| |
|
|
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
|
|
|
AN ACT
|
|
|
relating to the recovery of certain rate case expenses by a water |
|
|
and sewer utility. |
|
|
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|
|
SECTION 1. Section 13.185(h), Water Code, is amended to |
|
|
read as follows: |
|
|
(h) The regulatory authority may not include for ratemaking |
|
|
purposes: |
|
|
(1) legislative advocacy expenses, whether made |
|
|
directly or indirectly, including legislative advocacy expenses |
|
|
included in trade association dues; |
|
|
(2) costs of processing a refund or credit under |
|
|
Section 13.187 [of this chapter]; [or] |
|
|
(3) legal expenses, including attorney's fees and |
|
|
court costs, incurred by a water and sewer utility in a contested |
|
|
proceeding under Section 13.187 or in an appeal of that proceeding, |
|
|
other than legal expenses described by Section 13.084; or |
|
|
(4) any expenditure found by the regulatory authority |
|
|
to be unreasonable, unnecessary, or not in the public interest, |
|
|
including executive salaries, advertising expenses, legal expenses |
|
|
not described by Subdivision (3), and civil penalties or fines. |
|
|
SECTION 2. This Act applies only to a statement of intent |
|
|
for which a regulatory authority has not issued a final decision |
|
|
before the effective date of this Act. A statement of intent for |
|
|
which a regulatory authority has issued a final decision before the |
|
|
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the |
|
|
date that final decision was issued and that law is continued in |
|
|
effect for that purpose. |
|
|
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2007. |