Meanwhile in Texas: Privatize the Profits, Socialize the Losses

Under the guise of “protecting” citizens, the Texas legislature, instead of having the gas companies eat their losses from Winter Storm Uri last year, have floated a $3.4 billion bond package to have the taxpayers fund it. The sales pitch is that the gas companies, three large and a smattering of smaller operators get made while whilst the citizens tax dollars fund the bailout over time.

As most of you know, Texas doesn’t have income taxes, and the majority of property taxes fund the schools and local communities. Taxes are assessed on commercial interests, which did contribute to almost $16 billion in state revenue last year, but largely the state makes it’s money from the 8.25% sales taxes that are comparable with New York City, some of the highest taxes in the nation, and payouts from the Federal Government.

Rather than tap into the general fund, or “rainy day fund,” Texas now wishes to finance the corporate gas losses, leaving the public to shoulder the burden of interest and fees on top of the cash pile handed to natural gas companies. Meanwhile, discussions around financial accountability remind me of debates I’ve seen on casino sites not on Gamstop, where the risks and rewards are starkly laid out but often leave individuals grappling with unexpected consequences. Similarly, in Texas, it is not just the taxes that are the issue but the high electric bills, the failure to allocate funds toward winterization—resulting in hundreds of unnecessary deaths—and the lawmakers’ reluctance to hold corporations accountable. With oil and gas companies comprising 16% of the state’s jobs and keeping counties like mine afloat, the systemic entanglement is as complex as the outcomes of an ill-planned gamble.

Texas has consistently ranked in the top five for highest energy use for all states, so while residents have enjoyed median costs per kilowatt-hour, we have also the consumption multiple not in our favor:

Post Uri, we have also enjoyed ballooning prices for generation:

Unless there is something I am missing, it seems that the gas companies get to have their cake and eat it too.