LBJ community offers help, perspective on the Texas winter storm

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Published:
February 25, 2021

Over the course of the devastating winter storm that left millions in Texas without power, heat or drinkable water, LBJ School faculty, students and alumni stepped up to give assistance and voice to those affected — and to help put into context the policy causes and implications for the failure of the state’s energy grid to provide services to its citizens.

LBJ Adjunct Assistant Professor Beto O'Rourke, a former member of Congress from El Paso, Texas, raised more than $1.4 million for recovery from the storm through his organization Powered By People. The group also organized volunteers to knock on doors and reach out via phone banks to make more than 900,000 wellness checks to Texas seniors.

 

Economist James K. Galbraith, the Lloyd M. Bentsen Jr. Chair in Government/Business Relations at the LBJ School professors in government at The University of Texas at Austin, broke down the free market policies that created the Texas energy market: "In 2002, under Governor Rick Perry, Texas deregulated its electricity system and established a free market, managed by a non-profit entity, with roughly 70 providers. But while the new system worked most of the time, people need electricity all the time."

 

MGPS student Christopher Andrés Matos, an electric utility professional whose background is in market-based solutions to energy problems, took a detailed look at what exactly happened when the "grid event" occurred, examining the most affected populations and what solutions to prevent it from happening again. "As the long-term effects cascade through the economy, Texas' most vulnerable communities will almost certainly bear the brunt of growing costs. Many low-income communities correlate with inefficient housing and older power delivery systems, making them the first sections likely to be cut to conserve and optimize power delivery."

 

MPAff student Carolina Mueller of Middle Ground Farm, president of the Central Texas Young Farmers Coalition, has so far raised more than $50,000 to help Texas family farms and businesses whose crops and infrastructure were damaged by the freezing temperatures. The fund will provide relief for small and medium-sized farms across Texas, focusing on those using sustainable and organic methods, giving priority to farmers of color.

"As much as our farmers had prepared themselves for the oncoming freeze, we had no way to prepare ourselves for the statewide infrastructure collapse that came," Mueller said. "By Monday, as the Texas power grid started to fail, it became clear that the impact was about to be bad. Losing power meant losing access to water and the ability to heat our greenhouses and barns, and I started to reach out to partner organizations around the state. Within days, we had a coalition formed, a GoFundMe page live and grant applications being drafted. We have received an incredible show of support from both within and outside of the farming community, and now we get to do the hard work for getting financial support into farmers' pockets and pushing for systems changes. Historically, Texas has been unfriendly at best and hostile at worst toward small- and medium- sized farms, and that needs to change if we want a resilient, diverse and equitable food system."

The crops at Middle Ground Farm were lost during the deep freeze
The crops at Middle Ground Farm were lost during the deep freeze. (Photo courtesy of Carolina Mueller)

 

Mueller joined us on Instagram Live to talk about her experiences with the storm, the farm, and the LBJ School.

 

 

Gene Wu (MPAff '04), who represents Houston in the Texas House of Representatives, helped get the word out about needed donations to food banks.

 

LBJ Professor of Practice Sherri Greenberg, a former Texas state legislator, told the Dallas Morning News that the situation was "an unprecedented, unconscionable crisis. ... Obviously, it's reset the agenda for the session." But while the Legislature may pass a measure to winterize the grid, she said she doesn't believe it's likely that state Republican leaders will change their minds about deregulation. "Is there going to be a wholesale rejection of all of their beliefs in ERCOT and the Texas grid," Greenberg said. "I can't imagine that. But something will happen."

 

Greenberg joined Steven Pedigo, director of the LBJ Urban Lab, to discuss the Texas storm could impact policy going forward.

 

Varun Rai, LBJ's associate dean for research and director at UT's Energy Institute, offered his perspective to a variety of media on the causes and consequences of the crisis.

 

LBJ Professor David Eaton talked about how Texas can make its energy and water utilities more resilient.

 

Matt Worthington (MPAff '20), the LBJ School's senior project manager for data initiatives, volunteered to distribute water to Austinites in need.

 

LBJ Ph.D. student Dana Johnson took to Twitter to spread the word about warming centers, resources and places to give to help those in need in Austin and around Texas.

 

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