19990426Decision Memo.doc

DECISION MEMORANDUM

TO: COMMISSIONER HANSEN
COMMISSIONER SMITH
COMMISSIONER KJELLANDER
MYRNA WALTERS
TONYA CLARK
LYNN ANDERSON
STEPHANIE MILLER
DAVE SCHUNKE
JOE CUSICK
DON HOWELL
BEV BARKER
DAVID SCOTT
WORKING FILE

FROM: CHERI C. COPSEY

DATE: APRIL 26, 1999

RE: IN THE MATTER OF THE PETITION OF CENTURYTEL OF THE GEM STATE, INC. FOR SUSPENSION OF THE DIALING PARITY OBLIGATIONS OF 47 U.S.C. §251(b)(3) PURSUANT TO 47 U.S.C. §251(f)(2) – CGS-T-99-2.

On April 22, 1999, CenturyTel of the Gem State, Inc., filed a petition pursuant to 47 U.S.C. §251(f)(2) requesting a limited suspension of the obligations of 47 U.S.C. § 251(b)(3) to eighty-eight (88) access lines in the Grasmere-Riddle, Idaho exchange. CenturyTel states that these access lines are served out of CenturyTel’s DCO switch located in Owyhee, Nevada, and the switch is currently technically incapable of providing dialing parity. It further states that a new switch is scheduled to be installed by the end of the second quarter of the year 2000. Until then, CenturyTel states it cannot offer dialing parity to those eighty-eight (88) access lines. Therefore, it alleges that it is in the public interest to suspend the obligations of 47 U.S.C. § 251(b)(3) until the third quarter of the year 2000. CenturyTel filed a timely dialing parity plan as required by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) order dated March 23, 1999, in FCC Docket No. 96-98, that requires all Local Exchange Carriers (LECs) to file their dialing parity plans with state commissions by April 22, 1999.
BACKGROUND
Toll dialing parity, also referred to as “1 plus equal access” or carrier presubscription, allows a customer to pre-select a carrier for intrastate, intraLATA toll calls and then access his chosen carrier simply by dialing 1 plus the telephone number. Without dialing parity, a customer wishing to use a specific toll carrier may be required to dial a series of numbers before dialing the telephone number.
Section 251(b)(3) of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 requires all LECs to provide dialing parity. By order dated March 23, 1999, in FCC Docket No. 96-98, the FCC requires all LECs to file their dialing parity plans with state commissions by April 22, 1999. Upon Petition by a local exchange carrier with fewer than two percent (2%) of the Nation's subscriber lines installed in the aggregate nationwide, the Commission may suspend or modify the any of the obligations of Section 251(b), provided the Commission determines that such suspension or modification is necessary to:
to avoid a significant adverse economic impact on users of telecommunications services generally;

to avoid imposing a requirement that is unduly economically burdensome; or

to avoid imposing a requirement that is technically infeasible; and

is consistent with the public interest, convenience, and necessity.

47 U.S.C. § 251(f)(2). The Commission must act upon the Petition within one-hundred eighty (180) days after receiving the Petition. Id.
CenturyTel has fewer than two percent (2%) of the Nation's subscriber lines installed in the aggregate nationwide.
Staff Recommendation
Staff recommends that the Petition be processed by Modified Procedure and the Commission adopt a twenty-one (21) day comment period with reply comments being filed within seven (7) days of opening comments.

Commission Decision
Does the Commission want to process this Petition by Modified?

___________________________
Cheri C. Copsey
Lmemos\cgst992_cc.doc

DECISION MEMORANDUM 1