| TO: | Honorable Phil King, Chair, House Committee on Regulated Industries |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HB577 by Turner (Relating to safeguards for certain customers of retail public utilities in the electric power market.), As Introduced |
The bill would amend the Utilities Code to define critical care residential customer, elderly low-income customer, low-income customer, and service provider and sets forth certain eligibility criteria to qualify in each category of customer. The bill would prohibit a service provider from disconnecting certain customer's service and require a service provider to reconnect previously disconnected service, between July 1 and September 20 of each year, under certain conditions. The bill would require a service provider to allow critical care residential customers, elderly low-income customers, and low-income customers deferred payment plans including partial payment options and authorize a service provider to pursue disconnection of critical care residential customers, elderly low-income customers, and low-income customers under certain conditions, after the period between July 1 and September 1, each year. The bill would require a service provider to establish separate requirements, relating to reconnecting service and rescinding requests for disconnection of service, for critical care residential customers, elderly low-income customers, and low-income customers.
Based on the analysis of the Public Utility Commission, it is assumed that duties and responsibilities associated with implementing the provisions of the bill could be accomplished by utilizing existing resources.
This bill would take effect June 1, 2007, upon receiving a vote of two-thirds of all members elected to each house or would otherwise take effect on September 1, 2007.
| Source Agencies: | 473 Public Utility Commission of Texas, 475 Office of Public Utility Counsel
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, JRO, MW, TGl
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