energy Fund, established in 2023 to provide grants and interest-free loans to investors seeking to build new natural gas plants in Texas.
“We will seek to expand the program to $10 billion to build more new plants as soon as possible,” the statement read. “The average plant will take three to four years to complete, and new transmission lines will take three to six years to complete. Texas is currently the fastest state to approve and build new plants and transmission lines because of our low regulations and pro-business policies, but we must move quickly."
Abbott has also called for the creation of the Texas Nuclear Energy Fund. Similar to its predecessor, the Nuclear Fund seeks to revive the state's nuclear energy industry to enhance grid reliability.
Bill Peacock, policy director for the Energy Alliance, said these programs are a response to growing reliability issues caused by renewable energy.
“Last year, renewable generation produced 34% of the electricity on the Texas grid,” said Peacock. “The increase in renewables has made the Texas grid the least reliable grid in the U.S. And none of this would be happening if not for state and federal renewable energy subsidies.”
The Energy Alliance produced a report last year showing that renewable energy subsidies soared after Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act in 2022. Planned wind and solar subsidies increased by more than $100 billion from 2023-27 due to the IRA.
Peacock argues that trying to counter federal subsidies for renewables with state subsidies for natural gas and nuclear energy will not solve the issue.
“We can’t out subsidize the federal government,” Peacock said. “If we want to make the grid more reliable, we have to end Texas renewable subsidies and more renewable generators pay for the reliability costs they are imposing on the grid.”
A bill recently filed in Texas seeks to do just that. SB 714, introduced by Sen. Kevin Sparks, is designed to eliminate or compensate for market distortions caused by federal tax credits for wind facilities.
As reported by Texas Scorecard, Sparks said federal subsidies have “distorted the market and impacted Texas, leading to grid instability, price volatility, and costly infrastructure upgrades.”
“This burden has ultimately fallen on taxpayers, who are left to bear the costs of a less reliable grid,” said Sparks. “Federal subsidies undermine free enterprise and burden taxpayers; it is time to pave the way for a more sustainable and resilient energy market.”
