§ 117-30.  Telephone membership corporations.

(a) In the event it is ascertained by the Rural Electrification Authority that the community or communities referred to in the foregoing section G.S. 117-29 are in need of telephone service and that there is a sufficient number of persons to be served to justify such services, and the telephone company serving in the area in which the community or communities are located is unwilling to provide such service, a telephone membership corporation may be organized by such community or communities in the same manner that electric membership corporations may be formed under Article 2 of this Chapter, and all of the provisions of said Article shall be applicable to the formation of telephone membership corporations and such corporations shall have all the authority, powers and duties of such a corporation when formed under the provisions of said Article; except that the provisions of G.S. 117-8, 117-9, 117-10.1, 117-10.2, 117-16.1, 117-18(14), 117-18.1, 117-19 and 117-24 shall not be applicable to the organization of a telephone membership corporation, and except that such corporations so formed for the express purpose of providing telephone service necessary to serve the community or communities prescribed in the application may also provide the community or communities prescribed in the application with any communication service for the transmission of voice, sounds, signals, pictures, writing or signs of all kinds through the use of electricity or the electromagnetic spectrum between the transmitting and receiving apparatus, together with any telecommunications service requiring band-width capacity, including, but not limited to community antenna and cable television services, and including all lines, wires, cables, radio, light, electromagnetic impulse and all facilities, systems or other means used in the rendition of such services, but not including message telegram service or radio broadcasting services or facilities within the meaning of section 3(o) of the Federal Communications Act of 1934, as amended (47 USC § 153(o)) and except that such corporation so formed shall have no authority to engage in any other business. Provided, that the references in Article 2 of this Chapter to "power lines" or "energy" as to such telephone membership corporations shall be construed to mean telephone lines, broadband cables and lines, telephone service and broadband communications services. Provided further, that nothing herein shall be construed to authorize any telephone membership corporation organized hereunder to duplicate any line or lines, systems or other means by which adequate telephone service is being furnished; or to build or to construct a telephone line, or telephone lines, or telephone systems, or otherwise to provide facilities or means of furnishing telephone service to any person, community, town or city then being adequately served by a telephone company, corporation or system; or to provide telephone service in an unserved area while any telephone company, corporation or system is acting in good faith and with reasonable diligence in arranging to provide adequate telephone service to such person, community, town or city.

(b) Any telephone membership corporation formed under this Article which now provides or has imminent plans to provide any service which is subject to the requirement of a state or local franchise shall make reasonable efforts to secure any such state or local franchise required for the operation of such service within its service area. Unless otherwise prohibited, any such franchise granted to a telephone membership corporation may be transferred or assigned by that corporation, in its discretion, if such transfer or assignment is reasonably calculated to contribute to the development of any such service within the franchised area. Provided, however, that no telephone membership corporation shall be required to obtain a state or local franchise to provide the types of telephone services being provided on July 1, 1979 by a telephone membership corporation, or the types of telephone services offered by existing telephone membership corporations on July 1, 1979 and proposed to be offered by any telephone membership corporation formed thereafter, without respect to the facilities or methods which are used to provide such services. (1945, c. 853, s. 2; 1965, c. 345, s. 1; 1979, c. 586; 1999-180, s. 3.)