Wisconsin Statutes 196.54 – Indeterminate permits
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Terms Used In Wisconsin Statutes 196.54
- Commission: means the public service commission. See Wisconsin Statutes 196.01
- Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- Indeterminate permit: means any grant, directly or indirectly, from the state to any public utility of power, right or privilege to own, operate, manage or control any plant or equipment or any part of a plant or equipment within this state for the production, transmission, delivery or furnishing of any public utility service. See Wisconsin Statutes 196.01
- Municipality: means any town, village or city wherein property of a public utility or any part thereof is located. See Wisconsin Statutes 196.01
- Property: includes real and personal property. See Wisconsin Statutes 990.01
- Public utility: includes all of the following:
1. See Wisconsin Statutes 196.01State: when applied to states of the United States, includes the District of Columbia, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the several territories organized by Congress. See Wisconsin Statutes 990.01 Telecommunications utility: means any person, corporation, company, cooperative, unincorporated cooperative association, partnership, association and lessees, trustees or receivers appointed by any court that owns, operates, manages or controls any plant or equipment used to furnish telecommunications services within the state directly or indirectly to the public. See Wisconsin Statutes 196.01 Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
(1) Grants to be indeterminate. Every license, permit or franchise granted after July 11, 1907, to any public utility shall have the effect of an indeterminate permit subject to this chapter and ch. 197.
(2) Franchises made indeterminate. Every license, permit or franchise granted prior to July 11, 1907, by the state or by a municipality authorizing and empowering the grantee to own, operate, manage or control within this state, either directly or indirectly, a public utility or any part of a public utility is altered and amended to constitute and be an indeterminate permit which is subject to this chapter and ch. 197. The license, permit or franchise shall have the same force and effect as a license, permit or franchise granted after July 11, 1907, to any public utility, except as provided under s. 197.02.
(3) Validation of franchises and permits.
196.54(3)(a) (a) No franchise affected by sub. (2) and no indeterminate permit shall be declared invalid if:
1. The franchise or permit was not obtained by fraud, bribery or corrupt practices.
2. When the franchise or permit was granted, no officer of the municipality granting the franchise or permit was directly or indirectly interested in the franchise or permit or in the corporation obtaining the franchise or permit.
(b) Any franchise affected by sub. (2) and any indeterminate permit is valid if:
1. The corporation having the franchise or permit, prior to surrendering of the franchise or at the beginning of its public service under the permit, in good faith has purchased or constructed any public utility, or any part of a public utility authorized by the franchise.
2. The corporation, in obtaining the franchise or permit, has substantially complied with the requirements provided by law for obtaining the franchise or permit.
(4) Grants after July 11, 1907; consent to municipal purchase. If a public utility accepts or operates under any license, permit or franchise granted after July 11, 1907, the public utility shall be deemed to have consented under its indeterminate permit to a future purchase of its property actually used and useful for the convenience of the public by the municipality in which the major part of it is situated for the compensation and under the terms and conditions determined by the commission. The public utility shall be deemed to have waived the right to require that the necessity of taking be established by the verdict of a jury, and any other remedy or right relative to condemnation, except any remedy or right under this chapter and ch. 197.
(5) Municipal purchase invalidates permit. An indeterminate permit shall be invalid if a municipality exercises its option to purchase the public utility being operated under the permit or if the permit is otherwise terminated according to law.
(6) Applicability. This section does not apply to a telecommunications utility.