ENROLLED
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE
FOR
Senate Bill No. 453
(Senators Green, White, Laird, Chafin, Yost, Minard, Unger, Kessler, Bowman,
K. Facemyer, D. Facemire and Plymale, original sponsors)
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[Passed April 3, 2009; in effect ninety days from passage.]
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AN ACT to amend and reenact §24-1-9 of the Code of West Virginia,
1931, as amended, relating to the Public Service Commission;
recommended decisions by hearing commissioner, examiner or
panel; service of decisions on parties, including by
electronic transmission; and removing antiquated language.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That §24-1-9 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended,
be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS.
§24-1-9. Recommended decision by hearing commissioner, hearing
examiner or panel.
(a) Any order recommended by a single hearing commissioner, a
hearing examiner or a panel consisting of a hearing examiner and a
single commissioner with respect to any matter referred for hearing shall be in writing and shall set forth separately findings of fact
and conclusions of law, which findings of fact shall make specific
reference to the evidence in the record which supports such
findings and shall be filed with the commission. A copy of such
recommended order shall be served upon the parties who have
appeared in the proceeding.
(b) Before any order is recommended, the parties shall be
afforded an opportunity to submit, within the time prescribed by
the hearing commissioner, hearing examiner or panel, proposed
findings of fact and conclusions of law and briefs.
(c) The commission shall serve a copy of the recommended order
on the parties by one of the following means:
(1) By certified U. S. mail, return receipt requested; or
(2) By electronic transmission: Provided, That the party has
the capability to receive the electronic transmission, has
furnished an electronic address and has agreed in writing to accept
recommended orders electronically. Electronic transmissions shall
contain a "return receipt" or "read receipt" mechanism to assure
that a recommended order was received by the party: Provided,
however, That if the commission does not receive a confirmatory
electronic transmission acknowledging the recommended order was
received by the party, via return receipt, read receipt or
electronic mail, within three business days of service, the
commission shall serve the recommended order by certified U. S.
mail, return receipt requested.
(d) Service is complete when the recommended order is placed in the mail or transmitted electronically to the party.
(e) Within the time prescribed, the parties shall be afforded
an opportunity to file exceptions to the recommended order and a
brief in support, provided the time fixed is not less than fifteen
days from the date of service of such recommended order.
(f) In all proceedings in which exceptions have been filed to
a recommended order, the commission, before issuing its final
order, may afford the parties an opportunity for oral argument.
When exceptions are filed, the commission shall consider the
exceptions. If sufficient reason appears for the exceptions, the
commission may grant the review or make an order or hold or
authorize further hearings or proceedings. The commission, after
review, upon the whole record, or as supplemented by a further
hearing, shall decide the matter in controversy and make
appropriate order thereon.
(g) When no exceptions are filed within the time specified,
the recommended order shall become the order of the commission five
days following the expiration of the period for filing exceptions
unless the order is stayed or postponed by the commission:
Provided, That the commission may, on its own motion before the
order becomes the order of the commission, review any matter and
take action as if exceptions had been filed.
(h) The commission, a hearing commissioner, a hearing examiner
or panel to whom a matter is referred may expedite the hearing and
decision of any case, if the public interest requires, by the use
of pretrial conferences, stipulations and agreements, prepared testimony, depositions, daily transcripts of evidence, trial briefs
and oral argument in lieu of briefs.