Where politics, government and energy intersect.
Texas cities are trying to reduce traffic congestion by promoting bicycling. Austin is adding bicycle-only lanes on city streets. Houston voters recently approved $166 million in bonds partly for hike and bike trails. But on some roads in Texas, bikes are banned, raising questions about just where bikers have the right to ride. In the […]
A state senator is introducing legislation to prepare Texas for the effects of global warming. And he seems unconcerned with the odds.
East Texas landowner Mike Bishop went to Nacogdoches County Court on Tuesday hoping that the judge would grant a temporary injunction against the TransCanada Pipeline Company. He left court later in the afternoon disappointed. Bishop sought a judgement to keep workers from entering his property.Ā The company is laying pipe for the southern leg of […]
Chances may be better this time that the Texas legislature might strengthen regulation of oil and gas drilling
Mark Dewey of KUT News contributed reporting. Two high-profile Texas legislators have put the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) on notice this week: if you send water downstream to rice farmers in 2013, there will be consequences. In a letter to the LCRA,Ā Kirk Watson, D-Austin, andĀ Troy Fraser, R-Abilene, urge the LCRA to withdraw the emergency […]
Correction: The original version of this story said the PUC Meeting was Wednesday. It is Thursday Dec. 13. It’s natural to feel powerless when you’re stuck at home during a torrential Texas thunderstorm. It’s even worse if you’re literally without power. All it takes is one tree branch falling onto an electrical wire to cut […]
The federal tax credit that helped make Texas the leader in wind power expires at the end of year. Some people in the wind energy industry seem resigned to the possibility that even if Congress renews the credit, the days of such breaks are nearing an end. At theĀ American Wind Energy AssociationĀ conference held last week […]
Thereās already a general scientific consensus that the disposal wells used to store waste deep underground from drilling and hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) can cause earthquakes. But researchers are going into a little more detail about the relationship between quakes and wells at this week’s meeting of theĀ American Geophysical Union. At a panel discussion Wednesday, three […]
Mike Bishop is fired up. He’s standing with about a dozen protestors and half that many reporters in front of a state office building, waving a lawsuit in his hands. āItās beyond me why regulatory agencies and elected officials canāt say, āYou know what? I made a mistake. Iām so sorry. You know what weāre […]
One of the few coal power plants still being planned in Texas is facing setbacks. The controversial White Stallion Energy CenterĀ in Matagorda County had been working with the Texas grid to examine how it will work once its completed, a process called a grid interconnection study. Itās a typical requirement for new power plants, along […]
StateImpact seeks to inform and engage local communities with broadcast and online news focused on how state government decisions affect your lives.
Learn More »