Ark. Code Ann. § 23-2-422 (2026)
Commission orders — Rehearings
- Any party to a proceeding before the Arkansas Public Service Commission aggrieved by an order issued by the commission may apply for a rehearing within thirty (30) days after the date of mailing of the order of the commission.
- The application for rehearing shall set forth specifically the grounds upon which the application is based.
- Upon receiving the application, the commission shall have power to grant or deny rehearing, to abrogate or modify its order without further hearing, or to reopen the record for the purpose of receiving and considering additional evidence.
- Unless the commission acts upon the application for rehearing within thirty (30) days after it is filed, the application shall be deemed to have been denied.
- An order or decision made after the rehearing abrogating, changing, or modifying the original order or decision shall have the same force and effect as an original order or decision but shall not affect any right or the enforcement of any right arising from or by virtue of the original order or decision unless so ordered by the commission.
History. Acts 1973, No. 231, § 3; A.S.A. 1947, § 73-229.1; Acts 1991, No. 811, § 1.
Cross References. Refunds of excessive bonded rate collections, order not stayed during rehearing, § 23-4-415.
Research References
U. Ark. Little Rock L.J.
Legislative Survey, Civil Procedure, 8 U. Ark. Little Rock L.J. 555.
Case Notes
Aggrieved Party.
While the Supreme Court could find no prejudice resulting from the treatment of the staff as an adverse party before the commission in the case before it, the court did not generally approve of this situation which it regarded as giving an appearance of impropriety, and in other instances, prejudice may be demonstrated to have resulted from this apparent conflict. General Tel. Co. of Southwest v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 295 Ark. 595, 751 S.W.2d 1 (1988).
Authority of Commission.
The Arkansas Public Service Commission acts in a legislative capacity and not in a judicial one, and therefore, the Supreme Court views the orders of the commission as having the same force as would an enactment of the General Assembly. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n v. Lincoln-Desha Tel. Co., 271 Ark. 346, 609 S.W.2d 20 (1980).
Due Process.
In an action to increase nongas rates, the brevity of time in which the Arkansas Public Service Commission approved a gas company's tariffs did not violate a consumer group's due process rights because the group was not deprived of the opportunity to petition for rehearing under subsection (a) of this section. The group did not identify any property right before the Commission or the court of which it had been deprived, and it did not show any prejudice. Consumers Utils. Rate Advocacy Div. v. Ark. Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 99 Ark. App. 228, 258 S.W.3d 758 (2007).
Rehearings.
Commission's staff may properly seek rehearing before the Arkansas Public Service Commission. General Tel. Co. v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 23 Ark. App. 73, 744 S.W.2d 392, aff'd, 295 Ark. 595, 751 S.W.2d 1 (1988).
Notice of appeal may be filed within thirty days of one of two dates: (1) the date on which the Arkansas Public Service Commission (PSC) enters an order upon the application for rehearing, or (2) the date on which the application is deemed denied, and Ark. R. App. P. Civ. 4 does not apply; therefore, a motion to dismiss an appeal as untimely was denied because it was filed within 30 days of the PSC denying rehearing, even though the deemed denied date had already passed when the PSC decided to reconsider the case. Commercial Energy Users Group v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 369 Ark. App. 13, 250 S.W.3d 225 (2007).
Scope of Review.
The granting or denial of a petition for a rehearing is a matter resting largely within the discretion of a regulatory agency in rate-setting cases, and the general rule is that the denial of a petition for rehearing by an agency such as the Arkansas Public Service Commission should be set aside on judicial review only for the clearest abuse of discretion. Southwestern Bell Tel. Co. v. Ark. Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 267 Ark. 550, 593 S.W.2d 434 (1980).
In addressing the questions of law raised on appeal, the court of appeals may not pass upon the wisdom of the Arkansas Public Service Commission's actions or judge whether the commission has appropriately exercised its discretion. Southwestern Bell Tel. Co. v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 19 Ark. App. 322, 720 S.W.2d 924 (1986).
The court of appeals does not advise the Arkansas Public Service Commission how to discharge its functions in arriving at findings of fact or in exercising its discretion, and its review of the reasonableness of the actions of the commission relates only to findings of fact and to a determination of whether its actions were arbitrary. Southwestern Bell Tel. Co. v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 19 Ark. App. 322, 720 S.W.2d 924 (1986).
Cited: Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n v. Yelcot Tel. Co., 266 Ark. 365, 585 S.W.2d 362 (1979); Redfield Tel. Co. v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 273 Ark. 498, 621 S.W.2d 470 (1981); Great Lakes Carbon Corp. v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 31 Ark. App. 54, 788 S.W.2d 243 (1990); Alltel Ark., Inc. v. Arkansas Pub. Serv. Comm'n, 70 Ark. App. 421, 19 S.W.3d 634 (2000).