Title 39, Title 39 Utilities and Carriers

The compensation of the commissioners for services and expenses under § 39-9-6 shall be paid by the respective corporations in proportions as the commissioners shall determine and set forth as a part of their award; the award shall be returned to the court, and be subject to revi…

No railroad corporation shall contract to furnish facilities for the transportation of milk, or shall carry it in large quantities over any portion of its line, without at the same time establishing a tariff under which it will receive, forward, and deliver milk by the can over t…

On the petition of a person desiring to forward milk over a railroad, the division of public utilities and carriers shall ascertain at what rate facilities for carriage of milk under contract or in large quantities are furnished by the railroad corporation, and shall compare the …

No corporation unless incorporated by the general assembly, and no person or partnership unless the person or partnership or the members of the partnership are residents of this state, shall transport or engage in the transportation of any goods, wares, merchandise, or parcels of…

Every corporation, person, or partnership shall by a written power appoint some citizen of this state, resident therein, as attorney, with power and authority to accept service of all lawful process against the corporation, person, or partnership, and to cause an appearance to be…

A copy of a power of attorney duly certified and authenticated shall be filed with the secretary of state, and copies thereof duly certified shall be received in evidence in all courts in the state.

If the attorney shall die or resign or be removed, the corporation, individual, or partnership shall make a new appointment, as provided in § 39-10-2, and file a copy with the secretary of state as provided in § 39-10-3, so that at all times there shall be within the state an att…

Service of process upon an attorney shall be deemed sufficient service upon his or her principals.

Every corporation or partnership shall file in the office of the secretary of state, with the written power described in § 39-10-2, a copy of the charter of the corporation or a list of the names and the places of residence of all the members of the co-partnership.

Every person, corporation, or co-partnership violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall forfeit five hundred dollars ($500).

(a) No public utility that distributes electricity or supplies natural or manufactured gas, electric, or water service shall terminate service to any household in which all adult residents are sixty-five (65) years of age or older, or where any resident is disabled or seriously i…

(a) The commission shall promulgate appropriate rules and regulations to determine which persons who are elderly, disabled, or seriously ill are subject to the nontermination provisions of § 39-1.1-1, and in what manner relief will be made available to the subject persons. (b) Ru…

No gas or electric company shall terminate gas or electric service in any residence in which there is domiciled a person under the age of two (2) years and the customer’s service has not been previously shut off for nonpayment before the birth of the child; provided, that the cus…

The commission shall promulgate rules and regulations as are necessary to ensure that termination of utility service for outstanding indebtedness shall be authorized only after the utility has complied with reasonable methods of debt collection as defined by the division. In prom…

Nothing in this chapter is intended to modify any existing or proposed rules and regulations dealing with utility termination during winter months as defined by the commission. Nothing in this chapter is intended to modify any existing or proposed rules and regulations dealing wi…

If any provision of this chapter or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, its invalidity does not affect other provisions or applications of the chapter that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the pro…

Whenever used in this chapter: (1) “Airports and landing fields” means all airports and landing fields other than those owned by the state. (2) “Charter carrier” means and includes all carriers for hire or compensation by air within this state not included in the definition of th…

All certificates issued by the administrator shall continue in force and effect until surrendered or revoked for cause. No certificate may be transferred except upon proper application and hearing, and upon a finding by the administrator that the transfer is consistent with the p…

All common carriers subject to this chapter shall, before engaging in business, file with the administrator and keep open to public inspection at its offices and terminals schedules showing all rates, fares, and charges for transportation of passengers, or property, between diffe…

Any corporation or association, presently existing, and any that may hereafter be organized or authorized to do business under the laws of this state, or any lessee, or trustee, or any person or persons owning, conducting, managing, operating, or controlling any air carrier engag…

Any common carrier in operation on or before April 23, 1944, shall be entitled to a certificate of convenience and necessity as a matter of right, and without proof of public convenience and necessity, authorizing it to continue operations over the route or routes and between the…

Upon application of any person, or upon his or her own motion, and upon at least ten (10) days’ notice to the parties affected thereby, and for good cause, and after an opportunity for a hearing on the application, the administrator may revoke, suspend, alter, amend, or modify an…

No air carrier shall abandon any route or part thereof for which a certificate has been issued by the administrator unless, upon the application of the air carrier and after notice and a hearing by the administrator, he or she shall find abandonment to be in the public interest. …

Failure to commence operations within the time prescribed in the certificate or order of the administrator, or discontinuance of operations for more than sixty (60) days, shall be deemed just cause for revocation, but shall not be regarded as the sole cause for such action.

(a) Any person seeking to engage in the operation, or to extend a present operation, as a charter carrier, shall first obtain a certificate of public convenience and advantage from the public utilities administrator in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. (b) The provi…

Any charter carrier in operation on or before April 23, 1944, shall be entitled to a certificate of public convenience and advantage as a matter of right and without proof of public convenience and advantage; provided, however, that any charter carrier temporarily prevented from …

To aid in promoting and developing interstate transportation of persons and property by aircraft, any holder of a certificate of convenience and necessity issued by the federal Civil Aeronautics Board or any other appropriate federal governmental authority may apply to the admini…

It is hereby declared to be the purpose and policy of the legislature in enacting this chapter, to confer upon the public utilities administrator the power and authority and to make it his or her duty to supervise and regulate the transportation of persons and property by intrast…

Within a reasonable time after the filing of an application, the administrator shall issue a certificate to the applicant without a hearing thereon for that portion of the interstate operation that is within this state, upon such terms and conditions as he or she may deem proper …

For the purpose of receiving due notice of all proceedings before the administrator relating to aeronautics, the administrator is hereby authorized and directed to notify all holders of certificates issued under §§ 39-11-19 and 39-11-20 in the same manner as he or she is directed…

(a) Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500) or imprisoned for a term not exceeding one year, or shall be so fined and imprisoned. (b) For the…

Each section of this chapter and each part of each section is hereby declared to be an independent section, and the holding of any section or sections or part or parts thereof to be void, ineffective, or unconstitutional for any cause shall not be deemed to affect any other secti…

Any person seeking to engage in the operation, or to extend a present operation, as an intrastate common carrier of persons or property by aircraft, shall first obtain a certificate of convenience and necessity from the public utilities administrator in accordance with the provis…

No certificate shall be required for the transportation of United States mail.

Application for a certificate shall be in writing and shall contain such information as the administrator may require. All applications for a certificate shall be in the form prescribed by the administrator and shall be accompanied by a filing fee of twenty dollars ($20.00).

Upon the filing of an application for a certificate, the administrator shall fix a time and place for the hearing on the application and shall cause notice of the filing of the application and of the hearing on the application to be given by mail not less than ten (10) days, excl…

The public utilities administrator is hereby authorized and empowered, and it is hereby made his or her duty, upon the filing of an application for a certificate of public convenience and necessity in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, to hear all interested parties.…

The administrator may issue a certificate granting the application in whole or in part and may impose such terms and conditions as he or she may deem proper in the public interest. The applicant for the certificate shall be entitled to the certificate only upon showing by compete…

Orders of the administrator shall be served upon all parties to the respective proceedings and shall become effective thirty (30) days after the service. Any of the parties to any hearing before the administrator may, upon proper petition, be granted a rehearing. The administrato…

As used in this chapter: (1) “Abandoned utility facilities” means any known underground or submerged utility line or facility that has been permanently taken out of service. For excavation purposes, the abandoned underground utility facilities should always be considered to be ac…

The general assembly finds and declares that: (1) Safety and the need for an effective damage-prevention program for underground utility facilities should include participation from all stakeholders including excavators and utility companies; (2) To develop a process for fosterin…

Any person or public agency excavating, tunneling, or discharging explosives shall exercise reasonable care when working in close proximity to the underground public utility facilities of any public utility. Further, when the facilities are to be exposed, only nonmechanical means…

(a) Upon the occurrence of any contact with, or damage to, any pipe, cable, or its protective coating, or any other underground facility of a public utility, the appropriate and/or affected public utility shall be notified immediately by the person or public agency responsible fo…

After a public utility has marked its underground facilities in accordance with the provisions of § 39-1.2-7, the excavator shall be responsible for maintenance of the designated markings. In the event the markings are obliterated, destroyed, or removed, the utility shall, within…

(a) Any person or utility who or that violates any provision of this chapter shall be subject to a civil penalty of no more than three hundred fifty dollars ($350) for the first offense and not less than five hundred dollars ($500) nor more than two thousand five hundred dollars …

In enforcing the provisions of this chapter with respect to persons who or that are not public utilities, the administrator may: (1) Conduct an investigation in connection with violations involving the excavation or demolition of public utility facilities; and (2) For purposes of…