Texas Deregulated and Still Ranks Low Nationally

Posted on February 10th, 2009 by iwaller

The Great State of Texas, represented by Senators Kay Hutchison, John Cornyn, and several Representatives such as Pete Sessions and Kevin Brady, have long been recognized for supporting big business, big oil, corporate CEOs, Wall Street and Energy Companies. Energy companies doing business in Texas have been long on financial support and donations of Congressional Representatives especially Sen. Hutchison and Sen. Cornyn. Texas is truly owned by Republicans as Washington was during the last 8 years and we all know how well that worked.

The Texas Legislature is overwhelmingly led by Republicans that follows the lead of its national leaders in supporting those institutions and removing accountability and regulations as they did a decade ago when these Texas Republicans promised deregulation would lower energy costs for consumers.

Just as with Congressional Republicans of the past eight years, Americans, in this case, Texans are being pillaged by State leaders who favor big business and profits over caring for their citizens. This is no surprise. Many Texans are easily manipulated, especially people living outside of Texas’ 4 metropolitan areas. Fear is a great motivator as more Americans will admit after falling prey to its devices over the past several years. Texans living within the 4 major metropolitan area cities, Austin, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio are finally seeing through the dark cloud we all fell prey to under George W Bush, as these areas all supported Obama for President over McCain.

Once known as ‘The Great State’ Texas ranks almost last nationally in caring for its senior citizens and 5.83 million Texans have no health insurance making Texas the least insured state in the nation. The Texas Statehouse favors private schools over public schools and Texas now ranks 46th in SAT scores and dead last in graduation rates in the nation. Texas Republicans campaign against workers and unionization; they fight against gay rights but give exclusive rights to big oil in huge tax breaks, and they draw voting districts boundaries which give a huge favor to ensure Republicans remain in control. Texans now breathe air with more carcinogens than citizens of any other state in America. Texas insurance rates on health, home, and auto are among the highest in the U.S. and rising. Predatory lenders now push 1100 percent interest rates on predatory loans and Texas Governor Rick Perry brags about kicking 200,000 children out of CHIP even as Texas ranks near the bottom in health care for its youngest citizens. These are clear indications for everyone to know where Texas government ranks its taxpayers, at the bottom of its Republican political barrel.

Texas is the infamous home of Tom DeLay, George W Bush, Phil Gramm, Kay Hutchison, John Cornyn, Alberto Gonzales, Pete Sessions and Harriet Meyers to name a few of our recent governing officials.

The Texas Utility Commission [PUC] established to oversee utility companies in this state, have long been supportive of Texas Governments’ decisions and wishes over the average hard working, taxpaying Texans. Texas citizens rarely, if ever, get help or assistance from the PUC and the PUC rarely conducts any investigations into misdeeds of Energy Companies giving them a free hand to ‘do as they please’ without fear of repercussions. It is like having the fox in the hen house.

If Texas and Texans are to be competitive nationally in the 21^st century for business, talent and education, a shift from Republicans’ mythology and back-woods deals which continue to degrade the economy and taxpayers, must be made and done immediately. The mentality of ‘old white men’ must be challenged with the vitality and vigor of new, culturally diverse, energetic and younger forward thinking men and women to restore the stature of this great state to its once respected place among the great states of this nation. To be a state with 21^st century jobs, exceptional education and health care and cleaner air for generations to come.

Read the news report below on the results of Texas Republicans deregulation of electricity:

HOUSTON - Lawmakers promised competition and choice would help lower your electric bill. However, a new report [released Monday, February 9, 2009] says you’re paying “needlessly” high prices for electricity because of deregulation. Researchers released the statewide study Monday in Austin.

A nonprofit group called the Cities Aggregation Power Project [CAPP TX] commissioned the study. It claims in the 10 years since Texas lawmakers voted for the deregulation of the electricity industry, residential prices rose 64 percent.

The report says prices increased by a greater percentage in Texas than in other deregulated states and says before deregulation, Texans paid below the national average.

The study also pointed to research showing average electricity bills for the last six months of 2008 were higher in Houston than anywhere else in the nation.

The report claims deregulation led to serious abuses in the wholesale power market and increased business costs.

Electric companies responded Monday by calling deregulation a success, not a failure.

Local 2 Investigates spoke with a spokesperson for the Association of Electric Companies of Texas.

The group blames any price increases on a dependence of natural gas to generate electricity and says if you factor in inflation, prices are still lower than they were before deregulation.

You can read the entire study at www.capptx.com/files/HistElectricDereg_TX.pdf.

More Information:

‘Your Electric Bill’ Stories

Cities Aggregation Power Project

Complete CAPP Study

Association of Electric Companies of Texas

Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Austin American Statesman

Houston Chronicle

Dallas Morning News

Business Pundit

KDFM Channel 6

KWTX Channel 10