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Senate Bill 408 |
Senate Author: Nelson |
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Effective: 9-1-05 |
House Sponsor: King, Phil |
Functionally, and for regulatory purposes, electric power grids in Texas are divided among three interstate power regions and one that lies fully inside the state. Texas law provides for Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC) certification in a power region of one or more independent organizations to ensure electric reliability and adequacy and to perform other specified functions. To date, the PUC has certified one such independent organization, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), covering the intrastate power region. Senate Bill 408 amends the Utilities Code to modify the membership requirements that an independent organization's governing body must meet for purposes of specifying the market segments to be reflected in its composition. It requires a certified independent organization to contract with an entity selected by the PUC to act as a wholesale electric market monitor to detect and prevent market manipulation and recommend measures to enhance wholesale power market efficiency. The bill authorizes the PUC to adopt rules relating to the reliability of a regional electric network, or to delegate rulemaking and enforcement to an independent organization subject to PUC oversight and review.
The bill strengthens the PUC's power to oversee and investigate the finances, budget, and operations of an independent organization. Various provisions address PUC powers and duties regarding cost efficiency, accounting and auditing, reporting requirements, bylaws adoption, dispute resolution, and other aspects of an independent organization's activities. The bill requires that meetings of an independent organization's governing body, as well as subcommittee meetings involving any member of such governing body, be open to the public.
Senate Bill 408 amends the Utilities Code to continue the PUC until September 1, 2011. The bill increases the maximum PUC administrative penalty from $5,000 to $25,000, and allows assessment of administrative penalties against an independent organization. It expands the purpose of the system benefit fund, which provides discounts on electric bills to low-income persons, to include one-time bill payment assistance to electric customer households with seriously ill or disabled low-income members where utility disconnection is threatened because of bill nonpayment. The bill repeals a provision under which the PUC could require a public utility annually to report its expenditures for business gifts, entertainment, and advertising or public relations.