20210816Notice_of_Continued_Suspension_Effective_Date_Order_No_35133.pdf

NOTICE OF CONTINUED SUSPENSION OF EFFFECTIVE DATE
NOTICE OF INQUIRY
ORDER NO. 35133 1

Office of the Secretary
Service Date
August 16, 2021
BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION

On May 14, 2021, Columbine Telephone Company, Inc. dba Silver Star
Communications (“Company”) filed changes to its tariff with the Commission. The Company
proposes to change how the cost of a line extension will be shared between the applicant and the
Company. The Company proposed a June 15, 2021, effective date for the modified tariff.
At the June 8, 2021, Decision Meeting, Commission Staff noted the proposed changes
constitute an increase in rates and therefore should not be handled through a tariff advice. Staff
suggested the Commission initiate a formal proceeding to determine whether the proposed tariffs
comply with the Commission’s regulatory requirements.
On June 14, 2021, the Commission issued a Notice of Application, Suspension of
Proposed Effective Date, and Notice of Modified Procedure and converted the Company’s
proposed tariff modifications into an Application to be processed by Modified Procedure,
suspended the Company’s proposed effective date for 60 days, and established comment deadlines.
Staff filed comments on July 8, 2021. The Company filed reply comments on July 15,
2021. The matter became fully submitted.
Having reviewed the record, the Commission finds the existing record is insufficient to
allow the Company to implement its tariff changes. Accordingly, pursuant to Idaho Code § 61-
622, the Commission will continue the suspension of the Company’s proposed effective date to
allow time for the Company to provide comment and supplement the record on the following
matters:

IN THE MATTER OF COLUMBINE
TELEPHONE COMPANY, INC.’S
APPLICATION TO CHANGE THE MANNER
IN WHICH FACILITIES EXTENSIONS ARE
HANDLED
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CASE NO. COL-T-21-01

NOTICE OF CONTINUED
SUSPENSION OF EFFECTIVE
DATE

NOTICE OF INQUIRY

ORDER NO. 35133
NOTICE OF CONTINUED SUSPENSION OF EFFFECTIVE DATE
NOTICE OF INQUIRY
ORDER NO. 35133 2

1. Please provide documentation of the customer requests and feedback that led to
the proposed changes in the Company’s line extension section of the tariff.
2. Please report how many new line extensions the Company has installed in its Idaho
service territory in the last two years. Please include the average lengths of the line extensions.
3. Under the existing line extension tariff, provide documentation showing how many
feet of fiber, on average, the current $1600 allowance will cover. Please provide the Commission
a schedule showing how the cost of providing copper compares to the cost of providing fiber.
4. Please explain how the new proposed line extension tariff will cut installation time
down from 2-3 weeks to 2-3 days.
5. Please provide a cost breakdown example for a 500-foot line extension using both
the existing and the new proposed line extension methodology.
ORDER
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that the Company’s proposed effective date be suspended
for an additional 60 days, unless the Commission issues an earlier order accepting, rejecting, or
modifying the Company’s Application.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the Company file answers to the matters posed by
the Commission at its earliest possible convenience. If the Company fails to file a response within
the additional 60 day extension, the Commission will issue a final order based upon the existing
record.
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NOTICE OF CONTINUED SUSPENSION OF EFFFECTIVE DATE
NOTICE OF INQUIRY
ORDER NO. 35133 3

DONE by order of the Idaho Public Utilities Commission at Boise, Idaho this 16th day
of August 2021.

PAUL KJELLANDER, PRESIDENT

KRISTINE RAPER, COMMISSIONER

ERIC ANDERSON, COMMISSIONER

ATTEST:

Jan Noriyuki
Commission Secretary

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