Gov. Greg Abbott declared reform of the Electric Reliability Council of Texas to be an emergency legislative item Feb. 16 and called on the Legislature to investigate the council. ERCOT, which was largely criticized for its role in the February storm, manages the flow of electric power to more than 26 million Texas customers and represents about 90% of the state’s electric load, according to the electric nonprofit. The first of the major bills is Senate Bill 3, authored by Schwertner. It adds winterization requirements to energy-generating infrastructure with a $1 million fine per day, he said. Municipal-owned utilities, such as in Georgetown or Austin, and energy companies, such as Pedernales Electric Cooperative or Oncor Electric Delivery, would not be treated differently.