Bill Text: TX HB3030 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Relating to notice to customers, governmental entities, and other affected persons after significant interruptions of certain services.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-03-19 - Referred to Homeland Security & Public Safety [HB3030 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-HB3030-Introduced.html

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87R11596 BRG-D
By: Goodwin H.B. No. 3030

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to notice to customers, governmental entities, and other
affected persons after significant interruptions of certain
services.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 418.192(a), Government Code, is amended
by adding Subdivision (3) to read as follows:
(3) "Significant interruption of service" means an
interruption of essential products and services provided by a
public service provider that lasts one or more hours and affects the
provider's entire system, a major division of the provider's
system, a community, a critical load, or service to interruptible
customers, and a scheduled interruption lasting more than four
hours that affects customers who are not notified in advance. The
term includes:
(A) a loss of service to 20 percent or more of the
provider's customers, or 20,000 customers for a provider serving
more than 200,000 customers; and
(B) interruptions adversely affecting a
community such as interruptions of governmental agencies, military
bases, universities and schools, major retail centers, and major
employers.
SECTION 2. Section 418.192, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsections (b-1) and (b-2) to
read as follows:
(b) A public service provider shall [may] enter into a
contract for an emergency notification system described by this
section for use in informing the provider's customers, governmental
entities, and other affected persons regarding:
(1) notice of a disaster, [or] emergency, or
significant interruption of service; and
(2) any actions a recipient is required to take during
a disaster, [or] emergency, or significant interruption of service.
(b-1) The emergency notification system for which a
contract is entered into under Subsection (b) must provide notice
of a significant interruption of service as soon as reasonably
possible after the interruption occurs. The notice must include:
(1) the general location of the interruption;
(2) the cause of the interruption, if known;
(3) the date and time that the interruption began;
(4) the estimated date and time that service will be
restored; and
(5) the name and telephone number of the public
service provider.
(b-2) If the duration of a significant interruption of
service is longer than 24 hours, the emergency notification system
for which a contract is entered into under Subsection (b) must
provide an update to the information required under Subsection
(b-1) to the public service provider's customers, governmental
entities, and other affected persons not less than once every 24
hours that the interruption continues.
SECTION 3. Section 418.192(h), Government Code, is
repealed.
SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.