The report of the provincial Public Utilities Commission into the rates and services of the British Columbia Electric Railway Company Limited and its affiliates breaks new ground as far as rate control in Canada is concerned. Because of the war, the Commission did not consider it opportune to make a complete review of the rate structure. Nevertheless it laid the basis for such a review when normal conditions return and dealt realistically with many problems which have not heretofore been carefully considered in Canada.

In the process of regulation the first task of any Commission is to arrive at a rate base, that is, the amount on which the Company is entitled to a fair return. The Commission emphasized that such a base is for rate-making purposes only and has no necessary relation to value for any other purpose such as sale, taxation, or judicial condemnation (10).