Lower Colorado River Authority - History

History

In November 1934, the Texas Legislature authorized the formation of the Lower Colorado River Authority to complete Buchanan Dam, where construction had been idled in 1932 following the financial collapse and bankruptcy of the Samuel Insull-controlled public utility holding company. LCRA opened for business in February 1935.

LCRA completed Buchanan Dam and a companion project, Inks Dam, in 1938 -- the first of six dams that form what are known as the Highland Lakes. LCRA completed this chain of lakes and dams in 1951. LCRA manages the chain to protect basin residents from the worst effects of Hill Country floods and provide the lower Colorado River basin with a reliable water supply during periods of drought.

With the encouragement of a young congressman, Lyndon B. Johnson, LCRA used the hydroelectric power from its dams to launch in 1938 a public power program that served communities and electric cooperatives in Central and South Texas.

For nearly three decades, hydroelectric generation was LCRA's primary power source. But growing demand for electricity led LCRA to build power plants that use natural gas and coal as their fuel sources. LCRA added the gas-fired Sim Gideon Power Plant and Thomas C. Ferguson Power Plant in the 1960s and '70s and the coal-fired Fayette Power Project in the 1970s and '80s. The Lost Pines 1 Power Project was completed in 2001, followed by the Winchester Power Project in 2010.

In 1995 LCRA became the first electric utility in Texas to provide wind-generated electricity to its customers from the Texas Wind Power Project, the first such project in the state. Through the years, LCRA acquired additional wind-generated power; this, along with its hydroelectric generation, makes LCRA the largest wholesale provider of renewable energy in Texas.

LCRA's water and community services operations have grown through the years. LCRA began programs in the 1970s and '80s to control water pollution and monitor water quality. It expanded its parks operations beginning in the 1990s to increase public access to the Highland Lakes and lower Colorado River. LCRA also worked with communities in its service area on projects designed to boost communities' economic development and improve their local quality of life.

In 2010 LCRA celebrated its 75th anniversary.

Ten people have served as LCRA's general manager -- its chief executive officer. The current general manager, Rebecca S. Motal, is the first woman to serve in that position.