Title 80 — Title 80 PUBLIC UTILITIES

The definitions in this section apply throughout this title unless the context clearly requires otherwise.(1) "Automatic location identification" means a system by which information about a caller's location, including the seven-digit number or ten-digit number used to place a 91…

Whether or not any person or corporation is conducting business subject to regulation under this title, or has performed or is performing any act requiring registration or approval of the commission without securing such registration or approval, shall be a question of fact to be…

Each commissioner shall have power to administer oaths, certify to all official acts, and to issue subpoenas for the attendance of witnesses and the production of papers, books, accounts, documents, and testimony in any inquiry, investigation, hearing, or proceeding in any part o…

In all proceedings before the commission the commission shall have the right, in their discretion, to limit the number of witnesses testifying upon any subject or proceeding to be inquired of before the commission.[ 1961 c 14 s 80.04.030. Prior: 1911 c 117 s 75, part; RRS s 10413…

Each witness who shall appear under subpoena shall receive for his or her attendance four dollars per day and ten cents per mile traveled by the nearest practicable route in going to and returning from the place of hearing. No witness shall be entitled to fees or mileage from the…

The claim by any witness that any testimony sought to be elicited may tend to incriminate him or her shall not excuse such witness from testifying, but such evidence or testimony shall not be used against such person on the trial of any criminal proceeding, excepting in a prosecu…

The commission shall have the right to take the testimony of any witness by deposition, and for that purpose the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, documents, papers and accounts may be enforced in the same manner as in the case of hearings before the commission…

The commission and each commissioner, or any person employed by the commission, shall have the right, at any and all times, to inspect the accounts, books, papers, and documents of any public service company, and the commission, or any commissioner, may examine under oath any off…

All notices, applications, complaints, findings of fact, opinions and orders required by this title to be served may be served by mail and service thereof shall be deemed complete when a true copy of such paper or document is deposited in the post office properly addressed and st…

(1) Every public service company shall annually furnish to the commission a report in such form as the commission may require, and shall specifically answer all questions posed to it by the commission. The commission may prescribe a uniform system of accounts, and the manner in w…

The commission may, in its discretion, prescribe the forms of any and all accounts, records and memoranda to be kept by public service companies, including the accounts, records and memoranda of the movement of traffic, sales of its product, the receipts and expenditures of money…

Records, subject to chapter 42.56 RCW, filed with the commission or the attorney general from any person which contain valuable commercial information, including trade secrets or confidential marketing, cost, or financial information, or customer-specific usage and network config…

The commission may by order with or without hearing require the production within this state, at such time and place as it may designate, of any books, accounts, papers or records kept by any public service company in any office or place without this state, or at the option of th…

(1)(a) Complaint may be made by the commission of its own motion or by any person or corporation, chamber of commerce, board of trade, or any commercial, mercantile, agricultural or manufacturing society, or any body politic or municipal corporation, or by the public counsel sect…

At the time fixed for the hearing mentioned in RCW 80.04.110, the complainant and the person or corporation complained of shall be entitled to be heard and introduce such evidence as he or she or it may desire. The commission shall issue process to enforce the attendance of all n…

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2) of this section, whenever any public service company shall file with the commission any schedule, classification, rule, or regulation, the effect of which is to change any rate, charge, rental, or toll theretofore charged, the commission s…

Whenever any order of the commission shall require joint action by two or more public service companies, such order shall specify that the same shall be made at their joint cost, and the companies affected shall have thirty days, or such further time, as the commission may prescr…

Whenever the commission shall find, after hearing had upon its own motion or upon complaint as herein provided, that any rate, toll, rental or charge which has been the subject of complaint and inquiry is sufficiently remunerative to the public service company affected thereby, i…

The commission is hereby authorized and empowered to adopt, promulgate and issue rules and regulations covering the transmission and delivery of messages and conversations, and the furnishing and supply of gas, electricity, wastewater company services, and water, and any and all …

Any complainant or any public service company affected by any findings or order of the commission, and deeming such findings or order to be contrary to law, may, within thirty days after the service of the findings or order upon him or her or it, apply to the superior court of Th…

(1) The pendency of any writ of review shall not of itself stay or suspend the operation of the order of the commission, but the superior court in its discretion may restrain or suspend, in whole or in part, the operation of the commission's order pending the final hearing and de…

The commission, any public service company or any complainant may, after the entry of judgment in the superior court in any action of review, seek appellate review as in other cases.[ 1988 c 202 s 60; 1971 ex.s. c 107 s 4; 1961 c 14 s 80.04.190. Prior: 1911 c 117 s 88; RRS s 1043…

Any public service company affected by any order of the commission, and deeming itself aggrieved, may, after the expiration of two years from the date of such order taking effect, petition the commission for a rehearing upon the matters involved in such order, setting forth in su…

The commission may at any time, upon notice to the public service company affected, and after opportunity to be heard as provided in the case of complaints rescind, alter or amend any order or rule made, issued or promulgated by it, and any order or rule rescinding, altering or a…

When complaint has been made to the commission concerning the reasonableness of any rate, toll, rental or charge for any service performed by any public service company, and the same has been investigated by the commission, and the commission has determined that the public servic…

When complaint has been made to the commission that any public service company has charged an amount for any service rendered in excess of the lawful rate in force at the time such charge was made, and the same has been investigated and the commission has determined that the over…

If the public service company does not comply with the order of the commission for the payment of the overcharge within the time limited in such order, suit may be instituted in any superior court where service may be had upon the said company to recover the amount of the overcha…

(1) The provisions of this section are necessary to ensure that the commission has sufficient flexible authority to determine the value of utility property for rate making purposes and to implement the requirements and full intent of chapter 288, Laws of 2019.(2) The commission h…

Whenever the commission shall be of opinion that any public service company is failing or omitting, or about to fail or omit, to do anything required of it by law, or by order, direction or requirement of the commission, or is doing anything, or about to do anything, or permittin…

Any public service company engaging in the sale of merchandise or appliances or equipment shall keep separate accounts, as prescribed by the commission, of its capital employed in such business and of its revenues therefrom and operating expenses thereof. The capital employed in …

No public service company 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 public service company; nor shall any public service c…

A corporate public service company, either heretofore or hereafter organized under the laws of this state, may sell to its employees and customers any increase of its capital stock, or part thereof, without first offering it to existing stockholders: PROVIDED, That such sale is a…

The commission may regulate, restrict, and control the budgets of expenditures of public service companies. Each company shall prepare a budget showing the amount of money which, in its judgment, will be needed during the ensuing year for maintenance, operation, and construction,…

The commission may, both as to original and supplementary budgets, prior to the making or contracting for the expenditure of any item therein, and after notice to the company and a hearing thereon, reject any item of the budget. The commission may require any company to furnish f…

The commission may prescribe the necessary rules to place RCW 80.04.300 through 80.04.330 in operation. It may, by rule, establish criteria to exempt companies in whole or in part from the operation thereof. The commission may upon request of any company withhold from publication…

Any public service company may make or contract for any rejected item of expenditure, but in such case the same shall not be allowed as an operating expense, or as to items of construction, as a part of the fair value of the company's property used and useful in serving the publi…

The commission shall have power after hearing to require any or all public service companies to carry proper and adequate depreciation or retirement accounts in accordance with such rules, regulations and forms of accounts as the commission may prescribe. The commission may from …

If any public service company earns in the period of five consecutive years immediately preceding the commission order fixing rates for such company a net utility operating income in excess of a reasonable rate of return upon the fair value of its property used and useful in the …

Every public service company, and all officers, agents and employees of any public service company, shall obey, observe and comply with every order, rule, direction or requirement made by the commission under authority of this title, so long as the same shall be and remain in for…

Every officer, agent or employee of any public service company, who shall violate or fail to comply with, or who procures, aids or abets any violation by any public service company of any provision of this title, or who shall fail to obey, observe or comply with any order of the …

Every corporation, other than a public service company, which shall violate any provision of this title, or which shall fail to obey, observe or comply with any order of the commission under authority of this title, so long as the same shall be and remain in force, shall be subje…

Every person who, either individually, or acting as an officer or agent of a corporation other than a public service company, shall violate any provision of this title, or fail to observe, obey or comply with any order made by the commission under this title, so long as the same …

Actions to recover penalties under this title shall be brought in the name of the state of Washington in the superior court of Thurston county, or in the superior court of any county in or through which such public service company may do business. In all such actions the procedur…

In addition to all other penalties provided by law every public service company subject to the provisions of this title and every officer, agent or employee of any such public service company who violates or who procures, aids or abets in the violation of any provision of this ti…

In all actions between private parties and public service companies involving any rule or order of the commission, and in all actions for the recovery of penalties provided for in this title, or for the enforcement of the orders or rules issued and promulgated by the commission, …

In all court actions involving any rule or order of the commission, where the commission has not been made a party, the commission shall be served with a copy of all pleadings, and shall be entitled to intervene. Where the fact that the action involves a rule or order of the comm…

Whenever the commission has issued or promulgated any order or rule, in any writ of review brought by a public service company to determine the reasonableness of such order or rule, the findings of fact made by the commission shall be prima facie correct, and the burden shall be …

In case any public service company shall do, cause to be done or permit to be done any act, matter or thing prohibited, forbidden or declared to be unlawful, or shall omit to do any act, matter or thing required to be done, either by any law of this state, by this title or by any…

Upon application of any person the commission shall furnish certified copies of any classification, rate, rule, regulation or order established by such commission, and the printed copies published by authority of the commission, or any certified copy of any such classification, r…

Every public service company shall give immediate notice to the commission of every accident resulting in death or injury to any person occurring in its plant or system, in such manner as the commission may prescribe. Such notice shall not be admitted as evidence or used for any …