KRS § 96.520 — KY Code / Title IX / Chapter 96 / Section 96.520
96.520 City of the home rule class or urban-county government may acquire and operate electric light, heat, and power plants -- Regulation of provision of telecommunications services or municipal telephone service -- Interconnection agreements with utilities or utility affiliates -- Bonds
Status: in_force

96.520 City of the home rule class or urban-county government may acquire and

operate electric light, heat, and power plants -- Regulation of provision of

telecommunications services or municipal telephone service -- Interconnection

agreements with utilities or utility affiliates -- Bonds.

(1) Any city of the home rule class or urban-county government may purchase,

establish, erect, maintain, and operate electric light, heat, and power plants, with

extensions and necessary appurtenances, within or without the corporate limits of

the city or the urban-county government, for the purpose of supplying the city or

urban-county government and its inhabitants with electric light, heat, power, and

telecommunications. Any city-owned or urban-county government-owned utility

created under this section that provides telecommunications services shall be

regulated as to that service by KRS Chapter 278. Any city-owned or urban-county

government-owned utility created under this section that provides municipal

telephone service shall be regulated as to that service by KRS Chapter 278. For the

purpose of providing electric light, heat, power, and telephone services, a city of the

home rule class or urban-county government may enter into and fulfill the terms of

an interconnection agreement with any electric or combination electric or gas utility

whose rates and service are regulated by the Public Service Commission of

Kentucky (or, if not so regulated, operating and having customers only outside of

Kentucky), or an affiliate entirely owned by or under complete common ownership

with an electric or combination electric and gas utility whose rates and service are

regulated by the Public Service Commission of Kentucky. Any city of the home rule

class or urban-county government may establish, erect, maintain, and operate plants,

individually or jointly with any of these utilities or utility affiliate. In the case of any

joint action, a city or urban-county government and utility or utility affiliate may

provide by contract for their respective responsibilities, for operation and

maintenance and for the allocation of expenses, revenues, and power. If in the

accomplishment of this purpose a city or urban-county government at any time has

capacity or energy surplus to the immediate needs of the city or urban-county

government and its inhabitants, the surplus, if not disposed of for consumption

outside this state, may be disposed of to an electric or combination electric and gas

utility whose rates and service are regulated by the Public Service Commission of

Kentucky, to an affiliate entirely owned by or under complete common ownership

with such a utility, or to a city-owned or urban-county government-owned utility

established pursuant to KRS Chapter 96.

(2) The city or urban-county government shall proceed in the same manner and be

governed by the same conditions as are set forth in KRS 96.360 to 96.510 for the

acquisition and operation of a water system, with the following exceptions:

(a) A petition calling for an election on the proposition of purchasing an existing

plant shall be signed by at least two hundred (200) qualified voters of the city

or urban-county government, rather than by twenty-five percent (25%) of the

qualified voters of the city or urban-county government who voted at the last

preceding regular election.

(b) Notwithstanding any other laws, bonds may be issued bearing interest at a rate

or rates and may be sold on a basis to yield interest at a rate or rates as may be

determined upon the sale of the bonds.

(c) Bonds of an issue, or bonds of two (2) or more issues consolidated for the

purposes of sale, which equal or exceed $10,000,000 in the aggregate

principal amount may be sold at public or private sale without compliance

with KRS 424.360.

(3) This section constitutes a method for the acquisition of an electric light, heat, and

power plant by any city of the home rule class or urban-county government in

addition or as an alternate to any other method authorized by statute, provided that

the city or urban-county government was operating an electric plant on June 1,

1942, and has not elected to operate under KRS 96.550 to 96.900. No proceedings

shall be required for the acquisition of any electric light, heat, or power plant or the

issuance of bonds under this section except the proceedings required by KRS

96.360 to 96.510.