Texas
ERCOT ranked D- for Texas power grid planning, among nation’s worst according to report
HOUSTON, TEXAS – FEBRUARY 21: The U.S. and Texas flags fly in front of high voltage transmission towers on February 21, 2021 in Houston, Texas. Millions of Texans lost power when winter storm Uri hit the state and knocked out coal, natural gas and nu
AUSTIN, Texas – The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which manages power for about 90% of the state’s electric load, received a D- grade in 2025, according to a Feb. 2025 transmission planning report by Grid Strategies and the nonprofit advocacy group Americans for a Clean Energy Grid.
Texas’ D- grade for its electric transmission planning and development, ranks among the lowest-performing regions in the country as electricity demand from data centers, industry and population growth accelerates.
Texas D- for grid planning
Photo courtesy: Grid Strategies/Americans for a Clean Energy Grid
What they’re saying:
The grade reflects weaknesses across multiple categories, particularly Texas’ lack of interregional transmission planning and limited long-term, scenario-based grid planning, the report said.
This is because Texas operates its own electric grid through ERCOT, which connects more than 54,000 miles of transmission lines and over 1,200 generation units, but is largely isolated from the rest of the U.S. power system.
“Across most regions, interregional coordination relies on reliability-focused studies rather than proactive, scenario-based planning with durable selection and cost-allocation frameworks. As a result, interregional transmission remains one of the weakest elements of the national planning landscape, with planned capacity generally falling short of estimated need.”
ERCOT’s isolated grid and challenges
AUSTIN, TEXAS – FEBRUARY 19: Electric power lines run through a neighborhood on February 19, 2021 in Austin, Texas. Amid days of nationwide frigid winter storms in which 58 people died, more than 4 million Texans were without power for much of the pa
Since the Texas grid is electrically separate from the Eastern and Western interconnections, the report cites ERCOT’s failure to routinely plan transmission links with neighboring regions, limiting the state’s ability to import or export power during extreme weather or system emergencies.
Dig deeper:
Texas’ transmission planning has also relied heavily on reliability-only studies rather than long-term, multi-scenario planning that accounts for future energy demand changes, extreme weather and economic benefits, the report said.
Indicating that many large transmission projects approved in Texas are developed to address immediate reliability needs, rather than as part of a comprehensive planning framework.
The delayed Permian Basin Reliability Plan
The report cites the Permian Basin Reliability Plan that was approved in Oct. 2024 to maintain reliability and connect significant electronic loads in the Permian Basin, primarily based on recent studies of oil, gas and data center loads, as well as address load growth in eastern Texas.
When that plan was released in July 2024, it identified two options; a 345 kV portfolio and a 765 kV portfolio. The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) approved the plan just three months later.
The plan was passed without a decision on which portfolio to use until April 2025, highlighting transmission projects that were planned largely in isolation and do not include a full assessment of long-term benefits over the lifetime of the infrastructure.
“Accelerating demand growth is compressing planning timelines and raising the stakes for regions that continue to rely on reactive approaches,” the report said, noting that Texas’ current planning practices may not be sufficient to maintain reliability and control costs over the long term.
Comparing Texas’ progress to national standards
Big picture view:
While Texas showed some progress in regional transmission development within the state, those efforts were not enough as the report assigned Texas a C for regional planning, an F for interregional planning, a B for stakeholder engagement, and a C- for outcomes, producing an overall D-, a drop from the state’s D+ rating in 2023.
Photo courtesy: Grid Strategies/Americans for a Clean Energy Grid
Nationally, the report found modest improvements in transmission planning in several regions following federal reforms adopted for the purpose of innovating in regional planning. But the report warns that regions relying on incremental or siloed approaches, including Texas, risk falling further behind as electricity demand surges.
The Source: Information in this article was provided by Grid Strategies and Americans for a Clean Energy Grid (ACEG).
Texas
NBA Draft 2026: Chicago Bulls draft Texas standout Dailyn Swain at No. 15
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 23: NBA commissioner Adam Silver shakes hands with Dailyn Swain after he is drafted fifteenth overall by the Chicago Bulls during Round One of the 2026 NBA Draft at Barclays Center on June 23, 2026 in New York City. (Photo b
AUSTIN, Texas – Former Texas standout Dailyn Swain was selected by the Chicago Bulls with the 15th overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft on Tuesday night.
What we know:
Swain is a 6-foot-8, 225-pound wing that emerged as one of college basketball’s biggest risers during his lone season with the Longhorns. He transferred to the University of Texas from Xavier University in Ohio. The 20-year-old led Texas in points, rebounds, assists and steals while helping establish himself as a first-round prospect.
By the numbers:
Swain averaged 17.7 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.8 steals per game during the 2025-26 season. His versatility on both ends of the floor made him one of the nation’s most productive all-around players.
Dailyn Swain #3 of the Texas Longhorns dunks the ball against the Gonzaga Bulldogs during the second round of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament held at Moda Center on March 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by C. Morgan Engel/NCAA Photos v (Getty Images)
Dig deeper:
As an Ohio native, Swain starred at Africentric Early College in Columbus. He entered the 2025-26 college basketball season largely outside first-round draft projections but steadily climbed the draft boards with his strong play.
Known for his physical frame, defensive versatility and playmaking ability, Swain can impact games in a variety of ways. Outside shooting remains an area for development after he shot 31.7% from 3-point range last season, but evaluators still view him as an NBA-ready wing capable of contributing immediately.
What’s next:
Swain becomes the latest Texas player selected in the NBA Draft and joins a Bulls team looking to add size, toughness and versatility on the perimeter.
The Source: Information in this article was provided from live coverage of the 2026 NBA Draft.
Texas
8 convicted of terrorism charges in Texas immigration center shooting sentenced to decades in prison
FORT WORTH, Texas (AP) — A demonstrator who shot and wounded a police officer outside a Texas immigration center last July 4 was sentenced to 100 years in federal prison Tuesday, while other protesters accused of having links to antifa were given multiple decades in federal prison.
Benjamin Song was convicted of attempted murder last March after prosecutors say he opened fire and wounded a police officer at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado.
The seven other protesters sentenced Tuesday received prison terms ranging from 30 to 70 years.
“Our issue with this case has always been this isn’t a bunch of terrorists. This is a bunch of kids and young adults who really have a really big heart and really wanted their voice to be heard,” Philip Hayes, Song’s attorney, said outside the federal courthouse in Fort Worth. “It was never intended that anybody get hurt. It was never intended that any shots would be fired.”
He said his client would appeal the sentencing.
“Song, aside from this day, has had an impeccable life. A former Marine. A good student,” Hayes said. “He had a lot of good qualities that were just ignored. The judge went ahead and gave as much as he could.”
One of the defendants, Daniel Sanchez Estrada, was convicted of corruptly concealing a document and conspiracy to conceal documents. Others pleaded guilty to providing material support to terrorists rather than take their case to trial.
Prosecutors say the eight are members of antifa, a decentralized anti-fascist organization that has become a target of the Trump administration. They have denied any affiliation and maintain they attended the demonstration to show support for immigrants inside the detention center.
President Donald Trump last fall signed an executive order designating antifa a domestic terrorist organization, even though there is no domestic equivalent to the State Department’s list of foreign terror organizations.
Critics warn the case could have wide-reaching impact on protests given that organizations operating within the U.S. are supposed to be protected by First Amendment free-speech rights.
Short for “anti-fascists,” antifa is not a single organization but rather an umbrella term for far-left militant groups that confront or resist neo-Nazis and white supremacists at demonstrations.
Last week, federal prosecutors charged 15 people with impeding the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown in Minnesota. They claimed the demonstrators were members of antifa who conspired against the federal government to block arrests and deportations by setting up blockades around government buildings and throwing chunks of ice at federal vehicles, among other actions.
Marcelo reported from New York.
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Texas
Paxton, Trump adviser’s org win bid to block immigration rule
A federal judge in Texas blocked a Biden administration rule on Monday that allowed immigration judges to indefinitely close a deportation case against immigrants on the same day Texas sued to stop the rule.
The rule, which was adopted in 2024, allowed immigration judges to close a deportation case after hearing arguments from the federal government and the immigrant in deportation proceedings, especially if the person could qualify for a benefit that allows them to stay in the country legally.
But on Monday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit in the Northern District of Texas in Wichita Falls to block the rule with U.S. Judge Reed O’Connor, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush.
The lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Justice was also co-filed by America First Legal Foundation, an organization founded by Stephen Miller, a senior adviser to President Trump who has focused on ways to limit both legal and illegal immigration to the country. America First Legal Foundation also previously filed various lawsuits representing Paxton against the Biden administration’s immigration policies, which helped derail President Biden’s immigration agenda in his lone term.
In this latest complaint, Paxton’s office said in the 43-page lawsuit that the Biden-era rule “effectively grant(s) indefinite amnesty to aliens illegally present in this country.”
Lawsuits usually take several months to years to settle, but in this case O’Connor ruled late on Monday in favor of Texas after the Department of Justice filed its response saying it agreed with Paxton’s office.
Paxton’s office and the DOJ did not respond to immediate requests for comment.
President Trump, in keeping with his campaign promise, has cracked down on immigrants, using many of the federal government’s resources to limit immigration and fast-track deportations, including undocumented people and others who were allowed to be in the U.S. by previous administrations.
O’Connor has been known as conservative leaders’ favorite judge because he has routinely ruled in favor of Paxton, who has strategically filed lawsuits against the Obama and Biden administration.
The fast-paced end to the rule echoes a similar maneuver conducted by the DOJ and Paxton’s office last year, when the federal agency sued Texas over a law allowing undocumented students to qualify for lower tuition rates at public universities. Hours after the suit was filed, Texas also asked Judge O’Connor to find the law unconstitutional, which he did.
After the law was overturned, legal experts said a state working with the federal government so closely for the swift overturning of a state law was unusual and raised questions about collusion.
The quick resolution to the case late on Monday was heavily criticized by immigration law experts.
“This is madness! Deliberate collusion with a federal judge to rapidly erase regulations without any input from affected parties,” said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a senior fellow with American Immigration Council, a group in Washington, D.C., that advocates for immigrants. “It’s clearly an unlawful act by all, and now litigants will have to seek to intervene in the already-completed lawsuit to overturn his actions.”
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