After an order or decision has been made by the commission, any party to the proceedings may, within thirty (30) days after the entry of the order or decision, apply for a rehearing in respect of any matters determined in said proceedings and specified in the application for rehearing, and the commission may grant and hold such rehearings on such matters.

The filing of an application for rehearing shall not stay or suspend the effective date of any commission order or the obligation of any person to comply in all respects with such order unless the commission shall, in the exercise of its discretion, stay, suspend or modify such order. Any party to the proceedings shall be entitled to a stay of the order, other than an order resulting from a proceeding under Section 77-3-39, as a matter of right, upon filing with the commission a bond payable to the State of Mississippi in such amount and with sufficient surety, both as determined by the commission, to insure the prompt payment of any damages or refunds to the party or persons entitled thereto, if the order shall, at the conclusion of any subsequent proceedings, become effective. Such damages or refunds shall be paid in full, including interest at the same rate prescribed in Section 77-3-39, Section 77-3-69 and Section 77-3-71. In lieu of payment, the utility may credit the service account with the amount due under this section if the consumer entitled to the damages or refund is, at that time, a consumer of the utility.

The commission shall either grant or refuse an application for rehearing within twenty (20) days after the date of application therefor. A failure by the commission to act upon such application within that period shall be deemed refusal thereof. If the application is granted, the commission shall conduct and conclude a rehearing within thirty (30) days of the entry of the order for rehearing and shall enter a new order after the rehearing shall have been concluded, which shall become effective ten (10) days after such order is entered, unless otherwise provided by the commission for reasonable cause.