Once there actually was a Texas politician who fixed electricity problems for the forgotten people
The Watchdog recalls the story of Lyndon B. Johnson and rural electrification.
Rookie Congressman Lyndon Baines Johnson worked hard to convince Hill Country families to sign up for electricity.(Courtesy of LBJ Library)
7:00 AM on May 28, 2021 CDT
Today as we continue to struggle with our new status in Texas as the laughingstock of the electricity industry, we are led by no-name state lawmakers like Paddie, Hancock, Phelan. Names that will never make it into history books as our saviors.
These men struggled to jump high hurdles. As the Texas Legislature ends its regular session, do you feel safe and protected from future blackouts in summer or winter? I don’t. Not enough was fixed.
Picture the scene in 1921: the state’s only women’s college, all white, is next to Denton's Quakertown neighborhood, which consisted of 80 mostly Black.
Texas electricity bailout means a child not yet born could pay for February’s disaster as an adult
Opinion
Texas electricity bailout means a child not yet born could pay for February’s disaster as an adult
State lawmakers are looking at adding a monthly charge on your electricity bill that could last for decades. How much? Who knows?
Are you ready to pay an extra fee on your monthly electricity bill as a bailout in this so-called free market electricity system?(Karen Lieber)
Ha, ha! You got punked by Texas state government!
You thought the electricity establishment would take some responsibility for billion-dollar debts incurred by February’s killer storm freezeout. You hoped state leaders would protect consumers from the grave mistakes made by others.
What everyone else gives away for free, Texas government might soon charge you for
What everyone else gives away for free, Texas government might soon charge you for
A CEO of global property tax company based in Dallas pushes hard for a new state law, and people wonder why.
Brint Ryan, chairman and CEO of Ryan, a global property tax consultant company headquartered in Dallas, is politically-connected and unafraid to use his connections to promote laws in his industry.(David Woo - Staff Photographer)
9:41 AM on May 20, 2021 CDT
A bill that appears destined to become state law would force tax collectors/assessors across the state to offer electronic communications online – and you’d have to pay a fee for the privilege.