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Legislation that would have “killed renewable energy in Texas” failed to advance in the state House of Representatives. Three “anti-solar” bills, SB 819, SB 388, and SB 715, were scrapped after failing to meet Texas deadlines that would have allowed the legislation to move forward. SB 819 would have imposed additional fees, permitting restrictions, setback requirements, and regulatory mandates on large-scale solar and wind projects in Texas—restrictions the state does not apply to other forms of energy. Despite strong opposition in committee, with more than 100 groups registered against it, the legislation passed the Senate 22-9 in April . Lawmakers took no action on SB 819 after it was referred to the Texas House. “With energy-hungry people and industries flocking to Texas, we need a comprehensive strategy to meet demand, and solar and storage are the fastest-growing resources we can bring onto the grid,” Daniel Giese, Texas state director for the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), told pv magazine . SB 388 would have required that at least half of all new generation in the ERCOT region come from “dispatchable generation other than energy storage.” The bill originally required 50% to come from natural gas, but it was amended to allow any dispatchable generation “other than battery storage.” Public Citizen, a nonprofit consumer advocacy organization, noted that while the grid needs dispatchable energy resources, “we are not aware of any study by ERCOT, or any other entity, that has determined that ratio to be optimal, or even an improvement over the status quo.” Giese stated that Texas would be much more vulnerable to blackouts if new generation were limited to a small number of facilities. “The simple reality is that Texas needs every resource on the grid to keep prices low for consumers and meet the demands of future population and business growth.” Excluding California, Texas has more battery storage than the rest of the United States combined, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Moreover, majorities of Texans, across political parties, believe that solar power combined with battery systems would make the grid more reliable and resilient, according to a survey from SEIA, Global Strategy Group, and North Star Opinion Research conducted last year. Texass ample land availability and relatively lax regulatory environment have facilitated the entry of developers into the states energy storage market, according to the Texas Comptrollers Office. Added to this are the declining costs of lithium-ion batteries, according to a BloombergNEF analysis, and tax incentives from the Inflation Reduction Act, which portend a boom in energy storage in the open market. SB 715 sought to establish a retroactive mandate for existing renewable energy facilities to install a backup power source. According to a report by Aurora Energy Research, the legislation “would reduce the reliability of the Texas electric grid and increase electricity costs for consumers, if enacted.” All three bills missed the Saturday deadline for Senate-passed legislation to advance to a House committee vote. Additionally, today is the last day for the Texas House to consider all bills on second and third reading. “The failure of these three bills is a victory for energy users,” said Adrian Shelley, director of Public Citizen’s Texas office. “It’s also a tacit acknowledgment by an overly fossil-fuel-friendly legislature that renewable sources are an indispensable part of supplying the state.” Shelley noted that signing these bills into law would have meant higher energy prices and slowed the growth of sources that keep Texass electric grid stable. He added, When lawmakers return for their next session, the attacks on renewables must end in favor of legislation that slows or reduces the states rapidly growing demand for electricity. The anti-solar legislation emerged just as Texas was beginning to establish itself as one of the leading states in installed solar capacity, ranking first in the nation in utility-scale solar capacity, according to the SEIA. Nearly 12,500 Texans work in the sector, and more than $50 billion has been invested in the states solar industry, according to the SEIA. Texas passed other legislation this session to require the recycling of retired solar and wind projects, unless Governor Abbott vetoes the bill. The Texas legislature meets in odd-numbered years, so lawmakers will meet again in 2027. |
