IV. DISCUSSION

The Commission exercises continuing oversight of a carrier's fitness. Public Utilities Code § 5285 authorizes the Commission, upon complaint or on the Commission's own initiative and after notice and opportunity to be heard, to suspend, change, or revoke a permit for failure of the carrier to comply with any of the provisions of the Act, or with any order, rule, or regulation of the Commission, or with any term, condition, or limitation of the permit. Section 5139 gives the Commission power to establish rules for the performance of any service of the character furnished or supplied by household goods carriers.

We place tremendous trust in household goods carriers in granting them operating authority, a trust equaled by that of our citizens who tender their most personal and treasured belongings to movers. This carrier's alleged pattern of violations, operations without a permit in force, failure to file evidence of public liability insurance, advertising moving services without a valid household goods carrier permit in force, continuing such advertising and operations after staff directives to cease all such unlawful activity, and after an order from the court terminating its telephone service, and the failure to divulge the five misdemeanor convictions by the applicants, alarms us.

Before issuing a permit, the Commission reviews the fitness of household goods carriers. A fundamental measure of the fitness of a household goods carrier holding a permit issued by the Commission is the safekeeping of property entrusted to its possession. We are concerned by the court records indicating a conviction of theft by this applicant and distressed by safety issues raised by Vehicle Code convictions for driving over the public highways in California without a valid driver's license. We are also concerned by allegations that the Partner of K & T Moving Company and the Officer of ABC Moving, Inc. failed to disclose the criminal record of Stanley King Chee Wong to the Commission.

Section 5135 provides, in part, that:

    The commission may refuse to issue a permit if it shall be shown that an applicant or an officer, director, partner or associate thereof has committed any act constituting dishonesty or fraud; committed any act which, committed by a permitholder would be grounds for a suspension or revocation of the permit; misrepresented any material fact on his application; or, committed a felony, or crime involving moral turpitude.

The respondents should recognize that the Consumer Protection and Safety Division's allegations described herein are grave and, if substantiated through hearing, may well constitute grounds for denial for cause of the respondents' application for operating authority and/or other appropriate sanctions and remedies.

It appears that the Respondents may have:

1. Violated § 5314.5 of the Public Utilities Code by advertising and holding out to the public that it is in operation as a household goods carrier, without a valid permit issued under Chapter 7 of the Public Utilities Code;

2. Violated § 5139 and 5161 of the Public Utilities Code and GO 100-M by failing to procure, and to continue on file and in effect while conducting operations as a household goods carrier, adequate protection against liability, as imposed by law upon carriers;

3. Violated § 5133 of the Public Utilities Code by conducting operations as a household goods carrier without a permit in force from the Commission authorizing those operations;

4. Demonstrated lack of fitness to hold operating authority under Section 5135 of the Public Utilities Code by failing to divulge to the commission the criminal record and misdemeanor convictions of Stanley King Chee Wong, a partner of K & T, and Manager/Associate of ABC.

IT IS ORDERED that:

1. An investigation on the Commission's own motion is instituted into the operations and practices of the respondents, Stanley King Chee Wong and Xiu Ping Cui dba K & T Moving Company, KW Moving, K & T Moving/K.W. Moving, Inc. and its Agent Stanley King Chee Wong, ABC Moving, Inc., its President Su Fen Wu and its Manager Stanley King Chee Wong. A public hearing on this matter shall be held expeditiously before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) at a time and date to be set at the prehearing conference. At the hearing, the respondents shall appear and show cause why its two pending applications for household goods carrier permits under File Nos.
T-189,587 and T-189,779 should not both be denied for cause and lack of fitness in view of the above listed allegations made by Staff, assuming the allegations are proven at the hearing, and/or other sanctions imposed.

2. During the pendency of this investigation, it is ordered that Respondents Stanley King Chee Wong and Xiu Ping Cui dba K & T Moving Co., KW Moving shall cease and desist from any violations of the terms of the Final Judgment and Permanent Injunction in Case No. CGC-03-422959 granted by the Superior Court in San Francisco on March 4, 2004, in connection with household moves, the Household Goods Carriers' Act, including Maximum Rate Tariff 4 and General Order 100-M.

3. The Consumer Protection and Safety Division staff, if it elects to do so, may present additional evidence beyond that described in the declaration issued with this order, either by testimony or through documentation, bearing on the operations of the respondents and any new advertising of moving services to the public.

4. Scoping Information: This paragraph suffices for the "preliminary scoping memo" required by Rule 6 (c).

This enforcement proceeding is adjudicatory, and, absent settlement between staff and the respondent, will be set for evidentiary hearing. A hearing may also be held on any settlement for the purpose of enabling parties to justify that it is in the public interest or to answer questions from the ALJ about settlement terms. A prehearing conference will be scheduled and held within 40 days and hearings will be held as soon as practicable thereafter. Objections to the OII may be filed but must be confined to jurisdictional issues, which could nullify any eventual Commission order on the merits of the issues concerning violations of statutes, rules, regulations or orders.

5. Respondents are hereby placed on notice that if staff's allegations are proven during the evidentiary hearing, the Commission may impose fines and penalties according to that which is authorized by law.

The Executive Director shall cause a copy of this order and the staff declarations to be served by certified mail upon respondents:

3. Su Fen Wu, Agent For Service

A copy of this order and the staff declaration shall also be sent by certified mail to:

This order is effective today.

Dated April 1, 2004, at San Francisco, California.

MICHAEL R. PEEVEY

President

CARL W. WOOD

LORETTA M. LYNCH

GEOFFREY F. BROWN

SUSAN P. KENNEDY

Commissioners

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