Title 49, PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS

The stock of every corporation organized under this chapter is deemed personal property and is transferable in the manner prescribed by its bylaws, and subject to the provisions of §§ 57A-8-301 to 57A-8-307 , inclusive and 57A-8-401 to 57A-8-407 , inclusive, but no share is trans…

The capital stock of any corporation organized under this chapter may be increased to such an amount as may, by its stockholders, be deemed necessary, and the articles of incorporation may be amended by the vote of the owners of a majority of its capital stock, or such greater pr…

Notwithstanding the provisions of §§ 47-1A-601 to 47-1A-640.5 , inclusive, a corporation, now or hereafter formed under the provisions of this chapter may provide in its articles of incorporation, or in any amendment thereof, for the issuance of preferred stock in series and auth…

Upon the adoption or amendment of the articles of incorporation to include the provisions authorized by § 49-33-23 , the board of directors may cause such preferred stock to be issued in one or more series, in such amounts and with such terms and characteristics, (within such pre…

Upon the creation of any series of preferred stock pursuant to § 49-33-24 and before the issuance of any shares thereof, the number of shares of such series and the designation, characteristics, and terms thereof provided for in such resolution or resolutions shall be set forth i…

Unless otherwise provided in any resolution or resolutions pursuant to § 49-33-24 the number of shares of stock of any series set forth in such resolution or resolutions may be increased or decreased (but not below the number of shares thereof then outstanding) by a certificate m…

No person holding stock in any corporation organized under this chapter as personal representative, conservator, or trustee, and no person holding such stock as collateral security, is liable as stockholder of such corporation for any calls or installments on any partially paid-u…

Any corporation organized under this chapter may purchase, take, and hold all or any part of the property, rights, privileges, and franchises of any other corporation, foreign or domestic, organized for the purpose of operating any street railway by electric power or for the purp…

There shall be annexed to the articles of incorporation described by § 49-33-1 an affidavit, signed by at least three of the incorporators therein, setting forth that the signatures thereto are genuine and that it is intended in good faith to construct or maintain and operate the…

Any corporation organized under chapter 49-33 may merge with any one or more other corporations, domestic or foreign, into a single corporation, which may be any one of the constituent corporations, or may consolidate with any such corporations into a new corporation formed by th…

If, with respect to any action to be taken by the board of directors or by the stockholders of a corporation, the articles of incorporation require the vote or concurrence of the holders of a greater proportion of the shares, or of any class or series thereof, than required by an…

Upon the filing and recording of articles of incorporation pursuant to § 49-33-3 a certificate shall issue to such corporation under the seal of this state, signed by the secretary of state, granting unto such incorporators, their associates, successors, and assigns, full power a…

Upon the issue of a certificate pursuant to § 49-33-4 the subscribers to such articles of incorporation, and all persons who shall thereafter become stockholders in such corporation, shall be a corporation by the name of and may engage in the businesses specified in such articles…

In addition to all provisions and powers in chapters 49-33 and 49-34 that are applicable to corporations organized under those chapters, all provisions and powers set forth in the South Dakota Business Corporation Act, §§ 47-1A-101 to 47-1A-863.3 , inclusive, §§ 47-1A-1401 to 47-…

Every corporation organized under this chapter shall have power to cause such examinations and surveys to be made as may be necessary to the selection of the most advantageous route for its proposed street railroad, electric light, or power line, and for such purpose to enter, by…

Every corporation organized under this chapter shall have power to erect and maintain such buildings, powerhouses, plants, poles, substations, wires, trolleys, and appliances as may be necessary for the transmission of electric power and use the same to operate its street railway…

Every corporation organized under this chapter shall have power to take and hold such voluntary grants of real and other property as may be made to it to aid in the construction, maintenance, and accommodation of its railways, power or lighting plants, but the real property recei…

Every corporation organized under this chapter shall have power to acquire by purchase or under the provisions of chapter 49-34 all such real and other property as may be necessary for the operation of its railway, power and lighting plants and grounds and accommodation reasonabl…

Subject to the provisions of §§ 31-26-1 to 31-26-8 , inclusive, any municipal corporation or county may grant to any corporation organized under chapter 49-33 , upon such terms as the proper authorities thereof shall determine, the use of any street, highway, turnpike, or bridge …

In case of a judicial sale by virtue of any trust deed or mortgage authorized by § 49-34-9 , any person or any other corporation organized under the provisions of chapter 49-33 may become the purchaser thereat, and the person or corporation acquiring title under such sale, his or…

Any trust deed or mortgage executed by a corporation organized under the provisions of chapter 49-33 or qualified in accordance with the provisions of §§ 47-1A-1501 to 47-1A-1532 , inclusive, relative to the qualification of foreign corporations to transact business in this state…

As used in §§ 49-34-11.1 to 49-34-11.4 , inclusive, the term "public utility" means a corporation, its lessees, its trustees and receivers, operating, maintaining or controlling in this state after July 1, 1967, equipment or facilities for the production, generation, transmission…

Notwithstanding §§ 57A-9-302 , 57A-9-401 , 57A-9-402 , and 57A-9-403 , all filings required under the uniform commercial code in order to perfect a security interest against the personal property or fixtures of a debtor public utility shall be made and maintained in the Office of…

A mortgage or trust deed to secure a debt executed by a public utility as defined in § 49-34-11.1 , covering the whole or part of its easements or other less than fee simple interests in real estate used in the transmission or distribution of gas or electric service, and also cov…

Unless displaced by the specific provisions of §§ 49-34-11.1 to 49-34-11.4 , inclusive, the uniform commercial code and other applicable laws remain in full force and effect and supplement the provisions of §§ 49-34-11.1 to 49-34-11.4 , inclusive. The public utility may make a si…

Any trust deed or mortgage described in § 49-34-9 may be assigned or discharged by filing for record in the office of the secretary of state and in the office of the register of deeds of each county, if any, in which the trust deed or mortgage shall have been filed for record an …

It is a Class 2 misdemeanor for any person employed to read meters who knowingly reports to his employer that a consumer of gas, water, electricity, heat, refrigeration or air has used a greater quantity of gas, water, electricity, heat, refrigeration or air than the amount actua…

Any person who knowingly charges any consumer of gas or electricity an amount greater than that actually billed by a gas utility or electric utility, as defined in § 49-34A-1 , may be punished by a civil fine not exceeding five hundred dollars. Nothing in this section applies to …

Any person who, without lawful authority, intentionally breaks, digs up, or obstructs any pipe or main for conducting gas or water, any works erected for supplying buildings with gas or water, or any appurtenances or appendages therewith connected, is guilty of a Class 6 felony. …

It is a Class 2 misdemeanor for any person without lawful authority to connect or cause to be connected with a main or service pipe or conductor of heat, refrigeration, air conditioning, gas, water or electricity, a pipe, wire or other device for the purpose of obtaining gas, wat…

Any two or more persons who own or intend to own, jointly, by partnership interest, or as tenants in common any property used or to be used in whole or in part for the generation, transmission or distribution of electricity, or for the production, gathering, storage, processing, …

Terms as used in this section and §§ 49-34-19 to 49-34-21 , inclusive, mean: (1) "Bypassing," the act of attaching, connecting or in any manner affixing any wire, cord, socket, motor or other instrument, device or contrivance to the utility supply system or any part thereof in a …

A utility may bring a civil action for damages against any person who commits, authorizes, solicits, aids, abets or attempts any of the following acts resulting in damages to the utility, namely: bypassing, tampering or unauthorized metering. In addition, a utility may bring a ci…

It is a Class 2 misdemeanor for any person without lawful authority to connect, disconnect, bypass, or tamper with a back flow preventer installed on a public water system. Nothing in this section affects the right of a water service company to recover any damages caused by the v…

Every railroad, electric light, or power line, constructed and operated upon any public street or highway pursuant to § 49-34-1 , shall be constructed upon the most approved plan and be subject to such reasonable rules and regulations as the proper authorities may from time to ti…

There is a rebuttable presumption that a tenant or occupant of any premises where bypassing, tampering or unauthorized metering is proven to exist, caused or had knowledge of such bypassing, tampering or unauthorized metering, if the tenants or occupant had controlled access to t…

It is the purpose of this section and §§ 49-34-18 to 49-34-20 , inclusive, to provide additional remedies to avoid the wrongful use of the facilities of utilities; and nothing in this section and §§ 49-34-18 to 49-34-20 , inclusive, abridges or alters those rights of action or re…

The board of county commissioners, the governing body of any municipal corporation, the board of trustees or directors of any religious, fraternal, or benevolent society, association, or corporation shall have power and authority to enter into a contract with a central heating co…

Any corporation organized under chapter 49-33 may acquire by purchase, grant, or condemnation and hold and use such real and other property as may be necessary for the construction and operation of its business, including powerhouses, carbarns, stations, machine and repair shops,…

Nothing contained in this chapter or chapter 49-33 shall be construed to authorize the condemnation of any part of any public park or boulevard in any municipality. Source: SDC 1939, § 52.1511; SL 1992, ch 60 , § 2.

Any corporation organized under chapter 49-33 may extend its railroad, electric light or power line from any point named in its charter or articles of incorporation and may build branch lines either from any point on its line or from any point on the line of any other company con…

Every corporation organized under chapter 49-33 may build, maintain, and operate branch or spur tracks, electric light or power lines from its main line or any branch thereof to and upon the grounds of any mill, elevator, storehouse, warehouse, or manufacturing establishment with…

Any street railway, gas, electric light, or power company incorporated or existing under the laws of the United States, or any state or territory of the United States, may construct, extend, maintain, and operate its tracks, power powerhouses, or lines, or any portion or branch t…

Any corporation organized under the provisions of chapter 49-33 may, from time to time, borrow such sums of money at such rates of interest and upon such terms as the corporation or board of directors shall agree and authorize, and shall have power to execute trust deeds or mortg…

Terms used in this chapter mean: (1) "Assigned service area," the geographical area in which the boundaries are established as provided in §§ 49-34A-42 to 49-34A-44 , inclusive, and 49-34A-48 to 49-34A-59 , inclusive; (2) "Commission," the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission…

Pursuant to rules promulgated under chapter 1-26 by the Public Utilities Commission, every public utility shall file with the commission, within such time and in such form as the commission may designate, tariffs and schedules showing the terms and conditions of service and all r…