By: Schwertner, King S.B. No. 2012
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to electricity services; increasing an administrative
  penalty.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Sections 15.023(b-1) and (f), Utilities Code,
  are amended to read as follows:
         (b-1)  Notwithstanding Subsection (b), the penalty for a
  violation of a voluntary mitigation plan entered into under
  Subsection (f) or of a provision of Section 35.0021 or 38.075 may be
  in an amount not to exceed $1,000,000 for a violation.  Each day a
  violation continues or occurs is a separate violation for purposes
  of imposing a penalty.
         (f)  The commission and a person may develop and enter into a
  voluntary mitigation plan relating to a violation of Section 39.157
  or rules adopted by the commission under that section. The
  commission may approve the plan only if the commission determines
  that the plan is in the public interest.  The voluntary mitigation
  plan must be reviewed at least once every two years and not later
  than the 90th day after the implementation date of a wholesale
  market design change. As part of the review, the commission must
  determine whether the voluntary mitigation plan remains in the
  public interest. If the commission determines that the voluntary
  mitigation plan is no longer in the public interest, the commission
  and the person must agree to a modification of the plan or the
  commission must terminate the plan.  Adherence [If the commission
  and a person enter into a voluntary mitigation plan, adherence] to
  the plan may be considered in determining whether a violation
  occurred and, if so, the penalty to be assessed [constitutes an
  absolute defense against an alleged violation with respect to
  activities covered by the plan].
         SECTION 2.  The heading to Section 39.159, Utilities Code,
  as added by Chapter 426 (S.B. 3), Acts of the 87th Legislature,
  Regular Session, 2021, is amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 39.159.  POWER REGION RELIABILITY AND DISPATCHABLE
  GENERATION.
         SECTION 3.  Section 39.159, Utilities Code, as added by
  Chapter 426 (S.B. 3), Acts of the 87th Legislature, Regular
  Session, 2021, is amended by amending Subsection (b) and adding
  Subsections (b-1) and (b-2) to read as follows:
         (b)  The commission shall ensure that the independent
  organization certified under Section 39.151 for the ERCOT power
  region:
               (1)  establishes requirements to meet the reliability
  needs of the power region;
               (2)  periodically, but at least annually, determines
  the quantity and characteristics of ancillary or reliability
  services necessary to ensure appropriate reliability during
  extreme heat and extreme cold weather conditions and during times
  of low non-dispatchable power production in the power region;
               (3)  procures ancillary or reliability services on a
  competitive basis to ensure appropriate reliability during extreme
  heat and extreme cold weather conditions and during times of low
  non-dispatchable power production in the power region;
               (4)  develops appropriate qualification and
  performance requirements for providing services under Subdivision
  (3), including appropriate penalties for failure to provide the
  services; [and]
               (5)  sizes the services procured under Subdivision (3)
  to prevent prolonged rotating outages due to net load variability
  in high demand and low supply scenarios; and
               (6)  allocates the cost of providing ancillary services
  and reliability services procured under this section on a
  semiannual basis among dispatchable generation facilities,
  non-dispatchable generation facilities, and load serving entities
  in proportion to their contribution to unreliability during the
  highest net load hours in the preceding six months, as determined by
  the commission based on a number of hours adopted by the commission
  for that six-month period, as follows:
                     (A)  for each dispatchable generation facility,
  the difference between the forced outage rate of the facility and
  the forced outage rate of the facility during the corresponding
  season for the three years prior to the current season, multiplied
  by the installed capacity of the facility;
                     (B)  for non-dispatchable generation facilities,
  the difference between the mean of the lowest quartile generation
  for each non-dispatchable generation facility and the mean
  generation of the facility; and
                     (C)  for each load serving entity, the difference
  between the mean of the highest quartile of total ERCOT load and the
  mean of total ERCOT load during the net load hours, multiplied by
  the load ratio share of each load serving entity during the net load
  hours.
         (b-1)  Subsection (b)(6) applies only to a generation
  facility or load serving entity that has participated in the ERCOT
  market for at least one year, including a load serving entity whose
  parent company or affiliate has participated in the ERCOT market
  for at least one year.
         (b-2)  Subsection (b)(6) does not apply to electric energy
  storage.
         SECTION 4.  Subchapter D, Chapter 39, Utilities Code, is
  amended by adding Sections 39.1595 and 39.1596 to read as follows:
         Sec. 39.1595.  RELIABILITY PROGRAM. (a)  Under Section
  39.159(b), as added by Chapter 426 (S.B. 3), Acts of the 87th
  Legislature, Regular Session, 2021, or other law, the commission
  may not adopt a reliability program for the ERCOT power region that
  requires the purchase of capacity credits earned by generators to
  support a reserve margin mandate unless the commission ensures
  that:
               (1)  the cost to the ERCOT market of the credits does
  not exceed $500 million annually;
               (2)  credits are available only for dispatchable
  generation, excluding load resources and electric energy storage;
               (3)  the cost of credits is assigned to generation
  facilities and load serving entities according to Section
  39.159(b)(6), as added by Chapter 426 (S.B. 3), Acts of the 87th
  Legislature, Regular Session, 2021;
               (4)  the program includes appropriate penalties for a
  failure to perform during a reliability event caused by factors
  within the reasonable control of the generator, including a
  requirement for a generator to buy back credits that the generator
  sold but for which the generator did not provide the required
  capacity;
               (5)  the independent organization certified under
  Section 39.151 for the ERCOT power region begins implementing real
  time co-optimization of energy and ancillary services in the ERCOT
  wholesale market before the program is implemented;
               (6)  all elements of the program are initially
  implemented on a single starting date;
               (7)  the terms of the program and any associated market
  rules do not assign costs, credit, or collateral for the program in
  a manner that provides a cost advantage to load serving entities who
  own, or whose affiliates own, generation facilities; 
               (8)  generators who receive credits may not
  self-arrange credit exchanges with any affiliated competitive
  retail electric providers;
               (9)  secured financial credit and collateral
  requirements are adopted for the program to ensure that other
  market participants do not bear the risk of nonperformance or
  nonpayment;
               (10)  qualifying generators do not receive credits that
  exceed the amount of generation bid into the forward market on an
  individual resource basis; and
               (11)  the wholesale electric market monitor has the
  authority and necessary resources to investigate potential
  instances of market manipulation by program participants,
  including financial and physical actions, and recommend penalties
  to the commission.
         (b)  This section does not require the commission to adopt a
  reliability program that requires an entity to purchase capacity
  credits.
         (c)  The commission and the independent organization
  certified under Section 39.151 for the ERCOT power region shall
  consider comments and recommendations from a technical advisory
  committee established under the bylaws of the independent
  organization that includes market participants when adopting and
  implementing a program described by Subsection (a), if any.
         (d)  If the commission adopts a program described by
  Subsection (a), not later than January 1, 2029, the commission
  shall require the wholesale electric market monitor to submit to
  the commission and the legislature a report on the costs and
  benefits of continuing the program. This subsection expires
  September 1, 2029.
         (e)  Notwithstanding Subsection (a):
               (1)  the Grid Reliability Legislative Oversight
  Committee established under Section 39.1596 may recommend that the
  commission continue to implement a program described by Subsection
  (a) if not more than one requirement under the subdivisions of
  Subsection (a) is not met; and
               (2)  based on a recommendation made under Subdivision
  (1), the commission by rule may authorize the continuation of a
  program described by Subsection (a) if not more than one
  requirement under the subdivisions of Subsection (a) is not met.
         Sec. 39.1596.  GRID RELIABILITY LEGISLATIVE OVERSIGHT
  COMMITTEE.  (a)  In this section, "committee" means the Grid
  Reliability Legislative Oversight Committee established under this
  section.
         (b)  The Grid Reliability Legislative Oversight Committee is
  created to oversee the commission's implementation of Section
  35.004, Sections 39.159 and 39.160, as added by Chapter 426 (S.B.
  3), Acts of the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, 2021, and
  Section 39.1595.
         (c)  The committee is composed of eight members as follows:
               (1)  three members of the senate, appointed by the
  lieutenant governor;
               (2)  three members of the house of representatives,
  appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives;
               (3)  the chair of the committee of the senate having
  primary jurisdiction over matters relating to the generation of
  electricity; and
               (4)  the chair of the committee of the house having
  primary jurisdiction over matters relating to the generation of
  electricity.
         (d)  An appointed member of the committee serves at the
  pleasure of the appointing official.
         (e)  The committee members described by Subsections (c)(3)
  and (4) serve as presiding co-chairs.
         (f)  A member of the committee may not receive compensation
  for serving on the committee but is entitled to reimbursement for
  travel expenses incurred by the member while conducting the
  business of the committee as provided by the General Appropriations
  Act.
         (g)  The committee shall meet at least twice each year at the
  call of either co-chair and shall meet at other times at the call of
  either co-chair, as that officer determines appropriate.
         (h)  Chapter 551, Government Code, applies to the committee.
         (i)  The committee shall submit a report to the governor,
  lieutenant governor, speaker of the house of representatives, and
  legislature not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year.  
  The report must include an update on the progress of and issues
  related to the commission's implementation of the laws under the
  committee's oversight as provided by Subsection (b).
         SECTION 5.  Subchapter D, Chapter 39, Utilities Code, is
  amended by adding Section 39.166 to read as follows:
         Sec. 39.166.  RETAIL SALES REPORT.  (a)  Each retail electric
  provider that offers electricity for sale shall report to the
  commission:
               (1)  its annual retail sales in this state;
               (2)  the annual retail sales of its affiliates by
  number of customers, kilowatts per hour sold, and revenue from
  kilowatts per hour sold by customer class; and
               (3)  any other information the commission requires
  relating to affiliations between retail electric providers.
         (b)  The commission by rule shall prescribe the nature and
  detail of the reporting requirements. The commission may accept
  information reported under other law to satisfy the requirements of
  this section. Information reported under this section is
  confidential and not subject to disclosure if the information is
  competitively sensitive information. The commission shall
  administer the reporting requirements in a manner that ensures the
  confidentiality of competitively sensitive information.
         SECTION 6.  (a) The changes in law made by this Act to
  Chapter 15, Utilities Code, apply only to a violation committed on
  or after the effective date of this Act. A violation committed
  before the effective date of this Act is governed by the law in
  effect when the violation was committed, and the former law is
  continued in effect for that purpose.
         (b)  Not later than September 1, 2024, the Public Utility
  Commission of Texas shall implement the changes in law made by this
  Act to Section 39.159(b), Utilities Code, as added by Chapter 426
  (S.B. 3), Acts of the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, 2021.
         SECTION 7.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.