Opinion ID: 1984632
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: pura95

Text: With PURA95, the Legislature endeavored to establish competition in the wholesale electricity market. The Legislature amended the existing Public Utility Regulatory Act (PURA) by adding provisions that in 1997 were codified at Subchapter A of Chapter 35 of the Utilities Code. [4] These provisions required all transmission-owning utilities to provide open access to their transmission facilities for wholesale transmission. First, the amendments authorize the Commission to require a utility ... to provide transmission service at wholesale to another utility, and to determine whether the terms and conditions for the transmission service are reasonable. [5] Next, the amendments specify that utilities owning or operating transmission facilities shall provide wholesale transmission service at rates, terms of access, and conditions that are comparable to the rates, terms of access, and conditions of the utility's use of its system. [6] The Commission is responsible for ensur[ing] that utilities provide nondiscriminatory access to transmission service.... [7] Moreover, when a utility provides wholesale transmission service at a third party's request, the amendments instruct the Commission to ensure that the costs of the transmission are not borne by the utility's other customers by requiring the utility to recover from the entity for which the transmission is provided all reasonable costs incurred by the utility in providing transmission services necessary for the transaction. [8] Central to this dispute, PURA95 also provides that [t]he [C]ommission shall adopt rules ... relating to wholesale transmission service, rates, and access. [9] These rules are to (1) be consistent with PURA95's standards; (2) not be contrary to federal law; and (3) require transmission services not less than the FERC could require in similar circumstances. [10] PURA95 mandates that all utilities owning or operating transmission services file tariffs with the Commission that are consistent with the Commission's rules. [11] Finally, PURA95 permits the Commission to require that parties to a dispute over the prices, terms, and conditions of wholesale transmission service engage in a nonbinding alternative dispute resolution process before seeking a resolution from the [C]ommission. [12]