| (a) In determining whether to grant or amend a certificate
of convenience and necessity (CCN), the commission will ensure that
the applicant possesses the financial, managerial, and technical capability
to provide continuous and adequate service.
(1) For retail water utility service, the commission
will ensure that the applicant has:
(A) a public water system approved by the Texas Commission
on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) that is capable of providing drinking
water that meets the requirements of Texas Health and Safety Code,
chapter 341, TCEQ rules, and the TWC; and
(B) access to an adequate supply of water or a long-term
contract for purchased water with an entity whose system meets the
requirement of paragraph (1)(A) of this subsection.
(2) For retail sewer utility service, the commission
will ensure that the applicant has:
(A) a TCEQ-approved system that is capable of meeting
TCEQ design criteria for sewer treatment plants, TCEQ rules, and the
TWC; and
(B) access to sewer treatment and/or capacity or a
long-term contract for purchased sewer treatment and/or capacity with
an entity whose system meets the requirements of paragraph (2)(A)
of this subsection.
(b) When applying for a new CCN or a CCN amendment
for an area that would require construction of a physically separate
water or sewer system, the applicant must demonstrate that regionalization
or consolidation with another retail public utility is not economically
feasible. To demonstrate this, the applicant must at a minimum provide:
(1) for applications to obtain or amend a water CCN,
a list of all retail public water and/or sewer utilities within one
half mile from the outer boundary of the requested area;
(2) for applications to obtain or amend a sewer CCN,
a list of all retail public sewer utilities within one half mile from
the outer boundary of the requested area;
(3) copies of written requests seeking to obtain service
from each of the retail public utilities referenced in paragraph (1)
or (2) of this subsection or evidence that it is not economically
feasible to obtain service from the retail public utilities referenced
in paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection;
(4) copies of written responses from each of the retail
public utilities referenced in paragraph (1) or (2) of this subsection
from which written requests for service were made or evidence that
they failed to respond within 30 days of the date of the request;
(5) if a neighboring retail public utility has agreed
to provide service to a requested area, then the following information
must also be provided by the applicant:
(A) a description of the type of service that the neighboring
retail public utility is willing to provide and comparison with service
the applicant is proposing;
(B) an analysis of all necessary costs for constructing,
operating, and maintaining the new facilities for at least the first
five years of operations, including such items as taxes and insurance;
and
(C) an analysis of all necessary costs for acquiring
and continuing to receive service from the neighboring retail public
utility for at least the first five years of operations.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter,
a Class A utility may apply to the commission for an amendment of
a water or sewer CCN held by a municipal utility district, other than
a municipal utility district located wholly or partly inside of the
corporate limits or extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality
with a population of two million or more, to allow the Class A utility
to have the same rights and powers under the CCN as the municipal
utility district.
(1) An application filed under this subsection must
include:
(A) information identifying the applicant;
(B) the identifying number of the CCN to be amended;
(C) the written consent of the municipal utility district
that holds the certificate of convenience and necessity;
(D) a written statement by the municipal utility district
that the application is supported by a contract between the municipal
utility district and the utility for the utility to provide services
inside the certificated area and inside the boundaries of the municipal
utility district; and
(E) a description of the proposed service area by:
(i) a metes and bounds survey certified by a licensed
state land surveyor or a registered professional land surveyor;
(ii) the Texas State Plane Coordinate System;
(iii) verifiable landmarks, including roads, creeks,
or railroad lines; or
(iv) if a recorded plat of the area exists, lot and
block number.
(2) No later than the 60th day after the Class A utility
files the application, the commission will review an application filed
under this subsection and determine whether the application is sufficient.
(3) Once the application is found sufficient, the
commission will:
(A) find that the amendment of the certificate is necessary
for the service, accommodation, convenience, or safety of the public;
and
(B) grant the application and amend the certificate.
(4) Chapter 2001 of the Texas Government Code does
not apply to a petition filed under this subsection. The applicant,
municipal utility district, or commission staff may file a motion
for rehearing of the commission's decision on the same timeline that
applies to other final orders of the commission. The commission's
order ruling on the application may not be appealed.
(5) The commission may approve an application filed
under this subsection that requests to amend a CCN with area that
is in the extraterritorial jurisdiction of a municipality without
the consent of the municipality.
(6) TWC §13.241(d) and §13.245 and subsections
(e), (f), and (g) of this section do not apply to an application filed
under this subsection.
(d) The commission may approve applications and grant
or amend a CCN only after finding that granting or amending the CCN
is necessary for the service, accommodation, convenience, or safety
of the public. The commission may grant or amend the CCN as applied
for, or refuse to grant it, or grant it for the construction of only
a portion of the contemplated facilities or extension thereof, or
for only the partial exercise of the right or privilege and may impose
special conditions necessary to ensure that continuous and adequate
service is provided.
(e) In considering whether to grant or amend a CCN,
the commission will also consider:
(1) the adequacy of service currently provided to the
requested area;
(2) the need for additional service in the requested
area, including, but not limited to:
(A) whether any landowners, prospective landowners,
tenants, or residents have requested service;
(B) economic needs;
(C) environmental needs;
(D) written application or requests for service; or
(E) reports or market studies demonstrating existing
or anticipated growth in the area;
(3) the effect of granting or amending a CCN on the
CCN recipient, on any landowner in the requested area, and on any
retail public utility that provides the same service and that is already
serving any area within two miles of the boundary of the requested
area. These effects include but are not limited to regionalization,
compliance, and economic effects;
(4) the ability of the applicant to provide adequate
service, including meeting the standards of the TCEQ and the commission,
taking into consideration the current and projected density and land
use of the requested area;
(5) the feasibility of obtaining service from an adjacent
retail public utility;
(6) the financial ability of the applicant to pay for
the facilities necessary to provide continuous and adequate service
and the financial stability of the applicant, including, if applicable,
the adequacy of the applicant's debt-equity ratio;
(7) environmental integrity;
(8) the probable improvement in service or lowering
of cost to consumers in that area resulting from the granting of the
new CCN or a CCN amendment; and
(9) the effect on the land to be included in the requested
area.
(f) The commission may require an applicant seeking
to obtain a new CCN or a CCN amendment to provide a bond or other
form of financial assurance to ensure that continuous and adequate
retail water or sewer utility service is provided. The commission
will set the amount of financial assurance. The form of the financial
assurance will be as specified in §24.11 of this title (relating
to Financial Assurance). The obligation to obtain financial assurance
under this chapter does not relieve an applicant from any Cont'd... |
