§ 40-3-101 — Reasonable charges - adequate service

(1) All charges made,
demanded, or received by any public utility for any rate, fare, product, or commodity
furnished or to be furnished or any service rendered or to be rendered shall be just
and reasonable. Every unjust or unreasonable charge made, demanded, or received
for such rate, fare, product or commodity, or service is prohibited and declared
unlawful. Rates and charges demanded or received by any public utility for gas
transportation service furnished or to be furnished shall not be deemed to be unjust
or unreasonable so long as said rate or charge is no greater than a maximum rate
and no lower than a minimum rate determined by the commission (or, in the case of
a municipal utility, by the governing body of the municipal utility in accordance with
sections 40-3-102 and 40-3.5-102) to be just and reasonable, and the provision of
such gas transportation service at such rates or charges shall not constitute per se
unjust discrimination or the granting of a preference. Nothing in this subsection (1)
shall limit or restrict the commission's authority to regulate rates and charges,
correct abuses, or prevent unjust discrimination.

(2) Every public utility shall furnish, provide, and maintain such service,
instrumentalities, equipment, and facilities as shall promote the safety, health,
comfort, and convenience of its patrons, employees, and the public, and as shall in
all respects be adequate, efficient, just, and reasonable.

(3) (a) If a retail cooperative electric association, in conjunction with the
payment of an applicable charge, withdraws from membership in a wholesale
electric cooperative, as defined in section 40-2-136 (3)(c), that withdrawal is
deemed to be a matter of statewide concern, and, in relation to such withdrawal:

(I) The wholesale electric cooperative will act in accordance with the
obligation of good faith and fair dealing in implementing the withdrawal and shall
not require or impose commercially unreasonable contractual terms on the retail
cooperative electric association in relation to the withdrawal; and

(II) The wholesale electric cooperative shall, upon request from the
withdrawing retail cooperative electric association, facilitate the retail cooperative
electric association's transition from native load to a firm service transmission
customer without diminishing the withdrawing retail cooperative electric
association's native electric load priority for accessing firm transmission capacity.

(b) The commission has the authority to adjudicate complaints about the
terms on which a wholesale electric cooperative implements withdrawal pursuant
to this subsection (3).

Legislative History

Source: L. 13: p. 468, � 13. C.L. � 2924. CSA: C. 137, � 14. CRS 53: � 115-3-1. C.R.S. 1963: � 115-3-1. L. 91: (1) amended, p. 1417, � 9, effective April 19. L. 2020: (3) added, (HB 20-1225), ch. 94, p. 373, � 4, effective March 27.