piers109uk/MN-Statutes huggingface dataset:
216B.21 SUMMARY INVESTIGATION.
Whenever the commission has reason to believe that any rate or charge may be unreasonable or unjustly discriminatory or that any service is inadequate or cannot be obtained or that an investigation of any matter relating to any public utility should for any reason be made, it may on its own motion summarily investigate the same with or without notice.
If, after making the summary investigation, the commission becomes satisfied that sufficient grounds exist to warrant a formal hearing being ordered as to the matters investigated, it shall set a time and place for a hearing.
Notice of the time and place for the hearing shall be made as provided in sections 216B.17 and 216B.18.
216B.23 LAWFUL RATE; REASONABLE SERVICE.
Whenever upon an investigation made under the provisions of Laws 1974, chapter 429, the commission shall find rates, tolls, charges, schedules or joint rates to be unjust, unreasonable, insufficient, or unjustly discriminatory or preferential or otherwise unreasonable or unlawful, the commission shall determine and by order fix reasonable rates, tolls, charges, schedules, or joint rates to be imposed, observed, and followed in the future in lieu of those found to be unreasonable or unlawful.
(a) On determining that a public utility has charged a rate in violation of this chapter, a commission rule, or a commission order, the commission, after conducting a proceeding, may require the public utility to refund to its customers, in a manner approved by the commission, any revenues the commission finds were collected as a result of the unlawful conduct. Any refund authorized by this section is permitted in addition to any remedies authorized by section 216B.16 or any other law governing rates. Exercising authority under this section does not preclude the commission from pursuing penalties under sections 216B.57 to 216B.61 for the same conduct.
(b) This section must not be construed as allowing:
(1) retroactive ratemaking;
(2) refunds based on claims that prior or current approved rates have been unjust, unreasonable, unreasonably preferential, discriminatory, insufficient, inequitable, or inconsistent in application to a class of customers; or
(3) refunds based on claims that approved rates have not encouraged energy conservation or renewable energy use, or have not furthered the goals of section 216B.164, 216B.241, or 216C.05.
(c) A refund under this subdivision does not apply to revenues collected more than six years before the date of the notice of the commission proceeding required under this subdivision.
Whenever the commission shall find any regulations, measurements, practices, acts, or service to be unjust, unreasonable, insufficient, preferential, unjustly discriminatory, or otherwise unreasonable or unlawful, or shall find that any service which can be reasonably demanded cannot be obtained, the commission shall determine and by order fix reasonable measurements, regulations, acts, practices, or service to be furnished, imposed, observed and followed in the future in lieu of those found to be unreasonable, inadequate, or otherwise unlawful, and shall make any other order respecting the measurement, regulation, act, practice, or service as shall be just and reasonable.
A copy of the order shall be served upon the person against whom it runs or the person's attorney, and notice thereof shall be given to the other parties to the proceedings or their attorneys.
216B.24 CONSTRUCTION OF MAJOR FACILITY; FILING PLANS.
The words "major utility facility" means: (1) electric generating plant and associated facilities designed for, or capable of, operation at a capacity of 50 megawatts or more; (2) an electric transmission line and associated facilities of a design capacity of 125 kilovolts or more; and (3) a gas transmission line and associated facilities designed for, or capable of, transporting gas at pressures in excess of 125 pounds per square inch; provided, however, that the words "major utility facility" shall not include electric or gas distribution lines and gas gathering lines and associated facilities as defined by the commission.
Under rules as the commission may prescribe, every public utility shall file with the commission, within the time and in the form as the commission may designate, plans showing any contemplated construction of major utility facilities.
The provisions of this section shall apply to the construction of major utility facilities by a municipally owned gas or electric utility.
216B.2401 ENERGY SAVINGS AND OPTIMIZATION POLICY GOAL.
(a) The legislature finds that energy savings are an energy resource, and that cost-effective energy savings are preferred over all other energy resources. In addition, the legislature finds that optimizing the timing and method used by energy consumers to manage energy use provides significant benefits to the consumers and to the utility system as a whole. The legislature further finds that cost-effective energy savings and load management programs should be procured systematically and aggressively in order to reduce utility costs for businesses and residents, improve the competitiveness and profitability of businesses, create more energy-related jobs, reduce the economic burden of fuel imports, and reduce pollution and emissions that cause climate change. Therefore, it is the energy policy of the state of Minnesota to achieve annual energy savings equivalent to at least 2.5 percent of annual retail energy sales of electricity and natural gas through multiple measures, including but not limited to:
(1) cost-effective energy conservation improvement programs and efficient fuel-switching utility programs under sections 216B.2402 to 216B.241;
(2) rate design;
(3) energy efficiency achieved by energy consumers without direct utility involvement;
(4) advancements in statewide energy codes and cost-effective appliance and equipment standards;
(5) programs designed to transform the market or change consumer behavior;
(6) energy savings resulting from efficiency improvements to the utility infrastructure and system; and
(7) other efforts to promote energy efficiency and energy conservation.
(b) A utility is encouraged to design and offer to customers load management programs that enable: (1) customers to maximize the economic value gained from the energy purchased from the customer's utility service provider; and (2) utilities to optimize the infrastructure and generation capacity needed to effectively serve customers and facilitate the integration of renewable energy into the energy system.
(c) The commissioner must provide a reasonable estimate of progress made toward the statewide energy-savings goal under paragraph (a) in the annual report required under section 216B.241, subdivision 1c, and make recommendations for administrative or legislative initiatives to increase energy savings toward that goal. The commissioner must also annually report on the energy productivity of the state's economy by estimating the ratio of economic output produced in the most recently completed calendar year to the primary energy inputs used in that year.
216B.2412 DECOUPLING OF ENERGY SALES FROM REVENUES.
For the purpose of this section, "decoupling" means a regulatory tool designed to separate a utility's revenue from changes in energy sales. The purpose of decoupling is to reduce a utility's disincentive to promote energy efficiency.
The commission shall, by order, establish criteria and standards for decoupling. The commission may establish these criteria and standards in a separate proceeding or in a general rate case or other proceeding in which it approves a pilot program, and shall design the criteria and standards to mitigate the impact on public utilities of the energy-savings goals under section 216B.241 without adversely affecting utility ratepayers. In designing the criteria, the commission shall consider energy efficiency, weather, and cost of capital, among other factors.
The commission shall allow one or more rate-regulated utilities to participate in a pilot program to assess the merits of a rate-decoupling strategy to promote energy efficiency and conservation. Each pilot program must utilize the criteria and standards established in subdivision 2 and be designed to determine whether a rate-decoupling strategy achieves energy savings. On or before a date established by the commission, the commission shall require electric and gas utilities that intend to implement a decoupling program to file a decoupling pilot plan, which shall be approved or approved as modified by the commission. A pilot program may not exceed three years in length. Any extension beyond three years can only be approved in a general rate case, unless that decoupling program was previously approved as part of a general rate case.
216B.2421 DEFINITION OF LARGE ENERGY FACILITY.
The definition in this section applies to this section and sections 216B.2422 and 216B.243.
"Large energy facility" means:
(1) any electric power generating plant or combination of plants at a single site with a combined capacity of 50,000 kilowatts or more and transmission lines directly associated with the plant that are necessary to interconnect the plant to the transmission system;
(2) any high-voltage transmission line with a capacity of 300 kilovolts or more and greater than one mile in length in Minnesota;
(3) any high-voltage transmission line with a capacity of 100 kilovolts or more with more than ten miles of its length in Minnesota;
(4) any pipeline greater than six inches in diameter and having more than 50 miles of its length in Minnesota used for the transportation of coal, crude petroleum or petroleum fuels or oil, or their derivatives;
(5) any pipeline for transporting natural or synthetic gas at pressures in excess of 200 pounds per square inch with more than 50 miles of its length in Minnesota;
(6) any facility designed for or capable of storing on a single site more than 100,000 gallons of liquefied natural gas or synthetic gas;
(7) any underground gas storage facility requiring a permit pursuant to section 103I.681;
(8) any nuclear fuel processing or nuclear waste storage or disposal facility; and
(9) any facility intended to convert any material into any other combustible fuel and having the capacity to process in excess of 75 tons of the material per hour.
[Repealed, 2001 c 212 art 7 s 36]
216B.2423 WIND POWER MANDATE.
A public utility, as defined in section 216B.02, subdivision 4, that operates a nuclear-powered electric generating plant within this state must construct and operate, purchase, or contract to construct and operate: (1) 225 megawatts of electric energy installed capacity generated by wind energy conversion systems within the state by December 31, 1998; and (2) an additional 200 megawatts of installed capacity so generated by December 31, 2002.
For the purpose of this section, "wind energy conversion system" has the meaning given it in section 216C.06, subdivision 19.
The Public Utilities Commission shall order a public utility subject to subdivision 1, to construct and operate, purchase, or contract to purchase an additional 400 megawatts of electric energy installed capacity generated by wind energy conversion systems by December 31, 2002, subject to resource planning and least cost planning requirements in section 216B.2422.
The Public Utilities Commission shall ensure that a utility subject to the requirements of subdivision 1, clause (2), shall implement that clause with a preference for wind energy conversion systems within the state. This preference shall not prevent the utility from constructing or contracting to construct wind energy conversion systems outside the state, if the Public Utilities Commission determines that selection of a facility within the state conflicts with the requirements of section 216B.03.
The Public Utilities Commission shall require a public utility subject to subdivision 1 to develop and file in a form acceptable to the commission by October 1, 1997, a standard form contract for the purchase of electricity from wind conversion systems with installed capacity of two megawatts and less. For purposes of applying the two megawatts limit, the installed capacity sold to the public utility from a single seller or affiliated group of sellers shall be cumulated. The standard contract shall include all the terms and conditions for purchasing wind-generated power by the utility, except for price and any other specific terms necessary to ensure system reliability and safety, which shall be separately negotiable.
216B.2426 OPPORTUNITIES FOR DISTRIBUTED GENERATION.
The commission shall ensure that opportunities for the installation of distributed generation, as that term is defined in section 216B.169, subdivision 1, paragraph (c), are considered in any proceeding under section 216B.2422, 216B.2425, or 216B.243.
216B.2428 LIFECYCLE GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS ACCOUNTING FRAMEWORK; COST-BENEFIT TEST FOR INNOVATIVE RESOURCES.
By June 1, 2022, the commission shall, by order, issue frameworks the commission must use to calculate lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions intensities of each innovative resource, as follows:
(1) a general framework to compare the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions intensities of power-to-hydrogen, strategic electrification, renewable natural gas, district energy, energy efficiency, biogas, carbon capture, and power-to-ammonia; and
(2) a cost-benefit analytic framework to be applied to innovative resources and innovation plans filed under section 216B.2427 that the commission must use to compare the cost-effectiveness of those resources and plans. This analytic framework must take into account:
(i) the total incremental cost of the plan or resource and the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions avoided or reduced by the innovative resource or plan, using the framework developed under clause (1);
(ii) additional economic costs and benefits, programmatic costs and benefits, additional environmental costs and benefits, and other costs or benefits that may be expected under a plan; and
(iii) baseline cost-effectiveness criteria against which an innovation plan should be compared. When establishing baseline criteria, the commission must take into account options available to reduce lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions from natural gas end uses and the goals in section 216C.05, subdivision 2, clause (3), and section 216H.02, subdivision 1. To the maximum reasonable extent, the cost-benefit framework must be consistent with environmental cost values established under section 216B.2422, subdivision 3, and other calculations of the social value of greenhouse gas emissions reductions used by the commission. The commission may update frameworks established under this section as necessary.
216B.244 NUCLEAR PLANT CAPACITY REQUIREMENTS.
A reactor unit at a nuclear power electric generating plant that has an annual load capacity factor of less than 55 percent for each of three consecutive calendar years must be shut down and cease operating no later than 500 days after the end of the third such consecutive calendar year. For the purposes of this section, "load capacity factor" means the ratio between a reactor unit's average load and its peak load.
216B.2445 DECOMMISSIONING NUCLEAR PLANT; STORING USED FUEL.
(a) The Public Utilities Commission shall, when considering approval of a plan for the accrual of funds for the decommissioning of nuclear facilities filed in accordance with a commission order, include an evaluation of the costs, if any, arising from storage of used nuclear fuel that may be incurred by the state of Minnesota, and any tribal community, county, city, or township where used nuclear fuel is located following the cessation of operations at a nuclear plant.
(b) To assist the commission in making the determination required in paragraph (a), the filing shall provide cost estimates, including ratepayer impacts, assuming used nuclear fuel will be stored in the state for 60 years, 100 years, and 200 years following the cessation of operation of the nuclear plant.
A public utility filing a decommissioning plan in accordance with a commission order and this section may include, as part of a general rate case petition, the costs of decommissioning accrual incurred in complying with a commission order implementing this section.
The commission shall prepare a nuclear decommissioning report after each of the commission's periodic review of nuclear decommissioning costs. The report shall be submitted within 180 days of the date of the final order related to that review to the chairs and ranking minority members of the legislative committees with primary jurisdiction over energy policy and public safety. That report shall, without limitation, include the following:
(1) an explanation of the commission's funding decisions regarding nuclear decommissioning;
(2) the progress of the United States Department of Energy to remove from Minnesota spent fuel produced by nuclear generating plants in Minnesota;
(3) an analysis of the financial and other obligations related to decommissioning and storage of used fuel of the utility holding title to spent nuclear fuel to the state and to host communities, including affected tribal communities; and
(4) any recommendations to the legislature on legislation or other actions that may be necessary for addressing long-term or indefinite storage costs.
216B.245 PUMP AND STORE HYDROPOWER FACILITY; PROHIBITION.
A state agency may not issue a permit for the construction of a facility for generating electricity if the facility would be located on top of the bluffs along the Mississippi River and would pump water from any portion of the river, store the water on top of the bluffs, and release the water at a later time to generate the electricity.
216B.25 FURTHER ACTION ON PREVIOUS ORDER.
The commission may at any time, on its own motion or upon motion of an interested party, and upon notice to the public utility and after opportunity to be heard, rescind, alter, or amend any order fixing rates, tolls, charges, or schedules, or any other order made by the commission, and may reopen any case following the issuance of an order therein, for the taking of further evidence or for any other reason. Any order rescinding, altering, amending, or reopening a prior order shall have the same effect as an original order.
216B.246 FEDERALLY APPROVED TRANSMISSION LINES; INCUMBENT TRANSMISSION LINEOWNER RIGHTS.
(a) For purposes of this section, the terms defined in this subdivision have the meanings given them.
(b) "Electric transmission line" means a high-voltage transmission line with a capacity of 100 kilovolts or more and associated transmission facilities.
(c) "Incumbent electric transmission owner" means any public utility that owns, operates, and maintains an electric transmission line in this state; any generation and transmission cooperative electric association; any municipal power agency; any power district; any municipal utility; or any transmission company as defined under section 216B.02, subdivision 10.
An incumbent electric transmission owner has the right to construct, own, and maintain an electric transmission line that has been approved for construction in a federally registered planning authority transmission plan and connects to facilities owned by that incumbent electric transmission owner. The right to construct, own, and maintain an electric transmission line that connects to facilities owned by two or more incumbent electric transmission owners belongs individually and proportionally to each incumbent electric transmission owner, unless otherwise agreed upon in writing. This section does not limit the right of any incumbent electric transmission owner to construct, own, and maintain any transmission equipment or facilities that have a capacity of less than 100 kilovolts.
(a) If an electric transmission line has been approved for construction in a federally registered planning authority transmission plan, the incumbent electric transmission owner, or owners if there is more than one owner, shall give notice to the commission, in writing, within 60 days of approval, regarding its intent to construct, own, and maintain the electric transmission line. If an incumbent electric transmission owner gives notice of intent to build the electric transmission line then, unless exempt from the requirements of section 216B.243, within 12 months from the date of the notice described in this paragraph, the incumbent electric transmission owner shall file an application for a certificate of need under section 216B.243 or certification under section 216B.2425.
(b) If the incumbent electric transmission owner indicates that it does not intend to build the transmission line, such notice shall fully explain the basis for that decision. If the incumbent electric transmission owner, or owners, gives notice of intent not to build the electric transmission line, then the commission may determine whether the incumbent electric transmission owner or other entity will build the electric transmission line, taking into consideration issues such as cost, efficiency, reliability, and other factors identified in this chapter.
216B.26 ORDER; EFFECTIVE DATE.
Every decision made by the commission constituting an order or determination is in force and effective 20 days after it has been filed and has been served by personal delivery, electronic service as provided in section 216.17, or by mailing a copy thereof to all parties to the proceeding in which the decision was made or to their attorneys, unless the commission specifies a different date upon which the order becomes effective.
216B.27 REHEARING; CONDITION PRECEDENT TO JUDICIAL REVIEW.
Within 20 days after the service by the commission of any decision constituting an order or determination, any party to the proceeding and any other person, aggrieved by the decision and directly affected thereby, may apply to the commission for a rehearing in respect to any matters determined in the decision. The commission may grant and hold a rehearing on the matters, or upon any of them as it may specify in the order granting the rehearing, if in its judgment sufficient reason therefor exists.
The application for a rehearing shall set forth specifically the grounds on which the applicant contends the decision is unlawful or unreasonable. No cause of action arising out of any decision constituting an order or determination of the commission or any proceeding for the judicial review thereof shall accrue in any court to any person or corporation unless the plaintiff or petitioner in the action or proceeding within 20 days after the service of the decision, shall have made application to the commission for a rehearing in the proceeding in which the decision was made. No person or corporation shall in any court urge or rely on any ground not so set forth in the application for rehearing.
Applications for rehearing shall be governed by general rules which the commission may establish. In case a rehearing is granted the proceedings shall conform as nearly as may be to the proceedings in an original hearing, except as the commission may otherwise direct. If in the commission's judgment, after the rehearing, it shall appear that the original decision, order, or determination is in any respect unlawful or unreasonable, the commission may reverse, change, modify, or suspend the original action accordingly. Any decision, order, or determination made after the rehearing reversing, changing, modifying, or suspending the original determination shall have the same force and effect as an original decision, order, or determination. Only one rehearing shall be granted by the commission; but this shall not be construed to prevent any party from filing a new application or complaint. No order of the commission shall become effective while an application for a rehearing or a rehearing is pending and until ten days after the application for a rehearing is either denied, expressly or by implication, or the commission has announced its final determination on rehearing.
Any application for a rehearing not granted within 60 days from the date of filing thereof, shall be deemed denied.
It is hereby declared that the legislative powers of the state, insofar as they are involved in the issuance of orders and decisions by the commission, have not been completely exercised until the commission has acted upon an application for rehearing, as provided for by this section and by the rules of the commission, or until the application for rehearing has been denied by implication, as above provided for.
216B.28 SUBPOENA; WITNESS FEE AND MILEAGE.
The commission and each commissioner, or the secretary of the commission may issue subpoenas and all necessary processes in proceedings pending before it; and each process shall extend to all parts of the state and may be served by any person authorized to serve processes of courts of record. Each witness who shall appear before the commission, or at a hearing before one of the individuals designated by it as provided in section 216B.15, or whose deposition is taken, shall receive for attendance the fees and mileage now provided for witnesses in civil cases in courts of record.
216B.29 HEARING AND SUBPOENA COMPLIANCE POWERS.
The commission and each of the commissioners or authorized examiner, for the purpose mentioned in Laws 1974, chapter 429, may administer oaths and examine witnesses. In case of failure on the part of any person to comply with any subpoena, or in the case of the refusal of any witness to testify concerning any matter on which the witness may be interrogated lawfully, any court of record of general jurisdiction or a judge thereof, on application of the commission, may compel obedience by proceedings for contempt as in the case of disobedience of the requirements of a subpoena issued from the court or a refusal to testify therein.
216B.33 COMMISSION RULING WRITTEN, FILED, AND CERTIFIED.
Every order, finding, authorization, or certificate issued or approved by the commission under this chapter must be in writing and retained in the commission's official record system. A certificate under the seal of the commission that any order, finding, authorization, or certificate has not been modified, stayed, suspended, or revoked, must be received in any proceeding as evidence as to the facts therein stated.
216B.36 MUNICIPAL REGULATORY AND TAXING POWERS.
Any public utility furnishing the utility services enumerated in section 216B.02 or occupying streets, highways, or other public property within a municipality may be required to obtain a license, permit, right, or franchise in accordance with the terms, conditions, and limitations of regulatory acts of the municipality, including the placing of distribution lines and facilities underground. Under the license, permit, right, or franchise, the utility may be obligated by any municipality to pay to the municipality fees to raise revenue or defray increased municipal costs accruing as a result of utility operations, or both. The fee may include but is not limited to a sum of money based upon gross operating revenues or gross earnings from its operations in the municipality so long as the public utility shall continue to operate in the municipality, unless upon request of the public utility it is expressly released from the obligation at any time by such municipality. Notwithstanding the definition of "public utility" in section 216B.02, subdivision 4, a municipality may require payment of a fee under this section by a cooperative electric association organized under chapter 308A that furnishes utility services within the municipality. All existing licenses, permits, franchises, and other rights acquired by any public utility or municipality prior to April 11, 1974, including the payment of existing franchise fees, shall not be impaired or affected in any respect by the passage of this chapter, except with respect to matters of rate and service regulation, service area assignments, securities, and indebtedness that are vested in the jurisdiction of the commission by this chapter. However, in the event that a court of competent jurisdiction determines, or the parties by mutual agreement determine, that an existing license, permit, franchise, or other right has been abrogated or impaired by this chapter, or its execution, the municipality affected shall impose and the public utility shall collect an excise tax on the utility charges which from year to year yields an amount which is reasonably equivalent to that amount of revenue which then would be due as a fee, charges or other thing or service of value to the municipality under the franchise, license, or permit. The authorization shall be over and above taxing limitations including, but not limited to, those of section 477A.016. Franchises granted pursuant to this section shall be exempt from the provisions of chapter 80C. For purposes of this section, a public utility shall include a cooperative electric association.
216B.37 ASSIGNED SERVICE AREA; ELECTRIC UTILITY; LEGISLATIVE POLICY.
It is hereby declared to be in the public interest that, in order to encourage the development of coordinated statewide electric service at retail, to eliminate or avoid unnecessary duplication of electric utility facilities, and to promote economical, efficient, and adequate electric service to the public, the state of Minnesota shall be divided into geographic service areas within which a specified electric utility shall provide electric service to customers on an exclusive basis.
216B.361 TOWNSHIP AGREEMENT WITH NATURAL GAS UTILITY.
A township may enter into an agreement with a public utility providing natural gas services to provide services within a designated portion or all of the township. If a city annexes township land for which a utility has an agreement with a township to serve, the utility shall continue to have a nonexclusive right to offer and provide service in the area identified by the agreement with the township for the term of that agreement, subject to the authority of the annexing city to manage public rights-of-way within the city as provided in sections 216B.36, 237.162, and 237.163.
Nothing in this section precludes a city from acquiring the property of a public utility under sections 216B.45 to 216B.47 for the purpose of allowing the city to own and operate a natural gas utility, or to extend natural gas and other utility services into newly annexed areas.
216B.30 DEPOSITION.
The commission or any party to the proceedings may, in any investigation or hearing before the commission, cause the deposition of witnesses residing within or without the state to be taken in the manner prescribed by law for taking depositions in civil actions in the district court.
216B.34 PUBLIC RECORDS.
All decisions, transcripts, and orders of the commission shall be public records.
216B.35 TRANSCRIBED RECORD.
A full and complete record shall be kept of all proceedings at any formal hearing had before the commission or any commissioner or hearing examiner and all testimony shall be taken down by a reporter appointed by the commission. A copy of the transcript shall be furnished on demand to any party to the proceedings upon payment of reasonable costs of reproduction.
216B.38 DEFINITIONS.
MS 1974 [Renumbered subd 1a]
For the purpose of sections 216B.37 to 216B.44 only, the following definitions shall apply.
[Renumbered subd 8]
"Assigned service area" means the geographical area in which the boundaries are established as provided in section 216B.39.
"Customer" means a person contracting for or purchasing electric service at retail from an electric utility.
[Renumbered subd 4a]
"Electric line" means lines for conducting electric energy at a design voltage of 25,000 volts phase to phase or less used for distributing electric energy directly to customers at retail.
"Electric service" means electric service furnished to a customer at retail for ultimate consumption, but does not include wholesale electric energy furnished by an electric utility to another electric utility for resale.
"Electric utility" means persons, their lessees, trustees, and receivers, separately or jointly, now or hereafter operating, maintaining, or controlling in Minnesota equipment or facilities for providing electric service at retail and which fall within the definition of "public utility" in section 216B.02, subdivision 4, and includes facilities owned by a municipality or by a cooperative electric association.
[Renumbered subd 1b]
"Municipality" means any city, however organized.
"Person" means a natural person, a partnership, a private corporation, a public corporation, a municipality, an association, a cooperative whether incorporated or not, a joint stock association, a business trust, any political subdivision or agency, or two or more persons having joint or common interest.
216B.31 TESTIMONY AND PRODUCTION OF RECORDS; PERJURY.
No person shall be excused from testifying or from producing any book, document, paper, or account in any investigation, or inquiry by, or hearing before, the commission or any commissioner, or person designated by it to conduct hearings, when ordered to do so, upon the ground that the testimony or evidence, book, document, paper, or account required may tend to incriminate the person or subject the person to penalty or forfeiture; but no person shall be prosecuted, punished, or subjected to any forfeiture or penalty for or on account of any act, transaction, matter, or thing concerning which the person shall have been compelled under oath to testify or produce documentary evidence; provided, that no person so testifying shall be exempt from prosecution or punishment for any perjury committed in testimony.
216B.32 CERTIFIED COPY OF DOCUMENT AS EVIDENCE.
Copies of official documents and orders filed or deposited according to law in the office of the commission, certified by a commissioner or by the secretary under the official seal of the commission to be true copies of the original shall be evidence in like manner as the originals, in all matters before the commission and in the courts of this state.
216B.40 EXCLUSIVE SERVICE RIGHT; SERVICE EXTENSION.
Except as provided in sections 216B.42 and 216B.421, each electric utility shall have the exclusive right to provide electric service at retail to each and every present and future customer in its assigned service area and no electric utility shall render or extend electric service at retail within the assigned service area of another electric utility unless the electric utility consents thereto in writing; provided that any electric utility may extend its facilities through the assigned service area of another electric utility if the extension is necessary to facilitate the electric utility connecting its facilities or customers within its own assigned service area.
216B.41 EFFECT OF INCORPORATION, ANNEXATION, OR CONSOLIDATION.
After April 12, 1974, the inclusion by incorporation, consolidation, or annexation of any part of the assigned service area of an electric utility within the boundaries of any municipality shall not in any respect impair or affect the rights of the electric utility to continue and extend electric service at retail throughout any part of its assigned service area unless a municipality which owns and operates an electric utility elects to purchase the facilities and property of the electric utility as provided in section 216B.44.
216B.421 HOMESTEAD; OPTION OF ELECTRIC SERVICE.
Notwithstanding the establishment of assigned service areas for electric utilities provided for in section 216B.39, when a customer requires electric service for buildings or other structures located on land constituting the customer's homestead and the buildings or structures are located within more than one assigned service area, the customer may elect to contract for or purchase the customer's entire electric service requirements from either of the electric utilities providing the customer with electric service. An electric utility may extend its facilities through the assigned service area of another electric utility if the extension is necessary to facilitate the electric utility connecting a customer who elects to purchase or contract for service from it pursuant to this section.
The provisions of subdivision 1 shall only apply to the provision of electric service to buildings and other structures that were under construction on April 11, 1974.
216B.42 SERVICE EXTENSION IN CERTAIN SITUATIONS.
Notwithstanding the establishment of assigned service areas for electric utilities provided for in section 216B.39, customers located outside municipalities and who require electric service with a connected load of 2,000 kilowatts or more shall not be obligated to take electric service from the electric utility having the assigned service area where the customer is located if, after notice and hearing, the commission so determines after consideration of following factors:
(1) the electric service requirements of the load to be served;
(2) the availability of an adequate power supply;
(3) the development or improvement of the electric system of the utility seeking to provide the electric service, including the economic factors relating thereto;
(4) the proximity of adequate facilities from which electric service of the type required may be delivered;
(5) the preference of the customer;
(6) any and all pertinent factors affecting the ability of the utility to furnish adequate electric service to fulfill customers' requirements.
Notwithstanding the provisions in section 216B.39, any electric utility may extend electric lines for electric service to its own utility property and facilities.
216B.43 HEARING ON COMPLAINT.
Upon the filing of an application under section 216B.42 or upon complaint by an affected utility that the provisions of sections 216B.39 to 216B.42 have been violated, the commission shall hold a hearing, upon notice, within 30 days after the filing of the complaint, and shall render its decision within 30 days after the hearing.
216B.45 MUNICIPAL PURCHASE OF PUBLIC UTILITY.
Any public utility operating in a municipality under a license, permit, right, or franchise shall be deemed to have consented to the purchase by the municipality, for just compensation, of its property operated in the municipality under such license, permit, right, or franchise. The municipality, subject to the provisions of Laws 1974, chapter 429, may purchase the property upon notice to the public utility as herein provided. Whenever the commission is notified by the municipality or the public utility affected that the municipality has, pursuant to law, determined to purchase the property of the public utility, and that the parties to the purchase and sale have been unable to agree on the amount to be paid and received therefor, the commission shall set a time and place for a public hearing, after not less than 30 days' notice to the parties, upon the matter of just compensation or the matter of the property to be purchased. Within a reasonable time the commission shall, by order, determine the just compensation for the property to be purchased by the municipality. In determining just compensation, the commission shall consider the original cost of the property less depreciation, loss of revenue to the utility, expenses resulting from integration of facilities, and other appropriate factors. The order of the commission may be reviewed as provided in section 216B.52. Commission expenses arising out of the exercise of its jurisdiction under this section shall be assessed to the municipality. For purposes of this section, a public utility shall include a cooperative electric association.
216B.44 MUNICIPAL SERVICE TERRITORY EXTENSION.
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of sections 216B.38 to 216B.42, whenever a municipality which owns and operates an electric utility (1) extends its corporate boundaries through annexation or consolidation, or (2) determines to extend its service territory within its existing corporate boundaries, the municipality shall thereafter furnish electric service to these areas unless the area is already receiving electric service from an electric utility, in which event, the municipality may purchase the facilities of the electric utility serving the area.
(b) The municipality acquiring the facilities shall pay to the electric utility formerly serving the area the appropriate value of its properties within the area which payment may be by exchange of other electric utility property outside the municipality on an appropriate basis giving due consideration to revenue from and value of the respective properties. In the event the municipality and the electric utility involved are unable to agree as to the terms of the payment or exchange, the municipality or the electric utility may file an application with the commission requesting that the commission determine the appropriate terms for the exchange or sale. After notice and hearing, the commission shall determine appropriate terms for an exchange, or in the event no appropriate properties can be exchanged, the commission shall fix and determine the appropriate value of the property within the annexed area, and the transfer shall be made as directed by the commission. In making that determination the commission shall consider the original cost of the property, less depreciation, loss of revenue to the utility formerly serving the area, expenses resulting from integration of facilities, and other appropriate factors.
(c) Until the determination by the commission, the facilities shall remain in place and service to the public shall be maintained by the owner. However, the electric utility being displaced, serving the annexed area, shall not extend service to any additional points of delivery within the annexed area if the commission, after notice and hearing, with due consideration of any unnecessary duplication of facilities, shall determine that the extension is not in the public interest.
(d) When property of an electric utility located within an area annexed to a municipality which owns and operates an electric utility is proposed to be acquired by the municipality, ratification by the electors is not required.
(e) When property of an electric utility located within the existing corporate boundaries of a municipality that currently operates a municipal electric utility is proposed to be included within the service territory of the municipal electric utility, ratification by the electors is not required.
216B.46 MUNICIPAL ACQUISITION PROCEDURES; NOTICE; ELECTION.
Any municipality which desires to acquire the property of a public utility as authorized under the provisions of section 216B.45 may determine to do so by resolution of the governing body of the municipality taken after a public hearing of which at least 30 days' published notice shall be given as determined by the governing body. The determination shall become effective when ratified by a majority of the qualified electors voting on the question at a special election to be held on a date authorized by section 205.10, subdivision 3a.
216B.465 VOTER RATIFICATION OF MUNICIPAL PURCHASE; LIMITED APPLICATION.
The provisions of sections 216B.45 and 216B.46 apply only to the purchase of public utility property by a municipality that, prior to the time of the purchase, did not operate a municipal utility providing the type of utility service delivered by the utility property being purchased.
In cases where the municipality operates, prior to the purchase of public utility property, a municipal utility providing the type of utility service delivered by the utility property being purchased, the provisions of section 216B.44 apply and voter ratification is not required.
216B.47 ACQUISITION BY EMINENT DOMAIN.
Nothing in this chapter may be construed to preclude a municipality from acquiring the property of a public utility by eminent domain proceedings; provided that damages to be paid in eminent domain proceedings must include the original cost of the property less depreciation, loss of revenue to the utility, expenses resulting from integration of facilities, and other appropriate factors. A municipality seeking to acquire the property of a public utility in eminent domain proceedings may not acquire the right to furnish electric service during the pendency of the proceedings through the use of section 117.042 but may petition the commission under section 216B.44 for service rights. For purposes of this section, a public utility includes a cooperative electric association.
216B.50 RESTRICTIONS ON PROPERTY TRANSFER AND MERGER.
No public utility shall sell, acquire, lease, or rent any plant as an operating unit or system in this state for a total consideration in excess of $1,000,000, or merge or consolidate with another public utility or transmission company operating in this state, without first being authorized so to do by the commission. Upon the filing of an application for the approval and consent of the commission, the commission shall investigate, with or without public hearing. The commission shall hold a public hearing, upon such notice as the commission may require. If the commission finds that the proposed action is consistent with the public interest, it shall give its consent and approval by order in writing. In reaching its determination, the commission shall take into consideration the reasonable value of the property, plant, or securities to be acquired or disposed of, or merged and consolidated.
This section does not apply to the purchase of property to replace or add to the plant of the public utility by construction.
[Repealed, 1978 c 795 s 10]
Mergers and consolidations as enumerated in subdivision 1 hereof shall be exempt from the provisions of chapter 80B.
216B.51 STOCK PURCHASE.
No public utility shall purchase voting stock in another public utility doing business in Minnesota without first having made application to and received the consent of the commission in writing or by order.
[Repealed, 1978 c 795 s 10]
Mergers and consolidations as enumerated in subdivision 1 hereof shall be exempt from the provisions of chapter 80B.
216B.52 APPEAL.
Any party to a proceeding before the commission or any other person, aggrieved by a decision and order and directly affected by it, may appeal from the decision and order of the commission in accordance with chapter 14.
[Repealed, 1983 c 247 s 219]
[Repealed, 1983 c 247 s 219]
[Repealed, 1983 c 247 s 219]
[Repealed, 1983 c 247 s 219]
216B.53 SUSPENSION OF COMMISSION ORDER.
The pendency of proceedings on appeal shall not of itself stay or suspend the operation of the order of the commission unless the commission so orders, but during the pendency of the proceedings the court in its discretion may stay or suspend, in whole or in part, the operation of the commission's order on terms it deems just, and in accordance with the practice of courts exercising equity jurisdiction. No stay shall be granted by the court without notice to the parties and opportunity to be heard. Any party shall have the right to secure from the court in which an appeal of an order of the commission is sought an order suspending or staying the operation of an order of the commission, pending an appeal of the order, but no commission order relating to rates or rules shall be stayed or suspended absent a finding that great or irreparable damage would otherwise result to the party seeking the stay or suspension, and any order staying or suspending a commission order shall specify the nature of the damage.
In case the order of the commission is stayed or suspended, the court shall require a bond with good and sufficient surety, conditioned that the public utility petitioning for review shall answer for all damages caused by the delay in enforcing the order of the commission, and for all compensation for whatever sums for transmission or service any person shall be compelled to pay pending review proceedings in excess of the sum the person or corporation would have been compelled to pay had the commission's order not been stayed or suspended. The court, may, in addition or in lieu of the bond require other further security for the payment of such excess damages or charges it deems proper.