Sec. 5. (a) The natural persons executing the articles of incorporation shall be residents of the territory in which the operations of the corporation are to be conducted who are desirous of using electric energy to be furnished by the corporation. The articles of incorporation shall be executed in as many copies as there are counties, any part or parts of which are included in the territory in which the operations of the corporation are to be conducted and shall be acknowledged by the subscribers before an officer authorized by the laws of this state to take acknowledgments of deeds. When so acknowledged the articles of incorporation shall be submitted to the commission together with a petition executed by one (1) or more of the natural persons executing the said articles of incorporation praying the commission to grant a certificate of public convenience and necessity for the organization and operations of the proposed corporation. Upon the filing of such articles and petition with the commission, said commission shall set the said petition for public hearing and shall give notice of the time and place of such hearing by publication one (1) time in at least one (1) newspaper printed and published in each of the counties in which the said corporation proposes to carry on its operations, which publication shall be had at least ten (10) days prior to the date set for such hearing, the cost of such publications to be paid by the petitioners at the time of filing said petition. Any interested person may appear at such hearing either in person or by attorney and oppose the prayer of said petition. The commission, after hearing the evidence introduced at said hearing, shall enter a finding either that the convenience and necessity of the public proposed to be served in the territory in which the operations of the corporation are to be conducted will or will not be served by the organizations and operations of the proposed corporation. If such finding be in the affirmative, the commission shall enter an order approving the organization of such corporation and the proposed articles of incorporation and shall attach a copy of said order to each copy of the said articles of incorporation. If the said finding be in the negative, the commission shall enter an order denying the approval of the said articles of incorporation.

     (b) If the commission approves the articles of incorporation under subsection (a), the same shall be filed together with the attached copy of the order of the commission in the office of the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall forthwith endorse the secretary of state’s approval on the articles of incorporation and file one (1) of said copies in the secretary of state’s office and deliver all other copies endorsed with the secretary of state’s approval to the incorporators, who shall thereupon file one (1) of the said approved copies of said articles in the office of the county recorder in each county in which a portion of the territory proposed to be served by the corporation is located. As soon as this section has been complied with, the proposed corporation described in the articles so filed, under its designated name, shall be and constitute a body corporate.

Formerly: Acts 1935, c.175, s.5. As amended by P.L.23-1988, SEC.47; P.L.136-2018, SEC.67.