Abbott Meets With CenterPoint

Governor Greg Abbott met with the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of CenterPoint Energy, Jason P. Wells, and the Executive Vice President of Regulatory and Government Affairs, Jason Ryan, at the Texas Capitol in Austin to discuss their proposal to better respond to future severe weather events.

Governor Abbott spent over two and a half hours with Wells and Ryan thoroughly reviewing each line of CenterPoint Energy’s proposed response to his letter directing them to adequately better prepare for the next severe weather event in Southeast Texas by improving their preparation and response practices. The Governor stressed that CenterPoint Energy’s proposal was inadequate and instructed them that more must be done and it must be completed faster than originally proposed.

Governor Abbott reiterated the importance of fulfilling all of his original directives and the necessity of completing their restoration projects, such as vegetation removal and pole replacement, before the next tropical storm hits their region.

During the meeting, the Governor directed the CenterPoint Energy executives to develop a new, accelerated proposal that meets the Governor’s requirements to improve their severe weather preparation and response practices. The CenterPoint Energy executives agreed to immediately release the new proposal that incorporated the new directives made by Governor Abbott.