36-2236. Nature of certificates of necessity; transfer; suspension; service area

A. A certificate of necessity issued pursuant to this article is not a franchise, may be revoked by the director and does not confer a property right on its holder.

B. A certificate of necessity shall not be assigned or otherwise transferred without the written approval of the director. When any certificate is assigned or transferred, the director shall issue to the assignee or transferee a new certificate that is valid only for the unexpired term of the transferred or assigned certificate.

C. In case of emergency, the director may suspend a certificate of necessity as provided in section 36-2234.

D. If a certificate of necessity issued pursuant to this article is issued to a city, town, fire district, fire authority or other political subdivision of this state, the service area shall be all the geographic area lying within the jurisdictional boundaries of the city, town, fire district, fire authority or political subdivision, unless the certificate issued by the director specifically excludes a portion of the city, town, fire district, fire authority or political subdivision or includes an additional service area outside the jurisdictional boundaries of the city, town, fire district, fire authority or other political subdivision. If the jurisdictional boundaries of a city, town, fire district, fire authority or other political subdivision expand, the service area in the certificate of necessity expands to reflect those jurisdictional boundaries, except as prescribed in section 36-2233, subsection I, paragraph 2. This subsection does not affect the validity of any previously granted certificate for an unincorporated area lying within the boundaries of a city.

E. If the population of a service area changes by ten percent or more based on the most recent decennial census or five-year census estimate, the department must conduct a review to determine whether adjustments must be made to the response times in the service area, taking into consideration the impact on rates and charges.