16 TAC §25.61, Explained for City and Co-op Electric Utilities

What §25.61 Is

16 TAC §25.61 implements PURA §38.006, which Senate Bill 1789 added in the 89th Legislature, Regular Session (2025). It sets statewide standards for how transmission and distribution poles are inspected, graded, corrected and documented. The commission adopted it on September 18, 2026 in Project No. 59432, and it took effect October 8, 2026.

For a city-owned electric utility or an electric cooperative, two dates matter most:

• February 5, 2027. Cities and co-ops adopt the requirements in §25.61(d) through (g) not later than 120 days after the effective date.
• May 1, 2027. The first annual report under §25.61(h), covering calendar year 2026, is filed on the commission's workbook. The first report after adoption includes the attestation described below.

A separate rule, 16 TAC §25.63, implements HB 144. It sets January 1, 2027 for the initial distribution pole management and inspection plan. The two rules work together, and the next sections explain how.

Who §25.61 Covers

The rule applies to an electric utility, a municipally owned utility, or an electric cooperative that operates a transmission or distribution asset in Texas (§25.61(a)(1)). The owner of an asset is presumed to operate it, and a utility that contracts inspection or repair work to a third party keeps the responsibility for meeting the rule (§25.61(a)(2)). Hiring an inspection contractor does not move the obligation to the contractor.

Investor-owned utilities follow subsections (d) through (h) directly. The 120-day adoption step is for municipally owned utilities and cooperatives (§25.61(c)(2)). For a city or co-op without a regulatory affairs staff, that window is where the operational work happens.

How §25.61 Differs From §25.63 (HB 144)

Both rules concern poles, but they do different jobs:

• 16 TAC §25.63 (HB 144) governs the distribution pole management and inspection plan: its contents, including the process for documenting and responding to landowner reports, and the January 1, 2027 filing the rule sets for the initial plan. Tex. Util. Code §38.103(c) adds an annual update each May 1. The commission is developing standard forms for the plan and the update in Project No. 59996.
• 16 TAC §25.61 (SB 1789, PURA §38.006) governs the structures themselves: inspection cycles, serviceability grades, the clocks for correcting what an inspection finds, and the records kept for each structure.

The two connect directly. The §25.63 plan has to include an estimated timeline for completing the inspections and corrective actions the §38.006 standards require for distribution-level structures.

The Dates to Mark

1. January 1, 2027: the initial distribution pole management and inspection plan, under 16 TAC §25.63.
2. February 5, 2027: §25.61(d) through (g) adopted by the city or co-op. From then on, its inspection cycles, grading, correction clocks and record retention follow §25.61.
3. May 1, 2027: the first §25.61(h) annual report, on the commission-prescribed workbook adopted with the rule, filed in Project No. 60298. The workbook has an entity profile and executive summary, and appendices for timelines (A), routine inspections (B), post-event inspections (C) and root causes (D). Reports continue each May 1.

On the commission's form, the attestation states that the utility or cooperative has adopted structural integrity standards in compliance with §38.006 and applicable commission rules. It is signed by the highest-ranking representative, official, or officer with binding authority, and it accompanies the first report after adoption.

Inspection Cycles: §25.61(d)

The rule distinguishes a visual inspection, which looks for readily observable damage, from a comprehensive inspection, which adds a detailed assessment such as below-groundline decay or loss of strength. The routine cycles depend on voltage, material and location:

Coastal counties are the first-tier and second-tier coastal counties defined in Texas Insurance Code §2210.003.

After a qualifying event, each affected structure gets a visual inspection as soon as practicable, but not later than 45 calendar days after the later of the end of the event or the restoration of service at that structure. A qualifying event is one the utility reasonably expects to affect a structure's condition, including a Major Event interruption under §25.52 or a resiliency event under §25.62 (§25.61(b)(4), (d)(3)).

Operational note: most city and co-op utilities already inspect poles, with their own crews or a contractor. The practical question is usually not whether you inspect, but whether what your contractor delivers records the type, method, date and grade §25.61 asks for.

The Four Grades and Their Clocks: §25.61(e) and (f)

Every inspection the rule requires ends with one of four serviceability grades: Pass, Remediate, Replace, or Emergency.

• Pass: the structure meets the applicable National Electrical Safety Code (NESC) strength requirements and has no readily observable or structural damage or defects.
• Remediate: it does not pass, but can reasonably be restored by repair, reinforcement, treatment or another correction. Correct it as soon as practicable and not more than six calendar months after the grade is assigned. A utility that deems that impracticable may extend to not more than 12 calendar months by filing a notice, with its reasons and expected completion date, by the original deadline (§25.61(f)(1)).
• Replace: it does not pass and cannot reasonably be restored. Replace it as soon as practicable and not more than 12 calendar months after the grade is assigned, extendable to not more than 24 calendar months with the same kind of notice (§25.61(f)(2)).
• Emergency: it shows signs of imminent failure or poses a public-safety risk. Resolve that risk not more than two calendar days after the later of the grade date or the date the structure becomes safe to access, then remediate or replace it on the clocks above (§25.61(f)(3)).

Extension notices are filed in Project No. 60299. Every clock runs from the date the utility assigns the grade, so the inspection record that carries that date is what starts it. If the date is missing or in dispute, so is the clock.

Record Retention: §25.61(g)

Beginning on the rule's effective date, a utility keeps these records for each structure it operates, for the structure's whole service life:

• the date it was placed in service, or an estimate of its age;
• a unique identifier;
• its operating voltage, support type, construction material, strength rating and length;
• its inspection, grading and corrective-action history: the dates, types and methods of inspections; the grades assigned; for any grade other than Pass, the reason and the primary root cause if ascertainable; and the actions taken to make it safe, remediate or replace it.

This is where most of the work sits. A utility can inspect on cycle and grade accurately and still be unable to show it, if those facts were never captured in its records. The annual report's root-cause appendix is filled in from the same history.

What to Do Before February 5, 2027

1. See what your inspections deliver. Pull the latest inspection files from your crews or contractor and compare their fields with §25.61(d) through (g): inspection type, method, date, grade, and the date the grade was assigned.
2. Check each (g) fact against your records. For each structure, confirm you hold the in-service date or an age estimate, an identifier, the physical characteristics, and the inspection and correction history. Note the gaps.
3. Decide who signs. The attestation comes from the highest-ranking representative, official, or officer with binding authority. Who that is depends on your city charter or co-op bylaws; confirm it with your attorney, and brief that person on what the form says.
4. Line up your §25.63 plan with §25.61. The plan's inspection and corrective-action timeline should match the cycles, grades and clocks you adopt.
5. Decide how records are kept. §25.61(g) sets what must be kept. Where it lives, who can see it, and how it is produced on request are your decisions.

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