The electric utility screwing over Texans
Posted on July 18, 2024
CenterPoint wants customers to pay to climate-proof the grid—all while pouring millions of customer dollars into climate delay.
When Hurricane Beryl barreled towards Texas last week, the state’s largest electric utility company said it was prepared for the worst. It wasn’t.
More than 2.7 million people lost power on July 8 as Beryl slammed into the state, leaving 80 percent of Centerpoint’s Houston customers in the dark. It was the largest area blackout in the utility’s 20-year history. And residents remained without power for over a week, even as temperatures dangerously rose above 90 degrees Fahrenheit.
CenterPoint is now under investigation by the state Public Utility Commission, and Governor Greg Abbott has demanded a detailed future hurricane plan by the end of this month.
In its defense, CenterPoint has claimed that its infrastructure simply wasn’t built for this kind of extreme weather. The utility said it needs an additional $2 billion from customers to climate-proof its infrastructure. That’s not surprising; the climate crisis is fueling stronger hurricanes, heat waves, and surprise winter storms, which are wreaking havoc on the Texas grid.
What is surprising is that CenterPoint is asking for this money to prepare for climate change while funneling millions of customer dollars into making climate change worse.
How CenterPoint fights climate action
CenterPoint is one of the worst utilities in the U.S. when it comes to pushing against action to slow climate change, according to an analysis by U.K. think tank InfluenceMap. And the utility doesn’t just advocate against climate action in Texas, where it is headquartered; it tries to delay climate policies all over the country—and succeeds.
According to InfluenceMap’s report, CenterPoint has successfully fought policies to ban methane gas in Oklahoma, Louisiana, Texas, and Indiana. In Minnesota, CenterPoint also successfully lobbied politicians to oppose building electrification, and support methane-powered heat instead.
To fight these policy battles, CenterPoint needs money—and they get most of it from customers, including those who suffered blackouts last week. We know this because Texas has fairly stringent disclosure rules that require utilities like CenterPoint to report how much they spend on memberships, advertising, business gifts, and more.
According to those records, CenterPoint has spent at least $3.3 million on “legislative advocacy” over the past two years—advocacy which includes the company’s support for anti-climate policies.
But these aren’t the only anti-climate actions CenterPoint spends customer money on. According to its public disclosures, CenterPoint has given more than $2 million to trade associations that lobby for climate delay since 2022.
Those trade associations are the Electric Edison Institute (EEI) and the American Gas Association (AGA), which have received at least $2 million and $90,100 respectively. These groups have a long history of publicly doubting the reality of climate science, while privately acknowledging and accepting it.
This year, EEI has spent more than $4 million this year on lobbying for bills including a GOP measure to expand fossil fuel production. Last year, EEI spent more than $11.4 million on lobbying, most notably to oppose the EPA’s power plant pollution rules.
The AGA, which represents more than 200 gas companies, is also a well-known purveyor of climate disinformation around methane gas. The group spent more than $1.3 million on lobbying last year, and nearly $400,000 this year, to advocate against regulations on gas appliances.
CenterPoint counters that most of the money it pays EEI and AGA doesn’t go directly to lobbying. Of the $2 million CenterPoint gave EEI, for example, it claims only $295,500 went to “political activities.” Likewise, the $90,100 CenterPoint paid AGA is only an estimate of how much CenterPoint customer money went to AGA lobbying. The amount the utility paid AGA in dues is likely much higher.
Funding anti-climate politicians
In addition to funding trade organizations, CenterPoint has also promoted climate delay by helping elect conservative, pro-fossil fuel politicians in Texas.
Through its political action committees, the utility has spent more than $1.3 million since 2022 in total campaign donations. Most of these donations went to Republican associations, including $500,000 to the Associated Republicans of Texas Campaign Fund, and $250,000 towards Project Red Texas.
CenterPoint also funded the campaigns of state politicians pushing a slate of anti-renewables and anti-ESG bills. Here are only some of the Republican lawmakers that CenterPoint helped elect, with donations in 2022 of at least $5,000:
Sen. Charles Schwertner, who authored legislation that allocates $7 billion to building new gas power plants. At a committee hearing, Sen. Schwertner said the fund would “balance out the ever-increasing penetration of interruptibles and renewables on the Texas grid.”
Rep. Dade Phelan, the Texas House speaker who called President Biden’s pause on LNG exports “complete disregard” for America’s energy security.
Rep. Phillip King, who called oil and gas “the lifeblood of the Texas economy” and said that ESG is “a movement to deny funds to businesses that will not sign on to extreme anti-fossil fuel policy.”
Rep. Jay Dean, who led the “Natural Gas Protection Act” to prevent local bans or restrictions on methane gas or propane.
Sen. Bryan Hughes, who attended the 2023 summit of the climate denial think tank Texas Public Policy Foundation. On a panel titled “ESG = Everyone’s Suffering Guaranteed”, Hughes called a coal plant in his district “clean” and said he would do “everything in [his] power” to stop subsidies for wind and solar power.
CenterPoint also contributed directly to the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF), which is known for its disinformation campaigns against renewable energy and powerful political influence.
Though TPPF’s donors are usually private, an accidental posting of IRS documents revealed that CenterPoint’s vice president of Texas state relations, Jeff Bonham, gave the group $25,000 in 2010.
CenterPoint claims that it “generally” doesn’t use its treasury funds, aka customer money, to support political candidates. But the majority of its anti-climate activity is funded by customers, who have no choice but to pay their monopoly electric bills. Those are the people who suffer most from the impacts of the climate crisis, including power outages.
So yes, CenterPoint needs funding to protect the grid from increased hurricane winds, high temperatures, and floods. But the way they’re currently spending their money ensures that, eventually, the climate crisis will catch up with them. And ordinary people will again be asked to pay.
Further reading
CenterPoint boosts CEO pay to $37.8 million, blowing past other utilities.
Energy and Policy Institute, April 2022.
Hurricane Beryl destroys crops in Jamaica, leaves islanders facing food shortages. Associated Press, July 2024.
After Beryl, Antigua & Barbuda intensifies call for climate justice. Loop Caribbean, July 2024.
Hunger was already bad enough. Then Beryl hit. Grist, July 2024.
Fossil fuel plants belched toxic pollution as Hurricane Beryl hit Gulf Coast. Truthout, July 2024.
Hurricane Beryl relief resources
Food for the Poor (Jamaica/Caribbean)
Samaritan’s Purse (Caribbean/Texas)
CARE (Caribbean)
Greater Houston Disaster Alliance (Texas)
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