Kitchell v. Franklin

Plaintiff was a resident of the City of Logansport and a ratepayer to the municipal utility that supplied her electricity. Plaintiff filed a petition against the City of Logansport, including the City's mayor and common council, seeking a declaration that Ordinance 2013-07, which gave the mayor the authority to enter into a public-private partnership and to negotiate an agreement with an entity that could construct, operate, and maintain a public electric facility and transfer it back to the City, was invalid because the City lacked the authority to pass the ordinance. The trial court dismissed the petition for failing to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) Indiana's Public-Private Agreements Act, which authorizes and provides guidelines for the implementation of public-private partnerships, does not require a local legislative body to first adopt the statute before it may issue a request for proposals or begin contract negotiations as provided for under the statute; and (2) the City complied with the Act in every particular, and therefore, Plaintiff was not entitled to relief.View "Kitchell v. Franklin" on Justia Law