Sec. 2-20a. Bills seeking incorporation and franchise for water companies.
Sec. 2-20a. Bills seeking incorporation and franchise for water companies. No
bill for the incorporation and franchise of a water company shall be heard by the General
Assembly, or any committee thereof, unless the applicant has filed with the bill written
reports from each of the following: The Department of Public Utility Control, the Department of Public Health and the Department of Environmental Protection. Such report of
the Department of Public Utility Control shall set forth the results of investigation by
said department with respect to the financial condition of the proposed company, the
nature of the system and the adequacy of the water supply, together with its recommendations and such other information as it deems pertinent. The report of the Department of
Public Health shall set forth the results of investigation by said department with respect
to the potability of the water supply and such other information as it deems pertinent.
The report of the Department of Environmental Protection shall set forth the result of
investigation by said department with respect to the adequacy of the water supply to
serve present and future customers, the effect on water supplies of other systems and
such other information as it deems pertinent. Each request for a report required by this
section shall be accompanied by a fee of fifty dollars. The General Assembly shall enact
no legislation granting a franchise to a water company unless a public hearing is held
by a committee of the General Assembly on the proposed bill, and unless at least five
days before such hearing, proponents of the bill publish notice of such proposed bill
and the hearing to be held thereon in a newspaper having general circulation in the area
affected.
(February, 1965, P.A. 336; 1971, P.A. 872, S. 155; P.A. 75-486, S. 22, 69; P.A. 77-614, S. 162, 323, 610; P.A. 80-482,
S. 2, 348; P.A. 93-381, S. 9, 39; P.A. 95-257, S. 12, 21, 58.)
History: 1971 act replaced references to "water resources commission" with "department of environmental protection";
P.A. 75-486 changed "public utilities commission" to "public utilities control authority"; P.A. 77-614 changed "public
utility(ies) control authority" to "division of public utility control within the department of business regulation" and "department of health" to "department of health services", effective January 1, 1979; P.A. 80-482 abolished the department of
business regulation and its divisions and created the department of public utility control; P.A. 93-381 replaced department
of health services with department of public health and addiction services, effective July 1, 1993; P.A. 95-257 replaced
Department of Public Health and Addiction Services with Department of Public Health, effective July 1, 1995.
See Sec. 25-33 re Public Health Department's oversight of water companies.