Pennsylvania Water & Power Co. et al. v. Federal Power Commission et al. (343 U.S. 414)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided May 26, 1952 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 343 U.S. 414 · 72 S. Ct. 843
- Docket
- No. 428
- Argued
- April 3, 1952
- Decided
- May 26, 1952
- Term
- October Term 1951
- Vote
- 6–2
- Majority author
- Justice Black
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Disposition
- Affirmed
- Outcome
- Petitioning party lost
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
How the Justices voted
- Majority
- Chief Justice Vinson, Justice Black (wrote), Justice R. H. Jackson, Justice Burton, Justice Clark, Justice Minton
- Dissenting
- Justice Reed, Justice Douglas (wrote)
Opinion excerpt
Mr. Justice Black delivered the opinion of the Court. In 1944 the Maryland Public Service Commission, the Mayor and Council of the City of Baltimore, the Baltimore County Commissioners, and several private purchasers of electric power decided to ask the Federal Power Commission for help. They requested the Commission to investigate allegedly “excessive rates” the Pennsylvania Water & Power Company (Penn Water) was charging Consolidated Gas Electric Light and Power Company of Baltimore (Consolidated). The Maryland interests wanted the Federal Power Commission to reduce these charges so that the state commission could lower Consolidated’s rates to its Maryland customers. The federal Commission held many months of extensive hearings and found that Penn Water had charged its customers almost three times what it should have in 1946. In that year it had a net operating income of $3,477,408, as contrasted with $1,300,672 which the Commission found would have been a fair return (5%%) on a fair rate base ($24,774,-712), allowing Penn Water “about 8.64% for common stock and surplus, which is adequate.” The Commission ordered Penn Water to file a new schedule of rates and charges to bring about the reductions required. In subsequent orders the Commission denied Penn Water’s applications for rehearing, rejected as insufficient new rate schedules filed by Penn Water, and itself prescribed…
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