20130607Petition.pdf

Mu"y S. Hobson
Attorney & Counselor
999 Main, Suite rrog
Boise, lD BgToq
908-385-8666
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Jtne7,2013
VIA HAND DELTVERY
Jean D. Jewell, Secretary
Idaho Public Utilities Commission
472West Washington
Boise,ID 83702-5983
RE: Docket Nos. QWE-T-1341CEN-T-13{./. and CGS-T-13-.)3
Dear Ms. Jewell:
Enclosed for filing with this Commission are an original and seven (7) copies of the Joint
Petition of Qwest Corporation (dba CenturyLink QC), CenturyTel of ldaho,Inc. and
CenturyTel of the Gem State,Inc., (dba Centurylink) for Partial Waiver of the
Requirements of IPUC Order No. 20841.
Qwest Corporation dba CenturyLink QC, CenturyTel of Idaho, Inc. dba CenturyLink,
and CenturyTel of the Gem State, krc. dba CenturyLink (collectively "the CenturyLink
companies" or "Centur5/Link") respectfully request that the Commission consider this
Petition on modified procedure and expeditiously grant the relief requested herein to
waive the requirement that the Petitioners file two-year plans in 2013 in connection with
the annual ETC recertification process.
If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you for your cooperation in this
matter.
Very truly yours,
.ltt
t, ir\fy I :
Marv S. Hobson
Enclosure
Mary S. Hobson (ISB. No. 2142)
999 Main, Suite 1103
Boise, ID 83702
Tel: [phone]
Mary. Hobson@ Centurylink. com
Lisa A. Anderl
Associate General Counsel, CenturyLink
1600 7th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98191
Tel: [phone]
Lisa. Anderl @ Centurylink. com
Attorneys for CenturyLink
BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
Qwest Corporation, dba "Centurylink QC", CenturyTel of the Gern State, Inc.,
dba "CenturyLink", and CenturyTel of Idaho, klc., dba "Centurylink", (collectively
"CenturyLink") by and through their undersigned attorneys, hereby file their Joint
Petition for Partial Waiver of the Requirements of IPUC Order No. 20841 (filing of a
"two year plan").
I Case Nos.
II awE-r-l3-o,
I cEN-r-l3- o .,
IN THE MATTER OF THE I CGS.T.13.6> ?
REeuEsr FoR PARTTAL wArvER I ,orNT prTrrroN of ewESTOF THE REQUIREMENTS OF IPU(
oRDER No. 2e84r '
I i^ory-qIi!1Io-I-qba--c-ENJyRY-LINKQC), CENTURYTEL of IDAIIO, INC. and
CENTURYTEL of the GEM STATE,INC.,
dba CENTURYLINK FOR PARTIAL
WATVER OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF
IPUC ORDER NO. 20841
JOINT PETITION for PARTIAL WAIVER -l-
BACKGROT]ND
On August 4,2005,the Commission entered OrderNo. 29841 ("Order") in a case
concerning the application of a wireless carrier seeking designation as an Eligible
Telecommunications Carrier (ETC) so that it might receive financial support from the
federal universal fund.t Under the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996 the
Commission has the authority to designate carriers as ETCs and is responsible for an
annual ETC certification process for Idaho service areas. Previously thatyear, in March
of 2005 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had issued new rules for ETC
certification as well as for annual reporting and recertification by the state commissions.
In the process of considering the individual carrier's application in the Idaho case,
this Commission also considered the new rules that the FCC had adopted for the
designation of ETCs and for reporting by ETCs that had received federal universal
service support.2 As a result, the Commission adopted new requirements for ETC
eligibility and reporting in Idaho3 that adopted some, but not all, of the FCC's
guidelines.' to makirrg this decision the Commission stated it was focusing on those
requirements it found useful and necessary to implementing its duties under the federal
law, while helping the FCC to achieve its goal of "bringing greater uniformity to state
proceedings." 5 The requirements adopted in Order No. 29841 have formed the structure
for the annual ETC certification filinls that the Joint Petitioners have made with the
Commission over the subsequent years.6
One of the variances from the FCC Rules that Idaho Commission adopted was to
reject the FCC requironent that the ETC produce a five-year network improvanent plan.
I See In the Matter of the Application of WWC Holding Co., Inc., dba Cellularone Seeking Designation as
an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier That May Receive Federal Universal Service Support, Case No.
wsT-T-05-1.
2 Order No. 29841 ("Ordet'') at l.3 Id.a Order at7.
5 Id.6 ETC certification filings were only necessary for those operations in which the company in question
received federal high cost funds. Qwest Corporation, for example, only submitted filings for its northern
Idaho operations since federal funds were not received in its southern Idaho operating territory. In20l2,
however, the southern operations did receive limited funding for the first time.
JOINT PETITION for PARTIAL WAIVER -2-
Instead, the Commission found that"atwo-year plan in the dynamic telecommunications
market strikes the appropriate balance between demonstrating a commitment to improve
services and obtaining meaningful information."T Idaho companies seeking ETC
recertification have since filed two-year network improvement plans pursuant to the
terms of the Order.
Now the FCC is again addressing ETC reporting requirernents in light of revisions
to 47 C.F.R. $ 54.313 and, specifically, to account for new broadband obligations being
imposed on carriers. Among these is an expansion of the duties to report on the carrier's
five-year service quality improvement plan for those companies that will be receiving
funding for broadband services. New reporting will require maps detailing progress
toward plan targets, an explanation of how much universal service support was received
and how it was used, and an explanation of any network improvement targets that have
not been met during the year. These reports will require detail to be provided at the wire
center or census block level.
Presently, however, the FCC has not completed all the steps necessary to provide
a final form for use by ETCs in formulating the new plans. Furthermore, because the
new federal high cost funding which is aimed specifically at broadband has not been
distributed or accepted by the ETCs, companies are not in a position to develop specific
plans for its use. Consequently, on March 5,2013, the FCC issued an order waiving the
five-year plan requirement for 20138 for companies such as the Joint Petitioners.e
RELIEF REQUESTED
The foregoing describes the history of the two-year plan requirement contained in
Order No. 29841 and its relationship to the FCC requirernents. Since the beginning,
bringing uniformity across the states has been an objective'o. [n addition, given the
increasingly complex reporting requirements being adopted by the FCC, creating state-
specific reports that have unique but less rigorous standards for documenting use of
7 ld. atg.8 See Connect America Fund et al, WC Docket No. 10-90 et al., Order DA 13-332 (March 5,2013)e Idat18.lo order at 7.
JOINT PETITION for PARTIAL WAIVER -J-
federal funds may no longer fulfill a useful purpose. CenturyLink, therefore, seeks a
waiver of the two-year plan requirement contained in Order No. 29841 in the interest of
bringing its Idaho ETC recertification reports for 2013 in conformance with FCC
requirements for this year.
In the future Centurylink will be required to create significantly more
comprehensive and detailed plans dernonstrating how it has used and intends to use any
federal high cost funding it receives in any of its companies. This information will be
shared with the Commission and should more than satisfu the Commission's need for
information to perform its duties under federal law. Meanwhile preparation of two-year
plans that essentially willbe scrapped as broadband funding and federal reporting
requirements come online within the next twelve months serves little purpose.
If this waiver is granted, CenturyLink intends to file its FCC ETC filings with the
Commission.ll These filings contain all of the rernaining requirements found in Order
No. 29841, together with other information that has been added to the FCC requirernents.
In2014, CenturyLink will also file its five-year plans with the Commission.
CONCLUSION
In 2013 CenturyLink finds that the Idaho Commission's requirement that it
produce a two-year plan as part of its annual recertification has no parallel requirement at
that FCC and therefore respectfully requests that this Commission grant the Petitioners a
waiver of the two-year plan requirernent of Order No. 29841 for 2013. In the future,
CenturyLink will share the detailed information it will be required to produce for the
FCC with this Commission. Looking forward, CenturyLink hopes to work with the
Commission and its Staff over the coming year to bring the Idaho reporting requirements
and those being adopted by the FCC together so that a single filing may be sufficient to
meet both the federal and state's needs for ETC reporting.
" The FCC filings are currently due on July l, 2013. However, due to uncertainties as to the exact
requirements for 2013, there is a possibility that a thirty-day extension to that filing date will be granted by
the FCC.
JOINT PETITION for PARTIAL WAIVER -4-
Submitted this 7th day of June,20l3.
Respectfully submitted,
,rfu.a "l { 4a
999 Main. Suite 1103
Boise, lD 83702
Lisa A. Anderl o
Associate General Counsel, CenturyLink
1600 7th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98191
Attorneys for CenturyLink
JOINT PETITION for PARTIAL WAryER -5-