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“Fatuous and piffling”! Holy cow! These are the words used by Montana Public Service Commissioner Doug Mood in describing my vote in the Green Taxi proceeding before the Public Service Commission (guest column, Jan. 11). I had to run for my dictionary to decide just how offended I should be. I sort of knew the definition of “fatuous” but “piffling” was completely new. The reader might wonder, as I did, exactly what I had done to warrant such vitriolic castigation from a colleague on the commission. Turns out that Mood’s admonition was based on his interpretation of something I had not said. Welcome to the world of politics.

The history here is that Green Taxi came up with the idea of starting a small taxi service using a hybrid car to give Missoulians occasional transportation services. State law requires that taxi services be approved by the PSC. Green Taxi filed the paperwork and the existing taxi service, Yellow Cab, filed an objection. The case was put on the docket for the PSC to decide whether Green Taxi would be allowed to operate. All of this triggered a formal legal proceeding with evidence being submitted by the parties, arguments being made by attorneys, etc.

Mood held a hearing in Missoula. Based on his interpretation of the facts and legal principles, he proposed an order denying Green Taxi’s application. All of this is normal operating procedure. What is unusual in this case is that the full commission, after reviewing the information, did not agree with Mood and voted 3-2 to grant Green Taxi a permit.

Mood, obviously quite unhappy with the majority decision, published a “dissent,” and then an editorial in the Missoulian, in which he accused the full commission of ignoring the law. As a part of that, for some reason I cannot discern, he singled out my statement as being “fatuous and piffling.” In addition to catching my etymological curiosity, Mood’s verbal joust prompts a response.

Mood says the PSC did not follow the law. He asserts that there is a four-part test established by the courts that binds the commission in making this decision. In reality, the four-part test was established by the commission itself n not the courts or the Legislature. The commission can legally change its own precedent. Even if Mood was correct that the PSC did not follow the test, he is not correct that the PSC broke the law.

Even so, I do not agree that the test was ignored. An important part of the established test is that the applicant must show that granting the permit will not harm the existing carrier contrary to the public interest. The rub in this case, at least from my reading of the complete record, is that there was no showing that the harm to Yellow Cab, which might come from granting Green Taxi a permit, was contrary to the public interest.

And this is where Mood mischaracterized my position. In his editorial he writes that I dismissed the issue of financial harm to Yellow Cab as “unimportant.” In reality, I believe that financial harm to Yellow Cab was critically important. But, in my view, the facts in the case did not establish that the level of harm was contrary to the public interest. I don’t believe I was completely off the mark in that interpretation since it was shared by the majority of the commission.

Now, to answer what you have really been wondering about:

Fat-u-ous (adjective): foolish or inane; esp. in an unconscious manner; silly.

Pif-fling (adjective): of little worth; trifling; piddling.

Ken Toole serves on the Montana Public Service Commission.

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