As utility bills soar, Gov.-elect Mikie Sherrill faces a high-stakes balancing act over an embattled natural gas project that would stabilize prices—but at a cost to the environment.
At the Western Governors’ Association workshop in Denver, officials discussed how to modernize transmission, permitting and funding to meet a projected 20-35 percent surge in electricity demand.
After state regulators approved direct potable reuse, city officials say they could avoid costly pipelines and reservoir storage — reshaping one of the nation’s largest water recycling projects.
After federal delays and political shifts, the state’s long-awaited broadband expansion is starting over with half the funding — leaving millions of Texans still offline and waiting.
With up to 50 million residents projected by 2070, researchers say the state must invest as much as $154 billion in reuse systems, desalination and aquifer recharge to avoid future shortages.
A newly approved energy package could help nursing homes and assisted-living facilities weather heat waves and cold snaps by bolstering backup power and infrastructure.
Fueled by explosive growth in population and industry, Texas’ total energy use has risen 21 percent since 2007 even as the nation’s overall consumption declined.
Local leaders see data centers, which help power the world’s shift to artificial intelligence, as a way to keep their towns open. Residents worry their way of life — and water — is at stake.
Once among the nation’s renewable pioneers, the state now gets only 4 percent of its electricity from renewables and ranks 49th in renewable growth.
The proposed program mirrors the COVID-era “Save The Dream” initiative, though in a reduced form: eligibility narrowed and benefits capped much lower than before.
Statesville cited economic benefits in rezoning 330 acres of farmland, even as residents warned of noise, pollution and lost rural character.
Legislators also agreed to boost domestic oil production through new drilling permits.
The regional economy is expanding, but growth is beginning to collide with stark realities about natural resources that are already strained.
A new statewide energy code seeks to lower emissions and utility bills, but homebuilders may push back over concerns about affordability.
A grid spanning 13 states can’t meet soaring electricity demand. An outside analytics firm recommends that large data centers generate their own.
Local government jobs weren’t a focus for career technical education at a Central Texas school district until a new human resources director came to Cedar Park.
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