Since the deadly outages in February 2021, Texas has debated how much we are willing to trust electric reliability to the free market.
The deregulated system that the Legislature implemented in 1999 has brought Texas low electricity prices, a thriving renewable energy industry and reduced pollution. But the system showed its weakness during the February freeze, resulting in deadly state-wide outages. The Texas power market, designed to incentivize low-cost electricity, had neither the requirements nor the regulations to ensure reliability. Further, the natural gas fuel supply system lacked reliability standards, too.
As leaders tighten regulations on weatherizing power plants, and hash out other options to fix the problem, The Dallas Morning News opinion section continues to publish editorials and op-eds exploring the problems, trade-offs, and policy solutions.
