Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB1695 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Turner of Harris H.B. No. 1695
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the requirement that electric utilities create and
7	7	implement a plan for infrastructure improvement and maintenance.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Chapter 38, Utilities Code, is amended by adding
10	10	Subchapter E to read as follows:
11	11	SUBCHAPTER E. INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT AND MAINTENANCE PLAN
12	12	Sec. 38.101. PLAN FOR INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT AND
13	13	MAINTENANCE. (a) Not later than January 1, 2010, each electric
14	14	utility shall file with the commission a plan for infrastructure
15	15	improvement and maintenance that minimizes the utility's risk of
16	16	experiencing an extended power outage during severe weather.
17	17	(b) The commission shall prescribe the details required to
18	18	be included in each electric utility's plan submitted under
19	19	Subsection (a), based on:
20	20	(1) the utility's susceptibility to specific types of
21	21	severe weather likely to occur in the utility's service area;
22	22	(2) the age of the utility's infrastructure;
23	23	(3) the utility's history of extended power outages
24	24	caused by severe weather; and
25	25	(4) the potential improvements in preparation and
26	26	response that are available to the utility.
27	27	(c) At a minimum, the commission shall require that each
28	28	utility's plan submitted under Subsection (a) include:
29	29	(1) an established vegetation management cycle for the
30	30	clearing of trees, tree limbs, and other vegetative growth from
31	31	utility line easements and utility structures;
32	32	(2) a customer outreach program that educates property
33	33	owners on proper vegetation management near electric utility
34	34	structures;
35	35	(3) a program for the inspection of transmission
36	36	structures;
37	37	(4) a system for identifying areas that are
38	38	susceptible to damage during severe weather and modifying
39	39	transmission structures in those areas, including identifying and
40	40	replacing wooden poles in those areas with poles made of more
41	41	durable materials;
42	42	(5) a system for designating high-load transmission
43	43	and distribution areas and identifying potential improvements to
44	44	infrastructure to prevent damage during severe weather;
45	45	(6) a system for determining the cost-effectiveness of
46	46	placing future electricity lines underground;
47	47	(7) a plan that allows for or requires the expansion or
48	48	installation of underground utility infrastructure to be
49	49	coordinated with the repair, expansion, or installation activities
50	50	of other owners of underground facilities, including
51	51	municipalities, gas utilities, and pipeline companies;
52	52	(8) a plan for the use of distributed generation
53	53	technologies and advanced meter technologies that prevent, detect,
54	54	and report the failure of grid facilities and assist in the repair
55	55	of those facilities;
56	56	(9) a priority plan for the restoration of critical
57	57	facilities in areas that are particularly prone to severe weather,
58	58	including:
59	59	(A) facilities belonging to emergency response
60	60	providers;
61	61	(B) hospitals;
62	62	(C) water and wastewater treatment facilities;
63	63	and
64	64	(D) municipal service facilities;
65	65	(10) a plan to inform state and local officials of an
66	66	extended power outage, the utility's restoration efforts, and the
67	67	expected duration and severity of the outage; and
68	68	(11) a plan to insure that the utility has a sufficient
69	69	number of trained and skilled employees to insure the adequate
70	70	maintenance and reliability of the utility's infrastructure,
71	71	including a plan to meet both short- and long-term personnel needs.
72	72	(d) For each specific program or project included in a plan
73	73	submitted under Subsection (a), the utility shall include
74	74	sufficient detail to allow the commission to accept, modify, or
75	75	reject an individual program or project based on factors such as
76	76	anticipated cost or benefit.
77	77	Sec. 38.102. APPROVAL OF PLAN; HEARING. (a) On the filing
78	78	of a plan under Section 38.101, the commission shall provide notice
79	79	to interested parties and an opportunity for a hearing. An entity
80	80	with facilities attached to the infrastructure of an electric
81	81	utility submitting a plan shall be included in the notice and
82	82	opportunity for hearing and shall be permitted to submit
83	83	information regarding factors such as anticipated cost or benefit
84	84	as provided in Section 38.101(d).
85	85	(b) The commission shall review and approve a new plan or an
86	86	updated plan not later than the 30th day after the date the
87	87	commission provides the notice required by Subsection (a), unless a
88	88	request for a hearing is filed before the end of that period.
89	89	(c) If a request for a hearing is filed within the period
90	90	prescribed by Subsection (b), the commission shall hold a hearing
91	91	on the plan and shall issue an order approving the plan, approving
92	92	the plan with modifications, or rejecting the entire plan, not
93	93	later than the 120th day after the date the plan is filed. If the
94	94	commission does not issue an order regarding a plan within that
95	95	120-day period, the plan is considered approved.
96	96	(d) If the commission rejects an electric utility's plan for
97	97	infrastructure improvement and maintenance, or approves the plan
98	98	with modifications, the commission shall include in the order a
99	99	detailed explanation of the reasons the plan was rejected or
100	100	modified. If the commission rejects an electric utility's plan,
101	101	the electric utility shall file a new plan and seek commission
102	102	approval of the new plan. If the commission approves a utility's
103	103	plan with modifications, the electric utility may:
104	104	(1) accept the modifications and proceed under the
105	105	plan as modified; or
106	106	(2) withdraw its plan, file a new plan, and seek
107	107	commission approval of the new plan.
108	108	(e) The commission's approval of a plan, or approval of a
109	109	plan with modifications that are accepted by an electric utility,
110	110	does not:
111	111	(1) preclude the electric utility from filing a new
112	112	plan before the utility is required to update an approved plan under
113	113	Section 38.103; or
114	114	(2) affect the duty of the electric utility to prove in
115	115	a ratemaking proceeding that expenditures made pursuant to the plan
116	116	were reasonable, necessary, and prudently incurred.
117	117	(f) An expenditure made by an electric utility pursuant to a
118	118	plan filed under this section may be recovered by the utility in a
119	119	ratemaking proceeding under Chapter 36.
120	120	Sec. 38.103. RENEWAL AND REVIEW OF PLAN. (a) An electric
121	121	utility that files a plan for infrastructure improvement and
122	122	maintenance required by Section 38.101 shall:
123	123	(1) file with the commission a semiannual report
124	124	detailing the status of the programs and projects detailed in the
125	125	plan; and
126	126	(2) file an updated plan with the commission every six
127	127	years for the commission's approval.
128	128	(b) To prepare an electric utility for future severe
129	129	weather, the commission shall evaluate the effectiveness of an
130	130	electric utility's plan for infrastructure improvement and
131	131	maintenance after each occurrence of severe weather that affects
132	132	the utility's service area.
133	133	SECTION 2. (a) The Public Utility Commission of Texas shall
134	134	adopt rules consistent with this Act not later than October 1, 2009.
135	135	(b) Not later than January 1, 2010, each electric utility
136	136	shall file with the Public Utility Commission of Texas a proposed
137	137	plan for infrastructure and improvement as required by Subchapter
138	138	E, Chapter 38, Utilities Code, as added by this Act.
139	139	SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
140	140	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
141	141	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
142	142	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
143	143	Act takes effect September 1, 2009.