Texas 2011 - 82nd Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB365 Compare Versions

The same version is selected twice. Please select two different versions to compare.

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Ogden S.B. No. 365
2	2	(Strama)
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to distributed generation of electric power.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Section 31.002, Utilities Code, is amended by
10	10	adding Subdivision (4-a) and amending Subdivision (10) to read as
11	11	follows:
12	12	(4-a) "Distributed natural gas generation facility"
13	13	means a facility installed on the customer's side of the meter that
14	14	uses natural gas to generate not more than 2,000 kilowatts of
15	15	electricity.
16	16	(10) "Power generation company" means a person,
17	17	including a person who owns or operates a distributed natural gas
18	18	generation facility, that:
19	19	(A) generates electricity that is intended to be
20	20	sold at wholesale;
21	21	(B) does not own a transmission or distribution
22	22	facility in this state other than an essential interconnecting
23	23	facility, a facility not dedicated to public use, or a facility
24	24	otherwise excluded from the definition of "electric utility" under
25	25	this section; and
26	26	(C) does not have a certificated service area,
27	27	although its affiliated electric utility or transmission and
28	28	distribution utility may have a certificated service area.
29	29	SECTION 2. The heading to Subchapter B, Chapter 35,
30	30	Utilities Code, is amended to read as follows:
31	31	SUBCHAPTER B. EXEMPT WHOLESALE GENERATORS, DISTRIBUTED NATURAL GAS
32	32	GENERATION FACILITIES, AND POWER MARKETERS
33	33	SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 35, Utilities Code, is
34	34	amended by adding Section 35.036 to read as follows:
35	35	Sec. 35.036. DISTRIBUTED NATURAL GAS GENERATION
36	36	FACILITIES. (a) A person who owns or operates a distributed
37	37	natural gas generation facility may sell electric power generated
38	38	by the facility. The electric utility, electric cooperative, or
39	39	retail electric provider that provides retail electricity service
40	40	to the facility may purchase electric power tendered to it by the
41	41	owner or operator of the facility at a value agreed to by the
42	42	electric utility, electric cooperative, or retail electric
43	43	provider and the owner or operator of the facility. The value of
44	44	the electric power may be based wholly or partly on the clearing
45	45	price of energy at the time of day and at the location at which the
46	46	electric power is made available to the electric grid.
47	47	(b) At the request of the owner or operator of the
48	48	distributed natural gas generation facility, the electric utility
49	49	or electric cooperative shall allow the owner or operator of the
50	50	facility to use transmission and distribution facilities to
51	51	transmit the electric power to another entity that is acceptable to
52	52	the owner or operator in accordance with commission rules or a
53	53	tariff approved by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
54	54	(c) Subject to Subsections (e) and (f), if the owner or
55	55	operator of a distributed natural gas generation facility requests
56	56	to be interconnected to an electric utility or electric cooperative
57	57	that does not have a transmission tariff approved by the Federal
58	58	Energy Regulatory Commission, the electric utility or electric
59	59	cooperative may recover from the owner or operator of the facility
60	60	the reasonable costs of interconnecting the facility with the
61	61	electric utility or electric cooperative that are necessary for and
62	62	directly attributable to the interconnection of the facility.
63	63	(d) Subject to Subsections (e) and (f), an electric utility
64	64	or electric cooperative may recover from the owner or operator of a
65	65	distributed natural gas generation facility the reasonable costs of
66	66	electric facility upgrades and improvements if:
67	67	(1) the rated capacity of the distributed natural gas
68	68	generation facility is greater than the rated capacity of the
69	69	electric utility or electric cooperative; and
70	70	(2) the costs are necessary for and directly
71	71	attributable to accommodating the distributed natural gas
72	72	generation facility's capacity.
73	73	(e) An electric utility or electric cooperative may recover
74	74	costs under Subsection (c) or (d) only if:
75	75	(1) the electric utility or electric cooperative
76	76	provides a written good faith cost estimate to the owner or operator
77	77	of the distributed natural gas generation facility; and
78	78	(2) the owner or operator of the distributed natural
79	79	gas generation facility agrees in writing to pay the reasonable and
80	80	necessary costs of interconnection or capacity accommodation
81	81	requested by the owner or operator and described in the estimate
82	82	before the electric utility or electric cooperative incurs the
83	83	costs.
84	84	(f) If an electric utility or electric cooperative seeks to
85	85	recover from the owner or operator of a distributed natural gas
86	86	generation facility an amount that exceeds the amount in the
87	87	estimate provided under Subsection (e) by more than five percent,
88	88	the commission shall resolve the dispute at the request of the owner
89	89	or operator of the facility.
90	90	(g) A distributed natural gas generation facility must
91	91	comply with emissions limitations established by the Texas
92	92	Commission on Environmental Quality for a standard emissions permit
93	93	for an electric generation facility unit installed after January 1,
94	94	1995.
95	95	(h) This section does not require an electric cooperative to
96	96	transmit electricity to a retail point of delivery in the
97	97	certificated service area of the electric cooperative if the
98	98	electric cooperative has not adopted customer choice.
99	99	SECTION 4. Subsection (c), Section 39.351, Utilities Code,
100	100	is amended to read as follows:
101	101	(c) The commission may establish simplified filing
102	102	requirements for distributed natural gas generation facilities [A
103	103	power generation company may register any time after September 1,
104	104	2000].
105	105	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011.