New York State Public Service Commission Annual Reports

By district and therein chronological by year of report.

Chapter 424 of the Laws of 1907 replaced various existing state regulatory authorities with the Public Service Commission which was divided into two districts.

The first district had jurisdiction over the counties of Kings, New York, Queens and Richmond comprising New York City. The second district was responsible for the remainder of the state. In 1919 the first district was reduced to a single Public Service Commissioner and two years later the two districts were abolished entirely and replaced by a single Public Service Commission.

This series consists of sixty-eight volumes of annual reports issued by the Public Service Commission between 1907 and 1920.

Forty one of the volumes in the series comprise the annual reports (including appendices issued as separate volumes) compiled by the first district commissioners between 1907 and 1919. The remaining twenty one volumes are the annual reports and accompanying appendices submitted by the second district commissioners.

The annual reports published during this period, unlike annual reports presently issued, contain a tremendous amount of detailed information concerning transportation companies and public utilities. Annual reports for each year are contained in multi-volume sets frequently composed of four to five volumes per set. The reports usually contain sections dealing with rapid transit (first district reports only), amendments to the Public Service Law, transportation service and facilities, applications of companies to the commission (usually dealing with the issuance of stocks and bonds, approval of leases, line extensions, etc.), the regulation of gas and electric companies, auditor's reports, resumes of proceedings held before the commission (usually for first district only), opinions of counsel, orders issued by the commission, and statistical data concerning light and power companies and railroads and street railways. This statistical material is very detailed and similar to material contained in the annual reports filed by these companies with the Public Service Commission.

13345Series 13345, Annual Reports of Public Utility Companies, 1906-1968, and

10093Series 10093, Annual Reports of Steam Railroad and Electric Railway Companies, ca. 1883-1957, contain reports filed by companies with the Public Service Commission.

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