15.2-2109 - Powers of localities as to public utilities and computer services; prevention of pollution of certain water.
§ 15.2-2109. Powers of localities as to public utilities and computerservices; prevention of pollution of certain water.
A. Any locality may (i) acquire or otherwise obtain control of or (ii)establish, maintain, operate, extend and enlarge: waterworks, sewerage, gasworks (natural or manufactured), electric plants, public mass transportationsystems, stormwater management systems and other public utilities within oroutside the limits of the locality and may acquire within or outside itslimits in accordance with § 15.2-1800 whatever land may be necessary foracquiring, locating, establishing, maintaining, operating, extending orenlarging waterworks, sewerage, gas works (natural or manufactured), electricplants, public mass transportation systems, stormwater management systems andother public utilities, and the rights-of-way, rails, pipes, poles, conduitsor wires connected therewith, or any of the fixtures or appurtenancesthereof. As required by subsection C of § 15.2-1800, this section expresslyauthorizes a county to acquire real property for a public use outside itsboundaries.
The locality may also prevent the pollution of water and injury to waterworksfor which purpose its jurisdiction shall extend to five miles beyond thelocality. It may make, erect and construct, within or near its boundaries,drains, sewers and public ducts and acquire within or outside the locality inaccordance with § 15.2-1800 so much land as may be necessary to make, erect,construct, operate and maintain any of the works or plants mentioned in thissection.
In the exercise of the powers granted by this section, localities shall besubject to the provisions of § 25.1-102 to the same extent as arecorporations. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to conferupon any locality the power of eminent domain with respect to any publicutility owned or operated by any other political subdivision of thisCommonwealth. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to exemptlocalities from the provisions of Chapters 20 (§ 46.2-2000 et seq.), 22 (§46.2-2200 et seq.) and 23 (§ 46.2-2300 et seq.) of Title 46.2.
B. A locality may not (i) acquire all of a public utility's facilities,equipment or appurtenances for the production, transmission or distributionof natural or manufactured gas, or of electric power, within the limits ofsuch locality or (ii) take over or displace, in whole or in part, the utilityservices provided by such gas or electric public utility to customers withinthe limits of such locality until after the acquisition is authorized by amajority of the voters voting in a referendum held in accordance with theprovisions of Article 5 (§ 24.2-681 et seq.) of Chapter 6 of Title 24.2 insuch locality on the question of whether or not such facilities, equipment orappurtenances should be acquired or such services should be taken over ordisplaced; however, the provisions of this subsection shall not apply to theuse of energy generated from landfill gas in the City of Lynchburg or FairfaxCounty. In no event, however, shall a locality be required to hold areferendum in order to provide gas or electric service to its own facilities.Notwithstanding any provision of this subsection, a locality may acquirepublic utility facilities or provide services to customers of a publicutility with the consent of the public utility. No city or town whichprovided electric service as of January 1, 1994, shall be required to holdsuch a referendum prior to the acquisition of a public utility's facilities,equipment or appurtenances used for the production, transmission ordistribution of electric power or to the provision of services to customersof a public utility. Nothing in this subsection shall be deemed to (a) createa property right or property interest or (b) affect or impair any existingproperty right or property interest of a public utility.
C. The City of Bristol is authorized to provide computer services as definedin § 18.2-152.2. "Computer services" as used in this section shallspecifically not include the communications link between the host computerand any person or entity other than (i) such locality's departments, offices,boards, commissions, agencies or other governmental divisions or entities or(ii) an adjoining locality's departments, offices, boards, commissions,agencies or other governmental divisions or entities.
(Code 1950, § 15-715; 1962, c. 623, § 15.1-292; 1970, c. 565; 1980, c. 483;1994, c. 634; 1996, c. 384; 1997, c. 587; 2000, c. 663; 2003, c. 940; 2007,c. 813.)