Section 7Sec./Art. 7

Section 17 of Commonwealth Act No. 146, as amended, is hereby further amended to read as follows:

"Section 17.Proceedings of Commission without previous hearing. -The Commission shall have power, without previous hearing, subject to established limitations and exceptions and saving provisions to the contrary:

"(a) To investigate, upon its own initiative, or upon complaint in writing, any matter concerning any public service as regards matters under its jurisdiction; to require any public service to furnish safe, adequate, and proper service as the public interest may require and warrant; to enforce compliance with any standard, rule, regulation, order or other requirement of this Act or of the Commission, and to prohibit or prevent any public service as herein defined from operating without having first secured a certificate and require existing public services to pay the fees provided for in this Act for the issuance of the certificate, under the penalty, at the discretion of the Commission, of the revocation and cancellation of any acquired right.

"(b) To require any public service to pay the actual expenses incurred by the Commission in any investigation if it shall be found in the same that any rate, toll, charge, schedule, regulation, practice, act or service thereof is in violation of any provision of this Act or any certificate, order, rule, regulation or requirement issued or established by the Commission. The Commission may also assess against any public service reasonable costs with reference to such investigation.

"x x x

"(g) To require any public service to keep its books, records, and accounts so as to afford an intelligent understanding of the conduct of its business and to that end to require every such public service of the same class to adopt a uniform system of accounting. Such system shall conform to any system approved and confirmed by the Commission on Audit.

"x x x."