19970812_1.docx

MINUTES OF DECISION MEETING
AUGUST 12, 1997 - 1:00 P.M.- HALL OF MIRRORS - WEST CONFERENCE ROOM
In attendance were Commissioners Dennis Hansen, Ralph Nelson and Marsha H. Smith and staff members Don Howell, Tonya Clark, Terri Carlock, Syd Lansing, Carol Cooper, Joe Cusick, David Scott and Myrna Walters. Also in attendance were Mary Hobson and Jim Wozniak of U S West and Al Fothergill and Wendell Phillips of Idaho Consumer Affairs. Also in attendance were several members of the local news media.
Commissioner President Dennis Hansen called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m., indicating that this decision meeting was to consider one item under Fully Submitted Matters - Issuance of Order in U S West Communications Rate Case - USW-S-96-5.
(Commissioner Hansen and Commissioner Nelson had copies of their prepared remarks available for distribution - copy of each is attached hereto).
Commissioner President Hansen began the meeting with his statement - commencing  in June 1996, U S West Communications filed an Application seeking a general rate increase of $38 million in its annual revenues for basic local service. (Statement as set out on attached).
In conclusion said this was basically a summary of the rate order.   Said procedure would be for Commissioner Nelson and Commissioner Smith to make their remarks and then the order will be signed.
Commissioner Nelson began by thanking staff and the many intervenors for their hard work on the case and their professionalism to the Commission. You don’t know how difficult it is to make a decision of this magnitude. All of the issues were well presented and well discussed. There were literally hundreds of issues in the case. There was a great deal of discussion among the commissioners to produce this order. Said this was an explanation rather than an apology for the order. It is the largest case the Commission has had in 10 years and more importantly it sets U S West’s rate in an era of looming local competition. This will probably be the last rate case with this company.
Commissioner Smith said Commissioner Nelson beat her to the punch in issuing complements in the case. It was a great help to the Commissioners to have the parties, although they disagreed on the issues, to be collegial to each other before the Commission. One of the big concerns in the case was service quality.  Staff had recommended that the Commission reduce equity return because of poor service quality. The Commission declined to do so. The evidence did not warrant that. The Commission did recognize that the company has worked hard on this and has made some improvement on the issue. However, don’t want them to sit back and rest on these scanty laurels. They should continue to make this the focus of their efforts and while some progress has been made through their efforts, there are still a large number of customers that
perceive that service is not as good as it was or as it should be. Company needs to pay more attention to those customers, because we want to have the best service in the country.
Commissioner Hansen added his compliments to the parties, for their degree of professionalism and commented that Idaho has one of the best communications system of the states around us. U S West needs to be complimented for bringing technology into our rural communities.
With that, Commissioner Hansen signed the order; as did Commissioners Nelson and Smith.
Commissioner Hansen announced that that completed the agenda for today’s decision meeting and the meeting was adjourned.
Dated at Boise, Idaho, this 19th day of August, 1997.
Myrna J. Walters,
Commission Secretary