People Ex Rel. Ryan v. Illinois Commerce Commission

699 N.E.2d 218, 298 Ill. App. 3d 483, 232 Ill. Dec. 771
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedAugust 19, 1998
Docket2-97-0963, 2-97-0964, 2-97-0965 cons.
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 699 N.E.2d 218 (People Ex Rel. Ryan v. Illinois Commerce Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
People Ex Rel. Ryan v. Illinois Commerce Commission, 699 N.E.2d 218, 298 Ill. App. 3d 483, 232 Ill. Dec. 771 (Ill. Ct. App. 1998).

Opinion

JUSTICE INGLIS

delivered the opinion of the court:

In these consolidated appeals, petitioners, People of the State of Illinois ex rel. James E. Ryan, Attorney General; Citizens Utility Board; and Cable Television and Communications Association of Illinois (collectively petitioners), appeal the order of the Illinois Commerce Commission (Commission) entered pursuant to this court’s order in Illinois Bell Telephone Co. v. Illinois Commerce Comm’n, 283 Ill. App. 3d 188 (1996) (hereinafter Bell). We dismiss the appeals for lack of jurisdiction.

We reversed and remanded the Commission’s order in Bell as a result of the Commission’s failure to determine whether Illinois Bell Telephone Company’s (IBT’s) risk or cost of capital was increased as a result of its relationship with its parent corporation, Ameritech, as required under section 9 — 230 of the Public Utilities Act (Act) (220 ILCS 5/9 — 230 (West 1996)). Bell, 283 Ill. App. 3d at 210. On remand, the Commission found that section 9 — 230 had not been violated due to the relationship between IBT and Ameritech and that IBT’s capital structure suffered no incremental risk or increased cost of capital due to its affiliation with Ameritech.

The Commission entered and served its order on July 7, 1997. Petitioners mailed their applications for rehearing on August 8, 1997, which was 32 days after service of the Commission’s order. The Commission denied the applications for rehearing on August 29, 1997. Petitioners filed their respective notices of appeal on September 25, 1997.

On appeal, the Commission and IBT contend that petitioners’ applications for rehearing were untimely because they were not filed within 30 days of the date of service of that order as required under section 10 — 113 of the Act. 220 ILCS 5/10 — 113 (West 1996). Their argument is based on the following. Section 10 — 113 requires the party challenging a Commission order to make an application for rehearing prior to filing an appeal. The time limit for making an application for rehearing is 30 days after service of the Commission’s order. 220 ILCS 5/10 — 113 (West 1996). Under section 10 — 112 of the Act, mailing constitutes service. 220 ILCS 5/10 — 112 (West 1996). Further, since the 30-day period is statutory, neither the parties nor the Commission can extend it. People ex rel. Illinois Highway Transportation Co. v. Biggs, 402 Ill. 401, 407 (1949). Petitioners mailed their petitions for rehearing 32 days after service of the Commission’s order. Therefore, because petitioners’ applications for rehearing were untimely, this court is without jurisdiction to entertain their appeals.

Petitioners do not deny that they filed their respective applications for rehearing 32 days after the date of service of the Commission’s order. They argue that, because the Commission’s order was served by mail, petitioners were entitled to four additional days beyond the 30-day statutory limit to file their application for rehearing pursuant to section 200.150(c) of the Administrative Code (Code). 83 Ill. Adm. Code § 200.150(c) (1998). Petitioners also argue that the conduct of the Commission and IBT revested the Commission with jurisdiction.

Petitioners’ reliance on section 200.150 is misplaced. Section 200.150 of the Code provides, in relevant part:

“SUBPART B: FORM, FILING AND SERVICE OF PLEADINGS
Section 200.150 Service
(a) Formal complaints will be served by the Commission only.
(b) Petitions, applications, answers, intervening petitions, supplemental complaints and petitions, amendments to pleadings, written motions, responses, replies, notices, suggested findings of fact and conclusions of law, exceptions to Hearing Examiners’ proposed orders, briefs, drafts or suggested forms of order, applications for further hearing, petitions for rehearing, and similar documents shall be filed with the Chief Clerk of the Commission and shall be served by the person filing same upon all parties to the proceeding and upon Staff and the Hearing Examiner, if any, and, when filed, shall be accompanied by proof of service upon all parties. ***
(c) *** Except as otherwise provided by the Commission or the Hearing Examiner, whenever Staff or a party has the right or is required to do some act within a prescribed period after the service of a notice or other document upon Staff or the party, and the notice or other document is served upon Staff or the party by mail, four days shall be added to the prescribed period.” 83 111. Adm. Code §§ 200.150 (a), (b), (c) (1998).

Rules promulgated by an administrative agency are construed under the same standard as statutes. Granite City Division of National Steel Co. v. Illinois Pollution Control Board, 155 Ill. 2d 149, 162 (1993). In construing statutes, courts must not be guided by a single sentence or by an isolated provision but should consider each provision in conjunction with every other provision of the statute in light of its purposes. Miller v. Department of Registration & Education, 75 Ill. 2d 76, 81 (1979). Under the rule of expressio unis est exclusio alterius, when an act lists things to which it refers, the court may infer that any omissions were intended as exclusions. Bank of Waukegan v. Kischer, 246 Ill. App. 3d 616, 620 (1993).

Applying these principles, we determine that section 200.150 of the Code does not apply to Commission orders. By its express terms, section 200.150 relates to the service of pleadings and other papers by parties to a Commission action. Subsection (a) provides that only the Commission may serve a formal complaint. Subsection (b) describes a party’s obligations for filing all other pleadings with the Commission and service of those pleadings upon other parties. Subsection (c) describes the requirements applicable to parties for service by mail, including that service is effective upon the date of mailing. Subsection (c) provides that where service of a “notice or other document is served upon Staff or the party” by mail, four days is added to the time period otherwise provided for response. (Emphasis added.) 83 Ill. Adm. Code § 200.150(c) (1998). There is no reference to Commission orders, service of Commission orders, or the time period for responding to Commission orders.

Other provisions promulgated by the Commission address service of Commission orders. For service of Commission orders, section 200.860 provides that the Commission shall serve a copy of its order upon all parties in the manner provided by section 10 — 112 of the Act. 83 111. Adm. Code § 200.860 (1996). As stated above, section 10 — 112 of the Act provides that mailing constitutes service. 220 ILCS 5/10— 112 (West 1996). The provision concerning applications for rehearings provides that, following the issuance of an order on the merits by the Commission, a party may file an application for rehearing which, if filed, must be filed within 30 days after service of the order on the party. 83 Ill. Adm. Code § 200.880(a) (1996).

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699 N.E.2d 218, 298 Ill. App. 3d 483, 232 Ill. Dec. 771, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/people-ex-rel-ryan-v-illinois-commerce-commission-illappct-1998.