[§261E-12]  Rates, fares, and other chargesof air carriers.  (a)  In the transportation of passengers, every Hawaiiair carrier shall:

(1)  Provide safe and adequate service, equipment, andfacilities for the transportation of the passengers; and

(2)  Establish, observe, and enforce just andreasonable:

(A)  Rates, fares, and charges;

(B)  Regulations and practices relating torates, fares, and charges; and

(C)  Regulations and practices relating to:

(i)  The issuance, form, and substance oftickets;

(ii)  The carrying of personal, sample, andexcess baggage;

(iii)  The facilities for transportation; and

(iv)  All other matters relating to or connectedwith the transportation of passengers as determined by the commission.

(b)  In the transportation of property, everyHawaii air carrier shall:

(1)  Provide safe and adequate service, equipment, andfacilities for the transportation of the property; and

(2)  Establish, observe, and enforce just andreasonable:

(A)  Rates, charges, and classifications;

(B)  Regulations and practices relating torates, charges, and classifications; and

(C)  Regulations and practices relating to:

(i)  The manner and method of presenting,marking, packing, and delivering property for transportation;

(ii)  The facilities for transportation; and

(iii)  All other matters relating to or connectedwith the transportation of property as determined by the commission.

(c)  All charges made for any service renderedby any Hawaii air carrier in the transportation of passengers or property or inconnection with the service shall be just and reasonable and every unjust andunreasonable charge for the service or any part thereof shall be prohibited anddeclared to be unlawful.

(d)  Any person or body politic may make a complaintin writing to the commission that any rate, fare, charge, rule, or practice, ineffect or proposed to be put into effect, is or will be in violation of thissection.  Whenever, after hearing, upon complaint or in an investigation on itsown initiative, the commission determines that any individual rate, fare, orcharge, demanded, charged, or collected by any Hawaii air carrier, or any ruleor practice whatsoever of the Hawaii air carrier affecting the rate, fare, orcharge or the value of the service is or will be unjust or unreasonable, thecommission shall determine and prescribe the lawful rate, fare, or charge orthe maximum or minimum rate, fare, or charge thereafter to be observed, or thelawful rule or practice thereafter to be made effective.

(e)  In the exercise of its power to prescribejust and reasonable rates, fares, and charges for the transportation ofpassengers or property by Hawaii air carriers and to prescribe classifications,rules, and practices relating thereto, the commission shall give consideration,among other factors, to the following:

(1)  The effect of the rates upon the movement oftraffic by the Hawaii air carrier or carriers for which the rates areprescribed;

(2)  The need, in the public interest, of adequate andefficient transportation service by the carriers at the lowest cost consistentwith the furnishing of the service; and

(3)  The need for revenues sufficient to enable thecarriers, under honest, economical, and efficient management, including theoperation of service at reasonable load factors, to provide the service.

(f)  The commission shall establish andthereafter periodically adjust the recognized level of the fare, rate, orcharge.  The commission may adjust the recognized level by increasing ordecreasing it, as appropriate, by the percentage change in the aggregate costper available seat mile of similarly situated carriers for fares and peravailable ton mile for general commodity rates.

(g)  The commission shall have no authority tofind that any fare, rate, or other charge for service established by any Hawaiiair carrier is unjust, unreasonable, or unjustified or to suspend the fare,rate, or other charge on the basis that the fare, rate or charge is too low ortoo high if the fare, rate, or charge is not more than five per cent higher orten per cent lower than the recognized level of the fare, rate, or charge. Separate recognized levels shall be established and thereafter periodicallyadjusted on a peak and off-peak basis for first class fares, normal economyfares, tour basing fares, group fares, kamaaina fares, and for generalcommodity rates.  The commission shall have no authority to find that acontract freight rate is unjust or unreasonable. [L Sp 2008, c 1, pt of §2]