Texas Gov. Greg Abbott listed four “immediate priorities” Friday focused on helping Texans recover from a brutal winter storm that lingered in the state for nearly a week.
Those priorities including restoring power to 165,000 homes who remain without it, restoring water to all homes, shoring up the state’s food and water supplies and getting refineries back to full generating capacity.
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Abbott issued a number of waivers intended to expedite the recovery process and speed up deliveries to restock grocery stores.
Abbott recognized the Biden administration for the federal government’s help responding to the crisis. After speaking with Abbott on the phone Thursday night, President Joe Biden committed to issuing a major disaster declaration that will help Texans recoup expenses for busted pipes if they aren’t covered by private insurance.
The president also said he hopes to visit Texas soon when his presence won’t burden first responders and recovery efforts.
Tonight, I called Governor Greg Abbott to discuss the ongoing situation in Texas and identify ways we can support the state’s recovery from this storm. I made clear to the Governor that I’ll work relentlessly to get his state what they need. pic.twitter.com/UBwH8DMep2
— President Biden (@POTUS) February 19, 2021
Millions of Texans were without power for most of this week while temperatures were freezing. The Electric Reliability Council of Texas mandated controlled outages beginning early Monday morning because demand far exceeded the supply of power, all while power generation was cut by roughly 40% due to the storm, ERCOT officials said.
On Friday, ERCOT ended emergency conditions, marking the beginning of a return to normalcy.
But work remains to be done. Thousands of homeowners still don’t have power and millions of Texans are under boil water notices as due to electrical pumps being knocked offline. Going days without power, many homeowners also saw their pipes burst, causing thousands of dollars in damage. The total cost of the weather event has yet to be determined.
As the weather subsides, Texas lawmakers will soon focus their efforts on how to reform ERCOT and prevent this disaster from occurring again. Abbott announced that ERCOT issues are now emergency items that must be taken up by the legislature.
Some proposals include mandating winterization processes for power generators to ensure they can withstand freezing temperatures. Abbott is also asking for funding to modernize the grid and make it more reliable.