The chairman of the Public Utility Commission talked to the Tribune this week about his controversial application for the top job at the state grid operator, as well as his views on energy efficiency and smart meters.
Texas Public Utility Commission
Posted in
Energy
TribBlog: Efficiency Sufficiency
Within 10 days, the Public Utility Commission plans to adopt stricter requirements for energy efficiency, though they are lower than originally proposed.
Posted in
Energy
The Off Switch
Rather than building new power plants just to meet peak electricity demand on hot summer afternoons, why not just persuade people and companies to use less electricity? “Demand response” is quickly taking hold in Texas.
Posted in
Energy
Alternating Current
Since 1999, when then-Gov. George Bush signed a law that deregulated the Texas electricity market, a debate has raged about whether and how much the move has benefitted ordinary Texans. Who’s right?
Posted in
State Government
TribBlog: Hegar: No PUC Revolving Door
When reports surfaced that the Public Utility Comission chair was being considered for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas’ top job, watchdogs questioned whether he could legally — or ethically — apply for the job. If Sunset Advisory Commission Chair Glenn Hegar’s recommendations stick, the answer will soon be no.
Posted in
Energy
TribBlog: Room at the Top, and Then Some
Jan Newton — who chairs the board of directors at the state’s electric utility grid operator — is stepping down from that post, leaving the agency with interim officeholders and holes in key positions at the top of its organization chart.
Posted in
State Government
TribBlog: 13 Months of Sunset
For a certain kind of animal — i.e., the Policy Wonk — this is a gift: Sunset reports on insurance and utility regulators and on the capital city’s transportation authority hit the internet this morning.
Posted in
State Government
Net Neutrality Neutralized
FCC Commissioner Robert McDowell on why people who use more bandwith should pay more, what he thinks of the recent court decision preventing restrictions on “information service” providers, and more.
Posted in
Energy
TribBlog: PUC Chairman Won’t Seek ERCOT Job
Smitherman says while it’s probably legal for the state’s top energy regulator to seek the ERCOT chief executive job, “it just doesn’t feel right to go forward.”