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Texas State Office of Administrative Hearings Is Abating Retail Provider Complaint Cases, Citing Resource Limitations Combined With "Unanticipated Increases In Referrals" From Texas PUC
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The Texas State Office of Administrative Hearings (SOAH) recently issued a standing order abating electricity consumer complaint cases referred to SOAH from the Public Utility Commission of Texas, citing, among other things, "current resource limitations combined with unanticipated increases in
referrals[.]"
At least three consumer complaint cases against Texas retail electric providers have been abated at SOAH under the standing order, and any similar complaint cases are to be subject to the abatement as well, as noted further below
As previously reported, a change in how the PUC defined the relief available to a complainant has led to many more formal complaints against REPs surviving motions to dismiss. Previously, if a complainant had no avenue for monetary relief from the PUC (such as because the REP had already provided a refund and because the PUC is not empowered under statute to award damages), the complaint was dismissed due to the lack of available relief. However, in 2025, the PUC, in a non-REP case, ruled that a finding from the PUC that a violation occurred is a form of relief available to complainants, and thus complaints may proceed in seeking such a finding, even if the complainant is not seeking, or is not eligible to receive, any monetary relief from the PUC due to the limitations described above.
See more background here
SOAH's standing order said that abatement of the consumer complaint cases is appropriate given that such complaints have no statutory deadline for resolution
SOAH cited a need to, "prioritize matters with statutory deadlines, including, but
not limited to, certificate-of-convenience-and necessity cases relating to the Permian
Basin Reliability Plan, and other emergency and expedited matters across the entire
statewide docket for over 50 state agencies."
SOAH stated that SOAH and the PUC are engaged in ongoing discussions to revise the process for consumer-initiated complaint and enforcement matters, "to
ensure administrative efficiency and promote consistency with dispute resolution
procedures across other Texas state agencies."
As first reported by EnergyChoiceMatters.com (see full details here), Texas PUC ALJs have begun informing complainants of an option for the complaint to be investigated by the PUC's Division of Compliance and Enforcement (DICE), rather than the complainant litigating the formal complaint, though the complainant would not be a party in any DICE proceeding
Additionally, as previously reported by ECM, the PUC has assigned a project number, 59557, for a new proceeding captioned, "Streamlined Complaint Process". Nothing substantive has yet been filed in the project
All electric complaints referred to SOAH will be reviewed to determine whether they are subject to the standing order, and, if so, the cases will either be abated, or, if appropriate after a review by a SOAH ALJ, dismissed based upon some other legal or procedural grounds
Generally, SOAH is requiring the parties to each abated formal complaint to confer and provide, by June 1, 2026, a status update, along with a motion to either (1) dismiss the case, (2) seek further abatement, or (3) propose dates to reset a hearing or mediation, which shall be no earlier than Sept. 15, 2026
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March 30, 2026
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Copyright 2026 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com
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