House subcommittee reviews Public Service Commission rule changes for motor carriers, telecommunications and discovery rules

The House Regulations and Administrative Procedures subcommittee on education considered three rulemaking documents from the South Carolina Public Service Commission on administrative changes to motor-carrier filings, telecommunications regulations and discovery protections, and voted to move the regulations or related requests to the full committee.

Jocelyn Boyd, regulatory counsel with the Public Service Commission, told the subcommittee the motor-carrier updates in document 5242 are intended to conform commission rules with Act 214 of 2022. "When a motor carrier now files an application, that application information about the application is posted on a specific site on the commission's website," Boyd said, describing a process that posts applications, gives the public 15 days to object, and allows the commission to issue a directive that can be effective 30 days after issuance if the carrier meets insurance and other requirements. Boyd said the changes remove references to certificates of public convenience and necessity and to certificates of FWA, require carriers to file maximum rates on the commission's website instead of publishing tariffs in newspapers and delete a sought annual-report requirement.

Boyd asked the subcommittee to allow the agency to withdraw and resubmit document 5242 after staff discovered a numbering error introduced during renumbering of existing regulations. General counsel Joanne Wessinger Hill asked to withdraw and resubmit the filing; the committee approved that request by voice vote.

On document 5267, Boyd said the commission updated telecommunications regulations to remove references to a repealed statutory advisory committee and to align state rules with federal law governing eligible telecommunications carriers. She said the rule amendments also clarify directory obligations and left in a provision assessing interest when a customer is willfully overcharged. Boyd stated the applicable legal interest rate as "8 and 3 quarters percent per annum." A member asked whether directories must be printed; Boyd said the rules require utilities to maintain information in a telephone directory "or electronic database" and to make it available on request.

The committee voted to approve document 5267 and send it to the full committee.

For document 5275, Boyd described a request to restore the phrase "working papers or attorney work product" to discovery rules after the wording was removed in a prior update. Boyd said the change is intended to protect the work product of expert witnesses and other non-lawyer parties preparing testimony. Representatives asked whether the existing phrase "hearing preparation" already covered expert materials; Boyd and members discussed that "working papers" is intended to capture non-attorney work product that the current phrasing might not clearly protect. The subcommittee voted to move document 5275 to the full committee.

Why it matters: The updates change how motor-carrier applications are posted and processed, alter public-notice and rate-filing practices, align state telecommunications regulations with federal requirements for carriers receiving universal-service support, and restore a discovery protection aimed at insulating expert work product and other preparatory materials. Committee members repeatedly asked the agency for brief synopses quantifying efficiency and time savings for regulated entities and taxpayers; Boyd agreed to supply a short summary of expected time/cost impacts to help stakeholders and committee members assess the practical effects.

Ending: All three Public Service Commission items were acted on by the subcommittee: the withdrawal-and-resubmit request for document 5242 was approved, and documents 5267 and 5275 were moved to the full committee. The committee asked agency staff to provide a short efficiency/economic-impact synopsis for future hearings.