19981103Comments.doc

WELDON B. STUTZMAN
DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL
IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
PO BOX 83720
BOISE, IDAHO 83720-0074
[phone]

Street Address for Express Mail:
472 W WASHINGTON
BOISE ID 83702-5983

Attorney for the Commission Staff

BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION

IN THE MATTER OF THE JOINT APPLICATION OF IDAHO MOBILE PHONE, INC. AND CITIZENS TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY OF IDAHO FOR APPROVAL OF AN AGREEMENT FOR INTERCONNECTION PURSUANT TO 47 U.S.C.  252(e).
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CASE NO. CTC-T-98-4

COMMENTS OF THE
COMMISSION STAFF

COMES NOW the Staff of the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, by and through its Attorney of record, Weldon B. Stutzman, Deputy Attorney General, and in response to the Notice of Joint Petition for Approval of Interconnection Agreement and Notice of Modified Procedure issued in Order No.27769 on October 16, 1998, submits the following comments.

On September 25, 1998, Citizens Telecommunications Company of Idaho (Citizens) and Idaho Mobile Phone, Inc. (IMP), a radio paging company, submitted a Joint Application for approval of a paging interconnection agreement in accordance with Section 252(e) of the Federal Telecommunications Act. The companies indicated the agreement had been reached through voluntary negotiations and claimed the agreement is consistent with the public interest, convenience and necessity. They requested the Commission approve the agreement without a hearing or intervention by other parties.
Section 252 provides that such agreements are to be submitted to state commissions for approval. Agreements adopted through negotiation may only be rejected if the state commission finds that:
(i) the agreement (or portion thereof) discriminates against a telecommunications carrier not a party to the agreement; or
(ii) the implementation of such agreement or portion is not consistent with the public interest, convenience and necessity:

STAFF ANALYSIS
Staff reviewed the language of this agreement and found the general terms and conditions to be similar to those in the two wireless interconnection agreements submitted earlier by Citizens. As this is the first interconnection agreement for paging services submitted by Citizens, no directly comparable agreements are available at this time.
Staff concludes that the terms or conditions in this agreement are not discriminatory. Staff concurs with the companies claim that the agreement is consistent with the pro-competitive policies of the Commission, the Idaho Legislature, and the Telecommunications Act of 1996, and therefore is consistent with the public interest.

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends the Commission approve this interconnection agreement as filed.

DATED at Boise, Idaho, this day of November 1998.

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Weldon B. Stutzman
Deputy Attorney General
Technical Staff: Wayne Hart

WS:WH/gdk/i:wpfiles/umisc/comments/ctct984.wsw

STAFF COMMENTS 1 NOVEMBER 3, 1998