Bill Text: TX HB1629 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Relating to energy efficiency goals and programs, public information regarding energy efficiency programs, and the participation of loads in certain energy markets.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2011-05-10 - Laid on the table subject to call [HB1629 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-HB1629-Comm_Sub.html
82R21783 ALL-D | |||
By: Anchia | H.B. No. 1629 | ||
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1629: | |||
By: Lozano | C.S.H.B. No. 1629 |
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relating to energy efficiency goals and programs, public | ||
information regarding energy efficiency programs, and the | ||
participation of loads in certain energy markets. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Section 39.905, Utilities Code, is amended by | ||
amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsections (h), (i), | ||
(j), and (k) to read as follows: | ||
(a) It is the goal of the legislature that: | ||
(1) electric utilities will administer energy | ||
efficiency incentive programs in a market-neutral, | ||
nondiscriminatory manner but will not offer underlying competitive | ||
services; | ||
(2) all customers, in all customer classes, will have | ||
a choice of and access to energy efficiency alternatives and other | ||
choices from the market that allow each customer to reduce energy | ||
consumption, summer and winter peak demand, or energy costs; | ||
(3) each electric utility annually will provide, | ||
through market-based standard offer programs or through [ |
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targeted[ |
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for retail electric providers and competitive energy service | ||
providers to acquire additional cost-effective energy efficiency, | ||
subject to cost ceilings established by the commission, for the | ||
utility's residential and commercial customers equivalent to [ |
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(A) not less than: | ||
(i) 30 [ |
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utility's annual growth in demand of residential and commercial | ||
customers by December 31 of each year beginning with the 2013 | ||
calendar year; and | ||
(ii) the amount of energy efficiency to be | ||
acquired for the utility's residential and commercial customers for | ||
the most recent preceding year [ |
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(B) for an electric utility whose amount of | ||
energy efficiency to be acquired under this subsection is | ||
equivalent to at least four-tenths of one percent of the electric | ||
utility's summer weather-adjusted peak demand for residential and | ||
commercial customers in the previous calendar year, not less than: | ||
(i) four-tenths of one percent of the | ||
utility's summer weather-adjusted peak demand for residential and | ||
commercial customers by December 31 of each subsequent year; and | ||
(ii) the amount of energy efficiency to be | ||
acquired for the utility's residential and commercial customers for | ||
the most recent preceding year [ |
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(4) each electric utility in the ERCOT region shall | ||
use its best efforts to encourage and facilitate the involvement of | ||
the region's retail electric providers in the delivery of | ||
efficiency programs and demand response programs under this | ||
section, including programs for demand-side renewable energy | ||
systems that: | ||
(A) use distributed renewable generation, as | ||
defined by Section 39.916; or | ||
(B) reduce the need for energy consumption by | ||
using a renewable energy technology, a geothermal heat pump, a | ||
solar water heater, or another natural mechanism of the | ||
environment; | ||
(5) retail electric providers in the ERCOT region, and | ||
electric utilities outside of the ERCOT region, shall provide | ||
customers with energy efficiency educational materials; and | ||
(6) notwithstanding Subsection (a)(3), electric | ||
utilities shall continue to make available, at 2007 funding and | ||
participation levels, any load management standard offer programs | ||
developed for industrial customers and implemented prior to May 1, | ||
2007. | ||
(b) The commission shall provide oversight and adopt rules | ||
and procedures to ensure that the utilities can achieve the goal of | ||
this section, including: | ||
(1) establishing an energy efficiency cost recovery | ||
factor for ensuring timely and reasonable cost recovery for utility | ||
expenditures made to satisfy the goal of this section; | ||
(2) establishing an incentive under Section 36.204 to | ||
reward utilities administering programs under this section that | ||
exceed the minimum goals established by this section; | ||
(3) providing a utility that is unable to establish an | ||
energy efficiency cost recovery factor in a timely manner due to a | ||
rate freeze with a mechanism to enable the utility to: | ||
(A) defer the costs of complying with this | ||
section; and | ||
(B) recover the deferred costs through an energy | ||
efficiency cost recovery factor on the expiration of the rate | ||
freeze period; | ||
(4) ensuring that the costs associated with programs | ||
provided under this section and any shareholder bonus awarded are | ||
borne by the customer classes that receive the services under the | ||
programs; [ |
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(5) ensuring the program rules encourage the value of | ||
the incentives to be passed on to the end-use customer; | ||
(6) ensuring that programs are evaluated, measured, | ||
and verified using a framework established by the commission that | ||
promotes effective program design and consistent and streamlined | ||
reporting; and | ||
(7) ensuring that an independent organization | ||
certified under Section 39.151 allows load participation in all | ||
energy markets for residential, commercial, and industrial | ||
customer classes, either directly or through aggregators of retail | ||
customers, to the extent that load participation by each of those | ||
customer classes complies with reasonable requirements adopted by | ||
the organization relating to the reliability and adequacy of the | ||
regional electric network and in a manner that will increase market | ||
efficiency, competition, and customer benefits. | ||
(h) For an electric utility operating in an area not open to | ||
competition, the utility may achieve the goal of this section by: | ||
(1) providing rebate or incentive funds directly to | ||
customers to promote or facilitate the success of programs | ||
implemented under this section; or | ||
(2) developing, subject to commission approval, new | ||
programs other than standard offer programs and market | ||
transformation programs, to the extent that the new programs | ||
satisfy the same cost-effectiveness requirements as standard offer | ||
programs and market transformation programs. | ||
(i) For an electric utility operating in an area open to | ||
competition, on demonstration to the commission, after a contested | ||
case hearing, that the requirements under Subsection (a) cannot be | ||
met in a rural area through retail electric providers or | ||
competitive energy service providers, the utility may achieve the | ||
goal of this section by providing rebate or incentive funds | ||
directly to customers in the rural area to promote or facilitate the | ||
success of programs implemented under this section. | ||
(j) An electric utility may use energy audit programs to | ||
achieve the goal of this section if: | ||
(1) the programs do not constitute more than three | ||
percent of total program costs under this section; and | ||
(2) the addition of the programs does not cause a | ||
utility's portfolio of programs to no longer be cost-effective. | ||
(k) To help a residential or nongovernmental nonprofit | ||
customer make informed decisions regarding energy efficiency, the | ||
commission may consider program designs that ensure, to the extent | ||
practicable, the customer is provided with information using | ||
standardized forms and terms that allow the customer to compare | ||
offers for varying degrees of energy efficiency attainable using a | ||
measure the customer is considering by cost, estimated energy | ||
savings, and payback periods. | ||
SECTION 2. Subchapter Z, Chapter 39, Utilities Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 39.9054 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 39.9054. ENERGY EFFICIENCY PLANS AND REPORTS; PUBLIC | ||
INFORMATION. (a) An electric utility shall submit electronically | ||
an energy efficiency plan and report in a searchable form | ||
prescribed by the commission on or before April 1 of each year. The | ||
commission by rule shall adopt a form that will permit the public to | ||
easily compare information submitted by different electric | ||
utilities. The plan and report must: | ||
(1) provide information on the utility's performance | ||
in achieving energy efficiency goals for the previous five years; | ||
(2) describe how the utility intends to achieve future | ||
goals; and | ||
(3) provide any other information the commission | ||
considers relevant. | ||
(b) On the Internet website found at | ||
http://www.puc.state.tx.us, the commission shall publish | ||
information on energy efficiency programs, including: | ||
(1) an explanation of the goal for energy efficiency | ||
in this state; | ||
(2) a description of the types of energy efficiency | ||
programs available to certain classes of eligible customers; | ||
(3) a link to the plans and reports filed as prescribed | ||
by Subsection (a); and | ||
(4) a list of persons who install or provide energy | ||
efficiency measures or services by area. | ||
(c) This section does not require the commission to warrant | ||
that the list required to be displayed under Subsection (b) | ||
constitutes a complete or accurate list of all persons who install | ||
energy efficiency measures or services in the marketplace. | ||
SECTION 3. Section 39.905(b-2), Utilities Code, is | ||
repealed. | ||
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |