Evening star., 1947-09-29
Phone Rate Rise
Asked for De-;
First Since 70
Plan Would Increase
Average Users Cost
50Cents Per Month

/
Telephone Co. today asked per-
mission of the Public Utilities
Commission to raise phone rates
so as to add approximately ST.
10000 to the company's annual
income.
The average household subscriber
would pay about so cents a month
more If the increase is granted. Bus
mess rate increases would vary, de-
pending on the type of service.
Householders in Maryland and
Virginia already are paying in
creased rates, similar to those pro-
posed for the District.
Needed to Meet Operating Costs.
j. B. Morrison, vice president and
general manager of the telephone
company, said the request is "abso-
lutely necessary in order to take care
of operating cost which for a long
time have been rising out of all pro.
portion to our income"
He said that since 1899 revenues
have gone up 142 per. cent, but the
cost of doing business had risen
1913 per cent.
Another company spokesman said
the company is earning only 3 per
cent on the money invested in it,
that the PUG has said that 6 per
cent is fair return and that the
increased asked would shove profits
up to per cent.
First Asked Since 1920.
The increase is the first asked
for District subscribers since 1920
and is partly to make the companys
stock attractive enough to investors
so they will help finance the COM
pany's $70,000,00O postwar service
improvement and expansion pro-
gram.
The company stated that more
than $l4,000,000 has been invested
in the expansion program during
the last IL months. Despite this
program, however, more than 1900
untitled service applications are still
on hand. In the first eight months
of 1947 nearly 9,400 phones were
added.
Here's what the increases would
mean to the average residential
1customer if they are approved after
public hearing by the PUG:
The fiat monthly rate for unlim-
tied local service that now costs
$4.20 would go to $4.75. The same
would be true of private branch
exchange trunk lines.
The tWo-party unlimited rate
would 60 from $3.50 to S400 month.
Would Curb Auxiliary Lines.
Flat rate auxiliary lines will no
longer be offered. There is a $3.15
monthly charge now for these.
Telephones used at message rates
would cost $3.75 for the first so mes
sages and each additional message
would cost Az cents. The charge is
now 1925 for the first so messages, S
cents each for the next hundred. 4
cents for the next so and 3 cents for
all others.
The tWo-party message rate would
remain unchanged at $2.25. but mes
sages over As would cost Az cents
instead of the present cents.
Residential phone users instead Of
being allowed two lines of type free
in the telephone directory, would be
allowed only one. Each additional
line would cost Is cents.
Increase in Installation Charges.
In the case of residential private
branch exchange systems, all lines
Of type would be Is cents each.
: The charge for installing home
telephone sets would go from $3.50
to $3.50 and when instruments were
moved within the house 1t would
cost S150 instead of 81.
;; The charge for connecting instru-
, ments already in place would 90
from 81 to $150.
1t would cost IS instead of SO to
have plug-in sets installed.
These are only few of the various
increases asked by the company to
increase profits. Increases for nom
residential service and special
switchboard service would be even
greater.
A company spokesman said that
not only did the last rate increase
occur in 1920, but that reductions
in rates had taken place since then.
He said the amount asked now rep
resents less than one-fifth of the
rate reduction made in the last 27
: years.