Chapter 24, Chapter 24

The commission may at any time require persons, firms, companies, associations, corporations or municipalities, subject to the provisions of this chapter, to furnish any information which may be in their possession, respecting rates, tolls, charges or practices in conducting thei…

The commission may approve an appropriate and reasonable cost recovery mechanism to allow the capable proximate utility to recover its acquisition costs and projected cost of service of operating, maintaining and improving the facilities of the failing water or wastewater utility…

Every public utility subject to this chapter shall establish and maintain adequate and suitable facilities, safety appliances or other suitable devices, and shall perform such service in respect thereto as shall be reasonable, safe and sufficient for the security and convenience …

(a) In the event that any publicly or privately owned utility, city, incorporated town, municipal corporation, or public service district owns and operates either water facilities or sewer facilities, and a privately owned public utility or a public utility that is owned and oper…

(a) As used in this article: (1) "Head end device" means a device located on the lead locomotive of a railroad train designed to receive information from the rear end device. It may also be used to transmit information to the rear end device; (2) "Mainline" means a railroad track…

(a) Except for operation in its yards or terminals, and except where a train is being moved as an actual movement into or from another state not having a requirement of at least two persons controlling a locomotive as is required in this state pursuant to this section, no railroa…

No public utility subject to the provisions of this chapter shall, directly or indirectly, by any special rate, rebate, drawback or other device or method, charge, demand, collect or receive from any person, firm or corporation, a greater or less compensation, for any service ren…

All common carriers subject to this chapter shall, according to their respective powers, afford all reasonable, proper and equal facilities for the interchange of traffic between their respective lines, and for the receiving, forwarding and delivering of passengers and property t…

(a) As used in this section or in section eleven, article two of this chapter: (1) "Intrastate pipeline" means (i) any utility or (ii) any other person, firm or corporation engaged in natural gas transportation in intrastate commerce to or for another person, firm or corporation …

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent any common carrier from furnishing free transportation to its officers, attorneys, agents and employees, and their families, and like free transportation to the officers, attorneys, agents and employees of other common carrier…

Every public utility shall file with the commission, and keep open to public inspection, schedules showing all the rates, charges and tolls for service to be rendered by it or by other persons, firms or corporations in connection with it: Provided, That the reports and tariffs fi…

(a) All public utilities subject to the provisions of this chapter shall pay a special license fee in addition to those now required by law. The amount of such fees shall be fixed by the Public Service Commission and such fee shall not exceed 10¢ on each $100 of value and shall b…

(a) No railroad or other public utility shall abandon all or any portion of its service to the public or the operation of any of its lines which would affect the service it is rendering the public unless and until there shall first have been filed with the Public Service Commissi…

(a) No public utility shall require any deposit of any residential customer which shall exceed one twelfth of the estimated annual charge to the customer for such service: Provided, That the provisions of this section shall not apply to deposits received prior to March 12, 1983. …

A public utility may not acquire an easement or right-of-way unless the deed or other instrument granting or reserving the easement or right-of-way describes the property in accordance with the requirements of section five-a, article three, chapter thirty-six of this code.

Every officer, agent, employee, or stockholder of any public utility subject to the provisions of this chapter, and every patron, passenger, shipper or consignee, or other person, who shall violate any provision of this chapter, or who procures, aids or abets any violation of any…

Any person, officer, agent or employee of any public utility subject to this chapter who shall knowingly or wilfully make any false entries in the accounts, account books, records or memoranda kept by any public utility, or who shall knowingly or wilfully destroy or mutilate any …

If any public utility or other person shall fail or refuse to comply with the order of the commission under sections three, seven or nine respectively of article two, such public utility or other person shall, in addition to the other penalties provided for in this chapter, be su…

If any person, firm, corporation or officer of a corporation subject to the provisions of this chapter shall fail or refuse to comply with any requirement of the commission hereunder, for which a penalty has not been hereinbefore prescribed, such person, firm, corporation or offi…

Any person or public utility who shall violate any of the orders or findings of the commission shall be guilty of contempt, and the commission shall have the same power to punish therefor as is now conferred on the circuit court, with the right of appeal in all cases to the Supre…

Any person, firm, association of persons, corporation, municipality or county, complaining of anything done or omitted to be done by any public utility subject to this chapter, in contravention of the provisions thereof, or any duty owing by it under the provisions of this chapte…

Any person, firm or corporation claiming to be damaged by any violation of this chapter by any public utility subject to the provisions of this chapter, may make complaint to the commission, as provided herein, and bring suit in his own behalf for the recovery of the damages for …

Every day during which any person, firm or corporation, or any officer, agent or employee thereof, shall fail to observe and comply with any order or direction of the commission, or to perform any duty enjoined by this chapter, shall constitute a separate and distinct violation o…

Any party feeling aggrieved by the entry of a final order by the commission, affecting him or it, may present a petition in writing to the Supreme Court of Appeals, or to a judge thereof in vacation, within thirty days after the entry of such order, praying for the suspension of …

The Legislature hereby finds and declares that it is in the public interest to shorten the time required for a citizen to request and receive emergency aid. There are hundreds of different emergency phone numbers throughout the state. Present telephone exchange boundaries and cen…

No person or organization of any kind may use "911" or such other numbers which are similar and calculated to deceive the public as representing "911" services in their name unless the person or organization is authorized to provide emergency telephone services for firefighting, …

In recognition of the fact that information pertaining to numbers of customers and revenues collected by the CMRS providers is obtained and maintained in a competitive environment and that information pertaining to the providers' subscribers could be used to the disadvantage of t…

(a) Every three years, the county commission of each county or the municipality operating an emergency telephone system or an enhanced emergency telephone system shall, in consultation with all public safety units, public agencies and all available towing services registered as c…

(a) Except as provided by the provisions of this section, calls for emergency service to a county answering point are not confidential. All calls for emergency service reporting alleged criminal conduct which are recorded electronically, in writing or in any other form are to be …

Each county answering point that receives a call reporting an accident in or about any mine shall immediately route the call to the Mine and Industrial Accident Emergency Operations Center created pursuant to section two, article five-a, chapter fifteen of this code.

Effective April 1, one thousand nine hundred eighty-eight, and thereafter, the provisions of this article shall also be applicable to municipalities of this state. Where the provisions of this article refer to the word "county" or "counties," henceforth such references shall be c…

As used in this article, unless the context clearly requires a different meaning: “Automatic location identification” or “ALI” means a telecommunications network capability that enables the automatic display of information defining the geographical location of the telephone used …

(a) The Public Service Commission shall develop, adopt, and periodically review a comprehensive plan establishing the technical and operational standards to be followed in establishing and maintaining emergency telephone systems and enhanced emergency telephone systems. (b) In de…

(a) Upon the adoption by the Public Service Commission of a comprehensive plan, the public agency may establish, consistent with the comprehensive plan, an emergency telephone system within its jurisdiction. Nothing contained in this section shall be construed to prohibit or disc…

(a) An enhanced emergency telephone system, at a minimum, shall provide that: (1) All the territory in the county, including every municipal corporation in the county, which is served by telephone company central office equipment that will permit such a system to be established s…

(a) If a county commission decides to adopt an enhanced emergency services telephone system it shall first prepare a proposal on the implementation of the system and shall hold a public meeting on the proposal to explain the system and receive comments from other public officials…

(a) In any county or counties which have areas thereof not receiving service from an enhanced emergency services telephone system, the department of public safety may prepare a proposal on the implementation of such a system and may cause a public meeting to be held on the propos…

(a) All CMRS providers as defined in §24-6-2 of this code shall, on a monthly basis or otherwise for good cause and as directed by order of the Public Service Commission, collect from each of their in-state two-way service subscribers a wireless enhanced 911 fee, a public safety …

In the event that a conflict arises between county commissions, between telephone companies, between a telephone company or companies and a county commission or commissions, or between the department of public safety and any of the foregoing entities concerning an emergency telep…

A public agency or a telephone company participating in an emergency telephone system or a county which has established an enhanced emergency telephone system, and any officer, agent or employee of the public agency, telephone company or county is not liable for damages in a civi…

(a) No person may knowingly use the telephone number of an emergency telephone system or enhanced emergency telephone system to report an emergency if he or she knows that no such emergency exists. (b) No person may disclose or use, for any purpose other than for an emergency tel…

(a) The Legislature hereby finds that the Public Service Commission's present physical facilities impede the efficient operation of the commission in that many offices are severely overcrowded, several divisions are physically isolated from the main offices of the commission at t…

The authority granted to the Public Service Commission in section one is made notwithstanding other provisions of law relating to the authority of the State of West Virginia, or its agencies, departments, boards and commissions, to contract to acquire and to acquire real property…

Notwithstanding the provisions of section eleven, article six, chapter five of this code, the commission shall properly maintain, repair, manage, operate and control the Public Service Commission headquarters building, and may make and enter into all contracts or agreements neces…

(a) The Legislature hereby finds that the Public Service Commission should be authorized to acquire and manage further properties contiguous with its existing property at 201 Brooks street in Charleston, West Virginia, and to make improvements on the property necessary to ensure …

The Legislature finds that it is in the best interest of the citizens of West Virginia to implement the universally, free access telephone number "211" made available by the federal communications commission for states to develop an information and referral source for human and s…

The Public Service Commission shall propose rules for legislative promulgation in accordance with article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code regarding the implementation and administration of this system. From the effective date of this section until the date of the promul…