Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HB1784 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R9720 JJT-F
2	2	By: Flynn H.B. No. 1784
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the rates charged by a water and sewer utility.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Sections 13.043(e) and (h), Water Code, are
10	10	amended to read as follows:
11	11	(e) In an appeal under Subsection (b) of this section, the
12	12	commission shall hear the appeal de novo and shall fix in its final
13	13	order the rates the governing body should have fixed in the action
14	14	from which the appeal was taken. The commission may establish the
15	15	effective date for the commission's rates at the original effective
16	16	date as proposed by the service provider and[,] may order refunds or
17	17	allow a surcharge to recover lost revenues. The commission[, and]
18	18	may not allow recovery of any rate case [reasonable] expenses
19	19	incurred by the retail public utility in the appeal proceedings.
20	20	The commission may consider only the information that was available
21	21	to the governing body at the time the governing body made its
22	22	decision [and evidence of reasonable expenses incurred by the
23	23	retail public utility in the appeal proceedings]. The rates
24	24	established by the commission in an appeal under Subsection (b) of
25	25	this section remain in effect until the first anniversary of the
26	26	effective date proposed by the retail public utility for the rates
27	27	being appealed or until changed by the service provider, whichever
28	28	date is later, unless the commission determines that a financial
29	29	hardship exists.
30	30	(h) The commission or executive director may[, on a motion
31	31	by the executive director or by the appellant under Subsection (a),
32	32	(b), or (f) of this section,] establish interim rates to be in
33	33	effect until a final decision is made in an appeal filed under
34	34	Subsection (a), (b), or (f).
35	35	SECTION 2. Section 13.185(h), Water Code, is amended to
36	36	read as follows:
37	37	(h) The regulatory authority may not include for ratemaking
38	38	purposes:
39	39	(1) legislative advocacy expenses, whether made
40	40	directly or indirectly, including legislative advocacy expenses
41	41	included in trade association dues;
42	42	(2) costs of processing a refund or credit under
43	43	Section 13.187 [of this chapter]; [or]
44	44	(3) rate case expenses incurred during the hearing
45	45	process; or
46	46	(4) any expenditure found by the regulatory authority
47	47	to be unreasonable, unnecessary, or not in the public interest,
48	48	including executive salaries, advertising expenses, legal
49	49	expenses, and civil penalties or fines.
50	50	SECTION 3. Sections 13.187(a), (d), (d-1), (e), (f), (k),
51	51	(l), and (o), Water Code, are amended to read as follows:
52	52	(a) A utility may not make changes in its rates except by
53	53	delivering a statement of intent to each ratepayer and with the
54	54	regulatory authority having original jurisdiction at least 120 [60]
55	55	days before the proposed effective date of the proposed change. The
56	56	proposed effective date of the new rates must be the first day of a
57	57	billing period, and the new rates may not apply to service received
58	58	before the proposed effective date of the new rates. The statement
59	59	of intent must include:
60	60	(1) the information required by the regulatory
61	61	authority's rules;
62	62	(2) a billing comparison regarding the existing water
63	63	rate and the new water rate computed for the use of:
64	64	(A) 10,000 gallons of water; and
65	65	(B) 30,000 gallons of water; and
66	66	(3) a billing comparison regarding the existing sewer
67	67	rate and the new sewer rate computed for the use of 10,000 gallons,
68	68	unless the utility proposes a flat rate for sewer services.
69	69	(d) Except as provided by Subsection (d-1), if the
70	70	application or the statement of intent is not substantially
71	71	complete or does not comply with the regulatory authority's rules,
72	72	it may be rejected and the proposed effective date of the rate
73	73	change may be suspended until a properly completed application is
74	74	accepted by the regulatory authority and a proper statement of
75	75	intent is provided. The commission may also suspend the proposed
76	76	effective date of any rate change if the utility does not have a
77	77	certificate of public convenience and necessity or a completed
78	78	application for a certificate or to transfer a certificate pending
79	79	before the commission or if the utility is delinquent in paying the
80	80	assessment and any applicable penalties or interest required by
81	81	Section 5.701(n) of this code.
82	82	(d-1) Subject to Subsection (k), after [After] written
83	83	notice to the utility, a local regulatory authority may suspend the
84	84	proposed effective date of a rate change for not more than 90 days
85	85	from the proposed effective date[, except that the suspension shall
86	86	be extended by two days for each day a hearing exceeds 15 days. If
87	87	the local regulatory authority does not make a final determination
88	88	on the proposed rate before the expiration of the applicable
89	89	suspension period, the proposed rate shall be considered approved.
90	90	The approval is subject to the local regulatory authority's
91	91	continuation of a hearing in progress].
92	92	(e) The regulatory authority shall hold a hearing on the
93	93	proposed rate increase if, [If,] before the 91st day after the
94	94	[effective] date the statement of intent was provided to the
95	95	authority and each ratepayer under Subsection (a) [of the rate
96	96	change], the regulatory authority receives a complaint from any
97	97	affected municipality, or from the lesser of 1,000 or 10 percent of
98	98	the ratepayers of the utility over whose rates the regulatory
99	99	authority has original jurisdiction[, the regulatory authority
100	100	shall set the matter for hearing].
101	101	(f) The regulatory authority may set the matter for hearing
102	102	on its own motion at any time within 120 days after the [effective]
103	103	date the statement of intent was provided to the authority and each
104	104	ratepayer under Subsection (a) [of the rate change]. If more than
105	105	half of the ratepayers of the utility receive service in a county
106	106	with a population of more than 2.5 million, the hearing must be held
107	107	at a location in that county.
108	108	(k) If the regulatory authority sets the matter for
109	109	[receives at least the number of complaints from ratepayers
110	110	required for the regulatory authority to set] a hearing under
111	111	Subsection (e), the regulatory authority shall [may], pending the
112	112	hearing and a decision, suspend the date the rate change would
113	113	otherwise be effective until the date the regulatory authority
114	114	issues a final decision on the matter. [Except as provided by
115	115	Subsection (d-1), the proposed rate may not be suspended for longer
116	116	than:
117	117	[(1) 90 days by a local regulatory authority; or
118	118	[(2) 150 days by the commission.]
119	119	(l) At any time during the pendency of the rate proceeding
120	120	the regulatory authority or the executive director may fix interim
121	121	rates to remain in effect until a final determination is made on the
122	122	proposed rate.
123	123	(o) If the [a] regulatory authority does not set a hearing
124	124	on the proposed rate increase under Subsection (e) or (f), [other
125	125	than the commission establishes interim rates or an escrow account,
126	126	the regulatory authority must make a final determination on the
127	127	rates not later than the first anniversary of the effective date of
128	128	the interim rates or escrowed rates or] the rates are automatically
129	129	approved as requested by the utility.
130	130	SECTION 4. Sections 13.187(i), (j), and (n), Water Code,
131	131	are repealed.
132	132	SECTION 5. This Act applies only to a statement of intent
133	133	filed on or after the effective date of this Act. A rate change to
134	134	which a statement of intent filed before the effective date of this
135	135	Act applies is governed by the law in effect on the date the
136	136	statement was filed, and that law is continued in effect for that
137	137	purpose.
138	138	SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.