Title 23 — Public Utilities and Regulated Industries

(a) The Arkansas Public Service Commission shall have jurisdiction over all navigable water crossings. (b) The commission shall have the power, authority, and responsibility, subject to the further provisions of this subchapter, to require that a navigable water crossing be const…

(1) Pursuant to the authority granted in this subchapter, the Arkansas Public Service Commission shall require any river crossing proprietor operating or proposing to operate a navigable water crossing to file a verified petition with the commission showing such data and specific…

(a) Upon the filing of a petition under § 23-3-504 by a river crossing proprietor which proposes to construct and operate a navigable water crossing, the Arkansas Public Service Commission shall fix a date for hearing the petition. (b) Unless waived by the parties, the hearing sh…

Any person, corporation, company, municipal agency, state agency, or institution whose rights or interests may be affected by such a proposed navigable water crossing may file written objections to the granting of the prayer of the petition.

(a) Upon the hearing, if it appears that the United States Secretary of the Army, or such other federal agency as may have jurisdiction to consent to the construction of erections in navigable waterways, has approved or permissively authorized the proposed navigable water crossin…

(a) When a river crossing proprietor owning or operating one (1) or more navigable water crossings in this state files with the Arkansas Public Service Commission a petition conforming to the requirements of § 23-3-504, the commission shall enter an order granting such rights to …

Rights in respect to the crossing of navigable waterways granted pursuant to the provisions of this subchapter shall be perpetual and shall inure to the benefit of the river crossing proprietor, its successors, mortgagees, and assigns. However, this subchapter shall not destroy, …

The Arkansas Public Service Commission shall require the applicant to pay all costs and expenses of a proceeding under this subchapter.

(a) Any party to a proceeding conducted pursuant to this subchapter before the Arkansas Public Service Commission, within twenty (20) days after a final order is made, may file a petition with the Pulaski County Circuit Court against the commission for the purpose of having the l…

(a) The Arkansas Public Service Commission, the river crossing proprietor, or any other party to an action in the circuit court to review the order of the commission, within thirty (30) days after the entry of the final judgment of the circuit court, may appeal to the Supreme Cou…

(a) In each instance where a river crossing proprietor may desire to replace a navigable water crossing, it shall file with the Arkansas Public Service Commission a proper petition pursuant to § 23-3-504. (b) (1) Proceedings upon the petition shall be conducted under §§ 23-3-506,…

(a) The General Assembly finds that the proportion of the state's population that is without access to service by a gas utility exceeds the proportion of the population that is without access to telephone or electric utility service. Therefore, the General Assembly declares it to…

(1) As used in this subchapter:(1) “Certificate of extension project” or “certificate” means the Arkansas Public Service Commission order authorizing a gas utility seeking the order to undertake an extension project. The certificate shall be issued contemporaneously with the comm…

(a) The Arkansas Public Service Commission shall grant a certificate if it finds that the proposed extension project is of economic benefit to the gas utility and its existing ratepayers and is in the public interest. (b) Once the certificate has been granted by the commission, i…

(a) (1) Once an extension project that has been granted a certificate is placed into service and is used and useful, the gas utility may collect the excess expenditures through a rate or surcharge approved by the Arkansas Public Service Commission. The tariff and rate filing made…

(1) Certificates shall be granted under this subchapter under the following provisions and conditions:(1) (A) Only proposed extension projects are eligible for recovery of the cost of excess expenditures under this subchapter.(B) Proposed extension projects are those for which ne…

Petitions for a certificate under this subchapter are not general rate applications.

Denial of a certificate under this subchapter does not preclude recovery of the cost of excess expenditures under rates or surcharges, or both, approved pursuant to a gas utility's general rate case or other proceeding in which the Arkansas Public Service Commission finds recover…

(a) It is declared to be the policy of this state that while the development of qualifying cogeneration and small power production facilities should be encouraged, electric utilities should not be required to purchase power from the facilities at excessive rates which would resul…

(1) As used in this subchapter, unless the context otherwise requires:(1) “Avoided costs” means the costs to an electric utility of electric energy or capacity, or both, that, but for the purchase from the qualifying facility or qualifying facilities, the utility would generate i…

The Arkansas Public Service Commission shall establish rates to be paid by an electric utility to qualifying cogeneration and small power production facilities which do not, over the term of the purchased power contract, exceed avoided costs and are based upon the preponderance o…

(a) A determination of the avoided energy cost rate or rates for the electric utility shall be based on the electric utility's estimated avoided costs of producing or purchasing electrical energy during the time period of the purchase of electrical energy from the qualifying faci…

Nothing in this subchapter shall prohibit an electric utility and a qualifying facility from negotiating a contract rate lower than the avoided cost rate established by the Arkansas Public Service Commission for the electric utility.