WILLIS, Texas – Entergy Texas’ state-of-the-art Montgomery County Power Station (MCPS) was recently featured as one of the five stops on Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar’s . The tour allows Comptroller Hegar to visit some of the state’s key power entities and take a deep dive into Texas’ challenges and successes in energy generation, management and planning.

Entergy Texas’ Montgomery County Power Station provides 993 megawatts of clean, affordable and efficient energy to power over 184,000 homes. The plant achieved commercial operation in January 2021, which was ahead of schedule and crucial to providing essential generation to Southeast Texas during Winter Storm Uri.¬†¬†

“The Montgomery County Power Station utilizes technology that provides efficient, dispatchable power,” said Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar. “The plain truth is Texas needs natural-gas-fueled electric generation to ensure we have a diverse portfolio of energy sources that can meet the needs of our growing state regardless of weather conditions or the time of day.”

Natural gas provides more than 40 percent of the electric-generating capacity in Texas, making it the largest single source of power in the state. MCPS is the newest of the state’s 176 natural gas-fired power plants that play a crucial role in meeting peak electricity demand and ensuring grid reliability.

“It was an honor to host Comptroller Hegar at MCPS and showcase how the plant continues to provide reliable, sustainable and lower-cost energy, including during extreme weather events,” said Eliecer Viamontes, CEO and president of Entergy Texas. “We were equally proud to share our progress on another state-of-the-art facility under construction, the Orange County Advanced Power Station, which will yield 1,215 MW of natural gas to power more than 230,000 homes.”

By the end of 2024, Entergy Texas plans to invest over $2 billion to replace aging generation and increase resiliency and capacity for Southeast Texas.

To learn more about the investments the company is making support the growing energy demand in its service area, visit www.entergy.com/brightfuturetx.

Entergy Texas previously supported restoration of the Wall of Honor Memorial in 2019 after it sustained damage from Hurricane Harvey’s floodwaters. This year, Entergy donated $5,000 to help add the new plaques to the wall.

“Entergy Texas has been a great partner with the City and we very much appreciate their collaboration on this most worthy of projects,” said Dayton Mayor Caroline Wadzeck.

“As a veteran myself, it’s an honor to recognize and remember my fellow service men and women,” said Ronald Fletcher, customer service manager for Entergy Texas and a former U.S. Navy Commander. “We’re proud to play a small role in ensuring the community has a place for family members and community members alike to come and recognize the sacrifice and service of our nation’s veterans.”��

The ceremony was held on Dec. 7, which is also Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day. The event included remarks from former Dayton Mayor Steve Stephens, who led the Wall of Honor Memorial project and current Dayton Mayor Caroline Wadzeck, and was attended by families of the veterans being honored as well and members of the local community.

The 2019 tax season represented a milestone in Entergy’s efforts to help low-income customers break the cycle of poverty. Ten years ago, Entergy began sponsoring free Super Tax Day events to help qualifying customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas claim the Earned Income Tax Credit. Since 2009, Entergy’s signature poverty-elimination program has helped nearly 150,000 working families receive $258 million in EITC refunds.

“At Entergy, our vision ‘We Power Life’ means working together to improve lives, create opportunities, strengthen communities and proactively find solutions for customers facing economic challenges,” said Entergy Chairman and CEO Leo Denault. “By supporting Super Tax Day, Entergy and our partners are not only extending a helping hand to working families but also investing in a brighter future for our communities.”

The federal EITC program is one of the nation’s most effective tools for lifting low-income workers and their families above the poverty line. The Internal Revenue Service reported that the EITC and Child Tax Credit together lift more than 9 million people out of poverty each year, including 5 million children — more than any other federal program besides Social Security.

Entergy and its Super Tax Day partners have tracked a number of success stories that demonstrate the program’s impact. With free tax assistance and EITC refunds, many customers have been able to become first-time homeowners, establish savings accounts, repair credit, pursue education and accomplish other goals that help build generational wealth and financial stability.

“The work Entergy has done with our Super Tax Day partners has been life-changing for customers and communities,” said Patty Riddlebarger, Entergy’s vice president of corporate social responsibility. “Through the years, we’ve expanded our partnership networks to serve more customers at more Voluntary Income Tax Assistance sites, and we continue seeing the positive difference it makes for families who qualify for the EITC program.”

Entergy began supporting Super Tax Day events in 2005 and started tracking results in select locations a few years later. Entergy launched the first Super Tax Day campaign throughout its service area in 2011, when around 9,600 customers received close to $13 million in EITC refunds. Within two years, the number of returns and refund amounts nearly doubled as Entergy grew its Super Tax Day efforts and partnership networks.

Growth has been steady ever since, with total annual refunds exceeding approximately $30 million and total returns topping 18,000. The company sponsors some 300 VITA sites where customers across its four-state service area can receive free tax prep services. In 2019, Super Tax Day events helped generate almost $34 million in total refunds for 18,583 qualifying customers.

Entergy also worked with partners to expand the services available on Super Tax Day, such as financial coaching, budget workshops, free legal services, drop-off tax prep services and more. Participating banks have helped customers open savings accounts onsite at some of the VITA locations. Additionally, incentives such as scratch-off cards with cash prizes have been effective in encouraging customers to save a portion of their refunds.

Employee support has been a driving force in the growth of Super Tax Day. Entergy offers IRS-certified training for volunteers who staff VITA sites throughout tax season and during annual Super Tax Day events. This year, 124 Entergy employees logged close to 3,500 volunteer hours helping customers file taxes and claim the EITC.

“Our efforts wouldn’t be possible without the participation and enthusiasm of employees,” said Liz Brister, Entergy’s manager of low-income programs. “Nearly 80 were certified tax preparers this year, and many others served in a variety of support roles. The amount of preparation and teamwork that goes into our Super Tax Day events is truly amazing and a testament to Entergy’s leadership in the communities we serve.”

To find out more about Super Tax Day, locate nearby VITA sites and learn about qualifications and documents needed, customers can visit .

When not attending Texas A&M University in Galveston, Ballard works alongside wildlife biologist Laurie Lomas Gonzales at Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge. They do everything from measuring tree growth and surveying birds to spraying herbicide and capturing feral hogs.

“This work is phenomenal. I’m able to take my passion and turn it into science,” Ballard said. “It calls me at night. It’s like breathing. I need it to live.”

On a sunny and very muddy spring day this year, nearly a dozen Entergy Texas employees volunteered in the research section of the refuge near Dayton.

Entergy Trees

Nearby, workers were planting 80,000 seedlings that were made possible in part by��an environmental grant��from Entergy Texas and support from The Conservation Fund and its corporate partners. The reforestation project is part of a multi-year initiative to restore 100 acres of bottomland hardwood forest with 45,000 trees.

“The area where we are working used to be a forest but was cleared and converted to a pasture in the 1990s,” Gonzales explained. “If we were to let it go fallow, it wouldn’t convert back to the forest it was because the seed source in the pasture has changed.

“Two invasive species, Chinese tallow tree and trifoliate orange tree, have set their seed source in this field. By planting oaks, elms and pecan trees, we are giving these species a head start to try and out-compete the invasive species and regenerate the forest to a more natural composition,” she said.

Hog Research

Part of the project involves initiating a study to see how the seedlings and the forest regenerate over the next 8 to 10 years. Entergy volunteers helped finalize the study plots by building five exclosures using hog paneling and fencing to keep hogs from entering areas where trees were planted.

“We are curious to see how this new forest regenerates with and without the presence of hogs,” Gonzales said. “Hogs cause a lot of damage to forest soils. They root it up and actually cause changes in the chemistry and make it easier for Chinese tallow and trifoliate orange to invade. Also, hogs eat acorns and other native seed sources, changing the mix of species which regenerate as forests age. We want to see what will grow voluntarily and how seedlings will compete with that growth.”

Environmental Impact

While providing useful shade and shelter for animals, Gonzales said the trees help improve air quality and water quality and sequester carbon from the atmosphere. Their roots stabilize soil and help slow floodwaters. Also, acorns are a major food source for more than 100 species.

“You wouldn’t think that insects, birds, squirrels, deer and hogs all share a food source, but they sure do,” she said. “Even Native Americans depended on the nutrient content of acorns. In that seed is a lot of carbohydrates, protein, and fat — the building blocks of a tree.”

���ϳԹ�����recently announced��new steps it is taking to bring value to customers while supporting a lower carbon future and communities that are more sustainable and resilient. To learn more, see��our latest report.

There are 80 volunteer stations at the event with more than 6,000 volunteers, including Dona Miller of Entergy Texas, an administrative assistant for business and economic development. For Miller, the triathlon is a fundraising opportunity to help the local Boy Scout troop that her sons, both Eagle Scouts, were a part of growing up.

Even though her sons are grown and no longer involved with the troop, the family continues the tradition of giving back to the organization that gave so much to their family. The Millers have volunteered at IRONMAN on behalf of Boy Scouts of America Troop 491 in Montgomery, Texas, for the last eight years.

“Since 2011, IRONMAN’s initial year in The Woodlands, our troop has overseen the environmental cleanup effort,” said Miller. “This is no small feat as it requires six days of shift scheduling – from Tuesday morning when the athlete’s village is set up until the early morning hours on Sunday after the last competitor crosses the finish line.”

Troop 491 is responsible for cleaning up trash along the 26.2-mile run course and the athlete’s village and maintaining the finish line on Waterway Avenue. In addition, 40 volunteers from the troop staff a bike aid station.

“Race day starts early in the morning at Northshore Park, the site for the 2.4-mile swim. We clean up trash and personal items left by the athletes and spectators,” said Miller. “We then move on to the bike transition at Town Green Park. All the while, other groups of scouts and parents monitor the athlete’s village and finish line to keep the area as clean as possible.”

The 26.2-mile run course cleanup starts Saturday evening and continues until the last runner crosses the finish line around midnight. By 3 a.m., all areas are cleared of trash and receptacles emptied.

Each station is awarded a grant from the IRONMAN Foundation. The amount depends on the scope of their station and how many volunteers are needed.

“It’s grimy work but so worth it,” said Miller. “Our IRONMAN participation is vital to the financial support of the troop – everything from paying the light bill, roof repairs, new tents for campouts, supplies and a few scholarships to scouts who need them. We’re truly grateful and blessed for our hard-working volunteers.”

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“Along the Gulf Coast, it is not a matter of if, but when, a hurricane will strike, which is why we have a plan of continuous preparation, training and action in place that we call��,” said Stuart Barrett, vice president of customer service. “While we may not know exactly when and where, we know that we must always be prepared. We encourage all of our customers to be prepared, too.”

Staying Prepared is Key

Staying Storm Ready is a year-round effort, and it begins with monitoring weather systems around the clock, every day of the year. When there’s a severe weather threat, Entergy uses forecasts and computer models based on experience with past storms to predict an estimated number and duration of outages that could occur. Based on those estimates, Entergy will call on restoration workers from around the country as needed to safely get the power back on as quickly as possible.

Assessing damage, deploying personnel to the right place with the right materials and restoring power are all processes Entergy continually plans for and improves. In fact, employees across the Entergy system completed annual storm-response exercises earlier this month to make sure company procedures are reviewed and updated prior to the beginning of hurricane season.

“We plan for the worst and hope for the best. And while we hope that no tropical weather events threaten our area, these measures help our employees understand their roles and responsibilities in the event of a major restoration,” said Barrett. “Safety is a core value at Entergy and we encourage you to make it your top priority, too. We urge you and your families to get your personal storm plans in place now.”

Important safety tips such as staying away from downed power lines and debris, not walking in standing water and following the instructions of local authorities can be found on the website.

Staying Informed is Essential

Just as important as making personal storm plans is the ability to stay informed before, during and after a storm. Entergy keeps customers up-to-date in a number of ways:

• An app is available��for iPhone or Android at��. Customers can use the app to report outages or check on the status of power at their home or business.
• Entergy’s��View Outages website��includes maps that show where outages are located and give information about restoration progress.
• Entergy sends and can receive����about storm and restoration efforts. Customers can sign up by texting REG to 368374.
• The����website��has storm safety, preparation and restoration information that is updated throughout the day.
• Operation: Storm Ready��is��a free downloadable guide��that helps customers plan and prepare for weather emergencies.

Social media��plays an important role in keeping customers informed, and Entergy places a high priority on keeping its social media sites updated throughout an event. Follow Entergy Texas on Twitter at and on Facebook at . And you always can access the main Entergy accounts at����or��.

Entergy Texas, Inc. provides electricity to approximately 450,000 customers in 27 counties. ���ϳԹ��� is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including nearly 9,000 megawatts of nuclear power. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.9 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of approximately $11 billion and more than 13,000 employees.

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Market Strategies-Morpace named 21 utilities as 2018 Business Customer Champions, an annual honor awarded to utilities that exhibit exceptional performance on Brand Trust, Service Satisfaction and Product Experience.

Entergy Texas obtained top industry scores on the study’s Engaged Customer Relationship (ECR) index, which provides a 360-degree performance review of utility customer perceptions and experiences.

“Businesses already rate their utilities extremely high on operational satisfaction and are pushing back on the need for greater reliability and service if it is going to cost them more,” said Chris Oberle, senior vice president at Market Strategies International-Morpace. “Customers now link the success of their business to that of their local communities and would prefer their utility partners focus on building the communities they serve and developing programs that help businesses better manage their energy consumption.”

Click to learn more and view the other customer champions.��

Pictured:�� Entergy Texas Vice President of Customer Service Stuart Barrett receives the award from Customer Service Delivery Sr. Staff Analyst Vincent Rizzotto.

The memorial wall’s foundation, which was damaged by flooding during Hurricane Harvey, had cracks in several places where expertly hand-painted murals depict various military scenes. In addition, water and humidity pulled plaques holding the names of soldiers away from the wall.

When learning of the destruction, Entergy Texas donated more than $7,700 to help repair the wall, as well as create a new drainage system to help prevent flooding from occurring again.��

City and community leaders in Dayton joined Entergy at the wall, located just outside the Dayton Community Center, to celebrate its repair and also to pay respects to all veterans for their sacrifice and dedication in protecting the freedom we enjoy today.

“As we approach another Memorial Day, it is fitting that we gather at this wall to remember those who served our country — especially those who paid the ultimate price,” said Frank Shannon, director of region customer service for Entergy Texas, Inc. “As a veteran myself, it gives me great pride to know that Entergy played a part in restoring the wall to its former glory. It is a fitting tribute to the resiliency that we have when faced with all types of adversity, be it natural or manmade.”

Entergy Texas, Inc. provides electricity to approximately 450,000 customers in 27 counties. ���ϳԹ��� is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. Entergy owns and operates power plants with approximately 30,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including nearly 9,000 megawatts of nuclear power. Entergy delivers electricity to 2.9 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy has annual revenues of approximately $11 billion and more than 13,000 employees.������������������

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