2012 Louisiana Laws
Revised Statutes
TITLE 45 — Public utilities and carriers
RS 45:164 — Common carrier's certificate; contract carrier's permit


LA Rev Stat § 45:164 What's This?

§164. Common carrier's certificate; contract carrier's permit

A. Except as provided by Subsection C of this Section, no motor carrier, as defined in R.S. 45:162, shall operate as a common carrier without first having obtained from the commission a certificate of public convenience and necessity, which shall be issued only after a written application made and filed, a public hearing, due notice given to applicant and all competing common carriers, and a finding by the commission that public convenience and necessity require the issuance of a certificate. No new or additional certificate shall be granted over a route where there is an existing certificate, unless it be clearly shown that the public convenience and necessity would be materially promoted thereby. No such certificate to operate as a motor carrier of passengers shall be issued to an applicant which uses or will use any vehicle with a reconstructed title as provided in R.S. 32:707 or an equivalent title issued pursuant to the laws of another state in the operation of such business.

B. Except as provided by Subsection C of this Section, no motor carrier shall operate as a contract carrier without having had a public hearing and obtained from the commission a permit to do so, which permit shall not be issued unless in the public interest and until the applicant shall have complied with the requirements of R.S. 45:161 through 172.

C. Wrecker and towing services, passenger carrying vehicles, household goods movers, and motor carriers of salt water utilized in oil well exploration and production shall not be required to prove public convenience and necessity when applying for a common carrier certificate or contract carrier permit.

D. Nothing in this Section shall be construed to affect any ordinance, enacted by a local governing authority and in effect on August 15, 1999, which requires any passenger carrying vehicle to prove public convenience and necessity as a requirement to operate within such parish or municipality.

E.(1) All intrastate movers of household goods shall be required to apply for and secure a common carrier certificate from the Louisiana Public Service Commission, shall secure and maintain the insurance policies required by the Louisiana Public Service Commission for movers of household goods, shall comply with all other requirements of the Louisiana Public Service Commission, shall carry motor truck cargo carriers insurance of at least fifty thousand dollars per truck and one hundred thousand dollars per catastrophe, shall secure and maintain workers' compensation insurance, and shall file a surety bond by a qualified surety company with the Louisiana Public Service Commission in the amount of five thousand dollars, prior to engaging in any activities related to moving household goods.

(2)(a) Any carrier whether domiciled in or outside of Louisiana, who is providing the intrastate transportation of household goods in Louisiana shall maintain a permanent establishment in Louisiana. A permanent establishment shall mean a fixed place of business through which the business of the carrier is wholly or partly carried on. The place of business shall be a particular building or physical location used by the carrier for the conduct of its business, and it shall be foreseeable that the carrier's use of this building or other physical location shall be more than temporary. The permanent establishment may include a place of management, a branch, an office, or a terminal. The permanent establishment may be operated by an employee of the carrier or an agent of the carrier provided that the agent has and habitually exercises the authority to conclude transportation contracts in the name of the carrier.

(b) Any carrier domiciled outside of Louisiana and providing the intrastate transportation of household goods in Louisiana shall register the name, address, and telephone number of its Louisiana permanent establishment, with the secretary of state and the Louisiana Public Service Commission. Service of process with respect to all civil, criminal, or administrative proceedings brought before any court or administrative agency located in the state may be served on the carrier at its permanent establishment, by any means provided by the applicable rules or procedure for that court or agency providing service of process.

(c) Should the carrier cease to maintain a permanent establishment in the state, its right to conduct business in the state shall be immediately suspended.

(3) The Louisiana Public Service Commission shall adopt and promulgate rules and regulations necessary to the proper implementation and administration of this Subsection, subject to the oversight of the standing committees on transportation, highways and public works of the Senate and the House of Representatives pursuant to the Administrative Procedure Act. The provisions of this Subsection shall apply only when the contract for moving household goods exceeds two hundred fifty dollars.

Acts 1999, No. 1107, §1; Acts 2003, No. 1219, §2, eff. July 1, 2003; Acts 2003, No. 1262, §2, eff. July 7, 2003; Acts 2008, No. 724, §2, eff. July 6, 2008; Acts 2012, No. 566, §2, eff. Oct. 15, 2012; Acts 2012, No. 804, §1.

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