Section 8. Shall have power to compel, by subpoena duces tecum, the production of any accounts, books, contracts, records, documents, memoranda and papers  


Latest version.
  • In lieu of requiring production of originals by
      subpoena duces tecum the commission  or  any  commissioner  may  require
      sworn  copies  of  any  such  books,  records,  contracts, documents and
      papers, or any parts thereof, to be filed with it.  The  commission  may
      require  of  all  such  water-works  corporations  specific  answers  to
      questions upon which the commission may need information, and  may  also
      require such corporations to file periodic reports in the form, covering
      the  period  and filed at the time prescribed by the commission. If such
      corporation shall fail to make specific answer to any question or  shall
      fail to make a periodic report when required by the commission as herein
      provided  within  the  time and in the form prescribed by the commission
      for the making and filing of any such report or answer, such corporation
      shall forfeit to the state the sum of one hundred dollars for  each  and
      every day it shall continue to be in default with respect to such report
      or  answer. Such forfeiture may be recovered in an action brought by the
      commission in the name of the people of  the  state  of  New  York.  The
      amount recovered in any such action, or paid to the commission, shall be
      paid  into  the  state treasury and be credited to the general fund. The
      commission, for cause shown, may by  compromise  accept  less  than  the
      amount of such forfeiture, in settlement thereof.
        9.  Shall have power in all parts of the state, either as a commission
      or through its members, or through  an  officer  or  employee  specially
      authorized   to   conduct  an  investigation  or  hearing,  to  subpoena
      witnesses, take testimony and  administer  oaths  to  witnesses  in  any
      proceeding  or  examination  instituted before it, or conducted by it in
      reference to any matter within its jurisdiction under this article.
        10. (a) Shall have power to require every water-works  corporation  to
      file with the commission and to print and keep open to public inspection
      schedules showing all rates and charges made, established or enforced or
      to  be  charged  or enforced, all forms of contract or agreement and all
      rules and regulations relating to rates, charges or service used  or  to
      be used, and all general privileges and facilities granted or allowed by
      such  corporation;  but  this  subdivision  shall  not  apply  to state,
      municipal or federal contracts.
        (b) No change shall be made in any rate or charge, or in any  form  of
      contract  or  agreement  or any rule or regulation relating to any rate,
      charge or service, or in any general privilege or facility, which  shall
      have  been  filed  by such a corporation, in compliance with an order of
      the commission, except after thirty days' notice to the  commission  and
      to  each  county,  city,  town  and  village  served by such water-works
      corporation which had filed with  such  corporation,  within  the  prior
      twelve  months, a request for such notice and which shall be affected by
      such change and publication of a notice to the public of  such  proposed
      change once in each week for four successive weeks in a newspaper having
      general  circulation  in  the  county  or  counties containing territory
      affected by the proposed change, which notice shall  plainly  state  the
      changes proposed and when the change will go into effect. The commission
      for  good  cause  shown  may, except in the case of major changes, allow
      changes to take effect prior to the end of such  thirty-day  period  and
      without  publication of notice to the public under such conditions as it
      may prescribe. The commission may  delegate  to  the  secretary  of  the
      commission  its  authority  to approve a change to a schedule postponing
      the effective date of such schedule previously filed with the commission
      and to allow for good cause shown the postponement to take effect  prior
      to  the  end of such thirty-day period and without publication of notice
      to the public.
    
        (c) For the purpose of this subdivision, "major changes" shall mean an
      increase in the rates and charges which  would  increase  the  aggregate
      revenues  of  the  applicant  more  than  the  greater  of three hundred
      thousand dollars or two and one-half  percent,  but  shall  not  include
      changes  in  rates,  charges or rentals allowed to go into effect by the
      commission or made by the utility pursuant to an order of the commission
      after hearings held upon notice to the public.
        (d) No such corporation shall charge, demand,  collect  or  receive  a
      greater or less or different compensation for any service rendered or to
      be  rendered  than the rates and charges specified in its schedule filed
      and in effect; nor shall any such corporation refund  or  remit  in  any
      manner  or  by  any  device  any  portion  of  the  rates  or charges so
      specified, nor extend to any person any form of contract  or  agreement,
      or  any rule or regulation, or any privilege or facility, except such as
      are  regularly  and  uniformly  extended  to  all  persons  under   like
      circumstances.
        (e)  The  commission  shall  have power to prescribe the form of every
      such schedule and from time to time prescribe by order such  changes  in
      the  form  thereof as may be deemed wise. The commission shall also have
      power to establish such rules and regulations to carry into effect  this
      subdivision  as it may deem necessary, and to modify or amend such rules
      or regulations from time to time.
        (f)  Whenever  there  shall  be  filed  with  the  commission  by  any
      water-works  corporation  any  schedule stating a new rate or charge, or
      any change in  any  form  of  contract  or  agreement  or  any  rule  or
      regulation  relating  to  any rate, charge or service, or in any general
      privilege or facility, the commission may, at any time within sixty days
      from the date when such schedule would or has become  effective,  either
      upon complaint or upon its own initiative, and, if it so orders, without
      answer  or other formal pleading by the interested corporation, but upon
      reasonable notice, hold a hearing concerning the propriety of  a  change
      proposed by the filing. If such change is a major change, the commission
      shall  hold  such  a hearing. Pending such hearing and decision thereon,
      the commission, upon filing with such schedule  and  delivering  to  the
      corporation  affected  thereby  a  statement  in  writing of its reasons
      therefor, may suspend the operation of such  schedule,  but  not  for  a
      longer  period  than one hundred and twenty days beyond the time when it
      would otherwise go into effect. After a full hearing, whether  completed
      before  or  after the schedule goes into effect, the commission may make
      such order in reference thereto as would be proper in a proceeding begun
      after the rate, charge, form of contract or agreement, rule, regulation,
      service, general privilege or facility had become effective. If any such
      hearing cannot be concluded within the period  of  suspension  as  above
      stated,  the  commission  may extend the suspension for a further period
      not exceeding six months.
        (g) The commission may, as authorized by section eighty-nine-j of this
      article,  establish  temporary  rates  or  charges  for  any  period  of
      suspension under this section.
        (h)  At any hearing involving a rate, the burden of proof to show that
      the change or proposed change if proposed by the  corporation,  or  that
      the  existing  rate,  if  it is proposed to reduce the rate, is just and
      reasonable shall be upon the corporation; and the commission may give to
      the hearing and decision of such questions  preference  over  all  other
      questions pending before it.
        (i) The schedule, rates, charges, form of contract or agreement, rule,
      regulation, service, general privilege or facility in force when the new
      schedule,  rate,  charge,  form  of contract, rule, regulation, service,
      general privilege or facility was filed shall continue in  force  during
    
      the  period  of  the  suspension unless the commission shall establish a
      temporary rate or charge as authorized by section eighty-nine-j of  this
      article.
        11.  In case any water-works corporation is engaged in carrying on any
      business other than owning, operating or managing a water system,  which
      other  business  is  not  otherwise  subject  to the jurisdiction of the
      commission,  and  is  so  conducted  that  its  operations  are  to   be
      substantially  kept  separate  and  apart  from  the  owning, operating,
      managing or controlling  of  such  water  system,  said  corporation  in
      respect  of  such  other  business  shall  not  be subject to any of the
      provisions of this chapter and shall not  be  required  to  procure  the
      assent  or  authorization  of  the  commission  to any act in such other
      business or to make any report in respect thereof. But this  subdivision
      shall  not  restrict or limit the powers of the commission in respect to
      the owning, operating, managing or controlling by  such  corporation  of
      such  water  system,  and  said  powers  shall include also the right to
      inquire as to,  and  prescribe  the  apportionment  of,  capitalization,
      earnings, debts and expenses fairly and justly to be awarded to or borne
      by  the ownership, operation, management or control of such water system
      as distinguished from such other business. In  any  such  case,  if  the
      owning,  operating,  managing or controlling of such water system by any
      such corporation is  wholly  subsidiary  and  incidental  to  the  other
      business  carried  on  by  it  and  is  inconsiderable in amount and not
      general in its character, the commission may  by  general  rules  exempt
      such  corporation  from making full reports and from keeping of accounts
      as to such subsidiary and incidental business.
        12. The commission  shall  have  power  to  require  each  water-works
      corporation  to  establish  classifications  of  service  based upon the
      quantity used, the time when used,  the  purpose  for  which  used,  the
      duration  of  use  and  upon  any other reasonable consideration, and to
      establish in connection therewith just and  reasonable  graduated  rates
      and  charges; and it shall have power, either upon complaint or upon its
      own motion, to require such changes in such classifications,  rates  and
      charges as it shall determine to be just and reasonable.
        13.  The commission, of its own motion or upon complaint of any person
      or corporation aggrieved, may  investigate  and  determine  whether  the
      property  of any corporation or person actually used within the state in
      the business of the  distribution,  sale  or  furnishing  of  water  for
      domestic,  commercial  or public uses, exclusive of property used solely
      for or  in  connection  with  the  business  of  bottling,  or  selling,
      distributing  or  furnishing  bottled water, is of a value exceeding ten
      thousand dollars. Where such value is ten thousand dollars or less,  the
      commission  may  require  such persons and corporations to file with the
      commission simplified annual reports, in  a  form  and  containing  such
      matters  as the commission shall prescribe, and may prescribe simplified
      forms of accounts to be kept by them.
        14. (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law  to  the  contrary,
      whenever  real  property  owned by a water-works corporation is exempted
      from taxation  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  section  four  hundred
      eighty-five-d of the real property tax law the rate or charge imposed by
      such  corporation  within  the  taxing  jurisdiction  providing for such
      exemption shall be set by the commission so  as  to  reflect  fully  the
      reduction in cost of service resulting therefrom.
        (b)  Notwithstanding  any  other  provision  of  law  to the contrary,
      whenever  a  water-works  corporation  is  the  recipient  of  operating
      assistance  provided  by  a  city  pursuant to the provisions of section
      twenty-one-e of the general city law, the rate or charge imposed by such
    
      corporation within such city shall be set by the  commission  so  as  to
      reflect fully the revenues to such corporation resulting therefrom.
        15.  The commission shall provide for management and operations audits
      of water-works corporations having annual gross revenues  in  excess  of
      ten  million  dollars. Such audits shall include, but not be limited to,
      an investigation of the corporation's construction program  planning  in
      relation  to  the  needs  of  its  customers for reliable service and an
      evaluation of the efficiency of the company's operations. The commission
      shall have discretion to have such audits performed by its staff, or  by
      independent auditors.
        In  every  case  in  which  the  commission  chooses to have the audit
      provided for in this subdivision performed by independent  auditors,  it
      shall  have  authority  to  select  the  auditors  and  to  require  the
      corporation being audited to enter into a  contract  with  the  auditors
      providing  for  their  payment  by such corporation. Such contract shall
      provide further that the auditors shall work for and under the direction
      of the  commission  according  to  such  terms  as  the  commission  may
      determine are necessary and reasonable.
        The  commission  shall  have  authority  to  direct the corporation to
      implement any recommendations resulting from such audits that  it  finds
      to be necessary and reasonable.
        Upon  the  application of a water-works corporation for a major change
      in rates as defined in subdivision ten of this section,  the  commission
      shall  review  the  corporation's  compliance  with  the  directions and
      recommendations made previously by the commission, as a  result  of  the
      most  recently  completed  management  and  operations  audit undertaken
      pursuant to the provisions of this  subdivision.  The  commission  shall
      incorporate the findings of such review in its opinion or order.
        16.  Notwithstanding  any  general or special law, rule or regulation,
      the commission shall have the power to provide for  the  refund  of  any
      revenues  received  by  any  water-works  corporation  which  cause  the
      corporation  to  have  revenues  in  the  aggregate  in  excess  of  its
      authorized  rate of return for a period of twelve months. The commission
      may initiate a proceeding with  respect  to  such  a  refund  after  the
      conclusion of any such twelve month period.