87R6257 CXP-F
By: Lucio S.B. No. 2114
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to a certificate of public convenience and necessity to
provide water or sewer service in an area incorporated or annexed by
a municipality.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 13.255, Water Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as
follows:
(c) The utility commission shall make an express finding of
whether the retail public utility is capable of providing
continuous and adequate service to the incorporated or annexed
area. The finding must be based solely on information provided by
the municipality and the retail public utility. The utility
commission may grant single certification to the municipality only
if the utility commission makes a finding under this subsection
that the municipality demonstrated that the retail public utility
is not capable of providing continuous and adequate service to the
incorporated or annexed area. If the [The] utility commission
grants single certification to the municipality, the utility
commission shall [also determine whether single certification as
requested by the municipality would result in property of a retail
public utility being rendered useless or valueless to the retail
public utility, and shall] determine in its order the monetary
amount that is adequate and just to compensate the retail public
utility for any of the retail public utility's [such] property that
is affected by the single certification. If the municipality in its
application has requested the transfer of specified property of the
retail public utility to the municipality or to a franchised
utility, the utility commission shall also determine in its order
the adequate and just compensation to be paid for such property
pursuant to the provisions of this section, including an award for
damages to property remaining in the ownership of the retail public
utility after single certification. The order of the utility
commission shall not be effective to transfer property. A transfer
of property may [only] be obtained under this section only by a
court judgment rendered under [pursuant to] Subsection (d) or (e).
The grant of single certification by the utility commission takes
[shall go into] effect on the date the municipality or franchised
utility, as the case may be, pays adequate and just compensation
pursuant to court order, or pays an amount into the registry of the
court or to the retail public utility under Subsection (f). If the
court judgment provides that the retail public utility is not
entitled to any compensation, the grant of single certification
takes [shall go into] effect when the court judgment becomes final.
The municipality or franchised utility must provide to each
customer of the retail public utility being acquired an individual
written notice within 60 days after the effective date for the
transfer specified in the court judgment. The notice must clearly
advise the customer of the identity of the new service provider, the
reason for the transfer, the rates to be charged by the new service
provider, and the effective date of those rates.
(c-1) Before filing an appeal under Subsection (e), the
retail public utility may appeal to the utility commission in a
separate hearing before the utility commission a final order of the
utility commission issued under Subsection (c).
SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
a proceeding affecting a certificate of public convenience and
necessity that commences on or after the effective date of this Act.
A proceeding affecting a certificate of public convenience and
necessity that commenced before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect on the date the proceeding is
commenced, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.