§ 62-140. Discrimination prohibited.
§ 62‑140. Discrimination prohibited.
(a) No public utility shall, as to rates or services, make orgrant any unreasonable preference or advantage to any person or subject anyperson to any unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage. No public utility shallestablish or maintain any unreasonable difference as to rates or serviceseither as between localities or as between classes of service. The Commissionmay determine any questions of fact arising under this section; provided thatit shall not be an unreasonable preference or advantage or constitutediscrimination against any person, firm or corporation or general rate payerfor telephone utilities to contract with motels, hotels and hospitals to payreasonable commissions in connection with the handling of intrastate toll callscharged to a guest or patient and collected by the motel, hotel or hospital;provided further, that payment of such commissions shall be in accordance withuniform tariffs which shall be subject to the approval of the Commission. Providedfurther, that it shall not be considered an unreasonable preference oradvantage for the Commission to order, if it finds the public interest sorequires, a reduction in local telephone rates for low‑income residentialconsumers meeting a means test established by the Commission in order to matchany reduction in the interstate subscriber line charge authorized by theFederal Communications Commission.
Nothing in this section prohibits the Commission from establishingdifferent rates for natural gas service to counties that are substantiallyunserved, to the extent that those rates reflect the cost of providing serviceto the unserved counties and upon a finding by the Commission that natural gasservice would not otherwise become available to the counties.
(b) The Commission shall make reasonable and just rules andregulations:
(1) To prevent discrimination in the rates or services of publicutilities.
(2) To prevent the giving, paying or receiving of any rebate orbonus, directly or indirectly, or misleading or deceiving the public in anymanner as to rates charged for the services of public utilities.
(c) No public utility shall offer or pay any compensation orconsideration or furnish any equipment to secure the installation or adoptionof the use of such utility service except upon filing of a schedule of suchcompensation or consideration or equipment to be furnished and approved thereofby the Commission, and offering such compensation, consideration or equipmentto all persons within the same classification using or applying for such publicutility service; provided, in considering the reasonableness of any suchschedule filed by a public utility the Commission shall consider, among otherthings, evidence of consideration or compensation paid by any competitor,regulated or nonregulated, of the public utility to secure the installation oradoption of the use of such competitor's service. Provided, further, thatnothing herein shall prohibit a public utility from carrying out anycontractual commitment in existence at the time of the enactment hereof, solong as such program does not extend beyond December 31, 1963. For the purposeof this subsection, "public utility" shall include any electricmembership corporation operating within this State, and the terms "utilityservice" and "public utility service" shall include the servicerendered by any such electric membership corporation. (1899, c. 164, s. 2, subsecs. 3, 5; Rev., s. 1095;1913, c. 127, s. 6; C.S., s. 1054; 1933, c. 134, s. 8; c. 307, s. 6; 1941, c.97; 1963, c. 1165, s. 1; 1965, c. 287, s. 8; 1977, 2nd Sess., c. 1146; 1985, c.694, s. 1; 1997‑426, s. 1.)