We the undersigned petition to hold CPS Energy and ERCOT accountable for mismanagement of the power grid crisis related to the winter storm of February 2021 in San Antonio, TX.

In short, we call for acknowledgment of ill-preparedness, provision of relief to those impacted, and a concrete 3-5 year prevention plan - all without predatory rate increases placed on those impacted.

Furthermore, we petition Governor Greg Abbott and all applicable state and local leaders to enforce true accountability by supporting these concrete demands and preventing predatory rate increases in response to this crisis.

While residents/customers were notified in advance of the possibility of “rolling blackouts”, the implementation of such a measure occurred in such a fashion that while some residential areas did not see long term losses of electricity, other areas have at the point of this petition’s initiation gone over 30 hours without reliable electricity in below-30 degree weather.

The impacts include but are not limited to the following among those who inequitably suffered from prolonged loss of electricity: Inability to reliably operate medical equipment; Loss/spoilage of food and necessities; Loss of income/livelihood due to the inability to work remotely for an extended period; Endangerment of vulnerable individuals such as senior citizens, young children, and the chronically ill; Endangerment of pets and service animals.

The undersigned petition CPS Energy, ERCOT, and all similarly involved parties implement any/all of the following:

1. Acknowledgment of ill-preparedness for the winter power crisis and the public release of a concrete 3-to-5 year plan to prevent its reoccurrence.

2. Immediate community presence to offer aid and assistance to heavily impacted customers. 

3. Compensation of loss of livelihood/income, food/necessary items, and other expenses incurred by those disproportionately affected by the inequitable implementation of blackouts.

4. Implementation of any/all of the above without predatory fee/rate increases.

Furthermore, while it is meaningful that state and local leaders have acknowledged the need for investigation, we also realize that our leaders are the most empowered to concretely hold these organizations accountable by reform at the legislative and executive levels and the prevention of predatory price increases at a time when energy consumers are the most vulnerable.

Therefore, we also petition that Governor Greg Abbott and the Public Utility Commission of Texas go further than mere investigation and hold these organizations truly accountable. We petition that these figures/governing bodies take the full breadth of action available to them in order to regulate ERCOT, CPS Energy, and all similar local energy providers, forcing them to winterize their infrastructure and prevent the recurrence of such poor preventable outcomes in the future.