H.B. No. 3476
AN ACT
relating to certificates of public convenience and necessity issued
to water utilities inside the boundaries or extraterritorial
jurisdiction of certain municipalities.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 13.245, Water Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b), (c-3), (c-4), and (c-5) and adding
Subsection (c-6) to read as follows:
(b) Except as provided by Subsections (c), (c-1), and (c-2),
the utility commission may not grant to a retail public utility a
certificate of public convenience and necessity for a service area
within the boundaries or extraterritorial jurisdiction of a
municipality without the consent of the municipality. The
municipality may not unreasonably withhold the consent. [As a
condition of the consent, a municipality may require that all water
and sewer facilities be designed and constructed in accordance with
the municipality's standards for facilities.]
(c-3) The utility commission must include, as a condition of
a certificate of public convenience and necessity granted under
Subsection (c-1) or (c-2) for a service area within the boundaries
of a municipality, that all water and sewer facilities be designed
and constructed in accordance with the municipality's standards for
water and sewer facilities.
(c-4) The utility commission must include, as a condition of
a certificate of public convenience and necessity granted under
this section for a service area within the extraterritorial
jurisdiction of a municipality, that all water and sewer facilities
be designed and constructed in accordance with:
(1) the commission's standards for water and sewer
facilities applicable to water systems that serve greater than 250
connections; or
(2) the commission's standards for water and sewer
facilities applicable to water systems that serve 250 or fewer
connections, if the utility commission determines that:
(A) standards for water and sewer facilities
applicable to water systems that serve 250 or fewer connections are
appropriate for the service area; and
(B) regionalization of the retail public utility
or consolidation of the retail public utility with another retail
public utility is not economically feasible under Section
13.241(d).
(c-5) Subsections (c-1), (c-2), [and] (c-3), and (c-4) do
not apply to:
(1) a county that borders the United Mexican States
and the Gulf of Mexico or a county adjacent to such a county;
(2) a county with a population of more than 30,000 and
less than 35,000 that borders the Red River; or
(3) a county with a population of more than 100,000 and
less than 200,000 that borders a county described by Subdivision
(2).
(c-6) [(c-5)] Subsections (c-1), (c-2), [and] (c-3), and
(c-4) do not apply to:
(1) a county with a population of 130,000 or more that
is adjacent to a county with a population of 1.5 million or more
that is within 200 miles of an international border; or
(2) a county with a population of more than 40,000 and
less than 50,000 that contains a portion of the San Antonio River.
SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 3476 was passed by the House on April
29, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 142, Nays 4, 1 present, not
voting; that the House refused to concur in Senate amendments to
H.B. No. 3476 on May 28, 2021, and requested the appointment of a
conference committee to consider the differences between the two
houses; and that the House adopted the conference committee report
on H.B. No. 3476 on May 30, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 144,
Nays 0, 1 present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 3476 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 21, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 29, Nays
2; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a conference
committee to consider the differences between the two houses; and
that the Senate adopted the conference committee report on H.B. No.
3476 on May 29, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 2.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor