S.B. No. 924
 
 
 
 
AN ACT
  relating to the duties of certain utilities regarding energy
  efficiency reports and emergency notification systems.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 39.9051, Utilities Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (f) and adding Subsections (g) and (h) to read
  as follows:
         (f)  Beginning April [Not later than September] 1, 2012
  [2009], a municipally owned utility must report each year to the
  State Energy Conservation Office, on [in] a standardized form
  developed by [and manner determined by the utility in consultation
  with] the office, information regarding the combined effects of the
  energy efficiency activities of the utility from the previous
  calendar year, including the utility's annual goals, programs
  enacted to achieve those goals, and any achieved energy demand or
  savings goals.
         (g)  The State Energy Conservation Office shall provide the
  reports made under Subsection (f) to the Energy Systems Laboratory
  at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas A&M
  University System.  The laboratory shall calculate the energy
  savings and estimated pollution reductions that resulted from the
  reported activities.
         (h)  The energy systems laboratory shall share the results of
  the analysis with the Public Utility Commission of Texas, ERCOT,
  the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the Texas
  Commission on Environmental Quality.
         SECTION 2.  Section 39.9052, Utilities Code, is amended by
  amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read
  as follows:
         (b)  Beginning April [Not later than September] 1, 2012
  [2009], an electric cooperative that had retail sales of more than
  500,000 megawatt hours in 2005 must report each year to the State
  Energy Conservation Office, on [in] a standardized form developed
  by [and manner determined by the electric cooperative in
  consultation with] the office, information regarding the combined
  effects of the energy efficiency activities of the electric
  cooperative from the previous calendar year, including the electric
  cooperative's annual goals, programs enacted to achieve those
  goals, and any achieved energy demand or savings goals.
         (c)  The State Energy Conservation Office shall provide the
  reports made under Subsection (b) to the Energy Systems Laboratory
  at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas A&M
  University System.  The laboratory shall calculate the energy
  savings and estimated pollution reductions that resulted from the
  reported activities.
         (d)  The energy systems laboratory shall share the results of
  the analysis with the Public Utility Commission of Texas, ERCOT,
  the United States Environmental Protection Agency, and the Texas
  Commission on Environmental Quality.
         SECTION 3.  (a)  Subchapter H, Chapter 418, Government Code,
  is amended by adding Section 418.192 to read as follows:
         Sec. 418.192.  COMMUNICATIONS BY PUBLIC SERVICE PROVIDERS
  DURING DISASTERS AND EMERGENCIES. (a)  In this section:
               (1)  "Emergency" means a temporary, sudden, and
  unforeseen occurrence that requires action by a public service
  provider to correct the occurrence, inform others of the
  occurrence, protect lives or property, or temporarily reduce demand
  for or allocate supply of the provider's products or services to
  ensure public safety or preserve the integrity of service delivery
  mechanisms.
               (2)  "Public service provider" means any person or
  entity that provides essential products or services to the public
  that are regulated under the Natural Resources Code, Utilities
  Code, or Water Code, including:
                     (A)  common carriers under Section 111.002,
  Natural Resources Code;
                     (B)  telecommunications providers as defined by
  Section 51.002, Utilities Code; and
                     (C)  any other person or entity providing or
  producing heat, light, power, or water.
         (b)  A public service provider may enter into a contract for
  an emergency notification system described by this section for use
  in informing the provider's customers, governmental entities, and
  other affected persons regarding:
               (1)  notice of a disaster or emergency; and
               (2)  any actions a recipient is required to take during
  a disaster or emergency.
         (c)  The emergency notification system for which a contract
  is entered into under Subsection (b) must rely on a dynamic
  information database that:
               (1)  is capable of simultaneous transmission of
  emergency messages to all recipients through at least two
  industry-standard gateways to one or more telephones or electronic
  devices owned by a recipient in a manner that does not negatively
  impact the existing communications infrastructure;
               (2)  allows the public service provider to:
                     (A)  store prewritten emergency messages in the
  dynamic information database for subsequent use; and
                     (B)  generate emergency messages in real time
  based on provider inputs;
               (3)  allows a recipient to select the language in which
  the recipient would prefer to receive messages;
               (4)  transmits the message in the recipient's language
  of choice to that recipient;
               (5)  converts text messages to sound files and
  transmits those sound files to the appropriate device;
               (6)  assigns recipients to priority groups for
  notification;
               (7)  allows for the collection and verification of
  responses by recipients of emergency messages; and
               (8)  reads or receives alerts from a commercial mobile
  alert system established by the Federal Communications Commission
  or complies with standards adopted for a commercial mobile alert
  system established by the Federal Communications Commission.
         (d)  The dynamic information database must comply with:
               (1)  the Telecommunications Service Priority program
  established by the Federal Communications Commission; and
               (2)  the Federal Information Processing Standard 140-2
  governing compliant cryptographic modules for encryption and
  security issued by the National Institute of Standards and
  Technology.
         (e)  Before sending a notice described by Subsection (b), a
  public service provider must:
               (1)  provide a copy of the notice to the emergency
  management director designated under Section 418.1015, for each
  political subdivision for which the public service provider
  provides services at the time of the notice; and
               (2)  during a disaster declared by the governor or
  United States government, obtain approval of the notice from the
  emergency management director designated under Section 418.1015,
  for each political subdivision for which the public service
  provider provides services during the disaster.
         (f)  A customer of a public service provider may decline to
  receive the notices described by Subsection (b) by providing
  written notice of that decision to the public service provider.
         (g)  A public service provider shall cooperate with
  emergency management officials of each political subdivision in
  which the public service provider provides services to survey the
  number of notification systems in place.
         (h)  The requirements of this section do not apply to an
  emergency notification system that is in use by a public service
  provider on June 1, 2011.
         (b)  This section takes effect immediately if this Act
  receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
  house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
  If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
  effect, this section takes effect September 1, 2011.
         SECTION 4.  Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this
  Act takes effect September 1, 2011.
 
 
 
 
 
  ______________________________ ______________________________
     President of the Senate Speaker of the House     
 
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 924 passed the Senate on
  April 21, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0; and that
  the Senate concurred in House amendment on May 27, 2011, by the
  following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 1.
 
 
  ______________________________
  Secretary of the Senate    
 
         I hereby certify that S.B. No. 924 passed the House, with
  amendment, on May 23, 2011, by the following vote: Yeas 143,
  Nays 2, two present not voting.
 
 
  ______________________________
  Chief Clerk of the House   
 
 
 
  Approved:
 
  ______________________________ 
              Date
 
 
  ______________________________ 
            Governor