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Proviso.

How paid out.

Proviso.

Tax clause.

placed in the Old Representative Hall at the national capitol at a cost not to exceed the sum hereby appropriated: Provided, That said commissioners so appointed shall serve without compensation, except for actual expenses which shall not exceed the sum of one thousand dollars of the amount hereby appropriated.

SEC. 3. The sum appropriated by the provisions of this act shall be paid out of the State treasury to the treasurer of said commission at such times and in such amount as the general accounting laws of the State prescribe, and the dis bursing officer shall render his account to the Auditor General thereunder: Provided, That the money hereby appropriated shall not be available for, or drawn from the State treasury by, said commission until the year nineteen hundred

thirteen.

SEC. 4. The Auditor General shall incorporate in the State tax for the year nineteen hundred twelve, the sum of fifteen thousand dollars, which, when collected, shall be placed in the general fund to be disbursed and expended for the purposes as in this act provided. Approved April 25, 1911.

Cold storage plant.

How paid out.

Tax clause.

[No. 137.]

AN ACT making appropriation for the Northern Michigan Asylum for the Insane, for building cold storage plant, for the year ending June thirty, nineteen hundred twelve, and to provide a tax therefor.

The People of the State of Michigan enact:

SECTION 1. The sum of five thousand dollars is hereby appropriated for the Northern Michigan Asylum for the Insane, for the fiscal year ending June thirty, nineteen hundred twelve, to be used with the appropriation already available for the construction of a cold storage plant.

SEC. 2. The sum appropriated by the provisions of this act shall be paid out of the State treasury to the treasurer of the Northern Michigan Asylum for the Insane, at such times and in such amounts as the general accounting laws of the State prescribe, and the disbursing officer shall render his account to the Auditor General thereunder.

SEC. 3. The Auditor General shall add to and incorporate in the State tax for the year nineteen hundred eleven, the sum of five thousand dollars, which, when collected, shall be credited to the general fund to reimburse the same for the money hereby appropriated.

This act is ordered to take immediate effect.
Approved April 25, 1911.

205&n-2

[No. 138.]

AN ACT to declare telephone lines and telephone companies within the State of Michigan to be common carriers, to regulate the same and prescribing a penalty for the violation of this act.

The People of the State of Michigan enact:

common

SECTION 1. All persons, corporations and associations op- Telephone erating telephone lines or exchanges doing a telephone busi- companies ness within the State of Michigan, are hereby declared to carriers. be common carriers; and all laws so far as applicable now in force or that may be hereafter enacted, regulating the transportation of persons or property by railroad companies within the State, shall apply with equal force and effect to telephone companies.

commission.

SEC. 2. The Michigan Railroad Commission shall have General conthe general control of all telephones, telephone lines and tele- trol, railroad phone companies within the State, and shall investigate any alleged neglect or violation of the laws of the State by any person, firm, association or corporation doing a telephone business within the State, or by the officers, agents or employes thereof.

abolish rates,

unjust

discrimination.

SEC. 3. All persons, firms, associations and corporations Public service. doing a telephone business within this State are required to furnish reasonably adequate service and facilities for the use of their lines by the public. All charges made for any service rendered, furnished or performed, or to be rendered, furnished or performed within the State by any telephone company shall be reasonable and just, and every unjust and unreasonable charge for such service is prohibited and declared to be unlawful; and the commission shall have power to make, Power to alter, amend or abolish any rate or charge for any service, etc. and may regulate by rules or orders any service or facility. SEC. 4. If any telephone company doing business within Rebates, etc., this State shall directly or indirectly by any special rate, rebate, drawback or other device, charge, demand, collect or receive from any person or persons, firm or corporation a greater or less compensation for any service rendered, furnished or performed than it charges, demands, collects or receives from any other person or persons, firm or corporation for rendering, furnishing or performing for him or them a like contemporaneous service, such telephone company shall be guilty of unjust discrimination which is hereby prohibited and declared to be unlawful. It shall further be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation directly or indirectly to ask, demand or accept any rebate, drawback or other de vice whereby he shall obtain telephone service for any less rate than that charged others in like circumstances,

Prejudice or

SEC. 5. It shall be unlawful for any telephone corporadisadvantage. tion doing business within this State to make or give any preference or advantage to any person, company, firm, corporation or locality, or subject any person, firm, company, corporation or locality to any prejudice or disadvantage in any respect whatever.

Application for connection.

Notice.

Interchange of service.

SEC. 6. Whenever application shall be made to the Michigan Railroad Commission by any party in interest to order the physical connection of any local telephone exchange, operated by any person, co-partnership or corporation, with the local telephone exchange operated by any other person, co-partnership or corporation in the same city or village, the said commission shall give due notice to the respective persons, co-partnerships or corporations owning or operating such telephone exchanges of a hearing to be had upon such application, and such hearing shall be conducted in the manner herein prescribed for hearings of complaints under the provisions of this act; and, after such hearing and such other investigation made either by itself or its servants and agents, said Michigan Railroad Commission shall determine, by its order duly made and entered upon its records, whether or not such physical connection is required by the public necessity or convenience in the case brought before it by such application. If said commission shall decide that such connection is so required, the telephone companies affected by such order shall furnish and maintain all reasonable and proper facilities for the interchange of service between their respective exchanges affected by such order, including all necessary trunk lines, switchboards, wires, aerial or cable, crossarms, poles or other fixtures; all necessary construction, maintenance and equipment to be built and maintained in such manner, under such rules, and with such division of expense and labor as shall or may be required or provided by the Michigan Railroad Commission. Every telephone corporation affected by such order is hereby required to perform switching service for any other telephone corporation similarly affected by connecting its lines temporarily with the lines of the other telephone corporation, providing for the direct transmission of messages between subscribers, and shall request the connection of its lines with the lines of the other telephone corCompensation. Poration on request of any of its subscribers.

Division of expense.

Switching service.

Any

telephone corporation which is required to perform switching service for another telephone corporation under the terms of such an order may demand and receive as compensation for such service the sum of five cents per message in addition to the regular service charge, if any. The telephone corporation on whose line or lines messages originate shall be responsible to and make settlement with the terminal companies performing the switching service for it on its reSubscribers to quest, and may demand and receive from its subscribers a fee of five cents per message in addition to the regular

Settlement with terminal companies.

pay fee.

nated by

commission.

service charge if any for all messages sent by it to other telephone companies on request of such subscribers in accordance with the provisions of this act. Whenever a subscriber of any telephone company affected by such order of the Michigan Railroad Commission desires to talk with a subscriber of another telephone corporation so affected, who is connected with an exchange other than that in the city, village or township in which the message originates, the switching switching service between the companies shall be done at point desigwhatever point may be designated by said railroad commis- railroad sion. The company at whose exchange messages of this kind originate may demand and receive from its subscribers the charge for switching service as provided above in addition to the regular toll charges of the companies over whose line or lines or affiliated line or lines the messages are sent; and the division of commissions and toll charges shall be made between the companies in such proportion as said railroad commission may designate: Provided, That the provi- Proviso. sions of this section in regard to switching charges shall not apply when two or more competing companies in any locality shall merge or consolidate their property and business in such locality under the direction of the said railroad commission of this State, or when one competing company shall sell or lease its plant, property and business to another company in the same locality, such merger, consolidation, sale or lease, if with the approval of the said railroad commission being hereby declared lawful. The Michigan Railroad Com Rules and mission may make all such reasonable rules or orders as orders. may be reasonable or necessary to carry out the intent of the provisions of this section, and refusal to obey such rules, orders or provisions of this section shall be unlawful.

SEC. 7. Any person, co-partnership or corporation desir- Franchise ing to obtain a franchise to construct a telephone system to construct. in any municipality in the State of Michigan, shall apply to said railroad commission for a certificate of public convenience and necessity, and said commission may grant or withhold said certificate after a public hearing and investigation upon the merits of the application in the manner provided herein for the holding of public hearings and investigation on complaint, and no such person, co-partnership or corporation shall be granted a franchise in any municipality in the State of Michigan to construct a telephone system until they have received a certificate of public convenience and necessity herein provided for.

SEC. 8. The said commission shall have authority to hear Complaints. and determine the complaints of any person, firm, association, corporation, body politic or municipal corporation, against the rates and charges or the service rendered or facilities furnished, or complaints as to service withheld or refused to be rendered, furnished or performed by persons, firms or corporations within the terms of this act.

Notice before

rate is established.

Make rules to govern hearings.

Testimony, books, ete.

Actions

against railroad commission.

Suits to have precedence.

Original evidence.

SEC. 9. Before any rate shall be fixed or established by the said commission, it shall give the telephone company to be affected thereby at least thirty days' notice of the time and place when and where a hearing will be given said telephone company concerning the fixing or establishing of said rate, and the commission shall have the power to compel the attendance of witnesses as in cases arising under act number three hundred of the public acts of nineteen hundred nine.

SEC. 10. The said commission shall have the power to adopt rules to govern its proceedings, and to regulate the mode and manner of all investigations and hearings of telephone companies and other companies before it in the estab lishment of rates, facilities, charges, service and other acts required of it under this act, which rules shall as near as may be conform to the practice heretofore established under act number three hundred of the public acts of nineteen hundred nine.

SEC. 11. The said commission shall have the power to administer oaths, certify to all official acts and to compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of papers, books, accounts, documents and testimony.

SEC. 12. Any telephone company or other party in interest, being dissatisfied with any order of the commission fixing any rate or rates, charges, joint rate or rates, or any order fixing any regulations, practices or services, may within thirty days from the issuance of such order and notice thereof commence an action in the circuit court in chancery against the commission as defendant to vacate and set aside any such order on the ground that the rate or rates, charges, joint rate or rates fixed are unlawful or unreasonable, or that any such regulation, practice or service fixed in such order is unreasonable; in which suit the commission shall be served with a subpoena and a copy of the complaint. The commission shall file its answer and on leave of court any interested party may file an answer to said complaint. Upon the filing of the answer of the commission said cause shall be at issue and stand ready for hearing upon ten days' notice by either party. All suits brought under this section shall have precedence over any civil cause of a different nature pending in such court, and the circuit court shall always be deemed open for the hearing thereof, and the same shall proceed, be tried and determined as other chancery suits. Any party to such suit may introduce original evidence in addition to the transcript of evidence offered to said commission, and the circuit courts in chancery are hereby given jurisdiction of such suits and empowered to affirm, vacate or set aside the order of the commission in whole or in part, and to make such other order or decree as the courts shall decide to be in accordance with the facts and the law.

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