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necessary, and upon such order or orders of the commission, the Comptroller shall draw his warrant upon the Treasurer of the State, at the end of each month, and at such other tnmes as the commission may deem necessary, as aforesaid, for such amounts as the said commission may certify to be due and payable for all the said salaries, costs and expenses of the said commission as aforesaid, not exceeding, however, the amount herein appropriated therefor.

1912, art. 23, sec. 418. 1910, ch. 180, sec. 6. 1912, ch. 563, sec. 6. 418. It shall be the duty of the general counsel of the commission, subject always to the order of the commission, which may substitute and use any other agent or instrumentality, in its discretion, to represent and appear for the commission in all actions and proceedings involving any question under this Act, or under or in reference to any act, order or proceeding of the commission, and if directed to do so by the commission, to intervene, if possible, in any action or proceeding in which any such question is involved; to commence and prosecute all actions and proceedings directed or authorized by the commission, and to expedite, in every way possible, final determination of all such actions and proceedings; to advise the commission and each commissioner, when so requested, in regard to all matters in connection with the powers and duties of the commission and of the members thereof, and generally to perform all duties and services as attorney and counsel to the commission which the commission may reasonably require of him, whenever application, protest or other form of complaint is made to the commission of or concerning any act or omission, any service, regulation, equipment, appliance or facilities, or the adequacy or quality thereof, any preference or advantage or any prejudice, disadvantage or any discrimination, any rates, tolls, fares or charges, or any regulations or practices with respect thereto, or of or concerning any other matter or thing done, permitted, maintained or omitted to be done by any person, firm or corporation, subject to the jurisdiction of the commission, with respect to any of the requirements imposed by the Public Service Commission Law, by any other law, by any charter, franchise or ordinance, by any order of this com

mission or otherwise, it shall be the duty of said general counsel in person or through an assistant, whenever the commission shall so direct, upon a prima facie case or otherwise, or when there shall appear to the commission to be any reasonable ground for investigating, or further investigating, such application, complaint or protest, to participate in the preparation or reforming of the pleadings before the commission, if need be, or investigating or further investigating the facts or evidence upon which the application, complaint or protest is based or may be based, and to appear before the commission in respect to investigations or in support of applications or complaints by or on behalf of or in the interest of the public or in defense of the public interests when involved and subject to the order of the commission the services of the experts employed by said commission, as well as the records and other facilities of the commission shall be availed of by said general counsel or his assistant in the performance of these public duties; provided that nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent any party or interest in any proceeding before said commission from appearing in person or from being represented by counsel.

The assistant or assistants appointed by the general counsel shall perform such other duties as the general counsel may prescribe. All actions and proceedings under this Act, and all actions and proceedings commenced and prosecuted by order of the commission, and all actions and proceedings to which the commission may be a party and in which any question arises under this Act, or under or concerning any order of action of the commission, shall be preferred over all other civil causes except election causes, in all the courts of the State of Maryland, and shall be heard and determined in preference to all other civil business pending therein, excepting election causes, irrespective of position on the dockets of said courts. The same preference shall be granted upon application of the general counsel to the commission, or his assistant, in any action or proceedings in which the general counsel or his assistant may be allowed to intervene.*

The Public Service Commission has authority to direct its counsel to represent and appear for it in all actions and proceedings involving any question

1910, ch. 180, sec. 7.

419. Every commissioner, the general counsel to the commission, the secretary of the commission and every person employed or appointed to office under, in the service or in connection with the said commission, is hereby forbidden and prohibited to solicit, suggest, request or recommend, directly or indirectly, to any common carrier, railroad corporation, street railroad corporation, gas company, electric light company, telephone company, telegraph company, water company and refrigerating company, or any other company or corporation subject to this sub-title, or to any of the provisions thereof, or to any officer, attorney, agent or employee thereof, the appointment of any person to any office, place, position or appointment. And every common carrier, railroad corporation, street railroad corporation, gas corporation, electrical corporation, telephone company, telegraph company, water company, and all other companies or corporations subject to this sub-title or any of the provisions thereof, and every officer, attorney, agent and employee thereof is hereby forbidden and prohibited to offer to any commissioner, general counsel to commission, to the secretary thereof, or to any person employed by the Commission or by the general counsel of the commission, any office, place, appointment or position, or to offer to give to any commissioner, to the general counsel to the commission, to his assistant, to the secretary thereof or to any officer employed or appointed to office, or to any person employed in the service of the commission or in connection with the work of said commission, any free pass or transportation or any reduction in fares, to which the public generally are not entitled, or any free carriage for freight or property, or any present, gift or gratuity of any kind. If any commissioner, general counsel to the commission, the secretary thereof, or any person employed or appointed to office or in the service of the commission shall violate any provision of this sub-title, the Governor shall remove him from the office held by him. No commisioner and no employee or official engaged in the service of or in any manner connected with the under the Act creating the Commission or under or in reference to any order, act or proceeding of the Commission. Hyattsville vs. W. W. & G. R. R. Co., 122 Md. 660-675.

said commission shall hold any office or position, or be engaged in any business or avocation, the duties of which are incompatible with the duties of his office or employment as commissioner, or in the service of or in connection with the work of the said commission.

1910, ch. 180, sec. 8. 1916, ch. 638.

420. All proceedings of the commission, and all documents and records in its possession, shall be public records, and the commission shall make an annual report to the Governor and to the General Assembly, on or before the second Monday of January of each year, which shall contain copies of all orders passed and issued by it, and any information in the possession of the commission which it shall deem of value to the Legislature and the people of the State.

All facts and information in the possession of the commission shall be public, and all reports, records, files, books, accounts, papers and memoranda of every nature whatsoever in their possession, shall be open to inspection by the public at all reasonable times; provided, however, that whenever the commission shall determine it shall be necessary in the interests of the public to withhold from the public any facts or information in its possession; such facts may be withheld for such period after the acquisition thereof not exceeding ninety days, as the commission may determine. No facts or information shall be withheld by the commission from the public for a longer period than ninety days, nor be so withheld for any reason whatsoever other than in the interest of the public.

Copies of all official documents and orders filed or deposited according to law in the office of the commission, certified by the commission or by the secretary of the commission to be true copies of the originals, under the official seal of the commission, shall be evidence in like manner as the originals.

The commission shall charge and collect the following fees: For copies of papers and records not required to be certified or otherwise authenticated by the commission, ten cents for each folio; for certified copies of official documents and orders filed in its office, fifteen cents for each folio, and one dollar for every certificate under seal affixed thereto; for certifying a

copy of any report made by any corporation to the commission, two dollars; for each certified copy of the annual report of the commission, one dollar and fifty cents; for certified copies of all evidence and proceedings taken before the commission, twenty cents for each folio. No fee shall be charged or collected for copies of papers, records or official documents furnished to public officers for use in their official capacity, or for the annual reports of the commission in the ordinary course of distribution. All fees charged and collected by the commission shall belong to the State of Maryland and shall be paid monthly, accompanied by a detailed statement thereof, into the treasury of the State, and become part of the general funds of the State.

1910, ch. 180, sec. 9.

421. All subpoenas shall be signed and issued by the commissioners or by the secretary of the commission, and may be served by any person of full age. The fees of witnesses required to attend before the commission or a commissioner shall, where the hearing is in Baltimore City, be the same as allowed by the Courts of Baltimore City for the attendance of witnesses in cases before them, and where the hearing is in any of the counties, shall be the same as allowed by the Circuit Court of the county in which the hearing takes places, for attendance of witnesses before it, and the disbursements made in the payment of such fees shall be duly audited in accordance with a due and satisfactory method of auditing and bookkeeping, and shall be included in and paid in the same manner as is provided for the payment of other expenses of the commission. It shall be the duty of every public officer, without exacting or receiving charge or fee of any kind, to furnish to the commission, upon its application, a certified copy of any document, or part thereof, on file in his office, and no public officer shall be entitled to receive from the commission any fee for entering, filing, docketing or recording any document required or authorized by law to be filed in his office.

If a person subpoenaed to attend before the commission or a commissioner fail to obey the command of such subpoena, without reasonable cause, or if a person in attendance before the commission or a commissioner shall, without a reasonable

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