Texas PUC Staff Renew Motion To Dismiss Customer Petition For Renewal Of Choice Pilot At SWEPCO

Staff of the Texas PUC have again moved to dismiss a 2021 petition from East Texas Salt Water Disposal Company (ETSWD) in which ETSWD had requested that the PUC initiate a project to "renew" the retail electric competition pilot project associated with the Southwestern Electric Power Company (SWEPCO) service territory, which had been initiated in 2000

See full background on ETSWD's petition concerning the pilot, and the various mechanisms under which ETSWD has sought a PUC order regarding the pilot, here

In contrast to the status of the case earlier this year when Staff first sought dismissal for alleged failure to prosecute by ETSWD (at which time ETSWD was the last party to have substantively filed a pleading in the docket and thus had filed an answer to any objections, with no procedural schedule or similar mechanism established for consideration of the petition or which obligated ETSWD to make any further filings), ETSWD has now failed to respond to a specific directive from an ALJ for a status update on the petition.

Specifically, an ALJ had directed that, by May 15, 2026, East Texas Salt Water Disposal Company file a report regarding the status of the proceeding and explain whether it is appropriate to continue processing a petition that is almost five years old.

ETSWD did not respond to the ALJ's directive

In light of such lack of response from ETSWD, Staff stated, "This clear failure to file any substantive pleading at all for over five years demonstrates the need to dismiss this case."

Staff recommends dismissal without prejudice

In March 2026, Staff had, for the first time in this specific petition docket (52308), provided Staff's substantive position, in concluding that, "there is no mechanism under state law or Commission rules that would grant ETSWD [East Texas Salt Water Disposal Company] the right to petition the Commission for the implementation or renewal of a retail [electric choice] pilot program [at SWEPCO], and no party has provided any support for this proposition."

Note that while Staff said that no authority exists for a customer to petition for implementation of a retail choice pilot at SWEPCO, the PUC did, in a separate Docket 51257 order (addressing an earlier petition from ETSWD), find that creation of a pilot is within the Commission's authority.

Specifically, the PUC had said in Docket 51257 that PURA § 39.503(c)(1) expressly grants the Commission authority to initiate a new customer-choice pilot project in SWEPCO's service area

Docket 52308