(a) The office:
(1) may appear or intervene as a party or otherwise represent residential consumers, as a class, in appeals to the railroad commission only at the written request of an affected municipality’s governing body;
(2) may initiate or intervene as a matter of right or otherwise appear in a judicial proceeding that involves an action taken by the railroad commission in a proceeding in which the office was a party;
(3) is entitled to the same access as a party, other than railroad commission staff, to records gathered by the railroad commission under Section 102.203;
(4) is entitled to discovery of any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to the subject matter of a proceeding or petition before the railroad commission;
(5) may represent an individual residential consumer with respect to the consumer’s disputed complaint concerning utility services that is unresolved before the railroad commission; and
(6) may recommend legislation to the legislature that the office determines would positively affect the interests of residential consumers.
(b) The office may represent only as a class the residential consumers of a municipality that makes a request under Subsection (a)(1).

(c) This section does not limit the authority of the railroad commission to represent residential consumers.
(d) The appearance of the counsellor in a proceeding does not preclude the appearance of other parties on behalf of residential consumers. The counsellor may not be grouped with any other party.