In an unusual turn of events, City Council selected a company on Thursday that did not score the most points with Austin Energy staff to conduct an upcoming independent energy gap study. Council voted 7-3 to award the contract to Navigant Consulting, with Council members Sheri Gallo, Ellen Troxclair and Don Zimmerman dissenting and Council […]
Austin Energy
As a municipally-owned electric utility, Austin Energy is a rarity in the largely deregulated State of Texas. Its annual budget clocks in at over $1 billion. The utility’s annual direct transfer of a Council-determined percentage of its revenues offers the city a notable revenue stream.
Posted inEnergy
Council urged to change “demand charges”
Austin Energy is scheduled to present to City Council today a process for conducting a new cost-of-service study. Among the many things that Council will be asked to consider in reviewing Austin Energy rates is whether to lower or eliminate what are called “demand charges” for certain small businesses. Such charges are used to recover […]
Posted inEnergy
Austin Energy to tighten up collections
City Council on Tuesday put its stamp of approval on a compromise between Austin Energy staff and advocates for low-income customers that both sides hope will help reduce the amount of bad debt owed to the utility. Austin Energy places the blame for the bad debt on lenient collection policies, specifically a previous Council’s directive […]
Posted inMusic & Entertainment
Hotel construction casts a shadow over downtown music venues
This past weekend, worries that a new downtown hotel was threatening Cheer Up Charlies and the Mohawk overtook Austin’s social media. A lot of Austinites’ concerns focused on whether a parking garage for the Hyatt House hotel would destroy the iconic white cliff at Cheer Up Charlies. After some panic, it appears that is not […]
Posted inCourts, Development
New lawsuit adds to sour feelings in Swede Hill’s Patch House saga
The owners of a controversial house in East Austin’s Swede Hill neighborhood are taking their fight with the city to a Travis County district court. Last week, lawyers for Blake and Toria English filed a suit against the city of Austin and Austin Energy seeking an injunction against threats to shut off power and orders […]
Posted inTexas State Legislature
Council looks back at 84th Legislative Session
At the conclusion of a Texas Legislative Session, Austin must inevitably sit back and lick its wounds. According to Interim Intergovernmental Relations Officer Karen Kennard, however, the city sustained far fewer direct blows to its local control this time around than it could have. During a legislative briefing at a City Council work session on […]
Posted inEnergy
Weis memo addresses AE bad-debt questions
Austin Energy’s bad-debt problem is not the result of a policy “that penalizes customers who are a day late or a penny short,” according to a memo to City Council and Mayor Steve Adler from Austin Energy General Manager Larry Weis. Instead, the utility places the blame on lenient collection policies. “After the city’s previous utility […]
Posted inEnergy
Council extends certain hospital energy contracts
Following up on last week’s decision to extend contracts for large Austin Energy customers, City Council voted Thursday to expand the treatment to St. David’s HealthCare and Seton Healthcare Family. The six-month extensions for contracts that were set to expire at the end of the month apply to each of the providers’ primary facilities, which […]
Posted inPremium Types
TipSheet: Austin City Council 5.28.15
The Austin City Council will meet Thursday. Below is a list of items we’re watching. In the interest of space, we’ve decided not to post the entire agenda here. The Office of the City Clerk hosts a copy at its website, here. 1. Approve third reading of an ordinance amending the electric rate schedules in […]
Posted inCity Council
Council runs up against time-sensitive contracts
While City Council members requested more time to better understand two contracts with city departments Thursday, city staff argued that these agreements were time-sensitive and urged members to avoid further delays. The first item asked Council to approve a contract allowing Austin Energy to service its turbines at the city’s Sand Hill Energy Center in addition to […]
Posted inEnergy
Council extends large energy contracts
Following extensive deliberation, City Council voted Thursday to extend long-term contracts for Austin Energy’s two largest customers for six months and permanently revise the way the utility calculates rates for a third major customer. The move effectively keeps rates for Samsung and Freescale Semiconductor lower than they would be if the contracts were to expire […]
Posted inEnergy, Texas State Legislature
Council tentatively extends large energy contracts
Austin Energy is stuck between a rock and a hard place, with the rock being the Texas Legislature and the hard place being the utility’s exhausted reserve funds. City Council is now working to wriggle the municipal energy provider out of its predicament without serious damage. Acting essentially as Austin Energy’s board of directors, Council […]