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 140 - Neighborhood Net Metering Facility; Election of Net Metering; Rules and Regulations

Section 140. A neighborhood net metering facility shall elect net metering as follows:
(a) If the electricity generated by the neighborhood net metering facility during a billing period exceeds its kilowatt-hour usage during the billing period, the neighborhood net metering facility shall be billed for 0 kilowatt-hour usage and the excess neighborhood net metering credits shall be credited to those customers identified by the neighborhood net metering facility as being served by the same company to which the neighborhood net metering facility is interconnected, residing in the same neighborhood in which the neighborhood net metering facility is located and having an ownership interest in the neighborhood net metering facility. The amount of the excess neighborhood net metering credits to be attributed to each such customer shall be determined by the allocation provided by the neighborhood net metering facility. Credits may be carried forward by such customers from month to month. Written notice of the identity of the customers so designated and the allocation of the credits to be attributed to such customers shall be in such form as the distribution company shall reasonably require.
(b) The department shall adopt rules and regulations necessary to carry out this section, including, but not limited to, further defining the term ''neighborhood'' and limiting the number of customers that may be designated by neighborhood net metering facilities to receive neighborhood net metering credits.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 141 - Decisions or Actions Regarding Rate Design; Adjustment to Low-Income Rate Discount

Section 141. In all decisions or actions regarding rate designs, the department shall consider the impacts of such actions on: (i) on-site generation; (ii) the replacement of gas infrastructure with utility-scale non-emitting renewable thermal energy infrastructure; (iii) the reduction of greenhouse gases as mandated by chapter 21N to reduce energy use; (iv) efforts to increase efficiency and encourage non-emitting renewable sources of energy; (v) the findings of utility-scale renewable thermal energy pilots approved by the department of public utilities pursuant to section 99 of chapter 8 of the acts of 2021; (vi) data collected related to the design and operation of networked geothermal demonstration projects approved by the department of public utilities pursuant to chapter 102 of the acts of 2021, including data on any reduction of lost and unaccounted for gas as defined in section 147; and (vii) the use of new financial incentives to support energy efficiency efforts. Where the scale of on-site generation would have an impact on affordability for low-income customers, a fully compensating adjustment shall be made to the low-income rate discount.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 142 - Removal of Impediments to Development of Efficient, Low-Emissions Distributed Generation

Section 142. The department shall continue to remove any impediments to the development of efficient, low-emissions distributed generation, including combined heat and power and utility-scale non-emitting renewable thermal energy, taking into account the need to appropriately allocate any associated costs in a fair and equitable manner. For the purposes of this section, ''efficient, low-emissions'' shall mean an efficiency of 60 per cent or greater on an annual basis and emissions lower than required by the department of environmental protection.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 146 - Electric Distribution System Resiliency Reports; Competitive Solicitation for Electric Distribution System Resiliency Non-Wires Alternatives

Section 146. (a) Electric distribution companies shall file an annual electric distribution system resiliency report with the department, which shall include heat maps that: (i) show the electric load on the electric distribution system, including electric loads during peak electricity demand time periods; (ii) highlight the most congested or constrained areas of the electric distribution system; and (iii) identify areas of the electric distribution system most vulnerable to outages due to high electricity demand, lack of local electric generating resources and extreme weather events.
(b) Electric distribution companies may hold a competitive solicitation for electric distribution system resiliency non-wires alternatives from third party developers. The non-wires alternatives solicitations shall: (i) provide non-wires alternatives solutions to areas of the electrical grid that require transmission or distribution updates due to aging infrastructure, increased load or other resiliency issues identified in the resiliency report; (ii) benefit a stressed or congested area of the electrical grid; (iii) benefit the electrical grid in areas that are prone to severe weather damage; or (iv) reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
(c) When determining a winning bid to the competitive solicitation for resiliency non-wires alternatives, the electric distribution companies shall consider monetary and non-monetary factors including, but not limited to: (i) resiliency improvements; (ii) reducing greenhouse gas emissions; (iii) reducing peak demand; (iv) reducing congestion in stressed areas of the grid; and (v) benefits to low-income areas.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 147 - Reporting of Lost and Unaccounted for Gas

Section 147. (a) For the purposes of this section, ''lost and unaccounted for gas'' shall mean an amount of gas that is the difference between the total gas purchased by a gas company and the sum of: (i) total gas delivered to customers; and (ii) total gas used by a gas company in the conduct of its operations.
(b) The department shall issue regulations requiring all gas companies to report to the department, in a uniform manner, lost and unaccounted for gas for each year. Such standards shall include: (i) a method using operational and billing data to determine the total amount of lost and unaccounted for gas and to identify and measure each of its components; and (ii) a method using engineering characteristics and operational data to identify and measure all sources and locations where lost and unaccounted for gas occurs in the natural gas systems.
(c) The department may grant waivers from regulatory requirements as necessary for the development of innovative projects to reduce lost and unaccounted for gas. Such innovative projects shall be intended to reduce costs to ratepayers and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. An application for a waiver shall include the goals of the innovative project, the expected cost, the expected benefit to ratepayers and the expected reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 147a - Non-Emitting Renewable Thermal Infrastructure Project Defined

Section 147A. For the purposes of this section, the following term shall have the following meaning:—
''Non-emitting renewable thermal infrastructure project,'' a utility-scale project that replaces natural gas distribution infrastructure with distribution infrastructure that supplies heating, or heating and cooling, from fuel sources whose combustion does not emit greenhouse gases, as defined by section 1 of chapter 21N; provided, however, that a ''non-emitting renewable thermal infrastructure project'' may include, but shall not be limited to, a networked geothermal system.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164 - Manufacture and Sale of Gas and Electricity › Section 148 - Engineering Plans or Specifications for Work or Services Posing Material Risk to Public Safety to Bear Stamp of Certified Professional Engineer

Section 148. Any engineering plans or specifications for engineering work or services that could pose a material risk to public safety, as determined by the department pursuant to clause (l) of section 81R of chapter 112, developed by or on behalf of a gas company shall bear the stamp of a professional engineer certified under section 81E of said chapter 112; provided, however, that any such plan or specification shall be housed within the applicable gas company, subject to review and audit by the department, and shall be deemed to be filed with a public authority within the meaning of section 81M of said chapter 112. The department may promulgate regulations as necessary to implement this section and applicable provisions of subsection (l) of section 81R of said chapter 112.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 2 - Agreement Provisions Authorized

Section 2. The New England power pool agreement may provide for, among other things:
(a) the pooling of power;
(b) coordination of planning, construction and operation and the manner of establishing and enforcing standards and other requirements;
(c) delegation of authority to administrative committees;
(d) amendments of the agreement by vote or other action of the participants or of committees in the manner specified therein, subject to the right of any participant to withdraw in the event of its nonconcurrence with an amendment;
(e) appointment of representatives to act for one or more participants in regard to amendments and other matters;
(f) the allocation of pool expenses among participants;
(g) the provision of new, altered, improved or enlarged facilities by the participants subject to such proceedings as may be required by law for undertaking or financing any such project;
(h) limitations on other actions by the participants which might be inconsistent with the agreement or might adversely affect its implementation;
(i) arbitration; and
(j) other matters deemed necessary or desirable in order to carry out the purpose of the agreement.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 3 - Additional Powers of Member Domestic Electric Utilities

Section 3. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of any general or special law relating to the powers and authorities of domestic electric utilities or any limitation imposed by a corporate or municipal charter, but subject to the conditions set forth in this chapter, a domestic electric utility which is a member of the New England power pool shall, in connection with its participation in such pool, have the following additional powers:
(a) jointly or separately to plan, finance, construct, purchase, operate, maintain, use, share costs of, own, mortgage, lease, sell, dispose of or otherwise participate in electric power facilities or portions thereof within or without the commonwealth or the product or service therefrom or securities issued in connection with the financing of electric power facilities or portions thereof; and
(b) to enter into and perform contracts for such joint or separate planning, financing, construction, purchase, operation, maintenance, use, sharing costs of, ownership, mortgaging, leasing, sale, disposal of or other participation in electric power facilities, or portions thereof, within or without the commonwealth, or the product or service therefrom, or securities issued in connection with the financing of electric power facilities or portions thereof, including, without limitation, contracts for the payment of obligations imposed without regard to the operational status of a facility or facilities and contracts with domestic or foreign electric utilities for the sale or purchase of electricity from an electric power facility or facilities for long or short periods of time or for the life of a specific electric generating unit or units; provided, however, that nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize a domestic electric utility to sell electricity at wholesale or retail within or without this commonwealth except (i) as otherwise authorized by or under its charter or the general or special laws of this commonwealth other than by this chapter; (ii) in connection with sales of economy, backup and other energy pursuant to a New England power pool agreement; and (iii) for any sale or sales of capacity and related energy from a specifically identified generating unit which is an electric power facility.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 4 - Additional Powers of Member Foreign Electric Utilities

Section 4. Notwithstanding any contrary provision of any general or special law relating to the powers and authorities of foreign electric utilities, but subject to the conditions set forth in this chapter, a foreign electric utility which is a member of the New England power pool shall, in connection with its participation in such pool, have in addition the power jointly with one or more other electric utilities, including at least one domestic electric utility, to construct, purchase, operate, maintain, use, own, mortgage, lease, sell, dispose of or otherwise participate in electric power facilities or portions thereof within this commonwealth or the product or service therefrom; provided, however, that nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize a foreign electric utility to sell electricity at wholesale or retail within this commonwealth except (i) as otherwise authorized by or under the general or special laws of this commonwealth other than by this chapter; (ii) in connection with sales of economy, backup and other energy pursuant to a New England power pool agreement; and (iii) for any sale or sales of capacity and related energy from a specifically identified generating unit which is an electric power facility.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 5 - Acquisition or Ownership of Interests in Electric Power Facilities; Tenancy in Common; Surrender or Waiver of Right of Partition; Validity and Enforceability

Section 5. If any domestic or foreign electric utility acquires or owns an interest as a tenant in common with one or more other domestic or foreign electric utilities in any electric power facilities in this commonwealth, the surrender or waiver by any such owner of such property of its right to partition such property for a period not exceeding the period for which the property is used or useful for electric utility purposes shall not be invalid or unenforceable by reason of the length of such period, or as unduly restricting the alienation of such property.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 6 - Contracts; Term; Effect of Termination of Pool or Agreement; Exclusion From Municipal Debt for Borrowing Purposes

Section 6. Contracts under sections three and four (i) may be for a term or for an indefinite period and shall, unless otherwise provided therein, not be deemed terminated or to have been unauthorized by reason of termination of the New England power pool or of any membership therein or invalidation of any of the provisions of the New England power pool agreement; (ii) may provide for the sale or other disposition of by-products of electric power facilities; and (iii) may contain provisions for arbitration, delegation and other matters deemed necessary or desirable to carry out their purposes. Any party, public or private, desiring to purchase or use by-products of electric power facilities may enter into contracts therefor for short or long terms. Subject to clause (i) of paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of section nine, the obligation of a city or town under contracts referred to in this section shall not be included in the debt of the city or town for the purpose of ascertaining its borrowing capacity.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 7 - Assessment and Taxation of Foreign Electric Utilities

Section 7. A foreign electric utility shall be subject to assessment and taxation in the same manner and to the same extent as is provided by law with respect to a corporation defined as an ''electric company'' in section one of chapter one hundred sixty-four; except that a foreign electric utility which is a governmental entity shall, with respect to payments for franchise taxes to the commonwealth plus any other taxes not covered by subsections (b) and (d) of section eight, make payments in lieu of such taxes in the manner provided by subsection (c) of said section eight.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 10 - Foreign Electric Utilities; Ownership or Operation of Electric Power Facilities in Commonwealth; Notice, Annual Report and Information to Department; Financing; Application of Laws

Section 10. (a) Each foreign electric utility which is acting pursuant to authority granted in this chapter shall, before owning or operating any electric power facilities in this commonwealth, notify the department of the action to be taken by it; shall thereafter furnish to the department annually a copy of the annual report filed by it with the utility regulatory agency of the state of its domicile or principal locus; and shall furnish to the department from time to time such other information with respect to its activities in the commonwealth as the department may reasonable request.
(b) Any foreign electric utility which owns or operates any electric power facility in this commonwealth shall (1) be subject to sections three, three A and four of chapter one hundred eighty-one as to matters arising out of such ownership or operation and (2) as to a foreign electric utility other than a governmental entity be further subject to the requirements of chapter one hundred sixty-four and other regulatory laws within the commonwealth with respect to any financing of its interest in such electric power facility, including any borrowing or the issuance of any notes, bonds or other evidence of indebtedness or securities of any nature, provided, however, that it shall be exempt from such further requirements of this clause (2) upon certification filed with the department by a regulatory commission of the state of domicile or principal locus of such foreign electric utility, or of the United States, that said commission has regulatory jurisdiction over financing of such foreign electric utility.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 12 - Borrowing in Anticipation of Bonds; Temporary Notes; Issuance by City or Town

Section 12. In anticipation of the authorization or issue of bonds under this chapter, and subject to the approval of the department under this chapter, a city or town subject to this chapter, acting by its municipal light board, when authorized by a two-thirds vote as defined in section one of chapter forty-four, may issue temporary notes. Subject to the terms of the department's approval and of the authorizing vote, the board may provide for the sale of the notes at public or private sale and may determine the interest rate or rates, maturity or maturities, redemption privileges, if any, form, denomination or denominations and place or places of payment or provide for the determination thereof by an officer or officers of the board or of the city or town. Temporary notes issued hereunder shall be executed in the manner provided herein for bonds and shall be payable within six years from their respective dates, but the principal of and interest on notes issued for a shorter period may be renewed or paid from time to time by the issue of other notes under this chapter, provided the period from the date of issue of an original note to the maturity of any note issued to renew or pay the same debt or the interest thereon shall not exceed six years. Unless otherwise provided in the authorizing vote or in the approval of the department, the board may cause notes to be refunded to the extent provided in this chapter. To the extent of any borrowing in anticipation of bonds, the maximum maturity of an equivalent amount of the bonds shall be measured from the date of the anticipatory borrowing.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 14 - Proceeds of Bonds or Notes Issued and Moneys Governed by Trust Agreement or Resolution; Deposit or Investment

Section 14. Subject to the trust agreement or resolution, the proceeds of bonds or notes issued under this chapter and any other moneys governed by the trust agreement or resolution may be deposited or invested in demand deposits, time deposits or savings deposits in banks which are members of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or in obligations issued or guaranteed by the United States of America or by any agency or instrumentality thereof or as may be provided by any other applicable law.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 15 - Bonds and Notes Issued; Payment; Liability of City or Town Limited; Exclusion From Municipal Debt for Borrowing Purposes

Section 15. The bonds and notes issued under this chapter shall be payable solely from the funds provided therefor under this chapter, the liability of the city or town from other funds being limited to obligations undertaken by it to pay for the electricity used by it, and a statement to this effect shall be included on the face of such bonds and notes. Subject to the provisions of clause (i) of paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of section nine, the bonds and notes and such obligations shall not at any time be included in the debt of the city or town for the purpose of ascertaining its borrowing capacity.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 17 - Actions and Proceedings Upon Bonds and Notes

Section 17. Any holder of bonds or notes issued under this chapter, or of any of the coupons appertaining thereto, and the trustee under a trust agreement or resolution securing the same, except to the extent the rights herein given may be restricted by such trust agreement or resolution, may bring suit upon the bonds, notes or coupons and may, either at law or in equity, by suit, action, mandamus or other proceedings, protect and enforce any and all rights under the laws of the commonwealth or granted under this chapter or under such trust agreement or resolution, and may enforce and compel the performance of all duties required by this chapter or by such trust agreement or resolution to be performed by the city or town or by any officer thereof.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 18 - Bonds and Notes Issued as Legal Investments

Section 18. Bonds and notes issued under this chapter are hereby made securities in which all public officers and public bodies of the commonwealth and its political subdivisions, all insurance companies, trust companies in their commercial departments, investment companies, executors, administrators, trustees and other fiduciaries may properly and legally invest funds, including capital in their control or belonging to them, and such bonds and notes are hereby made obligations which may properly and legally be made eligible for the investment of savings deposits and the income therefrom in the manner provided by paragraph two of section fifty of chapter one hundred sixty-eight. Such bonds and notes are hereby made securities which may properly and legally be deposited with and received by any state or municipal officer or any agency or political subdivision of the commonwealth for any purpose for which the deposit of bonds or obligations of the commonwealth is now or may hereafter be authorized by law.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 21 - Refunding Bonds; Issuance Authorized; Restrictions

Section 21. Any city or town having bonds outstanding under this chapter, acting by its municipal light board, when authorized by a two-thirds vote as defined in section one of chapter forty-four, may issue refunding bonds for the purpose of paying bonds issued by it or on its behalf under sections eleven to twenty-two, inclusive, at maturity or upon acceleration or redemption, subject to the approval of the department under this chapter. The refunding bonds may be issued in sufficient amounts to pay or provide the principal of the bonds being refunded, together with any redemption premium thereon, any interest accrued or to accrue to the date of payment of such bonds, the expenses of issue of the refunding bonds, the expenses of redeeming the bonds being refunded, and such reserves for debt service or other capital or current expenses from the proceeds of such refunding bonds as may be required by a trust agreement or resolution securing bonds or notes. The refunding bonds may be issued not more than five years prior to the maturity or redemption date of bonds being refunded. The issue of refunding bonds, the maturities and other details thereof, the security therefor, the rights of the holders thereof, and the rights, duties and obligations of the city or town in respect of the same shall be governed by the provisions of this chapter relating to the issue of bonds other than refunding bonds insofar as the same may be applicable, but no bonds shall be refunded to a date later than the refunded bonds could have matured hereunder.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 22 - Bonds and Notes; Issuance Authorized

Section 22. Bonds and notes may be issued under this chapter without the consent of any department, division, commission or agency of the commonwealth or of any political subdivision thereof and without any other proceedings or the happening of any other conditions or things than those proceedings, conditions or things which are specifically required therefor by this chapter. The provisions of this chapter authorizing the issue of bonds and notes shall not be deemed to preclude the issue of bonds and notes under any other authority.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 23 - Zoning Regulations; Exemption of Facilities Used by Electric Utilities

Section 23. For the purposes of section ten of chapter forty A, an electric power facility located within the commonwealth and used or to be used by one or more domestic or foreign electric utilities pursuant to authority set forth in this chapter shall be considered a building, structure or land used or to be used by a public service corporation and each such utility shall be considered a public service corporation.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 24 - Transmission Lines of Electric Utilities; Petition for Authority to Construct, Use or Take Rights of Way by Eminent Domain Authorized

Section 24. Lines for transmission of electricity which are electric power facilities, as defined in section one, shall, irrespective of the destination of the electricity to be transmitted thereover, be lines for the transmission of electricity for which an electric utility may petition under section seventy-two of chapter one hundred sixty-four for authority to construct and use, or continue to use, or to take by eminent domain under chapter seventy-nine lands, or rights-of-way or widenings thereof.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 25 - Ownership or Control of Domestic Electric Utilities by Foreign Corporations; Applicability of Corporation Law

Section 25. A domestic electric utility shall not be subject to the provisions of section ten of chapter one hundred eight-one in the event a foreign corporation, as defined in said chapter, owns or controls a majority of the capital stock of said domestic electric utility, provided such ownership or control results from action pursuant to authority granted by this chapter.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 26 - Municipal Electric Departments; Application of Chapter

Section 26. With respect to municipal electric departments, this chapter shall be applicable only to such municipal electric departments as were in existence on January first, nineteen hundred and seventy-three, and to such additional municipal electric departments created after that date which comply with the following provisions:
(a) Such an additional municipal electric department shall first acquire or construct a plant for the generation, transmission or distribution of electricity only after the department, after notice and opportunity for hearing, shall have found that such acquisition or construction and the terms thereof to be consistent with the public interest and that the facilities for furnishing and distributing electricity in the territory to be served by such municipal electric department would not be diminished thereby; and
(b) The two votes required by section thirty-five or thirty-six of chapter one hundred sixty-four shall have been at meetings held not less than twelve months apart nor more than twenty-four months apart.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164a - New England Power Pool › Section 27 - Construction of Chapter

Section 27. This chapter shall be construed in all respects so as to meet all constitutional requirements. Except as expressly provided herein, the provisions of this chapter shall not affect the interpretation of other laws. If any provision of this chapter shall be held unconstitutional, such unconstitutionality shall not affect any other provisions, except as hereinafter set forth in this section. In the event it is finally determined by a court of competent jurisdiction that a municipal electric department is not subject, with respect to any electric power facilities financed under sections eleven to twenty-two, inclusive, to payments in lieu of taxes under paragraphs (b), (c) or (d) of section eight by reason of the unconstitutionality of any of said paragraphs, or that the borrowing limitation set forth in clause (i) of paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of section nine is unconstitutional, the municipal electric department involved shall, and any person may, file written notice of such decision with the department. Such notice shall include a statement that it is filed pursuant to this section. After such a filing the department shall not have any further authority to approve the issue of bonds under this chapter except (i) where it finds that any electric utility has, prior to such filing, undertaken substantial expense or liability in expectation of such bond financing, or (ii) where notes have been issued, prior to such a filing, under sections eleven to twenty-two, inclusive, in anticipation of revenue bonds.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164b - Regulation of Steam Distribution Companies › Section 1 - Supervision by Department of Public Utilities

Section 1. For purposes of this chapter, the term ''department'' shall refer to the department of public utilities. The department shall have supervision of facilities operated by steam distribution companies for the sole purpose of ensuring public safety and shall establish reasonable rules and regulations pertaining to the construction and operation of steam distribution facilities and equipment used in manufacturing and transporting steam. The department shall keep itself informed as to the methods, practices, and condition of all facilities and equipment associated with the distribution of steam, including ducts and conduits, and shall make such examinations and investigations of the steam distribution system as necessary, including the adequacy of operation, maintenance and capital improvements to insure safe operation of facilities operated by a steam distribution company.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164b - Regulation of Steam Distribution Companies › Section 2 - Filing of Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws; Safety Report; Penalty for Failure to Comply With Regulations

Section 2. Each steam distribution company shall file a certified copy of its certificate of incorporation and bylaws with the department. By March first of each year each company shall file a report on safety related matters as the department may specify, including but not limited to number, duration and causes of all steam leakage incidents, distribution system accidents and service outages, time elapsed between the incident and the return to service following a repair. The department may levy fines against a steam distribution company for failure to comply with regulations promulgated by the department. In determining the appropriateness of any fine, the department shall consider the seriousness of the violation and the good faith compliance efforts of the steam distribution company.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164b - Regulation of Steam Distribution Companies › Section 3 - Notice to Attorney General of Violation of Chapter; Authority of Municipality and Department of Fire Services Undiminished

Section 3. The department shall provide written notice to the attorney general of any violation of this chapter. The department's authority shall not diminish the authority of any municipality to regulate steam distribution, nor shall it diminish the authority of the department of fire services under chapter 146.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 164b - Regulation of Steam Distribution Companies › Section 4 - Exemption

Section 4. Any entity operating a steam distribution system that does not meet the definition of a steam distribution company set forth in section 1 of chapter 164 shall be exempt from the requirements of this chapter and section 18A of chapter 25 if the entity files a detailed inspection and maintenance plan with the department every 2 years.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 1 - Definitions

Section 1. In sections one to eleven, inclusive, the following words shall have the following meanings:—
''Corporation'' or ''company'', every person, partnership, association or corporation, other than a municipal corporation, and other than a landlord supplying his tenant, engaged in the distribution and sale of water in the commonwealth through its pipes or mains.
''Department'', the department of public utilities.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 1a - Adequacy of Distribution System; Approval

Section 1A. No corporation or company shall engage in the distribution or sale of water in the commonwealth through its pipes or mains unless written approval of the adequacy of its distribution system has first been obtained from the department, and unless proof of compliance with chapter one hundred and eleven has been furnished to the department.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 1c - Plastic Pipe Connections; Installation; Notice to Property Owner or Occupant; Grounding of Structure; Penalty

Section 1C. No water company shall install plastic pipe connections in any building or dwelling house without first giving notice to the occupant or owner of said building or dwelling house, and sending a copy of such notice to the wire inspector of the city or town in which the building or dwelling house is located. Such notice shall include a warning that the required grounding of the building or dwelling house might be affected by the installation of plastic pipe. Within thirty days of such notice, the owner of such building or dwelling house shall cause the building or dwelling house to be properly grounded. Upon the expiration of such thirty day period, the wire inspector shall inspect the building or dwelling house to determine that the building or dwelling house has been grounded in accordance with safety standards.
Whoever fails to ground a building or dwelling house in accordance with safety standards within thirty days after such notice, as hereinbefore provided, shall be punished by a fine of not less than fifty nor more than one hundred dollars.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 2 - Application of Other Statutes

Section 2. Sections four through eight D, ten, eleven, twelve, twelve A, thirteen, fourteen, sixteen, sixteen A, seventeen, seventeen A, eighteen, nineteen, twenty-one through twenty-five, thirty-three, seventy-eight through eight-four, ninety-two, ninety-three, ninety-four, ninety-six, ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred and one, one hundred and two A, one hundred and two B and one hundred and twenty-eight of chapter one hundred and sixty-four shall include and apply to all such corporations and companies, provided that nothing in section five A or section six of said chapter shall require the inclusion of the words ''electric company'' or ''gas company'' in the name of any such corporation or company.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 2a - Filing Schedule of Rates and Prices by Water Districts

Section 2A. Water districts shall file with the department schedules, in such form as the department shall from time to time prescribe, showing all rates, prices and charges to be charged or collected within the commonwealth for the sale and distribution of water.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 2b - Base Rate for Water Charges and Fees; Increases for High Volume Users

Section 2B. All municipalities or water districts within the jurisdiction of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, but not including communities serviced by the Connecticut Valley Aqueduct shall institute water charges and fees that incorporate a base rate for all users; provided, that said base rate shall be increased at an increasing block rate to fairly reflect the resource demand and consumption of high volume users of water.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 4a - Filing Copies of Existing Contracts With Affiliated Companies; Violations

Section 4A. A water company that has, prior to the effective date of this section, entered into or shall thereafter enter into any contract with an affiliated company as herein defined, for the payment of any fees, salaries, commissions or percentages for services of any kind furnished or rendered, or to be furnished or rendered, to such water company shall file with the department within ten days after said effective date a copy of any such existing contract and any extension or modification thereof, if in writing, or, if not in writing, a statement of all the terms thereof, and within ten days after the execution of any such contract, or of any extension or modification of any such contract whether or not existing on said effective date, a copy thereof, if in writing, or, if not in writing, a statement setting forth all the terms thereof. The words ''affiliated company'', as appearing in this section, shall be defined as in section eighty-five of chapter one hundred and sixty-four except that, in construing the definition in said section eighty-five for the purposes hereof, the words ''a company subject to this chapter'' shall mean a company as defined in section one of this chapter. A water company failing to file a copy or statement as required herein shall forfeit five dollars for each day during which such failure continues. All such forfeitures may be recovered by an information in equity brought in the supreme judicial court by the attorney general, at the relation of the department, and when so recovered shall be paid to the commonwealth.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 4b - Water Companies; Eminent Domain or Purchase; Waters, Water Rights, Lands and Easements

Section 4B. Any water company or corporation subject to this chapter having franchise rights encompassing an entire city, town or district may, subject to determination by the department after notice and a public hearing as to the public convenience and necessity, and with the advice and consent of the department of environmental protection, take by eminent domain under chapter seventy-nine or acquire by purchase or otherwise and hold the waters, or any portion thereof, of any pond, brook, spring, stream or groundwater sources within its franchise territory not already appropriated for purposes of public water supply, and any water or flowage rights connected therewith, and such lands, rights of way and other easements as may be necessary for collecting, storing, holding, purifying and treating such water and protecting and preserving the purity thereof, and for conveying the same to any place within its franchise territory.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 5 - Acquisition of Water Works and Other Water Company Property by Town

Section 5. In all proceedings for the acquisition by a town of the water works and other property of a water company created by special law in the commonwealth providing for the appointment of commissioners for the determination of the price to be paid for such water works and property, the matters to be referred to, heard and determined by, such commissioners shall be referred to, heard and determined by, the department, and its determination and award shall have the same force and effect as if the determination and award had been made by the commissioners provided for in the charters of such companies.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 6 - Engineering Services and Advice

Section 6. In all proceedings conducted by the department under the laws relating to the petition of any water company for authorization to issue capital stock or bonds, and in all matters connected with the determination by the department of any question relating thereto and before any such authorization is given, the department of environmental protection shall, on request of the department, furnish without charge engineering services and advice for its assistance and guidance in such proceedings.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 7 - Annual Report

Section 7. The department shall make an annual report of all its doings under this chapter, together with such suggestions as to the condition of affairs or conduct of the corporations and companies as may be appropriate and with such abstracts of the returns required by section two as it deems expedient.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 8 - Opening of Streets by One Other Than Water Company; Consent of Municipal Officers

Section 8. In a town where a water company exists in active operation, no other company or person shall dig up and open the streets, lanes and highways of such town for the purpose of laying water mains and pipes therein without the consent of the aldermen or selectmen after notice, by publication or otherwise, to all parties interested and a public hearing.
2023 Massachusetts General Laws › Part I - Administration of the Government › Title XXII - Corporations › Chapter 165 - Water and Aqueduct Companies › Section 9 - Review of Action of Municipal Officers Relating to Opening of Streets

Section 9. Any corporation, company or person aggrieved by the decision of the aldermen or selectmen under the preceding section may, within thirty days after notice of said decision, appeal therefrom to the department which shall thereupon give due notice to and hear all parties interested, and render decision thereon.