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Texas Retail Provider Seeks To Be Relieved Of Requirement To Inform Customers Of PUC-Developed Solar Guide
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Tenaska Power Services Co. (TPS), an Option 2 Texas retail electric provider, sought a declaratory order from the Texas PUC under which the PUC would find that a requirement for REPs to provide to customers certain information developed by the PUC concerning rooftop solar does not apply to Option 2 REPs
As previously reported, SB 1697 (codified as PURA 17.011) provides that, upon publication of a home solar guide by the Texas PUC, retail electric providers are required to undertake the following actions for a period of 12 months:
• REPs are required to include, on the REP's website, a link to the PUC's home solar guide
• REPs shall include, in each bill, information about accessing the PUC's home solar guide
The PUC recently published the initial home solar guide
SB 1697's new section of PURA is titled "Transparency And Best Practices Guide For
Rooftop Solar Systems For Homes", and states that the PUC's guide should include basic information, best practices, and guidelines
to consider when deciding on whether to install a solar energy device, "for a home". SB 1697 further sets forth the info which must be included in the guide, with SB 1697 stating that such information shall be for, "home solar energy devices".
Option 2 REPs are limited to serving customers 1 MW and larger which provide an affidavit agreeing to such service
As such, TPS argued that Option 2 REPs are legally prohibited from serving residential customers
"One MW in load far exceeds
the demand from even the largest residential homes and applies solely to large industrial
customers. To put this concept in perspective, the average home in Texas consumes between 36-38 kWh daily. One MW, or 1000 kW, is the lowest possible capacity for which TPS can contract
as an Option 2 REP and is about 28 times greater than average residential consumption. TPS
simply cannot serve a residential customer, which is the entire focus of PURA 17.011 and the
Guide," TPS said
TPS alleged that the PUC's Office of Public Engagement (Office) has informed TPS that, as represented by TPS, the Office interprets PURA 17.011 (SB 1697) to apply to all REPs.
TPS argued, "The Office reasoned that this statutory provision should apply to Option 2 REPs despite the clear
context focusing on residential customers because the statute does not expressly distinguish among
the types of REPs in its text ... this interpretation, although perhaps intended
as a nod to using the plain language of the statute, actually runs counter to the rules of statutory
construction and relevant precedent."
TPS argued, "Imposing this requirement on Option 2 REPs will force these REPs to incur time and expense to make changes to each Option 2 REP’s website and provide monthly bill inserts in every invoice for 12 months with absolutely no public benefit."
In addition to cost and resource burdens to comply with the requirements, TPS argued that providing the residential solar information to Option 2 REP customers would create customer confusion
TPS argued, "such
bill inserts risk creating confusion in TPS’s customer base since industrial customers would
legitimately question why they are receiving information about residential rooftop solar options."
TPS said that precedent requires statutory construction to give effect to the intent of the Legislature.
TPS argued that the statute's title and references to "home", as cited above, indicate a "clear intent" that the requirements only apply to residential customers
TPS argued, "the interpretation by the Office that PURA 17.011 applies to Option 2 REPs
ignores the plain and obvious intent of the Legislature to provide information specifically to
residential customers and interprets a statute focused on residential customers to impose a costly
obligation on entities that cannot legally serve residential customers ... the
Legislature must be presumed to have intended a just and reasonable result and statutes should not
be interpreted to lead to an absurdity, which is the consequence of the interpretation offered by the
Office."
TPS requested that the PUC issue a
declaratory order clarifying that PURA § 17.011 applies only to those REPs certificated to serve
residential customers and does not apply to Option 2 REPs
Docket 59612
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April 7, 2026
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Copyright 2026 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com
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