Texas, Maine Face Billion Dollar Ballots Tuesday

Texas and Maine voters tomorrow (Nov. 7) face contested energy-related ballot initiatives with billion dollar price tags.

In Texas, Proposition 7 would amend the state constitution to create a $10 billion Texas Energy Fund, administered by the Public Utility Commission of Texas, to build and refurbish gas-fired electric generating plants, a response to the state’s repeated reliability problems during severe winter and summer weather in recent years. Another $3 billion in constitutional amendments would aid the state’s weakened infrastructure.

The Texas Tribune explains that the money is available because the state ran a $33 billion surplus in revenue as the legislature last met. “But lawmakers are constitutionally required to adhere to spending caps built into the budget. The infrastructure spending is going to the voters because one way around the caps is to allocate new spending through voter-approved constitutional amendments.” The legislature approved putting Prop. 7 on the November ballot through S.B. 2627.

Under Prop. 7, $5 billion would provide 3% interest rate loans for new dispatchable generation of at least 100 MW of capacity. The wording specifically restricts battery storage. Plants online by July 2029 would get a bonus. The remainder of the fund would go to repairs for existing power plants and upgrades for the distribution grid around critical facilities such as hospitals and transmission outside of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas grid.

“Winter Storm Uri revealed the failures in our electricity market, specifically the lack of reliability” — State Sen. Charles Schwertner

 

 The state’s powerful gas industry is supporting Prop. 7, including ConocoPhillips, Koch Companies, BASF Corporation Employees PAC, Texas Association of Manufacturers, Texas Oil and Gas Association, Texas Pipeline Association, and Valero Energy Corporation PAC, according to Ballotpedia.