20070626Notice of Stipulation Part I.pdf

Mary S. Hobson
Attorney & Counselor
999 Main, Suite 1103
Boise, ID 83702
208-385-8666
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June 26, 2007
VIA HAND DELIVERY
Jean D. Jewell, Secretary
Idaho Public Utilities Commission
472 West Washington
Boise, ill 83702-5983
RE:Docket No. QWE-O3-
Dear Ms. Jewell:
Enclosed for filing with this Commission are an original and seven (7) copies of QWEST
CORPORATION'S NOTICE OF STIPULATION REGARDING CERTAIN
PERFORMANCE INDICATOR DEFINITIONS AND QWEST PERFORMANCE
ASSURANCE PLAN PROVISIONS AND JOINT MOTION ON BEHALF OF THE
STIPULATING PARTIES TO ACCEPT SAME in the above referenced matter.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
Very truly yours
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EnclosureS
1,.,"-.0 !i:C,
Mary S. Hobson (ISE. No. 2142)
999 Main, Suite 1103
Boise, ID 83702
Tel: [phone]
rnary .ho bsonetp,qwestcom
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Adam L. Sherr
Corporate Counsel, Qwest
1600 7th Avenue, Room 3206
Seattle, WA 98191
Tel: [phone]
adam. sherretp,qwest. com
Attorneys for Qwest Corporation
BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
IN THE MATTER OF QWEST
CORPORATION'S REVISIONS TO
THE IDAHO QWEST PERFORMANCE
ASSURANCE PLAN (QP AP)Docket No. QWE-O3-
NOTICE OF STIPULATION REGARDING CERTAIN
PERFORMANCE INDICATOR DEFINITIONS AND QWEST
PERFORMANCE ASSURANCE PLAN PROVISIONS AND JOINT
MOTION ON BEHALF OF THE STIPULATING PARTIES TO
ACCEPT SAME
Qwest Corporation ("Qwest") on behalf of itself, Eschelon Telecom, Inc.
Eschelon ), DIECA Communications, Inc. d/b/a Covad Communications Company
Covad") and McLeodUSA Telecommunications Services, Inc. ("McLeodUSA"
NOTICE OF 2007 STIPULATION /JOINT MOTION
Page 1 of 6
(collectively, the "Stipulating Parties" and each individually, a "Party ) submits the
Stipulation Regarding Certain Performance Indicator Definitions and Qwest Performance
Assurance Plan Provisions ("2007 Stipulation ). The Stipulating Parties 1 respectfully
recommend that the Commission accept the 2007 Stipulation, apply the agreed upon
changes to the Qwest Performance Assurance Plan ("PAP") and to the interconnection
agreements containing the PAP, and also allow the Performance Indicator Definitions
the PID" or "PIDs ) to take effect.
This submission results ftom collaborative work sessions among certain
Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLECs) and Qwest. The participants
identified above agreed upon a number of modifications to the PIDs and PAPs
that would provide a fair resolution and be in the public interest. The Stipulating
Parties' agreement has been documented in the 2007 Stipulation attached as
Exhibit 1.
These agreements were reached between Qwest and the CLECs in meetings
between May 23 2006, and May 17, 2007.
All of these changes were discussed by the participants in one or more of the
sessions. Qwest provided notice of the opportunity to participate in the process as
well as the issues presented for discussion to each CLEC certified in each of its
fourteen states; nineteen CLECs in the region then elected to be notified of
updates and meetings while six regularly participated.
State commission staffs in each of the fourteen Qwest local service region states
were notified that Qwest and CLECs were engaged in PID/P AP modification
discussions. 2007 Stipulation p. 1.
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom ("TDS Metrocom ) is a Stipulating Party,
however, it is certified as a CLEC only in North Dakota and Minnesota, and as such is
not bringing this motion with the other Stipulating Parties.
NOTICE OF 2007 STIPULATION /JOINT MOTION
Page 2 of 6
The Stipulating Parties recommend that the Stipulation be accepted by the
commissions and the changes implemented in each of the fourteen states in
Qwest's local region. Id.
The impacted PIDs are currently reflected in Exhibit B to the Statement of
Generally Available Terms and Conditions ("SGAT") while the PAP is currently
found in Exhibit K of the SGAT. A comprehensive redline of the changes to the
PAP is attached as Exhibit 2. A comprehensive redline of the PIDs is attached as
Exhibit 4. The Stipulating Parties have reviewed the proposed changes to both
documents and agree that they appropriately delineate the agreement and
appropriate administrative changes, and that the 2007 Stipulation should be
accepted. The "clean" versions of both documents are also attached as Exhibits 3
and 5 respectively. 2
The Stipulating Parties believe that the 2007 Stipulation provides a fair resolution
and is in the public interest. 2007 Stipulation p. 1.
The Stipulating Parties seek to have the Commission accept the Stipulation and
implement the described changes for both the PIDs and the PAP without a
hearing. Id at p. 2.
Each of the other Stipulating Parties Eschelon, Covad, TDS Metrocom and
McLeodUSA, has authorized Qwest to file the 2007 Stipulation and jointly
requests with Qwest the applicable changes be implemented in each state.
10.Summary of Agreed Upon Changes
The revisions include several provisions that do not apply in some states; for
convenience, a summary of the portions only applicable to Idaho are provided:
As in past filings, Qwest submits "clean" and "red-lined" versions of both
the PID and the PAPin which redlines appear on the document that is currently in effect.
NOTICE OF 2007 STIPULATION /JOINT MOTION
Page 3 of 6
a. Eliminate resale DSL from PIDs and Modify PID and PAP references to
Qwest DSL.
b. Change the MR-ll PID title to "LNP Trouble Reports Cleared within
Specified Timeftames.
c. Update the PID references to unbundled 2-wire non-loaded loop and
unbundled ISDN capable loop disaggregations to reflect the retail
analogue of ISDN BRI "(designed)," which is how Qwest has historically
measured these products.
d. Update PO-20 to reflect it is fully implemented by making PID and PAP
revisions specified in the 2007 Stipulation.
e. Remove the PIDs specified in the 2007 Stipulation ftom PAP payment
mechanisms to the extent they currently are included in a specific state
PAP, subject to a Reinstatement/Removal process. Also, add a root cause
analysis provision.
f. Add exclusion to MR-6 PID that allows No Trouble Found (NTF) and
Test Okay (TOK) trouble reports to be removed when the ticket's duration
is one hour or less.
g. Change the standard for BI-3A PID to a 98% benchmark and add a
provision to the PAP for the BI-3A PAP payment calculation, creating a
tiered structure of per occurrence amounts and modifying the per
measurement cap for the sub-measure.
h. Add one allowable miss provision to the PAP for individual CLEC results
when the CLEC aggregate results have met the standard.
i. Revise the PAP to change the flat minimum payment amount of $2000
($300/$600 in Minnesota) with a tiered minimum payment approach that
establishes a relationship between the monthly PAP payment and the
required minimum payment amount.
J. Remove the following list of product disaggregations ftom all applicable
OP and MR PIDs in the 13 state PAPs:
Resale Centrex; Resale Centrex 21; Resale DSO; E9l1/911 Trunks;
Resale Frame Relay; Resale Basic ISDN; Resale Primary ISDN;
Resale PBX; Sub-loop Unbundling; UNE-P POTS; UNE-
Centrex; and UNE-P Centrex 21.
k. Eliminate six-month cap on Tier 1 escalation payment amounts in several
states' PAPs , including Idaho , so that payments will continue to increase
NOTICE OF 2007 STIPULATION /JOINT MOTION
Page 4 of 6
in the event the payment level indicator increases beyond payment level 6.
Additional Administrative Change
11.In addition to the agreed upon changes described in the 2007 Stipulation, Qwest
also removed MR-12 from the PAP as illustrated in the attached Exhibits 2 and 3
provided the other Stipulating Parties with the opportunity to review this deletion
and no comments, concerns or objections were noted. Qwest initiated the change
because the MR -12 PID was eliminated prior to the initial approval of the PAP
but references remained in the text through administrative error.
PID/P AP Change Information Provided to CLECs
12.Additionally, Qwest will post a summary of all of the changes to its website and
provide information regarding the anticipated PID and PAP changes by electronic
mail, to CLECs in its region.
The Stipulating Parties, respectfully request that the Commission accept the 2007
Stipulation describing proposed changes to the PAP and PID, apply the changes to any
interconnection agreements containing the PAP , and allow the PID to go into effect no
later than 60 days after this submission in accordance with 47 U.C. 9 252(f)(3).
DATED this 26th day of June, 2007.
Respectfully submitted
Mary S. H son (ISE. No. 2142)
999 Main. Suite 1103
Boise, ID 83702
Adam L. Sherr
Corporate Counsel, Qwest
1600 7th Avenue, Room 3206
Seattle, WA 98191
Attorneys for Qwest Corporation
NOTICE OF 2007 STIPULATION /JOINT MOTION
Page 5 of 6
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
I do hereby certify that a true and correct copy of the foregoing NOTICE OF
STIPULATION REGARDING CERTAIN PERFORMANCE INDICATOR
DEFINITIONS AND QWEST PERFORMANCE ASSURANCE PLAN
PROVISIONS AND JOINT MOTION ON BEHALF OF THE STIPULATING
PARTIES TO ACCEPT SAME was served on the 26th day of June, 2007 as follows:
Jean D. Jewell Hand DeliveryIdaho Public Utilities Commission U. S. Mail
472 West Washington Street Overnight DeliveryO. Box 83720 Facsimile
Boise, ill 83702 Email
Telephone [phone]
Facsimile: [phone]
i iewell~puc.state.id.
Mary S. H son
Attorney r Qwest Corporation
NOTICE OF 2007 STIPULATION /JOINT MOTION
Page 6 of 6
EXHIBIT
2007 Stipulation
Stipulation Regarding Certain Performance Indicator Definitions and the Qwest
Performance Assurance Plan Provisions
Qwest Corporation ("Qwest") , Eschelon Telecom, Inc. ("Eschelon ), DIECA Communications, Inc.
d/b/a Covad Communications Company ("Covad"), US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom ("TDS Metrocom
and McLeod USA Telecommunications Services , Inc. ("McLeod USA") (collectively, the "Stipulating Parties
and individually a "Party ) have participated in a series of discussions regarding the current 14-State 271
Performance Indicator Definitions ("PID") and the state Performance Assurance Plans ("PAPs
" ).
The discussions have resulted in several agreements regarding certain items impacting
the PIDs and the PAPs (the agreements together are known as the "2007 Stipulation" or this
Stipulation ). The agreements are reflected in the red lined Exhibit B and Exhibit K reviewed as part of
the Stipulating Parties' discussions and to be filed concurrently with the 2007 Stipulation.
Qwest notified CLECs in each of the 14 states of the opportunity to participate in the
discussions.
Each of the State Commission staffs in the 14-state region was notified.
During the discussions, the Stipulating Parties agreed to modify their positions and seek
a fair resolution that continues to serve the public interest. While at anyone time , all participants may not
have specifically agreed with a particular item or items , each participant has participated in the
negotiations, the drafting and finalization of this document and has either executed the 2007 Stipulation or
agreed to remain neutral. The Stipulating Parties then together recommend that the applicable terms of
this Stipulation be approved in each state within the 14-state region that includes Arizona, Colorado
Iowa, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana , Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon , South Dakota, Utah,
Washington and Wyoming. The Stipulating Parties have entered into this 2007 Stipulation with the intent
that it be submitted to each of the commissions and be implemented in Qwest's 14-state region.
To encourage timely implementation of this stipulation, each Stipulating Party agrees to
cooperate in and support the process of submitting this agreement to and receiving a ruling from each
state commission in which the Stipulating Party is certified within the 14-state region without the need for
2007 Stipulation
Page 1 of 12
a hearing. Qwest will ask the state commissions, if and when this 2007 Stipulation and the amended
PID/PAP is approved by a state commission to order that the approved changes to the PID/PAP will
amend Exhibits Band K to the agreements of all CLECs that include either Exhibit, as set forth in the
redlined Exhibits Band K. For purposes of this Stipulation , Stipulating CLECs will not oppose Qwest's
request. If, any state commission does not approve this 2007 Stipulation in its entirety or any state
commission denies Qwest's request to amend CLEC agreements as described , the Stipulating Parties
agree that any Party may rescind this 2007 Stipulation as to that particular state.
Agreements Applicable to all 14 States
A. Eliminate Resale DSL from pros and Modifv PID and PAP References to Qwest DSL6. As a result of the Federal Communications Commission s ("FCC") Broadband Order
between January 28,2006 and November 16, 2006, Qwest grandfathered its retail DSL tariffed product
offerings.2 Beginning November 17, 2006, those DSL products were no longer offered for purchase
under the tariff.
The Stipulating Parties have agreed that resold DSL product offerings, as information
services, will be removed from all PIDs. Additionally, for the remaining wholesale products that are
currently subject to a parity evaluation with retail Qwest DSL service, the Stipulating Parties have agreed
to new retail analogues.
PID and PAP Revisions:
Though the agreement regarding resale DSL applies in each of the 14 states, some revisions to the PAPs
are not applicable in every state; specific state applicability is noted when the change does not impact all
14 states. The revised PID and PAP changes include:
In the Matters of Appropriate Framp;workfor Broadband Access to the Internet over Wireline Facilities;
Universal Service Obligations of Broadband Providers; Review of Regulatory Requirements for Incumbent LEC
Broadband Telecommunications Services; Computer III Further Remand Proceedings: Bell Operating Company
Provision IJf Enhanced Services; 1998 Biennial Regulatory Revip;w Review of Computer III and DNA Safeguards
and Requirements; Conditional Petition of the Verizon Telephone Companies for Forbearance Under 47 USe.
160(c) with Regard to Broadband Services Provided Via Fiber to the Premises; Petition of the Verizon Telephone
Companies for Declaratory Ruling or, Alternatively, for Interim Waiver with Regard to Broadband Services
Provided Via Fiber to the Premises; Consumer Protection in the Broadband Era, Report and Order and Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking, 20 FCC Rcd 14853 (2005), pets for rev. pending, sub nom. Time Warner Telecom v. FCC
No. 05-4769 (and consolidated cases) (3rd Cir. Filed Oct. 26, 2005)(Broadband Order).2 QC's tariff FCC No.1 Section 8.99.4 was changed to specify that the DSL products were only available to
existing customers.
2007 Stipulation
Page 2 of 12
Deletion of pre-order transaction "Resale of Qwest DSL Qualification" from the PO-1 (Pre-
Order/Order Response Times) PID and Appendix A of the Minnesota PAP ("MPAP"
Deletion of the Resale DSL product disaggregation from all PIDs and Appendix A of the MPAP
(Product disaggregations are not specified in the other state PAPs).
Updating the retail analogue for Line Sharing and Line Splitting product disaggregations to "retail
RES and BUS POTS" in all OP and MR measures where the current retail analogue is "Qwest
DSL.
Updating the retail analogue for xDSL-1 Capable Loops to "retail DS1 Private Line" in the OP-
MR-, MR-, MR-, MR-7 and MR-8 measures where the current retail analogue is "Qwest DSL"
or "Qwest !DSL.
Updating the retail analogue for xDSL-1 Capable Loops to "retail ISDN BRI (designed)" in the OP-
6 measure where the current retail analogue is "Qwest DSL, with dispatch.
Updating the retail analogue for ADSL Qualified Loops to "retail ISDN BRI (designed)" in all OP
and MR measures where the current retail analogue is "Qwest DSL.
Deletion of "megabit resale" from the Low Volume , Developing Markets section of the AZ, ID , lA
, NE , NM, ND , OR , SO , UT, WA and WY PAPs.
Deletion of references to "DSL" in Appendices A and B in the Colorado PAP ("CPAP") and MPAP.
Application of Chanqes:In addition to the PID and PAP changes, the Stipulating Parties
have also agreed to retroactively apply the changes to performance and payment results of each PAP
following commission adoption/approval of the 2007 Stipulation subject to the following
conditions/limitations:
If Commission adoption/approval is received on or before August 31 2007, Qwest will apply
retroactively from the effective date of the commission order adopting/approving the 2007
Stipulation for a maximum of six months but no earlier than December 2006 results.
If Commission adoption/approval is received after August 31, 2007, changes will apply on a going
forward basis only.
For CO and MN: Tier 1A - Six Month Retail Average will be modified as follows:
2007 Stipulation
Page 3 of 12
Qwest will begin collection of the new retail analogue data effective with December 06
data. Therefore retail results will not be based on a full six month average until June 07
results. Until six months of data are available, the retail average will be based on as
many months as are available.
B. Update PID MR-11 Title10. During the 2003 Audit of the CPAP , the auditor found that the MR-11 title, "LNP Trouble
Reports Cleared within 24 Hours," was inappropriate, given that MR-11A measures trouble reports
cleared within four hours and MR-11 B measures trouble reports cleared within 48 hours.
11 .Stipulating Parties have agreed to change the MR-11 PID title to "LNP Trouble Reports
Cleared within Specified Timeframes.
12.PID and PAP Revisions:
The revised PID and PAP changes include:
Updating the title of MR-11 in the PID.
Updating the title of MR-11 in Section 3.2 and Attachment 1 in the AZ, ID , lA, MT, NE , ND, OR
, UT and WY PAPs.
Updating the title of MR-11 in Section 3.2 and Appendices A and B in the CPAP.
Updating the title of MR-11 in Section 3.2 and Appendix A in the MPAP.
Updating the title of MR-11 in Section 3.2 and Attachments 1 and 3 in the NM and WA PAPs.
C. Clarify Retail AnaloQue for Unbundled 2-wire Non-Loaded and ISDN Capable Loops13. During the ROC PAP Audit, the auditor found that OP-5A used ISDN BRI retail orders
following the designed provisioning flow as the retail analogue for Unbundled 2-wire Non-Loaded Loops
and Unbundled ISDN Capable Loops. The auditor found that Qwest should consider making a clarifying
change to the PID.
14.Stipulating Parties have agreed to update the Unbundled 2-wire Non-Loaded Loop and
Unbundled ISDN Capable Loop product disaggregations to consistently reflect when the retail analogue
of ISDN BRI is limited to orders/tickets following the designed flow by specifying "ISDN BRI (designed)" in
See Appendix A of the Final Report on the Audit ofQwest's Perfonnance Assurance Plans , Prepared for: The
Qwest Regional Oversight Committee, By: The Liberty Consulting Group, dated October 28 2005
Recommendation 8 page 121.
2007 Stipulation
Page 4 of 12
the applicable OP and MR PIDs. Qwest has represented that this change reflects the way Qwest has
historically applied the retail analogue to these products. Stipulating Parties' agreement to update the
PID does not indicate any agreement by the Stipulating Parties as to whether this historical application is
appropriate.
15.PID and PAP Revisions:
No PAP changes result from this agreement. The OP-, OP-, OP-5A, OP-6, OP-, MR-, MR-, MR-
MR-7 and MR-8 measurements have been updated in the PID.
D. Modifv PO-20 to Reflect Implementation of Expanded Measure16. When the last version of the PID document was issued, the PO-20 measure had future
phases defined and the potential to include additional CLEC-specified Feature Detail Field Identifiers
("FIDs ) or Blocking Type entries. All PO-20 phases have been implemented without further CLEC
identification of additional FIDs or blocking entries.
17.Stipulating Parties have agreed to update PO-20 to reflect that it is fully implemented.
Further, the Stipulating Parties acknowledge that the absence of proposals to modify the PO-20 PID in
conjunction with the implementation of Phase IV in no way forecloses any party s ability to submit
subsequent PID change proposals to modify the PO-20 PID in the future.
18.PID and PAP Revisions:
The revised PID and PAP changes include:
Updated Availability Section to simply reflect Available and deleted Phase specific
implementation dates in the PID.
Updated Standard Section to remove standards for completed phases in the PID.
Removed Phase references in the LSR-Service Order Fields Evaluated table in the PID.
Removed the FEATURE DETAIL and BLOCK (Stage 2) entries referring to CLEC proposed
additions in the PID.
Deleted Stabilization Period references in Attachment 1 in the AZ , ID, lA, MT, NE , NM, ND, OR
, UT , WA and WY PAPs.
Deleted PO-20 from Appendix B in the CPAP and MPAP.
2007 Stipulation
Page 5 of 12
E. Remove PIDs from PAPs Subject to a Reinstatement/Removal Process19. The Reinstatement/Removal process , included in this Stipulation , removes PIDs from
being subject to a PAP's payment mechanism while providing an ongoing evaluation of the PID'
performance to ensure that, if warranted, under the terms of the process, the PID will be reinstated as
subject to PAP payments. The process also provides terms for evaluating performance after
reinstatement to qualify for subsequent removal and a root-cause analysis process for evaluation of PIDs.
20.Stipulating Parties have agreed to remove the the GA-, GA-, GA-, PO-, PO-3, PO-
, PO-, PO-, PO-, OP-, OP-, MR-, BI-, NI-, NP-, and CP-3 PIDs, to the extent they
currently are included in a specific state s PAP. Removal in a state specific PAP is specifically subject to
the Reinstatement/Removal process.
21.PID and PAP Revisions:
The revised PID and PAP changes include:
Addition of Reinstatement/Removal provisions in Section 3 of the AZ, ID, lA, MN , MT, NE, NM
, OR, SO, UT, WA and WY PAPs.
Revision of Reinstatement/Removal provisions in Section 3 and Appendix A of the CPAP.
Addition of the root cause analysis provision in Section 16 of the AZ, ID , lA, MT, NE, NM, ND,
, SO , UT, WA and WY PAPs.
Addition of the root cause analysis provision in Section 18 of the MPAP.
F. Modifications to MR-6 and BI-22. Stipulating Parties have agreed to add an exclusion to the MR-6 PID that allows No
Trouble Found ("NTF") and Test Okay ("TOK") trouble reports to be removed when the ticket's duration is
one hour or less. Stipulating Parties agreed to modify BI-3A. The BI-3A standard will be changed to a
98% benchmark, the PAP payment calculation will be revised by creating a tiered structure of per
occurrence amounts, and the per measure cap for the sub-measure will be modified.
23.PID and PAP Revisions:
The revised PID and PAP changes include:
Addition of an exclusion to MR-6 that allows NTF and TOK trouble reports to be removed when
the ticket's duration is one hour or less in the PIO.
Changing the BI-3A standard to 98% jn the PID.
2007 Stipulation
Page 6 of 12
Addition of a new provision describing payment calculation for BI-3A including a new table
defining the Per Occurrence and Per Measure Cap amounts in the PAPs.
Revision to existing PAP provisions to account for the BI-3A changes.
II. Agreements Applicable to all States excluding CO
A. One Allowable Miss for Benchmark and Non-interval Parity Measures24. Stipulating Parties have agreed to add a one allowable miss provision for benchmark and
non-interval parity measurements where 100% performance would otherwise be required to meet the
standard in cases where the CLEC aggregate results have met the standard. The one allowable miss
provision will also apply if the CLEC aggregate results have not met the standard , but would require
100% performance to meet the standard and with one allowable miss at the CLEC aggregate level would
result in CLEC aggregate results meeting the standard.
25.PID and PAP Revisions:
The PID does not have any associated changes. The revised PAP changes include:
Addition of One Allowable Miss in Section 3.2 of the PAPs.
Revisions to existing PAP provisions to account for the addition of the One Allowable Miss
provision.
B. Modifv Minimum Payment Provisions26. Stipulating Parties have agreed to change the minimum payment provision replacing the
flat minimum payment amounts of $300/$600 (MN) and $2000 (the 12 remaining states) with a tiered
minimum payment approach that establishes a relationship between the monthly PAP payment and the
required minimum payment amount. Moreover, the parties have agreed to replace the monthly minimum
payment approach and CLEC certification process in MN with the annual minimum payment
determination applicable to the other 12 states.
27.PID and PAP Revisions:
The PID does not have any associated changes. The revised PAP changes include:
Revision to Section 6.3 in the AZ PAP.
Revison to Section 6.4 in the ID, lA, MT, NE , NM , ND, OR, SO , UT, WA and WY PAPs.
Revision to Section 9 in the MPAP.
2007 Stipulation
Page 7 of 12
28.Application of Chanqes:In addition to the PAP changes resulting from the agreed upon
modification, the Stipulating Parties have also agreed to retroactively apply the changes following
commission adoption/approval subject to the following:
Qwest will apply the revised minimum payment terms retroactively to include all 12 months
included in the annual minimum payment determination made in December 2007 except that in
Minnesota
The increased amount of any monthly payment resulting from the current MN minimum
payment provision will be excluded when determining the annual minimum payment
amount under the revised minimum payment provision.
The portion of any monthly payment attributable to the current MN minimum payment
provision will be used to reduce any additional annual payment due under the revised
minimum payment provision. Should total of such amounts exceed the additional annual
payment amount, the difference will be treated as a MN overpayment to the CLEC.
C. Remove Low Volume Products from the PAP29. Stipulating Parties have agreed to remove the following list of product disaggregations
from all the applicable OP and MR PIDs in 13 state PAPs. The results for these product disaggregations
will continue to be reported in the 271 performance reports.
Resale Centrex
Resale Centrex 21
Resale DSO--Non-Designed and Designed
E911/911 Trunks
Resale Frame Relay
Resale Basic ISDN--Non-Designed and Designed
Resale Primary ISDN--Non-Designed and Designed
Resale PBX--Non-Designed and Designed
Sub-Loop Unbundling
UNE-P POTS
UNE-P Centrex
UNE-P Centrex 21
30.PID and PAP Revisions:
The PID does not have any associated changes. The revised PAP changes include:
2007 Stipulation
Page 8 of 12
Modifying Section 10 (all states except MN) to remove UNE-P POTS.
Addition of footnote in Attachment 1 in all states except MN specifying the exclusion of the list of
product disaggregations.
Removing the Sub-Loop Unbundling product disaggregation from Attachment 3 in the NM and
WA PAPs.
Removing the product disaggregations from Appendix A in the MPAP.
Addition of notes in Appendix 8 in the MPAP specifying the exclusion for the list of product
disaggregations.
III. Agreement Applicable to MT, NE, NM, SD, UT, WA, and WY Only
A. Modify Tier 2 Payment Provisions31. Stipulating Parties have agreed to adopt the MT Tier 2 provision. Under the provision
Tier 2 payments will be based on the number of performance measurements exceeding the critical z-
value for three consecutive months unless there have been two misses in any three consecutive months
during the last 12 months. If there have been two misses in any three consecutive months during the last
12 months, Tier 2 payments will be triggered by either two consecutive months' misses (for PIDs that are
classified as both Tier 1 and Tier 2) or the current month's miss (for PIDs that are Tier 2 only). Qwest has
represented that this change reflects the way Qwest has historically applied this provision in Montana.
Stipulating Parties' agreement to update the Tier 2 provision does not indicate any agreement by the
Stipulating Parties as to whether this historical application is appropriate.
32.PID and PAP Revisions:
The PID does not have any associated changes. The revised PAP changes include:
Revising Sections 7.3 and 9 in the NE, NM, SO, UT, WA, and WY PAPs to reflect when Tier 2
payments are required and how they are calculated.
Correcting Section 9 in the MT PAP to achieve consistency with MT Section 7.
IV. Agreement Applicable to CO, ID, MN , ND, OR, UT and WA Only
A. Modify Escalation and CLEC Not Opted In Provisions in the PAP33. Stipulating Parties have agreed to modify MPAP escalation language to make it
consistent with the OR PAP. They have also agreed to eliminate the six-month cap on Tier 1 escalation
2007 Stipulation
Page 9 of 12
payment amounts in CO, ID, MN, ND , OR , UT and WA, so that payments will continue to increase in the
event the payment level indicator increases beyond payment level 6. Additionally, the MPAP is being
revised to remove Section 10.3 and reflect that 100% of Tier 1 payments will be made only to those
CLECs that have opted into the MPAP.
34.PID and PAP Revisions:
The PID does not have any associated changes. The revised PAP changes include:
Revision to Section 8 in the MPAP.
Eliminating Sections 10.2 and 10.3 in the MPAP.
Uncapping Table 4 in Section 8 and revising language in Appendix A, Tier 1C Billing in the CPAP.
Uncapping Table 2 in Section 6 in the ID, ND, OR and WA PAPs.
Uncapping and eliminating redundancy in Table 2A in Section 6 in the WA PAP.
Uncapping "Per Measurement Cap" portion of Table 2 in Section 6 and removing 6.1 language
splitting escalation payments between CLEC and Tier 2 fund in the UT PAP.
V. Agreement Applicable to AZ and MN Only
A. Modifv Data Retention Provision in the AZ and MN PAPs35. Stipulating Parties have agreed to revise the data retention requirements in the AZ and
MN PAPs from a total of six years to three years with the data being stored in an easy-to-access
electronic form for one year after the performance reports have been produced and for an additional two
years in an archived format
36.PID and PAP Revisions:
The PID does not have any associated changes. The revised PAP changes include:
Revision to Section 15.6 in the AZ PAP to reduce data retention requirements from six to three
years.
Revision to Section 13.1 in the MPAP to reduce data retention requirements from six to three
years.
Deletion of Section 14.4 in the MPAP.
2007 Stipulation
Page 10 of 12
VI. Agreements Applicable to MN Only
A. Eliminate Severity Provisions in the MPAP37. Stipulating Parties have agreed to eliminate the severity provisions in the MPAP.
38.riD and PAP Revisions:
The PID does not have any associated changes. The revised MPAP changes include:
Deletion of Section 7.4.
Revision of Appendix A to remove the severity provision related to OP-13A.
Revisions to other existing provisions to account for deletion of severity.
B. Modify the Electronic Flow- Throuqh (PO-2) Provisions and Remove Interface Versions Availability
(PO-18) from the MPAP39. Stipulating Parties have agreed to remove PO-2A and PO-18 from the MPAP and to
modify the payment structure for PO-2B so that payments are calculated at the rate of $2000 for each
5% that the performance differs from its standard , not to exceed $16 000 per product disaggregation.
40,PID and PAP Revisions:
The revised PID and PAP changes include:
Correction to the PO-2A Standard, Availability and Notes Sections in the PID.
Update Appendices A and B to reflect elimination of PO-2A and change in payment calculation
amounts for PO-2B.
Update Appendices A and B to remove PO-18.
2007 Stipulation
Page 11 of 12
This Stipulation may be executed in counterparts including signatures by facsimile. So we all have
stipulated as of the day of 2007.
Owest Corporation
Chris Viveros
Director - Regulatory Compliance
Owest Services Corporation
c/o Regulatory Compliance
1801 California St, 22nd Floor
Denver, CO 80202
Eschelon Telecom, Inc.
Ginny Zeller
Associate General Counsel
Eschelon Telecom , Inc.
730 Second Avenue S., Suite 900
Minneapolis, MN 55402
Dieca Communications, Inc. d/b/a Covad Communications Company
Gregory Diamond
Senior Counsel
Covad Communications Company
7901 Lowry Blvd.
Denver, CO 80230
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
Kathy Barnekow
Director Carrier Relations
US Link , Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
525 Junction Road , Suite 3000
Madison , WI 53717
McLeod USA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
William A. Haas
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel
McleodUSA Telecommunications Services , Inc.
One Martha s Way
Hiawatha, IA 52233
2007 Stipulation
Page 12 of 12
This Stipulation may be executed in counterparts including signatures by facsimile. So we all have
stipulated as of the day of J LJ 2007.
Qwest Corporation
Chris Viveros
Director - Regulatory Compliance
Qwest Services Corporation
c/o Regulatory Compliance
1801 California St, 22nd Floor
Denver, CO 80202
Eschelon Telecom, Inc,
Ginny Zeller
Associate General Counsel
Eschelon Telecom , Inc.
730 Second Avenue S., Suite 900
Minneapolis. MN 55402
Dieca Communications , Inc. d/b/a Covad Communications Company
Gregory Diamond
Senior Counsel
Covad Communications Company
7901 Lowry Blvd.
Denver, CO 80230
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
Kathy Barnekow
Director Carrier Relations
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
525 Junction Road, Suite 3000
Madison , WI 53717
McLeod USA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
William A. Haas
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel
McleodUSA Telecommunications Services , Inc.
One Martha s Way
Hiawatha. IA 52233
2007 Stipulation
Page 12 of 12
This Stipulation may be executed in counterparts including signatures by facsimile. So we all have
stipulated as of the
~.__.~~-
day of 2007.
Owest Corporation
Chris Viveros
Director - Regulatory Compliance
Owest Services Corporation
c/o Regulatory Compliance
1801 California St, 22nd Floor
Denver, CO 80202
Eschelon Telecom, Inc.
~~---'-'
Ginny Zeller
....---~
Associate General CouP
~ "" \,
Eschelon Telecom, ~nc/
730 Second Avenue , Suite 900
Minneapolis, MN 5:5:4(1'2
DIECA Communications, Inc. d/b/a Co/ad Communications Company"'1
~egory Di~lrl1
~~-=~~".;,.
Senior Counsel
Covad Communications Company
7901 Lowry Blvd.
Denver, CO 80230
US Link, lnG, d/b/a TDS Metrocom
Kathy Barnekow
Director Carrier Relations
US Link, lnG, d/b/a TDS Metrocom
525 Junction Road. Suite 3000
Madison, WI 53717
McLeodUSA Telecommunications Services. Inc.
William A. Haas
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel
McleodUSA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
One Martha s Way
Hiawatha, IA 52233
PMP Stipulation
Page 12 of 12
This Stipulation may be executed in counterparts including signatures by facsimile. So we all have
stipulated as of the /'Sv...r-..day of --:::.f'"~2007.
Qwest Corporation
Chris Viveros
Director - Regulatory Compliance
Qwest Services Corporation
c/o Regulatory Compliance
1801 California St , 22nd Floor
Denver, CO 80202
Eschelon Telecom , Inc.
Ginny Zeller
Associate General Counsel
Eschelon Telecom, Inc.
730 Second Avenue S., Suite 900
Minneapolis, MN 55402
Dieca Communications, Inc. d/b/a Covad Communications Company
Gregory Diamond
Senior Counsel
Cavad Communications Company
7901 Lowry Blvd.
Denver, CO 80230
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
1r~~~
Director Carrier Relations
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
525 Junction Road, Suite 3000
Madison, WI 53717
McLeod USA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
William A. Haas
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel
McleodUSA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
One Martha s Way
Hiawatha, lA 52233
2007 Stipulation
Page 12 of 12
This Stipulation may be executed in counterparts including signatures by facsimile. So we all have
stipulated as of the day of 2007.
Qwest Corporation
Chris Viveros
Director - Regulatory Compliance
Qwest Services Corporation
c/o Regulatory Compliance
1801 California St, 22nd Floor
Denver, CO 80202
Eschelon Telecom, Inc.
Ginny Zeller
Associate General Counsel
Eschelon Telecom, Inc.
730 Second Avenue S., Suite 900
Minneapolis MN 55402
Dieca Communications, Inc. d/b/a Covad Communications Company
Jason Wakefield
. Director of Regulatory & Operational Affairs
Covad Communications Company
110 Rio Robles
San Jose, CA 95134
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
Kathy Barnekow
Director Carrier Relations
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
525 Junction Road, Suite 3000
Madison, WI 53717
McLeodUSA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
i~ 14~Wi lam A. Haas
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel
McleodUSA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
One Martha s Way
Hiawatha, IA 52233
PMP Stipulation
Page 12 of 12
This Stipulation may be executed in counterparts including signatures by facsimile. So we all have
stipulated as of the day of 2007.
Qwest Corporation
Chris Viveros
Director - Regulatory Compliance
Qwest Services Corporation
c/o Regulatory Compliance
1801 California St, 22nd Floor
Denver, CO 80202
Eschelon Telecom , Inc.
Ginny Zeller
Associate General Counsel
Eschelon Telecom, Inc.
730 Second Avenue S., Suite 900
Minneapolis, MN 55402
Dieca Communications , Inc. d/b/a Covad Communications Company
Gregory Diamond
Senior Counsel
Covad Communications Company
7901 Lowry Blvd.
Denver, CO 80230
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
Kathy Barnekow
Director Carrier Relations
US Link, Inc. d/b/a TDS Metrocom
525 Junction Road, Suite 3000
Madison, WI 53717
McLeodUSA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
William A. Haas
Vice President and Deputy General Counsel
McleodUSA Telecommunications Services, Inc.
One Martha s Way
Hiawatha , IA 52233
2007 Stipulation
Page 12 of 12
EXHIBIT 2
PAP - Redlined
Exhibit K
PERFORMANCE ASSURANCE PLAN
Introduction
As set forth in this Agreement, Qwest and CLEC voluntarily agree to the
I terms of the following Performance Assurance Plan ("PAP"
),
initially prepared in
conjunction with Qwest's application for approval under Section 271 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 (the "Act") to offer in-region long distance service
and subsequentlv modified in accordance with the Commission s orders and , where
applicable. by operation of law
- - -
i Formatted: Font: (Default) Arial
Plan Structure
The PAP is a two-tiered, self-executing remedy plan. CLEC shall be provided
with Tier 1 payments if, as applicable , Qwest does not provide parity between the
service it provides to CLEC and that which it provides to its own retail customers, or
Qwest fails to meet applicable benchmarks.
1 As specified in section 7., if Qwest fails to meet parity and benchmark
standards on an aggregate CLEC basis , Qwest shall make Tier 2 payments to a
Fund established by the state regulatory commission or, if required by existing law, to
the state general fund.
As specified in sections 6.0 and 7.0 and Attachments 1 and 2, payment is
generally on a per occurrence basis, (i.e., a set dollar payment times the number of
non-conforming service events). For the performance measurements which do not
lend themselves to per occurrence payment, payment is on a per measurement
basis, (i.e., a set dollar payment). The level of payment also depends upon the
number of consecutive months of non-conforming performance , (i.e., an escalating
payment the longer the duration of non-conforming performance) unless otherwise
specified
Qwest shall be in conformance with the parity standard when service Qwest
provides to CLEC is equivalent to that which it provides to its retail customers. The
PAP relies upon statistical scoring to determine whether any difference between
CLEC and Qwest performance results is significant, that is , not attributable to simple
random variation. Statistical parity shall exist when performance results for CLEC
and for Qwest retail analogue result in a z-value that is no greater than the critical z-
I values listed in the Critical Z-Statistical Table in section 5.
2.4 For performance measurements that have no Qwest retail analogue , agreed
upon benchmarks shall be used. Benchmarks shall be evaluated using a "stare and
compare" method. For example, if the benchmark is for a particular performance
measurement is 95% or better, Qwest performance results must be at least 95% to ~ Deleted: Fifth
~ Deleted: November 30
~ Deleted: 4II,
Qwest Idaho SGA T Third Revised ,Sixth t.rn_n~!?g _E2'bLblt
~,
.June 26,?QQl,. - - -
- - - - - - - - ,j: /
1 Stipulation Issue LF: BI-3A.
Exhibit K
meet the benchmark. Percentage benchmarks will be adjusted to round the
allowable number of misses up or down to the closest integer, except when a
benchmark standard and low CLEC volume are such that a 100% performance result
:~c~:~n b ~~~1
~~~~ ~h~ ~~~~dar~ - ~~~ - ~a
- ~~~ _
~~~ - ~~~i
~~~
- ~n
- ~_~~~ ~~~~- - - -
Deleted: In such a situation, the
determination of whether Owest
meets or fails the benchmark
standard will be made using
performance results for the month in
question, plus a sufficient number of
The performance measurements that are in the PAP and either (1 Lsubiect to consecutive months so that a 100%
PAP PAP performance result would not bepaymen mec amsms or no su lec 0 paymen mec amsms
'-
required to meet the standard. Forbut subject to the ReinstatemenURemoval Process set forth in section 3.2 below are \ purpos?s of section 6., a meet or fail
jdentified in Attachl1lent and sections 6.. and 7.4 . Each performance
, '
~~~e
:t:;~~d
~~g
~:I~;~~~~ure shall
measurement identified is defined in the Performance Indicator Definitions (IPIDs
) \ \
Deleted: included
cll!c!e.c! Ln- theJ)(3A -r: 91 ~~~LbJtJ~,- - - - - - - - - - - u - -
- - - - - - - -
u u - - u U - - - - - - u
\ '
Deleted: in the PAP
Deleted: set forth1 On Attachment 1. he measurements have been desJgn.ate as Tler
,~, "
Tier 2 or both Tier 1 and Tier 2 and iven a Hi Medium or Low" Deleted: developed In the R~C
. ', \
Operational Support System ( OSS"designation.
\,
collaborative, and which are
, \
1 Formatted: Indent: Left: 39.6 ptWhere applicable elsewhere in the PAP. this provision modifies other
" '
Deleted:T
provisions and operates as follows: For any Tier 1 or Tier 2 benchmark or
\ '
Formatted: Indent: Left: 39.6 ptnon-interval parity performance sub-measure. Qwest shall apply one Hanging: 39.6 pt
allowable miss to a sub-measure disaaareaation that otherwise would require Formatted: Justified, Indent: Left:100% performance before the performance is considered as non-conformina 39.6 pt, First line: 0 pt
to standard (1) if at the CLEC-aaareaate level. the performance standard is
met or (2) where the CLEC-aaareaate performance must be 100% to meet
the standard, the CLEC-aaareaate performance is conformina after applyina
one allowable miss at that level.4
.. - - -
-1 Formatted: JustifiedThe followina measures. which are listed in Attachment 1 or section 7.4. are
not subject to the payment mechanisms of the PAP: howeyer. they are subject to the
PID ReinstatemenURemoval Process. All other measures listed in Attachment 1.
section 6.3 or section 7.4 are subject to the PAP payment mechanisms. but they are
not subject to the PID RejnstatemenURemoval Process.
Performance Measurements
GA-Gateway Availability EB-
GA-System Availability EXACT
GA-Timely Outaae Resolution followina Software Releases
PO-LSR Rejection Notice Interval
PO-5D Firm Order Confirmations (FOCs) On Time (ASRs for LIS Trunks)
PO-Billina Completion Notification Timeliness
PO-Jeopardy Notice Interval
PO-16 Timely Release Notifications
.. -' -
Formatted: Justified, Indent: Left:
...
37.4 pt, First line: 0 pt
- - -
i Formatted: Justified
t Deleted: Fifth
t Deleted: November 30
~ Deleted: 4II I
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .sixth t\!T1_n9~~LEA1LblU~,.June 26,991.- - -
- - - - - - - -
2 Stipulation Issue II.A.
3 Stipulation Issue I.E.
4 Stipulation Issue II.
Exhibit K
OP-
MR-
BI-
NI-
NP-
Timeliness of Disconnects Associated with LNP Orders
LNP Trouble Re orts Cleared within S ecified Timeframes
Billin Com leteness
Trunk Blockin
NXX Code Activation
PID ReinstatemenURemoval Process:6 If Qwest's performance for any sub-
measure of the PIDs listed in section 3.2 above does not conform to the established
PID standard as set forth in the PAP for three consecutive months, that sub-measure
will be reinstated (Le.. be subiect to the PAP payment mechanisms) subject to the
retroactive payment provision of section 3.2 and subject to the PAP payment
mechanisms effective in the month followinq the three consecutive months. The
determination of whether a PID sub-measure is reinstated is made no later than at
the end of the second month followinq the third consecutive month of non-conforminq
performance. The sub-measure will remain subject to the PAP payment mechanisms
until Qwest's performance for that sub-measure satisfies the established standardsfor three consecutive months. Effective the month followinq such conforminq
performance. the sub-measure will no lonqer be subject to the PAP payment
mechanisms but will continue to be subject to the PID ReinstatemenURemoval
Process. The determination of whether a PID sub-measure is removed from beinq
subject to the PAP payment mechanisms is made no later than the end of the second
month followinq the third consecutive month of conforminq performance. Where
applicable elsewhere in the PAP, this PID ReinstatemenURemoval Process modifies
other provisions and operates as follows:
Disaqqreqation and Reportinq Levels: Performance will be evaluated
at the lowest level of disaqqreqation defined in Exhibit B of the SGAT on a
CLEC-aqqreqated or other-aqqreqated basis such that performance
evaluated for the purposes of administerinq the ReinstatemenURemoval
Process on a statewide or reqionwide level. as applicable per the PID.
Retroactive Payments: To calculate retroactive payments for the sub-
measures reinstated, PAP payment mechanisms will be applied to the three
consecutive months in which the standard was missed. which triqqered
reinstatement. These retroactive payments will be made to applicable CLECs
or the Tier 2 Fund. dependinq upon the tier desiqnation of the PID. at the end
of the third month after the month in which performance triqqered re-
instatement.
5 Stipulation Issue LB.
6 Stipulation Issue I.E.
~ Deleted: Fifth
1 Deleted: November 30
Deleted: 4 'I,
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised ,Sixth t\1!l_n9~g _EAllblt-"~, .June 26 ?QQ1.
- - -- ~-- - - - - - - - ,
Accountinq for Payments: In support of retroactive payments
(section 3.2 above), Qwest will account separately for PAP payments
that would have been made to individual CLECs or to the Tier 2 Fund
for a sub-measure as thouqh it had been subject to the PAP payment
mechanisms, where automatic reinstatement applies. and account
Exhibit K
separately in the same manner for the time between when it is
determined that a sub-measure met the standard for automatic removal
and the effective date of removal (the month followinq the three
consecutive "met" months). With reqard to sub-measures that are
subsequently removed aqain throuqh this process. anv PAP payments
made durinq the three consecutive months which triqqers automatic
removal will not be recovered by Qwest.
Interest: In the case of automatic reinstatement. retroactive
payments will include interest calculated at the prime rate as reported in
the Wall Street Journal from the date a payment would have been
made to the date the payment is actually made.
Trackinq: Qwest will track and report service and payment
results, includinq retroactive and avoided (Le., durinq periods of
removal) PAP payments and the disposition of the avoided payments
on a CLEC, PID sub-measure and aqqreqate basis each month.
Public Website: Qwest will maintain a public website showinq the
-- ' .
PAP status of each PID or sub-measure with respect to the applicability of the
PAP payment mechanisms (Le., reinstated or removed), which eliminates the
requirement to make minas with the Commission to modifv the PAP due to
the application of the PID Reinstatement/Removal Process.
i Formatted: Indent: Left: 39.6 pt
Statistical Measurement
Qwest uses a statistical test, namely the modified "test " for evaluating the
difference between two means (Le., Qwest and CLEC service or repair intervals) or
two percentages (e., Qwest and CLEC proportions), to determine whether a parity
condition exists between the results for Qwest and the CLEC(s). The modified z-
tests shall be applicable if the number of data points are greater than 30 for a given
measurement. For testing measurements for which the number of data points are 30
or less, Qwest will use a permutation test to determine the statistical significance of
the difference between Qwest and CLEC.
Qwest shall be in conformance when the monthly performance results for
parity measurements (whether in the form of means , percents, or proportions and at
the equivalent level of disaggregation) are such that the calculated z-test statistics
are not greater than the critical z-values as listed in Table 1 , section 5.
Qwest shall be in conformance with benchmark measurements when the
monthly performance result equals or exceeds the benchmark, if a higher value
means better performance, and when the monthly performance result equals or is
less than the benchmark if a lower value means better performance.t Deleted: Fifth
1 Deleted: November 30
1 Deleted: 4
I Owest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, .sixth t\1l1.n9~g .x!1Lblt
~,
.June 26, 2QQI... . -. 4-
.. .. ... ;;~ /
Exhibit K
The formula for determining parity using the modified z-test is:
z = DIFF / O"OIFF
Where:
DIFF = Mowest - MCLEC
MOWEST = Qwest average or proportion
MCLEC = CLEC average or proportion
O"OIFF = square root oO"Qwest (11 n CLEC + 11 n Owest))
(fowest = calculated variance for Qwest
nOwest = number of observations or samples used in Qwest
measurement
nCLEC = number of observations or samples used in CLEC
measurement
The modified z-tests will be applied to reported parity measurements that contain
more than 30 data points.
In calculating the difference between Qwest and CLEC performance, the above
formula applies when a larger Qwest value indicates a better level of performance. In
cases where a smaller Qwest value indicates a higher level of performance, the order
is reversed, i.e., MCLEC - MOWEST.
For parity measurements where the number of data points is 30 or less
Qwest will apply a permutation test to test for statistical significance. Permutation
analysis will be applied to calculate the z-statistic using the following logic:
Calculate the modified z-statistic for the actual arrangement of the data
Pool and mix the CLEC and Qwest data sets
Perform the following 1000 times:
Randomly subdivide the pooled data sets into two pools , one the same
size as the original CLEC data set (nCLEC) and one reflecting the
remaining data points, and one reflecting the remaining data points
(which is equal to the size of the original Qwest data set or nOWEST).
Compute and store the modified z-test score (Zs) for this sample.
Count the number of times the z-statistic for a permutation of the data is
greater than the actual modified z-statistic
Compute the fraction of permutations for which the statistic for the rearranged
data is greater than the statistic for the actual samples ~ Deleted: Fifth
1 Deleted: November 30
/ I
i Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised ,Sixth J\1T1_n9f?9 _EXI1Lblt
~,
.June 26, 29Q1 - - -
- ~-- - - - - - - - j;
Exhibit K
If the fraction is greater than a, the significance level of the test, the hypothesis of no
difference is not rejected , and the test is passed. The a shall be .05 when the critical
z value is 1.645 and .15 when the critical z value is 1.04.
Critical Z-Value
The following table shall be used to determine the critical z-value that is
referred to in section 6.0. It is based on the monthly business volume of the CLEC
for the particular performance measurements for which statistic testing is being
performed.
TABLE 1: CRITICAL Z-VALUE
CLEC volume LIS Trunks UDITs All Other
(Sample size)Resale, UBL-DS1 and DS-
04*645
11-150 645 645
151-300
301-600
601-3000
3001 and above
* The 1.04 applies for individual month testing for performance measurements
involving LIS trunks and DS-1 and DS-3 that are UDITs, Resale, or Unbundled
Loops. The performance measurements are OP-3d/e, OP-4d/e, OP-, OP-4/5
MR-5a/b, MR-7d/e, and MR-
For purposes of determining consecutive month misses, 1.645 shall be used. Where
performance measurements disaggregate to zone 1 and zone 2, the zones shall be
combined for purposes of statistical testing.
Tier 1 Payments to CLEC
Tier 1 payments to CLEC shall be made solely for the performance
measurements designated as Tier 1 on Attachment 1. The payment amount for non-
conforming service varies depending upon the designation of performance
measurements as High, Medium , and Low and the duration of the non-conforming
service condition as described below. Non-conforming service is defined in section
~ Deleted: Fifth
~ Deleted: November 30
i Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGA T Third Revised ~ixth t\D1_npt3c:J _x)1Lblt
~,
.June 26,?QQZ, - - -
- ~-- - - - - - - -
Determination of Non-Conforming Measurements: The number of
performance measurements that are determined to be non-conforming and
therefore , eligible for Tier 1 payments, are limited according to the critical z-value
shown in Table 1 , section 5.0. The critical z-values are the statistical standard that
Exhibit K
determines for each CLEC performance measurement whether Qwest has met
parity. The critical z-value is selected from Table 1 according to the monthly CLEC
volume for the performance measurement. For instance, if the CLEC sample size for
that month is 100, the critical z-value is 1.645 for the statistical testing of that parity
performance measurement.
Determination of the Amount of Payment: Tier 1 payments to CLEC, except
I as provided for in sections 3 and 10., are calculated and paid monthly
based on the number of performance measurements exceeding the critical z-value.
Payments will be made on either a per occurrence or per measurement basis
depending upon the performance measurement, using the dollar amounts specified
in Table 2 below. The dollar amounts vary depending upon whether the performance
measurement is designated High, Medium , or Low and escalate depending upon the
number of consecutive months for which Qwest has not met the standard for the
particular measurement.
The escalation of payments for consecutive months of non-conforming
service will be matched month for month with de-escalation of payments for every
month of conforming service. For example, if Qwest has four consecutive monthly
misses" it will make payments that escalate from month 1 to month 4 as shown inTable 2. If, in the next month, service meets the standard , Qwest makes no
payment. A payment "indicator" de-escalates down from month 4 to month 3.
Qwest misses the following month, it will make payment at the month 3 level of Table
2 because that is where the payment "indicator" presently sits. If Qwest misses again
the following month , it will make payments that escalate back to the month 4 level.
The payment level will de-escalate back to the original month 1 level only upon
conforming service sufficient to move the payment "indicator" back to the month
level.
For those performance measurements listed on Attachment 2
I "Performance Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Caps," excludinq BI-3A.
payment to a CLEC in a single month shall not exceed the amount listed in Table 2
I below for the "Per Measurement~" category. For those performance Deleted: p
measurements listed on Atta~~ment 2 as "Performance Measur~ments Subject to Deleted: mPer Measurement Payments If any should be added at a later time.payment to /I Formatted: CenteredCLEC will be the amount set forth in Table 2 below under the section labeled 'Eer
// /
Deleted:-
Measurement CaD.'~.6.
- , - - , -
n - -
, - . , .- . , . -. - _/ //
Formatted: Font: 10 pt9 .
//
Formatted TableTABLE 2: TIER...1 PAYMENTS I9. CLE.C- ~I
~ Formatted: Font: 10 pt
Deleted: and each following month
, ,
Formatted: Font: (Default) Arial, 10
i Formatted: Centered
~ Deleted: Fifth7 Stipulation Issue LF: BI-3A.8 Stipulation Issue LF: BI-3A and Administrative.~ Deleted: November 30
9 Stipulation Issue IV.Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGA T Third Revised, .sixth t\!11_n9~cJ _x!1Lblt
~,
.June 26,?QQl. - - -
- - - - - - - - j;'
Per Occurrence
~.e~i?U!~I!1~~t - - -Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 - tv19Iltl1_.Each
---------------------------------
Group followina
month
after
Month 6
add
100
+-- -, -
-( Formatted: Font: 10 pt
100 +- Formatted: Centered
100., ~,Formatted: Font: 10 pt
~,
Formatted: Centered
- ~Qr~t~ j - - t\!IqnJ~ ? - Jl,4on!h- ~ - - Mo!l!h- 4. - - ~.9!l!h _- - - fy1~!lt)1_6 J Each
~ \
i Formatted: Font: 10 pt
follow~~a
\ '
~I 'Formatted: Centeredmon
" "
after
~"
Formatted: Font: 10 pt
Month 6 \,~: I' Formatted: Centeredadd 'I '
25000--, \\\1 Deleted: and each following month
10 000--, \ ' f Formatted: Font: 10 pt
5 000--1 ,I \
'II ,
I '
6~ij - - For the -SI=3A - oerformance measuremen(1O -the - dollar - Q8Vment amounf fo
'\\~:'~\
non-conformina performance varies dependina upon the Total Bill Adjustment
:"\'
1' \'
", "
Amount for the CLEC. The payment amount is calculated usina Table 2A below by
",,~,
multiplyina the per occurrence a ount times the number of occurrences based on
:,,\'\
the Total Bill Adjustment Amount.f1 capped at the amount shown in the table for that
'~,
Total Bill Adjustment Amount. The escalation of payments for consecutive months as
" '""""
stated in section 6.1 does not apply.
" '':", ',",, ,," ", ", "
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Exhibit K
Hi h
Medium
Low
fer Measurement
.M.e('j~U!~'!1~~t - - -
Group
$150
$ 75
$ 25
$800
$600
$400
$250
$150
$ 50
$500
$300
$100
$600
$400
$200
$700
$500
$300
$25,000
$10 000
$ 5,000
$50,000
$20,000
$10,000
$75 000
$30 000
$15 000
$100,000
$ 40,000
$20,000
$125,000
$ 50,000
$ 25,000
$150,000
$ 60,000
$ 30,000
TABLE 2A: TIER 1 PAYMENTS TO CLECS FOR BI-
Total Bill Adjustment Per Occurrence Cap
Amount Amount
$0 - $0..$..0
$1 - $199.$200
$200 - $999.lli $5.000
$1.000 - $9.999.lli $10.000
$10000 - $49 999.ill $15.000
$50.000 - $99.999.$20 $20.000
$100.000 and over $25 $25.000
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For collocation, CP-2 and CP-4 performance measurements shall be relied
upon for delineation of collocation business rules. For purposes of calculating Tier 1
payments, collocation jobs and collocation feasibility studies that are later than the
due date will have a per day payment applied according to Table 3. The per day
payment will be applied to any collocation job in which the feasibility study is provided
or the collocation installation is completed later than the scheduled date. The
calculation of the payment amount will be performed by applying the per day
1 Formatted: Font color: Auto
~ Deleted: Fifth
" /
1 Deleted: November 30
, ,
1Deleted:4
/,/
I Qwest Idaho SGA T Third Revised, .sixth t\1l1_n9~g _x!1Lblt
~,
.June 26 ?QQI.. - - -:. ~-
- - - - - - - -
10 Stipulation Issue I.F: BI-3A.II rThis will be a permanent footnote.Total Bill Adjustment Amount is determined by subtractin~ the BI-
numerator from the BI-3A denominator as defined in the BI-3 PID formula.
Exhibit K
payment amounts as specified in Table 3. Thus, for days 1 through 10 , the payment
is $150 per day. For days 11 through 20 , the payment is $300 per day and so on.
TABLE 3: TIER-1 COLLOCATION PAYMENTS TO CLECS
Days Late Completion Date Feasibility Study
1 to 10 days $150/day $45/day
11 to 20 days $300/day $90/day
21 to 30 days $450/day $135/day
31 to 40 days $600/day $180/day
More than 40 days 000/day $300/day
I 6.4 A minimum payment calculation shall be performed by Qwest at the end of
each year for each CLEC with annual order volumes of no more than 1 200. The
payment shall be calculated by addinq the applicable minimum payment amount in
Table 4 below. for each month,. in which at least one IJCiyment was- cJLJe - to the CLEC. - - Deleted: multiplying $2 000 by the
To the extent that the actual CLEC payment for the year is jess than the product of "number of
the preceding calculation, Qwest shall make an additional payment equal to the Deleted: s
difference.
TABLE 4: MINIMUM PAYMENTS TO CLECS12
I ~-
Minimum Payment
Total Monthlv Pavment:Amount:
Less than $200
Between $200 and $800 1 500
Between $801 and $1.400 2000
Over $1.400 2500
- -, - - - - - - - - -
Deleted: '11
Tier 2 Payments to the State
Payments to the State shall be limited to the performance measurements
designated in section 7.4 for Tier 2 per measurement payments and in Attachment
for per occurrence payments and which have at least 10 data points each month for
the period payments are being calculated. Similar to the Tier 1 structure, Tier 2
measurements are categorized as High, Medium , and Low and the amount
payments for non-conformance varies according to this categorization.
Determination of Non-Conforming Measurements: The determination of non-
conformance will be based upon the aggregate of all CLEC data for each Tier 2
performance measurement. Non-conforming service is defined in section 4.2 (for
parity measurements) and 4.3 (for benchmark measurements), except that a 1.645
critical z-value shall be used for Tier 2 parity measurements that have Tier ~ Deleted: Fifth
~ Deleted: November 30
~ Deleted: 4
Qwest Idaho SGA T Third Revised .sixth t.rn_n~~g _x)1LbltJ~, .June 26,?QQI. - - -
- ~-- - - - - - - -
;: I
12 Stipulation Issue II.
Exhibit K
counterparts. The critical z-value is the statistical standard that determines for each
performance measurement whether Qwest has met parity.
Determination of the Amount of Payment: Except as provided in section 7.4Tier 2 payments are calculated and paid monthly based on the number
performance measurements failing performance standards for a third consecutive
month, or if two out of three consecutive months in the 12 month period have been
missed, the second consecutive month for Tier 2 measurements with Tier
counterparts. For Tier 2 measurements that do not have Tier 1 counterparts
payments are calculated and paid monthly based on the number of performance
measurements exceeding the critical z-values, identified in section 5., in any single
month. Payment will be made on either a per occurrence or per measurement basis
whichever is applicable to the performance measurement, using the dollar amounts
I specified in Table .a..9!" bl~ .2..~~19~. - !=_xs:~p! 9? J~r9YLd - Ln.. ~~~tion
- ?
A, J~~ - qqlLa! - - - - Deleted: 4
amounts vary depending upon whether the performance measurement is designated - - - Deleted: 5
High, Medium , or Low.
For those Tier 2 measurements listed on Attachment 2 as "Performance
Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Caps " payment to the State in a single
I month shall not exceed the amount listed in Table -2J()r, !h~ :,=~r- ~'te s!J!"~I!l~l1t Cap
- - - -
Deleted: 4
category.
TABLE.2: TIE~2 P~YMENTS STATEFUNDS
Measurement Group
High
$500
Medium
$300
Low
$200
'.- - -
i Deleted: 4
- -, ,
i Deleted:-
i Formatted: Centered
Per Occurrence
, - - -
i Deleted:
$75 000
$30 000
$20,000
t Deleted: Fifth
t Deleted: November 30
1 Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, ,Sixth ~!Tl_e!19~g _XI1Lblt .June 26,?QQ1- - lQ-
- - - - - - j/
7.4 Performance Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Payment:Thefollowing Tier 2 performance measurements shall have their performance results
measured on a region-wide (14 state) basis. Failure to meet the performancestandard, therefore, will result in a per measurement payment in each of the Qwest
in-region 14 states adopting this PAP. The performance measurements are:
GA-1: Gateway Availability - IMA-GUI
GA-2: Gateway Availability - IMA-EDI
GA-3: Gateway Availability - EB-
GA-4: System Availability - EXACT
Exhibit K
GA-
PO-
OP-
Center
MR-2: Calls Answered within Twenty Seconds - Interconnect Repair Center
GA-1 has two sub-measurements: GA-1 A, and GA-1 D. PO-1 shall have two sub-
measurements: PO-1A and PO-18. PO-1A and PO-18 shall have their transaction
types aggregated together.
Gateway Availability - GUI-Repair
Pre-Order/Order Response Times
Call Answered within Twenty Seconds - Interconnect Provisioning
For these measurements, Qwest will make a Tier 2 payment based upon monthly
I performance results according to Table -B,: . _Tier 2 Per Measurement Payments to
-- - --
Deleted: 5
State Funds.
TABLER: ,.IE1\.2 PER MEA~UREMENTPAYMENTS TO STATE FUNDS
Measuremen Performance State Payment 14 State Payment
GA-1 ,3,4,1 % or lower 000 $14 000
~1%t03%$10 000 $140 000
~3% to 5%$20 000 $280 000
~5%$30 000 $420 000
PO-2 sec. Or less 000 $14 000
sec.000 $70 000
sec.
~5 sec. to 10 $10 000 $140 000
sec.
~1 0 sec.$15 000 $210 000
OP-2/MR-1 % or lower 000 $14 000
~1% to 3%000 $70 000
~3% to 5%$10 000 $140 000
~5%$15 000 $210 000
Step by Step Calculation of Monthly Tier 1 Payments to CLEC
Application of the Critical Z-Values: Qwest shall identify the Tier 1 parity
performance measurements that measure the service provided to CLEC by Qwest for
the month in question and the critical z-value from Table 1 in section 5.0 that shall be
used for purposes of statistical testing for each particular performance measurement.
The statistical testing procedures described in section 4.0 shall be applied. For the
purpose of determining the critical z-values, each disaggregated category of a
performance measurement is treated as a separate sub-measurement. The critical
z-value to be applied is determined by the CLEC volume at each level of
disaggregation or sub-measurement.
-- - -- -
i Deleted: 5
-- -- --
i Deleted: -
A Deleted: Fifth
1 Deleted: November 30
1 Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised ,Sixth ~!Tl_e!19~cj _Ex!1Lblt-'~, .June 26 ?QQJ.. - - -11-
- - - - - - - ;;;'
Exhibit K
Performance Measurements for which Tier 1 Payment is Per Occurrence:
Performance Measurements that are Averages or Means:
1 Step 1: For each performance measurement, the average or the mean that
would yield the critical z-value shall be calculated. The same denominator as the one
used in calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For
benchmark measurements, the benchmark value shall be used.
2 Step 2: The percentage differences between the actual averages and the
calculated averages shall be calculated. The calculation is % diff = (CLEC result -
Calculated Value)/Calculated Value. The percent difference shall be capped at a
maximum of 100%. In all calculations of percent differences in sections 8.0 and 9.
the calculated percent differences is capped at 100%.
2 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the percentage calculated in the previous step and the per
occurrence dollar amounts from the Tier 1 Payment Table shall determine the
payment to the CLEC for each non-conforming performance measurement.
Performance Measurements that are Percentages:
1 Step 1: For each performance measurement, the percentage that would yield
the critical z-value shall be calculated. The same denominator as the one used in
calculating the z- statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For benchmark
measurements, the benchmark value shall be used.
2 Step 2: The difference between the actual percentages for the CLEC and the
calculated percentages shall be determined.
3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the difference in percentage calculated in the previous step,
and the per occurrence dollar amount taken from the Tier 1 Payment Table, to
determine the payment to the CLEC for each non-conforming performance
measurement.
Performance Measurements that are Ratios or Proportions:
1 Step 1: For each performance measurement the ratio that would yield the
critical z-value shall be calculated. The same denominator as the one used
calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For benchmark
measurements, the benchmark value shall be used.
3.2 Step 2: The absolute difference between the actual rate for the CLEC and
the calculated rate shall be determined.1 Deleted: Fifth
1 Deleted: November 30
~ Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised,$ixth t\!!I_n9E3c1 EA1Lblt-'~,.June 26,991- - -:.1~-
- - - - - - - ,
Exhibit K
3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the difference calculated in the previous step, and the per
occurrence dollar amount taken from the Tier 1 Payment Table, to determine the
payment to the CLEC for each non-conforming performance measurement.
Performance Measurements for which Tier 1 Payment is Per Measure:
For each performance measurement where Qwest fails to meet the standard
the payment to the CLEC shall be the dollar amount shown on the "per measure
portion of Table 2: Tier 1 Payments to CLEC.
Step by Step Calculation of Monthly Tier 2 Payments to State Funds
Application of the Critical Z-Value: Qwest shall identify the Tier 2 parity
performance measurements that measure the service provided by Qwest to all
CLECs for the month in question. The statistical testing procedures described in
section 4.0 shall be applied, except that a 1.645 critical z-value shall be used for Tier
parity measurements that have Tier 1 counterparts For Tier 2 parity
measurements that do not have Tier 1 counterparts, the statistical testing procedures
described section 4.0 shall be applied using the critical z-values identified in section
To determine if Tier 2 payments for performance measurements listed on
Attachment 1 shall be made in the current month, the following shall be determined.
For Tier 2 measurements that have Tier 1 counterparts, it shall be determined
whether Qwest missed the performance standard for three consecutive months, or if
Qwest has missed the standard in any two out of three consecutive months for the 12
month period and for an additional two consecutive months. For Tier 2
measurements that do not have Tier 1 counterparts, it shall be determined whether
Qwest missed the performance standard for a single month. If any of these
conditions are met and there are at least 10 data points for the measurement in each
month, a Tier 2 payment will be calculated and paid as described below and will
continue in each succeeding month until Qwest's performance meets the applicable
standard. For Tier 2 measures that have Tier 1 counterparts, the most recent three
months of nonconforming performance data that results in payment liability shall be
averaged to determine payment.
Performance Measurements for which Tier 2 Payment is Per Occurrence:
Performance Measurements that are Averages or Means:
t Deleted: Fifth
Deleted: November 30
Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised Sixth t\!11_n9~HLE.?'!1LbltJ~,.June 26,?QQz,- _1~-
- - - - - - - ;:/
Exhibit K
1 Step 1: The monthly average or the mean for each performance
measurement that would yield the critical z-value for each month shall be calculated.
The same denominator as the one used in calculating the z-statistic for the
measurement shall be used. (For benchmark measurements, the benchmark value
shall be used.
2 Step 2: The percentage difference between the actual averages and the
calculated averages for the relevant month(s) shall be calculated. The calculation
for parity measurements is % diff = (actual average - calculated average)/calculated
average. The percent difference shall be capped at a maximum of 100%. In all
calculations of percent differences in section 8.0 and section 9., the calculated
percent difference is capped at 100%.
9.2.3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
for the relevant month(s) shall be multiplied by the percentage calculated in the
previous step. The amount (average amount, if more than one month) (rounded to
the nearest integer) is then multiplied by the result of the per occurrence dollar
amount taken from the Tier 2 Payment Table to determine the payment to the State
for each non-conforming performance measurement.
Performance Measurements that are Percentages:
Step 1: For each performance measurement, the monthly percentage that
would yield the critical z-value for each month shall be calculated. The same
denominator as the one used in calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall
be used. (For benchmark measurements, the benchmark value shall be used.
2 Step 2: The difference between the actual percentages and the calculated
percentages for the relevant month(s) shall be calculated. The calculation for parity
measurement is diff = (GLEG result - calculated percentage). This formula shall be
applicable where a high value is indicative of poor performance. The formula shall be
reversed where high performance is indicative of good performance.
3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data pointsfor the relevant month(s) shall be multiplied by the difference in percentage
calculated in the previous step. The amount (average amount, if more than one
month)(rounded to the nearest integer) is then multiplied by the result of the per
occurrence dollar amounts taken from the Tier 2 Payment Table to determine the
payment to the State.
9.4 Performance Measurements that are Ratios or Proportions:
~ Deleted: Fifth
~ Deleted: November 30
~ Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised Sixth ~!:l1_n9~g_EA1LbltJ~,.June 26 2991- -- 14-
- - - - - - -
i;/
9.4.Step 1: For each performance measurement, the ratio that would yield the
critical z-value for each month shall be calculated. The same denominator as theone used in calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For
benchmark measurements, the benchmark value shall be used.
Exhibit K
9.4.1 Step 2: The difference between the actual rate for the GLEG and the
calculated rate for the relevant month(s) shall be calculated. The calculation is: diff =
(GLEG rate - calculated rate). This formula shall apply where a high value is
indicative of poor performance. The formula shall be reversed where high
performance is indicative of good performance.
9.4.2 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the difference calculated in the previous step for each month.
The amount (average amount, if more than one month)(rounded to the nearest
integer) is then multiplied by the result of the per occurrence dollar amounts taken
from the Tier 2 Payment Table to determine the payment to the State.
Performance Measurements for which Tier 2 Payment is Per Measure:
For each performance measurement where Qwest fails to meet the standard
the payment to the State Fund shall be the dollar amount shown on the "per
measure" portion of the Tier 2 Payment Table.
10.Low Volume , Developing Markets
10.For certain qualifying performance standards, if the aggregate monthly
volumes of GLEGs participating in the PAP are more than 10, but less than 100
Qwest will make Tier 1 payments to GLEGs for failure to meet the parity or
benchmark standard for the qualifying performance sub-measurements. The
qualifying sub-measurements are e23 - - ADSL gLJCllified . loop product
, - - -
Deleted: UNE-P (POTS),
disaggregation2 of OP-, OP-, OP-, MR-, MR-, MR-, and MR-8. If the "-Deleted: megabit resale,
aggregate monthly GLEG volume is greater than 100 , the provisions of this section Deleted: and
shall not apply to the qualifying performance sub-measurement.
10.The determination of whether Qwest has met the parity or benchmark
standards will be made using aggregate volumes of GLEGs participating in the PAP.
In the event Qwest does not meet the applicable performance standards, a total
payment to affected GLEGs will be determined in accordance with the high , medium
low designation for each performance measurement (see Attachment 1) and as
described in section 8., except that GLEG aggregate volumes will be used. In the
event the calculated total payment amount to GLEGs is less than $5 000, a minimum
payment of $5 000 shall be made. The resulting total payment amount to GLEGs will
be apportioned to the affected GLEGs based upon each GLEG's relative share of the
number of total service misses.
Deleted: Fifth
Deleted: November 30
Deleted: 4
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .sixth J\rn_n9~g _x!1Lblt-'~, .June 26 2991- - -15,-
- - - - - - -
13 Stipulation Issue II.
14 Stipulation Issue LA.
Exhibit K
10.At the six (6)-month reviews, Qwest will consider adding to the above list of
qualifying performance sub-measurements new products disaggregation
representing new modes of CLEC entry into developing markets.
11.Payment
11.Payments to CLEC , the State, or the Special Fund shall be made one month
following the due date of the performance measurement report for the month for
which payment is being made. Qwest will pay interest on any late payment and
underpayment at the prime rate as reported in the Wall Street Journal. On any
overpayment, Qwest is allowed to offset future payments by the amount of the
overpayment plus interest at the prime rate.
11.Payment to CLEC shall be made via bill credits. Bill credits shall be identified
on a summary format substantially similar to that distributed as a prototype to the
CLECs and the Commissions. To the extent that a monthly payment owed to CLEC
under this PAP exceeds the amount owed to Qwest by CLEC on a monthly bill
Qwest will issue a check or wire transfer to CLEC in the amount of the overage.
Payment to the State shall be made via check or wire transfer.
11.3 A Special Fund shall be created for the purpose of payment of an
independent auditor and audit costs as specified in section 15.0 and payment ofother expenses incurred by the participating Commissions in the regional
administration of the PAP.
11.1 Qwest shall establish the Special Fund as an interest bearing escrow account
upon the first FCC section 271 approval of the PAP applicable to a participating state
Commission. Qwest shall be authorized to withhold and deposit into the Special
Fund one-half of all Tier 2 payments. The cost of the escrow account will be paid
for from account funds.
11.2 Commissions participating in the Special Fund shall appoint a person
designated to administer and authorize disbursement of funds. All claims against the
fund shall be presented to the Commissions' designates and shall be the
responsibility of the participating Commissions.
11.3 Qwest shall advance funds to meet initial claims against the Special Fund to
the extent Tier 2 contributions are insufficient. Such funds shall not exceed $500 000
and shall be reduced appropriately in the event that at least six states in which the
QPAP is in effect do not agree to participate in the Special Fund. Upon a
determination by the participating Commissions that the Special Fund has become
self-sustaining or is no longer required , Qwest shall be allowed to recover any such
advances plus interest at the rate that the escrow account would have earned.
J Deleted: Fifth
Deleted: November 30
Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised $ixth ~!!l_e.!19~g _EA1Lblt .June 26 ~QQz.- - -16.-
- - - - - - -
i~
Exhibit K
11.3.4 Upon the execution of a memorandum of understanding with the Idaho
Commission , Qwest shall establish an Idaho Discretionary Fund as a separate
interest bearing escrow account. Qwest shall deposit into the Discretionary Fund the
remaining balance of Tier 2 payments after disbursement of Tier 2 payments to the
Special Fund pursuant to section 13.1. The Commission shall appoint a person
designated to administer and authorize disbursements of funds from the
Discretionary Fund. Disbursements from the Discretionary Fund shall be limited to
competitively neutral Idaho telecommunications initiatives. The costs of the
Discretionary Fund will paid for from the account's funds.
12.Cap on Tier 1 and Tier 2 Payments
12.There shall be a cap on the total payments made by Qwest for a 12 month
period beginning with the effective date of the PAP for the State of Idaho. The
annual cap for the State of Idaho shall be 36% of ARMIS Net Return, recalculated
each year based upon the prior year s Idaho ARMIS results , subject to any
applicable adjustment permitted pursuant to section 12.2. Qwest shall submit to the
Commission the calculation of each year s cap no later than 30 days after submission
of ARMIS results to the FCC. CLEC agrees that this amount constitutes a maximum
annual cap that shall apply to the aggregate total of Tier 1 liquidated damages
including any such damages paid pursuant to this Agreement, any other
interconnection agreement, or any other payments made for the same underlying
activity or omission under any other contract, order or rule and Tier 2 assessments or
payments made by Qwest for the same underlying activity or omission under any
other contract, order or rule.
12.The 36% annual cap may be increased to 44% or decreased to 30% of
ARMIS Net Return as follows:
12.1 An increase in the cap of a maximum of 4 percentage points at anyone time
(i.e., first to 40 percent) shall occur upon order by the Commission if the cap has
been exceeded for any consecutive period of 24 months by that same 4 percent or
more, provided that: (a) the Commission has determined that the preponderance of
the evidence shows Qwest could have remained beneath the cap through
reasonable and prudent effort, and (b) the Commission has made that determination
after having available to it on the record the results of audits and root cause
analyses, and provided an opportunity for Qwest to be heard.
12.2 A decrease in the cap of a maximum of 4 percentage points at anyone time
shall occur upon order by the Commission after performance for any consecutive
period of 24 months in which total payments are 8 or more percentage points below
the cap amount, provided that: (a) the Commission has determined that the
preponderance of the evidence shows the performance results underlying those
payments results from an adequate Qwest commitment to meeting its responsibilities
to provide adequate wholesale service and to keeping open its local markets and (b)t Deleted: Fifth
/:
t Deleted: November 30
i Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .8ixth t\!!I_n91?(LEx!1Lblt .June 26,991.--- E-
- -- -- --
Exhibit K
the Commission shall have made that determination after providing all interested
parties an opportunity to be heard.
12.3 The provisions of 12.1 and 12.2 shall be in effect for the next 24 month
period commencing with the end of the 24 month period upon which the
Commission s order is based.
12.If the annual cap is reached , each CLEC shall, as of the end of the year, be
entitled to receive the same percentage of its total calculated Tier 1 payments. In
order to preserve the operation of the annual cap, the percentage equalization shall
take place as follows:
12.1 The amount by which any month's total year-to-date Tier 1 and Tier 2
payments exceeds the cumulative monthly cap (defined as 1/1ih of the annual cap
times the cumulative number of months to date) shall be calculated and apportioned
between Tier 1 and Tier 2 according to the percentage that each bore of total
payments for the year-to-date. The Tier 1 apportionment resulting of this calculation
shall be known as the "Tracking Account"
12.2 The Tier 1 apportionment shall be debited against the monthly payment due
to each CLEC, by applying to the year-to-date payments received by each the
percentage necessary to generate the required total Tier 1 amount
12.3 The Tracking Amount shall be apportioned among all CLECs so as to provide
each with payments equal in percentage of its total year to date Tier 1 payment
calculations.
12.3.4 This calculation shall take place in the first month that the year-to-date total
Tier 1 and Tier 2 payments are expected to exceed the cumulative monthly cap and
for each month of that year thereafter. Owest shall recover any debited amounts by
reducing payments due to any CLEC for that month and any succeeding months, as
necessary .
13.Limitations
13.The PAP shall not become available in the State unless and until Owest
receives effective section 271 authority from the FCC for that State.
13.Qwest will not be liable for Tier 1 payments to CLEC in an FCC approved
state until the Commission has approved an interconnection agreement between
CLEC and Owest which adopts the provisions of this PAP.
~ Deleted: Fifth
~ Deleted: November 30
';'
~ Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised Sixth t\r:n_n9~~LEA1Lblt~".June 26 ?QQz'- - -1~-
- - - - - - -
13.Owest shall not be obligated to make Tier 1 or Tier 2 payments for any
measurement if and to the extent that non-conformance for that measurement was
the result of any of the following: 1) with respect to performance measurements with
Exhibit K
a benchmark standard , a Force Majeure event as defined in section 5.7 of the SGAT.
Qwest will provide notice of the occurrence of a Force Majeure event within 72 hours
of the time Qwest learns of the event or within a reasonable time frame that Qwest
should have learned of it; 2) an act or omission by a CLEC that is contrary to any of
its obligations under its interconnection agreement with Qwest or under federal or
state law; an act or omission by CLEC that is in bad faith. Examples of bad faith
conduct include, but are not limited to: unreasonably holding service orders and/or
applications
, "
dumping" orders or applications in unreasonably large batches
dumping" orders or applications at or near the close of a business day, on a Friday
evening or prior to a holiday, and failing to provide timely forecasts to Qwest for
services or facilities when such forecasts are explicitly required by the SGAT; 3)
problems associated with third-party systems or equipment, which could not have
been avoided by Qwest in the exercise of reasonable diligence provided, however
that this third party exclusion will not be raised in the State more than three times
within a calendar year. If a Force Majeure event or other excusing event recognized
in this section merely suspends Qwest's ability to timely perform an activity subject to
a performance measurement that is an interval measure, the applicable time frame in
which Qwest's compliance with the parity or benchmark criterion is measured will be
extended on an hour-for-hour or day-for-day basis, as applicable, equal to the
duration of the excusing event.
13.1 Qwest will not be excused from Tier 1 or Tier 2 payments for any reason
except as described in Section 13.0. Qwest will have the burden of demonstrating
that its non-conformance with the performance measurement was excused on one of
the grounds described in this PAP. A party may petition the Commission to require
Qwest to deposit disputed payments into an escrow account when the requesting
party can show cause , such as grounds provided in the Uniform Commercial Code
for cases of commercial uncertainty.
13.2 Notwithstanding any other provision of section 13 of this QPAP, Qwest shall
not be excused for failing to provide such performance that Qwest could reasonably
have been expected to deliver assuming that it had designed , implemented, staffed
provisioned , and otherwise provided for resources reasonably required to meet
foreseeable volumes and patterns of demands upon its resources by CLECs.
13.4 Qwest's agreement to implement these enforcement terms , and specifically
its agreement to pay any "liquidated damages" or "assessments" hereunder, will not
be considered as an admission against interest or an admission of liability in any
legal, regulatory, or other proceeding relating in whole or in part to the same
performance.
t Deleted: Fifth
t Deleted: November 30
i Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, ,Sixth t\!!I_n9~g _EA1Lblt .June 26,?QQl.
- - -
1~-
- - - - - - - j;~/
Exhibit K
13.4.1 CLEC may not use: 1) the existence of this enforcement plan; or 2) Qwest's
payment of Tier -1 "liquidated damages" or Tier 2 "assessments" as evidence that
Qwest has discriminated in the provision of any facilities or services under Sections
251 or 252 , or has violated any state or federal law or regulation. Qwest's conduct
underlying its performance measures, however are not made inadmissible by its
terms.
13.4.2 By accepting this performance remedy plan CLEC agrees that Qwest's
performance with respect to this remedy plan may not be used as an admission of
liability or culpability for a violation of any state or federal law or regulation. (Nothing
herein is intended to preclude Qwest from introducing evidence of any Tier
liquidated damages" under these provisions for the purpose of offsetting the
payment against any other damages or payments a CLEC might recover.) The terms
of this paragraph do not apply to any proceeding before the Commission or the FCC
to determine whether Qwest has met or continues to meet the requirements of
section 271 of the Act.
13.By incorporating these liquidated damages terms into the PAP , Qwest and
CLEC accepting this PAP agree that proof of damages from any non-conforming
performance measurement would be difficult to ascertain and, therefore, liquidated
damages are a reasonable approximation of any contractual damages that may
result from a non-conforming performance measurement. Qwest and CLEC further
agree that Tier 1 payments made pursuant to this PAP are not intended to be a
penalty. The application of the assessments and damages provided for herein is not
intended to foreclose other noncontractual legal and non-contractual regulatory
claims and remedies that may be available to a CLEC.
13.This PAP contains a comprehensive set of performance measurements
statistical methodologies, and payment mechanisms that are designed to function
together, and only together, as an integrated whole. To elect the PAP, CLEC must
adopt the PAP in its entirety, in its interconnection agreement with Qwest.
electing remedies under the PAP , CLEC waives any causes of action based on a
contractual theory of liability, and any right of recovery under any other theory of
liability (including but not limited to a state utility regulatory commission or Federal
Communications Commission rule or order) to the extent such recovery is related to
harm compensable under a contractual theory of liability (even though it is sought
through a noncontractual claim, theory, or cause of action).
13.
If for any reason a CLEC agreeing to this QPAP is awarded compensation for the
same harm for which it received payment under the QPAP , the court or other
adjudicatory body hearing such a claim may offset the damages resulting from such
claim against payments made for the same harm.
1 Deleted: Fifth
1 Deleted: November 30
iDeleted:4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised ,Sixth t\n9~cJ _x!1Lblt .June 26 ?QQL-
- -
~Q-
- - - - - - j;
Exhibit K
13.Qwest shall not be liable for both Tier 2 payments under the PAP and
assessments, sanctions, or other payments for the same underlying activity or
omission pursuant to any Commission order or service quality rules.
13.Whenever a Qwest Tier 1 payment to an individual CLEC exceeds $3 million
in a month , Qwest may commence a proceeding to demonstrate why it should not be
required to pay any amount in excess of the $3 million. Upon timely commencement
of the proceeding, Qwest must pay the balance of payments owed in excess of $3
million into escrow, to be held by a third-party pending the outcome of the
proceeding. To invoke these escrow provisions, Qwest must file, not later than the
due date of the Tier 1 payments, its application. Qwest will have the burden of proof
to demonstrate why, under the circumstances, it would be unjust to require it to make
the payments in excess of $3 million. If Qwest reports non-conforming performanceto CLEC for three consecutive months on 20% or more of the measurements
reported to CLEC and has incurred no more than $1 million in liability to CLEC, then
CLEC may commence a similar proceeding. In any such proceeding CLEC will have
the burden of proof to demonstrate why, under the circumstances, justice requires
Qwest to make payments in excess of the amount calculated pursuant to the terms of
the PAP. The disputes identified in this section shall be resolved in a manner
specified in the Dispute Resolution section of the SGAT with the CLEC.
14.Reporting
14.Upon receiving effective section 271 authority from the FCC for a state
Qwest will provide CLEC that has an approved interconnection agreement with
Qwest, a monthly report of Qwest's performance for the measurements identified in
the PAP by the last day of the month following the month for which performance
results are being reported. However, Qwest shall have a grace period of five
business days , so that Qwest shall not be deemed out of compliance with its
reporting obligations before the expiration of the five business day grace period.
Qwest will collect, analyze, and report performance data for the measurements listed
on Attachment 1 in accordance with the most recent version of the PIDs. Upon
CLEC's request, data files of the CLEC's raw data, or any subset thereof, will be
transmitted , without charge, to CLEC in a mutually acceptable format, protocol, and
transmission medium.
14.Qwest will also provide the Commission a monthly report of aggregate CLEC
performance results pursuant to the PAP by the last day of the month following the
month for which performance results are being reported. However, Qwest shall have
a grace period of five business days, so that Qwest shall not be deemed out of
compliance with its reporting obligations before the expiration of the five business day Deleted: Fifth
grace period. Individual CLEC reports of participating CLECs will also be available to
A Deleted: November 30the Commission upon request. By accepting this PAP, CLEC consents to Qwest 1 Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .sixth t.!TI_n9~~LExI1Lblt ..June 26,?QQ1- - -~1-
- - - - - - - ;;;/
Exhibit K
providing CLEC's report and raw data to the State Commission. Pursuant to the
terms of an order of the Commission, Qwest may provide GLEe-specific data that
relates to the PAP, provided that Qwest shall first initiate any procedures necessary
to protect the confidentiality and to prevent the public release of the information
pending any applicable Commission procedures and further provided that Qwest
provides such notice as the Commission directs to the CLEC involved , in order to
allow it to prosecute such procedures to their completion. Data files of participating
CLEC raw data , or any subset thereof, will be transmitted, without charge , to the
Commission in a mutually acceptable format, protocol , and transmission form.
14.In the event Qwest does not provide CLEC and the Commission with a
monthly report by the last day of the month following the month for which
performance results are being reported, Qwest will pay to the State a total of $500 for
each business day for which performance reports are 6 to 10 business days past the
due date; $1 000 for each business day for which performance reports are 11 to 15business days past the due date; and $2 000 for each business day for which
performance results are more than 15 business days past the due date. If reports
are on time but are missing performance results, Qwest will pay to the State a total
one-fifth of the late report amount for each missing performance measurement
subject to a cap of the full late report amount. These amounts represent the total
payments for omitting performance measurements or missing any report deadlines
rather than a payment per report. Prior to the date of a payment for late reports
Qwest may file a request for a waiver of the payment, which states the reasons for
the waiver. The Commission may grant the waiver, deny the waiver, or provide any
other relief that may be appropriate.
14.4 To the extent that Qwest recalculates payments made under this PAP, such
recalculation shall be limited to the preceding three years (measured from the later
the provision of a monthly credit statement or payment due date). Qwest shall retain
sufficient records to demonstrate fully the basis for its calculations for long enough to
meet this potential recalculation obligation. CLEC verification or recalculation efforts
should be made reasonably contemporaneously with Qwest measurements. In any
event, Qwest shall maintain the records in a readily useable format for one year. For
the remaining two years, the records may be retained in archived format. Any
payment adjustments shall be subject to the interest rate provisions of section 11.
15.Integrated Audit Program/Investigations of Performance Results
15.Audits of the PAP shall be conducted in a two-year cycle under the auspices
of the participating Commissions in accordance with a detailed audit plan developed
by an independent auditor retained for a two-year period. The participating
Commissions shall select the independent auditor with input from Qwest and CLECs.~ Deleted: Fifth
~ Deleted: November 30
~ Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, ,Sixth t\!!l_n9~(LEA1LblU~, ,.June 26 , 2991- - -
- ~~-- - - - - - -
;l/
Exhibit K
15.1 The participating Commissions shall form an oversight committee of
Commissioners who will choose the independent auditor and approve the audit plan.
Any disputes as to the choice of auditor or the scope of the audit shall be resolved
through a vote of the chairs of the participating commissions pursuant to Section
15.1 .4.
15.2 The audit plan shall be conducted over two years. The audit plan will identifythe specific performance measurements to be audited , the specific tests to be
conducted, and the entity to conduct them. The audit plan will give priority to auditing
the higher risk areas identified in the ass report. The two-year cycle will examine
risks likely to exist across that period and the past history of testing, in order to
determine what combination of high and more moderate areas of risk should be
examined during the two-year cycle. The first year of a two-year cycle will
concentrate on areas most likely to require follow-up in the second year.
15.3 The audit plan shall be coordinated with other audit plans that may be
conducted by other state commissions so as to avoid duplication , shall not impede
Qwest's ability to comply with the other provisions of the PAP and should be of a
nature and scope that can be conducted in accordance with the reasonable course of
Qwest's business operations.
15.1.4 Any dispute arising out of the audit plan , the conduct of the audit, or audit
results shall be resolved by the oversight committee of Commissioners. Decisions of
the oversight committee of Commissioners may be appealed to a committee of the
chairs of the participating Commissions.
15.Qwest may make management processes more accurate or more efficient to
perform without sacrificing accuracy. These changes are at Qwest's discretion but
will be reported to the independent auditor in quarterly meetings in which the auditor
may ask questions about changes made in the Qwest measurement regimen. The
meetings, which will be limited to Qwest and the independent auditor, will permit an
independent assessment of the materiality and propriety of any Qwest changes
including, where necessary, testing of the change details by the independent auditor.
The information gathered by the independent auditor may be the basis for reports bythe independent auditor to the participating Commissions and, where the
Commissions deem it appropriate, to other participants.
Deleted: Fifth
Deleted: November 30
1 Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .Bixth t\D1_nPE:!9 _EA1Lblt .June 26, 2991
- - -~~-- - - - - - - ;;:'
15.In the event of a disagreement between Qwest and CLEC as to any issue
regarding the accuracy or integrity of data collected, generated , and reported
pursuant to the PAP, Qwest and the CLEC shall first consult with one another and
attempt in good faith to resolve the issue. If an issue is not resolved within 45 days
after a request for consultation, CLEC and Qwest may, upon a demonstration of good
cause, (e., evidence of material errors or discrepancies) request an independent
audit to be conducted, at the initiating party s expense. The independent auditor will
Exhibit K
assess the need for an audit based upon whether there exists a material deficiency in
the data or whether there exists an issue not otherwise addressed by the audit plan
for the current cycle. The dispute resolution provision of section 18.0 is available to
any party questioning the independent auditor s decision to conduct or not conduct a
CLEC requested audit and the audit findings , should such an audit be conducted. An
audit may not proceed until dispute resolution is completed. Audit findings willinclude: (a) general applicability of findings and conclusions (i., relevance to
CLECs or jurisdictions other than the ones causing test initiation), (b) magnitude of
any payment adjustments required and , (c) whether cost responsibility should be
shifted based upon the materiality and clarity of any Qwest non-conformance with
measurement requirements (no pre-determined variance is appropriate , but should
be based on the auditor s professional judgment). CLEC may not request an audit of
data more than three years from the later of the provision of a monthly credit
statement or payment due date.
15.4 Expenses for the audit of the PAP and any other related expenses, except
that which may be assigned under section 15., shall be paid first from the Tier 2
funds in the Special Fund. For Idaho, the remainder of the audit expenses will be
paid by Qwest.
15.Qwest will investigate any second consecutive Tier 2 miss to determine the
cause of the miss and to identify the action needed in order to meet the standard set
forth in the performance measurements. To the extent an investigation determines
that a CLEC was responsible in whole or in part for the Tier 2 misses, Qwest shall
receive credit against future Tier 2 payments in an amount equal to the Tier 2
payments that should not have been made. The relevant portion of subsequent Tier
2 payments will not be owed until any responsible CLEC problems are corrected. For
the purposes of this sub-section , Tier 1 performance measurements that have not
been designated as Tier 2 will be aggregated and the aggregate results will be
investigated pursuant to the terms of this Agreement.
16.Reviews
) Deleted: Fifth
1 Deleted: November 30
i Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .sixth t\1TI_e.!19~g _E2'I1Lblt
~,
.June 26 ?QQl. - - -- ~4-
- - - - - - - ;/'
16. 1 Every six (6) months, beginning six months after the effective date of section
271 approval by the FCC for the state of Idaho , Qwest, CLECs , or the Idaho Public
Utilities Commission may initiate a review of the performance measurements to
determine whether measurements should be added , deleted , or modified; whether
the applicable benchmark standards should be modified or replaced by parity
standards; and whether to move a classification of a measurement to High , Medium
or Low, Tier 1 or Tier 2. The criterion for reclassification of a measurement shall be
whether the actual volume of data points was less or greater than anticipated.Criteria for review of performance measurements , other than for possible
reclassification, shall be whether there exists an omission or failure to capture
intended performance, and whether there is duplication of another measurement. Any
disputes regarding adding, deleting, or modifying performance measurements shall
Exhibit K
be resolved pursuant to a proceeding before the Commission and subject to judicial
review. No new performance measurements shall be added to this PAP that havenot been subject to observation as diagnostic measurements for a period of 6
months. Any changes made at the six-month review pursuant to this section shall
apply to and modify this agreement between Qwest and CLEC , subject to a stay,
modification or reversal upon appeal or judicial review.
16.Notwithstanding section 16., if any agreements on adding, modifying
or deleting performance measurements as permitted by section 16.1 are reached
between Qwest and CLECs participating in an industry Regional Oversight
Committee (ROC) PID administration forum, those agreements shall be incorporated
into the QPAP and modify the agreement between CLEC and Qwest at any time
those agreements are submitted to the Commission , whether before or after a six-
month review.
16.For the first twelve months that any changes made pursuant to paragraphs
16.1 or 16.1 are in effect, Qwest's liability for such changes shall be limited to 10%
of the monthly payments that Qwest would have made absent the effect of such
changes as a whole. This provision shall be referred as "the 10% payment collar.
Such payment limitation shall be accomplished by factoring the payments resulting
from the changes to ensure that such payments remain within 10% of the payments
Qwest would have made absent such changes.
16.In the event that the Commission adds, modifies , or reclassifies a
performance measurement that has not been agreed upon in the ROC PID
administration forum process in 16., the 10% payment collar shall remain in effect
unless removed by the Commission pursuant to this section. If, after a minimum of 6
months of payments to a CLEC, Qwest's payments have been limited by the 10%
payment collar to 80% or less of what the total payments would have been absent
the collar for the preceding 6-month period, the Commission may, upon motion by an
affected CLEC, conduct a record proceeding to determine whether the 10% payment
collar should be removed from any such performance measure. The Commission
can prospectively remove the 10% collar for Tier 1 payments to affected CLEC(s) for
any such performance measure upon a demonstration through a record proceeding
and a Commission determination that the total payments to the CLEC(s) under the
QPAP were inadequate to compensate CLEC(s) for actual harm incurred during the
same period and upon a determination that such change is otherwise necessary and
appropriate and in the public interest.
t Deleted: Fifth
t Deleted: November 30
i Deleted: 4
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised ,Sixth ~!:11..en9~g _x!1Lblt .June 26, 2QQI..- - -
~~-- - - - - - - j;'
16.1.4 Notwithstandinq section 16.1, any party may submit a root cause analysis to
the Commission reQuestinQ removal of a PID or sub-measure from the PAP or
reQuestina exemption of a PID or sub-measure from the application of the triaaer
mechanism for reinstatement or subsequent removal. In the analysis and
recommendations concerninQ the root cause analysis. the Commission is to consider.
at a minimum. whether the root cause analysis provides evidence of no harm. the
same harm as covered by other PID measures. non-Qwest related causes. or other
Exhibit K
factors which directly relate to the harm or circumstances specific to the PID or sub-
measure beina analvzed.
16.Two years after the effective date of the first FCC 271 approval of the PAP
the participating Commissions may conduct a joint review by a independent third
party to examine the continuing effectiveness of the PAP as a means of inducing
compliant performance. This review shall not be used to open the PAP generally to
amendment, but would serve to assist Commissions in determining existing
conditions and reporting to the FCC on the continuing adequacy of the PAP to serve
its intended functions. The expense of the reviews shall be paid from the Special
Fund.
16.Qwest will make the PAP available for CLEC interconnection agreements
until such time as Qwest eliminates its Section 272 affiliate. At that time, the
Commission and Qwest shall review the appropriateness of the PAP and whether its
continuation is necessary. However, in the event Qwest exits the interLATA market
that State PAP shall be rescinded immediately.
17.Voluntary Performance Assurance Plan
This PAP represents Qwest's voluntary offer to provide performance assurance.
Nothing in the PAP or in any conclusion of non-conformance of Qwest's service
performance with the standards defined in the PAP shall be construed to be, of itself
non-conformance with the Act.
18.Dispute Resolution
For the purpose of resolving disputes over the meaning of the provisions of the PAP
and how they should be applied , the dispute resolution provisions of the SGAT
section 5., shall apply whether the CLEC uses the SGA T in its entirety or elects to
make the PAP part of its interconnection agreements (i.e., the unique dispute
resolution provisions of interconnection agreements should not apply).
! Deleted: Fifth
! Deleted: November 30
/1;
t Deleted: 4
II;
I;;
I;;
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised Sixth ~!!I_n9~g _x!1Lblt ylune 26 2991.
- - -- ~~-- - - - - - -
15 Stipulation Issue I.E.
Exhibit K
Attachment 1: Tier 1 and Tier 2 Performance Measurements Subject to Per Occurrence
Payment
Performance Measurement Tier 1 Payments Tier 2 Payments ' Formatted Table
low Med J-iiah low Med Hiab Deleted:GATEWAY
Timelv Outaae Resolution GA-
PRE-ORDER/ORDERS
lSR Rejection Notice Interval PO-
Firm Order Confirmations On Time PO-
Work Completion Notification Timeliness PO-
Billina Completion Notification Timeliness PO- 1"
Jeopardy Notice Interval PO-
Timelv Jeopardy Notices PO-
Release Notifications PO-
(Expanded)Manual Service Order PO-2o. -Deleted: '
Accuracv
- - - -
ORDERING AND PROVISIONING
Installation Commitments Met OP-Formatted: SuperscriptInstallation Intervals OP-4.f...9
- -
Deleted: d
New Service Quality OP-
b.f!.9.- - --1Deleted: .
Delaved Davs OP-6.f.!l
- -
Deleted: rNumber Portability Timeliness OP-
Coordinated Cuts On Time Unbundled OP-13a
loops
lNP Disconnect Timeliness OP-
MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR
Out of Service Cleared within 24 hours MR-Formatted: Superscript
All Troubles Cleared within 4 hours MR-Formatted: SuperscriptMean time to Restore MR-
Deleted: 9
Repair Repeat Report Rate MR-Deleted: 9Trouble Rate MR-Formatted: SuperscriptlNP Trouble Reports Cleared within MR-
. Soecified Timeframes Formatted: Superscript
Deleted: 24 Hours
BilLING Deleted: LNP Trouble Reports-Time to Provide Recorded Usage Records BI-Mean Time to Restore - ~f
Billina Accuracv-Adiustments for Errors BI-
Billina Completeness BI-
NETWORK PERFORMANCE
Trunk Blocking NI-
NXX Code Activation NP-Deleted: Fifth
16 Stipulation Issue LB.
17 Administrative.
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .Bixth Amended. Exhibit K .June 26 2001. - 27-
Deleted: November 30
i Deleted: 4II;Iii
11/
Exhibit K
I .
a. PO-3 is limited to PO-3a-, PO-3b-, and PO-3c.
b. PO-6 is included with PO-7 as two "families:" PO-6a/PO-7a and PO-6b/PO-7b. Measurements within
each family share a single payment opportunity with only the measurements with the highest payment being
paid.
19.!:
' _
OP-4is included with OP-6 as five "families:" OP-4a/OP-, OP-4b/OP-, OP-4c/OP-, OP- - - -
4d/OP-6-4, and OP-4e/OP-6~5. Measurements within each family share a single payinent opportunity with " - - -
only the measurement with the highest payment being paid.
Deleted: c. Low Volume Exception:
Deleted:In lieu of Section 2.4 for
PO-, where CLEC order volumes
for a given month are less than 17 in
Phase 1 , less than 13 in Phase 2, and
less than 10 in Phase 3 and
subsequent phases, a benchmark
standard of "no more than one order
with PO,20 errors" is applied. Under
this provision, no payment applies if
there is only one order with errors.
Stabilization Period:
Deleted:For each phase beginning
with Phase 1 , there will be no more
than a 3-month measurement
stabilization period for all fields
introduced in that phase.
Performance results that include all
such fields are not subject to
payments during the measurement
stabilization period.
I" 11
, d
Deleted: e
1,,1
I ,g,. ,Section 3.2 applies to OP-5b~ if Jhe number of orders with trouble in OP-5a is no more than one. 'f"
- -- ". -- '
I .g. For purposes of the PAP, OP-6a and OP-6b will be combined and treated as one. The combined OP-
breaks down to OP-1 (within MSA), OP-2 (outside MSA), OP-3 (no dispatch), OP-4 (zone 1), and 'I "OP-5 (zone 2). I I'
A2P~catJ~ _n!y_t() ~g~~-! ~cp.atJl~ J~op~.
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - , '
q. Excludes the followinq product disaqqreqations as applicable tothis PID: Resale Centrex. Resale
- - ":,, ";::,
Centrex 21, Resale DSO (non-desiqned). Resale DSO (desiqned). Resale DSO, E911/911 Trunks, Resale ,'i
Frame Relav. Resale Basic ISDN (non-desiqned), Resale Basic ISDN (desiqned), Resale Basic ISDN,
::"
Resale Primary ISDN (non-desiqned), Resale Primary ISDN (desiqned), Resale Primary ISDN, Resale PBX
\, ':::'
(non-desiqned). Resale PBX (desiqned), Resale PBX. Sub-Loop Unbundlinq, UNE-P (POTS), UNE-" '1,,1
(Centrex), and UNE-P (Centrex 21 ).
, '
, ,'I
~ " "'l Deleted: Low volume treatment for'I'
" "
Deleted: wiil apply
lilll
, Deleted: both (1) the CLEC volume
" I of orders is less than or equal to 29, I (the denominator of OP-5t) and (2)
,I" Deleted: When these two conditions
, are met, a standard of no more than
, one order with new service trouble
applies.
Deleted: f
f Deleted: g
l Formatted: Font: (Default) Arial
I Formatted: Left
18 Stipulation Issue II.
19 Stipulation Issue LD.
20 Stipulation Issue ILA.
21 Stipulation Issue II.
I Qwest Idaho SGA T Third Revised .sixth Amended Exhibit K .June 26 200z,-- 28-
t Deleted: Fifth
Deleted: November 30
Deleted: 4
II
III
Exhibit K
Attachment 2: Performance Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Caps
Billing
Time to Provide Recorded Usage Records - BI-1 (Tier 1/Tier 2)
Billing Accuracy - Adjustments for Errors - BI-3 (Tier 1)
Billing Completeness - BI-4 (Tier 1/Tier
I Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised .sixth AmendedExhibit K .June 26 2001 - 29-
~ Deleted: Fifth
~ Deleted: November 30
i Deleted: 4
1/ 1/1
Page 27: (1) Deleted
LNP Trouble Reports-Mean
Restore
pemighTime to MR-
1 Administrative.
EXHIBIT
PAP - Clean
Exhibit K
PERFORMANCE ASSURANCE PLAN
Introduction
As set forth in this Agreement, Qwest and CLEC voluntarily agree to the
terms of the following Performance Assurance Plan ("PAP"), initially prepared in
conjunction with Qwest's application for approval under Section 271 of the
Telecommunications Act of 1996 (the "Act") to offer in-region long distance service
and subsequently modified in accordance with the Commission s orders and, where
applicable, by operation of law.
Plan Structure
The PAP is a two-tiered , self-executing remedy plan. CLEC shall be provided
with Tier 1 payments if, as applicable, Qwest does not provide parity between the
service it provides to CLEC and that which it provides to its own retail customers, or
Qwest fails to meet applicable benchmarks.
1 As specified in section 7., if Qwest fails to meet parity and benchmark
standards on an aggregate CLEC basis , Qwest shall make Tier 2 payments to a
Fund established by the state regulatory commission or, if required by existing law, to
the state general fund.
As specified in sections 6.0 and 7.0 and Attachments 1 and 2 , payment is
generally on a per occurrence basis , (i.e., a set dollar payment times the number of
non-conforming service events). For the performance measurements which do not
lend themselves to per occurrence payment, payment is on a per measurement
basis, (i.e., a set dollar payment). The level of payment also depends upon the
number of consecutive months of non-conforming performance , (i.e., an escalating
payment the longer the duration of non-conforming performance) unless otherwise
specified.
Qwest shall be in conformance with the parity standard when service Qwest
provides to CLEC is equivalent to that which it provides to its retail customers. The
PAP relies upon statistical scoring to determine whether any difference between
CLEC and Qwest performance results is significant, that is , not attributable to simple
random variation. Statistical parity shall exist when performance results for CLEC
and for Qwest retail analogue result in a z-value that is no greater than the critical z-
values listed in the Critical Z-Statistical Table in section 5.
2.4 For performance measurements that have no Qwest retail analogue , agreed
upon benchmarks shall be used. Benchmarks shall be evaluated using a "stare and
compare" method. For example , if the benchmark is for a particular performance
measurement is 95% or better, Qwest performance results must be at least 95% to
meet the benchmark. Percentage benchmarks will be adjusted to round the
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26,2007
- 1-
Exhibit K
allowable number of misses up or down to the closest integer, except when a
benchmark standard and low CLEC volume are such that a 100% performance result
would be required to meet the standard and has not been attained in which case
section 3.2 applies.
Performance Measurements
The performance measurements that are in the PAP and either (1) subject to
the PAP payment mechanisms or (2) not subject to the PAP payment mechanisms
but subject to the Reinstatement/Removal Process set forth in section 3.2 below are
identified in Attachment 1 and sections 6.3 and 7.4. Each performance measurement
identified is defined in the Performance Indicator Definitions ("PIDs ) included in the
SGAT at Exhibit B.
1 On Attachment 1 , the measurements have been designated as Tier 1
Tier 2 , or both Tier 1 and Tier 2 and given a High, Medium , or Low
designation.
Where applicable elsewhere in the PAP, this provision modifies other
provisions and operates as follows: For any Tier 1 or Tier 2 benchmark or
non-interval parity performance sub-measure , Qwest shall apply one
allowable miss to a sub-measure disaggregation that otherwise would require
100% performance before the performance is considered as non-conforming
to standard (1) if at the GLEe-aggregate level , the performance standard is
met or (2) where the GLEe-aggregate performance must be 100% to meet
the standard, the GLEe-aggregate performance is conforming after applying
one allowable miss at that level.
The following measures, which are listed in Attachment 1 or section 7.4 , are
not subject to the payment mechanisms of the PAP; however, they are subject to the
PID Reinstatement/Removal Process. All other measures listed in Attachment 1
section 6.3 or section 7.4 are subject to the PAP payment mechanisms, but they are
not subject to the PID Reinstatement/Removal Process.
GA-Gateway Availability EB-
GA-System Availability EXACT
GA-Timely Outage Resolution following Software Releases
PO-LSR Rejection Notice Interval
PO-5D Firm Order Confirmations (FOCs) On Time (ASRs for LIS Trunks)
PO-Billing Completion Notification Timeliness
PO-Jeopardy Notice Interval
PO-16 Timely Release Notifications
OP-17 Timeliness of Disconnects Associated with LNP Orders
MR-11 LNP Trouble Reports Cleared within Specified Timeframes
BI-Billing Completeness
Owest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K , June 26 , 2007
- 2-
Exhibit K
NI-
NP-
Trunk Blocking
NXX Code Activation
PID Reinstatement/Removal Process: If Qwest's performance for any sub-
measure of the PIDs listed in section 3.2 above does not conform to the established
PID standard as set forth in the PAP for three consecutive months, that sub-measure
will be reinstated (Le., be subject to the PAP payment mechanisms) subject to the
retroactive payment provision of section 3.2 and subject to the PAP payment
mechanisms effective in the month following the three consecutive months. The
determination of whether a PID sub-measure is reinstated is made no later than at
the end of the second month following the third consecutive month of non-conforming
performance. The sub-measure will remain subject to the PAP payment mechanisms
until Qwest's performance for that sub-measure satisfies the established standards
for three consecutive months. Effective the month following such conforming
performance, the sub-measure will no longer be subject to the PAP payment
mechanisms but will continue to be subject to the PID Reinstatement/Removal
Process. The determination of whether a PID sub-measure is removed from being
subject to the PAP payment mechanisms is made no later than the end of the second
month following the third consecutive month of conforming performance. Where
applicable elsewhere in the PAP , this PID Reinstatement/Removal Process modifies
other provisions and operates as follows:
Disaggregation and Reporting Levels: Performance will be evaluated
at the lowest level of disaggregation defined in Exhibit B of the SGA T on a
CLEC-aggregated or other-aggregated basis such that performance
evaluated for the purposes of administering the Reinstatement/Removal
Process on a statewide or regionwide level , as applicable per the PID.
Retroactive Payments: To calculate retroactive payments for the sub-
measures reinstated , PAP payment mechanisms will be applied to the three
consecutive months in which the standard was missed , which triggered
reinstatement. These retroactive payments will be made to applicable CLECs
or the Tier 2 Fund , depending upon the tier designation of the PID , at the endof the third month after the month in which performance triggered re-
instatement.
Accounting for Payments: In support of retroactive payments
(section 3.2 above), Qwest will account separately for PAP payments
that would have been made to individual CLECs or to the Tier 2 Fund
for a sub-measure as though it had been subject to the PAP payment
mechanisms , where automatic reinstatement applies, and account
separately in the same manner for the time between when it is
determined that a sub-measure met the standard for automatic removal
and the effective date of removal (the month following the three
consecutive "met" months). With regard to sub-measures that are
subsequently removed again through this process, any PAP payments
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
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Exhibit K
made during the three consecutive months which triggers automatic
removal will not be recovered by Owest.
Interest: In the case of automatic reinstatement, retroactive
payments will include interest calculated at the prime rate as reported in
the Wall Street Journal from the date a payment would have been
made to the date the payment is actually made.
Tracking: Owest will track and report service and payment
results , including retroactive and avoided (i.e., during periods of
removal) PAP payments and the disposition of the avoided payments
on a CLEC, PID sub-measure and aggregate basis each month.
Public Website: Owest will maintain a public website showing the
PAP status of each PID or sub-measure with respect to the applicability of the
PAP payment mechanisms (i.e., reinstated or removed), which eliminates the
requirement to make filings with the Commission to modify the PAP due to
the application of the PID Reinstatement/Removal Process.
Statistical Measurement
Owest uses a statistical test, namely the modified "test " for evaluating the
difference between two means (i.e., Owest and CLEC service or repair intervals) or
two percentages (e., Owest and CLEC proportions), to determine whether a parity
condition exists between the results for Owest and the CLEC(s). The modified z-
tests shall be applicable if the number of data points are greater than 30 for a given
measurement. For testing measurements for which the number of data points are 30
or less, Owest will use a permutation test to determine the statistical significance of
the difference between Owest and CLEC.
Owest shall be in conformance when the monthly performance results for
parity measurements (whether in the form of means , percents , or proportions and at
the equivalent level of disaggregation) are such that the calculated z-test statistics
are not greater than the critical z-values as listed in Table 1 , section 5.
Owest shall be in conformance with benchmark measurements when the
monthly performance result equals or exceeds the benchmark, if a higher value
means better performance , and when the monthly performance result equals or is
less than the benchmark if a lower value means better performance.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
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Exhibit K
The formula for determining parity using the modified z-test is:
z = DIFF / crOIFF
Where:
DIFF = Mowest - MCLEC
MOWEST = Qwest average or proportion
MCLEC = CLEC average or proportion
crOIFF = square root rcr Qwest (1/ n CLEC + 1/ n Owest))
0west = calculated variance for Qwest
nOwest = number of observations or samples used in Qwest
measurement
nCLEC = number of observations or samples used in CLEC
measurement
The modified z-tests will be applied to reported parity measurements that contain
more than 30 data points.
In calculating the difference between Qwest and CLEC performance , the above
formula applies when a larger Qwest value indicates a better level of performance. In
cases where a smaller Qwest value indicates a higher level of performance , the order
is reversed, i.e., MCLEC - MOWEST.
For parity measurements where the number of data points is 30 or less
Qwest will apply a permutation test to test for statistical significance. Permutation
analysis will be applied to calculate the z-statistic using the following logic:
Calculate the modified z-statistic for the actual arrangement of the data
Pool and mix the CLEC and Qwest data sets
Perform the following 1000 times:
Randomly subdivide the pooled data sets into two pools , one the same
size as the original CLEC data set (nCLEC) and one reflecting the
remaining data points , and one reflecting the remaining data points
(which is equal to the size of the original Qwest data set or nOWEST).
Compute and store the modified z-test score (Zs) for this sample.
Count the number of times the z-statistic for a permutation of the data
greater than the actual modified z-statistic
Compute the fraction of permutations for which the statistic for the rearranged
data is greater than the statistic for the actual samples
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
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Exhibit K
If the fraction is greater than a, the significance level of the test, the hypothesis of no
difference is not rejected , and the test is passed. The a shall be .05 when the critical
z value is 1.645 and .15 when the critical z value is 1.04.
Critical Z-Value
The following table shall be used to determine the critical z-value that is
referred to in section 6.0. It is based on the monthly business volume of the CLEC
for the particular performance measurements for which statistic testing is being
performed.
TABLE 1: CRITICAL Z-VALUE
CLEC volume LIS Trunks UDITs All Other
(Sample size)Resale, UBL-DS1 and DS-
04*645
11-150 645 645
151-300
301-600
601-3000
3001 and above
The 1.04 applies for individual month testing for performance measurements
involving LIS trunks and DS-1 and DS-3 that are UDITs , Resale , or Unbundled
Loops. The performance measurements are OP-3d/e, OP-4d/e , OP-5a, OP-4/5
MR-5a/b, MR-7d/e , and MR-
For purposes of determining consecutive month misses , 1.645 shall be used. Where
performance measurements disaggregate to zone 1 and zone 2 , the zones shall be
combined for purposes of statistical testing.
Tier 1 Payments to CLEC
Tier 1 payments to CLEC shall be made solely for the performance
measurements designated as Tier 1 on Attachment 1. The payment amount for non-
conforming service varies depending upon the designation of performance
measurements as High, Medium, and Low and the duration of the non-conforming
service condition as described below. Non-conforming service is defined in section
Determination of Non-Conforming Measurements: The number of
performance measurements that are determined to be non-conforming and
therefore , eligible for Tier 1 payments , are limited according to the critical z-value
shown in Table 1 , section 5.0. The critical z-values are the statistical standard that
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26,2007
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Exhibit K
determines for each CLEC performance measurement whether Owest has met
parity. The critical z-value is selected from Table 1 according to the monthly CLEC
volume for the performance measurement. For instance, if the CLEC sample size for
that month is 100, the critical z-value is 1.645 for the statistical testing of that parity
performance measurement.
Determination of the Amount of Payment: Tier 1 payments to CLEC, except
as provided for in sections 6., 6.3 and 10., are calculated and paid monthly
based on the number of performance measurements exceeding the critical z-value.
Payments will be made on either a per occurrence or per measurement basis
depending upon the performance measurement, using the dollar amounts specified
in Table 2 below. The dollar amounts vary depending upon whether the performance
measurement is designated High, Medium , or Low and escalate depending upon the
number of consecutive months for which Owest has not met the standard for the
particular measurement.
The escalation of payments for consecutive months of non-conforming
service will be matched month for month with de-escalation of payments for every
month of conforming service. For example , if Owest has four consecutive monthly
misses" it will make payments that escalate from month 1 to month 4 as shown in
Table 2. If, in the next month, service meets the standard Owest makes no
payment. A payment "indicator" de-escalates down from month 4 to month 3.
Owest misses the following month, it will make payment at the month 3 level of Table
2 because that is where the payment "indicator" presently sits. If Owest misses again
the following month , it will make payments that escalate back to the month 4 level.
The payment level will de-escalate back to the original month 1 level only upon
conforming service sufficient to move the payment "indicator" back to the month
level.
For those performance measurements listed on Attachment 2
Performance Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Caps " excluding BI-
payment to a CLEC in a single month shall not exceed the amount listed in Table 2
below for the "Per Measurement Cap category. For those performance
measurements listed on Attachment 2 as "Performance Measurements Subject to
Per Measurement Payments " if any should be added at a later time , payment to a
CLEC will be the amount set forth in Table 2 below under the section labeled "Per
Measurement Cap.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
- 7-
Exhibit K
TABLE 2: TIER 1 PAYMENTS TO CLEC
Per Occurrence
Measurement Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Each
Group following
month
after
Month 6
add
Hiqh $150 $250 $500 $600 $700 $800 $100
Medium $ 75 $150 $300 $400 $500 $600 $100
Low $ 25 $ 50 $100 $200 $300 $400 $100
Per Measurement
Cap
Measurement Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4 Month 5 Month 6 Each
Group following
month
after
Month 6
add
Hiqh $25 000 $50 000 $75 000 $100 000 $125 000 $150 000 $25 000
Medium $10 000 $20 000 $30 000 $ 40 000 $ 50 000 $ 60 000 $10 000
Low $ 5 000 $10 000 $15 000 $ 20 000 $ 25 000 $ 30 000 $ 5 000
For the BI-3A performance measurement , the dollar payment amount for non-
conforming performance varies depending upon the Total Bill Adjustment Amount for
the CLEC. The payment amount is calculated using Table 2A below by multiplying
the per occurrence amount times the number of occurrences based on the Total Bill
Adjustment Amount 1 capped at the amount shown in the table for that Total Bill
Adjustment Amount. The escalation of payments for consecutive months as stated in
section 6.1 does not apply.
TABLE 2A: TIER 1 PAYMENTS TO CLECS FOR BI-
Total Bill Adjustment Per Occu rrence Cap
Amount Amou nt
$0 - $0.
$1 - $199.$200
$200 - $999.$10 000
000 - $9 999.$10 $10 000
$10 000 - $49 999.$15 $15 000
$50 000 - $99 999.$20 $20 000
$100 000 and over $25 $25 000
For collocation , CP-2 and CP-4 performance measurements shall be relied
upon for delineation of collocation business rules. For purposes of calculating Tier
payments, collocation jobs and collocation feasibility studies that are later than the
1 Total Bill Adjustment Amount is determined by subtracting the BI-3A numerator from the BI-3A denominator
as defined in the BI-3 PID formula.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 8-
Exhibit K
due date will have a per day payment applied according to Table 3. The per day
payment will be applied to any collocation job in which the feasibility study is provided
or the collocation installation is completed later than the scheduled date. The
calculation of the payment amount will be performed by applying the per day
payment amounts as specified in Table 3. Thus , for days 1 through 10, the payment
is $150 per day. For days 11 through 20, the payment is $300 per day and so on.
TABLE 3: TIER-1 COLLOCATION PAYMENTS TO CLECS
Days Late Completion Date Feasibility Study
1 to 10 days $150/day $45/day
11 to 20 days $300/day $90/day
21 to 30 days $450/day $135/day
31 to 40 days $600/day $180/day
More than 40 days 000/day $300/day
6.4 A minimum payment calculation shall be performed by Qwest at the end of
each year for each CLEC with annual order volumes of no more than 1 200. The
payment shall be calculated by adding the applicable minimum payment amount in
Table 4 below for each month in which at least one payment was due to the CLEC.
To the extent that the actual CLEC payment for the year is less than the product of
the preceding calculation , Qwest shall make an additional payment equal to the
difference.
TABLE 4: MINIMUM PAYMENTS TO CLECS
Minimum Payment
Total Monthly Payment:Amount:
Less than $200 $ 0
Between $200 and $800 $ 1 ,500
Between $801 and $1 ,400 $ 2 000
Over $1 ,400 $ 2 500
Tier 2 Payments to the State
Payments to the State shall be limited to the performance measurements
designated in section 7.4 for Tier 2 per measurement payments and in Attachment
for per occurrence payments and which have at least 10 data points each month for
the period payments are being calculated. Similar to the Tier 1 structure , Tier 2
measurements are categorized as High , Medium , and Low and the amount of
payments for non-conformance varies according to this categorization.
Determination of Non-Conforming Measurements: The determination of non-
conformance will be based upon the aggregate of all CLEC data for each Tier 2
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26,2007
- 9-
Exhibit K
performance measurement. Non-conforming service is defined in section 4.2 (for
parity measurements) and 4.3 (for benchmark measurements), except that a 1.645
critical z-value shall be used for Tier 2 parity measurements that have Tier
counterparts. The critical z-value is the statistical standard that determines for each
performance measurement whether Qwest has met parity.
Determination of the Amount of Payment: Except as provided in section 7.4
Tier 2 payments are calculated and paid monthly based on the number
performance measurements failing performance standards for a third consecutive
month , or if two out of three consecutive months in the 12 month period have been
missed , the second consecutive month for Tier 2 measurements with Tier
counterparts. For Tier 2 measurements that do not have Tier 1 counterparts
payments are calculated and paid monthly based on the number of performance
measurements exceeding the critical z-values, identified in section 5., in any single
month. Payment will be made on either a per occurrence or per measurement basis
whichever is applicable to the performance measurement, using the dollar amounts
specified in Table 5 or Table 6 below. Except as provided in section 7.4 , the dollar
amounts vary depending upon whether the performance measurement is designated
High, Medium, or Low.
For those Tier 2 measurements listed on Attachment 2 as "Performance
Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Caps " payment to the State in a single
month shall not exceed the amount listed in Table 5 for the "Per Measurement Cap
category.
TABLE 5: TIER 2 PAYMENTS TO STATE FUNDS
Per Occurrence
Measurement Grou
Hi h
Medium
Low
$500
$300
$200
Per Measurement Cap
Measurement Group
High $75 000
Medium $30,000
Low $20 000
7.4 Performance Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Payment: The
following Tier 2 performance measurements shall have their performance results
measured on a region-wide (14 state) basis. Failure to meet the performance
standard , therefore, will result in a per measurement payment in each of the Qwest
in-region 14 states adopting this PAP. The performance measurements are:
GA-1: Gateway Availability - IMA-GUI
GA-2: Gateway Availability - IMA-EDI
GA-3: Gateway Availability - EB-
GA-4: System Availability - EXACT
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
- 10-
Exhibit K
GA-6: Gateway Availability - GUI-Repair
PO-1: Pre-Order/Order Response Times
OP-2: Call Answered within Twenty Seconds - Interconnect Provisioning
Center
MR-2: Calls Answered within Twenty Seconds - Interconnect Repair Center
GA-1 has two sub-measurements: GA-, and GA-1 D. PO-1 shall have two sub-
measurements: PO-1A and PO-1 B. PO-1A and PO-1 B shall have their transaction
types aggregated together.
For these measurements , Owest will make a Tier 2 payment based upon monthly
performance results according to Table 6: Tier 2 Per Measurement Payments to
State Funds.
TABLE 6: TIER 2 PER MEASUREMENT PAYMENTS TO STATE FUNDS
Measurement Performance State Payment 14 State Payment
GA-3,4,1 % or lower 000 $14 000
::-1% to 3%$10 000 $140 000
::-3% to 5%$20 000 $280 000
::-5%$30 000 $420 000
PO-2 sec. or less $1 ,000 $14 000
::-2 sec.000 $70 000
sec.
::-5 sec. to $10 000 $140 000
sec.
::-10 sec.$15 000 $210 000
OP-2/MR-1 % or lower 000 $14 000
::-1 % to 3%000 $70 000
::-3% to 5%$10 000 $140 000
::-5%$15 000 $210 000
Step by Step Calculation of Monthly Tier 1 Payments to CLEC
Application of the Critical Z-Values: Owest shall identify the Tier 1 parity
performance measurements that measure the service provided to CLEC by Owest for
the month in question and the critical z-value from Table 1 in section 5.0 that shall be
used for purposes of statistical testing for each particular performance measurement.
The statistical testing procedures described in section 4.0 shall be applied. For the
purpose of determining the critical z-values, each disaggregated category of a
performance measurement is treated as a separate sub-measurement. The critical
z-value to be applied is determined by the CLEC volume at each level of
disaggregation or sub-measurement.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26,2007
- 11-
Exhibit K
Performance Measurements for which Tier 1 Payment is Per Occurrence:
Performance Measurements that are Averages or Means:
1 Step 1: For each performance measurement , the average or the mean that
would yield the critical z-value shall be calculated. The same denominator as the one
used in calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For
benchmark measurements , the benchmark value shall be used.
2 Step 2: The percentage differences between the actual averages and the
calculated averages shall be calculated. The calculation is % diff = (CLEC result -
Calculated Value)/Calculated Value. The percent difference shall be capped at a
maximum of 100%. In all calculations of percent differences in sections 8.0 and 9.
the calculated percent differences is capped at 100%.
2 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the percentage calculated in the previous step and the per
occurrence dollar amounts from the Tier 1 Payment Table shall determine the
payment to the CLEC for each non-conforming performance measurement.
Performance Measurements that are Percentages:
1 Step 1: For each performance measurement, the percentage that would yield
the critical z-value shall be calculated. The same denominator as the one used in
calculating the z- statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For benchmark
measurements, the benchmark value shall be used.
2 Step 2: The difference between the actual percentages for the CLEC and the
calculated percentages shall be determined.
3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the difference in percentage calculated in the previous step,
and the per occurrence dollar amount taken from the Tier 1 Payment Table, to
determine the payment to the CLEC for each non-conforming performance
measurement.
Performance Measurements that are Ratios or Proportions:
1 Step 1: For each performance measurement the ratio that would yield the
critical z-value shall be calculated. The same denominator as the one used in
calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For benchmark
measurements , the benchmark value shall be used.
2 Step 2: The absolute difference between the actual rate for the CLEC and
the calculated rate shall be determined.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
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Exhibit K
3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the difference calculated in the previous step, and the per
occurrence dollar amount taken from the Tier 1 Payment Table, to determine the
payment to the CLEC for each non-conforming performance measurement.
Performance Measurements for which Tier 1 Payment is Per Measure:
For each performance measurement where Qwest fails to meet the standard
the payment to the CLEC shall be the dollar amount shown on the "per measure
portion of Table 2: Tier 1 Payments to CLEC.
Step by Step Calculation of Monthly Tier 2 Payments to State Funds
Application of the Critical Z-Value: Qwest shall identify the Tier 2 parity
performance measurements that measure the service provided by Qwest to all
CLECs for the month in question. The statistical testing procedures described in
section 4.0 shall be applied , except that a 1.645 critical z-value shall be used for Tier
parity measurements that have Tier 1 counterparts For Tier 2 parity
measurements that do not have Tier 1 counterparts, the statistical testing procedures
described section 4.0 shall be applied using the critical z-values identified in section
To determine if Tier 2 payments for performance measurements listed on
Attachment 1 shall be made in the current month , the following shall be determined.
For Tier 2 measurements that have Tier 1 counterparts , it shall be determined
whether Qwest missed the performance standard for three consecutive months, or if
Qwest has missed the standard in any two out of three consecutive months for the 12
month period and for an additional two consecutive months. For Tier 2
measurements that do not have Tier 1 counterparts, it shall be determined whether
Qwest missed the performance standard for single month. If any of these
conditions are met and there are at least 10 data points for the measurement in each
month, a Tier 2 payment will be calculated and paid as described below and will
continue in each succeeding month until Qwest's performance meets the applicable
standard. For Tier 2 measures that have Tier 1 counterparts, the most recent three
months of nonconforming performance data that results in payment liability shall be
averaged to determine payment.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 13-
Exhibit K
Performance Measurements for which Tier 2 Payment is Per Occurrence:
Performance Measurements that are Averages or Means:
1 Step 1: The monthly average or the mean for each performance
measurement that would yield the critical z-value for each month shall be calculated.
The same denominator as the one used in calculating the z-statistic for the
measurement shall be used. (For benchmark measurements, the benchmark value
shall be used.
2 Step 2: The percentage difference between the actual averages and the
calculated averages for the relevant month(s) shall be calculated. The calculation
for parity measurements is % diff = (actual average - calculated average)/calculated
average. The percent difference shall be capped at a maximum of 100%. In all
calculations of percent differences in section 8.0 and section 9., the calculated
percent difference is capped at 100%.
3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
for the relevant month(s) shall be multiplied by the percentage calculated in the
previous step. The amount (average amount, if more than one month) (rounded to
the nearest integer) is then multiplied by the result of the per occurrence dollar
amount taken from the Tier 2 Payment Table to determine the payment to the State
for each non-conforming performance measurement.
Performance Measurements that are Percentages:
Step 1: For each performance measurement, the monthly percentage that
would yield the critical z-value for each month shall be calculated. The same
denominator as the one used in calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall
be used. (For benchmark measurements, the benchmark value shall be used.
2 Step 2: The difference between the actual percentages and the calculated
percentages for the relevant month(s) shall be calculated. The calculation for parity
measurement is diff = (CLEC result - calculated percentage). This formula shall be
applicable where a high value is indicative of poor performance. The formula shall be
reversed where high performance is indicative of good performance.
3 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data pointsfor the relevant month(s) shall be multiplied by the difference in percentage
calculated in the previous step. The amount (average amount, if more than one
month)(rounded to the nearest integer) is then multiplied by the result of the per
occurrence dollar amounts taken from the Tier 2 Payment Table to determine the
payment to the State.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
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Exhibit K
9.4 Performance Measurements that are Ratios or Proportions:
9.4.Step 1: For each performance measurement, the ratio that would yield the
critical z-value for each month shall be calculated. The same denominator as the
one used in calculating the z-statistic for the measurement shall be used. (For
benchmark measurements , the benchmark value shall be used.
9.4.1 Step 2: The difference between the actual rate for the GLEG and the
calculated rate for the relevant month(s) shall be calculated. The calculation is: diff =
(GLEG rate - calculated rate). This formula shall apply where a high value is
indicative of poor performance. The formula shall be reversed where high
performance is indicative of good performance.
9.4.2 Step 3: For each performance measurement, the total number of data points
shall be multiplied by the difference calculated in the previous step for each month.
The amount (average amount, if more than one month)(rounded to the nearest
integer) is then multiplied by the result of the per occurrence dollar amounts taken
from the Tier 2 Payment Table to determine the payment to the State.
Performance Measurements for which Tier 2 Payment is Per Measure:
For each performance measurement where Owest fails to meet the standard
the payment to the State Fund shall be the dollar amount shown on the "per
measure" portion of the Tier 2 Payment Table.
10.Low Volume, Developing Markets
10.For certain qualifying performance standards if the aggregate monthly
volumes of GLEGs participating in the PAP are more than 10, but less than 100
Owest will make Tier 1 payments to GLEGs for failure to meet the parity or
benchmark standard for the qualifying performance sub-measurements. The
qualifying sub-measurements are the ADSL qualified loop product disaggregations of
OP-, OP-, OP-, MR-, MR-, MR-, and MR-8. If the aggregate monthly GLEG
volume is greater than 100 , the provisions of this section shall not apply to the
qualifying performance sub-measurement.
10.The determination of whether Owest has met the parity or benchmark
standards will be made using aggregate volumes of GLEGs participating in the PAP.
In the event Owest does not meet the applicable performance standards , a total
payment to affected GLEGs will be determined in accordance with the high, medium
low designation for each performance measurement (see Attachment 1) and
described in section 8., except that GLEG aggregate volumes will be used. In the
event the calculated total payment amount to GLEGs is less than $5 000 , a minimum
payment of $5 000 shall be made. The resulting total payment amount to GLEGs will
Owest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 15-
Exhibit K
be apportioned to the affected CLECs based upon each CLEC's relative share of the
number of total service misses.
10.At the six (6)-month reviews , Owest will consider adding to the above list of
qualifying performance sub-measurements new products disaggregation
representing new modes of CLEC entry into developing markets.
11.Payment
11.Payments to CLEC , the State, or the Special Fund shall be made one month
following the due date of the performance measurement report for the month for
which payment is being made. Owest will pay interest on any late payment and
underpayment at the prime rate as reported in the Wall Street Journal. On any
overpayment , Owest is allowed to offset future payments by the amount of the
overpayment plus interest at the prime rate.
11.Payment to CLEC shall be made via bill credits. Bill credits shall be identified
on a summary format substantially similar to that distributed as a prototype to the
CLECs and the Commissions. To the extent that a monthly payment owed to CLEC
under this PAP exceeds the amount owed to Owest by CLEC on a monthly bill
Owest will issue a check or wire transfer to CLEC in the amount of the overage.
Payment to the State shall be made via check or wire transfer.
11.3 A Special Fund shall be created for the purpose of payment of an
independent auditor and audit costs as specified in section 15.0 and payment of
other expenses incurred by the participating Commissions in the regional
administration of the PAP.
11.1 Owest shall establish the Special Fund as an interest bearing escrow account
upon the first FCC section 271 approval of the PAP applicable to a participating state
Commission. Owest shall be authorized to withhold and deposit into the Special
Fund one-half of all Tier 2 payments. The cost of the escrow account will be paid
for from account funds.
11.2 Commissions participating in the Special Fund shall appoint a person
designated to administer and authorize disbursement of funds. All claims against the
fund shall be presented to the Commissions' designates and shall be the
responsibility of the participating Commissions.
11.3 Owest shall advance funds to meet initial claims against the Special Fund to
the extent Tier 2 contributions are insufficient. Such funds shall not exceed $500 000
and shall be reduced appropriately in the event that at least six states in which the
OPAP is in effect do not agree to participate in the Special Fund. Upon a
determination by the participating Commissions that the Special Fund has become
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
- 16-
Exhibit K
self-sustaining or is no longer required Owest shall be allowed to recover any such
advances plus interest at the rate that the escrow account would have earned.
11.3.4 Upon the execution of a memorandum of understanding with the Idaho
Commission Owest shall establish an Idaho Discretionary Fund as a separate
interest bearing escrow account. Owest shall deposit into the Discretionary Fund the
remaining balance of Tier 2 payments after disbursement of Tier 2 payments to the
Special Fund pursuant to section 13.1. The Commission shall appoint a person
designated to administer and authorize disbursements of funds from the
Discretionary Fund. Disbursements from the Discretionary Fund shall be limited to
competitively neutral Idaho telecommunications initiatives. The costs of the
Discretionary Fund will paid for from the account's funds.
12.Cap on Tier 1 and Tier 2 Payments
12.There shall be a cap on the total payments made by Owest for a 12 month
period beginning with the effective date of the PAP for the State of Idaho. The
annual cap for the State of Idaho shall be 36% of ARMIS Net Return, recalculated
each year based upon the prior year s Idaho ARMIS results , subject to any
applicable adjustment permitted pursuant to section 12.2. Owest shall submit to the
Commission the calculation of each year s cap no later than 30 days after submission
of ARMIS results to the FCC. CLEC agrees that this amount constitutes a maximum
annual cap that shall apply to the aggregate total of Tier 1 liquidated damages
including any such damages paid pursuant to this Agreement, any other
interconnection agreement, or any other payments made for the same underlying
activity or omission under any other contract , order or rule and Tier 2 assessments or
payments made by Owest for the same underlying activity or omission under any
other contract , order or rule.
12.The 36% annual cap may be increased to 44% or decreased to 30% of
ARMIS Net Return as follows:
12.1 An increase in the cap of a maximum of 4 percentage points at anyone time
(i.e., first to 40 percent) shall occur upon order by the Commission if the cap has
been exceeded for any consecutive period of 24 months by that same 4 percent or
more, provided that: (a) the Commission has determined that the preponderance of
the evidence shows Owest could have remained beneath the cap through
reasonable and prudent effort, and (b) the Commission has made that determination
after having available to it on the record the results of audits and root cause
analyses, and provided an opportunity for Owest to be heard.
12.2 A decrease in the cap of a maximum of 4 percentage points at anyone time
shall occur upon order by the Commission after performance for any consecutive
period of 24 months in which total payments are 8 or more percentage points below
the cap amount , provided that: (a) the Commission has determined that the
Owest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26,2007
- 17-
Exhibit K
preponderance of the evidence shows the performance results underlying those
payments results from an adequate Owest commitment to meeting its responsibilities
to provide adequate wholesale service and to keeping open its local markets and (b)
the Commission shall have made that determination after providing all interested
parties an opportunity to be heard.
12.3 The provisions of 12.1 and 12.2 shall be in effect for the next 24 month
period commencing with the end of the 24 month period upon which the
Commission s order is based.
12.If the annual cap is reached , each CLEC shall , as of the end of the year, be
entitled to receive the same percentage of its total calculated Tier 1 payments.
order to preserve the operation of the annual cap, the percentage equalization shall
take place as follows:
12.1 The amount by which any month'total year-to-date Tier 1 and Tier 2
payments exceeds the cumulative monthly cap (defined as 1/1ih of the annual cap
times the cumulative number of months to date) shall be calculated and apportioned
between Tier 1 and Tier 2 according to the percentage that each bore of total
payments for the year-to-date. The Tier 1 apportionment resulting of this calculation
shall be known as the "Tracking Account."
12.2 The Tier 1 apportionment shall be debited against the monthly payment due
to each CLEC , by applying to the year-to-date payments received by each the
percentage necessary to generate the required total Tier 1 amount.
12.3 The Tracking Amount shall be apportioned among all CLECs so as to provide
each with payments equal in percentage of its total year to date Tier 1 payment
calculations.
12.3.4 This calculation shall take place in the first month that the year-to-date total
Tier 1 and Tier 2 payments are expected to exceed the cumulative monthly cap and
for each month of that year thereafter. Owest shall recover any debited amounts by
reducing payments due to any CLEC for that month and any succeeding months , as
necessary.
13.Limitations
13.The PAP shall not become available in the State unless and until Owest
receives effective section 271 authority from the FCC for that State.
13.Owest will not be liable for Tier 1 payments to CLEC in an FCC approved
state until the Commission has approved an interconnection agreement between
CLEC and Owest which adopts the provisions of this PAP.
Owest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 , 2007
- 18-
Exhibit K
13.Owest shall not be obligated to make Tier 1 or Tier 2 payments for any
measurement if and to the extent that non-conformance for that measurement was
the result of any of the following: 1) with respect to performance measurements with
a benchmark standard , a Force Majeure event as defined in section 5.7 of the SGAT.
Owest will provide notice of the occurrence of a Force Majeure event within 72 hours
of the time Owest learns of the event or within a reasonable time frame that Owest
should have learned of it; 2) an act or omission by a CLEC that is contrary to any of
its obligations under its interconnection agreement with Owest or under federal
state law; an act or omission by CLEC that is in bad faith. Examples of bad faith
conduct include, but are not limited to: unreasonably holding service orders and/or
applications
, "
dumping" orders or applications in unreasonably large batches
dumping" orders or applications at or near the close of a business day, on a Friday
evening or prior to a holiday, and failing to provide timely forecasts to Owest for
services or facilities when such forecasts are explicitly required by the SGAT; 3)
problems associated with third-party systems or equipment, which could not have
been avoided by Owest in the exercise of reasonable diligence provided, however
that this third party exclusion will not be raised in the State more than three times
within a calendar year. If a Force Majeure event or other excusing event recognized
in this section merely suspends Owest's ability to timely perform an activity subject to
a performance measurement that is an interval measure, the applicable time frame in
which Owest's compliance with the parity or benchmark criterion is measured will be
extended on an hour-for-hour or day-for-day basis, as applicable, equal to the
duration of the excusing event.
13.1 Owest will not be excused from Tier 1 or Tier 2 payments for any reason
except as described in Section 13.0. Owest will have the burden of demonstrating
that its non-conformance with the performance measurement was excused on one of
the grounds described in this PAP. A party may petition the Commission to require
Owest to deposit disputed payments into an escrow account when the requesting
party can show cause , such as grounds provided in the Uniform Commercial Code
for cases of commercial uncertainty.
13.2 Notwithstanding any other provision of section 13 of this OPAP, Owest shall
not be excused for failing to provide such performance that Owest could reasonably
have been expected to deliver assuming that it had designed , implemented , staffed
provisioned , and otherwise provided for resources reasonably required to meet
foreseeable volumes and patterns of demands upon its resources by CLECs.
13.4 Owest's agreement to implement these enforcement terms , and specifically
its agreement to pay any "liquidated damages" or "assessments" hereunder, will not
be considered as an admission against interest or an admission of liability in any
legal , regulatory, or other proceeding relating in whole or in part to the same
performance.
13.4.1 CLEC may not use: 1) the existence of this enforcement plan; or 2) Owest's
payment of Tier -1 "liquidated damages" or Tier 2 "assessments" as evidence that
Owest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26,2007
- 19-
Exhibit K
Qwest has discriminated in the provision of any facilities or services under Sections
251 or 252 , or has violated any state or federal law or regulation. Qwest's conduct
underlying its performance measures however are not made inadmissible by its
terms.
13.4.2 By accepting this performance remedy plan CLEC agrees that Qwest's
performance with respect to this remedy plan may not be used as an admission of
liability or culpability for a violation of any state or federal law or regulation. (Nothing
herein is intended to preclude Qwest from introducing evidence of any Tier 1
liquidated damages" under these provisions for the purpose of offsetting the
payment against any other damages or payments a CLEC might recover.) The terms
of this paragraph do not apply to any proceeding before the Commission or the FCC
to determine whether Qwest has met or continues to meet the requirements of
section 271 of the Act.
13.By incorporating these liquidated damages terms into the PAP , Qwest and
CLEC accepting this PAP agree that proof of damages from any non-conforming
performance measurement would be difficult to ascertain and , therefore, liquidated
damages are a reasonable approximation of any contractual damages that may
result from a non-conforming performance measurement. Qwest and CLEC further
agree that Tier 1 payments made pursuant to this PAP are not intended to be a
penalty. The application of the assessments and damages provided for herein is not
intended to foreclose other noncontractual legal and non-contractual regulatory
claims and remedies that may be available to a CLEC.
13.This PAP contains a comprehensive set of performance measurements
statistical methodologies, and payment mechanisms that are designed to function
together, and only together, as an integrated whole. To elect the PAP , CLEC must
adopt the PAP in its entirety, in its interconnection agreement with Qwest. By
electing remedies under the PAP , CLEC waives any causes of action based on a
contractual theory of liability, and any right of recovery under any other theory of
liability (including but not limited to a state utility regulatory commission or Federal
Communications Commission rule or order) to the extent such recovery is related to
harm compensable under a contractual theory of liability (even though it is sought
through a noncontractual claim , theory, or cause of action).
13.If for any reason a CLEC agreeing to this QPAP is awarded compensation for
the same harm for which it received payment under the QPAP , the court or other
adjudicatory body hearing such a claim may offset the damages resulting from such
claim against payments made for the same harm.
13.Qwest shall not be liable for both Tier 2 payments under the PAP and
assessments, sanctions , or other payments for the same underlying activity or
omission pursuant to any Commission order or service quality rules.
13.Whenever a Qwest Tier 1 payment to an individual CLEC exceeds $3 million
in a month , Qwest may commence a proceeding to demonstrate why it should not be
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
- 20-
Exhibit K
required to pay any amount in excess of the $3 million. Upon timely commencement
of the proceeding, Owest must pay the balance of payments owed in excess of $3
million into escrow, to be held by a third-party pending the outcome of the
proceeding. To invoke these escrow provisions, Owest must file, not later than the
due date of the Tier 1 payments, its application. Owest will have the burden of proof
to demonstrate why, under the circumstances , it would be unjust to require it to make
the payments in excess of $3 million. If Owest reports non-conforming performance
to CLEC for three consecutive months on 20% or more of the measurements
reported to CLEC and has incurred no more than $1 million in liability to CLEC, then
CLEC may commence a similar proceeding. In any such proceeding CLEC will have
the burden of proof to demonstrate why, under the circumstances , justice requires
Owest to make payments in excess of the amount calculated pursuant to the terms of
the PAP. The disputes identified in this section shall be resolved in a manner
specified in the Dispute Resolution section of the SGA T with the CLEC.
14.Reporting
14.Upon receiving effective section 271 authority from the FCC for a state
Owest will provide CLEC that has an approved interconnection agreement with
Owest, a monthly report of Owest's performance for the measurements identified in
the PAP by the last day of the month following the month for which performance
results are being reported. However Owest shall have a grace period of five
business days , so that Owest shall not be deemed out of compliance with its
reporting obligations before the expiration of the five business day grace period.
Owest will collect, analyze, and report performance data for the measurements listed
on Attachment 1 in accordance with the most recent version of the PIDs. Upon
CLEC's request, data files of the CLEC's raw data , or any subset thereof, will be
transmitted, without charge , to CLEC in a mutually acceptable format , protocol , and
transmission medium.
14.Owest will also provide the Commission a monthly report of aggregate CLEC
performance results pursuant to the PAP by the last day of the month following the
month for which performance results are being reported. However, Owest shall have
a grace period of five business days , so that Owest shall not be deemed out of
compliance with its reporting obligations before the expiration of the five business day
grace period. Individual CLEC reports of participating CLECs will also be available to
the Commission upon request. By accepting this PAP , CLEC consents to Owest
providing CLEC's report and raw data to the State Commission. Pursuant to the
terms of an order of the Commission , Owest may provide GLEe-specific data that
relates to the PAP, provided that Owest shall first initiate any procedures necessary
to protect the confidentiality and to prevent the public release of the information
pending any applicable Commission procedures and further provided that Owest
provides such notice as the Commission directs to the CLEC involved , in order to
allow it to prosecute such procedures to their completion. Data files of participating
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 21-
Exhibit K
CLEC raw data, or any subset thereof, will be transmitted , without charge , to the
Commission in a mutually acceptable format, protocol, and transmission form.
14.In the event Owest does not provide CLEC and the Commission with a
monthly report by the last day of the month following the month for which
performance results are being reported , Owest will pay to the State a total of $500 for
each business day for which performance reports are 6 to 10 business days past the
due date; $1 000 for each business day for which performance reports are 11 to 15
business days past the due date; and $2 000 for each business day for which
performance results are more than 15 business days past the due date. If reports
are on time but are missing performance results, Owest will pay to the State a total of
one-fifth of the late report amount for each missing performance measurement
subject to a cap of the full late report amount. These amounts represent the total
payments for omitting performance measurements or missing any report deadlines
rather than a payment per report. Prior to the date of a payment for late reports
Owest may file a request for a waiver of the payment, which states the reasons for
the waiver. The Commission may grant the waiver, deny the waiver, or provide any
other relief that may be appropriate.
14.4 To the extent that Owest recalculates payments made under this PAP, such
recalculation shall be limited to the preceding three years (measured from the later of
the provision of a monthly credit statement or payment due date). Owest shall retain
sufficient records to demonstrate fully the basis for its calculations for long enough to
meet this potential recalculation obligation. CLEC verification or recalculation efforts
should be made reasonably contemporaneously with Owest measurements. In any
event, Owest shall maintain the records in a readily useable format for one year. For
the remaining two years, the records may be retained in archived format. Any
payment adjustments shall be subject to the interest rate provisions of section 11.
15.Integrated Audit Program/Investigations of Performance Results
15.Audits of the PAP shall be conducted in a two-year cycle under the auspices
of the participating Commissions in accordance with a detailed audit plan developed
by an independent auditor retained for a two-year period. The participating
Commissions shall select the independent auditor with input from Owest and CLECs.
15.1 The participating Commissions shall form an oversight committee of
Commissioners who will choose the independent auditor and approve the audit plan.
Any disputes as to the choice of auditor or the scope of the audit shall be resolved
through a vote of the chairs of the participating commissions pursuant to Section
15.1 .4.
15.2 The audit plan shall be conducted over two years. The audit plan will identify
the specific performance measurements to be audited , the specific tests to be
conducted , and the entity to conduct them. The audit plan will give priority to auditing
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 22-
Exhibit K
the higher risk areas identified in the OSS report. The two-year cycle will examine
risks likely to exist across that period and the past history of testing, in order to
determine what combination of high and more moderate areas of risk should be
examined during the two-year cycle. The first year of a two-year cycle will
concentrate on areas most likely to require follow-up in the second year.
15.3 The audit plan shall be coordinated with other audit plans that may be
conducted by other state commissions so as to avoid duplication , shall not impede
Qwest's ability to comply with the other provisions of the PAP and should be of a
nature and scope that can be conducted in accordance with the reasonable course of
Qwest's business operations.
15.1.4 Any dispute arising out of the audit plan , the conduct of the audit, or audit
results shall be resolved by the oversight committee of Commissioners. Decisions of
the oversight committee of Commissioners may be appealed to a committee of the
chairs of the participating Commissions.
15.Qwest may make management processes more accurate or more efficient to
perform without sacrificing accuracy. These changes are at Qwest's discretion but
will be reported to the independent auditor in quarterly meetings in which the auditor
may ask questions about changes made in the Qwest measurement regimen. The
meetings, which will be limited to Qwest and the independent auditor, will permit an
independent assessment of the materiality and propriety of any Qwest changes
including, where necessary, testing of the change details by the independent auditor.
The information gathered by the independent auditor may be the basis for reports bythe independent auditor to the participating Commissions and , where the
Commissions deem it appropriate, to other participants.
15.In the event of a disagreement between Qwest and CLEC as to any issue
regarding the accuracy or integrity of data collected , generated , and reported
pursuant to the PAP, Qwest and the CLEC shall first consult with one another and
attempt in good faith to resolve the issue. If an issue is not resolved within 45 days
after a request for consultation , CLEC and Qwest may, upon a demonstration of good
cause, (e., evidence of material errors or discrepancies) request an independent
audit to be conducted , at the initiating party s expense. The independent auditor will
assess the need for an audit based upon whether there exists a material deficiency in
the data or whether there exists an issue not otherwise addressed by the audit plan
for the current cycle. The dispute resolution provision of section 18.0 is available to
any party questioning the independent auditor s decision to conduct or not conduct a
CLEC requested audit and the audit findings, should such an audit be conducted. An
audit may not proceed until dispute resolution is completed. Audit findings will
include: (a) general applicability of findings and conclusions (i.e., relevance to
CLECs or jurisdictions other than the ones causing test initiation), (b) magnitude of
any payment adjustments required and , (c) whether cost responsibility should be
shifted based upon the materiality and clarity of any Qwest non-conformance with
measurement requirements (no pre-determined variance is appropriate , but should
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 , 2007
- 23-
Exhibit K
be based on the auditor s professional judgment). CLEC may not request an audit of
data more than three years from the later of the provision of a monthly credit
statement or payment due date.
15.4 Expenses for the audit of the PAP and any other related expenses, except
that which may be assigned under section 15., shall be paid first from the Tier 2
funds in the Special Fund. For Idaho, the remainder of the audit expenses will be
paid by awest.
15.awest will investigate any second consecutive Tier 2 miss to determine the
cause of the miss and to identify the action needed in order to meet the standard set
forth in the performance measurements. To the extent an investigation determines
that a CLEC was responsible in whole or in part for the Tier 2 misses, awest shall
receive credit against future Tier 2 payments in an amount equal to the Tier 2
payments that should not have been made. The relevant portion of subsequent Tier
2 payments will not be owed until any responsible CLEC problems are corrected. For
the purposes of this sub-section , Tier 1 performance measurements that have not
been designated as Tier 2 will be aggregated and the aggregate results will be
investigated pursuant to the terms of this Agreement.
16.Reviews
16. 1 Every six (6) months , beginning six months after the effective date of section
271 approval by the FCC for the state of Idaho, awest, CLECs , or the Idaho Public
Utilities Commission may initiate a review of the performance measurements to
determine whether measurements should be added , deleted , or modified; whether
the applicable benchmark standards should be modified or replaced by parity
standards; and whether to move a classification of a measurement to High, Medium
or Low, Tier 1 or Tier 2. The criterion for reclassification of a measurement shall be
whether the actual volume of data points was less or greater than anticipated.
Criteria for review of performance measurements, other than for possible
reclassification , shall be whether there exists an omission or failure to capture
intended performance, and whether there is duplication of another measurement.
Any disputes regarding adding, deleting, or modifying performance measurements
shall be resolved pursuant to a proceeding before the Commission and subject to
judicial review. No new performance measurements shall be added to this PAP that
have not been subject to observation as diagnostic measurements for a period of 6
months. Any changes made at the six-month review pursuant to this section shall
apply to and modify this agreement between awest and CLEC , subject to a stay,
modification or reversal upon appeal or judicial review.
16.Notwithstanding section 16., if any agreements on adding, modifying or
deleting performance measurements as permitted by section 16.1 are reached
between awest and CLECs participating in an industry Regional Oversight
Committee (ROC) PID administration forum, those agreements shall be incorporated
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
- 24-
Exhibit K
into the QPAP and modify the agreement between CLEC and Qwest at any time
those agreements are submitted to the Commission , whether before or after a six-
month review.
16.For the first twelve months that any changes made pursuant to paragraphs
16.1 or 16.1 are in effect, Qwest's liability for such changes shall be limited to 10%
of the monthly payments that Qwest would have made absent the effect of such
changes as a whole. This provision shall be referred as "the 10% payment collar.
Such payment limitation shall be accomplished by factoring the payments resulting
from the changes to ensure that such payments remain within 10% of the payments
Qwest would have made absent such changes.
16.In the event that the Commission adds , modifies, or reclassifies a
performance measurement that has not been agreed upon in the ROC PID
administration forum process in 16., the 10% payment collar shall remain in effect
unless removed by the Commission pursuant to this section. If, after a minimum of 6
months of payments to a CLEC, Qwest's payments have been limited by the 10%
payment collar to 80% or less of what the total payments would have been absent
the collar for the preceding 6-month period , the Commission may, upon motion by an
affected CLEC, conduct a record proceeding to determine whether the 10% payment
collar should be removed from any such performance measure. The Commission
can prospectively remove the 10% collar for Tier 1 payments to affected CLEC(s) for
any such performance measure upon a demonstration through a record proceeding
and a Commission determination that the total payments to the CLEC(s) under the
QPAP were inadequate to compensate CLEC(s) for actual harm incurred during the
same period and upon a determination that such change is otherwise necessary and
appropriate and in the public interest.
16.1.4 Notwithstanding section 16., any party may submit a root cause analysis to
the Commission requesting removal of a PID or sub-measure from the PAP or
requesting exemption of a PID or sub-measure from the application of the trigger
mechanism for reinstatement or subsequent removal. In the analysis and
recommendations concerning the root cause analysis, the Commission is to consider
at a minimum , whether the root cause analysis provides evidence of no harm , the
same harm as covered by other PID measures , non-Qwest related causes, or other
factors which directly relate to the harm or circumstances specific to the PID or sub-
measure being analyzed.
16.Two years after the effective date of the first FCC 271 approval of the PAP
the participating Commissions may conduct a joint review by a independent third
party to examine the continuing effectiveness of the PAP as a means of inducing
compliant performance. This review shall not be used to open the PAP generally to
amendment, but would serve to assist Commissions in determining existing
conditions and reporting to the FCC on the continuing adequacy of the PAP to serve
its intended functions. The expense of the reviews shall be paid from the Special
Fund.
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26, 2007
- 25-
Exhibit K
16.Qwest will make the PAP available for CLEC interconnection agreements
until such time as Qwest eliminates its Section 272 affiliate. At that time, the
Commission and Qwest shall review the appropriateness of the PAP and whether its
continuation is necessary. However, in the event Qwest exits the interLATA market
that State PAP shall be rescinded immediately.
17.Voluntary Performance Assurance Plan
This PAP represents Qwest's voluntary offer to provide performance assurance.
Nothing in the PAP or in any conclusion of non-conformance of Qwest's service
performance with the standards defined in the PAP shall be construed to be , of itself
non-conformance with the Act.
18.Dispute Resolution
For the purpose of resolving disputes over the meaning of the provisions of the PAP
and how they should be applied , the dispute resolution provisions of the SGAT
section 5., shall apply whether the CLEC uses the SGA T in its entirety or elects tomake the PAP part of its interconnection agreements (i.e., the unique dispute
resolution provisions of interconnection agreements should not apply).
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 26-
Exhibit K
Attachment 1: Tier 1 and Tier 2 Performance Measurements Subject to Per Occurrence
Payment
Performance Measurement Tier 1 Payments Tier 2 Payments
low Med High low Med Hiqh
GATEWAY
Timely Outaqe Resolution GA-
PRE-ORDER/ORDERS
lSR Rejection Notice Interval PO-
Firm Order Confirmations On Time PO-
Work Completion Notification Timeliness PO-
Billina Completion Notification Timeliness PO- 70
Jeopardy Notice Interval PO-
Timely Jeopardy Notices PO-
Release Notifications PO-
(Expanded)Manual Service Order PO-
Accuracy
ORDERING AND PROVISIONING
Installation Commitments Met OP-
Installation Intervals OP-
New Service Quality OP-
9 bd
Delayed Days OP-6e,
Number Portability Timeliness OP-
Coordinated Cuts On Time -Unbundled OP-13a
loops
lNP Disconnect Timeliness OP-
MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR
Out of Service Cleared within 24 hours MR-
All Troubles Cleared within 4 hours MR-
Mean time to Restore MR-
df e
Repair Repeat Report Rate MR-
Trouble Rate MR-
lNP Trouble Reports Cleared within MR-
Specified Timeframes
BilLING
Time to Provide Recorded Usaqe Records BI-
Billinq Accuracy-Adjustments for Errors BI-
Billinq Completeness BI-
NETWORK PERFORMANCE
Trunk Blockinq NI-
NXX Code Activation NP-
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised , Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 27-
Exhibit K
a. PO-3 is limited to PO-3a-, PO-3b-, and PO-3c.
b. PO-6 is included with PO-7 as two "families:" PO-6a/PO-7a and PO-6b/PO-7b. Measurements within
each family share a single payment opportunity with only the measurements with the highest payment being
paid.
c. OP-4 is included with OP-6 as five "families:" OP-4a/OP-, OP-4b/OP-, OP-4c/OP-, OP-4d/OP-
, and OP-4e/OP-5. Measurements within each family share a single payment opportunity with only the
measurement with the highest payment being paid.
d. Section 3.2 applies to OP-5b only if the number of orders with trouble in OP-5a is no more than one.
e. For purposes of the PAP , OP-6a and OP-6b will be combined and treated as one. The combined OP-
breaks down to OP-1 (within MSA), OP-2 (outside MSA), OP-3 (no dispatch), OP-4 (zone 1), and
OP-5 (zone 2).
f. Applicable only to xDSL-capable loops.
g.
Excludes the following product disaggregations as applicable to this PID: Resale Centrex, Resale
Centrex 21 , Resale DSO (non-designed), Resale DSO (designed), Resale DSO , E911/911 Trunks , Resale
Frame Relay, Resale Basic ISDN (non-designed), Resale Basic ISDN (designed), Resale Basic ISDN
Resale Primary ISDN (non-designed), Resale Primary ISDN (designed), Resale Primary ISDN , Resale PBX
(non-designed), Resale PBX (designed), Resale PBX, Sub-Loop Unbundling, UNE-P (POTS), UNE-
(Centrex), and UNE-P (Centrex 21).
Owest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26 2007
- 28-
Exhibit K
Attachment 2: Performance Measurements Subject to Per Measurement Caps
Billing
Time to Provide Recorded Usage Records - BI-1 (Tier 1/Tier 2)
Billing Accuracy - Adjustments for Errors - BI-3 (Tier
Billing Completeness - BI-(Tier 1/Tier 2)
Qwest Idaho SGAT Third Revised, Sixth Amended Exhibit K, June 26,2007
- 29-