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Home My WebLink About20251128Viasat Carrier Services.pdf RECEIVED November 28, 2025 IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION Viasat_" November 28, 2025 VIA Email and Overnight Courier Monica Barrios-Sanchez, Commission Secretary Idaho Public Utilities Commission 472 W. Washington Street Boise, ID 83702 secretary(aDpuc.idaho.gov Re: In the Matter of Application of Citizens Telecommunications Company of Idaho for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity; Notice of Discontinuance Case No. CTC-T-25-01 APPLICATION OR COMMENTS OF VIASAT CARRIER SERVICES, INC. Dear Ms. Barrios-Sanchez: On behalf of Viasat Carrier Services, Inc. ("Viasat"'), transmitted herewith is one (1) original and seven (7) copies of Viasat's Application or Comments in the above-referenced matter. Please date-stamp the duplicate of this filing and return it in the self-addressed, postage prepaid envelope. Viasat is seeking Idaho counsel, and will advise the Commission as soon as it retains counsel. In the meantime, should you have any questions regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to contact the undersigned or our FCC counsel, Michael P. Donahue, at mpd(o-),commlawgroup.com. Respectfully submitted, t � j I I tr ge Associate Ge ral Co Viasat, Inc. 349 Inverness Drive South, Englewood, Colorado 80112 T. 720.493.6000 F. 720.493.6010 www.viasat.com Shelby Striegel Viasat, Inc. 349 Inverness Drive South Englewood, Colorado 80112 Telephone: (720) 493-6150 Email: slic:lb\ .stricgcl ci,-viasat.com BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION IN TI IE MATTER OF THE ) APPLICATION OF CITIZENS ) Case No. CTC-T-25-01 TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY ) OF IDAHO FOR A CERTIFICATE OF ) PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND ) NECESSITY FOR PREVIOUSLY ) ACQUIRED TELEPHONE ) APPLICATION OR EXCHANGES. ) COMMENTS OF VIASAT CARRIER SERVICES, INC. NOTICE OF DISCONTINUANCE,OF SERVICE ) Viasat Carrier Services, Inc. ("Viasat"), pursuant to Idaho Code § 62-612(3), hereby submits this "Application" or, in the alternative "Comments" to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission (the "Commission") in connection with the Notice of Discontinuance of Service ("Discontinuance Notice") filed by Ziply Fiber of Idaho, LLC, and Ziply Fiber Northwest, LLC (collectively, "Ziply") on October 29, 2025.1 In support hereof, Viasat respectfully submits the i following: Background. I. Idaho Code § 62-612(3) provides that "[a]ny person or telephone corporation affected by a withdrawal or discontinuance of such services by a telephone corporation subject 1 Research of Idaho sources indicates that notice of the Discontinuance Notice was published in the Idaho County Free Press on or about October 31, 2025, November 7, 2025 and/or November 18, 2025. See https://« w,,y.idahopubl icnutic:cs.com/(S(pwxr5uzolus 1 x 141 vxh I nYmm))/Dctails.aspx?SID=p wxi5ul�Jus1 x141yxh 1nxn1m&ID=I39842. to this chapter, may within thirty (30) days from the date of publication of the notice apply to the commission to determine whether such withdrawal or discontinuance of service is authorized pursuant to this section." Ziply's Discontinuance Notice specifically names Viasat as olfering "voice and broadband connectivity to customers via satellite technology" and states that "Viasat is capable of providing equivalent telecommunications service to this local exchange area." Discontinuance Notice at ¶ 3. Ziply's reliance on Viasat as grounds in support of its discontinuance of services in the Elk City, Idaho area at least potentially renders Viasat "affected" by Ziply's discontinuance of service. Viasat is therefore "applying to the commission" to ensure that the record accurately reflects Viasat's services and service areas and that any Commission approval of the discontinuance is not premised or conditioned upon an expectation Viasat can or a requirement that Viasat must serve all customers in the discontinued service area. ?. Viasat applied for Eligible Telecommunications Carrier ("ETC") designation in i Idaho solely for the census blocks for which its parent company had been awarded Connect ' America Fund ("CAF") funds in the Federal Communications Commission's ("FCC") Connect America Fund Phase II Auction (Auction 903) (the "CAF II Auction").2 Viasat identified these areas in Exhibit A to its ETC Application and did not seek authorization to provide service outside these areas. The Commission granted Viasat's Application "for the Census Block Groups described in Exhibit A to the Company's Application" by Order No. 34253 dated 2 See "Application of Viasat Carrier Services, Inc. for Limited Designation as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier to Receive Connect America Fund Phase I1 Auction (Auction 903) Support for Voice and Broadband Services," Case No. VCS-T=18-01(filed Sept. 26, 2018) (the "Viasat Application"). 2 i February 22, 2019. Viasat did not then, and does not now, propose to serve any portions of the State of Idaho outside of the census blocks identified in its ETC Application. Comments Regarding Discontinuance Notice. 1. Viasat has compared the areas associated with Ziply's Discontinuance Notice with the locations in the census blocks covered by Viasat's ETC designation and determined that less than 50 percent of the geographic area, and approximately 1 .2% of the locations in which Ziply intends to discontinue service, overlap with locations in Viasat's census blocks. .Seca. Declaration of Steven Lanning, Senior Director, as well as an illustrative map, attached hereto as Exhibit One. Viasat is willing and able to provide service to the customers in these locations under the same rates, terms and conditions Viasat offers service to other customers in its ETC-designated service area. However, given Viasat's obligations under the CAF II program, Viasat is not able to serve the remaining approximately 99% of locations in which Ziply intends to discontinue service.3 2. Ziply"s Discontinuance Notice did not identify service providers, other than Viasat, that may be able to provide equivalent telecommunications services in the areas Ziply intends to discontinue service. Under Idaho Code § 62-612(a), Ziply must demonstrate that one or more alternative telephone corporations are furnishing the same telecommunications service or equivalent service to customers in Elk City exchange area. Viasat is aware that other providers, including its affiliate, Viasat, Inc., may be able to provide service in these areas;' however, Viasat does not have sufficient information about the nature or scope of other 3 Notably, Viasat's current ETC designation does not include these areas. 4 Viasat, Inc. can provide service in the areas Ziply intends to discontinue on a non-ETC basis under the same rates, terms and conditions Viasat, Inc. makes available to other Idaho consumers. 3 providers' services to confirm compliance with this requirement. The Commission should do so as part of its evaluation of Ziply's Discontinuance Notice. 3. While the Commission has been granted authority by the Idaho Code to order carriers to provide some services in some circumstances,5 Viasat has found no basis in Idaho law to require competitive telecommunications carriers to involuntarily expand their service , areas beyond those in which they operate. Out of an abundance of caution, Viasat respectfully submits that, if the Commission were contemplating extending its powers beyond those specified in Idaho statutes and precedents, the present case would be inappropriate vehicle for any such extension. 4. Viasat sought, and was granted, ETC designation only to serve the specific census blocks awarded to it in the CAF II Auction, pursuant to FCC requirements. See Case No. VCS-T 18-01 generally. CAF II funding was made available only for specific Census Block Groups found eligible by the FCC.6 Winning bidders receiving CAF funding are subject to deployment requirements within their awarded service areas 7 service quality and i performance requirements and to penalties for failing to meet those obligations.$ Any attempts to impose obligations above and beyond those already undertaken by providers under the CAF regime imposes costs for which the provider cannot be compensated under the fund and which i 5 See, e.g., Idaho Code § 62-608 (Commission authority to order a provider of message telecommunication services to interconnect with local exchange carriers that do not themselves provide such services. 6 See, e.g., In the Matter of Connect America Fund, Report and Order, FCC 14-190, ¶ 4 (rel. Dec. 18, 2014); In the Matter of Connect America Fund, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, FCC 16-64,72-73 ¶¶ 51, 56-57 61 (rel. May 26, 2016) ("CAFAuction Order"). 7 See, e.g., CAFAuction Order,¶J 40-41, 44-45. 8 Id. at ¶¶ 189-194. 4 J may adversely impact the provider's ability to serve the underserved areas to which it has committed by participating in the CAF II Auction. 5. Thus, regardless of the Commission's action on Ziply's Discontinuance Notice (on which Viasat offers no opinion), Viasat submits that the Commission may not and should not impose any obligations upon Viasat beyond those to which it is already subject under Order No. 3425. Conclusion 6. For all the foregoing reasons, Viasat respectfully submits that its service areas under its ETC designation in Idaho do not cover significant portions of the townships within which Ziply seeks to discontinue service, as stated in the Discontinuance Notice, and the Commission should undertake to locate alternative providers within the areas not covered by Viasat. As such, regardless of the Commission's ultimate determination regarding the Discontinuance Notice, Viasat respectfully requests that the Commission impose no obligations upon Viasat not already imposed by Order No. 3425. Dated November 28, 2025. Respectfully Submitted, VIASAT CARRIER SERVICES, INC. By: Nk6p Shelb Stri el Associate Gener ins Viasat, Inc. 5 EXHIBIT ONE Viasat DECLARATION REGARDING COMPARISON OF ZIPLY TOWNSHIPS TO VIASAT CARRIER SERVICES, INC. AWARDED CENSUS BLOCKS WITHIN THE STATE OF IDAHO I am a Senior Director for Viasat, Inc., and am qualified to certify that the following is true and correct to the best of my information,knowledge,and belief: In order to determine if Viasat Carrier Services, Inc. ("Viasat") could service the broadband locations that would be vacated by Ziply Fiber ("Ziply"), my team and I reviewed the townships listed in Ziply's application, and then located more information regarding the specific township locations at the following site: https:,[Zhub.arcgis.comfdatasetsJb7852b4d45f24a78bc9 lad 52b5c5ac7c 0/explore?locati on=45.126921%2C-114.215862%2C6.9S. Next, we located the potential broadband locations in each of the townships by reviewing the FCC's broadband map. Finally,we compared the FCC locations in each township to those that are within Viasat's awarded Connect America Fund Phase II Auction ("CAF II") census blocks. The result of this analysis is that Viasat covers less than 50 percent of the geographical area within Ziply's listed townships, and covers approximately 1.2 percent of the FCC-listed broadband locations within those townships. The enclosed map illustrates the coverage. Each rectangle is a municipal area. Each area is coded by all or specific regions or subsections. The orange dots are FCC broadband locations located within the townships. The cross hatched areas show Viasat's awarded census blocks. It is only within these cross- hatched areas that Viasat has Eligible Telecommunication Carrier status and is able to offer its CAF II services. Affirmed and Signed by Steven Lanning: AV J, November 25, 2025 349 Inverness Drive South, Englewood,Colorado 80112 T. 720.493.6000 F. 720.493.6010 www.viasat.com i 30NO3E 30N05E 3ON07E i 29NO3E NNOU 28VL 'RW16F 27F Z/ OIL locations f cc ® taf2 vcs_blocks t ziply_drop ■ 1 12-13 24-25 36 J ■ 19-36 J 21-28 31-36 J 36 J ■ All 349 Inverness Drive South, Englewood, Colorado 80112 T. 720.493.6000 F. 720.493.6010 www.viasat.com