The Regulatory Mix, TMI’s daily blog of regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court, issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of a TMI Regulatory Bulletin.
TELECOM
US Senate
At its July 30, 2013, Executive Session, the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation passed, by voice vote, the nomination of Thomas E. Wheeler, to be Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. The Committee also passed S. 1353, The Cybersecurity Act of 2013, and S. RES. 157, a resolution expressing the sense of the Senate on rural call completion. The resolution states that all providers must appropriately complete calls to all areas of the United States regardless of the technology used and that no entity may unreasonably discriminate against communications service in rural areas. It further urges the FCC to: (1) aggressively pursue those that create the problems and impose “swift and meaningful enforcement actions”; and (2) move forward with clear, comprehensive, and enforceable actions in order to establish a definitive solution. More information on Session. The FCC has already proposed rules addressing this issue. See TMI Bulletin dated February 22, 2013.
New York
In 2009, Qwest Communications Company filed a complaint with the PSC alleging that five specifically identified CLECs and “John Does 1-50” (other unnamed CLECs) provided intrastate switched access service to Qwest pursuant to tariff, but also provided switched access services to other interexchange carriers pursuant to unfiled, off-tariff agreements. Since then, Qwest has consented to dismissal of one of the respondents and reached confidential settlement agreements with the four other named respondents. Qwest has agreed to withdraw its complaint against those individual respondents with prejudice. Qwest now requests consent to withdraw any remaining portions of the complaint without prejudice.
