North Texas lawmaker wants to push back school start date to help power grid
Students board a school bus for their morning commute.
A North Texas state representative is proposing to push back the start of the school year in order to ease the strain on the Texas power grid.
Rep. Jared Patterson (R-Frisco) took to social media to call for schools in Texas to not start until after Labor Day.
"Last week, as Texas school districts entered their first or second week fully online, ERCOT hit yet another all-time peak demand record. It just makes common sense that cooling the largest buildings (thousands) for most communities across Texas during the hottest month isn't sound policy," Patterson wrote on social media.
Patterson called opening schools during the hottest time of the year a "wasteful stress" on the state grid.
He also cited playground equipment that is too hot for children to touch, plus band and football practices in the extreme heat.
Demand for power in Texas hit a record-high on Tuesday, August 20. Peak power demand reached 85,558 megawatts, beating out the previous high that was set on August 10, 2023.