June 20, 2017, Introduced by Rep. Lauwers and referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
A bill to amend 1921 PA 246, entitled
"An act to regulate the service, rates, fares and charges of
carriers by water within this state,"
by amending sections 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 (MCL 460.201, 460.202,
460.203, 460.204, 460.205, and 460.206) and by adding section 7.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec.
1. Any and all persons, firms, and corporations engaged
in the transportation of freight, passengers, or express, by water,
wholly within this state, shall, within 30 days after this act
shall
take takes effect, make and file, with the Michigan
public
utilities
commission in such the form
as it shall prescribe,
prescribed, its schedule of rates, fares, and charges for the
carrying
of freight, passengers, and express.
; which said The
filed
rates, fares, and
charges shall continue in force until
superseded
by other schedules , filed in
the manner above
prescribed,
by said carrier, with the Michigan public utilities
commission:
Provided, however, That said Michigan public utilities
commission
with the department of state
police as provided in this
section.
The department of state police may,
either upon request ,
or upon its own motion, suspend the operation of any filed rate,
fare,
charge, or tariff filed as aforesaid, for a period not
exceeding
30 days. ; and in case any such If a filed rate, fare,
charge,
or tariff shall be is suspended by said Michigan public
utilities
commission, it the department
of state police, the
department shall give the interested carrier immediate notice
thereof,
of the suspension and
shall, within 10 days from the date
of
such the suspension, shall fix a date of hearing, set a hearing
date
not more than 20 days from the date of said
the suspension.
,
and
The department of state
police shall give notice thereof of the
hearing
date to said the carrier
and to other interested persons.
in
interest, who may be heard; and after said After the hearing,
said
commission the department of
state police shall fix set the
rate,
fare, charge, or tariff in the matter complained of, ;
and
such
that rate, fare, charge, or tariff ,
when so fixed, shall
continue
continues to be the legal rate, fare, charge, or tariff in
force
until superseded as provided by law.
: Provided, That any Any
ferry company operating within any municipality under an agreement
with
such that municipality shall is not
be affected either as to
fares or as to operation by this act.
Sec.
2. The Michigan public utilities commission Except as
otherwise provided in section 7, the department of state police may
examine and audit any and all books, accounts, records, and papers
of
any such a carrier by water. , and audit the same;
and it shall
be
the duty of any such carrier by water, to A carrier by water
shall
furnish to said Michigan public
utilities commission, the
department
of state police, its proper officers,
and employes,
employees, any and all data in relation to its investment, income,
operating
expenses, and such other statistical data as it the
department may require.
Sec.
3. The Michigan public utilities commission department of
state
police is hereby authorized,
empowered, and directed to make
all
needful necessary rules and regulations governing its
investigations
of the affairs of such carriers by water , and to
prescribe
the form of all reports required from such those
carriers.
Sec.
4. Whenever If any complaint shall be is made
to said
Michigan
public utilities commission the
department of state police
by any person, firm, or corporation against any rate, fare, charge,
or tariff of any carrier by water within this state, or against any
rule,
regulation, or service of such a
carrier , by water or
against
the neglect, failure, or refusal of any such a carrier
by
water to make, observe, or perform any rate, fare, charge, or
tariff,
or any rule, regulation, or service, said Michigan public
utilities
commission the department of
state police shall
investigate
the same, matter, and it the department may regulate
the performance or observance of any rate, fare, charge, or tariff,
and
any rule, regulation, or service, and may prescribe the same to
be
observed by such require the carrier
: Provided, That such to
observe the rate, fare, charge, or tariff and any rule, regulation,
or
service. A carrier shall by water is in all cases be entitled to
reasonable
notice and an opportunity to be heard on such an
investigation before any rate, fare, charge, or tariff, or any
rule,
regulation, or service shall be is
prescribed, established,
or
imposed by said commission, in accordance with the terms of the
department
of state police as provided in this
section, and when if
any rate, fare, charge, or tariff, or any rule, regulation, or
service
shall be is prescribed, established, or imposed by said
commission,
it shall thereafter be the duty of said carrier to the
department of state police, the carrier by water shall observe and
obey the same.
Sec.
5. Any order made by the Michigan public utilities
commission
department of state police prescribing or affecting any
rate, fare, charge, or tariff, or any rule, regulation, or service
of
any carrier by water within this state, shall be is subject
to
review in the same manner as is now provided by law for the review
of
orders made by said the Michigan public utilities service
commission.
Sec. 6. Any person, firm, or corporation violating any of the
provisions
of this act, or any order of the Michigan public
utilities
commission department of
state police made in pursuance
thereof,
pursuant to this act, shall be punishable punished by
a
fine
not to exceed 100 dollars of
not more than $100.00 for each
violation. ,
and any Any officer or director of any corporation
violating the provisions of this act, or any of the orders of the
Michigan
public utilities commission department
of state police
made
in pursuance thereof, pursuant
to this act, shall be
punishable
punished by a fine not exceeding 100 dollars of not more
than
$100.00 for each such violation,
or by imprisonment in the
county
jail for not more than 3 months, or by both such fine and
punishment, in the discretion of the court.
Sec. 7. The department of state police shall compare the
proposed rate, fare, charge, or tariff of any carrier by water that
primarily transports vehicles directly between 2 state highways to
an adjusted rate, fare, charge, or tariff charged by carriers by
water that transport vehicles that are operated on a nonprofit
basis by this state. The department of state police shall adjust
the rate, fare, charge, or tariff of the carriers by water that are
operated on a nonprofit basis by this state to reflect the amount
of subsidy that the carrier receives, as well as the after-tax cost
of capital acquisition and a reasonable after-tax profit. The
department of state police shall determine the reasonable after-tax
profit based on the most recent data from the Bureau of Labor
Statistics for NAICS 483114. The department of state police shall
automatically approve any proposed rate, fare, charge, or tariff of
any carrier by water that primarily transports vehicles directly
between 2 state highways that is below the adjusted rate, fare,
charge, or tariff described in this section. The department of
state police shall not audit any carrier by water whose proposed
rate, fare, charge, or tariff is less than the adjusted rate, fare,
charge, or tariff described in this section. Any carrier by water
that meets the criteria of this section is considered an
instrumentality of the state.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect 90 days
after the date it is enacted into law.