Chapter 184

2009 -- H 5088 SUBSTITUTE A

Enacted 11/02/09

A N A C T

RELATING TO PUBLIC UTILITIES AND CARRIERS - LOCATION OF GAS

REGULATORS AND GAS METERS

Introduced By: Representatives Costantino, Fox, Slater, Ajello, and Williams

Date Introduced: January 14, 2009

It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

SECTION 1. Title 39 of the General Laws entitled "Public Utilities and Carriers" is

hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

CHAPTER 2.1

LOCATION OF RESIDENTIAL GAS REGULATORS AND GAS METERS

39-2.1-1. Location of residential gas regulators and gas meters. -- (a) Prior to the

location or relocation of any residential gas regulator or gas meter, the public utility shall consult

with the owner(s) of the property as to their preference concerning the most suitable location for

such devices, and the public utility shall give preference to locations that are least visibly

prominent.

(b) The public utility is hereby prohibited from installing gas regulators and/or gas meters

on the visible front of any residential property or visible sides of the property that face a public

right-of-way, unless permitted to do so by the owner or unless it is determined that there exists no

prudent and feasible alternative to such location. In high-pressure systems, the gas regulator may

be located in an unobtrusive exterior location that is not visible from a public right-of-way.

39-2.1-2. Location of gas regulators and/or gas meters in historic districts. -- (a) The

public utility is hereby prohibited from installing gas regulators or gas meters on the exterior of

property located within a historic district, unless permitted to do so by the owner, and are hereby

required to obtain a certificate of appropriateness from the historic district commission of any city

or town which has been created by the city or town council in accordance with the provisions of

chapter 45-24.1, et. seq.; provided, however, in high pressure systems, the public utility may

install gas regulators on the exterior of property, subject to the exterior location being approved

by the owner and the historic district commission.

(b) For the purposes of this section “property located with a historic district” means “a

certified historic structure” as defined in subdivision 44-33.2-2(1).

39-2.1-3. Obligations of residential property owners. -- (a) The owner(s) of any

residential property within the interior of which a gas regulator or gas meter is located shall grant

reasonable access to the public utility responsible for the maintenance of the regulator or meter in

order to perform safety activities as required by law not less than every thirty-six (36) months.

Any owner which denies the public utility access to the gas regulator or gas meter shall be subject

to termination of service, and the public utility is hereby authorized to relocate the gas regulator

or gas meter to the exterior of the property in accordance with the provisions of section 39-2.1-1.

(b) The owner(s) of property with interior gas regulators or gas meters shall be required

to sign a consent form agreeing to the terms set forth in subsection (a).

(c) The owner(s) of residential property are hereby authorized to paint exterior gas

regulators, but not the regulator vents, and gas meters in order to blend with color of the property,

and may landscape in front of the regulator and/or meter in order to conceal the location thereof.

SECTION 2. Chapter 45-24.1 of the general laws entitled “Historical Area Zoning” is

hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

45-24.1-3.2. Legislative findings. -- The general assembly hereby recognizes that gas

regulators or gas meters located anywhere on the exterior of historic buildings or buildings

located in a historic district may create a visual intrusion to the property and to the surrounding

historic district, and it is the intent of this chapter to provide procedures for any public utility

proposing to locate or relocate such devices on residential historic buildings.

SECTION 3. Section 45-24.1-4 of the General Laws in chapter 45-24.1 entitled

“Historical Area Zoning” is hereby amended to read as follows:

45-24.1-4. Permit required to construct, alter, or demolish structure – Application –

Written decisions of commission – Powers of commission. -- (a) The commission shall, within

twelve (12) months of the date the local historic district zoning ordinance takes effect:

        (1) Adopt and publish all rules and regulations necessary to carry out its functions

under the provisions of this chapter; and

        (2) Publish standards as necessary to inform historic district residents, property owners,

and the general public of those criteria by which the commission determines whether to issue a

certificate of appropriateness. The commission may amend these standards as reasonably

necessary, and it shall publish all amendments.

        (b) Before a property owner or public utility as defined in subdivision 39-1-2(20) that is

installing a gas regulator or gas meter may authorize or commence construction, alteration, repair,

removal, or demolition affecting the exterior appearance of a structure or its appurtenances within

a historic district or affecting a historic cemetery wherever located within a city or town, the

owner or public utility must apply for and receive a certificate of appropriateness from the

commission. In applying, the owner or public utility must comply with application procedures

established by the commission pursuant to this chapter and the applicable local ordinance. The

commission requires shall require the owner or public utility to submit information which is

reasonably necessary to evaluate the proposed construction, alteration, repair, removal, or

demolition, including, but not limited to, plans, drawings, photographs, or other information. The

owner of the property or the public utility must obtain a certificate of appropriateness for the

project whether or not state law requires that he or , she or it also obtain a permit from the local

building official. The building official shall not issue a permit until the commission has granted a

certificate of appropriateness.

        (c) In the case of a historic cemetery, the owner must comply with all provisions of law

and make suitable and appropriate provisions for the reinterment of any human remains in an

established cemetery. Original or existing headstones and markers shall be preserved and

installed at the site of the reinterment.

        (d) In reviewing plans, the commission shall give consideration to:

        (1) The historic and architectural significance of the structure and its appurtenances;

        (2) The way in which the structure and its appurtenances contribute to the historical and

architectural significance of the district; and

        (3) The appropriateness of the general design, arrangement, texture, materials, and

siting proposed in the plans.

        The commission shall pass only on exterior features of a structure and its appurtenances

and shall not consider interior arrangements.

        (e) All decisions of the commission shall be in writing. The commission shall articulate

and explain the reasons and bases of each decision on a record, and, in the case of a decision not

to issue a certificate of appropriateness, the commission shall include in the bases for its

conclusion that the proposed activity would be incongruous with those aspects of the structure,

appurtenances, or the district which the commission has determined to be historically or

architecturally significant. The commission shall send a copy of the decision to the applicant.

       (f) In the case of an application for construction, repair, alteration, removal, or

demolition affecting the exterior appearance of a structure, or its appurtenances, which the

commission deems so valuable to the city, town, state, or nation, that the loss of that structure will

be a great loss to the city, town, state, or nation, the commission shall endeavor to work out with

the owner an economically feasible plan for the preservation of that structure. Unless the

commission is satisfied that the retention of the structure constitutes a hazard to public safety,

which hazard cannot be eliminated by economic means available to the owner, including the sale

of the structure to any purchaser willing to preserve the structure, or unless the commission votes

to issue a certificate of appropriateness for the proposed construction, alteration, repair, removal,

or demolition, the commission shall file with the building official or duly delegated authority its

rejection of the application. In the absence of a change in the structure arising from casualty, no

new application for the same or similar work shall be filed within one year after the rejection.

        (g) In the case of any structure deemed to be valuable for the period of architecture it

represents and important to the neighborhood within which it exists, the commission may file

with the building official, or other duly delegated authority its certificate of appropriateness for an

application if any of the circumstances under which a certificate of appropriateness might have

been given under subsection (6) are in existence or if:

        (1) Preservation of the structure is a deterrent to a major improvement program which

will be of substantial benefit to the community;

        (2) Preservation of the structure would cause undue or unreasonable financial hardship

to the owner, taking into account the financial resources available to the owner, including the sale

of the structure to any purchaser willing to preserve the structure; or

        (3) The preservation of the structure would not be in the interest of the majority of the

community.

       (h) When considering an application to demolish or remove a structure of historic or

architectural value, the commission shall assist the owner in identifying and evaluating

alternatives to demolition, including the sale of the structure and its present site. In addition to

any other criteria, the commission also shall consider whether there is a reasonable likelihood that

some person or group other than the current owner is willing to purchase, move, and preserve the

structure, and whether the owner has made continuing, bona fide, and reasonable efforts to sell

the structure to any purchaser willing to move and preserve the structure.

     (i) No less than fifteen (15) days after receiving an application to demolish or to remove

an historic cemetery, the commission shall forward the application to the commission to study

historic cemeteries. The commission shall also immediately forward to the commission to study

historic cemeteries its finding of fact, if any, together with its action on the application.

SECTION 4. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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LC00047/SUB A

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