PSC staff outlines motor-carrier and telecom rule changes; committee agrees to withdrawal and sends two items to full committee

Public Service Commission staffors explained proposed updates to motor-carrier, telecommunications and hearing-procedure regulations at a South Carolina House Regulations and Administrative Procedures subcommittee hearing; the panel agreed to allow the PSC to withdraw and resubmit the motor-carrier filing to correct numbering errors and voted to send the telecommunications and discovery-rule changes to the full committee.

The proposed motor-carrier regulation (Document 5242) implements provisions of Act 214 of 2022, the PSC’s Jocelyn Boyd told the subcommittee. The changes require the commission’s docket system to post motor-carrier applications online, open a 15-day window for public objections, and allow staff to issue a directive that becomes effective 30 days after issuance. Boyd said the Office of Regulatory Staff (ORS) will issue a carrier certificate once required insurance and other filings are received — a process she described as cutting the prior cycle from as long as about 60 days to roughly 20–22 days in many cases. The PSC also proposes deleting references to public…