BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 1475

By: Davis, Yvonne

State Affairs

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Interested parties have expressed the need to provide enhanced protection against the unauthorized switching of consumer retail electric service. H.B. 1475 seeks to address this issue by prohibiting a person who is not a customer of a retail electric provider at a given address from discontinuing the service provided at that address and initiating service with a different provider without the consent of the customer for that address.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill expressly does one or more of the following: creates a criminal offense, increases the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or changes the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

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. 1475 amends the Utilities Code to prohibit a person who is not a customer of a retail electric provider at a given address from discontinuing the service provided by the retail electric provider at that address and initiating service with a different retail electric provider at that address unless the customer for that address consents. The bill creates a Class C misdemeanor offense for a person who violates that prohibition and excludes such offense from the conduct constituting the third degree felony offense of wilfully and knowingly violating the Public Utility Regulatory Act.

H.B. 1475 prohibits a retail electric provider from initiating service for a customer at an address unless the retail electric provider has determined that no other retail electric provider is currently providing service for a different customer at that address or, if another retail electric provider is currently providing service for a different customer at that address, the retail electric provider receives a written statement signed by that customer approving the service initiation. The bill authorizes an owner or operator of a rental property to give that written release for a service at a rental property address. The bill prohibits a retail electric provider from refusing a request for information made by another retail electric provider for the purposes of complying with these service initiation requirements.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2017.