Public Utility Regulation in the Modern Japan— An Analysis Based on Gas Hosho Contracts between Municipality and Business Operators
2010 Volume 59 Pages 113-145,en10
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2010 Volume 59 Pages 113-145,en10
In this paper I aim to make clear the leagal historical consequence and context of gas hosho contracts in public services in the modern Japan.
“Hosho contract” was a kind of the bilateral contracts, and it means that a municipality permitted a business operator to use structures administrated by the municipality and the business operator paid money in exchange for this permission. Commonly, it involved privileges of permission of monopoly and duties that the business operator was under the supervision of the municipality. In fact, there were public utility regulations by municipalities.
The preceding studies dealt with the the hosho contract between Osaka City and Osaka Gas Company, which was the first of these contracts, but it remains to present a overview of them. In contrast, this paper researches the process of the conclusion and the operation of the contract between Tokyo City and Tokyo Gas Company, then, in result, it makes clear the things below.
The main motive of these contracts was a substitution of publicly owned and operated services, which the preceding studies pointed out. But there was the notice of Minister of Finance, which ordered to substitute hosho contracts for special tax treatments. This was the measure that municipalities were able to attain financial flexibility to use the form of the contracts. And, it emphasized the aspect of public utility regulations of hosho contracts to justify concluding them in the cases of Tokyo Gas Co. and Osaka Gas Co.. It was necessary that public interest was emphasized in order to make the contract if the undertaking was under the monopolistic situation, for hosho contracts were under the agreement of either party.
While Gas Business Act was not established, gas hosho contracts which was tranitive and substitutive worked effectively because they had the factors above all. Their legal ambiguity was utilized expediently. But this could turn into their legal instability, so that it connected to establish the Gas Business Act of 1923.
