(a) Application. This section applies to an electric utility's (utility) distribution assets.
(b) Definitions. The following terms when used in this section shall have the following meaning, unless the context indicates otherwise.
(1) Distribution assets--The utility's facilities operating at less than 60 kilovolts (kV), excluding substations, underground facilities, and service drops, for which the utility needs to perform vegetation maintenance.
(2) Right-of-way (ROW)--Land on which electric lines are located and that the utility has the right to access for the purpose of maintaining its distribution system and managing vegetation.
(3) Scheduled vegetation maintenance--The anticipated vegetation management activities a utility expects to conduct during a particular budget cycle, including trimming, spraying, and removal activities.
(4) Tree risk management--Planning for, assessing, monitoring, and mitigating structurally unsound trees that could threaten a utility's distribution assets.
(5) Unscheduled vegetation maintenance--Responsive vegetation maintenance that can include, but is not limited to, customer-requested and utility-requested maintenance.
(c) Vegetation management requirements under other provisions. Compliance with this section fully satisfies the vegetation management planning and reporting requirements of §25.94(c)(2) of this title (relating to Report on Infrastructure Improvement and Maintenance) and §25.95(e)(2) of this title (relating to Electric Utility Infrastructure Storm Hardening).
(d) Utility conformance to standards of the industry. For any mandatory provision of any standard specified in paragraphs (1) - (3) of this subsection to which a utility's vegetation management policies do not conform, the utility shall provide a brief explanation for the deviation in its Vegetation Management Report:
(1) American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Standard Z133.1, Arboricultural Operations - Pruning, or successor standard;
(2) ANSI Standard A300 (Part 1) - Tree, Shrub, and Other Woody Plant Management - Standard Practices (Pruning); (Part 7) - Integrated Vegetation Management a. Utility Rights-of-way practices; and (Part 9) - Tree Risk Assessment a. Tree Structure Assessment; or successor standards; and
(3) National Electrical Safety Code Section 218, or successor standard.
(e) Vegetation Management Plan. Each utility shall maintain a Vegetation Management Plan (Plan) that describes the utility's objectives, practices, procedures, and work specifications for its distribution assets. A full copy of the Plan shall be provided to the commission or commission staff within ten days of receipt of the request. A utility shall review and update its Plan by December 31 of each year. The Plan shall include, at a minimum, a description of the utility's:
(1) tree pruning methodology, trimming clearances, and scheduling approach;
(2) methods used to mitigate threats posed by vegetation to applicable distribution assets;
(3) tree risk management program;
(4) participation in continuing education by the utility's internal vegetation management personnel;
(5) estimate of the miles of circuits along which vegetation is to be trimmed or method for planning trimming work for the coming year;
(6) plan to remediate vegetation-caused issues on feeders which are on the worst vegetation-caused performing feeder list for the preceding calendar year's System Average Interruption Duration Index (SAIDI) and System Average Interruption Frequency Index (SAIFI); and
(7) customer education, notification, and outreach practices related to vegetation management.
(f) Vegetation Management Report. A utility shall file with the commission by May 1 of each year a Vegetation Management Report (Report) summarizing its Vegetation Management Plan for the current calendar year and its progress in implementing its Plan for the preceding calendar year. The Report filed May 1, 2013 does not need to contain the information required by paragraph (2) of this subsection. The Report shall include, at a minimum, the following components:
(1) A Vegetation Management Plan summary including, at a minimum, a summary of the utility's:
(2) An implementation summary for the preceding calendar year including, at a minimum, a description of:
Source Note: The provisions of this §25.96 adopted to be effective January 2, 2013, 37 TexReg 10204