Oklahoma Operating Co. v. State Dry Cleaners Board of Oklahoma

1957 OK 4, 306 P.2d 295, 1957 Okla. LEXIS 338
CourtSupreme Court of Oklahoma
DecidedJanuary 15, 1957
Docket37329
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 1957 OK 4 (Oklahoma Operating Co. v. State Dry Cleaners Board of Oklahoma) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Oklahoma primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Oklahoma Operating Co. v. State Dry Cleaners Board of Oklahoma, 1957 OK 4, 306 P.2d 295, 1957 Okla. LEXIS 338 (Okla. 1957).

Opinion

JACKSON, Justice.

Certain individuals doing business under trade names engaged in the cleaning, pressing and dyeing service in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, filed their application with the State Dry Cleaners’ Board of Oklahoma, created under Title 59 O.S.1951 § 741 et seq., requesting a hearing and approval of a price agreement refixing minimum prices affecting their industry. Pursuant to the requirements of the statute notice of the application and the date of hearing thereof was published by the Board. Also, notices of the application and date of hearing were mailed to all persons engaged in the industry other than those appearing upon the application. The applicants, the Oklahoma Cleaners Association, and the Oklahoma Operating Company appeared by counsel at the hearing before the Board. A number of witnesses testified in support of the application and upon such proof, supplemented by documentary evidence, the Board entered its order refixing minimum prices for cleaning, pressing and dyeing applicable to the industry in Oklahoma County, insofar as said minimum prices fixed a differential for pick-up and delivery service from that fixed for a cash and carry service.

The Oklahoma Operating Company appealed from the order of the Board by lodging a transcript of the proceedings in the District Court of Oklahoma County as authorized by statute, Title 59 O.S.1951 § 759. They allege in their petition as follows :

“That said Order is unreasonable in that it fixes arbitrary, unreasonable and discriminatory price differentials between cash and carry and pick up and delivery service.
“That said Order is unreasonable and unfair to the public and is not necessary to promote the public welfare, health and safety, and is an unwarranted interference with individual liberty.
“That said Order is unlawful in that defendant has attempted to fix prices for delivery services without statutory authority to do so and in violation of the due process clause of the Constitution of the State of Oklahoma.”

The Board, in addition to its general denial, filed an answer in which it alleged:

“Defendant specifically denies that said order is unreasonable, or unfair to the public, or fixes arbitrary, unreasonable or discriminatory price differentials between cash-and-carry and pickup-and-delivery services, or is not necessary to promote the public welfare, health, or safety, or is an unwarranted interference with individual liberty.
“Defendant specifically denies that said order was made without statutory authority therefor, or that the same is in violation of the due process clause of the Constitution of the State of Oklahoma.
“Defendant specifically alleges that said order and the prices fixed therein are necessary to stabilize the industry, and are reasonable and will promote the public welfare, health and safety.”

Thereafter the parties entered into a stipulation submitting the case to the court, without the intervention of a jury, upon the transcript of the evidence taken at the hearing before the Board. The trial court entered its judgment on the 17th day of February, 1956, holding that the State Dry Cleaners’ Board of Oklahoma was authorized under pertinent statute, to enter its order fixing a higher minimum price for *297 pick-up and delivery service than for a cash and carry service, as affecting those engaged in the cleaning, pressing and dyeing industry in Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, and specifically found that the order of the Board was not unreasonable or unlawful and that the plaintiff’s prayer to vacate the order was denied.

In the case of Jack Lincoln Shops, Inc., v. State Dry Cleaners’ Board, 192 Okl. 251, 135 P.2d 332, we held that Title 59 O.S.1941 §§ 741-756 regulating the business of cleaners, pressers and dyers is constitutional and not violative of Sec. 7, Art. 2, of the Oklahoma Constitution. See, also, State Dry Cleaners’ Board v. Compton, 201 Okl. 284, 205 P.2d 286.

Plaintiff does not challenge the Board’s authority to establish minimum prices under Sec. 757 of Title 59, hut limits its objection upon the ground that the Board arbitrarily fixed a 10‡ differential between the pick-up and. delivery and the cash and carry service, and that the differential so established is not justified by the difference in cost of the two services, and results in a discrimination against the pick-up and delivery service, and in favor of -the cash and carry service.

That contention must be resolved by an examination of the facts upon which the order was established. The minimum prices established by the order are indicated in a schedule consisting of approximately one hundred and forty articles of wearing apparel. As the minimum price applicable to the articles vary, we assume that the 10$⅞ differential is based upon the general average of prices thus indicated by the schedule.

An examination of the record discloses testimony of a witness that the pick-up and delivery service should be established as applied to his plant to meet the convenience of customers depending upon the public transport system, and that the 10‡ differential will not pay the costs attributable to a pick-up and delivery service.

Another witness testified that it appears obvious that the costs of a pick-up and delivery truck, costing approximately $3,-030, and the cost of carrying public liability and other insurance, together with the salary of the delivery man, would entail a substantial cost increase. Other witnesses who have operated a cash and carry business and also a pick-up and delivery business, testified that a cost differential of 100 to 200 should be established to meet the added cost of the delivery service.

The Oklahoma Operating Company, before the Board and at the trial and upon this appeal, contends that the proof submitted by the applicants does not justify the order establishing a difference in costs of the two services. In support of that cpn-tention it produced a survey made by it in the month of June, previous to the hearing, based upon the costs of its operation, which survey disclosed that its costs for its eleven stores was 26.73% for each dollar collected to maintain each cash and carry store and 28.27% to conduct pick-up and delivery service. Upon this survey plaintiff contends that the Board was not wart' ranted in establishing a differential for' a pick-up and delivery service in excess of 1.54%. It will be observed that plaintiff’s figure of 26.73% is based upon its. operation cost as applied to its eleven stores.

The Board’s order is not based upon the differential in costs as applied to a 'plant maintaining one or'more pick-up stations, and a. cash and carry service, but is based upon the difference in cost between a pickup and delivery service, over a cash and carry service. As so applied it will .be seen that plaintiff’s figure of 28.27% as a reasonable cost of a pick-up and delivery service is greater than the differential established by the Board.

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Bluebook (online)
1957 OK 4, 306 P.2d 295, 1957 Okla. LEXIS 338, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/oklahoma-operating-co-v-state-dry-cleaners-board-of-oklahoma-okla-1957.