| 1 | 1 | | 86R7223 BRG-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Patterson H.B. No. 1503 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to regulation of mergers and consolidations of power |
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| 8 | 8 | | generation companies. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 39.158, Utilities Code, is amended by |
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| 11 | 11 | | amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (a-1) and (a-2) to |
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| 12 | 12 | | read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (a) A power generation company [An owner of electric |
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| 14 | 14 | | generation facilities] that offers electricity for sale in a power |
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| 15 | 15 | | region open to customer choice [the state] and proposes a |
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| 16 | 16 | | transaction to merge, consolidate, or otherwise become affiliated |
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| 17 | 17 | | with another power generation company [owner of electric generation |
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| 18 | 18 | | facilities] that offers electricity for sale in the same power |
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| 19 | 19 | | region [this state] shall obtain the approval of the commission |
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| 20 | 20 | | before closing if the merged, consolidated, or affiliated entity |
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| 21 | 21 | | would own or control more than 10 [electricity offered for sale in |
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| 22 | 22 | | the power region by the merged, consolidated, or affiliated entity |
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| 23 | 23 | | will exceed one] percent of the total installed generation capacity |
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| 24 | 24 | | located in, or capable of delivering electricity to, [electricity |
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| 25 | 25 | | for sale in] the power region. |
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| 26 | 26 | | (a-1) An [The] approval required by Subsection (a) must |
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| 27 | 27 | | [shall] be requested at least 120 days before the date of the |
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| 28 | 28 | | proposed closing of the transaction. |
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| 29 | 29 | | (a-2) The commission shall approve a [the] transaction |
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| 30 | 30 | | described by Subsection (a) unless the commission finds that the |
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| 31 | 31 | | transaction results in a violation of Section 39.154. If the |
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| 32 | 32 | | commission finds that the transaction as proposed would violate |
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| 33 | 33 | | Section 39.154, the commission may condition approval of the |
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| 34 | 34 | | transaction on adoption of reasonable modifications to the |
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| 35 | 35 | | transaction as prescribed by the commission to mitigate potential |
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| 36 | 36 | | market power abuses. |
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| 37 | 37 | | SECTION 2. Section 39.158(a), Utilities Code, as amended by |
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| 38 | 38 | | this Act, and Sections 39.158(a-1) and (a-2), Utilities Code, as |
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| 39 | 39 | | added by this Act, apply only to a request for an approval of a |
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| 40 | 40 | | transaction received by the Public Utilities Commission of Texas on |
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| 41 | 41 | | or after the effective date of this Act. A request for an approval |
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| 42 | 42 | | received by that commission before the effective date of this Act is |
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| 43 | 43 | | governed by the law in effect immediately before the effective date |
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| 44 | 44 | | of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 45 | 45 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
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