20180131Associtation of Idaho Cities Position Paper.pdf

Jessica Harrison
Executive Director for Association of ldaho Cities
3100 S Vista Ave. Suite 201
Boise, lD 83705
(208)344-8s94
Emai I : i ha rrison @ida hgeilies.olg
Seth Grigg
Executive Director for ldaho Association of Counties
3100 S Vista Ave. Suite 200
Boise, lD 83705
(208)34s-9126
Email : sgrise@ idcou nties.org
Jon Barrett
Executive Director for ldaho Rural Partnership
ldaho Rural Partnership
1090 E. Watertower St. Suite 100
Merid ian, ldaho 83642-844L
[phone]
Email: [e-mail]
BEFORE THE
IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
IN THE MATTER OF THE 2017 REVIEW OF
THE IDAHO UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUND
REC E IVE D
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CASE NO. GNR-T17-05
POSTION PAPER OF THE
ASSOCITATION OF IDAHO CITIES,
IDAHO ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES,
AND,
THE IDAHO RURAL PARTNERSHIP
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The Association of ldaho Cities, ldaho Association of Counties, and the ldaho Rural
Partnership hereby files this Position Paper in response to the Notice of Public Workshops in
Case No. GNR-T-17-05, Order No. 3395L, issued on December 2L,2017. The Association of
ldaho Cities (AlC) was founded in L947 and is a nonpartisan, nonprofit corporation, owned,
organized, and operated by ldaho's city governments. The ldaho Association of Counties (lAC),
formed in !976, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan service organization designed and incorporated by
county elected officials to provide services, research, uniformity and coordination among
member counties, in order for the county elected officials to serve their constituents better
The ldaho Rural Partnership (lRP) was founded in 1991 and joins diverse public and private
resources in innovative collaborations to strengthen communities and improve life in rural
ldaho
On January L7,2OL8, the ldaho Public Utilities Commission (PUC) convened a workshop
for interested parties and stakeholders in the ldaho Universal Service Fund (IUSF)to outline the
financial challenges facing the current framework and invite comment. The following is our
collective position on the matter of the IUSF.
PUC staff stated at the workshop held in January that any meaningful solution would
require the introduction and adoption of new legislation as the IUSF framework is established
within State statute. The development and support of any legislative changes should include
our organizations, and by extension those we serve, as all ldaho citizens will be directly
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impacted by any such changes.
Therefore, it is our collective position that PUC needs to expand this case beyond the
remaining scheduled workshop and engage a broader group of stakeholders to include the
public and other public organizations in order to fairly represent both the consumer and the
industry. The PUC should then guide this broad stakeholder group towards agreement on basic
terms upon which legislative action may be commenced.
Our organizations are poised and ready to participate in any such work.
AlC, IAC and IRP respectfully submit this position paper as of this 31't day of January
2018.
Jessica rrison, Executive Director for AIC
Seth Grigg, Executive tAc
By
By
Jon
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Director for IRP