New Mexico Public Regulation Commission Votes 4-1 to Reclassify CenturyLink as Mid-Size Carrier
The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission (PRC) agreed 4-1 Wednesday that CenturyLink now qualifies as a mid-size carrier under New Mexico law. CenturyLink has 347,354 access lines in new Mexico, below the state’s 375,000-line ceiling that defines a mid-size carrier…
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under state law, the PRC said. CenturyLink had 850,000 access lines in New Mexico eight years ago, the PRC said. CenturyLink will be subject as a mid-size carrier to the same level of regulation as Windstream, the PRC said. The commission said it has previously provided more stringent regulation of CenturyLink. The PRC said it expects to launch a rulemaking in the next few weeks to establish rules CenturyLink must abide by on service quality, consumer protection and caps on pricing flexibility. “I want to help reduce costs to consumers and help promote economic development here in New Mexico," said PRC Chairwoman Karen Montoya in a news release. “Relevant information and crucial numbers, such as wholesale and leased lines, were not included in the calculation of this determination,” said PRC Commissioner Valerie Espinoza, who voted against reclassifying CenturyLink. “The Commission should be protecting consumers, not enabling a utility to have the ability to design their own rate, and issue no further penalty credits. We are not only compromising the quality of service, but reliability, as well, and much needed investment in rural areas.”