this post was submitted on 19 Dec 2023
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Almost three years since the deadly Texas blackout of 2021, a panel of judges from the First Court of Appeals in Houston has ruled that big power companies cannot be held liable for failure to provide electricity during the crisis. The reason is Texas’ deregulated energy market.

The decision seems likely to protect the companies from lawsuits filed against them after the blackout. It leaves the families of those who died unsure where next to seek justice.

...

This week, Chief Justice Terry Adams issued the unanimous opinion of that panel that “Texas does not currently recognize a legal duty owed by wholesale power generators to retail customers to provide continuous electricity to the electric grid, and ultimately to the retail customers.”

The opinion states that big power generators “are now statutorily precluded by the legislature from having any direct relationship with retail customers of electricity.”

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[–] [email protected] 110 points 11 months ago (4 children)

State motto should be “Welcome to Hell.”

[–] NegativeInf 44 points 11 months ago (2 children)
[–] reddig33 16 points 11 months ago (1 children)

I wish this state would split into multiple smaller states. Not all of us who live here are conservative nut jobs. Let us have our autonomy from the red counties.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

They know they need the entirety of the size of the state to overcome any of the larger metro areas. Break that up and they’ll lose the power & prestige it brings in the Electoral College. They’ll never give that up, hence the massive voter suppression.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

fun little thought experiment: Texas secedes from the US but then the metro centers secede from Texas and rejoin the US (Dallas taking banking with them, Austin taking the capital, San Antonio taking the Alamo, …) – we can let them keep scenic Midland and Odessa, but Big Bend National Park and Johnson Space Center as well as all the military bases are federal property …

[–] [email protected] 3 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Oh yah I’m all in, but then to drive to any other area I’d have to cross into the badlands. Can we take the interstates too with the big cities?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago (1 children)

well they were paid for with federal tax dollars and we know how much Texans love paying taxes …

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago

My thought as well. Let’s do this!

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[–] FlyingSquid 7 points 11 months ago (1 children)

That guy with all the exes who live in Texas better be worried because Hell is freezing over.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 11 months ago (5 children)

No worries, that’s why he hangs his hat in Tennessee, which probably comes with its own issues.

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[–] LeadSoldier 5 points 11 months ago

I had to live in HEll Paso because I was stationed there in the army. Iraq was better. The good news is I was able to leave.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 11 months ago (1 children)

“Don’t mess with Texas! (We do it enough ourselves)”

[–] Buddahriffic 2 points 11 months ago

"Don't mess with Texas! (We reserve the right to mess with you)"

[–] DevCat 67 points 11 months ago (5 children)

When you create an account with a utility, aren't you creating a contract with them? What happened to contractual duty?

[–] [email protected] 62 points 11 months ago (2 children)

“We are altering the terms. Pray we do not alter them any further.”

[–] WhatAmLemmy 8 points 11 months ago

"Well, in the land of the fee, your level of freedom is directly proportional to your wealth, and the corporations have... an ungodly amount of wealth... but you... you're a peasant... you understand?"

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[–] ShittyBeatlesFCPres 29 points 11 months ago (3 children)

I don’t think it works that way in Texas. There’s a layer of energy resellers who customers create an account with. Those resellers buy energy from the main utility companies and offer different plans. So, there’s no contract between consumer and generator.

[–] [email protected] 42 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (3 children)

Ah yes more middlemen with do nothing jobs ment to reduce corporate liability. The American dream.

[–] baldingpudenda 22 points 11 months ago

Dont disparage what they do. They also add to the price so they can profit. Clearly, added value.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (3 children)

It's a separation between power generation and power delivery. We have the same thing in New York. Someone has to own the actual delivery infrastructure, which in NYC is generally this company called ConEdison. They'll also provide the generate power for you, but you have the right to switch to other providers. For instance, I could switch to a provider that generated all power from renewable sources, though it is naturally more expensive.

[–] FlyingSquid 6 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (1 children)

Maybe it works that way in NYC, but here in Indiana, I get one option for a power company. Power, gas, water, sewer, trash collection, all single option. And no, that single option is not a government one because I live outside city limits. Until they laid fiber in this neighborhood last year, I only had one option for internet too.

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[–] [email protected] 5 points 11 months ago (3 children)

Someone has to own the actual delivery infrastructure,

Do they, though? I hear there's this neat thing called "public ownership" that works wonders for basic necessities like utilities. And that way you don't have someone scheming to profit off the things you need to stay alive.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 11 months ago

During the Great privatization scam we are promised that the free market would somehow be magically more efficient but it turns out it was a just so they could show profit Hearing in the middle of stuff that had previously been free of it. Worst service and higher prices were universally the result because those profits have to come from somewhere and that'somewhere is you

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago

There are lots of examples of private companies working well as regulated monopolies. The key word is "regulated", though.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago

We had a Internet Wholesaler in our previous residence who wanted to do the retail side as well. They had the monopoly on the estate we were in, so the ACCC forced them to break up.

With multiple retailers, we suddenly had much better customer assistance, but prices stayed the same.

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[–] [email protected] 1 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

Ok, then sue the middlemen for failing to withhold their side of the contract.

They can deal with recouping the costs from their shitty suppliers.

They'll either pressure the suppliers into change, or go out of business handing the liability back to the suppliers.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago (1 children)

In my experience contracts are one-sided. The big corpo end of the contract basically has no real power over them but they sure can use their contract to fuck you little guy over. All the contract does is allow a corporation to use state power against you really. No contracts that's not between equals never truly be fair unless we were to have a public defender system for civil court

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[–] Quaternions 44 points 11 months ago

Yet another reason why I'll never live in Texas.

[–] RampageDon 39 points 11 months ago (5 children)

Remember when Texas was threatening to secede and then everyone realized the state just falls apart when they have any kind of weather besides 90 and sunny.

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[–] [email protected] 21 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Texans sure must love being abused by their GOP rulers.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 11 months ago

Stockholm Syndrome

[–] rivermonster 16 points 11 months ago (1 children)

Texas is a 4th world shithole.

[–] EatYouWell 12 points 11 months ago

As a Texan, you're insulting 4th world shitholes

[–] [email protected] 7 points 11 months ago

All this really means is that the life insurance companies won't be able to transfer their financial liability to the power companies.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 11 months ago

Shit states gonna shit state..what a joke of a dump.

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