BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 2623

By: Beck

Homeland Security & Public Safety

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

A recent Texas Legislature enacted legislation relating to disaster preparedness and emergency management. A law included in those enactments requires a combined heating and power system evaluation to be performed prior to new construction or substantial renovation of certain critical government buildings and facilities. One purpose of the combined heating and power on-site energy system is to maintain electricity during and after a disaster or power outage.

H.B. 2623 seeks to clarify the applicability of requirements relating to certain energy security technologies for critical governmental facilities and simplify compliance with the requirements by authorizing the State Energy Conservation Office to establish guidelines for combined heating and power system evaluations.  Official guidelines will help the affected entities perform the evaluation more effectively.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

H.B. 2623 reenacts and amends Chapter 2311, Government Code, as added by Chapters 1280 (H.B. 1831) and 1408 (H.B. 4409), Acts of the 81st Legislature, Regular Session, 2009, to require the State Energy Conservation Office to establish guidelines for an entity with charge and control of  a critical governmental facility in evaluating, when constructing or extensively renovating the facility or replacing major heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning equipment for the facility, whether equipping the facility with a combined heating and power system would result in certain expected energy savings. The bill redefines "critical governmental facility" by including an institution of higher education in the list of buildings owned by the state or a political subdivision of the state that qualify as critical governmental facilities under specific conditions.  The bill makes nonsubstantive changes.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2011.