Potomac Edison Co. v. Public Service Commission

Parke, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. The Potomac Edison Company and its three subsidiary other public service corporations began on January 28th, 1933, a proceeding in equity in the Circuit Court of Baltimore against the Public Service Commission of Maryland to have set aside and vacated an order of the defendant bearing date of Hovember 29th, 1932, and determining, as of June 30th, 1931, the fair value for rate-making purposes of the property of the several divisions and departments of the Potomac Edison Company and of its subsidiaries. The order provided the valuation should be effective unless protest against it should be filed with the commission within fifteen days from the date of the order. Code, art. 23, sec. 385 (30).

The bill of complaint avers that the complainants had filed ⁴⁶⁰ their protest against this proposed valuation within the limit of time accorded, but that a hearing had been postponed to Eebruary 7th, 1933, and that, therefore, the matter was still pending and the tentative valuation had not become effective. The ground for the contention that the order of November 29th should be rescinded is that it is unreasonable and unlawful. The bill of complaint, however, is alleged to have been filed within sixty days after the entry or rendition of the order, for the purpose of safe-guarding the rights of the plaintiffs to take the appeal provided in section 43 of the Public Service Commission Law (Code, art. 23, sec. 404), although the tentative valuation of the order had not become operative at the time of the filing of the bill of complaint. The plaintiffs affirm that the bill is filed without prejudice to their right to file a further suit should the defendant fail to make a satisfactory, corrected, valuation.

It is clear that the bill of complaint was precautionary, and that it was begun with the design to assure the plaintiffs a judicial review of any adverse valuation. On January 31st the commission demurred to the bill of complaint. Before the demurrer was heard, the plaintiffs filed, on June 8th, a motion to dismiss their bill of complaint. The motion alleged that after the institution of the bill of complaint the defendants, on March 1st, 1933, had entered in the pending proceedings before the commission a complementary or effective order to the