TITLE 67

STATE GOVERNMENT AND STATE AFFAIRS

CHAPTER 89

IDAHO ENERGY RESOURCES AUTHORITY ACT

67-8908.  Powers. (1) The authority shall have the following powers, which are hereby declared to be necessary to enable the authority to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions of this chapter, together with all powers incidental thereto or necessary for the performance thereof:

(a)  To have perpetual succession as a body politic and corporate;

(b)  To adopt bylaws for the regulation of its affairs and the conduct of its business;

(c)  To sue and be sued and to prosecute and defend, at law or in equity, in any court having jurisdiction of the subject matter and of the parties;

(d)  To have and to use a corporate seal and to alter the same at pleasure;

(e)  To maintain an office at such place or places as it may designate;

(f)  To make and execute contracts and all other instruments necessary or convenient for the exercise of its powers and functions under this chapter;

(g)  To acquire, whether by purchase, gift, grant, bequest, devise, exchange, eminent domain or otherwise, own, hold, improve, lease, transfer, assign, pledge and dispose of, any real or personal property or any interest therein necessary or convenient in connection with any facility or its purposes under this chapter; provided however, that the power of eminent domain is limited to only those purposes and participating utilities as authorized by section 7-701, Idaho Code;

(h)  To acquire, construct, reconstruct, renovate, improve, replace, maintain, repair, manage, operate, lease as lessee or lessor, and regulate any facility; to enter into contracts for any and all of such purposes and for the acquisition and management of fuel supplies, provided such is reasonably necessary for the operation and maintenance of any facility; to enter into contracts and agreements to manage risks associated with the purchase and sale of energy and energy commodities, provided such is reasonably necessary for the operation and maintenance of any facility; and to designate one (1) or more qualified participating utilities as agent or agents of the authority, as agreed to among the participating utilities, with respect to the foregoing;

(i)  To sell, lease or otherwise provide by contract to one (1) or more participating utilities the services, output or product provided by any or all of the facilities undertaken by the authority upon such terms and conditions as the authority and the participating utilities shall deem proper, and to establish, charge, collect and revise from time to time such rents, fees and charges for such services, output or product as provided for in this chapter;

(j)  To borrow money and to issue bonds for any of the purposes described in this chapter, to issue refunding bonds and to enter into contracts and agreements determined by the authority to be necessary or desirable to manage its debt service and interest costs;

(k)  To establish rules and regulations for the use of facilities and to designate a participating utility as its agent to establish rules and regulations for the use of the facilities undertaken or operated by such participating utility;

(l)  To employ or contract for consulting engineers, architects, attorneys, accountants, construction and financial experts, superintendents, managers, and such other employees and agents as may be necessary in its judgment and to fix their compensation;

(m)  To enter into contracts, agreements or other transactions with and accept grants and the cooperation of the United States or any agency thereof or any state or any agency or governmental subdivision thereof, in furtherance of the purposes of this chapter including, but not limited to, the development, maintenance, operation, and financing of any facility and to do any and all things necessary in order to avail itself of such aid and cooperation;

(n)  To receive and accept aid or contributions from any source of money, property, labor, or other things of value, to be held, used, and applied to carry out the purposes of this chapter subject to such conditions upon which such grants and contributions may be made, including, but not limited to, gifts or grants from any department or agency of the United States or any state for any purpose consistent with this chapter;

(o)  To assign and pledge all or any part of its revenues and income and to mortgage or otherwise encumber any or all of its facilities and the site or sites thereof, whether then owned or thereafter acquired, for the benefit and security of the holders of bonds issued to finance such facilities or any portion thereof;

(p)  To make loans to any participating utility to finance the cost of any facilities in accordance with an agreement between the authority and such participating utility;

(q)  To make secured or unsecured loans to a participating utility to refinance obligations and indebtedness incurred for facilities undertaken and completed prior to or after the enactment of this chapter when the authority finds that such financing is in the public interest and either alleviates the financial hardship upon the participating utility or is in connection with other financing by the authority for such participating utility or may be expected to result in a cost-effective delivery of electricity to the consumers served by the participating utility, or any combination thereof;

(r)  To charge to and equitably apportion its administrative costs and expenses incurred in the exercise of the powers and duties conferred by this chapter among the participating utilities that have entered into contracts with the authority;

(s)  To procure insurance against any loss in connection with its property and other assets in such amounts and from such insurers as it deems desirable and to self-insure against such risks as it shall deem to be reasonable;

(t)  To invest any funds not needed for immediate use or disbursement, including any funds held in reserve, in:

(i)   Bonds, notes and other obligations of the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof and other securities secured by such bonds, notes or other obligations;

(ii)  Money market funds which are insured or the assets of which are limited to obligations of the United States or any agency or instrumentality thereof;

(iii) Time certificates of deposit and savings accounts;

(iv)  Commercial paper which, at the time of its purchase, is rated in the highest category by a nationally recognized rating service;

(v)   Property or securities in which the state treasurer may invest funds in the state treasury pursuant to section 67-1210, Idaho Code; and

(vi)  With respect to any funds representing bond proceeds or amounts pledged to the payment of bonds, such other investments as may be specified in a bond resolution or trust indenture securing bonds of the authority;

(u)  To participate in cooperative ventures with any agencies or organizations in order to provide affordable and reliable energy to the residents of the state;

(v)  To undertake and finance clean energy generation projects developed by a participating utility or an independent power producer;

(w)  To finance or refinance the cost of conservation measures as provided in section 67-8926, Idaho Code; and

(x)  To do all things necessary and convenient to carry out the purposes of this chapter.

(2)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, the authority shall have no power to:

(a)  Acquire the operating property of any investor-owned, private, cooperative, municipal or other utility by the exercise of the power of eminent domain;

(b)  Provide financing for the acquisition of the operating property of any such utility by or under threat of eminent domain, in either case unless such utility consents in writing to the acquisition; or

(c)  Deliver retail electricity or related retail products or services to any ultimate consumer, whether in violation of the Idaho electric supplier stabilization act or otherwise.

(3)  The authority is not a "taxing district," as defined in section 67-3901, Idaho Code, and, for so long as any bonds are outstanding or any contract, agreement or transaction between the authority and a participating utility is in effect, the authority shall not have the power and shall not be authorized to be a debtor under the U.S. bankruptcy code, title 11 U.S.C., or any other bankruptcy, insolvency, moratorium, liquidation, dissolution or wind-down law.

History:

[67-8908, added 2005, ch. 53, sec. 1, p. 196; am. 2005, ch. 311, sec. 3, p. 967; am. 2015, ch. 59, sec. 1, p. 160; am. 2023, ch. 24, sec. 4, p. 137.]