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House committee approves Cruz bill to list utilities that provide aggregate energy reporting
Summary
House Bill 254 would require the Public Service Commission to publish which energy utilities offer aggregate (project-level) consumption reporting to help developers seeking federal energy or tax incentives. Commissioners said the PSC is already working on related data efforts.
The House Committee on Commerce on April 22 moved House Bill 254 by Representative Cruz favorably after adopting a technical amendment. The bill would require energy utilities or their regulators to report whether they provide aggregate (property- or project-level) energy-consumption reporting — the consolidated meter data often required by federal programs that incentivize energy-efficient housing.
Cruz told the committee developers pursuing incentives such as HUD’s Green Mortgage Insurance Premium reduction or Energy Star tax credits need aggregate reporting for entire multifamily projects; collecting individual tenant bills is time-consuming and raises administrative hurdles. He described developers’ interest in locating projects where utilities already provide aggregated meter data, and said the bill’s goal is transparency: publish whether each utility “does or does not provide this aggregate reporting.”
Public Service Commission executive secretary Brandon Frey and Commissioner Davante Lewis testified they had discussed similar issues with Cruz and are already examining how best to present the data. Frey said the PSC would likely create a web link listing utilities and whether they provide aggregate reporting; Commissioner Lewis added that federal programs under the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Law increase demand for this information. Lewis said national utility regulators are already studying best practices and that several states have begun rulemaking on customer energy data.
Members clarified the bill does not require utilities to perform new aggregation; it only asks the PSC to publish whether a utility offers the service. Representative Newell asked whether the measure would impose new costs on ratepayers; Cruz and PSC staff said it would not mandate new services or charges — it only requires disclosure of existing capabilities. Representative Knox asked whether underground-utility mapping is part of the PSC’s data; commissioners said mapping is being pursued separately at the governor’s level and that some high-level transmission data reside with the PSC.
Committee members voted to report the bill favorably with amendments.
Votes at a glance: Amendment set 1405 adopted (technical). Motion to report House Bill 254 favorable carried by voice; no roll-call tally recorded in transcript.
