Title 37

The commission, by its order, may grant or deny the application provided for in Section 37-4-7 as made, or may grant it in part or deny it in part, or may grant it with such modification and upon such terms and conditions as the commission may deem necessary or appropriate in the…

Whenever any securities set forth and described in any such application for authority or certificate of notification as pledged or held unencumbered in the treasury of the utility shall, subsequent to the filing of such application or certificate, be sold, pledged, repledged or o…

Nothing in this article shall be construed to imply any guarantee or obligation as to such securities on the part of the State of Alabama. (Acts 1920, No. 37, p. 38; Code 1923, §9749; Code 1940, T. 48, §314.)

The provisions of Sections 37-4-7 through 37-4-12 shall not apply to notes issued by a utility for the proper purposes and not in violation of law, payable at a period of not more than two years from the date thereof, and aggregating (together with all other outstanding notes of …

Nothing contained in this chapter shall limit the power of any court having jurisdiction to authorize or cause a receiver’s certificate or debentures to be issued according to the rules and practice obtaining in receivership proceedings. (Acts 1920, No. 37, p. 38; Code 1923, §975…

The commission shall require periodical or special reports from each utility hereafter issuing any security, including such notes payable at periods of not more than two years from the date thereof, which shall show, in such detail as the commission may require, the disposition m…

Securities issued and obligations and liabilities assumed by a utility, for which under the provisions of this chapter the authorization of the commission is required, shall not be invalidated because issued or assumed without such authorization therefor having first been obtaine…

The commission may, upon its own motion, at any time, and upon reasonable notice to any utility, when the commission deems it necessary to ascertain the value of the property of such utility, proceed to investigate, ascertain and report the value thereof, and shall make such inve…

Whenever the commission shall have completed its valuation and report of the property of any utility, as provided in this article, and before such valuation shall become final, the commission shall give notice to such utility and to every municipality in the state where such util…

If notice of protest is filed, the commission shall fix a time for hearing the same and shall proceed as promptly as possible to hear and consider any matter relative and material thereto which may be presented in support of any such protest so filed. If, after hearing any such p…

The commission shall not have any jurisdiction, authority, power or control in any respect whatsoever over any nonutility, as defined in Section 37-4-1, except as may be provided in Division 2 of Article 2 of this chapter. Any utility, as defined by Section 37-4-1, may sell, leas…

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any private water system utility which serves less than 1,000 customers and purchases its water from a municipal water system in a Class 8 municipality may elect to be exempt from all regulation of the Public Service Commission and subj…

(a) If the valuation of the property of any utility has become final as provided in this article, or if such valuation becomes final as provided in Section 37-4-18, the commission may, within 90 days after any valuation hereafter made becomes final, proceed for reasons which it s…

When any order of valuation or of revaluation of the commission has become a final order, an appeal may be taken therefrom by the utility or by any person, as defined in this article, who is a party to the cause before the commission, to the Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Al…

(a) Rates and service regulations may be established by contract between a municipality and utility for a specified term, not exceeding 30 years, but only by and with the approval of the commission to be expressed by its order. Utilities may contract with each other and with pers…

(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) INCREMENTAL COSTS OF RETAIL ELECTRIC SERVICE. The additional costs associated with the generation, transmission, distribution, sale, or furnishing of electricity to a large load data center cus…

Each utility, as defined in this chapter, doing business in this state and subject to the control and jurisdiction of the commission with respect to its rates and service regulations, shall pay quarterly to the commission beginning November 1, 1985 and on each quarter thereafter …

(a) Supervision and inspection fees provided for in this chapter shall be in default after February 1, May 1, August 1 and November 1 of each year, if not paid prior to or on that date. In the event that the amount payable by any utility for any quarter cannot be ascertained on o…

For all the purposes of this chapter the commission may, in its discretion, deem and treat any utility, the property of which is operated in connection with or as a part of a general system of any other utility and all of the capital stock of which or substantially all of the cap…

Every utility engaged in any intrastate business in this state must file with the commission a true and correct statement, properly verified, of every outstanding or existing agreement between it and any holding company or affiliated interests, substantially affecting the financi…

All utilities may grant free transportation or service, or transportation or service at reduced rates, to such persons as are now or may hereafter be authorized by law to receive the same, and may grant free transportation or service, or transportation or service at reduced rates…

No plant, property or facility for the production, transmission, delivery or furnishing of gas, electricity, water or steam shall be constructed, except ordinary extensions of existing systems in the usual course of business, until written application is first made to the commiss…

Unless exercised within a period designated by the commission, but not exceeding one year from the grant thereof, exclusive of any delay due to the order of any court, or the failure to obtain any grant or consent, authority conferred by a certificate of convenience and necessity…

The officers and directors of every corporation operating as a utility shall be deemed to stand in a fiduciary relation to the corporation, and shall discharge the duties of their respective offices or positions in good faith and with that diligence, care and skill which ordinary…

(a) No existing electric customer shall obtain electric service under a private contract for electric service without first giving written notice to the utility currently providing it retail electric service at least 45 days prior to the date on which the private contract for ele…

The directors of corporations which are utilities engaged in any intrastate business in this state shall not, in any manner, delegate or temporarily or permanently relinquish or surrender their duty or obligation while occupying said office. (Acts 1932, Ex. Sess., No. 232, p. 233…

No utility shall permit any employee to sell, offer for sale, or solicit the purchase of any security of any other person or corporation during such hours as such employee is engaged to perform any duty of such utility; nor shall any utility by any means or device whatsoever requ…

(a) No utility engaged in intrastate business in this state shall pay any dividend upon its common stock until: The utility’s earnings and earned surplus are sufficient to declare and pay same after provision is made for reasonable and proper reserves. The dividend then proposed …

No utility shall issue any securities, or assume any obligation or liability, as lessor, lessee, guarantor, endorser, surety or otherwise, in respect to the securities of any other person unless and until, and then only to the extent that, upon application by the utility, and aft…

Every application for authority for such issue or assumption shall be made in such form and contain such matters as the commission may prescribe. Every such application and every certificate of notification provided for in this article shall be made under oath, signed and filed o…

All applications for the issuance of securities or assumption of liability or obligation shall be placed at the head of the commission’s docket and disposed of promptly, and all such applications shall be disposed of in 60 days after the same are filed with the commission, unless…

The property of a utility, together with its franchises, contracts, business, good will and other assets, may be lawfully sold and conveyed or leased to, and thereafter lawfully held, enjoyed and operated by, a purchaser then engaged or proposing to engage in the business conduct…

In cases other than those covered by Section 37-4-42, the question whether the proposed sale and conveyance or lease is consistent with the interests of the public shall be determined by the Public Service Commission, and if the commission determines that the proposed sale and co…

In cases where the property of the utility proposed to be sold and conveyed or leased lies within, and the franchises and public duties thereof relate to a single municipality, and in cases where such a utility is owned by a corporation, and its capital stock is proposed to be so…

Nothing in this division shall be construed to limit or restrict any right to sell, lease, hypothecate or mortgage any property, or to invalidate any legal sale, lease, hypothecation or mortgage thereof, where the same is legal without reference to the provisions of this division…

Nothing contained in this division shall be construed to authorize the sale and conveyance of property employed in the business of commerce among or between the states and territories of the United States or District of Columbia contrary to the laws of the United States. (Acts 19…

Any provision of this division to the contrary notwithstanding, any not-for-profit corporation or other not-for-profit entity owning, operating, leasing or controlling any plant, property or facility for the supply, storage, distribution or furnishing to or for the public of wate…

Whenever any municipal corporation, county improvement authority, power district, federal or other governmental agency, sometimes called “agency” in this division, proposes to engage in the business of operating an electric light plant or distribution system, or of furnishing ele…

If within 30 days after receipt of such notice the owner shall propose voluntarily to sell and transfer such property to the agency upon terms and conditions to be mutually agreed upon between the owner and the agency and approved by the Alabama Public Service Commission, and ser…

If acquisition of the property sought to be acquired by the agency is not consummated under the provisions of Sections 37-4-60 and 37-4-61, the agency, before proceeding to engage in the proposed business, shall take such steps as may be provided in this division. If the agency a…

Any party shall have the right to appeal from the order of the commission, such appeal to be governed by existing provisions of law relating to appeals from final orders of the commission; except, that such appeal shall be taken to the circuit court of the judicial circuit contai…

The owner shall have 30 days after a final determination by the commission or the courts to notify the agency of its acceptance of such determination and shall have a further period of 30 days to tender a good and sufficient deed of conveyance to the agency of the property requir…

Nothing in this division shall be deemed to require the purchase of or payment of compensation for any existing plant or distribution system within the corporate limits of any agency in which the construction of any electric distribution system has been already authorized by an e…

For the purposes of this article, the following words and terms shall have the following meanings, unless a different meaning is expressly stated or clearly indicated by the context: (1) PUBLIC UTILITY. Any person, firm, corporation or other legal entity of any kind engaged in th…

All pipeline systems used in this state for the transportation of gas shall be constructed, operated and maintained in such safe manner as at all times to be in compliance with the defined federal minimum safety standards. (Acts 1969, Ex. Sess., No. 204, p. 273, §2.)

The commission shall have the right, power and authority: To provide and make certifications, reports and information to the Secretary of the United States Department of Transportation; to enter into agreements with said secretary to carry out the purposes of this article; to enf…