NEW: As Gas Reaches $4 in Texas, Costs “Tighten Texas Governor’s Race”

E&E News: “Higher prices at the pump and rising electric bills could be Gina Hinojosa’s path to the Texas governor’s mansion.”

Austin, TX – As gas prices hit $4 a gallon in Texas today, new reporting from E&E highlights how surging energy costs are shaping the governor’s race – and how Greg Abbott has refused to use his power to give Texans immediate relief. 

After 12 years of Texans paying the Greg Abbott Corruption Tax, “the system has grift all throughout it,” Hinojosa told E&E News. “The system is working against the people who are funding it, the taxpayer.” 

Greg Abbott has done nothing to stop skyrocketing energy costs. Texans are paying $1 more per gallon for gas and $2 more for diesel than last year. On data centers, instead of making billionaires pay their fair share, Abbott is going to let working families absorb the cost on their electric bills.

Read more below.

E&E News: Spiraling energy costs may tighten Texas governor’s race

  • Higher prices at the pump and rising electric bills could be Gina Hinojosa’s path to the Texas governor’s mansion — if voters decide to elect a Democrat for the first time in more than 30 years.
  • Hinojosa…is blaming three-term Republican Gov. Greg Abbott for a surge in electric costs.
  • And she is urging him to suspend the state’s 20-cents-per-gallon gasoline tax to give motorists some relief, saying she hears concerns about spiking energy costs on the campaign trail.
  • Hinojosa said Abbott has bowed to big-money interests on a variety of issues, including pushing state lawmakers to adopt a voucher system that some families can use to help fund education in private schools.
  • Amid a slew of major storms and a push for a stronger grid, Abbott [… has] been in power during an era of rising utility bills.
  • When Winter Storm Uri struck the state in 2021 — killing more than 240 people — utility companies were stuck with billions in unexpected costs, while a handful of natural gas suppliers and generators reaped windfalls.
  • Kelcy Warren, whose pipeline company made $2.4 billion during the storm, gave Abbott a $1 million campaign contribution later in 2021. Energy Transfer, where Warren has served as executive chair, didn’t respond to a request for comment this week.
  • Hinojosa has called the price increases the “Greg Abbott Corruption Tax” and tagged Abbott as the “mordida governor,” using the Spanish word for a bribe or payoff.

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