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HomeMy WebLinkAbout20050418_1150.pdfDECISION MEMORANDUM TO:COMMISSIONER KJELLANDER CO MMISSI 0 NER SMITH CO MMISSI 0 NER HANSEN COMMISSION SECRETARY LEGAL WORKING FILE FROM:CAROLEE HALL DATE:APRIL 14, 2005 RE:MARCH 18, 2005 FILING AS A JOINT APPLICATION OF QWEST CORPORATION (QWEST) AND DIECA COMMUNICATIONS, INC. dba COY AD COMMUNICATIONS COMPANY FOR APPROVAL OF A WIRE LINE INTERCONNECTION AGREEMENT PURSUANT TO C. ~ 252(E); CASE NO. USW-99-03. BACKGROUND Under the provision of the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996, interconnection agreements must be submitted to the Commission for approval. 47 V.C. ~ 252(e)(1). The Commission may reject an agreement adopted by negotiations only if it finds that the agreement: (1) discriminates against a telecommunications carrier not a party to the agreement; or (2) implementation of the agreement is not consistent with the public interest, convenience and necessity. 47 V.C. ~ 252(e)(2)(A). As the Commission noted in Order No. 28427, companies voluntarily entering into interconnection agreements "may negotiate terms, prices and conditions that do not comply with either the FCC rules or with the provision of Section 251 (b) or (c). Order No. 28427 at 11 (emphasis in original). This comports with the FCC's statement that " state commission shall have authority to approve an interconnection agreement adopted by negotiation even if the terms of the agreement do not comply with the requirements of (Part 51). 47 C.R. ~ 51.3. DECISION MEMORANDUM - 1 -APRIL 14, 2005 CURRENT APPLICATION Qwest and COY AD's Application for Approval of the Amendment to the Interconnection Agreement ("Amendment"). which was approved by the Idaho Public Utilities Commission on April 22. 1999 (the "Agreementt The Application for Approval of Amendment to the interconnection Agreement between Qwest and COY AD states that the parties are jointly filing and that thi~ Amendment was reached through voluntary negotiations without resort to mediation. The Agreement amends the terms conditions and rates for Batch Hot Cut processes set forth in Attachment A and incorporated into this filing. It also removes UNE-, Enterprise and Mass Market Switching and Shared Transport from Interconnection Agreement(s) in accordance with, according to Qwest , " certain regulatory uncertainty in light of the DC Circuit Court's decision in United States Telecom Association v. FCC, 359 F.3d 554 (March 2, 2004), with respect to the future existence, scope, and nature of Qwest's obligation to provide such UNE-P arrangements under the Communications Act (the Act" )" . STAFF ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATION Staff has reviewed the Application and Agreement and does not find any terms or conditions that it considers to be discriminatory or contrary to the public interest. Staff believes that the Agreement and Amendment are consistent with the pro-competitive policies of this Commission, the Idaho Legislature, and the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996. Accordingly, Staff believes that the Agreement and Amendment merit the Commission approval. COMMISSION DECISION Does the Commission agree? i:udmemosUSW-99-3 Qwest and COY AD March 18 2005 filing DECISION MEMORANDUM - 2 -APRIL 14, 2005