CenturyLink and Birch Communications settled their intercarrier compensation dispute and asked the FCC to suspend an enforcement proceeding until terms are satisfied, said a joint motion this week in docket 18-73. The Enforcement Bureau granted the request to hold the proceeding in abeyance until Sept. 17. CenturyLink filed a complaint in March alleging Birch's switched access fees violated a CLEC benchmark rule by exceeding in aggregate ILEC competitor interstate access rates (see 1803260014).
Ian Cohen
Ian Cohen, Deputy Managing Editor, is a reporter with Export Compliance Daily and its sister publications International Trade Today and Trade Law Daily, where he covers export controls, sanctions and international trade issues. He previously worked as a local government reporter in South Florida. Ian graduated with a journalism degree from the University of Florida in 2017 and lives in Washington, D.C. He joined the staff of Warren Communications News in 2019.
The FCC ruled five companies violated its prohibition against slamming, changing consumers' preferred telecom service providers without authorization and verification. The Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau granted complaints against GSPS (here), ILD Teleservices (here), TCI Long Distance (here), TeleCircuit (here) and TeleUno (here) in orders Thursday. CGB said complainants "are entitled to absolution for the charges incurred during the first thirty days after the unauthorized change occurred and [the slamming violators] may not pursue any collection against" complainants for those charges.
Electric cooperatives urged FCC adoption of their performance measurement proposals for Connect America Fund broadband subsidy recipients, including requiring providers to "meet 90% of the speed and latency requirement at least 95% of the time." Required testing should be limited to within a CAF provider's network, said a filing of the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives and others on a discussion with an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai, posted Wednesday in docket 10-90. They said if performance is measured from a customer’s premise to "Internet Exchange Points," smaller hubs in cities such as Kansas City, Missouri, should be included to reduce compliance burdens and costs. They backed an FCC proposal to "require speed testing during peak times between 7 pm and 11 pm." NTCA urged performance testing duties "that recognize the characteristics of small, rural providers," said a filing on a meeting with the Pai aide. "These include an appropriately-sized testing pool ... as well as recognition of the costs of using [customer premises equipment] testing devices in the field," which the RLEC group said are greater in rural areas.
Telecom parties urged the FCC to ensure carrier telecom relay service fund costs can be passed on to consumers through specific related fees. AT&T, CenturyLink, CTIA and USTelecom filed comments supporting an ITTA petition asking the commission for a declaratory ruling to clarify that it is and has been permissible under truth-in-billing rules and Communications Act Section 225 for carriers recovering TRS fund contribution costs to include related line-item fees on consumer bills. "Such action will provide regulatory certainty regarding a common and pro-consumer industry practice," CTIA said. But 16 "Enterprise Users Commenters" -- including 3M, Mastercard, Office Depot and Sears -- urged the FCC to deny the petition, which they said should have been filed as a petition for rulemaking and is substantively deficient. Comments were posted Tuesday in docket 03-123.
USTelecom described data sources and methodologies it used in charts of a petition seeking FCC forbearance relief for incumbent telcos from unbundling discounts and other wholesale duties (see 1805040016), in redacted versions of sensitive materials the ILEC group filed, posted Monday in docket 18-141. "Although USTelecom derived the data series for these Charts from publicly available data, including primarily Commission data, the descriptions include proprietary information that reveals sources and methods of analysis used," said a cover letter. USTelecom submitted a confidential version that can be viewed by parties under a protective order. Comments are due Aug. 6, replies Sept. 5.
FCC staff approved Cincinnati Bell's planned takeover of Hawaiian Telcom, subject to a condition proposed by the Department of Homeland Security, backed by DOD and DOJ (see 1806070054). Team Telecom said they wouldn't object to communications license transfers if conditioned on Cincinnati Bell assurances to abide by undertakings listed in a June 1 commitment letter. "We condition grant of the cable landing license transfer of control applications ... on compliance by Cincinnati Bell with the commitments and undertaking," said a Wireline, Wireless and International bureaus' order Tuesday in docket 17-207. "Applicants contend that the transaction will provide Hawaiian Telcom a stronger financial and operational foundation, which will 'enhance future planning and development for interisland submarine cables.' We find that the transaction is likely to result in continued, and perhaps improved, financing for Hawaiian Telcom, which may result in a greater incentive or ability to enhance its service offerings."
FCC Chairman Ajit Pai applauded Pennsylvania funding tied to broadband subsidies that the commission is auctioning. He said the upcoming Connect America Fund Phase II reverse auction is structured so states can match the federal funds. "Pennsylvania's Broadband Investment Incentive Program does just this, increasing the incentive for providers to invest in Pennsylvania and bring new service to those without -- likely increasing the quality of service as well as the federal funding for rural Pennsylvania," Pai responded to Sen. Robert Casey, D, Rep. Mike Doyle, D, and four other Pennsylvania representatives, in an exchange posted Friday in docket 18-5. Pai noted the FCC plans to follow up next year with a Remote Area Fund auction for areas still without high-speed service -- "and we will ensure that any funding originally intended for rural Pennsylvania will be available to build there." The lawmakers wrote Pai Jan. 19 voicing concern about draft denial of a Pennsylvania petition seeking dedicated funding, which the commission adopted Jan. 30 (see 1801300032). Pai March 14 suggested Pennsylvania match CAF II auction support (see 1803260009), and Gov. Tom Wolf (D) subsequently announced up to $35 million in matching funds (see 1803200011). The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association welcomed FCC broadening of CAF II eligibility beyond telecom incumbents, noting at least 25 electric cooperatives filed short-form applications for the auction scheduled to start July 24. "Electric co-op participation might have been even higher if more flexibility in the bidding areas were allowed," said a NRECA filing on a meeting with Pai and an aide, posted in docket 17-182. It also cited concerns about "potential incumbent overreporting of broadband coverage," FCC coordination with the Rural Utilities Service that might limit RUS fund use, and a Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee's state model code set for a July vote.
An FCC draft item was sent to commissioners Thursday on jurisdictional separations and referral to the federal-state joint board, said the agency's circulation list updated Friday. It's a Further NPRM, said a spokesman. The list also contains an item that circulated June 11 on promoting telehealth in rural America, which the spokesman said is Chairman Ajit Pai's draft order to hike a USF Rural Health Care Program spending cap. It has majority support (see 1806140017).
AT&T "restored service to all customers that reported" issues in Florida due to Hurricane Irma and in southern California due to fires and mudslides, it told the FCC in filings (here and here) Friday in dockets 17-320 and 18-29. Services were restored either through temporary or permanent facilities throughout the affected areas, it said in its Florida letter: "Service levels have returned to pre-storm levels and are being sustained. As a result, AT&T no longer requires authorization pursuant to Section 63.63 to suspend its services in these areas." It made nearly identical statements on California.
Oral argument will be heard Sept. 24 on a Sandwich Isles Communications challenge to an FCC order denying its request to recover more than the $1.9 million in its estimated baseline costs through the National Exchange Carrier Association pooling mechanism, said a brief order (in Pacer) from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Sandwich Isles v. FCC, No. 17-1036. The FCC said the carrier didn't meet its burden to show it needed the extra funding to provide regulated services after leasing full capacity on the costly Paniolo cable in Hawaii (see 1612060032).