SRC-JRN S.B. 1371 75(R) BILL ANALYSIS Senate Research Center S.B. 1371 By: Patterson State Affairs 3-21-97 As Filed DIGEST Currently, no state law provides for the consolidation of multiple bills into one bill. Some large retail or wholesale businesses with multiple outlets in the certificated area of any utility company are paying one bill per site, creating multiple billing. This bill allows a utility company to combine the billing into one bill for customers having multiple billing locations. PURPOSE As proposed, S.B. 1371 allows a utility company to combine the billing into one bill for customers having multiple billing locations. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY This bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Article 1446c-0, V.T.C.S., (Public Utility Regulatory Act of 1995), by adding Section 2.157, as follows: Sec. 2.157. CUSTOMER ACCOUNT MANAGEMENT. Authorizes a person that purchases electricity from an investor-owned electric utility in more than one metered location to have the option to receive a single bill based on the aggregated load for any or all of its metered locations within the utility's certificated service area, notwithstanding any other provision in this Act. Requires a customer who chooses this option to notify the utility in writing. Requires the utility to have 30 days from the date it receives notification in which to convert that person's accounts. SECTION 2. Emergency clause. Effective date: upon passage.