In the aftermath of Winter Storm Uri's arctic blast, which left millions of Texans without power, heat or running water, Rep. James Talarico, D-Round Rock, has filed a climate action bill in the Texas House of Representatives.

House Bill 2206, referred to by Talarico as the Texas Climate Action Act, would require the development of a climate action plan to help alleviate future climate-related disasters, according to the Feb. 24 release. If approved, the bill would also establish goals for reducing emissions for 2030, 2040 and 2050.


The bill was filed just over a week after the onset of the storm that left 4.4 million without power and 14 million without water and resulted in at least 80 deaths, per the release.

"Extreme weather events will become more frequent if we don't address the root cause of this storm: climate change," Talarico said in the release. "Last week's disaster was not the first climate disaster in Texas, and it won't be the last. Today I'm introducing the Texas Climate Action Act which will marshal the resources of our state government to fight climate change."