Reynolds Bill Fast-Tracks Home Solar Hookups Under 50 Kilowatts

The text as introduced · 1,080 words

89R9009 CXP-F

By: Reynolds
H.B. No. 3346

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to distributed energy resources.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 17, Utilities Code, is

amended by adding Section 17.011 to read as follows:

Sec. 17.011. METER SOCKET ADAPTER. The commission by rule

shall require an electric utility to modify the utility's service

requirements to authorize the use of a meter socket adapter owned by

a residential customer of retail electric service and certified by

a nationally recognized testing laboratory to support residential

distributed generation and energy storage systems.

SECTION 2. Section 31.002, Utilities Code, is amended by

adding Subdivision (4-c) to read as follows:

(4-c) "Distributed energy resource" means a resource

located on the distribution system, on a subsystem of the

distribution system, or on the customer's side of the meter,

including:

(A) a generation resource or storage resource

that provides electricity onto the distribution system; and

(B) a load resource capable of modifying its

electricity usage in response to grid conditions.

SECTION 3. Section 39.002, Utilities Code, is amended to

read as follows:

Sec. 39.002. APPLICABILITY. This chapter, other than

Sections 39.151, 39.1516, 39.155, 39.157(e), 39.161, 39.162,

39.163, 39.203, 39.9051, 39.9052, [ and ] 39.914(e), and 39.9155, and

Subchapters M and N, does not apply to a municipally owned utility

or an electric cooperative. Sections 39.157(e) and 39.203 apply

only to a municipally owned utility or an electric cooperative that

is offering customer choice. If there is a conflict between the

specific provisions of this chapter and any other provisions of

this title, except for Chapters 40 and 41, the provisions of this

chapter control.

SECTION 4. Section 39.3515, Utilities Code, is amended by

amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (c) to read as

follows:

(b) The commission shall adopt [ may establish ] rules and

registration requirements for the aggregation of distributed

energy resources.

(c) The commission shall:

(1) establish the aggregate distributed energy

resource pilot project (Project 53911) as a formal program;

(2) require the independent organization certified

under Section 39.151 for the ERCOT power region to:

(A) increase participation in the program by:

(i) eliminating capacity- and load

zone-based limitations;

(ii) allowing for the participation of an

aggregated distributed energy resource in the wholesale energy

market if the resource has a capacity of 160 megawatts or less and

complies with all applicable commission requirements;

(iii) allowing for the participation of an

aggregated distributed energy resource in the ancillary services

market if the resource has a capacity of 80 megawatts or less and

complies with all applicable commission requirements; and

(iv) allowing for the participation in the

wholesale energy and ancillary services markets, without

security-constrained economic dispatch restrictions, of load

resource types that respond to demand response instructions with

blocks of demand; and

(B) incorporate aggregated noncontrollable load

resources into the program's governing documents; and

(3) provide that, when the independent organization

certified under Section 39.151 for the ERCOT power region issues an

emergency energy alert, a distributed energy resource that

participates in the program is entitled to the same legal

protections and subject to the same performance standards as

another comparable energy resource.

SECTION 5. Subchapter Z, Chapter 39, Utilities Code, is

amended by adding Sections 39.9155 and 39.9161 to read as follows:

Sec. 39.9155. DISTRIBUTED ENERGY RESOURCES. (a) The

commission by rule shall:

(1) provide for an expedited application process for

the interconnection of distributed energy resources;

(2) adopt statewide technical requirements for

interconnected distributed energy resources;

(3) provide for an expedited approval process for the

installation of distributed energy resources with a capacity of

less than 50 kilowatts; and

(4) authorize the management of distributed energy

resource import and export limitations using power control systems

that are tested and certified by a nationally recognized testing

laboratory.

(b) The commission shall review the requirements adopted

under Subsection (a)(2) at least once every two years and update

those requirements as necessary for public safety.

(c) Compliance with rules adopted under Subsection (a) by a

provider of electric service which is a municipally owned utility

shall be administered solely by the governing body of the

municipally owned utility, which shall adopt, implement, and

enforce, as to the municipally owned utility, rules having the

effect of accomplishing the objectives of this section.

(d) The commission by rule shall:

(1) ensure that owners of distributed energy resources

are fairly compensated for contributions to grid resilience,

including through retail tariffs or other market mechanisms, with

compensation that reflects the locational and temporal value of the

resources; and

(2) establish standards for telemetry provided to the

independent organization certified under Section 39.151 for the

ERCOT power region by an owner or operator of a distributed energy

resource that include real-time two-second protocols and clarified

validation metrics.

(e) The commission may enter into public-private

partnerships and allocate grants for the purposes of this section

if money is available for those purposes under other law.

Sec. 39.9161. INTERCONNECTION OF ELECTRIC VEHICLES. (a)

In this section:

(1) "Electric vehicle" has the meaning assigned by

Section 42.0102.

(2) "Interconnection" means the right of an electric

vehicle owner to physically connect the electric vehicle to an

electricity distribution system and the technical requirements,

rules, or processes for the connection.

(b) The commission by rule shall establish safety,

technical, and performance standards for electric vehicles that may

be interconnected. In adopting the rules, the commission shall

consider standards published by the Underwriters Laboratories, the

National Electrical Code, the National Electrical Safety Code, and

the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.

(c) The commission by rule shall establish a program to

allow the sale of electricity stored by an electric vehicle to the

transmission grid and distribution system. The rules must

authorize an electric utility or retail electric provider to

contract with an electric vehicle owner so that:

(1) electricity stored by the electric vehicle is made

available for sale to the transmission grid and distribution

system; and

(2) the value of that electricity is credited to the

electric vehicle owner.

SECTION 6. Not later than December 31, 2025, the Public

Utility Commission of Texas shall adopt the rules required by this

Act.

SECTION 7. This Act takes effect immediately if it 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

Act takes effect September 1, 2025.