Texas’ problem is us, not the weather

Is your flood insurance up to date? How about windstorm coverage? Would a water shortage affect your business? Did you collect bids on a backup generator?

Do you still believe in the Texas Miracle?

Spring thunderstorms are on the way, hurricane season is starting early, and the National Weather Service says drought will likely develop across most of the state. Anyone worried about power outages from another polar vortex should pay attention to the alligators closer to the boat.

Texas’ climate has never been kind, but neither

has been Texas’ government. Time and again, state and local institutions have failed us by failing to prepare in the name of being pro-business.

With a warming planet making heavy downpours more likely, hurricanes more powerful and droughts more longlasting, resiliency is more important than ever. While we need to make sure another polar vortex does not trigger another Texas Blackout, we also need to review our other disaster plans.

Texas averages three major disasters a year, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency. In FEMA’s latest analysis, hurricanes are the most persistent and destructive threats to the United States, especially Texas.

Houstonians fear a Category 5 storm coming right up the ship channel, bringing a surge of seawater that would flood the port, refineries, petrochemical facilities and downtown. We are unprepared for a predictable storm that would hurt the entire country and weaken national security.

“Land area that is home to about 800,000 people would be inundated to some extent, and a significant portion of the approximately 200,000 housing units would be destroyed. If evacuation were not timely, thousands would die,” Jim Blackburn, an expert on storm risk at Rice University, wrote in a 2019 report.

Despite dozens of such predictions written over decades, Texas’ elected officials have not prioritized building the coastal barrier that experts agree Houston needs. Big, taxpayer-funded construction projects are just not their style.

Consider, though, what would happen if a fast-moving Category 5 hurricane hit Corpus Christi and followed I-37 to San Antonio.

Officials with the San Antonio River Authority in 2019 modeled what would happen if Hurricane Harvey had hit their system, and the results were ugly. Most of downtown and the city’s Broadway corridor, Mahncke Park, River Road, Tobin Hill and South Town would be underwater.

Tornadoes and drought also damage homes and businesses. We cannot do much to change the weather, but we can enforce building codes and design power, communications and water management systems resilient enough to cope with perfectly predictable predicaments.

For decades, though, Texas’ rulers have focused on low taxes and light regulation to make the state attractive for businesses. The Texas Legislature only spends money after a disaster or losing a lawsuit, and sometimes, as with the 2011 blackouts, even a catastrophe fails to goad them into action.

The state’s reputation for economic success, dubbed the Texas Miracle, is looking pretty shoddy. Houston’s Tax Day Flood of 2016, 2017’s Hurricane Harvey, San Antonio’s billion-dollar Memorial Day hail storm last year and the Texas Blackout reveal the problem is with us, not the weather.

Some business leaders have buyer’s remorse. Less than a year after moving to Texas, Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted that the Electric Reliability Council of Texas “is not earning that R.” Unlike most of us, though, the newly minted Texan could fly to one of his other homes until the power was restored.

Businesses must decide whether low taxes and weak regulations make up for needing to purchase a backup generator, girding against floodwater and insuring against extreme property damage. And the public is beginning to wonder whether our ruling clique should shift from promoting business to protecting people.

One industry to watch is property insurance. Companies will stop offering affordable rates if Texas officials refuse to take the necessary steps to protect life and property.

No one should want to pay higher insurance premiums in place of taxes. Insurance only pays off after disaster strikes, and at best, restores the insured. Higher taxes before a storm can create jobs, build resilient systems and prevent disruption.

Despite Gov. Greg Abbott’s example of repealing COVID-19 mask mandates and capacity limits, keeping people and property safe is the fundamental purpose of government, not boosting private enterprise.

Most people want rules that slow COVID-19’s spread and would gladly pay a few dollars more in taxes if they knew the power would remain on during an arctic storm and that floodwater would flow safely away from their homes.

Texas can attract new investment by providing excellent government services; failing to prepare for disaster will chase businesses away.