DALLAS (1080 KRLD) - A bipartisan effort to strengthen Texas' power grid is underway.
Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson and Senator John Cornyn are working across the aisle to introduce the POWER ON Act.
"It will help us weatherize as the grid," said Sen. Cornyn at a news conference in Dallas Thursday afternoon. "And whether it's subzero temperatures or gale-force winds or any other type of extreme weather, our electric grid must be able to withstand the impact."
The bill would provide $500 million in grants to help Texas weatherize its electric grid.
"This can be used by everyone from natural gas suppliers to electricity generators to grid operators for a variety of purposes," says the Republican Cornyn.
Cornyn says the money is not meant for new construction, but rather to improve what's already in place.
"It wasn't the production capacity that needed to be built, but the fact that what had been built wasn't working," Cornyn noted.
The lack of weatherization contributed to the statewide power outages during February's arctic blast that killed 125 people.
Congresswoman Johnson, a Democrat, says the federal government is working to help Texas be better prepared to handle a future temperature extreme that it is not accustomed to.
"When it comes, we want to be ready," says Johnson. "And so that's what we are trying to do with this bipartisan piece of legislation."
"We simply have to ensure that our electric infrastructure is resilient and able to withstand whatever Mother Nature throws at it," added Cornyn.
Johnson noted that the grants would not be a handout -- the state would need to pitch in.
"The states will have some responsibility to come up with a portion of the money in order to qualify for the grants," says Johnson.