SUBCHAPTER A GENERAL PROVISIONS
- Texas Section 13.001 - Legislative Policy And Purpose
(a) This chapter is adopted to protect the public interest inherent in the rates and services of retail public utilities. (b) The legislature finds that:...
- Texas Section 13.002 - Definitions
In this chapter: (1) "Affected person" means any landowner within an area for which a certificate of public convenience and necessity is filed, any retail...
- Texas Section 13.003 - Applicability Of Administrative Procedure And Texas Register Act
Chapter 2001, Government Code applies to all proceedings under this chapter except to the extent inconsistent with this chapter. Added by Acts 1985, 69th Leg.,...
SUBCHAPTER B ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
- Texas Section 13.004 - Jurisdiction Of Utility Commission Over Certain Water Supply Or Sewer Service Corporations
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, the utility commission has the same jurisdiction over a water supply or sewer service corporation that the utility commission has...
- Texas Section 13.011 - Employees
(a) The utility commission and the executive director of the commission, subject to approval, as applicable, by the utility commission or the commission, shall employ...
- Texas Section 13.014 - Attorney General To Represent Commission Or Utility Commission
The attorney general shall represent the commission or the utility commission under this chapter in all matters before the state courts and any court of...
- Texas Section 13.015 - Informal Proceeding
A proceeding involving a retail public utility as defined by Section 13.002 of this code may be an informal proceeding, except that the proceeding is...
- Texas Section 13.016 - Record Of Proceedings; Right To Hearing
A record shall be kept of all proceedings before the regulatory authority, unless all parties waive the keeping of the record, and all the parties...
SUBCHAPTER C JURISDICTION
- Texas Section 13.017 - Office Of Public Utility Counsel; Powers And Duties
(a) In this section, "counsellor" and "office" have the meanings assigned by Section 11.003, Utilities Code. (b) The independent Office of Public Utility Counsel represents...
- Texas Section 13.041 - General Powers Of Utility Commission And Commission; Rules; Hearings
(a) The utility commission may regulate and supervise the business of each water and sewer utility within its jurisdiction, including ratemaking and other economic regulation....
- Texas Section 13.042 - Jurisdiction Of Municipality; Original And Appellate Jurisdiction Of Utility Commission
(a) Subject to the limitations imposed in this chapter and for the purpose of regulating rates and services so that those rates may be fair,...
- Texas Section 13.0421 - Rates Charged By Certain Municipally Owned Utilities
(a) This section applies to a municipally owned water and sewer utility that on January 1, 1989, required some or all of its wholesale customers...
- Texas Section 13.043 - Appellate Jurisdiction
(a) Any party to a rate proceeding before the governing body of a municipality may appeal the decision of the governing body to the utility...
- Texas Section 13.044 - Rates Charged By Municipality To District
(a) This section applies to rates charged by a municipality for water or sewer service to a district created pursuant to Article XVI, Section 59,...
- Texas Section 13.045 - Notification Regarding Use Of Revenue
At least annually and before any rate increase, a municipality shall notify in writing each water and sewer retail customer of any service or capital...
SUBCHAPTER D MUNICIPALITIES AND COUNTIES
- Texas Section 13.046 - Temporary Rates For Services Provided For Nonfunctioning System; Sanctions For Noncompliance
(a) The utility commission by rule shall establish a procedure that allows a retail public utility that takes over the provision of services for a...
- Texas Section 13.081 - Franchises
This chapter may not be construed as in any way limiting the rights and powers of a municipality to grant or refuse franchises to use...
- Texas Section 13.082 - Local Utility Service; Exempt And Nonexempt Areas
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, municipalities shall continue to regulate each kind of local utility service inside their boundaries until the utility...
- Texas Section 13.083 - Rate Determination
A municipality regulating its water and sewer utilities under this chapter shall require from those utilities all necessary data to make a reasonable determination of...
- Texas Section 13.084 - Authority Of Governing Body; Cost Reimbursement
The governing body of any municipality or the commissioners court of an affected county shall have the right to select and engage rate consultants, accountants,...
- Texas Section 13.085 - Assistance By Utility Commission
On request, the utility commission may advise and assist municipalities and affected counties in connection with questions and proceedings arising under this chapter. This assistance...
- Texas Section 13.086 - Fair Wholesale Rates For Wholesale Water Sales To A Water District
(a) A municipality that makes a wholesale sale of water to a special district created under Section 52, Article III, or Section 59, Article XVI,...
SUBCHAPTER E RECORDS, REPORTS, INSPECTIONS, RATES, AND SERVICES
- Texas Section 13.087 - Municipal Rates For Certain Recreational Vehicle Parks
(a) In this section: (1) "Nonsubmetered master metered utility service" means potable water service that is master metered but not submetered and wastewater service that...
- Texas Section 13.131 - Records Of Utility; Rates, Methods, And Accounts
(a) Every water and sewer utility shall keep and render to the regulatory authority in the manner and form prescribed by the utility commission uniform...
- Texas Section 13.132 - Powers Of Utility Commission
(a) The utility commission may: (1) require that water and sewer utilities report to it any information relating to themselves and affiliated interests both inside...
- Texas Section 13.1325 - Electronic Copies Of Rate Information
On request, the utility commission shall provide, at a reasonable cost, electronic copies of or Internet access to all information provided to the utility commission...
- Texas Section 13.133 - Inspections; Examination Under Oath; Compelling Production Of Records; Inquiry Into Management And Affairs
(a) Any regulatory authority and, when authorized by the regulatory authority, its counsel, agents, and employees may, at reasonable times and for reasonable purposes, inspect...
- Texas Section 13.134 - Report Of Advertising Or Public Relations Expenses
(a) The regulatory authority may require an annual report from each utility company of all its expenditures for business gifts and entertainment and institutional, consumption-inducing,...
- Texas Section 13.135 - Unlawful Rates, Rules, And Regulations
A utility may not charge, collect, or receive any rate for utility service or impose any rule or regulation other than as provided in this...
- Texas Section 13.136 - Filing Tariffs Of Rates, Rules, And Regulations; Annual Financial Report
(a) Every utility shall file with each regulatory authority tariffs showing all rates that are subject to the original or appellate jurisdiction of the regulatory...
- Texas Section 13.137 - Office And Other Business Locations Of Utility; Records; Removal From State
(a) Every utility shall: (1) make available and notify its customers of a business location where its customers may make payments to prevent disconnection of...
- Texas Section 13.138 - Communications By Utilities With Regulatory Authority; Regulations And Records
The regulatory authority may prescribe regulations governing communications by utilities and their affiliates and their representatives with the regulatory authority or any member or employee...
- Texas Section 13.139 - Standards Of Service
(a) Every retail public utility that possesses or is required to possess a certificate of public convenience and necessity and every district and affected county...
- Texas Section 13.1395 - Standards Of Emergency Operations
(a) In this section: (2) "Emergency operations" means the operation of a water system during an extended power outage at a minimum water pressure of...
- Texas Section 13.1396 - Coordination Of Emergency Operations
(a) In this section: (1) "Affected utility" has the meaning assigned by Section 13.1395. (3) "Electric utility" means the electric transmission and distribution utility providing...
- Texas Section 13.140 - Examination And Test Of Equipment
(a) The regulatory authority may examine and test any meter, instrument, or equipment used for the measurement of service of any utility and may enter...
- Texas Section 13.141 - Billing For Service To State
A utility, utility owned by an affected county, or municipally owned utility may not bill or otherwise require the state or a state agency or...
- Texas Section 13.142 - Time Of Payment Of Utility Bills By State
(a) In this section, "utility" includes a municipally owned utility. (b) The utility commission shall adopt rules concerning payment of utility bills that are consistent...
- Texas Section 13.143 - Voluntary Contributions
(a) A utility may implement as part of its billing process a program under which the utility collects from its customers a voluntary contribution, including...
- Texas Section 13.144 - Notice Of Wholesale Water Supply Contract
A district or authority created under Section 52, Article III, or Section 59, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, a retail public utility, a wholesale water service,...
- Texas Section 13.145 - Multiple Systems Consolidated Under Tariff
(a) A utility may consolidate more than one system under a single tariff only if: (1) the systems under the tariff are substantially similar in...
- Texas Section 13.146 - Water Conservation Plan
The commission shall require a retail public utility that provides potable water service to 3,300 or more connections to submit to the executive administrator of...
- Texas Section 13.147 - Consolidated Billing And Collection Contracts
(a) A retail public utility providing water service may contract with a retail public utility providing sewer service to bill and collect the sewer service...
- Texas Section 13.148 - Water Shortage Report
(a) A retail public utility and each entity from which the utility is obtaining wholesale water service for the utility's retail system shall notify the...
SUBCHAPTER F PROCEEDINGS BEFORE REGULATORY AUTHORITY
- Texas Section 13.148 - Notification Of Water Loss
(a) The commission by rule shall require a retail public utility that files a water audit required by Section 16.0121 to notify each of the...
- Texas Section 13.181 - Power To Ensure Compliance; Rate Regulation
(a) Except for the provisions of Section 13.192, this subchapter shall apply only to a utility and shall not be applied to municipalities, counties, districts,...
- Texas Section 13.182 - Just And Reasonable Rates
(a) The regulatory authority shall ensure that every rate made, demanded, or received by any utility or by any two or more utilities jointly shall...
- Texas Section 13.183 - Fixing Overall Revenues
(a) In fixing the rates for water and sewer services, the regulatory authority shall fix its overall revenues at a level that will: (1) permit...
- Texas Section 13.184 - Fair Return; Burden Of Proof
(a) Unless the utility commission establishes alternate rate methodologies in accordance with Section 13.183(c), the utility commission may not prescribe any rate that will yield...
- Texas Section 13.185 - Components Of Invested Capital And Net Income
(a) Unless alternate methodologies are adopted as provided in Sections 13.183(c) and 13.184(a), the components of invested capital and net income shall be determined according...
- Texas Section 13.186 - Unreasonable Or Violative Existing Rates; Investigating Costs Of Obtaining Service From Another Source
(a) If the regulatory authority, after reasonable notice and hearing, on its own motion or on complaint by any affected person, finds that the existing...
- Texas Section 13.1861 - Rates Charged State
The rates that a utility or municipally owned utility charges the state or a state agency or institution may not include an amount representing a...
- Texas Section 13.187 - Class A Utilities: Statement Of Intent To Change Rates; Hearing; Determination Of Rate Level
(a) This section applies only to a Class A utility. (a-1) A utility may not make changes in its rates except by sending by mail...
- Texas Section 13.1871 - Class B Utilities: Statement Of Intent To Change Rates; Hearing; Determination Of Rate Level
(a) Except as provided by Section 13.1872, this section applies only to a Class B utility. (b) A utility may not make changes in its...
- Texas Section 13.1872 - Class C Utilities: Rate Adjustment
(a) This section applies only to a Class C utility. (b) For purposes of this section, "price index" means an appropriate price index designated annually...
- Texas Section 13.188 - Adjustment For Change In Energy Costs
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision in this chapter, the utility commission by rule shall adopt a procedure allowing a utility to file with the utility...
- Texas Section 13.189 - Unreasonable Preference Or Prejudice As To Rates Or Services
(a) A water and sewer utility as to rates or services may not make or grant any unreasonable preference or advantage to any corporation or...
- Texas Section 13.190 - Equality Of Rates And Services
(a) A water and sewer utility may not directly or indirectly by any device or in any manner charge, demand, collect, or receive from any...
- Texas Section 13.191 - Discrimination; Restriction On Competition
A water and sewer utility may not discriminate against any person or corporation that sells or leases equipment or performs services in competition with the...
SUBCHAPTER G CERTIFICATES OF CONVENIENCE AND NECESSITY
- Texas Section 13.192 - Payments In Lieu Of Taxes
Payments made in lieu of taxes by a water and sewer utility to the municipality by which it is owned may not be considered an...
- Texas Section 13.241 - Granting Certificates
(a) In determining whether to grant or amend a certificate of public convenience and necessity, the utility commission shall ensure that the applicant possesses the...
- Texas Section 13.242 - Certificate Required
(a) Unless otherwise specified, a utility, a utility operated by an affected county, or a water supply or sewer service corporation may not in any...
- Texas Section 13.243 - Exceptions For Extension Of Service
A retail public utility is not required to secure a certificate of public convenience and necessity for: (1) an extension into territory contiguous to that...
- Texas Section 13.244 - Application; Maps And Other Information; Evidence And Consent
(a) To obtain a certificate of public convenience and necessity or an amendment to a certificate, a public utility or water supply or sewer service...
- Texas Section 13.245 - Municipal Boundaries Or Extraterritorial Jurisdiction Of Certain Municipalities
(a) This section applies only to a municipality with a population of 500,000 or more. (b) Except as provided by Subsections (c), (c-1), and (c-2),...
- Texas Section 13.2451 - Extension Beyond Extraterritorial Jurisdiction
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), if a municipality extends its extraterritorial jurisdiction to include an area certificated to a retail public utility, the...
- Texas Section 13.246 - Notice And Hearing; Issuance Or Refusal; Factors Considered
(a) If an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity or for an amendment to a certificate is filed, the utility commission shall...
- Texas Section 13.247 - Area Within Municipality
(a) If an area is within the boundaries of a municipality, all retail public utilities certified or entitled to certification under this chapter to provide...
- Texas Section 13.2475 - Certificates Of Public Convenience And Necessity To Provide Sewer Service In Certain Municipalities
(a) This section applies only to a municipality: (1) with a population of more than 95,000; (2) located in a county that: (A) borders Lake...
- Texas Section 13.248 - Contracts Valid And Enforceable
Contracts between retail public utilities designating areas to be served and customers to be served by those retail public utilities, when approved by the utility...
- Texas Section 13.250 - Continuous And Adequate Service; Discontinuance, Reduction, Or Impairment Of Service
(a) Except as provided by this section or Section 13.2501 of this code, any retail public utility that possesses or is required to possess a...
- Texas Section 13.2501 - Conditions Requiring Refusal Of Service
The holder of a certificate of public convenience and necessity shall refuse to serve a customer within its certified area if the holder of the...
- Texas Section 13.2502 - Service Extensions By Water Supply And Sewer Service Corporation Or Special Utility District
(a) Notwithstanding Section 13.250, a water supply or sewer service corporation or a special utility district organized under Chapter 65 is not required to extend...
- Texas Section 13.251 - Sale, Assignment, Or Lease Of Certificate
Except as provided by Section 13.255, a utility or a water supply or sewer service corporation may not sell, assign, or lease a certificate of...
- Texas Section 13.252 - Interference With Other Retail Public Utility
If a retail public utility in constructing or extending a line, plant, or system interferes or attempts to interfere with the operation of a line,...
- Texas Section 13.253 - Improvements In Service; Interconnecting Service
(a) After notice and hearing, the utility commission or the commission may: (1) order any retail public utility that is required by law to possess...
- Texas Section 13.254 - Revocation Or Amendment Of Certificate
(a) The utility commission at any time after notice and hearing may revoke or amend any certificate of public convenience and necessity with the written...
- Texas Section 13.255 - Single Certification In Incorporated Or Annexed Areas
(a) In the event that an area is incorporated or annexed by a municipality, either before or after the effective date of this section, the...
- Texas Section 13.2551 - Completion Of Decertification
(a) As a condition to decertification or single certification under Section 13.254 or 13.255, and on request by an affected retail public utility, the utility...
- Texas Section 13.256 - County Fee
(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a county with a population of more than 2.8 million may not charge a water and sewer utility...
SUBCHAPTER H SALE OF PROPERTY AND MERGERS
- Texas Section 13.257 - Notice To Purchasers
(a) In this section, "utility service provider" means a retail public utility other than a district subject to Section 49.452 of this code. (b) If...
- Texas Section 13.301 - Report Of Sale, Merger, Etc
Sec. 13.301. REPORT OF SALE, MERGER, ETC.; INVESTIGATION; DISALLOWANCE OF TRANSACTION. (a) A utility or a water supply or sewer service corporation, on or before...
- Texas Section 13.302 - Purchase Of Voting Stock In Another Public Utility: Report
(a) A utility may not purchase voting stock in another utility doing business in this state and a person may not acquire a controlling interest...
- Texas Section 13.303 - Loans To Stockholders: Report
A utility may not loan money, stocks, bonds, notes, or other evidences of indebtedness to any corporation or person owning or holding directly or indirectly...
SUBCHAPTER I RELATIONS WITH AFFILIATED INTERESTS
- Texas Section 13.304 - Foreclosure Report
(a) A utility that receives notice that all or a portion of the utility's facilities or property used to provide utility service are being posted...
- Texas Section 13.341 - Jurisdiction Over Affiliated Interests
The utility commission has jurisdiction over affiliated interests having transactions with utilities under the jurisdiction of the utility commission to the extent of access to...
- Texas Section 13.342 - Disclosure Of Substantial Interest In Voting Securities
The utility commission may require the disclosure of the identity and respective interests of every owner of any substantial interest in the voting securities of...
SUBCHAPTER J JUDICIAL REVIEW
- Texas Section 13.343 - Wholesale Water Contracts Between Certain Affiliates
(a) The owner of a utility that supplies retail water service may not contract to purchase from an affiliated supplier wholesale water service for any...
- Texas Section 13.381 - Right To Judicial Review; Evidence
Any party to a proceeding before the utility commission or the commission is entitled to judicial review under the substantial evidence rule. Added by Acts...
SUBCHAPTER K VIOLATIONS AND ENFORCEMENT
- Texas Section 13.382 - Costs And Attorney's Fees
(a) Any party represented by counsel who alleges that existing rates are excessive or that rates prescribed by the utility commission are excessive and who...
- Texas Section 13.411 - Action To Enjoin Or Require Compliance
(a) If the utility commission or the commission has reason to believe that any retail public utility or any other person or corporation is engaged...
- Texas Section 13.4115 - Action To Require Adjustment To Consumer Charge; Penalty
In regard to a customer complaint arising out of a charge made by a public utility, if the utility commission finds that the utility has...
- Texas Section 13.412 - Receivership
(a) At the request of the utility commission or the commission, the attorney general shall bring suit for the appointment of a receiver to collect...
- Texas Section 13.413 - Payment Of Costs Of Receivership
The receiver may, subject to the approval of the court and after giving notice to all interested parties, sell or otherwise dispose of all or...
- Texas Section 13.4131 - Supervision Of Certain Utilities
(a) The utility commission, after providing to the utility notice and an opportunity for a hearing, may place a utility under supervision for gross or...
- Texas Section 13.4132 - Operation Of Utility That Discontinues Operation Or Is Referred For Appointment Of Receiver
(a) The utility commission or the commission, after providing to the utility notice and an opportunity to be heard by the commissioners at a utility...
- Texas Section 13.4133 - Emergency Rate Increase In Certain Circumstances
(a) Notwithstanding the requirements of Subchapter F, the utility commission may authorize an emergency rate increase for a utility for which a person has been...
- Texas Section 13.414 - Penalty Against Retail Public Utility Or Affiliated Interest
(a) Any retail public utility or affiliated interest that violates this chapter, fails to perform a duty imposed on it, or fails, neglects, or refuses...
- Texas Section 13.415 - Personal Penalty
Any person who wilfully and knowingly violates this chapter is guilty of a third degree felony. Added by Acts 1985, 69th Leg., ch. 795, Sec....
- Texas Section 13.4151 - Administrative Penalty
(a) If a person, affiliated interest, or entity subject to the jurisdiction of the utility commission or the commission violates this chapter or a rule...
- Texas Section 13.416 - Penalties Cumulative
All penalties accruing under this chapter are cumulative and a suit for the recovery of any penalty does not bar or affect the recovery of...
- Texas Section 13.417 - Contempt Proceedings
If any person or retail public utility fails to comply with any lawful order of the utility commission or the commission or with any subpoena...
- Texas Section 13.418 - Disposition Of Fines And Penalties; Water Utility Improvement Account
(a) Fines and penalties collected under this chapter from a retail public utility that is not a public utility in other than criminal proceedings shall...
SUBCHAPTER K-1 EMERGENCY ORDERS
- Texas Section 13.419 - Venue
Suits for injunction or penalties under this chapter may be brought in Travis County, in any county where this violation is alleged to have occurred,...
- Texas Section 13.451 - Issuance Of Emergency Order
(a) The utility commission may issue an emergency order authorized under this chapter after providing the notice and opportunity for a hearing that the utility...
- Texas Section 13.452 - Application For Emergency Order
A person other than the utility commission or the staff of the utility commission who desires the issuance of an emergency order under this subchapter...
- Texas Section 13.453 - Notice Of Issuance
Notice of the issuance of an emergency order must be provided as required by utility commission rule. Added by Acts 2015, 84th Leg., R.S., Ch....
- Texas Section 13.454 - Hearing To Affirm, Modify, Or Set Aside Order
(a) If the utility commission or the utility commission's executive director issues an emergency order under this subchapter without a hearing, a hearing must be...
SUBCHAPTER M SUBMETERING AND NONSUBMETERING FOR APARTMENTS AND MANUFACTURED HOME RENTAL COMMUNITIES AND OTHER MULTIPLE USE FACILITIES
- Texas Section 13.455 - Term Of Order
An emergency order issued under this subchapter must be limited to a reasonable time as specified in the order. Except as otherwise provided by this...
- Texas Section 13.501 - Definitions
In this subchapter: (1) "Apartment house" means one or more buildings containing five or more dwelling units which are occupied primarily for nontransient use, including...
- Texas Section 13.502 - Submetering
(a) An apartment house owner, manufactured home rental community owner, multiple use facility owner, or condominium manager may provide for submetering of each dwelling unit...
- Texas Section 13.503 - Submetering Rules
(a) The utility commission shall encourage submetering of individual rental or dwelling units by master meter operators or building owners to enhance the conservation of...
- Texas Section 13.5031 - Nonsubmetering Rules
Notwithstanding any other law, the utility commission shall adopt rules and standards governing billing systems or methods used by manufactured home rental community owners, apartment...
- Texas Section 13.504 - Improper Rental Rate Increase
If, during the 90-day period preceding the installation of individual meters or submeters, an owner, operator, or manager of an apartment house, manufactured home rental...
- Texas Section 13.505 - Enforcement
In addition to the enforcement provisions contained in Subchapter K, if an apartment house owner, condominium manager, manufactured home rental community owner, or other multiple...
SUBCHAPTER N PRIVATIZATION CONTRACTS
- Texas Section 13.506 - Plumbing Fixtures
(a) After January 1, 2003, before an owner of an apartment house, manufactured home rental community, or multiple use facility or a manager of a...
- Texas Section 13.511 - Definitions
In this subchapter: (1) "Eligible city" means any municipality whose waterworks and sewer system is operated by a board of utility trustees pursuant to provisions...
- Texas Section 13.512 - Authority To Enter Into Privatization Contracts
Any eligible city is authorized to enter into privatization contracts if such action is recommended by the board of utility trustees and authorized by the...
- Texas Section 13.513 - Election By Eligible City To Exempt Service Provider From Utility Commission Jurisdiction
A service provider shall not constitute a "water and sewer utility," a "public utility," a "utility," or a "retail public utility" within the meaning of...
- Texas Section 13.514 - Term And Provisions Of A Privatization Contract
A privatization contract may be for a term and contain provisions that the governing body of an eligible city determines are in the best interests...
- Texas Section 13.515 - Payments Under A Privatization Contract
Payments by an eligible city under a privatization contract shall, if so provided, constitute an operating expense of the eligible city's sanitary sewer system or...