| 1 | 1 | | 86R7222 BRG-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Patterson H.B. No. 2226 |
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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 procedures for imposing certain administrative |
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| 8 | 8 | | penalties or disgorgement orders by the Public Utility Commission |
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| 9 | 9 | | of Texas. |
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| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. Sections 15.024(e) and (f), Utilities Code, are |
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| 12 | 12 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 13 | 13 | | (e) If the person accepts the executive director's |
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| 14 | 14 | | determination and recommended penalty or fails to timely respond to |
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| 15 | 15 | | the notice, the commission by order shall approve the determination |
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| 16 | 16 | | and impose the recommended penalty or order a hearing on the |
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| 17 | 17 | | determination and the recommended penalty. |
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| 18 | 18 | | (f) If the person requests a hearing or the commission |
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| 19 | 19 | | orders a hearing under Subsection (e) [fails to timely respond to |
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| 20 | 20 | | the notice], the executive director shall set a hearing and give |
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| 21 | 21 | | notice of the hearing to the person. The parties to a proceeding |
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| 22 | 22 | | under this subchapter shall be limited to the person and the |
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| 23 | 23 | | commission, including the independent market monitor. The hearing |
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| 24 | 24 | | shall be held by an administrative law judge of the State Office of |
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| 25 | 25 | | Administrative Hearings. The administrative law judge shall make |
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| 26 | 26 | | findings of fact and conclusions of law and promptly issue to the |
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| 27 | 27 | | commission a proposal for a decision about the occurrence of the |
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| 28 | 28 | | violation and the amount of a proposed penalty. Based on the |
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| 29 | 29 | | findings of fact, conclusions of law, and proposal for a decision, |
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| 30 | 30 | | the commission by order may find that a violation has occurred and |
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| 31 | 31 | | impose a penalty or disgorgement order or may find that no violation |
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| 32 | 32 | | occurred. |
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| 33 | 33 | | SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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| 34 | 34 | | a person who receives notice under Section 15.024(b), Utilities |
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| 35 | 35 | | Code, on or after the effective date of this Act. A person who |
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| 36 | 36 | | receives notice before the effective date of this Act is governed by |
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| 37 | 37 | | the law in effect on the date the person received notice, and the |
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| 38 | 38 | | former law is continued in effect for that purpose. |
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| 39 | 39 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
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