§ 95 — Reports of telegraph corporations and telephone corporations

New York § 95

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law PBS: Public Service
• Art. 5: Provisions Relating to Telegraph and Telephone Lines and to Telephone and Telegraph Corporations

Text

§ 95. Reports of telegraph corporations and telephone corporations.\n1. Every telegraph corporation and every telephone corporation shall\nfile with the commission an annual report at a time and covering the\nyearly period fixed by the commission. Such annual reports shall be\nverified by the oath of the president, vice-president, treasurer,\nsecretary, general manager or receiver if any of such corporations, or\nby the person required to file the same. Verification shall be made by\nthe official holding office at the time of the filing of said report,\nand if not made upon the knowledge of the person verifying the same\nshall set forth in general terms the sources of his information and the\ngrounds for his belief as to any matters not stated to be verified on\nhis knowledge. The commission shall prescribe the form of such reports\nand the character of the information to be contained therein and may,\nfrom time to time make such changes and additions in regard to form and\ncontents thereof as it may deem proper and shall furnish a blank form\nfor such annual reports to every telegraph corporation and every\ntelephone corporation required to make the same. When the report of any\ntelegraph corporation or telephone corporation is defective or erroneous\nthe commission shall notify the corporation to amend the same within a\ntime prescribed by the commission. The said reports shall be preserved\nin the office of the commission. The commission may require of any\ntelegraph corporation or telephone corporation specific answers to\nquestions upon which the commission may desire information. If any\ntelegraph corporation or telephone corporation shall fail to make and\nfile its annual report as and when required or within such extended time\nas the commission may allow or shall fail to make specific answers to\nany question within the period specified by the commission for the\nmaking and filing of such answers, such corporation shall forfeit to the\nstate the sum of one hundred dollars for each and every day it shall\ncontinue to be in default with respect to such report or answer. Such\nforfeiture shall be recovered in an action brought by the commission in\nthe name of the people of the state of New York. The amount recovered in\nany such action shall be paid into the state treasury and shall be\ncredited to the general fund. The commission may, when it deems it\nadvisable, exempt any telegraph corporation or telephone corporation\nfrom the necessity of filing annual reports until the further order of\nthe commission.\n 2. The commission may establish a system of accounts to be used by\ntelegraph corporations and telephone corporations, which are subject to\nits jurisdiction, and are required to make annual reports to it or\nclassify the said corporations, and prescribe a system of accounts for\neach class and may prescribe the manner in which such accounts shall be\nkept. It may also, in its discretion prescribe the form of records to be\nkept by such corporation. Notice of alterations by the commission in the\nrequired method or form of keeping accounts shall be given to such\ncorporations by the commission at least six months before the same are\nto take effect. The commission shall at all times have access to all\naccounts, records and memoranda kept by telegraph corporations and\ntelephone corporations, and may designate any of its officers or\nemployees who shall thereupon be authorized under the order of the\ncommission to inspect and examine any and all accounts, records and\nmemoranda kept by any such corporation; and the commission may, after a\nhearing, prescribe by order, the accounts in which particular outlays\nand receipts shall be entered, charged or credited. At any such hearing\nthe burden of proof shall be on the corporation to establish the\ncorrectness of the accounts in which such outlays and receipts have been\nentered and the commission may suspend a charge or credit pending\nsubmission of proof by such corporation. Any provision of law\nprohibiting the disclosure of the contents of telegraph messages or the\ncontents or substance of telephone communications shall not be deemed to\nprohibit the disclosure of any matter in accordance with the provisions\nof this chapter.\n 3. In the case of a telephone corporation having property actually\nused in the public service within the state of a value of less than ten\nthousand dollars and operated for profit, the commission may and\nwherever it deems it practicable shall prescribe a simplified system of\naccounts and reports suitable to the character and activities of the\ntelephone corporation regulated.\n