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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to the rights of distributed renewable generation owners |
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and certain parties who provide distributed renewable generation to |
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retail electric customers. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 31.002(6), Utilities Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(6) "Electric utility" means a person or river |
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authority that owns or operates for compensation in this state |
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equipment or facilities to produce, generate, transmit, |
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distribute, sell, or furnish electricity in this state. The term |
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includes a lessee, trustee, or receiver of an electric utility and a |
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recreational vehicle park owner who does not comply with Subchapter |
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C, Chapter 184, with regard to the metered sale of electricity at |
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the recreational vehicle park. The term does not include: |
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(A) a municipal corporation; |
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(B) a qualifying facility; |
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(C) a power generation company; |
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(D) an exempt wholesale generator; |
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(E) a power marketer; |
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(F) a corporation described by Section 32.053 to |
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the extent the corporation sells electricity exclusively at |
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wholesale and not to the ultimate consumer; |
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(G) an electric cooperative; |
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(H) a retail electric provider; |
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(I) this state or an agency of this state; [or] |
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(J) a person not otherwise an electric utility |
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who: |
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(i) furnishes an electric service or |
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commodity only to itself, its employees, or its tenants as an |
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incident of employment or tenancy, if that service or commodity is |
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not resold to or used by others; |
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(ii) owns or operates in this state |
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equipment or facilities to produce, generate, transmit, |
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distribute, sell, or furnish electric energy to an electric |
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utility, if the equipment or facilities are used primarily to |
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produce and generate electric energy for consumption by that |
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person; or |
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(iii) owns or operates in this state a |
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recreational vehicle park that provides metered electric service in |
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accordance with Subchapter C, Chapter 184; or |
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(K) a distributed renewable generation owner, as |
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defined by Section 39.916, or a person with whom a retail electric |
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customer contracts to install or maintain distributed renewable |
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generation on the customer's side of the meter. |
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SECTION 2. The heading to Section 39.916, Utilities Code, |
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is amended to read as follows: |
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Sec. 39.916. [INTERCONNECTION OF] DISTRIBUTED RENEWABLE |
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GENERATION. |
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SECTION 3. Section 39.916(a)(2), Utilities Code, is amended |
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to read as follows: |
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(2) "Distributed renewable generation owner" means |
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the owner of distributed renewable generation. The term includes a |
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retail electric customer who contracts with another person to |
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install or maintain distributed renewable generation on the |
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customer's side of the meter, notwithstanding the fact that the |
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customer does not take actual ownership of the installed |
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distributed renewable generation. |
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SECTION 4. Section 39.916, Utilities Code, is amended by |
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amending Subsections (d) and (j) and adding Subsection (i) to read |
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as follows: |
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(d) The commission by rule shall establish safety, |
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technical, and performance standards for distributed renewable |
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generation that may be interconnected. In adopting the rules, the |
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commission shall consider standards published by the Underwriters |
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Laboratories, the National Electric Code, the National Electric |
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Safety Code, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics |
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Engineers. The commission may not require a distributed renewable |
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generation owner or a person who contracts with a customer to |
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install or maintain distributed renewable generation on the |
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customer's side of the meter to register as a self-generator. |
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(i) The commission by rule shall establish a minimum rate at |
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which an electric utility or retail electric provider shall |
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purchase surplus electricity produced by distributed renewable |
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generation. The minimum rate must be equal to or greater than the |
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clearing price for energy at the time of day that the electricity is |
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made available to the grid. |
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(j) Subject to Subsection (i), for [For] distributed |
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renewable generation owners in areas in which customer choice has |
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been introduced, the distributed renewable generation owner must |
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sell the owner's surplus electricity produced to the retail |
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electric provider that serves the distributed renewable generation |
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owner's load at a value agreed to between the distributed renewable |
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generation owner and the provider that serves the owner's load |
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which may include, but is not limited to, an agreed value based on |
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the clearing price of energy at the time of day that the electricity |
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is made available to the grid or it may be a credit applied to an |
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account during a billing period that may be carried over to |
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subsequent billing periods until the credit has been redeemed. The |
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independent organization identified in Section 39.151 shall |
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develop procedures so that the amount of electricity purchased from |
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a distributed renewable generation owner under this section is |
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accounted for in settling the total load served by the provider that |
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serves that owner's load by January 1, 2009. A distributed |
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renewable generation owner requesting net metering services for |
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purposes of this section must have metering devices capable of |
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providing measurements consistent with the independent |
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organization's settlement requirements. |
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SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |