AUSTIN ā Committees from both the Texas Senate and Texas House on Thursday questioned energy executives and the head of the stateās power grid operator during hearings exploring last weekās deadly winter storm and power outages.
Lawmakers, including state Sen. Jose Menendez, D-San Antonio, questioned why alerts sent out to the public ahead of a hurricane were not used prior to the storm.
āI think we should have made some sort of public announcement, sort of like we do with hurricanes,ā said Menendez.
Curtis Morgan, CEO of Vistra Corp., an Irving-based energy company, told House members during a joint hearing that energy plants in Texas are built to withstand hot weather and hurricanes, but not frigid temperatures.
A report released Thursday by Texans for Public Justice, an Austin non-profit that tracks money in Texas politics, shows that political donors tied to ERCOTās board gave Texas House members more than $700,000 the past two years.