| 1 | 1 | | S.B. No. 1170 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | AN ACT |
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| 5 | 5 | | relating to the initiation of customer choice by municipally owned |
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| 6 | 6 | | utilities that provide electric service. |
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| 7 | 7 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 8 | 8 | | SECTION 1. Sections 40.053(c), (d), and (e), Utilities |
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| 9 | 9 | | Code, are amended to read as follows: |
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| 10 | 10 | | (c) On its initiation of customer choice, a municipally |
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| 11 | 11 | | owned utility may [shall] designate itself or one or more other |
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| 12 | 12 | | entities [another entity] as the provider or providers of last |
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| 13 | 13 | | resort for customers within the municipally owned utility's |
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| 14 | 14 | | certificated service area as that area existed on the date of the |
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| 15 | 15 | | utility's initiation of customer choice. The municipally owned |
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| 16 | 16 | | utility shall fulfill the role of default provider of last resort in |
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| 17 | 17 | | the event no other entity is available to act in that capacity if |
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| 18 | 18 | | the municipally owned utility continues to sell electric energy to |
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| 19 | 19 | | retail customers after the initiation of customer choice. The |
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| 20 | 20 | | municipally owned utility may delegate the authority to designate |
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| 21 | 21 | | the provider or providers of last resort to the commission. |
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| 22 | 22 | | (d) If a customer is unable to obtain service from a retail |
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| 23 | 23 | | electric provider or a municipally owned utility or electric |
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| 24 | 24 | | cooperative offering customer choice, on request by the customer, |
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| 25 | 25 | | the applicable provider of last resort shall offer the customer the |
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| 26 | 26 | | standard retail service package for the appropriate customer class, |
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| 27 | 27 | | with no interruption of service, at a fixed, nondiscountable rate |
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| 28 | 28 | | that is at least sufficient to cover the reasonable costs of |
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| 29 | 29 | | providing that service, as approved by the governing body of the |
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| 30 | 30 | | municipally owned utility that has the authority to set rates. If a |
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| 31 | 31 | | provider of last resort is designated by the commission, the |
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| 32 | 32 | | commission may set the rate each provider of last resort may charge. |
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| 33 | 33 | | (e) The governing body of a municipally owned utility may |
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| 34 | 34 | | establish the procedures and criteria for designating a [the] |
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| 35 | 35 | | provider of last resort and may redesignate a [the] provider of last |
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| 36 | 36 | | resort according to a schedule it considers appropriate. If the |
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| 37 | 37 | | municipally owned utility delegates authority to the commission |
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| 38 | 38 | | under Subsection (c), the commission is not required to comply with |
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| 39 | 39 | | procedures or criteria adopted by the municipally owned utility. |
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| 40 | 40 | | SECTION 2. Section 40.057(c), Utilities Code, is amended to |
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| 41 | 41 | | read as follows: |
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| 42 | 42 | | (c) A municipally owned utility that opts for customer |
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| 43 | 43 | | choice and does not sell electric energy to retail customers is not |
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| 44 | 44 | | required to bill directly for distribution, transmission, and |
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| 45 | 45 | | generation services provided to retail electric customers located |
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| 46 | 46 | | in its certificated service area. A retail electric provider may |
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| 47 | 47 | | provide billing services for distribution, transmission, and |
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| 48 | 48 | | generation services provided to those customers. [A customer that |
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| 49 | 49 | | is being provided wires service by a municipally owned utility at |
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| 50 | 50 | | distribution or transmission voltage and that is served by a retail |
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| 51 | 51 | | electric provider for retail service has the option of being billed |
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| 52 | 52 | | directly by each service provider or to receive a single bill for |
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| 53 | 53 | | distribution, transmission, and generation services from the |
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| 54 | 54 | | municipally owned utility.] |
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| 55 | 55 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 56 | 56 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 57 | 57 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 58 | 58 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 59 | 59 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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| 60 | 60 | | ______________________________ ______________________________ |
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| 61 | 61 | | President of the Senate Speaker of the House |
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| 62 | 62 | | I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1170 passed the Senate on |
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| 63 | 63 | | April 20, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 29, Nays 0. |
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| 64 | 64 | | ______________________________ |
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| 65 | 65 | | Secretary of the Senate |
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| 66 | 66 | | I hereby certify that S.B. No. 1170 passed the House on |
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| 67 | 67 | | May 3, 2023, by the following vote: Yeas 143, Nays 1, one present |
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| 68 | 68 | | not voting. |
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| 69 | 69 | | ______________________________ |
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| 70 | 70 | | Chief Clerk of the House |
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| 71 | 71 | | Approved: |
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| 72 | 72 | | ______________________________ |
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| 73 | 73 | | Date |
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| 74 | 74 | | ______________________________ |
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| 75 | 75 | | Governor |
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