Policy Consultant

About the Organizations

PowerHouse Texas is a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to developing energy policy leaders, promoting bipartisan collaboration, and providing evidence-based policy guidance addressing Texas's energy and environmental challenges. It serves policymakers, legislative teams, industry experts, innovators, researchers, and community leaders through educational resources that empower Texas energy leadership.

The Texas Energy & Climate Caucus is a bipartisan legislative group focused on advancing a sustainable energy economy, job growth, and policy dialogue within Texas. Operating as a distinct 501(c)(4), it complements PowerHouse Texas's educational mission while maintaining its legislative caucus functions.

Position Overview

The Policy Consultant will be engaged on a short-term, 5-6 month contract basis (approximately 25-30 hours weekly, compensated through a fixed fee of $6,000/month), with potential for extension or transition to full-time depending on needs and fit. This consultant will provide targeted policy capacity across four main deliverables: collaborating on the caucus legislative agenda and strategy, drafting bills alongside caucus members, developing a Distributed Energy Resources (DER) policy blueprint with stakeholder involvement, and managing the Energy Policy Advisory Council (EPAC) white paper development.

Scope of Work

• Lead the creation of a DER policy blueprint within roughly 60 days, engaging diverse stakeholders including policy experts, community-based organizations, regulatory participants, and legislative staff, ensuring clear communication of complex policy to various audiences.
• Support the legislative agenda by translating organizational priorities into actionable frameworks, preparing policy summaries, aligning stakeholders, and organizing agenda priorities by issue viability and timing.
• Manage the EPAC white paper process, setting timelines, coordinating content development, editing drafts, and ensuring outputs are useful for education and legislative purposes.
• Assist bill drafting by converting policy concepts into legislative language, collaborating with caucus leadership and legal counsel, refining language based on feedback, and preparing explanatory materials to support legislation advocacy.

Work Plan

• Month 1: Project initiation, stakeholder mapping, preliminary work plans, DER blueprint outline, EPAC timeline, and legislative agenda review.
• Month 2: Stakeholder engagement for DER, initial blueprint draft, EPAC draft development, and early legislative concepts.
• Month 3: Blueprint refinement, synthesis of stakeholder feedback, legislative agenda development, and priority bill concept identification.
• Month 4: Finalize DER blueprint, draft bill language, and map legislative champions.
• Month 5: Bill language refinement, stakeholder validation, agenda packaging, and planning for funding and implementation.
• Month 6 (optional): Final edits, transition preparation, additional drafting support, and handoff for longer-term policy work.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in Texas energy policy, legislative or regulatory policy, and public affairs.
• Strong familiarity with distributed energy resources, demand response, energy efficiency, grid modernization, ERCOT, PUC, or similar areas.
• Proficiency in bill drafting, legislative agenda formation, and engagement with legislative offices and legal counsel.
• Ability to manage complex stakeholder groups, converting discussions into concrete deliverables.
• Experience collaborating with community organizations and grassroots lobbying efforts.
• Excellent writing, research, policy analysis, and synthesis skills.
• Professional demeanor comfortable interacting with legislators, regulators, community groups, industry, and nonprofit stakeholders.
• Independent work ethic with strong deadline management and capability to produce quality outcomes quickly.
• Understanding of operating within distinct nonprofit (C3) and advocacy (C4) entity boundaries.

Core Competencies

• Policy analysis and development
• Legislative bill drafting
• Knowledge of Texas legislative procedures
• Energy policy and DER expertise
• Stakeholder engagement and convening
• Project planning and management
• Technical information synthesis
• Clear, strategic written communication
• Nonpartisan discretion in dual-entity environments
• Reliability and proactive follow-through

Compensation and Work Conditions

The consultant will receive a fixed monthly fee of $6,000, with an expected workload of 25-30 hours per week. The role is remote with a preference for Austin, Texas location to facilitate attendance at certain in-person stakeholder or legislative meetings.

Application Instructions

Interested applicants should provide a resume, a brief expression of interest, along with a relevant writing or policy sample for consideration. References or additional samples may be requested during the selection process.