SB311ENGROSSED
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SB311
G3NTECC-2
By Senators Carnley, Orr, Sessions, Williams, Butler, Bell,
Waggoner, Kitchens, Allen, Gudger, Stutts, Barfoot, Kelley,
Smitherman, Singleton
RFD: Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development
First Read: 08-Apr-25
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First Read: 08-Apr-25
A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
Relating to public highways; to amend Section 23-1-4,
Code of Alabama 1975, to further provide for the issuance of a
permit for access to certain state rights-of-way on public
highways; to provide certain permit processing deadlines for
applications by electric providers; and to authorize
associated condemnation actions to be expedited.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. Section 23-1-4, Code of Alabama 1975, is
amended to read as follows:
"ยง23-1-4
(a) The Legislature of Alabama finds and declares the
following:
(1) Electric transmission infrastructure is critical to
the economic growth and well-being of this state and Alabama
has an immediate need to expand and facilitate such investment
for the benefit of its residents.
(2) Public rights-of-way provide essential corridors
and paths for electric transmission infrastructure.
(3) Prompt issuance of permits for electric
transmission infrastructure of electric providers in public
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transmission infrastructure of electric providers in public
rights-of-way will provide the needed support to industrial
growth, job creation, and economic development, particularly
in rural and underserved areas.
(b) No state-controlled road shall be dug up or used
for laying pipelines, pole lines, sewers, railways, or for
other similar purposes without the written permit of the State
Department of Transportation, and such the work shall be done
only in accordance with the regulations prescribed by the
department, and the.
(c) The permittee shall pay the cost of replacing the
road in as good condition as it was before such the permitted
work was done shall be paid by the person, firm, or
corporation to whom or in whose behalf such permit was given .
Such person, firm, or corporation so desiring such work An
applicant for a permit under this section shall furnish the
state with a cash deposit or certified check upon a solvent
bank or surety bond in from a guaranty company qualified to do
business in Alabama, in the amount required by the State
Department of Transportation department, conditioned that the
sum is to be forfeited to the state in the event that said the
road is not placed in as good condition as it was prior to
said the permitted work being done, within 15 business days
from the time saidthe permitted work is completed.
(d)(1) Upon the receipt of an application of an
electric provider for a permit relating to electric
transmission facilities, the department shall determine
whether the application is complete. If the application is not
complete, the department, within 14 business days after
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complete, the department, within 14 business days after
receiving the application, shall respond to the applicant in
writing with a description of any deficiency in the
application.
(2) Within 35 business days after receiving from an
electric provider a completed application for a permit
relating to electric transmission facilities, the department
shall approve or deny the application; provided, however, the
department may exercise a one-time, 10-business-day extension
for its consideration of the application for a permit upon
written notice to the applicant.
(3) Unless waived by the applicant, if the department
fails to approve or deny the application for a permit within
the required period under subdivision (2), the requested
permit shall be deemed approved by the department upon the
posting of the deposit or bond required by subsection (c).
(4) In the event that the application for a permit is
denied, the applicant, within 10 business days, may request
review by the director, in which event the director, within 10
business days, shall render a decision in writing either
affirming or reversing the permit denial, along with the
reasons for any permit denial.
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to
require the department to acquire rights-of-way to accommodate
an electric provider's electric transmission facilities.
(f)(1) For purposes of this section, "electric
provider" has the same meaning as provided in Section 37-16-3.
The term includes the Tennessee Valley Authority and includes
an authority as defined in Section 11-50A-1.
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an authority as defined in Section 11-50A-1.
(2) For purposes of this section, "electric
transmission facilities" means facilities distributing or
transmitting electricity at voltages of 40,000 volts or
greater."
Section 2. In any condemnation action tangential to an
application for a permit under Section 23-1-4, Code of Alabama
1975, on motion from the plaintiff, the circuit court shall
enter an order assigning the case to the expedited track and
shall ensure resolution as expeditiously as feasible.
Section 3. This act shall become effective on October
1, 2025.
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1, 2025.
Senate
Read for the first time and referred
to the Senate committee on Fiscal
Responsibility and Economic
Development
................08-Apr-25
Read for the second time and placed
on the calendar:
0 amendments
................22-Apr-25
Read for the third time and passed
as amended
Yeas 29
Nays 1
Abstains 0
................24-Apr-25
Patrick Harris,
Secretary.
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