Ohio § 4933.83

§ 4933.83.

(A) Except as otherwise provided in this section and Article XVIII of the Ohio Constitution , each electric supplier shall have the exclusive right to furnish electric service

to all electric load centers located presently or in the future within its certified

territory, and shall not furnish, make available, render, or extend its electric service

for use in electric load centers located within the certified territory of another

electric supplier;  provided that nothing in sections 4933.81 to 4933.90 of the Revised Code shall impair the power of municipal corporations to require franchises or contracts

for the provision of electric service within their boundaries, and provided that any

electric supplier may extend its facilities through the certified territory of another

electric supplier to connect any of its facilities, to serve electric load centers

within its own certified territory or to interconnect with other electric suppliers.  In the event that a new electric load center should locate in an area that is composed

of two or more adjacent certified territories, the electric supplier in whose certified

territory the greater portion of the land area covered by the electric load center

is located shall serve that electric load center.  In the event that a municipal corporation refuses to grant a franchise or contract

for electric service within its boundaries to an electric supplier whose certified

territory is included within the municipality, any other electric supplier may serve

the municipal corporation under a franchise or contract with the municipal corporation. (B) Electric suppliers shall furnish adequate facilities to meet the reasonable needs

of the consumers and inhabitants in the certified territories that they are authorized

and required to serve pursuant to sections 4933.81 to 4933.90 of the Revised Code .  The public utilities commission may, after a hearing had upon due notice, make such

findings as may be supported by proof as to whether any electric supplier operating

in a certified territory, or providing electric service pursuant to division (C) of

this section, is rendering or proposes to render physically adequate service to an

electric load center and in the event the commission finds that such electric supplier

is not rendering and does not propose to render physically adequate service, the commission

may enter an order specifying in what particulars such electric supplier has failed

to render or propose to render physically adequate service and order that such failure

be corrected within a reasonable time to be fixed in such order.  If the electric supplier so ordered to correct such failure fails to comply with

such order, the commission may authorize another electric supplier to furnish electric

service to such electric load center and shall appropriately amend the maps of the

certified territory of such electric suppliers. (C) Except as provided in division (B) of this section and Article XVIII of the Ohio Constitution , each electric supplier has the obligation and exclusive right to furnish electric

service to electric load centers, wherever located, which it was serving on January

1, 1977, or which it had agreed to serve under lawful contracts in effect on or resulting

from written bids submitted under bond prior to January 1, 1977, and no other electric

supplier shall furnish, make available, or extend electric service to any such electric

load centers. (D) Sections 4933.81 to 4933.90 of the Revised Code shall not prevent an electric supplier from extending its electric service after

the effective date of this section to its own property or facilities. (E) Notwithstanding the effectuation of certified territories established by or pursuant

to sections 4933.81 to 4933.90 of the Revised Code , and the exclusive right of electric suppliers to serve within such territory, and

notwithstanding any other provisions of such sections establishing rights of electric

suppliers to furnish electric service, any two or more electric suppliers may jointly

petition the commission for the reallocation of their own territories and electric

load centers among them and designating which portions of such territories and electric

load centers are to be served by each of the electric suppliers.  The commission, if it finds that granting the petition will promote the purposes

of sections 4933.81 to 4933.90 of the Revised Code and will provide adequate service to all territories and electric load centers affected

thereby, shall approve such a petition, appropriately modify the territorial boundaries

of the petitioning electric suppliers, and amend the maps of the certified territory

of such electric suppliers accordingly.