| (a) Any retail public utility which possesses or is
required by law to possess a certificate of convenience and necessity
or a person who possesses facilities used to provide utility service
must provide continuous and adequate service to every customer and
every qualified applicant for service whose primary point of use is
within the certificated area and may not discontinue, reduce or impair
utility service except for:
(1) nonpayment of charges for services provided by
the certificate holder or a person who possesses facilities used to
provide utility service;
(2) nonpayment of charges for sewer service provided
by another retail public utility under an agreement between the retail
public utility and the certificate holder or a person who possesses
facilities used to provide utility service or under a commission order;
(3) nonuse; or
(4) other similar reasons in the usual course of business
without conforming to the conditions, restrictions, and limitations
prescribed by the commission.
(b) After notice and hearing, the commission may:
(1) order any retail public utility that is required
by law to possess a certificate of public convenience and necessity
or any retail public utility that possesses a certificate of public
convenience and necessity and is located in an affected county as
defined in TWC §16.341, to:
(A) provide specified improvements in its service in
a defined area if:
(i) service in that area is inadequate as set forth
in §24.205 and §24.207 of this title (relating to Adequacy
of Water Utility Service; and Adequacy of Sewer Service); or
(ii) is substantially inferior to service in a comparable
area; and
(iii) it is reasonable to require the retail public
utility to provide the improved service; or
(B) develop, implement, and follow financial, managerial,
and technical practices that are acceptable to the commission to ensure
that continuous and adequate service is provided to any areas currently
certificated to the retail public utility if the retail public utility
has not provided continuous and adequate service to any of those areas
and, for a utility, to provide financial assurance of the retail public
utility's ability to operate the system in accordance with applicable
laws and rules as specified in §24.11 of this title (relating
to Financial Assurance), or as specified by the commission. The obligation
to obtain financial assurance under this chapter does not relieve
an applicant from any requirements to obtain financial assurance in
satisfaction of another state agency's rules;
(2) order two or more public utilities or water supply
or sewer service corporations to establish specified facilities for
interconnecting service after TCEQ approves the interconnecting service
pursuant to 30 TAC Chapter 290 (relating to Public Drinking Water)
or 30 TAC 217 (relating to Design Criteria for Domestic Wastewater
Systems);
(3) order a public utility or water supply or sewer
service corporation that has not demonstrated that it can provide
continuous and adequate service from its drinking water source or
sewer treatment facility to obtain service sufficient to meet its
obligation to provide continuous and adequate service on at least
a wholesale basis from another consenting utility service provider;
or
(4) issue an emergency order, with or without a hearing,
under §24.14 of this title (relating to Emergency Orders).
(c) If the commission has reason to believe that improvements
and repairs to a water or sewer service system are necessary to enable
a retail public utility to provide continuous and adequate service
in any portion of its service area and the retail public utility has
provided financial assurance under Texas Health and Safety Code, §341.0355,
or under this chapter, the commission, after providing to the retail
public utility notice and an opportunity to be heard by the commissioners
at a commission meeting, may:
(1) immediately order specified improvements and repairs
to the water or sewer system, the costs of which may be paid by the
financial assurance in an amount determined by the commission not
to exceed the amount of the financial assurance. The order requiring
the improvements may be an emergency order if it is issued after the
retail public utility has had an opportunity to be heard by the commissioners
at a commission meeting; and
(2) require a retail public utility to obligate additional
money to replace the financial assurance used for the improvements.
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