Opinion ID: 2618643
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Public Utilities

Text: In addition to the powers now vested in the General Assembly of the State of Colorado, all power to regulate the facilities, service and rates and charges therefor, including facilities and service and rates and charges therefor within home rule cities and home rule towns, of every corporation, individual, or association of individuals, wheresoever situate or operating within the State of Colorado, or whether within or without a home rule city or home rule town, as a public utility, as presently or as may hereafter be defined as a public utility by the laws of the State of Colorado, is hereby vested in such agency of the State of Colorado, as the General Assembly shall be law designate. Until such time as the General Assembly may otherwise designate, said authority shall be vested in the Public Utilities Commission of the State of Colorado; provided however, nothing herein shall affect the power of municipalities to exercise reasonable police and licensing powers, nor their power to grant franchises; and provided, further, that nothing herein shall be construed to apply to municipally owned utilities.  (Emphasis supplied) The exception provided for in this most recent amendment to the constitution needs no explanation or interpretation. It would unduly lengthen this opinion to set out in full the various statutes pertaining to the acquisition by a city such as Thornton of the water system and appurtenances. The statutes involved are: 1960 Perm.Supp., C.R.S., section 139-32-1(34); C.R.S. '53, 139-42-1; Chapter 139, Article 52, C.R.S. '53, as amended in 1962, now contained in C.R.S.1963, 139-52-1 to 7. In summary, they give full power to the municipality, subject only to the electorate, to purchase or acquire by condemnation at the fair market value thereof any water works or system and appurtenances necessary to the works or system. Such facilities may be wholly within or wholly without the municipality. The municipality is authorized to operate and maintain such water facilities or sewer facilities or both for its own use, for the use of public or private use, and for use within and without the territorial boundaries of the municipality. One section provides that the operation and the cost thereof shall be without modification, supervision or regulation of rates, fees, tolls or charges by any board, agency, bureau, commission or official other than the governing body as provided by ordinance in the municipality. A pertinent portion of C.R.S.1963, XXX-XX-XX, provides,    In so far as the provisions of this article are inconsistent with the provisions of any other law, the provisions of this article shall be controlling. A reading of the various pertinent statutes points to the inescapable conclusion that the acquisition by Thornton of the Northwest facilities could not be prevented or interfered with by any agency once the people of Thornton determined by their vote that the system was to be acquired. By C.R.S. '53, 115-5-4, it was mandatory to include in the franchise granted to Northwest by Thornton the proviso that the municipality could acquire the public utility by purchase. Northwest was duty bound to sell, subject only to determination of the just price to be paid by negotiation or by arbitration or by a requested hearing before the Commission. As was previously stated, the price presented no obstacle so there was no need to invoke the aid of the Commission. Thornton, in acquiring the facilities, was by law required to pay its fair market value. This is determined by its own investigation and negotiation. Fair market value has many times been described as the price a buyer is willing to pay and the seller is willing to accept under circumstances that do not amount to coercion. The only statute which the Commission has been able to cite in justification of its action is C.R.S.1963, 115-5-5: Certificate may be sold, assigned, leased.Any certificate of public convenience and necessity, or rights obtained under any such certificate held, owned, or obtained by any public utility, may be sold, assigned, or leased as other property, only upon authorization by the commission and upon such terms and conditions as the commission may prescribe. If this section could be read to be in conflict with the other laws pertaining to acquisition by municipalities of water and sewage works, C.R.S.1963, XXX-XX-XX, would be controlling. However, in this action there has not been a sale, assignment or lease by Northwest of its certificates of authority. Thornton is given complete power to purchase and operate such facilities without a certificate of public convenience and necessity. Northwest still has its certificates and has not assigned them or sold them, and in its application before the Commission seeks only to surrender them. Under the circumstances disclosed herein the Commission has no discretion but to accept the surrender and to cancel the certificates. The writ is made absolute. SCHAUER, J., not participating.