Marks v. Public Utilities Commission

171 Ohio St. (N.S.) 425
CourtOhio Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 18, 1961
DocketNo. 36330
StatusPublished

This text of 171 Ohio St. (N.S.) 425 (Marks v. Public Utilities Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Marks v. Public Utilities Commission, 171 Ohio St. (N.S.) 425 (Ohio 1961).

Opinions

Herbert, J.

The question presented, in this appeal is whether, upon consideration of the record, the order is unlawful or unreasonable.

The findings by the commission in its order of March 19, 1958, that public convenience and necessity existed for the granting of the application of McKim for authority to transport household goods, office furniture and fixtures over irregular routes from and to points in Guernsey County, that the service of Marks, the protestant, was deficient in certain particulars, and that the other motor transportation companies should improve their service by maintaining moving-van equipment and competent employees and furnishing 48-hour service to the general public in the county, were determinations of factual matters statutorily committed to the commission, reviewable upon rehearing application and also on appeal here. There is no claim that these findings were unsupported by evidence.

Opportunity was given the protestant Marks and the other irregular-route certificate holders to improve or commence services in the territory within 60 days as required by Section 4921.12, Revised Code. The order so far as it affected Marks did not require him to increase the amount of van equipment being used and he did not add any motive equipment during the 60-day period. However, his compliance with the order was approved by the commission following the 60-day period and [428]*428his certificate was not disturbed. The following excerpt from the finding and order made by a majority of the commission dated June 19, 1959, is pertinent and persuasive:

“Accordingly, it is to be noted that, precedent to authorizing the issuance of the new certificated authority for which the public need was manifested, the commission promulgated the statutorily prescribed ‘sixty-day orders’ affording a reasonable opportunity to improve their service to all motor carriers who held like authority in the area, not just to those carriers who entered appearances as protestants at the initial public hearing upon the application for new authority. This latter factor, which is applicable generally to all applications for certificated authority, may well be said to be of controlling effect in tMs case.
“Historically, as many as three household goods certificates authorizing service in the Cambridge area had been authorized by the commission. For various reasons, not specifically delineated in this record, two of the holders of such certificates of convenience and necessity have seen fit to cease transporting household goods. This was done without prior notice to or the authorization of this commission. Hence, despite the fact that public convenience and necessity had been previously found to exist for three (3) household goods carriers, protestant Marks was at the time of the public hearing herein the only motor carrier actively engaged in transporting household goods in the area. Nonetheless, in addition to protestant Marks, two other motor carriers actually held certificated authority to transport household goods which, under aforecited Section 4921.12, entitled such carriers to service of the ‘sixty-day’ orders and afforded each of these carriers, in addition to Marks, an opportunity to meet the public need found to exist.
“The corrective order of March 19, 1958, was, in effect, a two-part order: One portion of that order was directed specifically to protestant Marks, who had appeared and testified at the public hearing, which portion of the order was designed primarily to correct specific service impediments evinced upon the record to exist in the service rendered by Marks; the second portion of that order is admittedly more general in its terms, [429]*429and is specifically addressed to the other two (2) carriers who did not appear at the original public hearing or at the subsequently convened compliance hearing.
“The primary function of the order of March 1958 was, of course, to assure that the total public need would be satisfied. Thus, it follows that the two sets of corrective provisions found in that order must be read together with a view to satisfying that total need because the order necessarily pertained to the aggregate public need in the area. Satisfaction of that aggregate public need for household transportation services, and a concomitant compliance with the order, would not appear to be effectuated if but one segment thereof has been complied with.
“The record indicates that protestant Marks has, for the most part, complied with those portions of the order directed specifically to him; however, the record is void of any showing that the other carriers made any effort to comply with the second portion of the order directed to them. For example, in the second portion of its order the commission required the nonprotesting carriers to ‘maintain moving vans for the purpose of transporting household goods.’ None did. Protestant Marks added no new equipment, but the commission’s ‘sixty-day’ order did not require Marks to secure additional vans if existing equipment and services were improved as specified. However, the order provides expressly for the addition of more van equipment in the area; since none was added, there has not been compliance to meet the public needs. Although protestant Marks was not ordered specifically to add vans, it might well be' argued that, had he done so, compliance to meet extant needs would have been shown.
“The purpose of the instant ‘sixty-day’ order and all such orders is to rectify the service deficiencies spelled out therein. If the evidence fails to manifest the correction of the service deficiencies, compliance is not effected regardless of the diligence and compliance of a particular carrier in response to that portion of an order directed to specific impediments in said carrier’s service. Accordingly, the commission is unable to concur in the statement of its examiner to the effect that:
“ ‘The sole question for determination in the present proceeding is whether or not the protestant has complied with the provisions of this sixty-day order.’
[430]*430“Rather, the commission concurs with the contention of the applicant, as set forth in its filed exceptions, to the effect that the issue is whether or not the corrective action of all carriers ordered to effectuate service improvements has met the public need, as defined by this commission’s order of March 19, 1958. In the commission’s opinion, this would appear to be the fundamental distinction determinative of the instant case. Stated in another fashion, did compliance by protestant Marks with those aspects of the commission’s corrective order directed specifically to impediments in his service satisfy the total requirements of the shipping and receiving public.
“Protestant Marks introduced evidence at the compliance hearing to the effect that he had satisfactorily met all demands upon him for service, subsequent to the issuance of the ‘sixty-day order,’ and, thus, attempted to show impliedly that no additional van equipment was actually needed. It may be inferred that this is a converse way of attempting at this stage in the proceedings to attack collaterally the substantive provisions of the corrective order of March 19, 1958. The public need is measured as of the date of the initial public hearing upon an application.

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Bluebook (online)
171 Ohio St. (N.S.) 425, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/marks-v-public-utilities-commission-ohio-1961.