MISCELLANEOUS COMPLAINTS. In addition to the complaints as to the price, purity and pressure of gas or electricity received during the year, the Commission has received and adjusted a number of minor complaints, the more important of which, so far as its effect upon the general public is concerned, had to do with the distribution, as between a company and a consumer, of the cost of laying service pipes. The Commission in this case placed the cost of laying the service pipes from its mains to the street line upon the company in question. This ruling relieves the consumer of the cost of laying service pipes on other than his own property. Other complaints adjusted were from individuals and had to do with the question of deposits, the registering of gas meters, the registering of electric meters, defective current and candle power of electricity, and defective wiring and insulation. APPLICATIONS PENDING DECEMBER 31, 1906. Buffalo Natural Gas Fuel Co.. Municipal Gas Co. (Albany).. Albany Electric Illuminating Co.... Rockland Light & Power Co. and Nyack Gas Light & Fuel Co.. Buffalo Gas Co... Watertown Electric Light Co. and Watertown Gas Watertown Light & Power Co.. Rochester Railway & Light Co. New York & Ontario Power Co.. Mayor's complaint as to price of natural gas, etc. Customers' complaint as to price of gas, etc. Mayor's complaint as to price of electricity, etc. Complaint of the Board of the Town of Orangetown (Nyack) as to price of gas and electricity etc. Complaint of the Mayor as to price of gas, etc. Complaints of the Mayor and customers' complaint as to the price of gas and electricity. Application for consent to acquire the plants and franchise of the Watertown Gas Light Co. and Watertown Electric Light Co. and for consent to issue bond to the amount of $1,000,000 of an issue of $1,500,000 and to issue $400,000 preferred and $400,000 common stock. Complaint of the Mayor as to price of gas and electricity, etc. Application for certificate of authority to transact business and for consent to issue $2,000,000 bonds and $2,000,000 stock. Applications Pending December 31, 1906. Elmira Water, Light & R. R. Co... Port Henry Light, Heat & Power Co.. Westchester Lighting Co.. Delaware & Otsego Light & Power Co.. Fenimore Electric Light Co.. Syracuse Lighting Co... Syracuse Lighting Co.. Frost Gas Co...... Fulton Chain Electric Co.. Fulton Light, Heat and Power Co. Application to increase its capital stock from $1,000,000 to $2,000.000 and to issue bonds to the amount of $5,000,000. Application for consent to transact business and to issue $100,000 stock. Mayor's complaint as to price of The status of these cases is as follows: The Albany complaint. cases are stayed by temporary injunctions. In three applications. the evidence is closed and the cases submitted awaiting determination. The three Watertown complaint cases have been consolidated and are proceeding as one. The applications of the Onondaga Lighting Company and Syracuse Lighting Company were also consolidated and the taking of evidence in the proceedings closed. Briefs of counsel are to be filed on or before January 11, 1907. HOLDING COMPANIES. The attention of the Legislature is called to the formation of socalled "holding companies," under the business corporation law. These companies have power to acquire the securities of lighting companies and issue their own securities in exchange. Such companies and their capitalization do not come within the supervision of this Commission. LEGISLATION. The passage of the act creating the Commission was the first effective attempt on the part of the State government to bring under its control and supervision the gas and electric companies of the State. Such a statute necessarily could not embrace every detail of the important regulation of such corporations. The Commission is of the opinion that certain modifications of the statute would materially inure to the benefit of the State, the consumers and the companies themselves. The Commission believes that the law should be made more liberal in regard to the matter of complaints as to the price of gas or electricity. As the statute now stands, it requires the same number of consumers in a small community to make complaint as it does in the largest city in the State. The law makes an ⚫ investigation as to price, etc., dependent upon the complaint of the proper municipal authorities or 100 or more customers. The number of cutomers necessary to make a complaint should be graduated according to the population in the territory served. The Commission recommends that the law be amended so that complaint may be made by twenty-five customers in the territory served where it contains less than 1,000 population, by fifty customers where the population is between 1,000 and 5,000, and by seventy-five customers where the population is between 5,000 and 10,000, and 100 in all other places. This would make it possible for the consumers in any community in the State, who consider themselves aggrieved, to have an investigation and the price regulated. The Commission also recommends an amendment to the law which will require a company incorporated before the law went into effect to obtain the consent of the Commission before exercising its powers under a franchise hereafter obtained from the local authorities. Such companies are now free to invade the territory of established companies without first obtaining the consent of the Commission. In this connection, the law should also be amended so as to permit the Commission to revoke a certificate of authority to transact business where the construction of the plant is not begun in good faith within a certain period from the date of issuing such a certificate. A company granted a certificate, but inactive, should not stand in the way of other enterprises. As the law now stands, the price fixed by the Commission for gas or electricity shall be the maximum price to be charged for a term of three years, "and until, after the expiration of such term such Commission shall upon complaint * * * * again fix the price of such gas or electricity." No provision is made for a revision of prices after the expiration of the three years' term upon the application of the company. As a matter of fairness, an amendment should give the company the right to apply to the Commission for a revision, as changing conditions may increase the cost of production and distribution. The law should require municipalities engaged in operating gas or electric plants to make an annual report to the Commission and should remove any doubt as to the application of chapter 737 of the Laws of 1905 to natural gas companies. An amendment to section 9, subdivision 6, of chapter 737 of the Laws of 1905, should prescribe a penalty for failure to make the annual report to the Commission within the time prescribed by it. Provision should be made for a penalty to be imposed upon such companies as shall fail to maintain the standard of purity, pressure and candle power fixed by the Commission. |