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duty.’” Id. at 7379, 99-1 USTC par. at 87,037 (quoting 1
Restatement, Contracts 2d, sec. 1 (1981); Black’s Law Dictionary
322 (6th ed. 1990)). The District Court then explained:
A tariff is “a public document setting forth
services of a common carrier being offered, rates and
charges with respect to services and governing rules,
regulations and practices relating to those services.”
Black’s Law Dict. 6th ed. (1990) at 1456-57. * * *
Tariffs set forth a description of the services
that a particular regulated public utility provides,
including the prices that customers may be charged for
these services. Tariffs are reviewed and may be
challenged by the regulating authority and consumers.
Once effective, tariffs bind the customer and the
utility to the tariffs [sic] terms. * * *
Id. at 7381, 99-1 USTC par. 50,119, at 87,039. The court looked
at the broad terms of the tariffs and concluded that the tariffs
were not TRA section 204(a)(3) service or supply contracts. The
court reasoned as follows:
First, the court does not find that the tariffs
are contracts under the normal definition of that term.
However, even accepting arguendo that the tariffs are
contracts, the court finds that these tariffs are not
the type of contracts Congress contemplated under the
ITC. The tariffs are descriptions of services offered
and prices to be charged. They are terminable at will
by the customers and * * * [the taxpayer] can modify
them by filing a new tariff. The regulating
authorities can revoke the certifications and levy
fines. The tariffs are merely the rules with which
* * * [the taxpayer] must conform if it chooses to
conduct business in the particular jurisdiction. * * *
[The taxpayer] may decide that it does not agree with
the terms and may decide not [to] apply to provide its
service in a particular jurisdiction. It would not be
bound to do so. None of the tariffs require the
purchase of property. None of the tariffs or related
documents alone or together identify the property to
the “contracts” or necessitate the purchase of the
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