Austin, TX
Austin fights against rate increase proposed by Texas Gas Service
Austin fights against gas rate increase
The City of Austin is a part of more than a dozen cities fighting against a rate increase proposed by Texas Gas Service.
AUSTIN, Texas – The City of Austin is a part of more than a dozen cities fighting against a rate increase proposed by Texas Gas Service.
Residents were able to express their view on the proposal during a public hearing at the City Council meeting on Thursday.
“Let me begin by stating how outrageous the rate increase is. If the gas company wins its proposal, it would increase residential rates by 105 percent since 2019. This will be over $300 per year per residential customer,” said a resident.
Residents faced city council members on Thursday afternoon with data to back their concerns about a rate increase proposed by Texas Gas Service.
“Not only are the rates too high, but they are poorly structured. They are regressive. The more you use, the less you pay per unit. This discourages energy conservation, and it hurts the poor who generally use less energy,” says a resident.
The average household should expect their bill to go up about 14% and while residential rates could go up, commercial rates could go down anywhere from 2% to 6%.
Proposed rate increases for Austinites
Texas Gas Service has proposed a rate hike for residents, while businesses could get a reduction.
“In the case of TGS, new growth across Texas has caused existing customer gas rates to increase, which explains a lot about why gas rates have doubled in the last five years. It seems the city needs to get serious about studying a way out of this situation with the franchise renewal coming up,” says a resident.
The city of Austin is 1 of 17 cities in a coalition served by the Texas Gas Service, fighting against the rate increase.
“This is the motion that I posted on the message board and, as I mentioned there, I do not believe, and I cannot support the settlement that has been put forward and so what this amendment does is remove the cities’ affirmation of that settlement,” says Council member Ryan Alter, District 5.
“For clarity purposes and for the public, if this amendment goes on, what the city council would be doing is technically denying the application of Texas gas service and taking no position with regard to the settlement proposal because of the amendment,” says City of Austin Mayor Kirk Watson.
Austin City Council is still considering the gas rate proposal.
The Texas Gas Service released a statement:
“At Texas Gas Service, our top priority is maintaining a safe and reliable natural gas system for our customers. This requires upfront investments in the maintenance and operations of our natural gas system. Our rate adjustments reflect the actual costs of maintaining and improving our infrastructure, including safety, reliability and efficiency investments. The regulatory process allows Texas Gas Service to recoup an allowed portion of that investment and to continue providing the service Austinites have been able to depend on.
We are here to help and work with all our customers who face financial hardship. We encourage our customers to reach out when they need assistance, and we will work with them to find a solution. Financial assistance resources can also be found on our website at texasgasservice.com/cares.
We’ve heard our customers’ sentiments towards our rates and overall satisfaction through survey questionnaire data in 2024. Customers residing in Williamson, Hays, and Travis counties specifically said:
- Over 64% of respondents indicated high trust in their utility to set fair and reasonable rates.
- 90% of responses indicated positive overall satisfaction.”
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Texas’ highway system dropped two spots since 2025, and now ranks at No. 27 in the country for its cost-effectiveness and overall conditions, according to the Reason Foundation’s 2026 Highway Report.
The report assessed pavement conditions, fatalities, deficient bridges, infrastructure costs and congestion levels across the United States. Texas earned the following rankings:
- 33rd in urban interstate pavement conditions
- 21st in rural interstate pavement conditions
- 39th in urban arterial pavement conditions
- 12th in rural arterial pavement conditions
- 3rd in structurally deficient bridges
- 26th in urban fatality rate
- 42nd in rural fatality rate
- 41st in traffic congestion
“More than 42,000 of the nation’s 618,923 highway bridges, nearly 7%, are still structurally deficient. Arizona, Nevada, and Texas reported the lowest percentages of deficient bridges,” the report said.
The full report can be found online.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Small hail peppered the Austin area as strong thunderstorms moved through Saturday.
A few of the storms dropped rain and up to pea-sized hail in San Marcos, Dripping Springs and the Austin metro area.
A Severe Thunderstorm Warning was issued for Williamson County around 8:15 p.m., and then canceled shortly after. However, it was enough for the Two Step Inn music festival in Georgetown to cancel shows for the rest of the evening. Event organizers say the festival will run as planned Sunday.
KXAN’s First Warning Weather team is monitoring the storms. We will update this post as the evening continues.
AUSTIN (KXAN) — Governor Greg Abbott and the Texas Society Sons of the American Revolution unveiled a new monument at the Texas State Cemetery on Saturday, dedicated to Texas Revolutionary War soldiers.
“We must educate every generation about why it is that America grew from a tenuous 13 colonies into the most powerful country in the history of the world,” said Governor Abbott. “This monument here is an enduring testament to the heroes who fought for the freedom that is unique to America.”
The monument was dedicated to 69 soldiers who fought in the American Revolutionary War and later settled in Texas, according to a press release.
Among those that were honored, Abbott recognized:
- José Santiago Seguín, grandfather of Texas Revolutionary hero Juan Seguín.
- Peter Sides, who fought in the 2nd Battalion of the North Carolina Regiment of the Colonial Army, and was later killed in the 1813 Battle of Medina, fighting for Mexican independence against Spain.
- Antonio Gil Y’Barbo, the founder of Nacogdoches.
- William Sparks, who fought as a mounted rifleman in the American Revolution and later settled in Texas. He had two sons and two grandsons who fought in the Texas Revolution.
“This year marks the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution, which not only gave freedom to the British colonies of North America, but inspired movements for freedom and liberty all over the world,” said TSSAR President Mel Oller. “Texans played a role in the war too, and it’s important to recognize them, and the sacrifices they made for our freedom.”
At the monument unveiling, Abbott was also inducted into the Sons of the American Revolution and received its Silver Good Citizenship Medal.
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