Texas Utilities Code Title 2, Chapter 53 - Rates

SUBCHAPTER A GENERAL PROVISIONS

• Texas Section 53.001 - Authorization To Establish And Regulate Rates
  (a) Except as otherwise provided by this title, the commission may establish and regulate rates of a public utility and may adopt rules for determining:...
• Texas Section 53.002 - Compliance With Title
  A utility may not charge or receive a rate for utility service except as provided by this title. Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 166, Sec....
• Texas Section 53.003 - Just And Reasonable Rates
  (a) The commission shall ensure that each rate a public utility or two or more public utilities jointly make, demand, or receive is just and...
• Texas Section 53.004 - Equality Of Rates And Services
  (a) A public utility may not directly or indirectly charge, demand, or receive from a person a greater or lesser compensation for a service provided...
• Texas Section 53.005 - Rates For Area Not In Municipality
  Without the approval of the commission, a public utility's rates for an area not in a municipality may not exceed 115 percent of the average...
• Texas Section 53.006 - Burden Of Proof
  (a) In a proceeding involving a proposed rate change, the public utility has the burden of proving that: (1) the rate change is just and...

SUBCHAPTER B COMPUTATION OF RATES

• Texas Section 53.007 - Limit On Reconnection Fee
  The commission shall establish a reasonable limit on the amount that a local exchange company may charge a customer for changing the location at which...
• Texas Section 53.051 - Establishing Overall Revenues
  In establishing a public utility's rates, the commission shall establish the utility's overall revenues at an amount that will permit the utility a reasonable opportunity...
• Texas Section 53.052 - Establishing Reasonable Return
  In establishing a reasonable return on invested capital, the commission shall consider applicable factors, including: (1) the quality of the utility's services; (2) the efficiency...
• Texas Section 53.053 - Components Of Invested Capital
  (a) Public utility rates shall be based on the original cost, less depreciation, of property used by and useful to the utility in providing service....
• Texas Section 53.054 - Construction Work In Progress
  (a) Construction work in progress, at cost as recorded on the public utility's books, may be included in the utility's rate base. The inclusion of...
• Texas Section 53.055 - Separations And Allocations
  Costs of facilities, revenues, expenses, taxes, and reserves shall be separated or allocated as prescribed by the commission. Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 166, Sec....
• Texas Section 53.056 - Depreciation, Amortization, And Depletion
  (a) The commission shall establish proper and adequate rates and methods of depreciation, amortization, or depletion for each class of property of a public utility....
• Texas Section 53.057 - Net Income; Determination Of Revenues And Expenses
  (a) A public utility's net income is the total revenues of the utility less all reasonable and necessary expenses as determined by the commission. (b)...
• Texas Section 53.058 - Consideration Of Payment To Affiliate
  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the commission may not allow as capital cost or as expense a payment to an affiliate for: (1)...
• Texas Section 53.059 - Treatment Of Certain Tax Benefits
  (a) In determining the allocation of tax savings derived from liberalized depreciation and amortization, the investment tax credit, and the application of similar methods, the...
• Texas Section 53.060 - Computation Of Income Tax; Consolidated Return
  (a) Unless it is shown to the satisfaction of the commission that it was reasonable to choose not to consolidate returns, a public utility's income...
• Texas Section 53.061 - Allowance Of Certain Expenses
  (a) The commission may not allow as a cost or expense for ratemaking purposes: (1) an expenditure for legislative advocacy; or (2) an expenditure described...
• Texas Section 53.062 - Consideration Of Certain Expenses
  The commission may not consider for ratemaking purposes: (1) an expenditure for legislative advocacy, made directly or indirectly, including legislative advocacy expenses included in trade...
• Texas Section 53.063 - Consideration Of Profit Or Loss From Sale Or Lease Of Merchandise
  In establishing a public utility's rates, the commission may not consider a profit or loss that results from the sale or lease of merchandise, including...
• Texas Section 53.064 - Self-insurance
  (a) A public utility may self-insure all or part of the utility's potential liability or catastrophic property loss, including windstorm, fire, and explosion losses, that...

SUBCHAPTER C GENERAL PROCEDURES FOR RATE CHANGE PROPOSED BY UTILITY

• Texas Section 53.065 - Interexchange Services; Rates Of Incumbent Local Exchange Company
  (a) An incumbent local exchange company's rates for interexchange telecommunications services must be statewide average rates except as ordered by the commission after application and...
• Texas Section 53.101 - Definition
  In this subchapter, "major change" means an increase in rates that would increase the aggregate revenues of the applicant more than the greater of $100,000...
• Texas Section 53.102 - Statement Of Intent To Change Rates
  (a) A utility may not change its rates unless the utility files a statement of its intent with the commission at least 35 days before...
• Texas Section 53.103 - Notice Of Intent To Change Rates
  (a) The utility shall: (1) publish, in conspicuous form and place, notice to the public of the proposed change once each week for four successive...
• Texas Section 53.104 - Early Effective Date Of Rate Change
  (a) For good cause shown, the commission may allow a rate change, other than a major change, to take effect: (1) before the end of...
• Texas Section 53.105 - Determination Of Propriety Of Change; Hearing
  (a) If a tariff changing rates is filed with the commission, the commission shall, on complaint by an affected person, or may, on its own...
• Texas Section 53.106 - Regional Hearing
  The commission shall hold a regional hearing at an appropriate location in a case in which the commission determines it is in the public interest...
• Texas Section 53.107 - Preference To Hearing
  The commission shall: (1) give preference to a hearing under this subchapter and to deciding questions arising under this subchapter and Subchapter E over any...
• Texas Section 53.108 - Rate Suspension; Deadline
  (a) Pending the hearing and a decision, the commission, after delivering to the utility a written statement of the commission's reasons, may suspend the rate...
• Texas Section 53.109 - Temporary Rates
  (a) The commission may establish temporary rates to be in effect during the suspension period under Section 53.108. (b) If the commission does not establish...
• Texas Section 53.110 - Bonded Rates
  (a) A utility may put a changed rate into effect by filing a bond with the commission if: (1) the 150-day suspension period has been...
• Texas Section 53.111 - Establishment Of Final Rates
  (a) If, after hearing, the commission finds the rates are unreasonable or in violation of law, the commission shall: (1) enter an order establishing the...
• Texas Section 53.112 - Expiration Of Suspension; Effect On Certain Rates
  (a) Notwithstanding Section 53.111(a), if the commission does not make a final determination concerning an incumbent local exchange company's rate change before expiration of the...

SUBCHAPTER D RATE CHANGES PROPOSED BY COMMISSION

• Texas Section 53.113 - Fcc-approved Tariffs For Switched-access Service
  (a) An incumbent local exchange company may file with the commission tariffs for switched-access service that have been approved by the Federal Communications Commission. The...
• Texas Section 53.151 - Unreasonable Or Violative Existing Rates
  (a) If the commission, on its own motion or on complaint by an affected person, after reasonable notice and hearing, finds that the existing rates...

SUBCHAPTER E COST RECOVERY AND RATE ADJUSTMENTS

• Texas Section 53.152 - Investigating Costs Of Obtaining Service From Another Source
  If a public utility does not produce or generate the service that it distributes, transmits, or furnishes to the public for compensation but obtains the...

SUBCHAPTER F REGULATORY POLICY FOR SMALL INCUMBENT LOCAL EXCHANGE COMPANIES AND COOPERATIVES

• Texas Section 53.201 - Automatic Adjustment For Change In Costs Prohibited
  The commission may not establish a rate or tariff that authorizes a utility to automatically adjust and pass through to the utility's customers a change...
• Texas Section 53.251 - General Policy
  Regulatory policy should recognize that: (1) there are differences between small and large incumbent local exchange companies; (2) there are a large number of customer-owned...

SUBCHAPTER G SPECIAL PROCEDURES FOR SMALL LOCAL EXCHANGE COMPANIES AND COOPERATIVES

• Texas Section 53.252 - Adoption Of Certain Policies
  Notwithstanding any other provision of this title, the commission shall consider and may adopt policies to: (1) provide for evaluation of the overall reasonableness of...
• Texas Section 53.301 - Definition
  (a) In this subchapter, "minor change" means a change, including the restructuring of rates of existing services, that: (1) decreases the rates or revenues of...
• Texas Section 53.302 - Applicability
  This subchapter does not apply to an incumbent local exchange company that is a cooperative corporation partially deregulated under Subchapter H. Acts 1997, 75th Leg.,...
• Texas Section 53.303 - Provisions Not Exclusive
  This subchapter does not prohibit: (1) an incumbent local exchange company from filing for a new service or rate change under another section of this...
• Texas Section 53.304 - Procedure To Offer Certain Services Or Make Minor Changes
  (a) An incumbent local exchange company may offer an extended local calling service, a packaged service, or a new or promotional service on an optional...
• Texas Section 53.305 - Notice To Affected Customers
  (a) A company shall provide notice of a proposed change to affected customers in the manner prescribed by the commission. (b) Notice must: (1) be...
• Texas Section 53.306 - Commission Review Of Proposed Change
  (a) The commission shall review a proposed change filed under this subchapter if: (1) the commission receives complaints relating to the proposed change signed by...
• Texas Section 53.307 - Compliance With Principles; Reduced Rates
  A rate established under this subchapter must be in accordance with the rate-setting principles of this chapter, except that a company may provide to its...

SUBCHAPTER H PARTIAL DEREGULATION AVAILABLE TO CERTAIN COOPERATIVE CORPORATIONS

• Texas Section 53.308 - Fees And Assessments
  The commission may prescribe and collect a fee or assessment from incumbent local exchange companies necessary to recover the cost to the commission and to...
• Texas Section 53.351 - Provisions Not Exclusive
  (a) This subchapter does not: (1) prohibit a cooperative from filing for a new service or a rate change under another applicable provision of this...
• Texas Section 53.352 - Partial Deregulation By Ballot
  (a) An incumbent local exchange company that is a cooperative corporation may vote to partially deregulate the cooperative by sending a ballot to each cooperative...
• Texas Section 53.353 - Voting Procedures
  The commission by rule shall prescribe the voting procedures a cooperative must use under this subchapter. Acts 1997, 75th Leg., ch. 166, Sec. 1, eff....
• Texas Section 53.354 - Procedure To Offer Certain Services Or Make Certain Changes
  After the initial balloting, a cooperative may offer extended local calling services, offer new services on an optional basis, or make changes in its rates...
• Texas Section 53.355 - Statement Of Intent
  (a) A cooperative must file a statement of intent to use this subchapter with the commission and the office not later than the 61st day...
• Texas Section 53.356 - Notice To Affected Persons
  (a) The cooperative shall provide to each affected customer or party, including a municipality, at least two notices of the proposed action by bill insert...
• Texas Section 53.357 - Filing Of Affidavits Verifying Notice
  Not later than the 15th day before the effective date of a proposed action, the cooperative shall file with the commission affidavits that verify that...
• Texas Section 53.358 - Commission Review Of Proposed Action
  (a) The commission shall review a proposed action filed under this subchapter if: (1) the commission receives, not later than the 45th day after the...
• Texas Section 53.359 - Reversal Of Deregulation By Ballot
  (a) A cooperative that is partially deregulated under this subchapter may vote to reverse the deregulation by sending a ballot to each cooperative member. (b)...

Last modified: September 28, 2016