Texans pay higher rates on the purchase of telecommunications services (except satellite) than they do on fireworks and hard liquor. In fact, only cigarettes are taxed at a higher rate. But there is some good news. The elimination of the TIF tax and changes in the USF fee has saved Texas consumers about $350 million a year.
Energy & Environment
Fool Me Twice: Why the Texas Grid is Still Vulnerable to Winter Storms | Part 2: Projecting Winter Outage Risk Through 2030
Part 2: Projecting Winter Outage Risk Through 2030 As Texas approaches the five-year anniversary of Winter Storm Uri, the ERCOT grid faces growing vulnerability to winter power outages. This analysis projects that by 2030, the same type of storm that would cause approximately 12 hours of outages today could result in nearly 24 hours of...
January 29, 2026