DIALPLAN.docx

DECISION MEMORANDUM
TO:COMMISSIONER HANSEN
COMMISSIONER SMITH
COMMISSIONER KJELLANDER
MYRNA WALTERS
TONYA CLARK
DON HOWELL
CHERI COPSEY
STEPHANIE MILLER
JOE CUSICK
DAVID SCOTT
WORKING FILE
FROM:WELDON STUTZMAN
DATE:APRIL 14, 1999
RE:PROCESSING APPROVAL OF TOLL DIALING PARITY PLANS
The recent order issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requiring local exchange carriers (LECs) to file toll dialing parity plans with state commissions by April 22, 1999, establishes a short time-period for state commissions to review and approve the plans.  After the filing of plans with the state commissions, the FCC order allows state commissions only 60 days (until June 22, 1999) to approve, modify or deny the dialing parity plans.  LECs must then implement the plans within 30 days of being approved, or no later than July 22, 1999.   “[I]f a state commission has not yet acted on a LEC’s intraLATA toll dialing parity implementation plan” by June 22, the FCC order requires the LEC to file its implementation plan with the FCC. The order provides that if the FCC fails to act on a plan by a certain date, the dialing parity plan shall be deemed approved. Consequently, “defaulting” to the FCC may permit certain terms to be implemen­ted that the Commission may have otherwise declined to approve.
Given the short time frame, the Staff believes the Commission should be prepared to proceed expeditiously after April 22 when the implementation plans are filed.  This memorandum proposes a procedural method and schedule to complete the review process.
U S WEST can file its implementation plan in the existing dialing parity docket, Case No. GNR-T-94-5.  If the Commission approves this process, the Commission can issue a Notice of Modified Procedure and Notice of Plan Filing upon the filing of U S WEST’s implementation plan.  See Rules of Procedure 201-204; IDAPA 31.01.01.201-04.  Staff recommends that the comment period be 25 days, and that a settlement conference be scheduled for the end of the comment period to iron out any issues presented by interested parties.
Each of the other implementation plans filed by LECs should have its own docket number and case caption, but the cases probably can be consolidated procedurally to simplify the process.  A single Notice of Modified Procedure and Notice of Filing can be prepared for all of the LECs to minimize the mailings required to complete the process.  As with U S WEST, the independent LECs should be invited to a settlement conference to resolve any remaining issues.  Allowing a 25-day comment period and a scheduled settlement conference would take the schedule to about June 1, 1999. This would give the Commission approximately 22 days to issue its orders.  (Remember, the Commission is scheduled to hear the Avista rate case in Sandpoint on June 8-10 and that Western Conference is June 13-16.)
Staff also suggests that the order on modified procedure include a provision to shorten discovery responses to 14 days.  While Staff anticipates that discovery may not be necessary, Staff has not yet seen the applications and would like to reserve the option for quick discovery responses.
To complete this procedural process, Staff therefore makes the following specific recommendations:
1.  U S WEST should file its implementation plan within the already existing U S WEST toll dialing parity docket, Case No. GNR-T-94-5.
2.  A case number and caption should be assigned for each of the independent company LECs when it files its implementation plan.
3.  All of the cases should be consolidated to simplify the procedural process and enhance the ability of the Commission to complete the review and approval process by June 22, 1999.  A single Notice of Modified Procedure and Notice of Plan Filing can be issued to establish a 25-day comment period.  The Notice should also contain a Notice of Settlement Conference scheduled for the week of May 24-28, 1999, and a provision to shorten discovery responses, if any, to 14 days. If the Commission agrees with this approach to process approval of the toll dialing parity implementation plans, it will be possible to begin the process immediately after April 22, 1999, when the implementation plans are filed.

Weldon Stutzman
dialplan.ws