State Ex Rel. Port of Seattle v. Department of Public Service

95 P.2d 1007, 1 Wash. 2d 102
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedOctober 31, 1939
DocketNo. 27653.
StatusPublished
Cited by33 cases

This text of 95 P.2d 1007 (State Ex Rel. Port of Seattle v. Department of Public Service) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State Ex Rel. Port of Seattle v. Department of Public Service, 95 P.2d 1007, 1 Wash. 2d 102 (Wash. 1939).

Opinion

Simpson, J.

This case involves the right of the department of public service to compel the port of Seattle to procure a warehouse license, and the authority of the department to regulate certain tariffs of the port.

March 30, 1938, the Washington State Warehouse-men’s Association filed a complaint with the department of public service in which they charged:

“That the port of Seattle is conducting a storage warehouse business in the city of Seattle as defined by Chapter 154 of the Laws of 1933 as amended by Chap *104 ter 202 of the Laws of 1937 in violation of the provisions of said laws in that the port of Seattle has not secured a warehousemen’s license to transact business in the state, has not filed tariff containing the rates, rules and regulations as prescribed by the Department of Public Service in its Cause No. 7043, effective November 15, 1937, and is charging rates different from those prescribed therein.”

The association requested that the department of public service investigate the operations, of the port of Seattle, and require the port to comply with the rules and regulations of the department and the provisions of chapter 154, Laws of 1933, p. 554, as amended by chapter 202, Laws of 1937, p. 981 (Rem. Rev. Stat. (Sup.), §§ 11569-1 to 11569-12 [P. C. §§ 7202-21 to 7202-32]).

A hearing was had before the supervisor of the department, and, after some testimony had been taken, the interested parties entered into the following stipulation of facts:

“(1) That the port of Seattle is a municipal corporation, existing by virtue of the laws of the state of Washington.
“(2) That said municipal corporation owns and operates certain public buildings and docks in the city of Seattle which are held out for hire to the general public for the storage of goods, wares and merchandise.
“(3) That goods are stored for hire in the Bell street dock, owned by said municipal corporation, and that said goods are received at said dock in the following manner:
“ (a) Goods are received at said dock by water haul and leave said dock by water haul.
“ (b) Goods are received at said dock by water haul and leave said dock by land haul.
“ (c) Goods are received at said dock by land haul and leave said dock by water haul.
“(d) Goods are received at said dock by land haul and leave said dock by land haul.
*105 “(4) That in some instances goods are received on one dock or pier by water and taken from said dock or pier by land and transported to a second pier where they are stored, and in some instances taken from said second pier or dock by land haul.”

The department found for the association, requiring the port to apply immediately for a license and to file tariffs fixing rates for storage in the same amount as fixed by the department at a hearing to which the port was not a party.

The order of the department was reviewed by the superior court of Thurston county and affirmed, except in so far as it required the port to apply for a license immediately and to fix rates on the same schedules as had already been fixed by the department. The port of Seattle has appealed.

Appellant is a municipal corporation organized and existing under and by virtue of the port district act, chapter 92, Laws of 1911, p. 412, as amended, Rem. Rev. Stat., §§ 9688 to 9709, inclusive. The portion of the act (Rem. Rev. Stat., § 9692 [P. C. § 4475]) which it is necessary to consider in this case, reads:

“. . . to fix absolutely and without right of appeal or review the rates of wharfage, dockage, warehousing and port and terminal charges upon all improvements owned and operated directly by the port district itself and ferry charges of ferries operated by itself: Provided, however, that the port commission shall file with the public service commission of the state of Washington its schedule of rates and charges so fixed, as is required by the laws of the state of Washington of public service corporations, and may not change any rate or charge so filed without first filing a notice of such change of rate or charge with the public service commission not less than thirty days prior to the going into effect of such change of rate or charge,

*106 The legislature of 1933 passed an act known as chapter 154, p. 554, which gave control of the rates charged by public storage warehouses to the department of public service. Ports were not mentioned. That act was amended by chapter 202, Laws of 1937, Rem. Rev. Stat. (Sup.), §§ 11569-1, 11569-5, and 11569-6 [P. C. §§ 7202-21, 7202-25, 7202-26]. The relevant portions of § 11569-1 provide:

“The word ‘person’ whenever used in this act shall be held to mean and include an individual, copartnership, association, joint stock association, corporation, or their lessees, trustees, receivers or trustees, appointed by any court whatsoever, and shall include port commissions and districts.
“The term ‘storage warehouse’ whenever used in this act shall be held to mean and include a building or structure or any part thereof in which goods, wares or merchandise is received for storage for compensation . . . Further provided, The term ‘storage warehouse’ shall not include any building or structure or part thereof in which freight is handled in transit exclusively, . . . nor include docks and wharves.
“The term ‘dock’ or ‘wharf,’ when used in this act, includes any and all structures at which any steamboat, vessel or other water craft lands for the purpose of receiving or discharging freight from or for the public, together with any building or structure used for storing such freight while in transit exclusively for the public for hire.
“The term ‘while in transit’ when used in this act shall be held to mean and include all goods, wares and merchandise received on any dock or wharf, destined to or consigned for waterborne commerce, it being the intention of the legislature to exempt all goods received on any dock or wharf for shipments from the land via water or received on said dock or wharf by water to be transshipped by land, or water, irrespective of the time of its retention upon said dock or wharf.
“The term ‘storage warehouseman’ and ‘warehouseman’ whenever used in this act shall be held to mean *107 any person operating any storage warehouse.” Laws of 1937, chapter 202, p. 981, § 1.

The question presented is whether the act of 1937 applies to those port districts which store in their docks and wharves goods entering or leaving by land haul.

Appellant contends that so much of the act of 1937 as applies to port districts is unconstitutional, in that the title to the act does not comply with the following provisions of the state constitution:

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
95 P.2d 1007, 1 Wash. 2d 102, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-port-of-seattle-v-department-of-public-service-wash-1939.