When news broke on Monday that Corpus Christi, Texas, was in danger of running out of water as early as next year, Gov. Greg Abbott a day later threatened to “take over” the municipality. But outside of placing the blame for the water crisis on city officials, what would Abbott’s proposed state takeover of a city actually entail?
The gulfside city in southern Texas is weathering a 5-year drought. Despite the state aid and more earmarked from the city, a report from a former water district manager described the city’s soon-to-be depleted reservoirs as a “controlled depression” that would see mass unemployment and an “industrial total shutdown,” according to Inside Climate News.
Abbott said the state gave Corpus Christi officials $750 million to address the water crisis, and they squandered it. He told the Houston Chronicle at an event on Tuesday that his office “can only give them a little time more before the state of Texas has to take over and micromanage that city and run that city,” to ensure Corpus residents didn’t lose water…