Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-05-09
RATE
TO Be INCREASED
COMPANY LOOKS FOR CON-
TEST IN COURTS
HOME CONCERN THINKS THAT
CHARGES ARE TOO Low
viii Attack Referendum, Not as nsti-
tuition of Government or on consti-
tutlonal Grounds, but on
Fixing Fees

Rates for Home telephone service will
be increased to such subscribers as the
telephone company thinks should pay
higher rate, in spite of the referenum
petition filed last Tuesday evening.
This decision has been reached by the
Home Telephone company after due
deliberation, and anyone who objects
can contest the matter in the courts.
In fact a contest in the courts is what
the telephone company is seeking. 1t
will attack the referendum on the
ground the council in fixing the rates
was acting in a judicial capacity and
not in a legislative manner and that the
referendum, to suspend the operation
of the ordinance fixing the rate, can
have no effect on the judicial decision
of the council that the rate should be
increased. No effort will be made TO
attack the referendum as an institution
of government or on constitutional
grounds, but only as it specifically ap-
plies to the rate fixing matter.
The council is required by law TO
fix the rates each year that may be
charged by the public utility COM
panies.
Several weeks ago the council fixed
the rate for electric light at 8 cents
kilowatt hour, for gas at so cents a
thousand feet and for telephones made
a sliding scale, according to the kind
of service given.
Unlimited business phones were fixed
at IS a month and unlimited residence
phones at So a month. For phones
limited to a certain number of calls
month other rates are fixed.
This rate has been substantially the
same for several years and the only
difference between the rates this year
and those existing formerly was that
the unlimited residence service for the
Home company was increased from 50
a month to 49, This is the rate that
the Pacific States company has been
permitted to charge for several years.
Believes in Equal Charges
A majority of the council believed
the Home company should be permitted
to charge as much as the Pacific States.
Councilmen Yonkin, Dromgold and
Wren dissented from this opinion but
the other six members of the council
favored 1t.
Before the council agreed to raise
the rate for the Home company A. b.
Cass, president of the company, filed
statement in writing with the council
that not more than 10 per cent of the
residence phones would be increased to
the higher rates and the increase would
be effective only in apartment houses
and other places of similar nature
where the phones are used extensively.
Councilman Wallace told Mr.. Cass that
if this agreement should be broken he
would be the first one to vote for re-
duction to the old rate.
Following the judicial decision of the
council on the matter of rates an or
dinance was passed with the intent of
making the new rates law. Before the
ordinance could be operative and the
new rates do not go into effect until
June 1 a referendum petition was filed
with the intent of suspending the ope-
ration of the ordinance.
The city clerk Is checking up the sig
natures on this petition and expects to
be able to report the result to the coun-
ell Tuesday.
The referendum demands that the or
dinance passed by the council shall be
submitted to a vote of the people. The
council has the right to call special
election or pass the matter over to the
next municipal election. The latter
action probably will be taken, as there
are two other referendum matters held
for the municipal election in December