Chapter 491 Oregon Laws 1999
Session Law
AN ACT
SB 720
Relating to definition of
public utility; amending ORS 757.005.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1.
ORS 757.005 is amended to read:
757.005. (1)(a) As used in this chapter, except as provided in
paragraph (b) of this subsection, "public utility" means:
(A) Any corporation, company, individual, association of
individuals, or its lessees, trustees or receivers, that owns, operates,
manages or controls all or a part of any plant or equipment in this state for
the production, transmission, delivery or furnishing of heat, light, water or
power, directly or indirectly to or for the public, whether or not such plant
or equipment or part thereof is wholly within any town or city.
(B) Any corporation, company, individual or association of
individuals, which is party to an oral or written agreement for the payment by
a public utility, for service, managerial construction, engineering or
financing fees, and having an affiliated interest with the public utility.
(b) As used in this chapter, "public utility" does
not include:
(A) Any plant owned or operated by a municipality.
(B) Any railroad, as defined in ORS 824.020, or any industrial
concern by reason of the fact that it furnishes, without profit to itself,
heat, light, water or power to the inhabitants of any locality where there is
no municipal or public utility plant to furnish the same.
(C) Any corporation, company, individual or association of
individuals providing heat, light or power:
(i) From any energy resource to fewer than 20 customers, if it
began providing service to a customer prior to July 14, 1985;
(ii) From any energy resource to fewer than 20 residential
customers so long as the corporation, company, individual or association of
individuals serves only residential customers;
(iii) From solar or wind resources to any number of customers;
or
(iv) From biogas, waste heat or geothermal resources for
nonelectric generation purposes to any number of customers.
(D) A qualifying facility on account of sales made under the
provisions of ORS 758.505 to 758.555.
(E) Any water utility serving less than 300 customers at an
average annual residential rate of $18 per month or less, which provides
adequate and nondiscriminatory service.
(F) Any person furnishing heat, but not delivering electricity
or natural gas to its customers, except:
(i) As provided in ORS 757.007 and 757.009; or
(ii) With respect to heat furnished in municipalities which on
January 1, 1989, had a municipally owned system that was furnishing steam or
other thermal forms of heat to its customers.
(G) Notwithstanding subparagraph (F) of this paragraph, any
corporation, company, partnership, individual or association of individuals
furnishing heat to a single thermal end user from an electric generating
facility, plant or equipment that is physically interconnected with the single
thermal end user.
(H) Any corporation,
company, partnership, individual or association of individuals that furnishes
natural gas, electricity, ethanol, methanol, methane, biodiesel or other
alternative fuel to any number of customers for use in motor vehicles and does
not furnish any utility service described in paragraph (a) of this subsection.
(2) Nothing in subsection (1)(b)(C)(iv) of this section shall
prohibit third party financing of acquisition or development by a utility
customer of energy resources to meet the heat, light or power requirements of
that customer.
Approved by the Governor
July 6, 1999
Filed in the office of
Secretary of State July 6, 1999
Effective date October 23,
1999
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