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2001 SESSION


CHAPTER 738
An Act to amend and reenact § 56-580 of the Code of Virginia, relating to the transmission and distribution of electricity by municipal electric utilities.
[S 896]
Approved March 26, 2001

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:

1. That § 56-580 of the Code of Virginia is amended and reenacted as follows:

§ 56-580. Transmission and distribution of electric energy.

A. The Commission shall continue to regulate pursuant to this title the distribution of retail electric energy to retail customers in the Commonwealth and, to the extent not prohibited by federal law, the transmission of electric energy in the Commonwealth.

B. The Commission shall continue to regulate, to the extent not prohibited by federal law, the reliability, quality and maintenance by transmitters and distributors of their transmission and retail distribution systems.

C. The Commission shall develop codes of conduct governing the conduct of incumbent electric utilities and affiliates thereof when any such affiliates provide, or control any entity that provides, generation, distribution, transmission or any services made competitive pursuant to § 56-581.1, to the extent necessary to prevent impairment of competition.

D. The Commission may permit the construction and operation of electrical generating facilities upon a finding that such generating facility and associated facilities including transmission lines and equipment (i) will have no material adverse effect upon reliability of electric service provided by any regulated public utility and (ii) are not otherwise contrary to the public interest. In review of its petition for a certificate to construct and operate a generating facility described in this subsection, the Commission shall give consideration to the effect of the facility and associated facilities, including transmission lines and equipment, on the environment and establish such conditions as may be desirable or necessary to minimize adverse environmental impact as provided in § 56-46.1.

E. Nothing in this section shall impair the distribution service territorial rights of incumbent electric utilities, and incumbent electric utilities shall continue to provide distribution services within their exclusive service territories as established by the Commission. Nothing in this chapter shall impair the Commission's existing authority over the provision of electric distribution services to retail customers in the Commonwealth including, but not limited to, the authority contained in Chapters 10 (§ 56-232 et seq.) and 10.1 (§ 56-265.1 et seq.) of this title.

F. Nothing in this chapter shall impair the exclusive territorial rights of an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality as of July 1, 1999, nor shall any provision of this chapter apply to any such electric utility unless (i) that municipality elects to have this chapter apply to that utility or (ii) that utility, directly or indirectly, sells, offers to sell or seeks to sell electric energy to any retail customer outside the geographic area that was served by such municipality as of July 1, 1999, except any area within the municipality that was served by an incumbent public utility as of that date but was thereafter served by an electric utility owned or operated by a municipality pursuant to the terms of a franchise agreement between the municipality and the incumbent public utility.