2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 69l - Petition for Certificate or Amendment Thereof; Form; Information Required; Affidavit of Service and Notice

Section 69L. A. Except in the case of an application for a certificate with respect to a generating facility, which shall be subject to the provisions of section 69L1/2, an applicant for a certificate shall file with the board a petition, in such form as the board may prescribe, containing the following information:
(1) A description of the location of the facility to be constructed or operated thereon.
(2) A summary of the studies which the applicant has made of the environmental impact of the facility, and a statement of the reasons for its choice of the location.
(3) A copy of the long-range plan, or petition for construction of a facility approved under the provisions of section sixty-nine J or notice of intention to construct an oil facility approved by the board or department under the provisions of section sixty-nine J, in proof of the need for the facility to meet the energy requirements of the applicant's market area, taking into account wholesale bulk power or gas sales or purchase or other cooperative arrangements with other utilities and energy policies as adopted by the commonwealth; provided, however, that this requirement may be waived by the board for emergency or unforeseen conditions which jeopardize the health and safety of the public.
(4) A statement setting forth the need of the applicant for the certificate, which statement shall include the following: all licenses, permits and other regulatory approvals required by law for the construction or operation of the facility which have been granted; a representation as to the good faith effort made by the applicant to obtain from state agencies and local governments the licenses, permits and other regulatory approvals required by law for construction or operation of the facility; either, a representation as to the inability, if any, of the applicant to comply with any law, ordinance, by-law, rule and regulation affecting the construction or operation of the facility; or a representation as to the applicant's inability to proceed with the construction or operation of the facility by reason of the denial, delay, or imposition of a burdensome condition in issuing specified licenses, permits or approvals; and such other information as the applicant may deem relevant or the board may by regulation require.
(5) A copy or copies of said information, studies and other pertinent information, shall be filed and made available for public inspection and copying, except that the board shall not permit disclosure, other than to another government agency concerned with the same matter, of any information, other than data pertaining to the nature or constituency of any water or air discharge, obtained by or submitted to the board pursuant to the provisions of sections sixty-nine H to sixty-nine R, inclusive, upon a showing, satisfactory to a majority of the board, that such information if made public would divulge methods or processes entitled to protection as trade secrets of any person.
B. Each petition shall be accompanied by an affidavit of the applicant, certifying that:
(1) A copy of the petition and a notice as to the date on which the petition is to be filed has been served on each of the following: the mayor of each city and the board of selectmen of each town in which any part of the proposed facility is to be located, the secretary of each executive office and the attorney general.
(2) Public notice thereof containing a summary of the petition and the date on which notice is to be filed was given by publication, in such manner as the board may by regulation provide.
C. Failure to give such service or notice may be cured pursuant to an order of the board subsequent to the filing of the petition. The board may further order additional service and notice on such other persons as it deems appropriate.
D. Each petition may be amended by the applicant at any time, subject to such reasonable requirements of notice as the board may impose.
E. A petition for an amendment of a certificate shall be in such form and subject to such requirements of notice and hearings as the board may provide, consistent with the nature and extent of the proposed amendment.