The Senate Business and Commerce Committee will meet on
Tuesday, October 1, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. to hear invited and public testimony on
the following interim charges:
Managing Texas Sized Growth: Evaluate the state’s ability to keep pace with
increasing electricity demand related to population growth and energy
intensive technologies such as electric vehicles and data centers. Recommend
ways to increase reliability via demand-side response programs. Study ERCOT’s
forecasting methodology and recommend ways to increase transparency. Monitor
ongoing efforts at the Public Utility Commission related to energy efficiency
programs and distributed energy resources, including the implementation of
Senate Bill 1699, 88th Legislature.
Innovative Power Generation: Explore emerging technologies with the potential to add
new dispatchable power to our electric grid including, but not limited, to
small modular nuclear reactors, advanced batteries, and new developments in
hydrogen and geothermal resources. Identify and recommend regulatory and
policy actions required to deploy emerging technologies within the state’s
electric grid.
Addressing the Rising Cost of Insurance: Assess the impact of rising property and casualty
insurance costs on Texas property owners, real estate lenders, and commercial
and industrial development. Identify ways to increase consumer transparency
to better inform coverage decisions and make recommendations to ensure a
competitive and affordable insurance market for consumers.
Public testimony is limited to 2 minutes. If submitting
written testimony, please provide 20 copies to the clerk with your name on
each copy.