§ 8-1-17-13 — Powers of cooperative corporation enumerated

Indiana § 8-1-17-13

• Jurisdiction: Indiana
• Art. 1: UTILITIES GENERALLY
• Ch. 17: Telephones─Rural Telephone Cooperative Act

Text

A cooperative corporation may do any and all
acts or things necessary or convenient for carrying out the purpose for
which it was formed, including the following:
(1) To sue and be sued.
(2) To have a seal and alter the same at pleasure.
(3) To acquire, hold, and dispose of property, real and personal,
tangible and intangible, or any interest in the property and to pay
in cash or credit, and to secure and procure payment of all or any
part of the purchase price on the terms and conditions as the
board shall determine.
(4) If it is a local cooperative corporation, to furnish, improve, and
expand communications service to its members, to governmental
agencies and political subdivisions, and to other persons.
(5) If it is a local cooperative corporation, to construct, purchase,
lease as lessee, or otherwise acquire, and to improve, expand,
install, equip, maintain, and operate, and to sell, assign, convey,
lease as lessor, mortgage, pledge, or otherwise dispose of or
encumber communications facilities or systems, lands, buildings,
structures, plants and equipment, exchanges, and any other real
or personal property, tangible or intangible which is necessary or
appropriate to accomplish the purpose for which the local
cooperative corporation is organized.
(6) To cease doing business and to dissolve and surrender its
corporate franchise.
(7) If it is a local cooperative corporation, to construct, operate,
and maintain its communications facilities across or along any
street or public highway, or over lands that are the property of this
state or a political subdivision of the state. Before
communications facilities are constructed across or along a
highway in the state highway system, the local cooperative
corporation shall first obtain the permit of the Indiana department
of transportation to do so, and the location and setting of the
communications facilities shall be approved by and subject to the
supervision of the Indiana department of transportation. Before
communications facilities are constructed on or across land
belonging to the state, the local cooperative corporation shall first
obtain the permit of the department of state having charge of the
lands to do so, and the location and setting of the communications
facilities shall be approved by and subject to the supervision of
the department. The communications facilities shall be erected
and maintained so as not to interfere with the use and
maintenance of the streets, highways, and lands, and no pole or
appliance shall be located so as to interfere with the ingress or
egress from any premises on the street or highway. Nothing in this
section contained shall deprive the body having charge of the
street or highway of the right to require the relocation of any pole
or appliance which may affect the proper use of the street or
highway for public travel, for drainage, or for the repair,
construction, or reconstruction of the street or highway. The local
cooperative corporation shall restore the street, highway, or lands
to their former condition or state as near as may be and shall not
use the same in a manner to impair unnecessarily their usefulness
or to injure the property of others.
(8) To accept gifts or grants of property, real or personal, from
any person, municipality, or federal agency and to accept
voluntary and uncompensated services.
(9) If it is a local cooperative corporation, to connect and
interconnect its communications facilities or systems with other
communications facilities or systems. A connection or
interconnection shall be in a manner and according to
specifications as will avoid interference with or hazards to
existing communications facilities or systems.
(10) To issue membership certificates.
(11) To borrow money and otherwise contract indebtedness, and
to issue or guarantee notes, bonds, and other evidences of
indebtedness and to secure the payment thereof by mortgage,
pledge, or deed of trust of, or any other encumbrance upon, any
or all of its then owned or after-acquired real or personal property,
assets, franchises, or revenues.
(12) To make any and all contracts necessary or convenient for
the full exercise of the powers in this chapter granted, including,
without limiting the generality of the foregoing, contracts with
any person, federal agency, municipality, or other corporation for
the interconnection of communications service; for the
management and conduct of the business of the cooperative
corporation; and for the fixing of the rates, fees, or charges for
service rendered or to be rendered by the local cooperative
corporation.
(13) To levy and collect reasonable fees, rents, tolls, and other
charges for communications service rendered.
(14) If it is a local cooperative corporation, to exercise the right
of eminent domain in the manner provided by law for the exercise
thereof by communications service providers (as defined in IC 8-1-2.6-13(b)).
(15) To adopt, amend, and repeal bylaws.
(16) If it is a local cooperative corporation, to become a member
of a general cooperative corporation and if it is a general
cooperative corporation, to have local cooperative corporations as
its members.
(17) To recover, after a period of two (2) years, any unclaimed
stocks, dividends, capital credits, patronage refunds, utility
deposits, membership fees, account balances, or book equities for
which the owner cannot be found and are the result of
distributable savings of the corporation returned to the members
on a pro rata basis pursuant to section 20 of this chapter.
Formerly: Acts 1951, c.193, s.13. As amended by Acts 1980,
P.L.74, SEC.36; Acts 1981, P.L.106, SEC.2; P.L.18-1990, SEC.28;
P.L.97-1993, SEC.7; P.L.27-2006, SEC.43; P.L.81-2020,
SEC.11.