Enforcement and defense

Responding when the Commission acts against your authority.

A complaint from the PUC is a proceeding with a deadline, not a customer service problem. What you file, and when, decides whether you keep operating.

Under C.R.S. 40-10.1-112 the Commission may, at any time and by order after notice and hearing, issue a cease and desist order or suspend, revoke, alter or amend a carrier's certificate or permit. The grounds are specific, and they include exceeding the authority granted as well as violating a rule or an order.

The same statute lets any person file a complaint, and lets the complainant ask for suspension, revocation, or civil penalties. That means a competitor, a former employee, or a customer can start a proceeding that puts your operating authority at issue.

The grounds

What the Commission can act on.

The list in C.R.S. 40-10.1-112 is worth reading before you decide a notice is routine. It covers violating the article or any term or condition of your permit, exceeding the authority granted, and refusing to observe a Commission order or rule.

For movers there are two additional grounds: failing or refusing to abide by an arbitrator's award under the refund arbitration statute, and failing to satisfy the requirements for a new or renewed permit. For towing carriers, convictions and certain title 42 violations are separately listed.

Violating the statute or a permit condition
Exceeding the authority granted
Refusing to observe a Commission order or rule
Mover: refusing to abide by an arbitration award
Mover: failing permit or renewal requirements

The clock

Notice, hearing, and why the first response matters.

The statute describes action "after hearing upon notice to the motor carrier and upon proof of violation." That sequence is the protection and the risk at once. You are entitled to a hearing, and the record that decides it starts being built at your first filing.

A response that addresses the wrong ground, or that concedes a fact without needing to, narrows what can be argued later. A response that identifies the actual violation, if any, and proposes a remedy the Commission can accept, is often the difference between a penalty and a revocation proceeding.

Exposure

What is actually at stake.

The Commission can issue a cease and desist order, which stops the regulated activity. It can suspend, revoke, alter or amend the permit. It can assess civil penalties under article 7 of title 40. It can do more than one of these.

Revocation also carries forward consequences. For passenger carriers, a person whose permit was revoked for cause is not eligible for another permit for two years, and that ineligibility extends to the entity's principals, officers, directors and members. A revocation can follow the people, not just the company.

Practical

What to do in the first week.

Preserve the operating records before anything else: dispatch records, bills of lading, the insurance filings, the permit as issued, and any correspondence with the Commission. In a permit case the record is mostly your own paperwork.

Read the notice for the specific rule or statute cited. Then compare that citation against what the business actually did. The gap between the two is the case, and it is usually narrower, or wider, than it first looks.

Do not ignore the response deadline
Identify the exact statute or rule cited in the notice
Preserve dispatch, billing, insurance and permit records
Do not continue the conduct the notice complains about

Common questions

Questions this office hears

Can I keep operating while a complaint is pending?It depends on what the Commission has ordered. A cease and desist order stops the regulated activity. Operating in the face of one adds a refusal to obey a Commission order to the original problem.

Who can file a complaint against my carrier?Any person, under C.R.S. 40-10.1-112. That includes competitors and customers, not only Commission staff.

Is a suspension the same as a revocation?No. A suspension stops the authority for a period. A revocation ends it, and for passenger carriers it carries a two-year bar on a new permit that reaches the entity's principals and officers.

Sources

Where this page's facts come from

Every regulatory statement above is drawn from the following, so you can check it yourself.

C.R.S. 40-10.1-112, Commission may take action against certificate or permit
C.R.S. 40-10.1-302, passenger permit ineligibility after revocation
C.R.S. 40-10.1-507, arbitration of mover refunds
4 CCR 723-6, Transportation rules