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CPS Energy President and CEO Rudy Garza speaks at the October groundbreaking for the utility\u2019s new service center on the South Side. A utility that invests in the future is better positioned to deal with technological and regulatory changes.\u00a0CPS Energy is preparing for the future with its proposed fiscal year 2027 budget.<\/p>\n
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Michel Fortier\/San Antonio Express-News<\/p>\n
Brad\u00a0Beldon is the former CEO of\u00a0Beldon Roofing Company.<\/p>\n
Courtesy of Brad Beldon<\/p>\n
Investment is the lifeblood of any growing enterprise. Whether directed toward infrastructure, technology or talent, the strategic investment of capital is what separates enterprises that are resilient and endure from those that fade and fail.<\/p>\n
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Businesses that invest for the future are positioned to adapt to change and lead. A business that fails to reinvest may appear healthy in the short term, but it is quietly eroding its foundation.<\/p>\n
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Aging infrastructure and the inability to hire or retain high-quality employees become liabilities.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s true in the private sector is also true of public utilities such as CPS Energy. A utility that invests in the future is better positioned to deal with technological and regulatory changes in the energy sector, better able to serve its customers and better prepared to deal with the challenges of extreme weather and cybersecurity threats.<\/p>\n
This is what CPS Energy is hoping to do with its proposed fiscal year\u00a02027 budget of $2.87 billion.<\/a><\/p>\n San Antonio remains one of the fastest growing big cities in the United States. People want to live here because of our high-quality of life and affordable home ownership.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Businesses want to relocate here because of our large, highly skilled talent pool and business-friendly environment.<\/p>\n According to the\u00a0U.S. Census,<\/a>\u00a0Bexar County had a population of 2.1 million in 2024, with some projections<\/a> showing as many as 1.2 million additional residents by 2050.<\/p>\n As the former CEO of one of the largest roofing companies in San Antonio, I have witnessed this growth first-hand. Residential growth leads to commercial growth. Roofs on homes lead to roofs on businesses.<\/p>\n No matter what you\u2019ve read or heard about data centers, the real driver of energy demand in our area is population growth, and that growth shows no signs of abating.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n As a public utility, CPS Energy is required to provide service to any home or business that requests electric or gas service in its service area. As the owners of CPS Energy, we \u2013 the residents of San Antonio \u2013 have a choice: Invest to sustain our growing community or prepare for a future where service disruptions are bigger, longer and more frequent.<\/p>\n As a\u00a0ratepayer, you may be inclined to believe that this growth is bad, that it helps drive up the need for CPS Energy to expand power generation, distribution and transmission.<\/p>\n That\u2019s partly true, but there\u2019s a larger benefit to\u00a0ratepayers. A growing community means the costs for investments CPS Energy must make to enhance resiliency are shared across a broader customer base.<\/p>\n Ultimately, we have a choice as a community. We can make the investments necessary to enhance San Antonio\u2019s quality of life and create more economic opportunities for more people, or we risk losing part of what makes San Antonio a special place to live and work while also locking future generations into poverty and economic distress.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n We are fortunate that CPS Energy, San Antonio Water System and VIA Metropolitan Transit have been strategic in planning for the future.<\/p>\n San Antonio is in an enviable position when it comes to energy, water and transportation. We only need to look to Austin with its snarling traffic and Corpus Christi\u2019s water crisis to see how failure to plan for growth and invest in infrastructure can have severe consequences.<\/p>\n Ratepayers and their elected officials are right to vet the proposed\u00a0budget for CPS Energy.<\/p>\n I am confident that after carefully examining it, they will agree that the investments CPS Energy is proposing to make are both necessary and timely.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Let\u2019s keep San Antonio on a path to greater prosperity for our growing community.<\/p>\n Brad\u00a0Beldon is the former CEO of\u00a0Beldon Roofing Company.<\/p>\n Sign up for the ENsights opinion newsletter<\/p>\n