Utilities

Historically, utilities in the State of Texas have been regulated at State and/or federal levels depending on the service the utility company offers the public. At the State level, utilities are regulated by the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) or the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC). The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) or the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) regulates at the federal level.

Regulating Franchise Areas
When they were formed, utility companies were assigned an exclusive franchise area in which only they could provide a defined service to the public. Because there was no competition for customers in their service territory, a governmental regulatory scheme was employed as a surrogate for competition.

Regulatory agencies approved the terms and conditions of service a utility company provided and set the rate of return the company could earn for the service it offered the public. This utility model has evolved with the passage of time.

Current Oversight Authority
The present state of oversight of utility companies in Texas has come about since the telephone industry was subjected to restructuring beginning in the 1970s. The change in telephone regulation was driven by a combination of technological change, court decisions, and changes in federal policy that permitted competitive entry into most telecommunications markets.

Aspects of the restructuring of the telephone industry were subsequently adopted and used in deregulating other utility services. Oversight by the regulatory authority over a utility has evolved to support the changing regulatory scheme.

Entergy provides regulated electric service to portions of The Woodlands. Customers in Entergy’s service area do not choose their provider.

 entergy-texas.com

CenterPoint maintains electric infrastructure in its service area, while customers select their own Retail Electric Provider (REP). CenterPoint is also responsible for power restoration in outages.

 centerpointenergy.com

Woodlands Water manages water and sewer services for several Municipal Utility Districts (MUDs) in The Woodlands. It also provides customer service and conservation programs.

 woodlandswater.org

Harris County Municipal Utility District (MUD) 386 provides water, sewer, and drainage services to parts of the Village of Creekside Park. The district operates independently of the Township.

mud386.org

San Jacinto River Authority (SJRA) manages water resources, including surface water treatment and groundwater reduction plans for Montgomery County and surrounding areas.

sjra.net