| 1 | 1 | | By: Slawson (Senate Sponsor - Paxton) H.B. No. 4952 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Received from the House May 15, 2023; |
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| 3 | 3 | | May 15, 2023, read first time and referred to Committee on Business & |
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| 4 | 4 | | Commerce; May 22, 2023, reported adversely, with favorable |
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| 5 | 5 | | Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 10, Nays 0; |
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| 6 | 6 | | May 22, 2023, sent to printer.) |
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| 7 | 7 | | Click here to see the committee vote |
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| 8 | 8 | | COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR H.B. No. 4952 By: Campbell |
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| 9 | 9 | | |
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| 10 | 10 | | |
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| 11 | 11 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 12 | 12 | | AN ACT |
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| 13 | 13 | | relating to the reliability of the electricity supply chain. |
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| 14 | 14 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 15 | 15 | | SECTION 1. Section 38.077, Utilities Code, is amended to |
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| 16 | 16 | | read as follows: |
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| 17 | 17 | | Sec. 38.077. RELIABILITY [LOAD SHEDDING] EXERCISES. (a) |
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| 18 | 18 | | In this section, "critical facility" means a transmission |
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| 19 | 19 | | substation and any associated control centers that, if rendered |
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| 20 | 20 | | inoperable or damaged because of a physical attack, could cause |
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| 21 | 21 | | widespread instability, uncontrolled separation, or cascading |
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| 22 | 22 | | outages within an interconnection. |
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| 23 | 23 | | (b) The commission and the independent organization |
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| 24 | 24 | | certified for the ERCOT power region under Section 39.151 shall |
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| 25 | 25 | | conduct simulated or tabletop load shedding exercises with |
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| 26 | 26 | | providers of electric generation service and transmission and |
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| 27 | 27 | | distribution service in the ERCOT power region. |
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| 28 | 28 | | [(b)] The commission shall ensure that each year at least |
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| 29 | 29 | | one simulated or tabletop load shedding exercise is conducted |
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| 30 | 30 | | during a summer month and one simulated or tabletop load shedding |
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| 31 | 31 | | exercise is conducted during a winter month. |
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| 32 | 32 | | (c) The commission and the independent organization |
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| 33 | 33 | | certified for the ERCOT power region under Section 39.151 shall |
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| 34 | 34 | | conduct simulated or tabletop exercises with providers of electric |
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| 35 | 35 | | generation service and transmission and distribution service in the |
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| 36 | 36 | | ERCOT power region to mitigate and prepare for a threat of an attack |
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| 37 | 37 | | or an actual physical attack on a critical facility. The exercises |
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| 38 | 38 | | required by this subsection are in addition to the exercises |
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| 39 | 39 | | required by Subsection (b) and any requirements of the North |
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| 40 | 40 | | American Electric Reliability Corporation Critical Infrastructure |
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| 41 | 41 | | Protection plan standards. The commission and the independent |
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| 42 | 42 | | organization shall conduct the exercises under this subsection at |
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| 43 | 43 | | least once every two years. |
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| 44 | 44 | | (d) A simulated or tabletop exercise conducted under |
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| 45 | 45 | | Subsection (c) must identify the roles and responsibilities of the |
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| 46 | 46 | | following in the event of a threat of an attack or an actual |
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| 47 | 47 | | physical attack on a critical facility: |
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| 48 | 48 | | (1) transmission and distribution service providers; |
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| 49 | 49 | | (2) providers of electric generation service; |
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| 50 | 50 | | (3) law enforcement; |
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| 51 | 51 | | (4) the independent organization certified for the |
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| 52 | 52 | | ERCOT power region under Section 39.151; and |
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| 53 | 53 | | (5) the commission. |
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| 54 | 54 | | (e) A transmission and distribution service provider is not |
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| 55 | 55 | | required to disclose the specific location of the provider's |
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| 56 | 56 | | critical substations to the commission or the independent |
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| 57 | 57 | | organization certified for the ERCOT power region under Section |
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| 58 | 58 | | 39.151 for the purposes of a simulated or tabletop exercise |
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| 59 | 59 | | conducted under Subsection (c). |
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| 60 | 60 | | (f) Each provider of electric generation service and of |
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| 61 | 61 | | transmission and distribution service that participates in a |
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| 62 | 62 | | simulated or tabletop exercise conducted under Subsection (c) shall |
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| 63 | 63 | | provide to the independent organization certified for the ERCOT |
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| 64 | 64 | | power region under Section 39.151 a written attestation that the |
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| 65 | 65 | | provider has coordinated with law enforcement when identifying |
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| 66 | 66 | | roles and responsibilities under Subsection (d). |
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| 67 | 67 | | SECTION 2. Not later than December 31, 2024, the Public |
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| 68 | 68 | | Utility Commission of Texas and the independent organization |
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| 69 | 69 | | certified under Section 39.151, Utilities Code, for the ERCOT power |
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| 70 | 70 | | region shall conduct a simulated or tabletop exercise with each |
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| 71 | 71 | | provider of electric generation service and of transmission and |
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| 72 | 72 | | distribution service as required by Section 38.077(c), Utilities |
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| 73 | 73 | | Code, as added by this Act. |
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| 74 | 74 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 75 | 75 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 76 | 76 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 77 | 77 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 78 | 78 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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| 79 | 79 | | * * * * * |
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