The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1913-01-18
R. R. REGULATION
BY COMMISSION

Regulation by Commission was the
subject of an address delivered Friday
evening at the University of Califor-
MIA before a large gathering of stud
ents, business men and railroad men by
Samuel O. Dunn, editor of the Rail
way Age Gazette, member of the Hi
nois bar and author of the American
Transportation Question.
Mr.. Dunn in his Introductory re-
marks spoke in very high terms of the
work and personnel of the California
commission. He stated that during
his visit in California he had been
making study of the work OF the
commission and that he had nothing
but words of praise for it. He said in
part:
Regulating commissions have been
created both by the nation and most
of the states because il is believed
that public utilities must be controlled
and regulated in the public interest
and it is thought that lawmaking
bodies, courts and ordinary executive
officers are unfit foI this work The
personnel and the legal powers of
these bodies are equally important. A
commission composed of able and inn
partial men with small powers will do
much more good than commission
composed of incapable and biased men
with large powers.
Unfortunately, the personnel of
regulating commissions usually has
:. been very defective. The commission
ers often have been partial and sell
dom have been specially qualified for
their duties. Several things are need
ed to secure better men. Higher sal
aries should be paid in most states
only one state, it is believed, is the
salary over $1,000 a year, and in some
I it is low as 81 200 or $1,50O The com
missioners should be appointed rather
than elected. They should have spec
al knowledge of transportation and
'other public Utility matters when
chosen, they should be given long
terms and reappointed as long as they
remain faithful and efficient. They
should have the strength and courage
to resist the public when it is wrong
as well as to coerce public utility man
agements when they are wrong. In too
many cases the commissioners have
been politicians who previously car
ried on agitations against the concerns
to be reported and who have by that
very circumstance become disqualified
to fairly sit in Judgment on them.
I A public utiiity is not public prop
erty. 1t is private property devoted
to a public service. AS long as its
ownership remains private so should
its management. Its management has
the same right as that of any other
concern to determine originally what
rates it should charge, what service it
shall render and how it shall be
financed. And so long as the manage
ment does these things in accord with
the public interest there is nothing
for a regulating body to do. But pub
lie utility managemnts are often unin-
telligent, unfair, or rapacious and do
not give the public good service at
fair and reasonable rates. 1t is then
that the regulating commission should
step in and compel the management to
dc its duty. In other words, the com
mission s function is not executive,
but eorrective; and it should have
and exercise no more authority than is
necessary. but all the authority that is
necessary, to compel correction of spe-
cifc abuses, whether in rate-making
or the rendering of service. To give
it more than this authority is to en-
which is neither fair nor desirable so
long as the ownership of utilities is
not public To give it less than this
authority is to give inadequate pro-
lection to the public interests. The
public can fairly become the general
manager of concerns only by becoming
also their owner.
Regulating commissions having
been created and given sufficient au-
thority, they should be left free from
Interference in the performance of
their duties by either the legislature
or the public. If they are not the
most fit bodies for the performance of
their duties they should be improved
or abolished. If they are the most fit
they should not be hampered by the
meddlng of those less fit whether the
lawmakers or the voters. Further
more, there IS complete inconsistency
between regulation by commissions
and regulation under antitrust laws,
the purpose of which is to enforce
competition; and vet the Federal gov
eminent and some state governments
are stupidity and unjustly trying both
kinds of regulation.
"While regulation should be cor
reetive it should not be oppressive.
The amount of profit a public utility
should be allowed to earn Is purely a
question of public expedieney; and
|, public expedieney demands it shall be
not merely a fair return but high
enough return to attract into the busi-
ness enough capital to enable the con
eern to render good and adequate ser
vice. This necessary return is about
the same as the returns earned in
other lines of business; for all kinds
of concerns compete for capital in the
same market; and capital goes into
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