82R7590 YDB/JTS-F
By: Carona S.B. No. 1340
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the creation of the Energy Efficiency Council and to
statewide energy efficiency; providing penalties.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 55, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 55.115 to read as follows:
Sec. 55.115. HIGH-PERFORMANCE, SUSTAINABLE DESIGN,
CONSTRUCTION, AND RENOVATION STANDARDS FOR CERTAIN FACILITIES. (a)
This section applies to the construction of an institution of
higher education building, structure, or other facility, or the
renovation of a building, structure, or other facility the cost of
which is more than 50 percent of the value of the building,
structure, or other facility, any part of the construction or
renovation of which is financed by revenue bonds issued under this
subchapter.
(b) A building, structure, or other facility to which this
section applies must be designed and constructed or renovated so
that the building, structure, or other facility complies with
high-performance building standards, approved by the board of
regents of the institution, that provide minimum requirements for
energy use, natural resources use, and indoor air quality. In
approving high-performance building standards, a board of regents
shall consider the standards approved by the Texas Facilities
Commission under Section 2166.409, Government Code, and may solicit
and consider recommendations from the advisory committee appointed
under that section.
(c) In addition to meeting the requirements of Subsection
(b), a building, structure, or other facility to which this section
applies must be designed and constructed or renovated to comply
with the applicable energy and water conservation design standards
established by the State Energy Conservation Office under Section
447.004, Government Code.
SECTION 2. Subtitle E, Title 4, Government Code, is amended
by adding Chapter 470 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 470. ENERGY EFFICIENCY COUNCIL
SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Sec. 470.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Council" means the Energy Efficiency Council.
(2) "Energy efficiency program" means a program
designed to:
(A) reduce inefficient energy use;
(B) reduce peak energy demand;
(C) reduce energy consumption;
(D) promote compliance with energy efficient
building design standards; or
(E) pay for the implementation of energy cost
reduction measures.
(3) "Program administrator" includes any of the
following entities that administer an energy efficiency program:
(A) a state agency, including the Public Utility
Commission of Texas, the Railroad Commission of Texas, the State
Energy Conservation Office, and the Texas Department of Housing and
Community Affairs;
(B) a political subdivision of this state;
(C) a private or public utility service provider,
including an electric cooperative or municipally owned utility;
(D) a school district; or
(E) an institution of higher education.
Sec. 470.002. PURPOSE. The Energy Efficiency Council is a
council established in the comptroller's office to:
(1) monitor energy efficiency programs in this state;
(2) make recommendations for improving energy
efficiency programs in this state; and
(3) provide a central repository for information on
energy efficiency programs in this state.
Sec. 470.003. ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM POLICIES. A
program administrator shall consider any applicable
recommendations of the council when creating or implementing the
energy efficiency program.
[Sections 470.004-470.050 reserved for expansion]
SUBCHAPTER B. COUNCIL
Sec. 470.051. COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP. (a) The council is
composed of the following 15 members:
(1) 12 ex officio members as follows:
(A) the chairperson of the Texas Commission on
Environmental Quality;
(B) the chief executive officer of the Electric
Reliability Council of Texas;
(C) the chairperson of the Public Utilities
Commission of Texas;
(D) the chairperson of the Railroad Commission of
Texas;
(E) the director of the State Energy Conservation
Office;
(F) the executive director of the Texas
Department of Housing and Community Affairs;
(G) the executive director of the Texas
Facilities Commission;
(H) the executive administrator of the Texas
Water Development Board;
(I) the presiding officer of the Water
Conservation Advisory Council;
(J) the executive director of the Texas
Department of Rural Affairs;
(K) the director of the Energy Systems Laboratory
at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas A&M
University System; and
(L) the public counsel of the Office of Public
Utility Counsel to represent residential ratepayers; and
(2) three public members as follows:
(A) one member to represent low-income
ratepayers;
(B) one member to represent either commercial or
industrial ratepayers; and
(C) one member to represent an environmental
organization.
(b) The three public members are appointed by the governor
with the advice and consent of the senate.
(c) Appointments to the council shall be made without regard
to the race, color, disability, sex, religion, age, or national
origin of the appointees.
(d) The ex officio members and the appointed members serve
as voting members of the council.
Sec. 470.052. TERMS; VACANCY. (a) Appointed members of the
council serve staggered six-year terms, with the terms of one or two
members, as applicable, expiring on February 1 of each odd-numbered
year.
(b) A vacancy in the office of an appointed member of the
council shall be filled for the unexpired term.
Sec. 470.053. ELIGIBILITY OF PUBLIC MEMBERS. A person may
not be a public member of the council if the person or the person's
spouse:
(1) is registered, certified, or licensed by a
regulatory agency as a utility provider or energy efficiency
service provider;
(2) is employed by or participates in the management
of a business entity or other organization regulated by or
receiving money from the council;
(3) owns or controls, directly or indirectly, more
than a 10 percent interest in a business entity or other
organization regulated by or receiving money from the council; or
(4) uses or receives a substantial amount of tangible
goods, services, or money from the council other than compensation
or reimbursement authorized by law for council membership,
attendance, or expenses.
Sec. 470.054. CONFLICT OF INTEREST. (a) In this section,
"Texas trade association" means a cooperative and voluntarily
joined statewide association of business or professional
competitors in this state designed to assist its members and its
industry or profession in dealing with mutual business or
professional problems and in promoting their common interest.
(b) A person may not be a public member of the council and
may not be a council employee employed in a "bona fide executive,
administrative, or professional capacity," as that phrase is used
for purposes of establishing an exemption to the overtime
provisions of the federal Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29
U.S.C. Section 201 et seq.) if:
(1) the person is an officer, employee, or paid
consultant of a Texas trade association of utility providers or
energy efficiency service providers; or
(2) the person's spouse is an officer, manager, or paid
consultant of a Texas trade association of utility providers or
energy efficiency service providers.
(c) A person may not be a member of the council or act as the
general counsel to the council if the person is required to register
as a lobbyist under Chapter 305 because of the person's activities
for compensation on behalf of a profession related to the operation
of the council.
Sec. 470.055. GROUNDS FOR REMOVAL. (a) It is a ground for
removal from the council that an appointed member:
(1) is ineligible for membership under Section 470.053
or 470.054;
(2) cannot, because of illness or disability,
discharge the member's duties for a substantial part of the member's
term; or
(3) is absent from more than half of the regularly
scheduled council meetings that the member is eligible to attend
during a calendar year without an excuse approved by a majority vote
of the council.
(b) The validity of an action of the council is not affected
by the fact that it is taken when a ground for removal of a council
member exists.
(c) If the director has knowledge that a potential ground
for removal exists, the director shall notify the presiding officer
of the council of the potential ground. The presiding officer shall
then notify the governor and the attorney general that a potential
ground for removal exists. If the potential ground for removal
involves the presiding officer, the director shall notify the next
highest ranking officer of the council, who shall then notify the
governor and the attorney general that a potential ground for
removal exists.
Sec. 470.056. APPOINTED MEMBER TRAINING PROGRAM. (a) A
person who is appointed to and qualifies for office as a member of
the council may not vote, deliberate, or be counted as a member in
attendance at a meeting of the council until the person completes a
training program that complies with this section.
(b) The training program must provide the person with
information regarding:
(1) this chapter;
(2) the programs, functions, rules, and budget of the
council;
(3) the results of the most recent formal audit of the
council;
(4) the requirements of laws relating to open
meetings, public information, administrative procedure, and
conflicts of interest; and
(5) any applicable ethics policies adopted by the
council or the Texas Ethics Commission.
(c) A person appointed to the council is entitled to
reimbursement, as provided by the General Appropriations Act, for
the travel expenses incurred in attending the training program
regardless of whether the attendance at the program occurs before
or after the person qualifies for office.
Sec. 470.057. PRESIDING OFFICER. The director of the State
Energy Conservation Office serves as presiding officer of the
council.
Sec. 470.058. MEETINGS. The council shall meet at least two
times a year and at other times at the call of the presiding
officer.
[Sections 470.059-470.100 reserved for expansion]
SUBCHAPTER C. GENERAL DUTIES OF COUNCIL
Sec. 470.101. COLLECTION AND SUBMISSION OF ENERGY
INFORMATION. (a) The council shall:
(1) collect information regarding energy savings and
demand reduction by reviewing energy efficiency programs in this
state; and
(2) submit the information collected to:
(A) the Energy Systems Laboratory at the Texas
Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas A&M University System;
(B) the State Energy Conservation Office; and
(C) the Electric Reliability Council of Texas.
(b) Each state agency, utility provider, and energy
efficiency service provider shall submit information required
under this chapter or council rule to the council in an electronic
format and within the time required by this chapter or council rule.
(c) The State Energy Conservation Office shall annually
submit the following information to the Electric Reliability
Council of Texas:
(1) the total energy savings and demand reduction
determined by the office from all available sources for use in the
reliability council's annual reports; and
(2) the total energy savings and demand reduction
potential for use in the reliability council's long-term
forecasting.
(d) The Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas
A&M University System shall submit information on pollution
reduction, including reductions in nitrogen oxides, volatile
organic compounds, and carbon dioxide, that results from energy
efficiency programs to the Texas Commission on Environmental
Quality and the United States Environmental Protection Agency for
inclusion in the state's air quality plans.
Sec. 470.102. INTERNET WEBSITE. The council shall create
and maintain a public Internet website. The website must meet the
state's minimum standards for accessibility and include:
(1) each annual and biennial report produced by the
council;
(2) a user-friendly page that allows a consumer to
search by the consumer's address energy efficiency programs
available in the consumer's service area;
(3) comprehensive information on energy efficiency
that allows the website to serve as the state's main resource for
all energy efficiency information; and
(4) a list of every energy efficiency program reviewed
by the council organized by state agency, public utility, or energy
efficiency service provider with appropriate links.
Sec. 470.103. ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT. To the extent
resources are available, the State Energy Conservation Office shall
provide the council with administrative support, including meeting
space and staff necessary to assist the council in carrying out the
council's duties under this chapter.
Sec. 470.104. ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS, GRANTS, OR DONATIONS.
The council may solicit and the comptroller may accept for the
council gifts, grants, and donations from any public or private
source for the purposes of this chapter.
Sec. 470.105. ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM MONITORING AND
RECOMMENDATIONS. (a) The council shall monitor energy efficiency
programs in this state.
(b) The council may submit to a program administrator
recommendations on means to encourage greater energy efficiency on
a regular basis.
Sec. 470.106. LIST OF ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAMS. The
council shall develop and periodically update a list of currently
operating energy efficiency programs in this state. The council
shall publish the list on its Internet website.
Sec. 470.107. BIENNIAL PROGRAMS REPORT. (a) The council
biennially shall prepare a report on energy efficiency programs in
this state. The council shall submit the report to the legislature
not later than October 1 of each even-numbered year.
(b) The report must include:
(1) a comprehensive review of the energy efficiency
programs on the list required by Section 470.106, including
information on the costs and benefits of the programs;
(2) a study comparing energy efficiency programs in
this state to similar programs in:
(A) California;
(B) Florida;
(C) New York; and
(D) each other state the council determines to
have programs appropriate for the comparisons; and
(3) recommendations for improving energy efficiency
programs in this state.
(c) The report may include recommendations for creating new
energy efficiency programs in this state.
SECTION 3. Subchapter I, Chapter 2166, Government Code, is
amended by adding Section 2166.409 to read as follows:
Sec. 2166.409. HIGH-PERFORMANCE, SUSTAINABLE DESIGN,
CONSTRUCTION, AND RENOVATION STANDARDS FOR STATE BUILDINGS. (a)
This section applies to the construction of a state building, or the
renovation of a state building the cost of which is more than 50
percent of the value of the building, including a building for
education, assembly, or office occupancy under the charge and
control of the Texas Department of Transportation, the Parks and
Wildlife Department, the Texas Department of Housing and Community
Affairs, the Texas State Affordable Housing Corporation, or the
Veterans' Land Board that is otherwise exempt from this chapter
under Section 2166.003. This section does not apply to a facility
under the charge and control of the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice or the Texas Youth Commission.
(b) A building to which this section applies must be
designed and constructed or renovated so that the building achieves
certification under a high-performance building standard approved
by the commission that:
(1) is developed and revised through a nationally
recognized consensus-based process or by a municipally owned
utility in this state;
(2) provides minimum requirements for energy use,
natural resources use, and indoor air quality;
(3) requires substantiating documentation for
certification;
(4) requires on-site, third-party, post-construction
review and verification for certification, or a third-party,
post-construction, rigorous review of documentation and
verification for certification; and
(5) encourages the use of materials or products
manufactured or produced in this state.
(c) The commission shall appoint an advisory committee to
advise the commission in determining which high-performance
building standards to approve for use under Subsection (b). At
least once each year, the advisory committee shall review available
high-performance building standards and make recommendations to
the commission. The advisory committee consists of:
(1) the director of facilities construction and space
management appointed under Section 2152.104, who serves as the
presiding officer of the committee;
(2) six individuals with experience and expertise in
high-performance buildings or related products, including
experience and expertise in energy efficiency, water efficiency, or
low-impact site development, with one individual selected from each
of the following lists of nominees:
(A) a list submitted by the president of the
Texas Society of Architects;
(B) a list submitted by the presidents of the
Texas Council of Engineering Companies and Texas Society of
Professional Engineers;
(C) a list submitted by the president of the
Associated Builders and Contractors of Texas and the presiding
officer of the executive committee of the Associated General
Contractors, Texas Building Branch;
(D) a list submitted by the president of the
Texas chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects;
(E) a list submitted by the president of the
Texas Chemical Council; and
(F) a list submitted by the president of the
Texas chapter of the Urban Land Institute;
(3) one individual appointed by the comptroller who
represents the State Energy Conservation Office;
(4) one individual representing a state agency that
has a substantial ongoing construction program; and
(5) one individual representing the interests of
historically underutilized businesses.
(d) In addition to meeting the requirements of Subsection
(b), a building to which this section applies must be designed and
constructed or renovated so that the building:
(1) meets the American Society of Heating,
Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers energy standards in
effect on September 1, 2011, or the International Energy
Conservation Code in effect on September 1, 2011, or an updated
version of those standards or that code adopted by the State Energy
Conservation Office under Subsection (e), if applicable; and
(2) achieves a 15 percent reduction in water use when
compared to water use based on plumbing fixtures selected in
accordance with the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (Pub. L. No. 102-486).
(e) If the State Energy Conservation Office determines,
based on written recommendations from the Energy Systems Laboratory
at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas A&M
University System, that the latest published edition of the
American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning
Engineers energy standards or the International Energy
Conservation Code will result in energy efficiency and air quality
that is equivalent to or better than the energy efficiency and air
quality achievable under the editions described by Subsection
(d)(1), the office by rule shall adopt the equivalent or more
stringent editions and substitute them for the standards or code
described by Subsection (d)(1). The rule, if adopted, must
establish an effective date for the new standards or code but not
earlier than nine months after the date of adoption. The laboratory
shall make its recommendations not later than six months after the
date of publication of the new editions.
(f) A contract between the commission and a private design
professional relating to services in connection with the
construction or renovation of a building to which this section
applies must provide that, for billing purposes, any service
provided by the private design professional that is necessary to
satisfy the requirements of Subsection (b) or (d) is considered an
additional service rather than a basic service.
SECTION 4. Section 384.001, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by adding Subdivision (2-a) to read as follows:
(2-a) "Laboratory" means the Energy Systems Laboratory
at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas A&M
University System.
SECTION 5. Section 384.002, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 384.002. PURPOSE. (a) The purpose of an area emission
reduction credit organization shall be to promote the coexistence
of the improvement of air quality and economic development within
the region through the acquisition and distribution of emission
reduction credits. Its activities may include the use of emission
reduction credits to help meet federal reasonable further progress
requirements as well as using emission reduction credits to
facilitate the issuance of permits.
(b) An organization may establish an energy efficiency
market emission reduction credit program through which a utility,
municipal utility, electric cooperative, state or local
government, or energy service company that has a program of energy
efficiency measures established in a nonattainment or near
nonattainment area may register savings from that entity's energy
efficiency measures as emission reduction credits and sell or trade
the credits in an effort to reduce emissions of air pollutants in
urban areas of this state. Emission reduction credits gained
through energy efficiency measures must be certified by the
laboratory as having achieved the actual emission reduction.
SECTION 6. Section 384.014, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 384.014. ANNUAL REPORT. By March 1 of each year each
area organization shall file with the commission, the laboratory,
and the regional council of governments an annual report for the
preceding calendar year. The annual report shall contain:
(1) a financial accounting;
(2)[,] an accounting of emission reduction credits;[,]
and
(3) a listing of all emission reduction credit
transactions entered into by the organization, including any
transactions related to the creation of an energy efficiency market
emission reduction credit program.
SECTION 7. Section 388.002(4), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(4) "Code-certified inspector" means an inspector who
is certified by the International Code Council, the Building
Officials and Code Administrators International, Inc., the
International Conference of Building Officials, or the Southern
Building Code Congress International to have met minimum standards
for interpretation and enforcement of requirements of the
International Energy Conservation Code [and the energy efficiency
chapter of the International Residential Code].
SECTION 8. Section 388.003, Health and Safety Code, is
amended by amending Subsections (a), (b-2), (c), (d), (e), and (f)
and adding Subsections (a-1) and (c-1) to read as follows:
(a) To achieve energy conservation in the construction of,
renovations to, and additions to all [single-family] residential,
commercial, and industrial buildings in this state, the State
Energy Conservation Office, in consultation with the laboratory,
shall adopt the International Energy Conservation Code, as
published at the end of each three-year code development cycle, as
the minimum requirements for those buildings [construction, the
energy efficiency chapter of the International Residential Code, as
it existed on May 1, 2001, is adopted as the energy code in this
state for single-family residential construction].
(a-1) The State Energy Conservation Office shall set an
effective date for an energy code adopted under Subsection (a) that
is not later than nine months after publication of a new edition of
the code at the end of each three-year code development cycle of the
International Energy Conservation Code.
(b-2) The State Energy Conservation Office by rule shall
establish a procedure for persons who have an interest in the
adoption of energy codes [under Subsection (b-1)] to have an
opportunity to comment on the codes under consideration. The
office shall consider persons who have an interest in adoption of
energy [those] codes to include:
(1) commercial and residential builders, architects,
and engineers;
(2) municipal, county, and other local government
authorities; [and]
(3) environmental groups; and
(4) the laboratory.
(c) A municipality shall establish procedures:
(1) for the administration and enforcement of the code
[codes]; [and]
(2) to ensure that code-certified inspectors shall
perform inspections and enforce the code in the inspectors'
jurisdictions; and
(3) to track and report to the State Energy
Conservation Office on implementation of the code.
(c-1) A report under Subsection (c)(3) must include a
description of the measures taken to enforce the most recently
adopted version of the International Energy Conservation Code and
an assessment of the rate of compliance.
(d) A municipality or county may establish procedures to
adopt local amendments to the International Energy Conservation
Code [and the energy efficiency chapter of the International
Residential Code].
(e) Local amendments may not result in less stringent energy
efficiency requirements in nonattainment areas and in affected
counties than the requirements of the [energy efficiency chapter of
the International Residential Code or] International Energy
Conservation Code. Local amendments must comply with the National
Appliance Energy Conservation Act of 1987 (42 U.S.C. Sections
6291-6309), as amended. The laboratory, at the request of a
municipality or county, shall determine the relative impact of
proposed local amendments to an energy code, including whether
proposed amendments are substantially equal to or less stringent
than the unamended code. For the purpose of establishing uniform
requirements throughout a region, and on request of a council of
governments, a county, or a municipality, the laboratory may
recommend a climatically appropriate modification or a climate zone
designation for a county or group of counties that is different from
the climate zone designation in the unamended code. The laboratory
shall:
(1) provide to counties and municipalities
suggestions for modifications to the code to increase the county's
or municipality's energy efficiency by 15 percent above the
efficiency achieved under the unamended code;
(2) provide technical assistance to a local government
considering whether to adopt the suggested modifications described
by Subdivision (1);
(3) report its findings to the council, county, or
municipality, including an estimate based on suggested local
amendments of:
(A) any energy savings potential above the
unamended [base] code; and
(B) any resulting reduction in the emission of
air pollutants [from local amendments]; [and]
(4) [(2)] annually submit a report to the commission:
(A) identifying the municipalities and counties
whose codes are more stringent than the unamended code, and whose
codes are equally stringent or less stringent than the unamended
code; and
(B) quantifying energy savings and emissions
reductions from this program; and
(5) report the results under Subdivision (4)(B) to the
commission and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, and to
the United States Environmental Protection Agency for inclusion in
the state implementation plan for pollution reduction.
(f) Each municipality, and each county that has established
procedures under Subsection (d), shall periodically review and
consider revisions made by the International Code Council to the
International Energy Conservation Code [and the energy efficiency
chapter of the International Residential Code adopted after May 1,
2001].
SECTION 9. Section 388.004(a), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) For construction outside of the local jurisdiction of a
municipality:
(1) a building certified by a national, state, or
local accredited energy efficiency program shall be considered in
compliance;
(2) a building with inspections from private
code-certified inspectors using the [energy efficiency chapter of
the International Residential Code or] International Energy
Conservation Code shall be considered in compliance; and
(3) a builder who does not have access to either of the
above methods for a building shall certify compliance using a form
provided by the laboratory, enumerating the code-compliance
features of the building.
SECTION 10. Sections 388.005(c), (d), and (e), Health and
Safety Code, are amended to read as follows:
(c) Each political subdivision, institution of higher
education, or state agency shall establish a goal to reduce the
electric consumption by the entity by at least five percent each
state fiscal year for 10 [six] years, beginning September 1, 2011
[2007].
(d) A political subdivision, institution of higher
education, or state agency that does not attain the goals
established under Subsection (c) must include in the report
required by Subsection (e) justification that the entity has
already implemented all available measures. [An entity that
submits a report under this subsection indicating it has already
implemented all available measures is exempt from the annual
reporting requirement of Subsection (e) if a subsequent report
would indicate no change in status. An entity may be required to
provide notice that it is exempt to the State Energy Conservation
Office.]
(e) A political subdivision, institution of higher
education, or state agency annually shall report to the State
Energy Conservation Office, on forms provided by that office,
regarding the entity's goal, the entity's efforts to meet the goal,
and progress the entity has made under this section. The State
Energy Conservation Office shall provide assistance and
information to the entity to help the entity meet [the] goals
established [set] under this section. The office must develop and
make available a standardized form for reporting purposes.
SECTION 11. Section 388.006, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 388.006. STATE ENERGY CONSERVATION OFFICE EVALUATION.
The State Energy Conservation Office annually shall provide the
commission and the laboratory with an evaluation of the
effectiveness of state and political subdivision energy efficiency
programs, including programs under this chapter. The laboratory
shall calculate, based on the evaluation and the forms submitted to
the office, the amount of energy savings and estimated reduction in
pollution achieved as a result of the implementation of programs.
The laboratory shall share the information with the commission, the
United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the Electric
Reliability Council of Texas to help with long-term forecasting and
in estimating pollution reduction.
SECTION 12. Sections 388.007(a) and (c), Health and Safety
Code, are amended to read as follows:
(a) The laboratory shall make available to builders,
designers, engineers, and architects code implementation materials
that explain the requirements of the International Energy
Conservation Code [and the energy efficiency chapter of the
International Residential Code] and that describe methods of
compliance acceptable to code officials.
(c) The laboratory may provide local jurisdictions with
technical assistance concerning implementation and enforcement of
the International Energy Conservation Code [and the energy
efficiency chapter of the International Residential Code].
SECTION 13. Section 388.008(a), Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
(a) The laboratory shall develop a standardized report
format to be used by providers of home energy ratings. The
laboratory may develop different report formats for rating newly
constructed residences from those for existing residences. The
form must be designed to give potential buyers information on a
structure's energy performance, including:
(1) insulation;
(2) types of windows;
(3) heating and cooling equipment;
(4) water heating equipment;
(5) additional energy conserving features, if any;
(6) results of performance measurements of building
tightness and forced air distribution; and
(7) an overall rating of probable energy efficiency
relative to the minimum requirements of the International Energy
Conservation Code [or the energy efficiency chapter of the
International Residential Code, as appropriate].
SECTION 14. Section 39.905, Utilities Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (h) to read
as follows:
(a) It is the goal of the legislature that:
(1) electric utilities will administer energy
efficiency incentive programs in a market-neutral,
nondiscriminatory manner but will not offer underlying competitive
services;
(2) all customers, in all customer classes, will have
a choice of and access to energy efficiency alternatives and other
choices from the market that allow each customer to reduce energy
consumption, peak demand, or energy costs;
(3) each electric utility annually will provide,
through a cost-effective portfolio of market-based standard offer
programs or through limited, targeted, market-transformation
programs, incentives sufficient for retail electric providers and
competitive energy service providers to acquire additional
[cost-effective] energy efficiency for the utility's [residential
and commercial] customers, other than customers who operate a
transmission-level voltage facility, equivalent to at least
one-half of one[:
[(A) 10] percent of the electric utility's peak
[annual growth in] demand, not including demand from
transmission-level industrial facilities, [of residential and
commercial customers] by January 1, 2013 [December 31, 2007;
[(B) 15 percent of the electric utility's annual
growth in demand of residential and commercial customers by
December 31, 2008, provided that the electric utility's program
expenditures for 2008 funding may not be greater than 75 percent
above the utility's program budget for 2007 for residential and
commercial customers, as included in the April 1, 2006, filing; and
[(C) 20 percent of the electric utility's annual
growth in demand of residential and commercial customers by
December 31, 2009, provided that the electric utility's program
expenditures for 2009 funding may not be greater than 150 percent
above the utility's program budget for 2007 for residential and
commercial customers, as included in the April 1, 2006, filing];
(4) each electric utility in the ERCOT region shall
use its best efforts to encourage and facilitate the involvement of
the region's retail electric providers in the delivery of
efficiency programs and demand response programs under this
section;
(5) retail electric providers in the ERCOT region, and
electric utilities outside of the ERCOT region, shall provide
customers with energy efficiency educational materials; [and]
(6) notwithstanding Subsection (a)(3), electric
utilities shall continue to make available, at 2007 funding and
participation levels, any load management standard offer programs
developed for industrial customers and implemented prior to May 1,
2007; and
(7) electric utilities may communicate with and
provide rebate or incentive funds to their customers to promote or
facilitate the success of programs implemented under this section.
(b) The commission shall provide oversight and adopt rules
and procedures to ensure that the utilities can achieve the goal of
this section, including:
(1) establishing an energy efficiency cost recovery
factor for ensuring timely and reasonable cost recovery for utility
expenditures made to satisfy the goal of this section;
(2) establishing an incentive under Section 36.204 to
reward utilities administering programs under this section that
exceed the minimum goals established by this section;
(3) providing a utility that is unable to establish an
energy efficiency cost recovery factor in a timely manner due to a
rate freeze with a mechanism to enable the utility to:
(A) defer the costs of complying with this
section; and
(B) recover the deferred costs through an energy
efficiency cost recovery factor on the expiration of the rate
freeze period;
(4) ensuring that the costs associated with programs
provided under this section are borne by the customer classes that
receive the services under the programs; [and]
(5) ensuring the program rules encourage the value of
the incentives to be passed on to the end-use customer;
(6) ensuring that programs are evaluated, measured,
and verified using a framework established by the commission that
promotes effective program design and consistent and streamlined
reporting; and
(7) ensuring that an independent organization
certified under Section 39.151 allows load participation in all
energy markets for residential, commercial, and industrial
customer classes, either directly or through aggregators of retail
customers, to increase market efficiency, competition, and
customer benefits.
(h) The commission shall develop a standard disclosure form
and require an energy efficiency provider to use the form to help
consumers make better informed decisions regarding energy
efficiency investments. The form must include disclosures
regarding:
(1) the full scope of incentives that are available to
the consumer for the energy efficiency measure the consumer is
considering, including all utility, city, county, state, and
national incentives;
(2) the value of any incentives used to reduce the
costs of products or services offered passed on to the energy
service provider marketing its energy efficiency program;
(3) other related energy efficiency incentives that
are available to the consumer; and
(4) the consumer's estimated energy savings and
payback period.
SECTION 15. Section 39.9051, Utilities Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (f) and adding Subsections (g) and (h) to read
as follows:
(f) Beginning April [Not later than September] 1, 2012
[2009], a municipally owned utility must report each year to the
State Energy Conservation Office, on [in] a standardized form
developed by [and manner determined by the utility in consultation
with] the office, information regarding the combined effects of the
energy efficiency activities of the utility from the previous
calendar year, including the utility's annual goals, programs
enacted to achieve those goals, and any achieved energy demand or
savings goals.
(g) The State Energy Conservation Office shall provide the
reports made under Subsection (f) to the energy systems laboratory.
The laboratory shall calculate the energy savings and estimated
pollution reductions that resulted from the reported activities.
(h) The energy systems laboratory shall share the results of
the analysis with the Public Utility Commission of Texas, ERCOT,
the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality.
SECTION 16. Section 39.9052, Utilities Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read
as follows:
(b) Beginning April [Not later than September] 1, 2012
[2009], an electric cooperative that had retail sales of more than
500,000 megawatt hours in 2005 must report each year to the State
Energy Conservation Office, on [in] a standardized form developed
by [and manner determined by the electric cooperative in
consultation with] the office, information regarding the combined
effects of the energy efficiency activities of the electric
cooperative from the previous calendar year, including the electric
cooperative's annual goals, programs enacted to achieve those
goals, and any achieved energy demand or savings goals.
(c) The State Energy Conservation Office shall provide the
reports made under Subsection (b) to the energy systems laboratory.
The laboratory shall calculate the energy savings and estimated
pollution reductions that resulted from the reported activities.
(d) The energy systems laboratory shall share the results of
the analysis with the Public Utility Commission of Texas, ERCOT,
the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality.
SECTION 17. (a) The following sections of the Health and
Safety Code are repealed:
(1) Section 388.002(6);
(2) Sections 388.003(b) and (b-3);
(3) Section 388.003(b-1), as added by Chapter 262
(S.B. 12), Acts of the 80th Legislature, Regular Session, 2007; and
(4) Section 388.003(b-1), as added by Chapter 939
(H.B. 3693), Acts of the 80th Legislature, Regular Session, 2007.
(b) Section 39.905(b-2), Utilities Code, is repealed.
SECTION 18. (a) The Public Utility Commission of Texas
shall conduct a study to determine:
(1) the effect of including avoided transmission and
distribution capacity costs as a factor included in an analysis
used to determine whether programs are cost-effective;
(2) the appropriate cost of energy to be included as a
factor included in an analysis used to determine whether programs
are cost-effective;
(3) how the reductions in energy demand and energy
consumption provided by energy efficiency programs affect the
market clearing price in ERCOT for the balancing energy market
during peak and nonpeak periods; and
(4) ways to include the associated changes in energy
prices due to the effect of energy efficiency programs, as found
under Subdivision (3) of this subsection, as a factor included in an
analysis used to determine whether a program is cost-effective.
(b) The commission shall report its findings from the study
conducted under this section to the legislature not later than
September 1, 2012.
SECTION 19. (a) The State Energy Conservation Office shall
conduct a study on the feasibility of:
(1) newly constructed residential buildings being
designed to consume no more energy on a net annual basis than can be
produced on-site from renewable energy sources by January 1, 2030;
and
(2) all homes newly constructed in this state being
designed to be ready for the installation of solar electric
generation and to support electric vehicles by January 1, 2015.
(b) The State Energy Conservation Office shall, not later
than January 1, 2013, make recommendations to the legislature on
adopting standards to reach the goals described by Subsection (a)
of this section.
SECTION 20. Section 55.115, Education Code, as added by
this Act, and Section 2166.409, Government Code, as added by this
Act, apply only to an institution of higher education building,
structure, or other facility or a state building for which the
contract for design services is entered into on or after September
1, 2012.
SECTION 21. In appointing the initial appointed members of
the Energy Efficiency Council created under Chapter 470, Government
Code, as added by this Act, the governor shall appoint one member to
a term expiring February 1, 2013, one member to a term expiring
February 1, 2015, and one member to a term expiring February 1,
2017.
SECTION 22. This Act takes effect immediately if it
receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2011.