§ 11 — Powers

New York § 11

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law TCP: Transportation Corporations
• Art. 2: Gas and Electric Corporations

Text

§ 11. Powers. Every such corporation shall have the following powers:\n1. A gas corporation and a gas and electric corporation shall have power\nto manufacture gas, and to acquire thermal energy or natural or\nartificial gas and to mix the gases and to sell and furnish thermal\nenergy for heating or cooling or gas for light, heat or power; and to\nlay conductors, pipes, conduits, ducts and other fixtures for gas or\nthermal energy networks in the streets, highways and public places, in\neach city, village and town in the county or counties named in its\ncertificate of incorporation, with the consent of the municipal\nauthorities of such city, village or town, and under such reasonable\nregulations as they may prescribe.\n 2. Every corporation having authority under any general or special law\nor under any charter or franchise, to lay down, erect or maintain pipes,\nconduits, ducts or other fixtures in, over or under the streets,\nhighways and public places of any municipality for the purpose of\nfurnishing or distributing natural gas or thermal energy, may acquire\nand supply for public use artificial gas or thermal energy.\n Where any gas corporation is serving natural gas under permits or\nfranchises permitting the laying or maintaining of mains or pipes and\nconveying natural gas, and the supply of natural gas has become\ninadequate or insufficient to give reasonable service to consumers in\nthe municipalities served by it, such gas corporation may supply\nartificial gas or a mixture of natural and artificial gases or thermal\nenergy under such permits or franchises.\n 3. An electric corporation and a gas and electric corporation shall\nhave power to generate, acquire and supply electricity or thermal energy\nfor heat, cooling or power in cities, towns and villages within this\nstate, and to light the streets, highways and public places thereof, and\nthe public and private buildings therein; and to make, sell or lease all\nmachines, instruments, apparatus and other equipments therefor, and for\ntransmitting and distributing electricity or thermal energy, to lay,\nerect and construct suitable wires or other conductors, with the\nnecessary poles, pipes, thermal energy networks or other fixtures in,\non, over and under the streets, avenues, public parks and places in such\ncities, towns or villages, with the consent of the municipal authorities\nthereof, and in such manner and under such reasonable regulations, as\nthey may prescribe.\n 3-a. An electric corporation and a gas corporation shall have power\nand authority to acquire such real estate as may be necessary for its\ncorporate purposes and the right of way through any property in the\nmanner prescribed by the eminent domain procedure law.\n 3-b. The construction, use and maintenance by an electric corporation\nof transmission, distribution and service lines and wires or thermal\nenergy networks in, over or under any street, highway or public place\nand the construction, use and maintenance by a gas corporation of\ntransmission, distribution and service pipes, conduits, ducts or other\nfixtures in, over or under any trees, highway or public place, as may be\nnecessary for its corporate purposes, are hereby declared to be public\nuses and purposes.\n Where any person or corporation other than the state, a political\nsubdivision thereof, or a municipality is the owner of any right, title\nor interest in or to any street, highway or public place, or in or to\nthe land on which the street, highway or public place is located, an\nelectric corporation or a gas corporation is hereby authorized and\nempowered to acquire the right to construct, use and maintain such lines\nor wires and such pipes, conduits, ducts or other fixtures, in, over or\nunder such street, highway or public place, from such owner or owners,\nby petition in the manner prescribed by section four hundred two of the\neminent domain procedure law to the supreme court in the county in which\nsuch street, highway or public place is situated. The corporation shall\nfile with the court a certificate of the public service commission\ncertifying that the right sought to be acquired is necessary and in the\npublic interest and such certificate shall be conclusive evidence as to\nthe matters lawfully certified therein.\n After a hearing on such petition and any answer thereto, if the court\nshall find that such right to construct, use and maintain is necessary\nfor the corporate purposes of the corporation, it shall enter its\njudgment adjudging that such right is necessary for the public use and\nthat the corporation is entitled to construct, use and maintain its\nlines or wires or pipes, conduits, ducts or other fixtures in, over or\nunder such street, highway or public place and adjudging pursuant to the\neminent domain procedure law the compensation to be made by the\ncorporation to the owner or owners.\n 4. Any two or more domestic gas corporations, electric corporations,\ngas and electric corporations, and any other domestic corporation formed\nfor the purpose of engaging in any business in which domestic gas\ncorporations, electric corporations or gas and electric corporations may\nengage, may merge or consolidate in accordance with the procedure and\nwith the effect set forth in article nine of the business corporation\nlaw.\n 5. A corporation mentioned in this article or incorporated under or by\nany general or special law of this state for the purpose of supplying\nfor public use electricity for light, heat or power in cities, towns or\nvillages in this state, upon filing a certificate of amendment therefor,\nto which is annexed the consent required by section one hundred and\neleven of this chapter, shall have all the rights, privileges and powers\nand be subject to all the restrictions of district steam corporations.\n 6. The term "municipal authorities" as used in subdivisions one and\nthree of this section, shall be deemed to be the local legislative body\nof a city, the board of trustees of a village and the town board of a\ntown. All consents in writing for the doing of acts mentioned in such\nsubdivisions given before April fourteenth, nineteen hundred and\ntwenty-two, in writing by the highway commissioners or town\nsuperintendent of highways or the town board of any town to any\ncorporation organized under the provisions of this article shall be\ndeemed to be the consents of the municipal authorities required by this\nsection.\n 7. Subdivisions three and three-a of this section shall not apply to\nany merchant transmission company which:\n (a) commences and ends in the state of New York;\n (b) through its employees, agents, representatives, or assigns, has\nrepresented in testimony that the construction of such power\ntransmission lines will increase electric rates in any part of the\nstate; and\n (c) which applied for and did not receive an early designation as a\nnational interest electric transmission corridor under an act of\ncongress commonly known as the Energy Policy Act of 2005.\n