| (6) Other terms. Any other material terms and conditions,
including exclusions, reservations, limitations of liability, or special
equipment requirements, that are a part of the contract for the retail
electric product.
(7) Contract expiration notice. For a term contract,
the terms of service must contain a statement informing the customer
that a contract expiration notice will be sent at least 14 days prior
to the end of the initial contract term. The terms of service must
also state that if the customer fails to take action to ensure the
continued receipt of retail electric service upon the contract's expiration,
the customer will continue to be served by the REP automatically pursuant
to a default renewal product, which must be a month-to-month product.
(8) A statement describing the conditions under which
the contract can change and the notice that will be provided if there
is a change.
(9) Version number. A REP must assign an identification
number to each version of its terms of service, and must publish the
number on the terms of service document.
(g) Electricity Facts Label. The EFL must be unique
for each product offered and must include the information required
in this subsection. Nothing in this subsection precludes a REP from
charging a price that is less than its EFL would otherwise provide.
(1) Identity and contact information. The REP's certified
name and business name (dba) (if applicable), mailing address, e-mail
and Internet address (if applicable), certification number, and a
toll-free telephone number (with hours of operation and time-zone
reference).
(2) Pricing disclosures. Pricing information must be
disclosed by a REP in an EFL. The EFL must state specifically whether
the product is a fixed rate or variable price product.
(A) For a fixed rate product, the EFL must provide
the total average price for electric service reflecting all recurring
charges, excluding state and local sales taxes, and reimbursement
for the state miscellaneous gross receipts tax, to the customer.
(B) For a variable price product, the EFL must provide
the total average price for electric service for the first billing
cycle reflecting all recurring charges, including any TDU charges
that may be passed through and excluding state and local sales taxes,
and reimbursement for the state miscellaneous gross receipts tax,
to the customer. Actual changes in TDU charges, changes to the ERCOT
or Texas Regional Entity administrative fees charge to loads or changes
resulting from federal, state or local laws or regulatory actions
that impose new or modified fees or costs on a REP that were not implemented
prior to the issuance of the EFL and were not included in the average
price calculation may be directly passed through to customers beginning
with the customer's first billing cycle.
(C) The total average price for electric service must
be expressed in cents per kilowatt hour, rounded to the nearest one-tenth
of one cent for the following usage levels:
(i) For residential customers, 500, 1,000 and 2,000
kilowatt hours per month; and
(ii) For small commercial customers, 1,500, 2,500,
and 3,500 kilowatt hours per month. If demand charges apply assume
a 30 percent load factor.
(D) If a REP combines the charges for retail electric
service with charges for any other product, the REP must:
(i) If the electric product is sold separately from
the other products, disclose the total price for electric service
separately from other products; and
(ii) If the REP does not permit a customer to purchase
the electric product without purchasing the other products or services,
state the total charges for all products and services as the price
of the total electric service. If the product has a one-time cost
up front, for the purposes of the average price calculation, the cost
of the product may be figured in over a 12-month period with 1/12
of the cost being attributed to a single month.
(E) The following must be included on the EFL for specific
product types:
(i) For a variable price product that increases no
more than a defined percentage as indexed to the customer's previous
billing month's price, a notice in bold type no smaller than 12 point
font: "Except for price changes allowed by law or regulatory action,
this price is the price that will be applied during your first billing
cycle; this price may increase by no more than {insert percentage}
percent from month-to-month." For residential customers, the following
additional statement is required: "Please review the historical price
of this product available at {insert specific website address and
toll-free telephone number}." In the disclosure chart, the box describing
whether the price can change during the contract period must include
the following statement: "The price applied in the first billing cycle
may be different from the price in this EFL if there are changes in
TDSP charges; changes to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas
or Texas Regional Entity, Inc. administrative fees charged to loads;
or changes resulting from federal, state or local laws or regulatory
actions that impose new or modified fees or costs that are outside
our control."
(ii) For all other variable price products, a notice
in bold type no smaller than 12 point font: "Except for price changes
allowed by law or regulatory action, this price is the price that
will be applied during your first billing cycle; this price may change
in subsequent months at the sole discretion of {insert REP name}.
In the disclosure chart, the box describing whether the price can
change during the contract period must include the following statement:
"The price applied in the first billing cycle may be different from
the price in this EFL if there are changes in TDSP charges; changes
to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas or Texas Regional Entity
administrative fees charged to loads; or changes resulting from federal,
state or local laws or regulatory actions that impose new or modified
fees or costs that are outside our control." For residential customers,
the following additional statement is required: "Please review the
historical price of this product available at {insert specific website
address and toll-free telephone number}."
(3) Fee Disclosures.
(A) If customer may be subject to a special charge
for underground service or any similar charge that applies only in
a part of the TDU service area, the EFL must include a statement in
the electricity price section that some customers will be subject
to a special charge that is not included in the total average price
for electric service and must disclose how the customer can determine
the price and applicability of the special charge.
(B) A listing of all fees assessed by the REP that
may be charged to the customer and whether the fee is included in
the recurring charges.
(4) Term Disclosure. EFL must include disclosure of
the length of term, minimum service term, if any, and early termination
penalties, if any.
(5) Renewable Energy Disclosures. The EFL must include
the percentage of renewable energy of the electricity product and
the percentage of renewable energy of the statewide average generation
mix.
(6) Format of Electricity Facts Label. REPs must use
the following format for the EFL with the pricing chart and disclosure
chart shown. The additional language is for illustrative purposes.
It does not include all reporting requirements as outlined above.
Such subsections should be referred to for determination of the required
reporting items on the EFL. Each EFL must be printed in type no smaller
than ten points in size, unless a different size is specified in this
section, and must be formatted as shown in this paragraph:
Attached Graphic
(7) Version number. A REP must assign an identification
number to each version of its EFL, and must publish the number on
the EFL.
(h) Your Rights as a Customer disclosure. The information
set out in this section must be included in a REP's "Your Rights as
a Customer" document in plain language, to summarize the standard
customer protections provided by this subchapter or additional protections
provided by the REP.
(1) A YRAC document must be consistent with the terms
of service for the retail product.
(2) The YRAC document must inform the customer of the
REP's complaint resolution policy pursuant to §25.485 of this
title (relating to Customer Access and Complaint Handling) and payment
arrangements and deferred payment policies pursuant to §25.480
of this title (relating to Bill Payment and Adjustments).
(3) The YRAC document must inform the customer of the
REP's procedures for reporting outages and the steps necessary to
have service restored or reconnected after an involuntary suspension
or disconnection.
(4) The YRAC must provide information the REP has received
from the TDU pursuant to PURA §17.003(e) regarding the TDU's
procedures for implementing involuntary load shedding initiated by
the independent organization certified under PURA §39.151 for
the ERCOT power region, and, if applicable, where any additional details
regarding those procedures or relevant updates may be located. The
REP may fulfill this requirement by providing a website address with
the required information. Each TDU must develop such information and
resources by September 1, 2021 and make the website address where
such information can be viewed available to REPs. A REP may provide
this information at a website address other than the website addresses
made available by the TDUs. A TDU or other entity providing a website
address is required to update this information within 30 days of any
material change in the information.
(5) The YRAC document must inform the customer of the
customer's right to have the meter tested pursuant to §25.124
of this title (relating to Meter Testing), or in accordance with the
tariffs of a transmission and distribution utility, a municipally
owned utility, or an electric cooperative, as applicable, and the
REP's ability in all cases to make that request on behalf of the customer
by a standard electronic market transaction, and the customer's right
to be instructed on how to read the meter, if applicable.
(6) The YRAC document must inform the customer of the
availability of:
(A) Financial and energy assistance programs for residential
customers;
(B) Any special services such as readers or notices
in Braille or TTY;
(C) Special policies or programs available to residential
customers designated as chronic condition or critical care under §25.497
of this title and the procedure for a customer to apply to be considered
for such designations; and
(D) Any available discounts that may be offered by
the REP for qualified low-income residential customers. A REP may
comply with this requirement by providing the customer with instructions
for how to inquire about such discounts.
(7) The YRAC document must inform the customer of the
following customer rights and protections:
(A) Unauthorized switch protections applicable under §25.495
of this title (relating to Unauthorized Change of Retail Electric
Provider);
(B) The customer's right to dispute unauthorized charges
on the customer's bill as set forth in §25.481 of this title
(relating to Unauthorized Charges);
(C) Protections relating to disconnection of service
pursuant to §25.483 of this title;
(D) Non-English language requirements pursuant to §25.473
of this title (relating to Non-English Language Requirements);
(E) Availability of a Do Not Call List pursuant to §25.484
of this title (relating to Electric No-Call List) and §26.37
of this title (relating to Texas No-Call List); and
(F) Privacy rights regarding customer proprietary information
as provided by §25.472 of this title (relating to Privacy of
Customer Information).
(8) Identity and contact information. The REP's certified
name and business name (dba), certification number, mailing address,
e-mail and Internet address (if applicable), and a toll-free telephone
number (with hours of operation and time-zone reference) at which
the customer may obtain information concerning the product.
(i) Advertising claims. If a REP or aggregator advertises
or markets the specific benefits of a particular electric product,
the REP or aggregator must provide the name of the electric product
offered in the advertising or marketing materials to the commission
or its staff, upon request. All advertisements and marketing materials
distributed by or on behalf of a REP or aggregator must comply with
this section. REPs and aggregators are responsible for representations
to customers and prospective customers by employees or other agents
of the REP concerning retail electric service that are made through
advertising, marketing or other means.
(1) Print advertisements. Print advertisements and
marketing materials, including direct mail solicitations that make
any claims regarding price, savings, or environmental quality for
an electricity product of the REP compared to a product offered by
another REP must include the EFL of the REP making the claim. In lieu
of including an EFL, the following statement must be provided: "You
can obtain important standardized information that will allow you
to compare this product with other offers. Contact (name, telephone
number, and Internet address (if available) of the REP)." If the REPs
phone number or website address is included on the advertisement,
such phone number or website address is not required in the disclaimer
statement. Upon request, a REP must Cont'd... |
