Chapter 25

Section 1. There shall be a department of public utilities, in this chapter called the department. It shall have an official seal, which shall be judicially noticed.

Section 10. The commission may assign to all officers and employees appointed or employed under the three preceding sections such duties as it shall from time to time deem advisable, but all acts of such officers and employees shall be done under the supervision and control of, a…

Section 10B. Except when a fee is required by another provision of law, and except in the case of a filing by the commonwealth or any of its political subdivisions, the department shall charge and collect fees as determined annually by the commissioner of administration under the…

Section 12F. There shall be in the department, and under the general supervision and control of the commission, a transportation division which shall be under the charge of a director, who shall be subject to chapter thirty-one and the rules and regulations made under authority t…

Section 12G. In all investigations and inquiries authorized by law to be made by the director of the transportation division, and in all proceedings before him, he may summon witnesses, administer oaths and take testimony. The provisions of section five A relative to fees of witn…

Section 12N. There is hereby established within the department, and under the general supervision and control of the commission, a facility siting division, which shall be under the charge of a director appointed by the commission. The facility siting division, hereinafter referr…

Section 12O. There shall be established upon the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Department of Telecommunications and Energy Trust Fund. There shall be credited to said fund all amounts collected pursuant to the second paragraph of section 18 and any …

Section 12P. There shall be established and set up on the books of the commonwealth a separate fund to be known as the Department of Public Utilities Storm Trust Fund. There shall be credited to this fund all amounts collected under the third paragraph of section 18 and any incom…

Section 12Q. There shall be a Department of Public Utilities Energy Facilities Siting Board Trust Fund. The department shall credit to the fund: (i) appropriations or other money authorized or transferred by the general court and specifically designated to be credited to the fund…

Section 12R. There shall be a Department of Public Utilities Unified Carrier Registration Trust Fund. The department shall credit to the fund: (i) application fees collected pursuant to section 10 of chapter 159B; and (ii) income derived from the investment of amounts credited to…

Section 12S. There shall be a Department of Public Utilities and Energy Facilities Siting Board Intervenor Support Fund. The department shall credit to the fund: (i) appropriations or other money authorized or transferred by the general court and specifically designated to be cre…

Section 12T. There shall be a division of public participation within the department and under the general supervision and control of the commission, which shall be under the charge of a director appointed by the commission. The division of public participation, hereinafter refer…

Section 18. The commission may make an assessment against each electric and gas company under the jurisdictional control of the department and each generation company and supplier licensed by the department to do business in the commonwealth, based upon the intrastate operating r…

Section 18A. The commission may make an assessment against each steam distribution company under the jurisdictional control of the department. Each steam distribution company shall annually report by March 31 its intrastate operating revenues for the previous calendar year to the…

Section 19. (a) The department shall require a mandatory charge of 2.5 mills per kilowatt-hour for all consumers, except those served by a municipal lighting plant, to fund energy efficiency programs including, but not limited to, demand side management programs. The programs sha…

Section 1A. In discharging its responsibilities under this chapter and chapter 164, the department shall, with respect to itself and the entities it regulates, prioritize safety, security, reliability of service, affordability, equity and reductions in greenhouse gas emissions to…

Section 2. The department shall be under the supervision and control of the commonwealth utilities commission, in this chapter called the commission, which shall consist of 3 members, 2 of whom shall be appointed and may be removed by the secretary of energy and environmental aff…

Section 20. (a) The department shall require a mandatory charge of 0.5 mill per kilowatt-hour for all electricity consumers, except those served by a municipal lighting plant which does not supply generation service outside its own service territory or does not open its service t…

Section 21. (a) To mitigate capacity and energy costs for all customers, the department shall ensure that, subject to subsection (c) of section 19, electric and natural gas resource needs shall first be met through all available energy efficiency and demand reduction resources th…

Section 22. (a) The department shall appoint and convene an energy efficiency advisory council which shall consist of 15 members, including 1 person representing each of the following: (1) residential consumers, (2) the low-income weatherization and fuel assistance program networ…

Section 23. (a) There shall be established within the department a division that shall be under the general supervision and control of the commission and shall be under the control of a director. The division shall promulgate rules and regulations and shall perform such functions…

Section 2A. There is hereby established within the executive office of energy and environmental affairs an energy advisory board, appointed by the governor, consisting of thirteen members: three representatives of investor-owned electric utilities; one representative of an invest…

Section 3. Each commissioner shall be sworn to the faithful performance of his or her official duties. A commissioner shall not own, or be in the employ of, or own any stock in any regulated industry company, nor shall he or she be in any way directly or indirectly pecuniarily in…

Section 4. The chairman shall have and exercise supervision and control over all the affairs of the commission. He shall preside at all hearings at which he is present, and shall designate a commissioner to act as chairman in his absence. He shall not, except as is otherwise prov…

Section 4A. Upon request of the mayor of a city or the selectman of a town, or of a member of the general court or of twenty customers of the company affected, a public hearing ordered by the department, to be held in connection with any change in rates or reduction in or discont…

Section 4B. Upon declaration by the governor that a state of emergency exists, the governor may authorize the chairman of the department of public utilities to take such action that the chairman may consider necessary to assure public safety and welfare through the priority resto…

Section 4C. (a) As used in this section, ''emergency'' shall mean a situation or condition which presents a threat to the public safety and welfare of the company's customers. An organized labor activity conducted for union recognition or as a tactic in contract negotiations shal…

Section 5. When so requested by any party interested, the commission shall rule upon any question of substantive law properly arising in the course of any proceeding before the commission or any member or members thereof, and any party interested aggrieved by such ruling may obje…

Section 5A. In all investigations and inquiries authorized by law to be made by the department and in all proceedings before it, any commissioner of the department may summon witnesses, administer oaths and take testimony. The fees of such witnesses for attendance and travel shal…

Section 5B. The department shall issue, following public hearings in accordance with chapter thirty A, rules and regulations for the enforcement of section thirty-three A of chapter one hundred and sixty-four.

Section 5C. The department shall promulgate, in accordance with chapter thirty A, rules and regulations for the transportation by rail of hazardous materials in the commonwealth. Said regulations shall be consistent with any federal regulations in effect.

Section 5D. Notwithstanding the provisions of clause Twenty-sixth of section seven of chapter four and section ten of chapter sixty-six, the department may protect from public disclosure, trade secrets, confidential, competitively sensitive or other proprietary information provid…

Section 5E. The department may, from time to time, audit all companies subject to its jurisdiction, except steam distribution companies. Such audits may include, but shall not be limited to, review of the following documents: (a) all financial statements, the balance sheet, the i…

Section 7. For the performance of the department's duties relative to common carriers the commission may appoint or employ and remove such engineers, accountants, statisticians, bureau chiefs and division heads, assistants, inspectors, clerks and other subordinates as are require…

Section 8. For the performance of the department's duties relative to common carriers the commission may expend annually such sums to procure opinions, advice, plans, surveys, appraisals, audits, examinations, statistics, information, apparatus, instruments, books, tables, maps, …

Section 9. For the performance of the department's duties relative to water, gas and electric companies the commission may expend annually for necessary statistics, books, stationery and contingent expenses, and for clerical and other assistance, such sums as the general court sh…