Section 25.479 - Issuance and Format of Bills(a) Application. This section applies to a retail electric provider (REP) that is responsible for issuing electric service bills to retail customers, unless the REP is issuing a consolidated bill (both energy services and transmission and distribution services) on behalf of an electric cooperative or municipally owned utility. This section does not apply to a municipally owned utility or electric cooperative issuing bills to its customers in its own service territory.(b) Frequency and delivery of bills.(1) A REP must issue a bill monthly to each customer unless service is provided for a period of less than one month. A REP may issue a bill less frequently than monthly if both the customer and the REP agree to such an arrangement.(2) A bill must be issued no later than 30 days after the REP receives the usage data and any related invoices for non-bypassable charges, unless validation of the usage data and invoice received from a transmission and distribution utility by the REP or other efforts to determine the accuracy of usage data or invoices delay billing by a REP past 30 days. The number of days to issue a bill must be extended beyond 30 days to the extent necessary to support agreements between REPs and customers for less frequent billing, as provided in paragraph (1) of this subsection or for consolidated billing.(3) A REP must issue bills to residential customers in writing and delivered via the United States Postal Service. REPs may provide bills to a customer electronically in lieu of written mailings if both the customer and the REP agree to such an arrangement. An affiliated REP or a provider of last resort must not require a customer to agree to such an arrangement as a condition of receiving electric service.(4) A REP must not charge a customer a fee for issuing a standard bill, which is a bill delivered via U.S. mail that complies with the requirements of this section. The customer may be charged a fee or given a discount for non-standard billing in accordance with the terms of service document.(c) Bill content. (1) Each customer's bill must include the following information:(A) The certified name and address of the REP and the number of the license issued to the REP by the commission;(B) A toll-free telephone number, in bold-face type, which the customer can call during specified hours for inquiries and to make complaints to the REP about the bill;(C) A toll-free telephone number that the customer may call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to report power outages and concerns about the safety of the electric power system;(D) The service address, electric service identifier (ESI), and account number of the customer;(E) The service period for which the bill is rendered;(F) The date on which the bill was issued;(G) The payment due date of the bill and, if different, the date by which payment from the customer must be received by the REP to avoid a late charge or other collection action;(H) The current charges for electric service as disclosed in the customer's terms of service document, including applicable taxes and fees labeled "current charges." If the customer is on a level or average payment plan, the level or average payment due must be clearly shown in addition to the current charges;(I) A calculation of the average unit price for electric service for the current billing period, labeled, "The average price you paid for electric service this month." The calculation of the average price for electric service must reflect the total of all fixed and variable recurring charges, but not include state and local sales taxes, reimbursement for the state miscellaneous gross receipts tax, and any nonrecurring charges or credits, divided by the kilowatt-hour consumption, and must be expressed as a cents per kilowatt-hour amount rounded to the nearest one-tenth of one cent.(J) The identification and itemization of charges other than for electric service as disclosed in the customer's terms of service document;(K) The itemization and amount of any non-recurring charge, including late fees, returned check fees, restoration of service fees, or other fees disclosed in the REP's terms of service document provided to the customer;(L) The balances from the preceding bill, payments made by the customer since the preceding bill, and the amount the customer is required to pay by the due date, labeled "amount due;"(M) A notice that the customer has the opportunity to voluntarily donate money to the bill payment assistance program, pursuant to §RSA 25.480<subdiv>(g)(2)</subdiv> of this title ( relating to Bill Payment and Adjustments);(N) If available to the REP on a standard electronic transaction, if the bill is based on kilowatt-hour (kWh) usage, the following information:(i) the meter reading at the beginning of the period for which the customer is being billed, labeled "previous meter read," and the meter reading at the end of the period for which the customer is being billed, labeled "current meter read," and the dates of such readings;(ii) the kind and number of units measured, including kWh, actual kilowatts (kW), or kilovolt ampere (kVa);(iii) if applicable, billed kW or kVa;(iv) whether the bill was issued based on estimated usage; and(v) any conversions from meter reading units to billing units, or any other calculations to determine billing units from recording or other devices, or any other factors used in determining the bill, unless the customer is provided conversion charts;(O) Any amount owed under a written guarantee agreement, provided the guarantor was previously notified in writing by the REP of an obligation on a guarantee as required by § RSA 25.478 of this title (relating to Credit Requirements and Deposits);(P) A conspicuous notice of any services or products being provided to the customer that have been added since the previous bill;(Q) Notification of any changes in the customer's prices or charges due to the operation of a variable rate feature previously disclosed by the REP in the customer's terms of service document;(R) The notice required by §RSA 25.481<subdiv>(d)</subdiv> of this title (relating to Unauthorized Charges); and(S) For residential customers, on the first page of the bill in at least 12-point font the phrase, "for more information about residential electric service please visit www.powertochoose.com."(2) If a REP separately identifies a charge defined by one of the terms in this paragraph on the customer's bill, then the term in this paragraph must be used to identify that charge, and such term and its definition must be easily located on the REP's website and available to a customer free of charge upon request. Nothing in this paragraph precludes a REP from aggregating transmission and distribution utility (TDU) or REP charges. For any TDU charge(s) listed in this paragraph, the amount billed by the REP must not exceed the amount of the TDU tariff charge(s). The label for any TDU charge(s) may also identify the TDU that issued the charge(s). A REP may use a different term than a defined term by adding or deleting a suffix, by adding the word "total" to a defined term, where appropriate, changing the use of lower-case or capital letters or punctuation, or using the acceptable abbreviation specified in this paragraph for a defined term. If an abbreviation other than the acceptable abbreviation is used for the term, then the term must also be identified on the customer's bill. (A) Advanced metering charge--A charge assessed to recover a TDU's charges for Advanced Metering Systems, to the extent that they are not recovered in a TDU's standard metering charge. Acceptable abbreviation: Advanced Meter.(B) Competition Transition Charge--A charge assessed to recover a TDU's charges for nonsecuritized costs associated with the transition to competition. Acceptable abbreviation: Competition Transition.(C) Energy Efficiency Cost Recovery Factor--A charge assessed to recover a TDU's costs for energy efficiency programs, to the extent that the TDU charge is a separate charge exclusively for that purpose that is approved by the Public Utility Commission. Acceptable abbreviation: Energy Efficiency.(D) Late Payment Penalty--A charge assessed for late payment in accordance with Public Utility Commission rules.(E) Meter Charge--A charge assessed to recover a TDU's charges for metering a customer's consumption, to the extent that the TDU charge is a separate charge exclusively for that purpose that is approved by the Public Utility Commission.(F) Miscellaneous Gross Receipts Tax Reimbursement--A fee assessed to recover he miscellaneous gross receipts tax imposed on retail electric providers operating in an incorporated city or town having a population of more than 1,000. Acceptable abbreviation: Gross Receipts Reimb.(G) Nuclear Decommissioning Fee--A charge assessed to recover a TDU's charges for decommissioning of nuclear generating sites. Acceptable abbreviation: Nuclear Decommission.(H) PUC Assessment--A fee assessed to recover the statutory fee for administering the Public Utility Regulatory Act.(I) Sales tax--Sales tax collected by authorized taxing authorities, such as the state, cities and special purpose districts.(J) TDU Delivery Charges--The total amounts assessed by a TDU for the delivery of electricity to a customer over poles and wires and other TDU facilities not including discretionary charges.(K) Transmission Distribution Surcharges--One or more TDU surcharge(s) on a customer's bill in any combination. Surcharges include charges billed as tariff riders by the TDU. Acceptable abbreviation: TDU Surcharges.(L) Transition Charge--A charge assessed to recover a TDU's charges for securitized costs associated with the transition to competition.(3) If the REP includes any of the following terms in its bills, the term must be applied in a manner consistent with the definitions, and such term and its definition must be easily located on the REP's website and available to a customer free of charge upon request: (A) Base Charge--A charge assessed during each billing cycle without regard to the customer's demand or energy consumption.(B) Demand Charge--A charge based on the rate at which electric energy is delivered to or by a system at a given instant, or averaged over a designated period, during the billing cycle.(C) Energy Charge--A charge based on the electric energy (kWh) consumed.(4) A REP must provide an itemization of charges, including non-bypassable charges, to the customer upon the customer's request and, to the extent that the charges are consistent with the terms set out in paragraph (2), of this subsection, the terms must be used in the itemization.(5) A customer's electric bill must not contain charges for electric service from a service provider other than the customer's designated REP.(6) A REP must include on each residential and small commercial billing statement, in boldfaced and underlined type, the date, as provided for in §RSA 25.475<subdiv>(c)(3)(B)</subdiv> of this title (relating to General Retail Electric Provider Requirements and Information Disclosure to Residential and Small Commercial Customers) that a fixed rate product will expire.(7) To the extent that a REP uses the concepts identified in this paragraph in a customer's bill, it must use the term set out in this paragraph, and the definitions in this paragraph must be easily located on the REP's website. A REP may not use a different term for a concept that is defined in this paragraph. (A) kW--Kilowatt, the standard unit for measuring electricity demand, equal to 1,000 watts;(B) kWh--Kilowatt-hour, the standard unit for measuring electricity energy consumption, equal to 1,000 watt-hours; and(8) Notice of contract expiration may be provided in a bill in accordance with § RSA 25.475 of this title.(d) Public service notices. A REP must, as required by the commission after reasonable notice, provide brief public service notices to its customers. The REP must provide these public service notices to its customers on its billing statements, as a separate document issued with its bill, by electronic communication, or by other acceptable mass communication methods, as approved by the commission. Additionally, in April and October of each year, or as otherwise directed by the commission, the REP must provide information to each customer along with the customer's bill about: (1) The electric utility's procedures for implementing involuntary load shedding initiated by the independent organization certified for the ERCOT power region under PURA §39.151;(2) The types of customers who may be considered critical care residential customers, critical load industrial customers, or critical load according to commission rules adopted under PURA §38.076;(3) The procedure for a customer to apply to be considered a critical care customer, a critical load industrial customer, or critical load according to commission rules adopted under PURA §38.076; and(4) Reducing electricity use at times when involuntary load shedding events may be implemented.(e) Estimated bills. If a REP is unable to issue a bill based on actual meter reading due to the failure of the TDU, the registration agent, municipally owned utility or electric cooperative to obtain or transmit a meter reading or an invoice for non-bypassable charges to the REP on a timely basis, the REP may issue a bill based on the customer's estimated usage and inform the customer of the reason for the issuance of the estimated bill.(f) Non-recurring charges. A REP may pass through to its customers all applicable non-recurring charges billed to the REP by a TDU, municipally owned utility, or electric cooperative as a result of establishing, switching, disconnecting, reconnecting, or maintaining service to an applicant or customer. In the event of a meter test, the TDU, municipally owned utility, electric cooperative, and REP must comply with the requirements of § RSA 25.124 of this title (relating to Meter Testing) or with the requirements of the tariffs of a TDU, municipally owned utility, or electric cooperative, as applicable. The TDU, municipally owned utility, or electric cooperative must maintain a record of all meter tests performed at the request of a REP or a REP's customers.(g) Record retention. A REP must maintain monthly billing and payment records for each account for at least 24 months after the date the bill is mailed. The billing records must contain sufficient data to reconstruct a customer's billing for a given period. A copy of a customer's billing records may be obtained by that customer on request, and may be obtained once per 12-month period, at no charge.(h) Transfer of delinquent balances or credits. If the customer has an outstanding balance or credit owed to the customer's current REP that is due from a previous account in the same customer class, then the customer's current REP may transfer that balance to the customer's current account. The delinquent balance and specific account or address must be identified as such on the bill. There must be no balance transfers between REPs, other than transfer of a deposit, as specified in §RSA 25.478<subdiv>(j)(2)</subdiv> of this title.16 Tex. Admin. Code § 25.479
The provisions of this §25.479 adopted to be effective January 15, 2001, 26 TexReg 125; amended to be effective June 1, 2004, 29 TexReg 4756; amended to be effective January 6, 2010, 35 TexReg 78; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 43, Number 19, May 11, 2018, TexReg 3066, eff. 5/13/2018; Amended by Texas Register, Volume 46, Number 53, December 31, 2021, TexReg 9269, eff. 1/6/2022