Wis. Stat. § 66.0825 — WI Code / Chapter 66 / Section 66.0825
Municipal electric companies.
Status: in_force

(1) Short title. This section shall be known as the “Municipal Electric Company Act”.

(2) Finding and declaration of necessity. It is declared that the operation of electric utility systems by municipalities of this state and the improvement of the systems through joint action in the fields of the generation, transmission and distribution of electric power and energy are in the public interest; that there is a need in order to ensure the stability and continued viability of the municipal systems to provide for a means by which municipalities which operate the systems may act jointly in all ways possible, including development of coordinated bulk power and fuel supply programs and efficient, community-based energy systems; and that the necessity in the public interest for the provisions in this section is declared as a matter of legislative determination.

(3) Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:

(a) “Bonds” means any bonds, interim certificates, notes, debentures or other obligations of a company issued under this section.

(am) “Community-based energy system” means a small-scale energy production system or device which serves a local area or portion thereof, including, but not limited to, a small scale power plant, using coal, sun, wind, organic waste or other form of energy, if the system is located sufficiently close to the community to make the dual production of heat and electricity possible. “Community-based energy system” also means a methane producing system or solar, wind or other energy source system for individual buildings or facilities.

(b) “Company” and “electric company” mean a municipal electric company.

(c) “Contracting municipality” means a municipality which contracts to establish an electric company under this section.

(d) “Municipal electric company” means a public corporation created by contract between 2 or more municipalities under this section.

(e) “Municipality” means a city, village, or town, or an electric utility, or combined utility, owned or operated by a city, village, or town.

(f) “Person” means a natural person, a public agency, a cooperative, an unincorporated cooperative association, or a private corporation, limited liability company, association, firm, partnership, or business trust of any nature, organized and existing under the laws of any state, the United States, or any foreign nation or any subdivision of any foreign nation.

(g) “Project” means any plant, works, system, facilities, and real and personal property of any nature, together with all parts, and appurtenances, used or useful in the generation, production, transmission, distribution, purchase, sale, exchange, or interchange of electric power and energy, or any interest or right to capacity and the acquisition of fuel of any kind for these purposes including: the acquisition of fuel deposits and the acquisition or construction and operation of facilities for extracting fuel from natural deposits, for converting it for use in another form, for burning it in place, for transportation, storage and reprocessing or for any energy conservation measure which involves public education or the actual fitting and application of a device.

(h) “Public agency” means any of the following:

1. Any municipality, municipal corporation, political subdivision, governmental unit, or public corporation, created under the laws of this state, another state, the United States, or any foreign nation or subdivision of any foreign nation.

2. Any state, the United States, or any foreign nation or subdivision of any foreign nation.

3. Any person, board, or other body, that is declared by the laws of any state, the United States, or any foreign nation or any subdivision of any foreign nation to be a department, agency, or instrumentality of the state, the United States, or the foreign nation or subdivision.

(4) Creation of municipal electric companies.

(a) Any combination of municipalities of this state or of this state and other states which operates facilities for the generation, transmission or distribution of electric power and energy may, by contract with each other, establish a separate governmental entity to be known as a municipal electric company to be used by the contracting municipalities to effect joint development of electric energy resources or production, distribution and transmission of electric power and energy in whole or in part for the benefit of the contracting municipalities. The municipalities party to the contract may amend the contract as provided in the contract.

(b) Any contract entered into under this section shall be filed with the secretary of state. Upon receipt, the secretary shall record the contract and issue a certificate of incorporation stating the name of the company and the date and fact of incorporation. Upon issuance of the certificate, the existence of the company shall begin.

(5) Contract. Any contract establishing an electric company under this section shall specify:

(a) The name and purpose of the company and the functions or services to be provided by the company. The name may refer to the company as an agency, authority, company, corporation, group, system or other descriptive title.

(b) The establishment and organization of a governing body of the company which shall be a board of directors in which all powers of the company are vested. The contract may provide for the creation by the board of an executive committee of the board to which the powers and duties may be delegated as the board specifies.

(c) The number of directors, the manner of their appointment, terms of office and compensation, if any, and the procedure for filling vacancies on the board. Each contracting municipality may appoint one member to the board of directors and may remove that member at will.

(d) The manner of selection of the officers of the company and their duties.

(e) The voting requirements for action by the board. Unless specifically provided otherwise, a majority of directors constitutes a quorum and a majority of the quorum is necessary for any action taken by the board.

(f) The duties of the board which shall include the obligation to comply with this section and the laws of the state and with each term, provision and covenant in the contract creating the company on its part to be kept or performed.

(g) The manner in which additional municipalities may become parties to the contract by amendment.

(h) Provisions for the disposition, division or distribution of any property or assets of the company on dissolution.

(i) The term of the contract, which may be a definite period or until rescinded or terminated, and the method, if any, by which the contract may be rescinded or terminated. The contract may not be rescinded or terminated while the company has bonds outstanding, unless provision for full payment of the bonds, by escrow or otherwise, has been made pursuant to the terms of the bonds or the resolution, trust indenture or security instrument securing the bonds.

(6) Powers. The general powers of an electric company include the power to:

(a) Plan, develop, acquire, construct, reconstruct, operate, manage, dispose of, participate in, maintain, repair, extend or improve one or more projects within or outside the state and act as agent, or designate one or more other persons participating in a project to act as its agent, in connection with the planning, acquisition, construction, operation, maintenance, repair, extension or improvement of the project.

(b) Produce, acquire, sell, distribute and process fuels necessary to the production of electric power and energy and implement energy conservation measures necessary to meet energy needs.

(c) Enter into franchises, exchange, interchange, pooling, wheeling, transmission and other similar agreements with any person or public agency.

(d) Make and execute contracts and other instruments necessary or convenient to the exercise of the powers of the company.

(e) Employ agents and employees.

(f) Contract with any person or public agency within or outside the state, for the construction of any project or for the sale or transmission of electric power and energy generated by any project, or for any interest in a project or any right to capacity of a project, on the terms and for the period that its board of directors determines.

(g) Purchase, sell, exchange, transmit or distribute electric power and energy within and outside the state in the amounts necessary and appropriate to make the most effective use of its powers and to meet its responsibilities, and to enter into agreements with any person or public agency with respect to the purchase, sale, exchange, or transmission, on the terms and for the period that its board of directors determines. A company may not sell power and energy at retail unless requested to do so by a municipal member within the service area of that municipal member.

(h) Acquire, own, hold, use, lease as lessor or lessee, sell or otherwise dispose of, mortgage, pledge, or grant a security interest in any real or personal property, commodity or service or interest in any real or personal property, commodity or service, subject to s. 182.017 (7) .

(i) Exercise the powers of eminent domain granted to public utility corporations under ch. 32 .

(j) Incur debts, liabilities or obligations including the borrowing of money and the issuance of bonds, secured or unsecured, under sub. (11) (b) .

(k) Sue and be sued in its own name.

(L) Have and use a corporate seal.

(m) Fix, maintain and revise fees, rates, rents and charges for functions, services, facilities or commodities provided by the company.

(n) Make, and from time to time amend and repeal, bylaws, rules and regulations not inconsistent with this section to carry into effect the powers and purposes of the company.

(o) Notwithstanding the provisions of any other law, invest any funds held in reserve or sinking funds, or any funds not required for immediate disbursement, including the proceeds from the sale of any bonds, in obligations, securities and other investments that the company deems proper.

(p) Join organizations, membership in which is deemed by the board of directors to be beneficial to accomplishment of the company’s purposes.

(q) Exercise any other powers which are deemed necessary and convenient by the company to effectuate the purposes of the company.

(r) Do and perform any acts and things authorized by this section under, through or by means of an agent or by contracts with any person.

(6m) Energy conservation duties. A municipal electric company established by contract under this section shall consider energy conservation measures and the development of efficient, community-based energy systems.

(7) Public character. An electric company established by contract under this section constitutes a political subdivision and body public and corporate of the state, exercising public powers, separate from the contracting municipalities. It has the duties, privileges, immunities, rights, liabilities and disabilities of a public body politic and corporate but does not have taxing power.

(8) Payments.

(a)

1. In this paragraph, “purchase of electric power and energy” includes any right to capacity or interest in any project.

2. The contracting municipalities may provide in the contract created under sub. (5) for payment to the company of funds for commodities to be procured and services to be rendered by the company. These municipalities and other persons and public agencies may enter into purchase agreements with the company for the purchase of electric power and energy whereby the purchaser is obligated to make payments in amounts which shall be sufficient to enable the company to meet its expenses, interest and principal payments, whether at maturity or upon debt service fund redemption, for its bonds, reasonable reserves for debt service, operation and maintenance and renewals and replacements and the requirements of any rate covenant with respect to debt service coverage contained in any resolution, trust indenture or other security instrument.

3. Purchase agreements entered into under subd. 2. may, in addition to the provisions authorized under subd. 2. , contain other terms and conditions that the company and the purchasers determine, including provisions obligating the purchaser to pay for power irrespective of whether energy is produced or delivered to the purchaser or whether any project contemplated by any agreement under subd. 2. is completed, operable or operating, and notwithstanding suspension, interruption, interference, reduction or curtailment of the output of the project.

4. Purchase agreements entered into under subd. 2. may be for a term covering the life of a project or for any other term, or for an indefinite period. The contract created under sub. (5) or a purchase agreement may provide that if one or more of the purchasers defaults in the payment of its obligations under a purchase agreement, the remaining purchasers which also have purchase agreements shall accept and pay for and are entitled proportionately to use or otherwise dispose of the power and energy to be purchased by the defaulting purchaser.

(b) The obligations of a municipality under a purchase agreement with a company or arising out of the default by any other purchaser with respect to a purchase agreement are not debt of the municipality. To the extent provided in the purchase agreement, the obligations constitute special obligations of the municipality, payable solely from the revenues and other moneys derived by the municipality from its municipal electric utility and shall be treated as expenses of operating a municipal electric utility.

(c) The contract may provide for payments in the form of contributions to defray the cost of any purpose set forth in the contract and as advances for any purpose in the contract subject to repayment by the company.

(9) Sale of excess capacity.

(a) An electric company may sell or exchange, to any other person or public agency, excess power and energy produced or owned by it not required by any of the contracting municipalities for the consideration, period and terms and conditions that it determines.