El Paso is continuing to seek extra protection for residents from increased electricity costs caused by the encroaching Northeast Meta data center.
The city on Wednesday, July 29, filed formal comments with the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) requesting that protections being developed to shield residential electric ratepayers from increased costs associated with large data centers be applied statewide, including areas outside the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid.
The comments come on the heels of Gov. Greg Abbott's directive regarding data center growth and residential ratepayer protections.
“We believe El Paso can lead in innovation while also protecting the people who live here. Welcoming investment and protecting residents
are not competing goals, they go hand in hand,” Mayor Renard Johnson said in a city news release. “As demand for electricity grows, the costs of serving that growth should be paid by those creating it, not by working families, seniors or small businesses."
In its comments, the city asked the PUCT to ensure Abbott's directive extends beyond ERCOT by establishing a parallel process in which non-ERCOT utilities, such as El Paso Electric. The comments note that El Paso is experiencing some of the state's largest data center growth and ratepayers outside of the ERCOT grid deserve the same protections as those within it.
The city specifically made the following requests:
- Confirm that the governor’s directive applies to Texans both inside and outside ERCOT
- Initiate a separate rulemaking for non-ERCOT utilities
- Apply the governor’s principles in pending and future proceedings involving El Paso Electric
- Recommend that any future legislation include protections for customers statewide.
"We’re asking the Public Utility Commission to make sure every Texan, including the nearly 700,000 customers served by El Paso Electric, receives the same protections," Johnson said. "Ratepayers must remain at the center of every decision.”
Adam Powell covers government and politics for the El Paso Times and can be reached via email at apowell@elpasotimes.com.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: El Paso seeks statewide protections for residents from data center costs
