HBA-TYH S.B. 1384 76(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Office of House Bill AnalysisS.B. 1384
By: Shapleigh
State Affairs
5/7/1999
Engrossed



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Under current law, the Office of Public Utility Counsel, an independent
state agency, represents Texas residential and small business telephone and
electric utility consumers in utility proceedings before the Public Utility
Commission (PUC), the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, the Federal
Communications Commission, and in state and federal courts. 

Deregulation of the telecommunications industry has brought about an
increasingly competitive environment and has significantly increased the
number of regulatory issues before the PUC as well as utility-related
litigation in both state and federal courts. To keep up with its workload
and to resolve regulatory issues more quickly, the PUC has expanded its use
of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) proceedings.  

Currently, the Office of Public Utility Counsel (office) lacks the
authority to represent residential and small commercial consumers in
alternative dispute resolution proceedings.  S.B. 1384 authorizes the
office to represent residential and small commercial consumers in such
proceedings or in judicial proceedings in which the public utility counsel
determines that residential and small commercial consumers are in need of
representation. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does
not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, department, agency, or institution. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 13.003, Utilities Code, by amending Subsection
(a) and adding Subsection (d), as follows: 

(a)(3) Authorizes the Office of Public Utility Counsel (office) to appear
or intervene, as a party or otherwise, as a matter of right on behalf of
residential consumers, as a class, in any proceeding before the Public
Utility Commission, including an alternative dispute resolution (ADR)
proceeding; and small commercial consumers, as a class, in any proceeding
in which the counselor determines that small commercial consumers are in
need of representation, including an ADR proceeding. 

(4) Authorizes the office to initiate or intervene as a matter of right or
otherwise appear in a judicial proceeding that involves an action taken by
an administrative agency in a proceeding, including an ADR proceeding, in
which the counselor is authorized to appear. 

(5)  Authorizes the office to intervene as a matter of right or otherwise
appear in a judicial proceeding that affects the rates or services
applicable to residential consumers, as a class, including but not limited
to proceedings involving the constitutionality, applicability, or
construction of a statute and proceedings arising out of an investigation
or informal proceeding of an administrative agency. 

(6)  Created from existing text.
 (7)-(9)  Redesignated from Subdivisions (6)-(8).

(d)  Provides that this subsection does not limit the authority of the
office to participate in any judicial proceeding as provided by Subsections
(a)(1)-(4).  Provides that the authority conferred by Subsection (a)(5)
does not include the right to intervene or otherwise appear in a judicial
proceeding involving the enumerated contents. 

SECTION 2.(a)  Provides that except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
section, the Act takes effect September 1, 1999. 

(b)  Provides that Subdivision (5), Subsection (a), Section 13.003,
Utilities Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to a judicial
proceeding initiated on or after September 1, 1999. 

SECTION 3.  Emergency clause.
  Effective date: upon passage.