Law360, New York (January 12, 2015, 11:18 AM EST) -- Prior to electric market restructuring, the Public Utility Commission of Texas acted as the sole governmental body that determined the need for new electric transmission facilities within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas footprint. Under this prior regulatory scheme, the PUCT determined whether the proposed line was necessary, in addition to its role of determining where the line should be constructed (certificate of convenience and necessity or CCN) and how the utility should recover its costs. Following market restructuring, the role of ERCOT increased to include much of the analysis of need for new transmission lines that previously resided with the PUCT. However, recent PUCT dockets suggest that, whether by design or through litigation brought by various intervenors, the PUCT is reclaiming a more significant role in analyzing and determining the "need" for new transmission lines. If this trend continues, electric transmission utilities and PUCT practitioners will likely see a return to the highly quantitative scrutiny of transmission projects as part of the CCN analysis in PUCT dockets....