Title 58, Public Utilities, Services and Carriers

The Office of Regulatory Staff may, whenever it may be appropriate in the performance of its duties, investigate and examine the condition and operation of telephone utilities or any particular telephone utility.

The Office of Regulatory Staff may, after due notice to officers or managers of the company, inspect the property, plant, and facilities of any telephone utility at any and all times and inspect or audit at reasonable times the accounts, books, papers, and documents of any teleph…

In the performance of its duties under Articles 1 through 13 of this chapter, any employee or agent of the Office of Regulatory Staff may inspect or make copies of all income, property, or other tax returns, reports or other information filed by telephone utilities with or otherw…

The commission may make such rules and regulations not inconsistent with law as may be proper in the exercise of its powers or for the performance of the duties set forth in Articles 1 through 13 of this chapter, all of which shall have the force of law.

In addition to the foregoing expressly enumerated powers, the commission shall carry out by its order, ruling, or regulation and the Office of Regulatory Staff shall enforce, execute, and administer the provisions of Articles 1 through 13 of this chapter relating to the powers, d…

The enumeration of the powers of the commission as herein set forth shall not be construed to exclude the exercise of any power which the commission would otherwise have under the provisions of law.

When used in this chapter: (a) The term "commission" means the Public Service Commission of the State of South Carolina. (b) The term "commissioner" means one of the members of the Public Service Commission. (c) The term "corporation" includes all bodies corporate, joint stock co…

(A) No radio common carrier shall begin or continue the construction or operation of a radio common carrier system, either directly or indirectly, without first obtaining from the commission a certificate that the public convenience and necessity requires the construction or oper…

A radio common carrier upon receiving a certificate of authorization from the Commission shall file with the Federal Communications Commission an application for the service within ninety days from date of certificate as issued by the Commission or on August 15, 1975, whichever i…

Any radio common carrier may establish, construct, maintain, and operate any reasonable extension of its facilities within its service area, after due notice of intent to the commission and the Office of Regulatory Staff by letter, without public hearing before the commission, un…

No radio common carrier shall abandon all or any portion of its service to the public, except for ordinary discontinuance of service for nonpayment of lawful charge, or except for violation of rules and regulations approved by the Commission, unless written application is first m…

No radio common carrier, without the approval of the Commission after due hearing and compliance with all other existing requirements of the laws of the State in relation thereto, shall sell, transfer, lease, consolidate or merge its property, powers, franchises or privileges or …

No radio common carrier for rate-making purposes shall capitalize its franchises, rights, powers, privileges, or right to own and operate or enjoy any such franchise, rights, powers, or privileges in excess of the amount paid to the State or to any political subdivision of the St…

The Office of Regulatory Staff may, in its discretion, subject to approval of the commission, prescribe systems of accounts to be kept by radio common carriers subject to its jurisdiction, and it may prescribe the manner in which the accounts shall be kept, and may require every …

Every radio common carrier shall have the right, and may be so required, to charge annually as an operating expense a reasonable sum for depreciation and credit the same to a reserve account for such purpose, which reserve account shall be charged with plant retirements, but if t…

When in the judgment of the Commission there is a reasonably substantial affiliation of any radio common carrier engaged in business in this State with any other corporation or person or when in the judgment of the Commission any other corporation or person either exercises, or i…

For the purposes of encouraging economy, efficiency, and improvements in methods of service any radio common carrier may participate, subject to the approval of the Commission, to such extent as may be permitted by the Commission, in the additional profits arising from any econom…

Every rate made, demanded, or received by any radio common carrier, or by any two or more radio common carriers jointly, shall be just and reasonable.

The Office of Regulatory Staff may require any radio common carrier to file annual reports in such form and of such content as the Office of Regulatory Staff may require and special reports concerning any matter about which the Office of Regulatory Staff is authorized to inquire …

Corporations formed to acquire property, or to transact business which would be subject to the provisions of this chapter, and corporations possessing franchises, powers or privileges for any of the purposes contemplated by this chapter shall be deemed to be subject to the provis…

Each radio common carrier shall have an office in one of the counties of this State in which its property or some part thereof is located, and shall keep in such office all books, accounts, papers, and records, as shall reasonably be required by the Office of Regulatory Staff to …

Each radio common carrier shall obey and comply with each and every requirement of every order, decision, direction, rule, or regulation made or prescribed by the commission and every direction, rule, or regulation made or prescribed by the Office of Regulatory Staff in the perfo…

No radio common carrier, except municipalities, shall issue any securities, as in this chapter defined, without the approval of the commission. Any radio common carrier, except a municipality, desiring to issue any securities may apply to the commission for approval of any propos…

No radio common carrier shall permit any employee to sell, offer for sale, or solicit the purchase of any security of any other person or corporation during such hours as such employee is engaged to perform any duty of such radio common carrier; nor shall any radio common carrier…

If the articles of incorporation of any radio common carrier are revoked by the Secretary of State, the Public Service Commission shall immediately revoke the certificate of authorization granted to such carrier. Whenever such certificate is revoked for any cause, the Office of R…

All report forms required to be completed by carriers pursuant to the provisions of this chapter and any other information necessary to enable carriers to remain in compliance with such provisions shall be furnished by the Public Service Commission to all carriers on a time sched…

Under such rules and regulations as the commission may prescribe, every radio common carrier shall file with the commission and the Office of Regulatory Staff, within such time and in such form as the commission may designate, schedules showing all rates, rules, and regulations e…

No radio common carrier shall directly or indirectly, by any device whatsoever, or in any way, charge, demand, collect or receive from any communications person or corporation a greater or less compensation for any service rendered or supplied, or to be rendered or supplied, such…

Whenever the commission after a hearing finds that the existing rates in effect and collected by any radio common carrier for any service are unjust, unreasonable, insufficient, or unreasonably discriminatory, or in any way in violation of any provision of law, the commission sha…

Whenever the commission, after hearing, finds that the service of any radio common carrier is not reasonably adequate and efficient, the commission shall make its findings and issue an order thereon requiring such radio common carrier to provide reasonably adequate and efficient …

The commission may ascertain and fix just and reasonable classification, regulations, practices, or service to be furnished, imposed, observed, and followed by any or all radio common carriers; prescribe reasonable regulations for the examination and testing of such service and f…

The Commission may after hearing ascertain and fix the value of the whole or any part of the property of any radio common carrier insofar as such property is material to the exercise of the jurisdiction of the Commission.

The Office of Regulatory Staff may investigate and examine the condition and operation of radio common carriers or any particular radio common carrier.

When petition has been made to the commission concerning any rate or charge for service performed by any radio common carrier, and the commission has found after hearing that the radio common carrier has charged an unreasonable, excessive, or discriminatory amount for such servic…

The Commission shall not grant a certificate for a proposed radio common carrier operation or extension thereof into an established service area of another certified radio common carrier unless after hearing it shall be shown by the applicant that public convenience and necessity…

Should application be made for a proposed radio common carrier operation or extension thereof into a service area, or portion thereof, of another certified radio common carrier, the applicant shall notify the radio common carrier with copies of all information filed with the comm…

The Office of Regulatory Staff at any reasonable time shall have the right to inspect the property, plant, and facilities of any radio common carrier, and to inspect or audit at reasonable times the accounts, books, papers, and documents of any radio common carrier, and for the p…

No radio common carrier shall, as to rates, or services, make or grant any unreasonable preference or advantage to any person or corporation or subject any person or corporation to any unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage. No radio common carrier shall establish or maintain any…

In the performance of its duties under this chapter, the Office of Regulatory Staff is hereby authorized to inspect or make copies of all income, property, or other tax returns, reports, or other information filed by radio common carrier with or otherwise obtained by any other de…

The commission may hold joint hearings and issue joint or concurrent orders in conjunction or concurrence with any official board or commission of any state or of the United States. The Office of Regulatory Staff may make joint investigations with any official board or commission…

Whenever it shall appear that any radio common carrier is failing or omitting, or about to fail or omit, to do anything required of it by law or by order of the commission or the Office of Regulatory Staff, or is doing anything, or about to do anything, or permitting anything, or…

Any hearing which the commission has power to hold may be held before any one or more of the commissioners, upon condition, however, that the commissioner or commissioners shall have been authorized by the commission to hold the hearing. Any determination, ruling, or order of a c…

The Commission may make such rules and regulations not inconsistent with law as may be proper in the exercise of its powers or for the performance of its duties under this chapter, all of which shall have the force of law.

The Commission is authorized to prescribe rules governing pleadings, practice and procedures not inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter or any other provisions of law. The provisions of Articles 1 through 13 of Chapter 9, Title 58 of the 1976 Code shall be applicable to…

In addition to the foregoing expressly enumerated powers the Commission shall have full power and authority, and it shall be its duty to enforce, execute, administer, and carry out by its order, ruling, regulation, or otherwise, all the provisions of this chapter and any other pr…

The Commission shall have power to employ such technical, administrative and clerical staff as it may deem necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter and to perform the duties and exercise the powers conferred upon it by law.