reglab/statecodes huggingface dataset:
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 29 - Change of Officers; Filing of Certificate of Change

Section 29. A duplicate of each certificate of change of officers filed pursuant to section fifty-three of chapter one hundred and fifty-six B with respect to a corporation subject to this chapter shall be filed forthwith in the office of the department.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 30 - Change of Location

Section 30. The department may, after notice and a public hearing, authorize a gas or electric company to carry on its business in any town in the commonwealth other than the town named in its agreement of association or charter, subject to sections eighty-six to eighty-eight, inclusive, and it may purchase, hold and convey real and personal estate in such other town necessary for carrying on its business therein.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 31 - Amount of Stock in Gas Companies Held by Corporation

Section 31. A manufacturing or other corporation having its place of business in a city or town where a gas company proposes to manufacture gas for light may hold not more than ten per cent of the capital stock of such gas company; provided, that the foregoing provisions shall not prevent a domestic corporation having its principal place of business in the commonwealth from holding more than ten per cent of the capital stock of a gas company.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 33 - Fees for Filing Certificates, Articles and Copies of Votes

Section 33. The fees for filing the following certificates, documents and copies of votes required to be filed by corporations subject to this chapter with the state secretary shall be determined annually by the commissioner of administration under the provision of section three B of chapter seven:
(a) Articles of organization required by section five.
(b) Articles of amendment providing for an increase of the total amount of authorized capital stock.
(c) Any other articles of amendment.
(d) Restated articles of organization in accordance with section eight C; provided, however, that in the event such restated articles of organization incorporate any amendment to the original articles of organization as theretofore amended, there shall be added to the filing fee the amount of the filing fee that would be required under paragraphs (
b
) and (
c
) of this section if such amendment had been incorporated in articles of amendment filed in accordance with section eight B.
(e) Articles of consolidation or merger in accordance with section one hundred and two A.
(f) Articles of dissolution pursuant to section one hundred of chapter one hundred and fifty-six B.
(g) Certificates or copies of votes required by section eight D. For each other filing with the state secretary required by law, but no fee shall be required for filing the certificate of change of principal office of the corporation required by section fourteen of chapter one hundred and fifty-six B, the certificate of change of date of annual meeting or change of fiscal year required by section thirty-eight of chapter one hundred and fifty-six B or the certification of change of officers required by section fifty-three of chapter one hundred and fifty-six B.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 33a - Promotional or Political Advertising Expenditures

Section 33A. No gas or electric company regulated by the department under this chapter may recover from any ratepayer of such company any direct or indirect expenditure by such company for promotional or political advertising as defined in this section.
For the purposes of this section, the following words and phrases shall have the following meanings:—
''Advertising'', the commercial use by a utility of any media, including newspaper, printed matter, radio, and television, in order to transmit a message to a substantial number of members of the public or to such utility's consumers.
''Political advertising'', any advertising for the purpose of influencing public opinion with respect to legislative, administrative, or electoral matters, or with respect to any controversial issue of public importance.
''Promotional advertising'', any advertising for the purpose of encouraging any person to select or use the service or additional service of a utility regulated by the department, or the selection or installation of any appliance or equipment designed to use such utility's service.
For the purposes of this section, the terms ''political advertising'' and ''promotional advertising'' shall not include advertising which informs consumers of any utility on how they can conserve energy, reduce peak demand for energy, or other services, or otherwise use the services of any utility in a cost-efficient manner; is required by federal or state laws or regulations; informs consumers regarding service interruptions, safety measures, or emergency conditions; concerns employment opportunities with a utility; or relates to any explanation or justification of existing or proposed rate schedules, or notification of hearings thereon which informs consumers of and stimulates the use of products or services which are subject to direct competition from products or services of entities not regulated by the department or any other government agency.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 34 - Town's Authority to Operate Gas or Electric Plant or Community Antenna Television System

Section 34. A town may, in accordance with this chapter, construct, purchase or lease, and maintain within its limits, one or more plants for the manufacture or distribution of gas or electricity or for the operation of a community antenna television system for municipal use or for the use of its inhabitants. Such plants may include suitable land, structures and machinery and other apparatus and appliances for operating a community antenna television system or for manufacturing, using and distributing gas or electricity for said purposes. A town, engaged in the business of operating a community antenna television system, or of distributing gas or electricity, may, as a part of such business if an appropriation is made therefor, rent, lease, or sell for cash or credit at prevailing retail prices, install and service, within the territory served by such business, merchandise, equipment, utensils and chattels of any description, incidental or auxiliary to the operation of a community antenna television system, or to the use of gas or electricity distributed to its consumers or necessary or expedient in the protection or management of its property used in such business. Wherever apt, the provisions of this chapter and chapter forty-four which apply to the operation and maintenance of a municipal light plant shall apply also to the operation and maintenance of a community antenna television system.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 34b - Replacement of Existing Poles

Section 34B. A distribution company or a telephone company engaging in the removal of an existing pole and the installation of a new pole in place thereof shall complete the transfer of wires, all repairs, and the removal of the existing pole from the site within 90 days from the date of installation of the new pole; provided, however, that for any approved commercial or industrial construction project, the completion of which is expected to take longer than one year, said company shall be required to remove such pole within six months from the date of installation of the new pole. The owner of such pole shall notify all other users of the starting date of such removal and installation work at least 48 hours prior to the commencement of such work, and said owner shall require all other users to remove their wiring and other attachments from the poles in a timely manner.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 35 - Vote of City to Acquire Plant

Section 35. A city shall not acquire such a plant until authorized by a two thirds vote of its city council, or of a majority of the commissioners if the city government consists of a commission, passed in each of two consecutive municipal years and thereafter ratified by a majority of the voters at an annual or special city election. If such a vote is not ratified, no similar vote shall be submitted for ratification within one year thereafter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 36 - Vote of Town to Acquire Plant

Section 36. A town shall not acquire such a plant until authorized by a two thirds vote, taken by ballot with the use of the voting list, at each of two town meetings called therefor and held at intervals of not less than two nor more than thirteen months. If the first of such votes is favorable and the second unfavorable, or if both such votes are unfavorable, no similar vote shall be passed within two years thereafter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 37 - Certification of Vote of City or Town to Department

Section 37. After a city or town has voted under section thirty-five or thirty-six, the city or town clerk shall forthwith transmit to the department a certified copy of so much of the records of the city council or of the town as relates to the result of the vote.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 38 - Certification of Subsequent Votes

Section 38. If a city or town which has authorized the acquisition of such a plant subsequently votes to establish, purchase, reconstruct, extend or enlarge a plant, or to issue bonds, notes or certificates of indebtedness on account thereof, or to regulate the management or conduct thereof, or to adopt an ordinance or by-law relative thereto, the city or town clerk shall, within ten days after such vote, transmit to the department a certified copy thereof.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 40 - Debt Incurred for Establishing, Purchasing, Extending, etc., Light Plant

Section 40. A city or town which has duly voted to acquire a municipal lighting plant may incur debt as provided in section eight of chapter forty-four for establishing, purchasing, extending, enlarging, reconstructing or making extraordinary repairs to such plant within the limits of the territory within which such plant is authorized to distribute its products.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 41 - Enlargement of Plant

Section 41. A city or town owning such a plant shall not, except by a vote taken in the manner prescribed in section eight of chapter forty-four, reconstruct, enlarge or extend such plant. This section shall not apply to expenditures for ordinary maintenance, repair or replacement, or for new equipment necessary to generate or distribute gas or electricity to new consumers.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 42 - Purchase of Existing Plant

Section 42. If, when a town votes to establish a municipal lighting plant, any person or municipality was, at the time of the first vote required by section thirty-five or thirty-six, engaged in generating or distributing gas or electricity for sale for lighting purposes in such town, the town may purchase of him or it, at such price and on such terms as may be agreed upon, such portion of his or its plant and property within the limits of such town as such town desires for its use and as can be agreed upon, provided, however, that no such purchase shall be consummated by a city unless approved by vote of its city council, or of its commissioners if the city government consists of a commission, or by a town unless ratified by the voters at a town meeting.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 45 - Purchase of Property in Adjoining Town

Section 45. If a town purchases a gas or electric lighting plant having mains, poles, wires or other distributing apparatus in an adjoining town where there is no private gas or electric lighting company, it may also purchase such mains, poles, wires or other distributing apparatus therein, subject to sections forty-two and forty-three.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 46 - Distribution to Adjoining Town

Section 46. A town which has acquired, as hereinbefore provided, mains, poles, wires or other distributing apparatus in an adjoining town may thereafter manufacture, sell and distribute gas or electricity to said adjoining town or to its inhabitants, and shall thereafter have therein the same rights and franchises and be subject to the same limitations and obligations as the vendor from whom such outlying plant was purchased would have had or to which he would have been subject had such purchase not been made.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 47 - Extension of Services to Adjoining Town

Section 47. The department may, after notice and a public hearing, authorize a town which has acquired a municipal lighting plant to extend its mains or lines into an adjoining town in order to distribute and sell gas or electricity therein, if such town or a private corporation therein is not then supplying such town with gas or electricity, as the case may be. Such authorization shall be upon such terms and with such limitations and restrictions as the department deems for the public interest. A town so authorized shall thereafter have in such adjoining town the same rights and privileges, and be subject to the same limitations and obligations, as it has within its own territorial limits.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 47b - Facilities and Equipment Located Outside Municipal Limits

Section 47B. Any municipality acting by and through its municipal light board may construct, purchase, operate, own, lease, rent, maintain, dispose of, share costs of, or otherwise have the right to the use, or portions thereof, of subtransmission, transmission, distribution, and generation facilities and equipment located outside of the municipality's limits. All such subtransmission, transmission, distribution, and generation facilities and equipment, or portions thereof, referred to in this section so constructed, purchased, owned, leased, rented, operated, maintained, or otherwise having the right to be used by any municipality shall hereafter be considered ''plant'' under the provisions of sections 34, 40, and 57 of this chapter. Any municipality acting by and through its municipal light board is hereby authorized to pay for the construction, purchase, lease, rent, or the right to use, or portions thereof, of the subtransmission, transmission, distribution, and generation facilities and equipment referred to in this section from those amounts accumulated for depreciation.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 47d - Exemption From Public Records and Open Meeting Requirements in Certain Instances

Section 47D. A municipal lighting plant created pursuant to the provisions of this chapter or any special law shall be exempt from the public record requirements of section 10 of chapter 66 and the open meeting requirements of sections 20 and 21 of chapter 30A in those instances when necessary for protecting trade secrets, confidential, competitively sensitive or other proprietary information provided in the course of proceedings conducted pursuant to this chapter when such municipal lighting plant board determines that such disclosure will adversely affect its ability to conduct business in relation to other entities making, selling, or distributing electric power and energy pursuant to this chapter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 47e - Facilities for Operation of Telecommunications Systems for Municipal Use; Construction, Purchase, Lease and Maintenance; Debt

Section 47E. A municipal lighting plant or a cooperative public corporation and any municipal lighting plant member thereof, established pursuant to this chapter or any general or special law may construct, purchase or lease, and maintain such facilities as may be necessary for the distribution or the operation of a telecommunications system for municipal use or for the use of its customers. Such municipal lighting plant may incur debt for such facilities by a vote taken in the manner prescribed pursuant to section 8 of chapter 44. Such cooperative may incur debt for such facilities pursuant to the provisions of section 47C. Such facilities may include suitable land, structure, machinery, other apparatus and appliances for operating a telecommunications system. Such cooperative or municipal lighting plant, which is engaged in the business of operating a telecommunications system, may, as a part of such business, if an appropriation is made therefor, rent, lease, or sell for cash or credit at prevailing retail prices, install and service, within the territory served by such business, merchandise, equipment, utensils and chattels of any description which are incidental or auxiliary to the operation of said telecommunications system or the use of its customers or are necessary or expedient in the protection or management of its property used in such business. Wherever apt, the provisions of this chapter and chapter 44, which apply to the operation and maintenance of a municipal lighting plant, shall apply also to the operation and maintenance of such telecommunications system.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 51 - Purchase of Gas, Electricity, Equipment, Supplies or Materials From Another Town

Section 51. A town which has acquired a plant for the manufacture or distribution of gas may purchase gas from another town authorized to sell the same or from any corporation selling gas; and a town which has acquired a plant for the manufacture or distribution of electricity may purchase electricity from another town authorized to sell the same or from any corporation selling electricity and may contract for the purchase, sale or maintenance of equipment, supplies or materials used in the ordinary course of business with any other town or towns having acquired such a plant or with any corporation selling electricity, except as provided in section fifty-two.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 52 - Purchase of Electricity by Town From Street Railway

Section 52. A town in which no person or corporation is engaged in generating or distributing electricity for sale and which has voted or shall vote to construct one or more plants for the manufacture or distribution of electricity for municipal use or for the use of its inhabitants, or for both purposes, may make contracts, for terms not exceeding ten years, with any street railway company operating a street railway in such town, for the purchase of electricity from such company in order to furnish electricity for municipal use or for the use of its inhabitants, or both; and street railway companies may make contracts to furnish electricity as aforesaid to a town, but the contracts shall not become operative unless the department shall, after a public hearing, approve the terms thereof as consistent with the public interest. This and the three following sections shall not apply to cities.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 53 - Delivery by Street Railway; Metering

Section 53. Electricity supplied by a street railway company to a town shall be delivered to the distributing system of said town at some specified place or places therein, and the meter or meters by which such electricity is measured shall be a part of the distributing system.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 54 - Disagreement as to Price Paid to Street Railway; Action of Department

Section 54. If a town voting to purchase electricity from a street railway company is unable to agree with such company at the expiration of a contract, made in accordance with section fifty-two, upon the price to be paid for electricity by, or upon the manner in which electricity is to be furnished to, said town in the future, its selectmen may apply to the department to fix the price which it shall pay for said electricity to, and the manner in which electricity shall be furnished by, said company; and thereupon the department shall set a date for a public hearing upon such application, giving said company reasonable notice thereof; and after the hearing the department shall, if it deems the furnishing of such electricity consistent with the interest of public travel upon the railway of such company, fix the price which said town shall pay for electricity to, and the manner in which electricity shall be furnished by, said company; and said company shall thereupon furnish to said town electricity at the price and in the manner fixed by the department.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 55 - Municipal Light Board

Section 55. A town which has established or votes to establish a gas or electric plant may elect a municipal light board consisting of either three or five citizens of the town, each for a term of three years. Of the three-member board, initially one shall be chosen for one year, one for two years, and one for three years, and at each annual meeting thereafter one for a term of three years. Of the five-member board, initially one shall be chosen for one year, two for two years and two for three years and thereafter, the terms shall be for three years. The municipal light board shall have authority to construct, purchase or lease a gas or electric plant in accordance with the vote of the town and to maintain and operate the same.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 55a - Agreements Between Municipal Light Boards and Cities or Towns

Section 55A. A municipal light board may enter into an agreement with the city or town where it operates to provide billing, administrative, operational or other support services to assist the city or town with the operation of a municipal water utility owned and operated by the city or town upon such terms and conditions as agreed to by the city or town and the municipal light board.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 56 - Management of Plant

Section 56. The mayor of a city, or the selectmen or municipal light board, if any, of a town acquiring a gas or electric plant shall appoint a manager of municipal lighting who shall, under the direction and control of the mayor, selectmen or municipal light board, if any, and subject to this chapter, have full charge of the operation and management of the plant, the manufacture and distribution of gas or electricity, the purchase of supplies, the employment of attorneys and of agents and servants, the method, time, price, quantity and quality of the supply, the collection of bills, and the keeping of accounts. His compensation and term of office shall be fixed in cities by the city council and in towns by the selectmen or municipal light board, if any; and, before entering upon the performance of his official duties, he shall give bond to the city or town for the faithful performance thereof in a sum and form and with sureties to the satisfaction of the mayor, selectmen or municipal light board, if any, and shall, at the end of each municipal year, render to them such detailed statement of his doings and of the business and financial matters in his charge as the department may prescribe. All moneys payable to or received by the city, town, manager or municipal light board in connection with the operation of the plant, for the sale of gas or electricity or otherwise, shall be paid to the city or town treasurer. All accounts rendered to or kept in the gas or electric plant of any city shall be subject to the inspection of the city auditor or officer having similar duties, and in towns they shall be subject to the inspection of the selectmen. The auditor or officer having similar duties, or the selectmen, may require any person presenting for settlement an account or claim against such plant to make oath before him or them, in such form as he or they may prescribe, as to the accuracy of such account or claim. The wilful making of a false oath shall be punishable as perjury. The auditor or officer having similar duties in cities, and the selectmen in towns, shall approve the payment of all bills or payrolls of such plants before they are paid by the treasurer, and may disallow and refuse to approve for payment, in whole or in part, any claim as fraudulent, unlawful or excessive; and in that case the auditor or officer having similar duties, or the selectmen, shall file with the city or town treasurer a written statement of the reasons for the refusal; and the treasurer shall not pay any claim or bill so disallowed. This section shall not abridge the powers conferred on town accountants by sections fifty-five to sixty-one, inclusive, of chapter forty-one. The manager shall at any time, when required by the mayor, selectmen, municipal light board, if any, or department, make a statement to such officers of his doings, business, receipts, disbursements, balances, and of the indebtedness of the town in his department.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 56a - Municipal Light Commission; Definition; Contracts of Members

Section 56A. The words ''municipal light commission'' as used in this section and in sections fifty-six B to fifty-six E, inclusive, shall mean a light commission, gas and electric commission or similar body established by act of the legislature and vested with all powers and duties formerly exercised by the mayor and selectmen under this chapter, and with the powers and duties conferred upon municipal light boards under this chapter.
No member of a municipal light commission or manager thereof shall directly or indirectly make a contract with the city or municipal lighting plant or receive any commission, discount, bonus, gift, contribution or reward from or any share in the profits of any person making or performing such contract unless such member or manager immediately upon learning of the existence of such contract, or that such contract is proposed, shall notify in writing the municipal light commission or city of the nature of his interest in such contract and shall abstain from doing any official act on behalf of the commission or plant in reference thereto.
A violation of any provision of this section shall render the contract in respect to which such violation occurs voidable at the option of the commission. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall be punished by a fine of not less than fifty nor more than one thousand dollars or by imprisonment for not more than one year, or both.
This section shall not apply to contracts of employment between a municipal lighting plant and its manager.
This section shall not apply to contracts between the city or municipal lighting plant and a corporation of which the member or manager is a stockholder or bondholder, unless the member or manager or a member of his immediate family owns or controls more than one per cent of the capital stock or more than one per cent of the outstanding bonds of such corporation.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 56b - Contracts of Commission; Requisites

Section 56B. All contracts made by a municipal light commission where the amount involved is five thousand dollars or more shall be in writing. Any contract made as aforesaid may be required to be accompanied by a bond with sureties satisfactory to the municipal light commission, or by a deposit of money, certified check or other security for the faithful performance thereof, and such bonds or other securities shall be deposited with the city or town treasurer until the contract has been carried out in all respects; and no such contract shall be altered except by a written agreement of the contractor, the sureties on his bond, if any, and the officer or members of the municipal light commission making the contract.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 56c - Contracts of Commission; Filing With City or Town Auditor; Preservation; Public Inspection; Penalty

Section 56C. Every municipal light commission or manager thereof, who makes or executes a contract on behalf of a municipal lighting plant, where the amount involved is five thousand dollars or more, shall furnish said contract or a copy thereof to the city or town auditor within one week after its execution. Said city or town auditor shall keep such contract or copy on file, open to public inspection during business hours. Such contracts or copies shall be kept in a separate book, arranged according to the subject of the contract, or in other convenient form. An index of the subject matter of the contracts and to the names of the contractors shall be made semi-annually, and shall also be open to public inspection in some convenient form. All allowances under and additions to such contracts, or copies thereof, shall be filed with the city or town auditor, together with a sworn statement of the officer making such allowances or additions that the same are correct and in accordance with the contract. A city or town auditor, municipal light commissioner or manager wilfully failing to comply with this section shall be punished by a fine of not less than ten nor more than one hundred dollars.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 56d - Contracts of Commission; Advertisements and Bids; Application of Section

Section 56D. No contract for the purchase of equipment, supplies or materials, the actual or estimated cost of which amounts to $50,000 or more, and no contract for the purchase of generation, transmission or distribution equipment, the actual cost or estimated cost of which amounts to $50,000 or more, except in cases of special emergencies involving the health, safety or welfare of the people or their property, shall be awarded unless proposals for the same have been invited by advertisement in at least one newspaper published in the city or town in which the lighting plant is located, or, if there is no such newspaper, in a newspaper published in the same county, such publication to be at least one week before the time specified for the opening of said proposals. Such advertisement shall state the time and place for opening the proposals in answer to said advertisement, and shall reserve to the municipal light commission the right to reject any or all such proposals. All such proposals shall be opened in public. No bill or contract shall be split or divided for the purpose of evading any provision of this section. This section shall not apply to contracts for the supply of electricity to a municipal lighting plant.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 56e - Removal of Members; Notice and Hearing; Appeal

Section 56E. Any member of a municipal light board or municipal light commission appointed under the provisions of any general or special law may be removed by the appointing authority for misfeasance or malfeasance in office or wilful neglect of duty. Prior to such removal the member shall be given a full hearing before the appointing authority, of which hearing he shall have at least three days' written notice, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, from the appointing authority. Said notice shall contain a full and complete statement of the specific reasons which are alleged to constitute the cause for such removal. Within two days, exclusive of Sundays and holidays, after completion of said hearing, the appointing authority shall give such member a written notice of his decision, stating fully and specifically the reasons therefor.
Any hearing under this section shall, if either party concerned so requests in writing, be public, and at any such hearing the member concerned shall be allowed to answer the charges preferred against him either personally or by counsel.
Within thirty days after receipt of the decision of the appointing authority, a member who was so removed may appeal to the superior court for the county in which the plant is located. Notwithstanding a decision of the appointing authority removing a member he shall continue to serve until the expiration of the appeal period provided in this paragraph. If such member appeals as hereinbefore provided such appeal shall be advanced for a speedy hearing. The court shall hear all pertinent evidence and determine the facts, and, upon the facts as so determined, annul or affirm such decision. Until the court affirms the order removing such member, his removal shall not take effect and such member shall continue to exercise the powers and perform the duties of his office. The decision of the court shall be final and conclusive upon the parties and a copy of the decision shall be forwarded forthwith by the clerk of the court to the appointing authority.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 57a - Appropriations for Maintenance and Operation; Payment in Advance of Receipts

Section 57A. Any city or town having a municipal light plant may appropriate money for the maintenance and operation of such plant, specifying that the same shall be taken from the receipts of the department; and where such appropriations are made, the city or town treasurer may, in advance of the collection of said receipts, pay bills on account of the said appropriations, and any sum so advanced shall be repaid to the city or town from such receipts, when collected, and shall be applied as reimbursement to the city or town, or to the payment of any temporary loan made by the city or town in anticipation of revenue of that year.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 57b - Income From Investment or Deposit of Proceeds of Municipal Bonds or Notes Issued for Gas or Electrical Purposes

Section 57B. Any city or town having a municipal light plant shall appropriate any income from the investment or deposit of proceeds of bonds or notes of said plant issued under or subject to the provisions of chapter forty-four solely for the purposes of said municipal lighting plant.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 58 - Schedule of Prices for Gas and Electricity

Section 58. There shall be fixed schedules of prices for gas and electricity, which shall not be changed oftener than once in three months. Any change shall take effect on the first day of a month, and shall first be advertised in a newspaper, if any, published in the municipality. No price in said schedules shall, without the written consent of the department, be fixed at less than production cost as it may be defined from time to time by order of the department. Such schedules of prices shall be fixed to yield not more than eight per cent per annum on the cost of the plant, as it may be determined from time to time by order of the department, after the payment of all operating expenses, interest on the outstanding debt, the requirements of the serial debt or sinking fund established to meet said debt, and also depreciation of the plant reckoned as provided in section fifty-seven, and losses; but any losses exceeding three per cent of the investment in the plant may be charged in succeeding years at not more than three per cent per annum. The gas and electricity used by the municipality for any purpose except street lighting shall be charged for in accordance with the prices in the fixed schedules. The gas and electricity used by the municipality for street lighting shall be charged for at a cost to be determined as follows: the sum of all operating expenses, interest on the outstanding debt, the requirements of the serial debt or sinking fund established to meet said debt, and also depreciation of the plant reckoned as provided in section fifty-seven, and losses, shall be the dividend; the kilowatt hours sold including those supplied for street lighting shall be the divisor, and the resulting quotient multiplied by the kilowatt hours supplied for street lighting shall be the cost to be charged to the municipality for street lighting. In lieu of the method of determining charges for electricity used by the municipality for street lighting, as set forth in the preceding sentence, electricity so used may be charged for at a cost in accordance with a street lighting schedule filed with and approved by the department.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 58a - Advance Deposit; Shut Off for Non-Payment; Removal of Appliances for Distribution

Section 58A. A sufficient deposit to secure the payment for gas or electricity for 3 months may be required in advance from any consumer, and if the advance deposit is retained for a longer period than 6 months, the interest rate shall be paid annually to said consumer or credited to his account. The rate of interest shall be revised annually and shall be equal to yields on Treasury securities at constant, fixed maturity 1–year rate as published by the Federal Reserve System and as established 12 months ending December of the prior year. The supply may be shut off from any premises until all arrears for gas or electricity furnished thereon to such consumer shall have been paid. After three months default in the payment of such arrears, all appliances for distribution belonging to the municipality on the premises may be removed and shall not be restored except on payment of all such arrears and the expenses of removal and restoration.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 58b - Lien Upon Real Estate for Nonpayment of Service Charges

Section 58B. If the rates and charges due to a municipal lighting plant, which accepts the provisions of this section and sections fifty-eight C to fifty-eight F, inclusive, by vote of its municipal light board, as defined in section sixty-nine B and, by its manager of municipal lighting, files a certificate of such acceptance in the proper registry of deeds and files a copy of said certificate with the collector of taxes of the city or town in which the lien hereinafter mentioned is to take effect, for supplying or providing for gas, electricity, steam, or services, or furnishing materials or appliances in connection therewith to or for any real estate at the request of the owner are not paid on or before their due date as established by the municipal light board, such rates and charges, together with interest due thereon and costs, including attorneys fees, relative thereto, shall be a lien upon such real estate. The registrar of deeds shall record such certificate of acceptance in a book to be kept for the purpose, which shall be kept in an accessible location in the registry of deeds.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 58c - Time for and Length of Lien

Section 58C. Such lien shall take effect by operation of law on the day immediately following the due date of such rate or charge, and, unless dissolved by payment or abatement, shall continue until such rate or charge has been added to or committed as a tax under section fifty-eight D, and thereafter, unless so dissolved, shall continue as provided in section thirty-seven of chapter sixty; provided, however, that if any such rate or charge is not added to or committed as a tax under section fifty-eight D for the next fiscal year commencing after the inception of the lien under this section, then said lien shall terminate on October first of the third year following the year in which such charge becomes due.
Notwithstanding such lien any such overdue rate or charge may be collected through any legal means, including the shutting off of gas, electricity, steam or services, which may be deemed advisable; provided, that after the termination of such a lien, no city, town or municipal lighting plant shall attempt to enforce, by shutting off the gas, electricity, steam or service, collection of such rate or charge from any person, not liable therefor, who has succeeded to the title or interest of the person incurring such rate or charge.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 58d - Unpaid Charges Added to Real Estate Taxes

Section 58D. If a rate or charge for which a lien is in effect under section fifty-eight C has not been added to or committed as a tax and remains unpaid when the assessors are preparing a real estate tax list and warrant to be committed by them under section fifty-three of chapter fifty-nine, the manager of municipal lighting shall certify such rate or charge to the assessors, who shall forthwith add such rate or charge to the tax on the property to which it relates and commit it with their warrant to the collector of taxes as part of such tax. If the property to which such tax or rate relates is tax exempt, such rate or charge shall be committed as the tax.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 58e - Interest on Taxes Due by Reason of Unpaid Charges

Section 58E. Except as otherwise provided, the provisions of chapters fifty-nine and sixty shall apply, so far as pertinent, to all rates and charges certified to the assessors under section fifty-eight D. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, upon commitment as a tax or part of a tax under section fifty-eight D, all such rates and charges shall be subject to the provisions of law relative to interest on the taxes of which they become, or, if the property were not tax exempt would become, a part; and the collector of taxes shall have the same powers and be subject to the same duties with respect to such rates and charges as in the case of annual taxes upon real estate, and the provisions of law relative to the collection of such annual taxes, the sale or taking of land for the nonpayment thereof and the redemption of land so sold or taken shall, except as otherwise provided, apply to such rates and charges.
Upon collection of such rates or charges certified to the assessors under section fifty-eight D, the city or town shall appropriate said amount solely for the purposes of the municipal lighting plant.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 58f - Abatement of Real Estate Tax Imposed by Reason of Unpaid Charges

Section 58F. An owner of real estate aggrieved by a charge imposed thereon under sections fifty-eight B to fifty-eight E, inclusive, may apply for an abatement thereon by filing a petition with the municipal light board, as defined in section sixty-nine B, within the time allowed by law for filing an application for abatement of the tax of which such charge is, or, if the property were not tax exempt, would have been a part, and if such board finds that such charge is more than is properly due, a reasonable abatement shall be made.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 59 - Notice of Change of Price to Department

Section 59. When a town fixes or changes a price, a notice thereof in form specified by the department shall be filed within sixty days with the department by the manager of municipal lighting, and for the failure to do so he shall forfeit not more than twenty-five dollars.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 60 - Entitlement to Service; Review by Department

Section 60. A town shall not be compelled to furnish gas or electricity to any person or corporation except upon order of the department, to whom any person aggrieved by the refusal of a town to furnish gas or electricity may appeal, stating the facts in such detail as the department directs.