Tag Archives: Austin Energy
Triple-digit temps expected through Friday – and summer hasn't even officially started yet
It’s another day of excessive heat in Central Texas. Temperatures are expected to go into the triple digits – again. And the heat index, which is a combination of the heat and humidity levels, is expected to hit 120. The National Weather…
Environment • By Haya Panjwani, KUT • Jun 21, 2023
Austin starts search for next city manager
The search for Austin’s next city manager is underway. In a post to the City Council Message Board on Thursday, Mayor Kirk Watson outlined a process for the search. Watson has appointed a sub-quorum of Council to act as a…
City Hall • By Nina Hernandez • Jun 20, 2023
Austin Energy will give you credits in exchange for a little control over your thermostat
Austin Energy is offering residential customers financial incentives for letting the department tweak the temperature on their smart thermostats on high energy use days – like over the next week, when daily highs are expected to cross 100 degrees. Customers…
Energy • By Sangita Menon, KUT • Jun 15, 2023
As wait times for transformers climb to 70 weeks, housing developments are struggling to turn the lights on
As American manufacturers struggle to keep pace with demand, wait times for power transformers have put housing and infrastructure projects across the country on hold. Austin Energy executives joined City Council’s Austin Energy Utility Oversight Committee last week to discuss…
Energy • By Kali Bramble • May 23, 2023
Council to vote on payment for wrongful death
City Council is scheduled to vote today on paying the plaintiffs more than $3 million in a wrongful death case brought by the mother of a child whose father died while working a construction job in Austin. Jaime Membreno, a…
Courts • By Jo Clifton • May 18, 2023
With no end in sight to electric vehicle boom, Austin Energy embraces the transportation sector
As new battery-powered car models from General Motors and Ford roll into the market, Austin Energy is racing to ensure the city’s infrastructure is ready for them. The utility’s electric vehicle and emerging technologies team stopped by last week’s work…
Energy • By Kali Bramble • Apr 18, 2023
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City Council hears preliminary findings on what went wrong with city response to Winter Storm Mara
As extreme weather in Central Texas becomes more frequent, what is Austin doing to bolster its emergency preparedness? At its work session on Tuesday, City Council heard a preliminary update on the audits examining what broke down in the city’s…
Public Safety • By Nina Hernandez • Apr 13, 2023
Austin Energy's general manager, Jackie Sargent, steps down
Austin Energy General Manager Jackie Sargent has retired – effective immediately – according to a memo from interim City Manager Jesús Garza. Sargent served as the public utility’s top executive for nearly six years. Sargent was the highest-paid city employee, earning…
City Hall • By Haya Panjwani, KUT • Apr 3, 2023
Austin warns utility legislation would cause taxes to go up
A bill introduced by state Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, would likely result in increased property taxes in Austin, San Antonio and other cities that own electric utilities, according to Austin Chief Financial Officer Ed Van Eenoo. Simply put, Senate Bill…
Texas State Legislature • By Jo Clifton • Mar 28, 2023
Austin Energy reflects on emergency response two months after record-breaking ice storm
As brush collectors make their final sweeps for toppled tree debris, Austin Energy is working to uncover the hard lessons wrought by February’s catastrophic ice storm. Gearing up to deliver an after-action report to City Council this spring, interim Deputy…
Energy • By Kali Bramble • Mar 28, 2023
How realistic is the idea to bury Austin's power lines? Council wants to know.
At its regular meeting Thursday, City Council approved a pair of items aimed at exploring the possibilities for burying existing utility power lines as well as ones to be constructed in new capital projects such as Project Connect. The idea…
City Council • By Nina Hernandez • Mar 24, 2023
Jury says Austin Energy retaliated against employee
A Travis County district court jury has voted to award $750,000 to an Austin Energy employee after finding that other city employees retaliated against her after she filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging discrimination based on…
