PRICING POLICY DIVISION
The Pricing Policy Division is responsible for administering the provisions of the Communications Act requiring that the charges, practices, classifications, and regulations of common carriers providing interstate and foreign services are just and reasonable. The Division develops competitive pricing policies and rules for the retail and wholesale interstate rates charged by price-cap carriers and rate-of-return carriers; the intercarrier compensation rates that carriers charge each other; and the rates for resale of local exchange services, unbundled network elements and interconnection that incumbent carriers charge competitive carriers. The Division also ensures compliance with Commission pricing rules and conducts formal or informal investigations of carrier charges, practices, classifications and regulations, and recommends appropriate action. The Division also develops rules and polices relating to the Uniform System of Accounts, affiliate transactions, regulated/non-regulated cost allocations, and depreciation rates. In conjunction with the Competition Policy Division, this Division reviews applications from Bell operating companies for authority to provide in-region interLATA services.
7/1/2008
Order: JULY 1, 2008 Annual Access Charge Tariff Filings. Annual Access Tariff Charge Order. [Word] [Acrobat]
6/30/2008
Order: Petition Of Windstream Kentucky East, LLC For Pricing Flexibility As Specified In Section 69.727 Of The Commission's Rules For The Lexington, Kentucky MSA And Ashland, Kentucky MSA. [Word] [Acrobat]
6/12/2008
Public Notice: Comment Dates Set Request Of Verizon And Qwest To Extend Forbearance Relief From Cost Assignment Rules. (Dkt No 07-21). Comments Due: 06/26/2008. Reply Comments Due: 07/07/2008. [Word] [Acrobat]
6/6/2008
Public Notice: Comment Sought On Request Of Verizon And Qwest To Extend Forbearance Relief From Cost Assignment Rules. (Dkt No 07-21). [Word] [Acrobat]
5/29/2008
Order: National Exchange Carrier Association, Inc. 2008 Modification Of Average Schedules. Approved the average schedule forumulas as requested by NECA. (Dkt No. 07-290). [Word] [Acrobat]
5/27/2008
Order: AT&T Inc. Petition For Waiver Of Section 61.42(G) Of The Commission's Rules. Granted a limted waiver of the Commission's rules for TIPToP service offered by AT&T with respect to AT&T's 2008 annual access tariff filing requirements under section 61.42(g) of the Commission's rules. [Word] [Acrobat]
5/27/2008
Order: Hawaiian Telecom, Inc. Petition For A Waiver Of Section 61.42(G) Of The Commission's Price Cap Rules For Advanced Services Formerly Offered By Verizon Hawaii. Inc. Granted Hawaiian Telecom, Inc a waiver of rule 61.42(g) for purposes of the annual access tariff filing. [Word] [Acrobat]
5/16/2008
Order: BellSouth Telecommunications, Inc. For Phase I And/Or Phase II Pricing Flexibility For Dedicated Transport And Special Access Srvices In The Albany, GA; Athens, GA; Macon-Warner Robins, GA; ET AL. Granted the Petition. [Word] [Acrobat]
5/15/2008
Public Notice: Pleading Cycle Established For Ton Services, Inc. Petition For Declaratory Ruling On A Primary Jurisdiction Referral. (Dkt No 96-128). Comments Due: 06/04/2008. Reply Comments Due: 06/16/2008. [Word] [Acrobat]
5/14/2008
Order: Petition Of Hawaiian Telcom, Inc. For Phase I Pricing Flexibility Pursuant To Section 69.709 Of The Commission's Rules. Granted the Petition for Phase I Pricing Flexibility filed by Hawaiian Telecom, Inc. [Word] [Acrobat]
5/6/2008
Order: Bureau Grants Price Cap Conversion Requests Filed By Puerto Rico Telephone Co., Inc., Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc., and Frontier Communications. [Word] [Acrobat]
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INTERCARRIER COMPENSATION REFORM
Fundamental reform of all regulated forms of Intercarrier Compensation began when the Commission adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in April, 2001. The NPRM led to extensive proposals by a wide variety of industry groups. In March of 2005, the Commission released a Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on the various industry plans.
In July 2006, the Commission issued a Public Notice seeking comment on a comprehensive intercarrier compensation reform plan (the Missoula Plan) filed by the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners’ (NARUC) Task Force on Intercarrier Compensation. [Letter to Chairman Martin, Fact Sheet, NARUC Press Release, Missoula Plan, Public Notice]. Extensive comments were received in response to the Public Notice. The comments due date was extended by Order to October 25, 2006, and the reply comments due date was extended by Order to February 1, 2007.
The Missoula Plan supporters also filed a proposal regarding call identification requirements (commonly known as the “phantom traffic” proposal). The Wireline Competition Bureau released a Public Notice seeking comments on this phantom traffic proposal. Comments were filed on December 7, 2006, and reply comments were filed on January 5, 2007.
Intercarrier Compensation History
Pricing Flexibility
In the Access Charge Reform Fifth Report and Order, the Commission established the parameters for granting flexibility in the pricing of interstate access services by incumbent local exchange carriers (LECs) subject to price cap regulation. The pricing flexibility framework the Commission adopted in the Access Charge Reform Fifth Report and Order is designed to grant greater flexibility to price cap LECs as competition develops, while ensuring that: (1) price cap LECs do not use pricing flexibility to deter efficient entry or engage in exclusionary pricing behavior; and (2) price cap LECs do not increase rates to unreasonable levels for customers that lack competitive alternatives. In addition, the reforms were designed to facilitate the removal of services from price cap regulation as competition develops in the marketplace, without imposing undue administrative burdens on the Commission or the industry.
The Wireline Competition Bureau has released several orders granting petitions of price cap LECs seeking pricing flexibility in accordance with the rules adopted in the Access Charge Reform Fifth Report and Order.
CALLS MADE FROM PAYPHONES
Section 276 of the Act directs the Commission to take a number of actions to promote competition among payphone services and the widespread deployment of payphone services to the general public. The FCC has taken steps also to ensure fair compensation to payphone service providers for each and every call placed from payphones.
A payphone service provider is the person or entity who owns the payphone instrument, such as the local telephone company, an independent company, or the owner of the premises where the payphone is located. For additional information, click here.
7/31/2001
DOMESTIC INTEREXCHANGE SERVICE DETARIFFING
Effective July 31, 2000, all non-dominant carriers were required to cancel (detariff) their interexchange services and thereafter provide their domestic interstate interexchange services on a non-tariffed basis. For more details about mandatory detariffing and the limited use of permissive tariffing,
click here.
Additional Information:
- Public Notice
- Order
- List of Detariffing Orders
International Detariffing Takes Effect January 28,2002
No later than January 28, 2002, all non-dominant carriers must cancel (detariff) their international interexchange tariffs and thereafter provide their international interexchange services on a non-tariffed basis. During the interim transition period from April 28, 2001 - January 28, 2002, carriers may file new or revised tariffs for mass market international interexchange services. Carriers may not file new or revised contract tariffs or tariffs for other long term international service arrangements. For more details about mandatory detariffing and the limited use of permissive tariffing, click here.
Additional Information:
- Public Notice
- News Release
CLEC Permissive Detariffing and Application of the Benchmark Rate
CLECs may file tariffs or offer service on a permissively detariffed basis even on a detariffed basis, the rates and regulations are still subject to 201(b) and 202(a) of the Act. Switched access rates are subject to a benchmark rate requirement, also Truth-in-Billing precepts may apply.
Additional Information:
- Truth-in-Billing
- CLEC Access Information
- Order
In order to minimize their costs, non-dominant carriers may cancel several tariffs or revise several tariffs under one cover letter with the payment of one filing fee provided that each tariff has the same Issuing Carrier name and the Issue Date is identical for each tariff.
Non-dominant interexchange carriers filing on their own behalf may use the following examples as references for how to cancel their tariff(s):
Organizations that file tariffs on behalf of multiple non-dominant carriers may request a waiver of applicable filing rules so that they may cancel the tariff(s) of multiple non-dominant carriers or file revisions to the tariff(s) of multiple non-dominant carriers under one Consolidated Cover Letter with the payment of one filing fee, provided that all the tariffs have the same Issue Date.
Waiver of the applicable filing rules for this purpose must be requested by filing an Application for Special Permission, including the applicable filing fee. Organizations are reminded that they must file the Consolidated Application for Special Permission and obtain approval prior to filing the Consolidated Cover Letter. Organizations filing on behalf of multiple non-dominant interexchange carriers may use the following examples as references for how to cancel multiple tariffs.
Non-dominant interexchange carriers are reminded that all tariff filings (not Applications for Special Permission) must be made on either a 3 1/2 inch diskette or CD-ROM containing the complete tariff including the revised material. Applications for Special Permission must be submitted in paper format.
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