The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-02-10
PUBLIC UTILITIES HEARING
Rules for Conduct of Water Gas and Electricity Cor
 pOratiOns in Process.


 Upon the initiative of the public utilities commission, about 100 men representing water, gas and electricity corporations throughout the state, at tended hearing Monday.
 It is the purpose of the commission to establish a system of uniformity for these three utilities after the manner of other states and to make uniform rules concerning them, par dcularly in regard tor eguIating the quality, establishing heat units, listing meters and the like, and to make va rious rules for the general conduct of the business, for the purpose of es- tablishing uniformity in the conduct of these particular utilities, aside from the question of rates.
 A committee of seven, representing each utility, was appointed to com speet1ve utilities and to submit the tentative compilation to the commits sioners at future hearings assigned for that purpose.
 The tests made under the proposed rules shall be performed according to such methods and at such places as shall be approved by the utilities com mission and the rooms, equipment ana apparatus for such work shall at all times be available for inspection by or the use of any member Of or au- thorized representative of the com mission
 A complete record of each test of quality, service conditions or meter accuracy as made under these rules shall be kepE by each utility corpor- alton accessible to the commission or it's authorized representatives during business hours at the principal office in the town where the service is furnished or at such other places as the commission may designate?
 Each record of tests of quality or of service conditions so kept shall contain complete information con- cerning the test, including at least the date, hour, the place. the name 1 of the inspector or tester, the reason for making the test. the results of the test and such other information as the, commission may from time to time require, or as the corporation the commission may designate.
 In the case of any service meter test the original record s11aM be pre- served indicating the information | necessary for identifying the meter. the reason for making the test, the reading of the meter before being dis turbed, the computed accuracy of lregistration, together with all data taken at the time of the test, in sufficiently complete form to per- init the convenient checking of the | computations leading to the result. | A record shall also be kept, numer-
  proximate date of purchase of each meter, it's size or capacity, rating, it's various places of installation, and the date of each repair adjustment, or test and general result of each test. | Each company shall, upon the writ ten request of a customer, and if he I so desires, in his presence or that Of his authorized representatiye, make without charge a test of the accuracy 1 of the meter in use at his premises, provided. first, that the meter has not been verified by the corporation or by l the commission within the period of lone year previous to such request, and second, that the customer will agree to abide by the results of the test as l the basis for the adjustment of dis puted charges. A written report of the results of the test shall be fur hished to the customer.
 l. Whenever the test of a meter, for | any cause, while in service or after the removal from serVice,s reyeals4sit 1 to be fast beyond the eHnaltsa@ ppe- scribed, the company shall refund to the customer such percentage of the Iamount of his bills covering netered consumption for the previous six months or for the time the meter was in service not exceeding six months as it was found to be in error at the time l of the test.
 Each company shall keep a record | Of all interruptions of service upon it's entire system, or major divisions thereof, including therein statement as to the time duration and cause of such Interruptions. Each company shall make full and prompt investi- gation of all complaints made to it by # customers, either directly or through the commission, and it shall keep a record of all complaints which shall show the name and address of l the complaint and the adjustment or disposal made thereof.
 Concerning complaints for faulty service the commission gave ou the following statement in the call for the f hearing appointed for yesterday:
 fIt having appeared to the comEnis- 1 sion that there was a lack of adequate or uniform rules and regulations gov erning the supply of service. by gas, electric and water companies, a tenta- tive or proposed draft of general or der and rules and standards of all lsuch utility companies and additional i special rules for gas companies has l been DreDaFed I9v inc commission. IT