82R15763 JXC-F     By: Anchia H.B. No. 773     Substitute the following for H.B. No. 773:     By:  Crownover C.S.H.B. No. 773       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to creating an energy efficiency council to coordinate   administration of energy efficiency programs.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Subtitle E, Title 4, Government Code, is amended   by adding Chapter 470 to read as follows:   CHAPTER 470. ENERGY EFFICIENCY COUNCIL          Sec. 470.001.  DEFINITIONS.  In this chapter:                (1)  "Council" means the energy efficiency council.                (2)  "Energy efficiency program" means a program that   uses state or federal funding to:                      (A)  reduce inefficient energy use;                      (B)  reduce peak energy demand;                      (C)  reduce energy consumption;                      (D)  promote compliance with energy efficient   building design standards; or                      (E)  pay for the implementation of energy cost   reduction measures.                (3)  "Program administrator" includes any of the   following entities that administer an energy efficiency program:                      (A)  a state agency, including the Public Utility   Commission of Texas, the Railroad Commission of Texas, the State   Energy Conservation Office, and the Texas Department of Housing and   Community Affairs;                      (B)  a political subdivision of this state;                      (C)  a private or public utility service provider,   including an electric cooperative or municipally owned utility;                      (D)  a school district; or                      (E)  an institution of higher education.          Sec. 470.002.  PURPOSE. The energy efficiency council is a   council established in the comptroller's office to:                (1)  monitor energy efficiency programs in this state;                (2)  make recommendations for improving energy   efficiency programs in this state; and                (3)  provide a central repository for information on   energy efficiency programs in this state.          Sec. 470.003.  ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM POLICIES. A   program administrator shall consider any applicable   recommendations of the council when creating or implementing the   energy efficiency program.          Sec. 470.004.  COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP. (a)  The council is   composed of the following 15 members:                (1)  12 ex officio members as follows:                      (A)  the presiding officer of the Texas Commission   on Environmental Quality;                      (B)  the chief executive officer of the Electric   Reliability Council of Texas;                      (C)  the presiding officer of the Public Utility   Commission of Texas;                      (D)  the presiding officer of the Railroad   Commission of Texas;                      (E)  the comptroller or an employee of the State   Energy Conservation Office designated by the comptroller;                      (F)  the director of the Texas Department of   Housing and Community Affairs;                      (G)  the executive director of the Texas   Facilities Commission;                      (H)  the executive administrator of the Texas   Water Development Board;                      (I)  the presiding officer of the Water   Conservation Advisory Council;                      (J)  the executive director of the Texas   Department of Rural Affairs;                      (K)  the director of the Energy Systems Laboratory   at the Texas Engineering Experiment Station of The Texas A&M   University System; and                      (L)  the chief executive of the Office of Public   Utility Counsel; and                (2)  three public members appointed by the governor as   follows:                      (A)  one member to represent low-income   ratepayers;                      (B)  one member to represent commercial or   industrial ratepayers; and                      (C)  one member to represent an environmental   organization.          (b)  The three public members must be appointed with the   advice and consent of the senate.          (c)  The ex officio members and the appointed members serve   as voting members of the council.          (d)  The comptroller or the employee designated under   Subsection (a)(1)(E) shall serve as presiding officer of the   council.          (e)  The council shall meet at least two times per year at the   call of the presiding officer.          (f)  Council members may not receive compensation for   services but, subject to the availability of funding, may receive   reimbursement for actual and necessary expenses incurred while   performing council business.          (g)  Appointments to council positions shall be made without   regard to the race, color, disability, sex, religion, age, or   national origin of the appointees.          Sec. 470.005.  TERMS; VACANCY.  (a)  Appointed council   members serve staggered two-year terms, with the terms of one or two   members, as applicable, expiring on February 1.          (b)  A vacancy on the council in the position of an appointed   council member shall be filled in the same manner as the original   appointment. The person appointed serves for the remainder of the   unexpired term.          Sec. 470.006.  GROUNDS FOR REMOVAL. (a) It is a ground for   removal from the council that a member:                (1)  does not maintain during service on the council   the qualifications required by Section 470.004(a)(1);                (2)  cannot, because of illness or disability,   discharge the member's duties for a substantial part of the member's   term; or                (3)  is absent from more than half of the regularly   scheduled council meetings that the member is eligible to attend   during a calendar year without an excuse approved by a majority vote   of the council.          (b)  The validity of an action of the council is not affected   by the fact that it is taken when a ground for removal of a council   member exists.          (c)  If the presiding officer has knowledge that a potential   ground for removal exists, the presiding officer shall notify the   appointing authority and the attorney general that a potential   ground for removal exists.          Sec. 470.007.  ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT. To the extent   resources are available, the State Energy Conservation Office shall   provide the council with administrative support, including meeting   space and staff necessary to assist the council in carrying out the   council's duties under this chapter.          Sec. 470.008.  ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS, GRANTS, OR DONATIONS.   The council may solicit and the comptroller may accept for the   council gifts, grants, and donations from any public or private   source for the purposes of this chapter.          Sec. 470.009.  ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAM MONITORING AND   RECOMMENDATIONS. (a)  The council shall monitor energy efficiency   programs in this state.          (b)  The council may submit to a program administrator   recommendations on means to encourage greater energy efficiency on   a regular basis.          Sec. 470.010.  OFFICIAL INTERNET WEBSITES.  The council   shall use the following official Internet websites for the   publication of information as required by this chapter:                (1)  the Internet website of the State Energy   Conservation Office; and                (2)  the electric choice website of the Public Utility   Commission of Texas, www.powertochoose.org.          Sec. 470.011.  LIST OF ENERGY EFFICIENCY PROGRAMS. (a)  The   council shall:                (1)  develop a list of currently operating energy   efficiency programs in this state and publish the list on the   official Internet websites under Section 470.010; and                (2)  work with the State Energy Conservation Office and   the Public Utility Commission of Texas to develop and publish on the   official Internet websites under Section 470.010 a user-friendly   page that allows a consumer to search by the consumer's address   energy efficiency programs available in the consumer's service   area.          (b)  The State Energy Conservation Office and the Public   Utility Commission of Texas shall each provide a link on their   Internet websites to the page described by Subsection (a)(2).          Sec. 470.012.  BIENNIAL PROGRAMS REPORT. (a)  The council   biennially shall prepare a report on energy efficiency programs in   this state.  The council shall submit the report to the legislature   not later than October 1 of each even-numbered year.          (b)  The report must include:                (1)  a comprehensive review of the energy efficiency   programs on the list required by Section 470.011, including   information on the goals, costs, and benefits of the programs, the   results of each program, the energy savings and emissions   reductions that each program achieves, and the jobs that each   program creates;                (2)  a study comparing energy efficiency programs in   this state to similar programs in:                      (A)  California;                      (B)  Florida;                      (C)  New York; and                      (D)  each other state the council determines to   have programs appropriate for the comparisons; and                (3)  recommendations for improving energy efficiency   programs in this state.          (c)  The report may include recommendations for creating new   energy efficiency programs in this state.          (d)  The council shall publish the report on the official   Internet websites under Section 470.010.          Sec. 470.013.  APPLICABILITY OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE LAW.   Chapter 2110 does not apply to the council.          SECTION 2.  As soon as practicable after the effective date   of this Act, the governor and the lieutenant governor shall appoint   members to the energy efficiency council in accordance with Section   470.004, Government Code, as added by this Act.          SECTION 3.  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, 2011.