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                  TR's State NewsWire

      . . .daily intelligence on communications
      industry news and policy from the editors
      of Telecommunications Reports. . .

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*Table of Contents*
October 18, 2001 

STATES
MAINE -- Verizon asks PUC to support long distance bid
PENNSYLVANIA -- Senate minority leader opposes PUC nomination
TEXAS -- SW Bell may revise local switching rates
WASHINGTON -- ALJ says Verizon must make agreement available
MISSOURI -- PSC rules against AT&T in tariff dispute
OHIO -- Lawmaker proposes E911 council, fund
NEVADA -- E.spire seeks compensation from Sprint
TENNESSEE -- ACCESS asks for BellSouth win-back investigation
NEVADA -- Sprint asks PUC to revise depreciation rates
MARYLAND -- Montgomery County high schoolers go wireless
TENNESSEE -- CLECs seek special-access performance measures
NEVADA -- PUC to hold Sprint performance plan hearing
WEST VIRGINIA -- Seminar focuses on 'e-government'
WASHINGTON -- UTC to hold damage-prevention workshop
NEVADA -- Sprint to launch voice channels service
OREGON -- Leap offers local wireless service in Salem
PENNSYLVANIA -- Dimension completes Chester County fiber network

REGIONAL
Earthlink, AOL launch broadband services

______________________________________________________

MAINE -- Verizon asks PUC to support long distance bid

Verizon New England, Inc., today asked the Public Utilities 
Commission to support its bid to provide in-region interLATA 
(local access and transport area) service under section 271 of 
the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996.  Verizon said that it 
has completed the 14-point "competitive checklist" for market 
entry and that PriceWaterhouseCoopers, an independent auditing 
firm, has verified that Verizon's operations support systems for 
the state are the same as those already approved in 
Massachusetts.

After the PUC has completed its review process and makes a 
recommendation, the FCC will have 90 days to review Verizon's 
section 271 application.  The FCC also must consult with the U.S. 
Department of Justice before making its final decision.

Verizon said that the state's local distance market is 
"irreversibly open to competition" as shown by the fact that 
47,000 Maine telephone lines are served by competitors.  Of those 
lines, 40,500 are served by competitors that lease Verizon's 
lines on a wholesale basis, and 6,400 are owned by competitors.

Earlier this year, the company filed similar requests for market-
entry with state regulators in New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode 
Island, and New Jersey.  Verizon is authorized to provide service 
in Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania.

______________________________________________________

PENNSYLVANIA -- Senate minority leader opposes PUC nomination

Senate minority leader Robert Mellow (D., Lackawanna) has said he 
opposes the nomination of Kim Pizzingrilli to the Public Utility 
Commission because if she was confirmed the PUC would be composed 
of five Republican members.

In a letter sent to Gov. Mark Schweiker (R.), Mr. Mellow called 
for the withdrawal of Ms. Pizzingrilli's nomination and asked 
that a Democratic nominee be submitted.  He said, "it is neither 
productive nor sound public policy to have all five members of 
the PUC made up of the same political party."

Former Gov. Tom Ridge (R.) nominated Ms. Pizzingrilli for the 
position early this month.  Ms. Pizzingrilli is currently the 
secretary of the commonwealth, a position she assumed in 1999.  
Before becoming secretary of the commonwealth, Ms. Pizzingrilli 
was the deputy secretary of regulatory programs at the Virginia 
Department of State.  (10/3/01)

A spokesman for Gov. Schweiker's office told TR that the governor 
stands by Pizzingrilli's confirmation.  He added that the 
governor "bases his decisions on appointments based on the 
qualifications of the individual" not on their party affiliation.

Ms. Pizzingrilli's nomination awaits confirmation by the state 
Senate.

______________________________________________________

TEXAS -- SW Bell may revise local switching rates

Southwestern Bell Telephone Co. has not decided whether to 
establish market-based prices for certain services now offered to 
competitive local exchange carriers as unbundled network elements 
(UNEs).  The availability of unrestricted unbundled local 
switching, operator service, and directory assistance as UNEs 
ended Oct. 13 under SW Bell's T2A (Texas 271 interconnection 
agreement).  About 170 competitive local exchange carriers have 
signed the T2A.

The T2A contains a sunset provision that permits SW Bell to 
provide "those offers no longer identified as UNEs by the FCC" at 
market prices upon 60 days' notice to competitors.  SW Bell told 
the Public Utility Commission that it hadn't decided whether to 
reprice certain UNEs "in part due to the pendancy of certain 
regulatory and judicial proceedings." 

Carriers that provide service by leasing a platform of combined 
unbundled network elements (UNE-P) asked the commission to 
require SW Bell to continue to provide such services as UNEs.  
(9/11/01)  AT&T Communications of Texas L.P., McLeod USA 
Telecommunications Services, Inc., and the Texas UNE Platform 
Coalition estimate that about 500,000 access lines in Houston, 
Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio would be denied competitive 
alternatives if SW Bell stopped offering unrestricted local 
switching as a UNE.  If SW Bell stopped offering operator service 
and directory assistance as a UNE, competitors would be required 
to establish "costly transport arrangements" to access 
alternative providers, the carriers said.  (9/12/01)  (Docket 
24631)

______________________________________________________

WASHINGTON -- ALJ says Verizon must make agreement available 

A Utilities and Transportation Commission administrative law 
judge has proposed directing Verizon Northwest, Inc., to make a 
North Carolina GTE South, Inc.-Time Warner, Inc., interconnection 
agreement available to Focal Communications Corp. of Washington.  
Focal asked the UTC to intervene when Verizon refused to make the 
agreement available.  (4/19/01)

Focal said the conditions imposed by the FCC on the merger of 
Bell Atlantic Corp. and GTE Corp., included a most-favored nation 
(MFN) provision for out-of-region and in-region arrangements.  
Under the merger order, the new company had to make any 
interconnection arrangement, unbundled network element (UNE), or 
interconnection provision that it agreed to in the former GTE 
service area before the merger to any carrier throughout the 
former GTE region after the merger. 

On Nov. 9, 2000, Focal submitted a letter to the FCC's Common 
Carrier Bureau requesting an interpretation of the MFN provision 
in the merger order.  In December 2000, the bureau said that the 
merger order's MFN provisions apply to entire interconnection 
agreements.  

Verizon, however, maintained that it was only required to make 
available interconnection arrangements, UNEs, and provisions of 
the agreement that were the express subject of section 251(c) of 
the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996.  The company noted 
that the MFN provision in the order only addressed that specific 
subsection.  The incumbent added that it was under no obligation 
to make available interconnection arrangements, UNEs, and 
provisions of the agreement that were the subject of section 
251(b) of the Act.  

The ALJ determined that section 251(c) includes subsection (b).  
He added that Verizon's conduct "unfairly deprived Focal of its 
rights under the Bell Atlantic/GTE Merger Order."  The ALJ 
pointed out that the bureau's letter had the same force and 
effect as actions taken by the FCC.  He said, "Verizon was 
clearly bound to comply with its findings as of the fate it was 
written."  The ALJ, therefore, proposed that Focal's request to 
opt-in to entire agreement be made effective as of Dec. 27, 2001.

The ALJ's initial order isn't effective until the UTC issues a 
final order.  Parties have 20 days after service of this initial 
order to file a petition for administrative review; replies are 
due five days after service of the petition.  (Docket UT-013019, 
Focal Communications Corporation of Washington, Petitioner, v. 
Verizon Northwest, Inc., Respondent)

______________________________________________________

MISSOURI -- PSC rules against AT&T in tariff dispute

The Public Service Commission has approved competitive local 
exchange carrier (CLEC) Mark Twain Communications Co.'s wireless 
termination service tariff, which establishes per-minute rates 
wireless carriers must pay for terminating wireless traffic on 
Mark Twain's network.  The commission concluded that it would be 
inequitable to permit incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) 
to recover wireless termination costs through tariffs and deny 
CLECs the same opportunity.

AT&T Wireless Services, Inc., asked the PSC to reject the tariff.  
AT&T said the tariff was illegal because it didn't provide 
reciprocal compensation for traffic exchanged between Mark 
Twain's and wireless carriers' networks.  (5/25/01)  The 
companies currently exchange traffic under a bill-and-keep 
arrangement, AT&T said.  Mark Twain disputed AT&T's assertions.  
Mark Twain said it hadn't agreed to a bill-and-keep arrangement.  
Its tariff was modeled after PSC-approved tariffs filed by small 
ILECs, Mark Twain said.  

Commissioner Connie Murray issued a dissenting opinion.  Although 
CLECs are entitled to compensation for terminating wireless 
traffic, tariffs aren't the appropriate method for providing 
compensation, Ms. Murray said.  Unlike ILECs, Mark Twain isn't 
required to negotiate or arbitrate an interconnection agreement, 
Ms. Murray said.  Approving Mark Twain's tariff will 
"significantly reduce" any possibility that the parties will be 
able to negotiate a "mutually agreeable" interconnection 
agreement, she said.  (Case TT-2001-646)

______________________________________________________

OHIO -- Lawmaker proposes E911 council, fund

Sen. Priscilla Mead (R., District 16) has introduced SB 181, 
which would create the Enhanced Wireless 911 Government 
Assistance Fund and the Ohio E911 Council.  According to Sen. 
Mead, SB 181 "would be the first step to update emergency service 
technology to identify the number and location of emergency calls 
placed with a cellular phone or other wireless communication 
device." 

The E911 Council would provide the 88 counties in Ohio with 
assistance in becoming compliant with FCC-mandated emergency 
response services.  Money from the E911 fund would be used for 
"only the one-time costs of designing, upgrading, purchasing, 
leasing, programming, installing, or maintaining the necessary 
data, hardware, software, and trunking required for any public 
safety answering point."

In 1996, the FCC mandated that state governments update their 
public safety answering point (PSAP) facilities to handle 
enhanced 911 service by April 1, 1998.  The FCC also asked 
wireless carriers to begin providing Phase II automatic location 
identification (ALI) for wireless 911 calls by Oct. 1, or within 
six months of receiving a request from a PSAP, whichever occurred 
later.

PSAPs in Ohio failed to meet the FCC deadlines.  The FCC approved 
Phase II waivers with certain modifications extending the 
deployment schedules proposed by Verizon Wireless, Sprint PCS, 
and Nextel Communications, Inc., for their networks, and by AT&T 
Wireless Services, Inc., and Cingular Wireless LLC for the GSM 
(Global System for Mobile communications) portions of their 
systems.  The sixth national wireless provider, VoiceStream 
Wireless Corp., received a Phase II waiver last year.

Other sponsors of the bill include Sen. David Goodman (R., 
District 3), Sen. Bill Harris (R., District 19), Sen. Robert 
Gardner (R., District 18), Sen. Leigh Herington (D., District 
28), and Sen. Daniel Brady (D., District 23).  The bill awaits 
consideration in the Committee on Reference.  

______________________________________________________

NEVADA -- E.spire seeks compensation from Sprint 

American Communication Service of Las Vegas, d/b/a e.spire, has 
said Central Telephone Co., d/b/a Sprint, failed to compensate 
e.spire for provisioning interconnection facilities that carry 
Sprint-originated traffic to e.spire's network.  E.spire also 
said Sprint failed to use the appropriate rates when paying for 
e.spire's transport and termination of local calls forwarded by 
Sprint to e.spire for delivery to end users served by e.spire.

E.spire asked the Public Utilities Commission to direct Sprint to 
comply with the terms of the companies' resale and 
interconnection agreement by fully compensating e.spire for past 
due, present, and future amounts.  

According to e.spire, Sprint refused to pay e.spire the rates 
included in the agreement.  Instead, Sprint said it would pay 
e.spire rates that reflect a statutory discount.  This discount, 
however, applies only to Sprint's rates for interoffice 
facilities within Sprint's network, e.spire said.  

E.spire also said Sprint refused to compensate e.spire at the 
appropriate amount for the transport and termination of Sprint-
originated traffic on e.spire's network.  Under the agreement, 
e.spire can designate its switch as a tandem and end-office 
switch.  In its complaint, the company asked the commission to 
find that e.spire's switch was properly designated as a tandem 
switch and an end-office switch for the purpose of receiving 
compensation for transporting and terminating local traffic.  

If the commission finds that the designation was properly made, 
e.spire said Sprint should be ordered to pay reciprocal 
compensation retroactively and prospectively at the tandem call 
termination rate.  (Docket 01-10025)

______________________________________________________

TENNESSEE -- ACCESS asks for BellSouth win-back investigation

ACCESS Integrated Networks, Inc. (AIN) has asked the Regulatory 
Authority to initiate a "show cause" proceeding against BellSouth 
Telecommunications, Inc., to determine whether the incumbent 
"engaged in a pattern of anticompetitive and discriminatory 
conduct" by marketing local service under terms and conditions 
inconsistent with its tariffs.

BellSouth recently suspended its authorized sales 
representatives' (ASRs') marketing efforts in Tennessee in 
response to an AIN complaint alleging that one of BellSouth's 
ASRs violated BellSouth's tariffs by offering three free months 
of local service to "win back" a local business customer.  
(9/24/01)  XO Tennessee, Inc., said a BellSouth senior account 
executive made the same offer to a Tennessee customer.  
(10/15/01)

It's "highly unlikely" that these offers were "accidental or 
isolated incidents," AIN said.  The TRA should require BellSouth 
to explain whether it plans to honor agreements to provide three 
free months of local service, AIN said.  (Docket 01-00808)

______________________________________________________

NEVADA -- Sprint asks PUC to revise depreciation rates

Central Telephone Co. of Nevada, d/b/a Sprint, has asked the 
Public Utilities Commission to approve revised depreciation rates 
that would "correct its current under-recovery of its capital 
investment."  The revised rates would increase Sprint's annual 
depreciation expanse by $5.8 million on an interstate basis and 
by $7.9 million on a total company basis.  That would bring 
Sprint's annual depreciation expense to $148 million on a total 
company basis.

Sprint said it wanted the new depreciation rates to take effect 
Jan. 1.  The company added that the new depreciation rates 
wouldn't affect customers rates and would facilitate Sprint's 
efforts to invest in new technologies and improve the company's 
capital structure.  Comments on Sprint's application are due Oct. 
31.  (Docket 01-9029)

______________________________________________________

MARYLAND -- Montgomery County high schoolers go wireless

The Montgomery County Board of Education has approved new rules 
that allow high school students to have wireless devices on 
school grounds, a spokesperson for the Montgomery County Schools 
told TR.  The new rules were created to comply with HB 67, 
introduced by Rep. Dana Lee Dembrow (D., District 20), which 
lifted a state prohibition on wireless devices on school 
property.

The bill mandated that local education agencies work with the 
state Department of Education to develop local policies regarding 
the use of these devices on public school property during school 
hours.  Montgomery County's eight-member Board of Education 
unanimously voted to allow high school students to possess 
wireless devices on school property during the school day if 
turned off and "out of sight."  High school students may also use 
wireless devices on school buses.

Elementary and junior high school students aren't allowed to have 
wireless devices under the new rules unless parents obtain a 
waiver from the school's principal.  The new rules take effect 
immediately.  The board will revisit the issue in a year and 
review the rules.

______________________________________________________

TENNESSEE -- CLECs seek special-access performance measures

WorldCom, Inc., and Time Warner Telecom of the Mid-South L.P. 
have asked the Regulatory Authority to develop performance 
measures for BellSouth Telecommunications, Inc.'s special-access 
services. 

BellSouth's "timely and nondiscriminatory" provisioning of 
special access is "critical" for developing local competition, 
Time Warner said.  BellSouth's special access tariffs don't 
provide "adequate" remedies for provisioning delays, Time Warner 
added.

Competitors shouldn't be penalized for deciding to buy DS1s or 
DS3s from BellSouth's special access tariff instead of buying the 
equivalent service as UNEs (unbundled network elements) through 
interconnection agreements, the carriers said.  (Docket 01-00193)

______________________________________________________

NEVADA -- PUC to hold Sprint performance plan hearing

The Public Utilities Commission has scheduled a Nov. 28 hearing 
to examine a carrier-to-carrier service-quality plan submitted by 
Central Telephone Co.-Nevada, d/b/a Sprint of Nevada.  The 
hearing will be continued day to day, as necessary. 

Under state law, Nevada Bell, Sprint, and Verizon California, 
d/b/a Verizon Nevada, must file such performance plans.  (Docket 
01-1049, In re petition of Central Telephone Company - Nevada, 
d/b/a Sprint of Nevada, and Sprint Communications Company L.P. 
for review and approval of proposed revised performance 
measures.)

______________________________________________________

WEST VIRGINIA -- Seminar focuses on 'e-government'

The "Wired Wonderful West Virginia" seminar, held yesterday in 
Charleston, focused on how to use technology to expand the 
capabilities of state governments.  Gov. Bob Wise (D.) said that 
the seminar shows that "West Virginia is committed to technology, 
e-government and e-business.  This seminar moves the entire state 
another step closer to a true e-government that puts its citizens 
first by providing full accessibility to government services."

Cathilea Robinett, executive director for the Center for Digital 
Government in Folsom, Calif., gave the keynote speech.  The day's 
sessions included topics such as developing Internet and 
technology strategies in a "decentralized government 
organization," portals and content management, and Web site 
security.

______________________________________________________

WASHINGTON -- UTC to hold damage-prevention workshop

The Utilities and Transportation Commission, the Washington 
Utilities Coordinating Council, the Citizens Advisory Committee 
on Pipeline Safety, and the City-County Consortium on Pipeline 
Safety have scheduled an Oct. 26 workshop on preventing damage to 
underground utilities. 

During the workshop, participants will review draft language that 
would create a board and a complaint process to assist 
enforcement of the current damage-prevention law.

______________________________________________________

NEVADA -- Sprint to launch voice channels service

Central Telephone Co. of Nevada, d/b/a Sprint of Nevada, has 
asked the Public Utilities Commission for authority to classify 
as "discretionary" its new service called Individual Voice 
Channels for Sprint Custom Access Solutions.  The service would 
provide Sprint Custom Access Solutions customers the ability to 
add derived choice channels over their data service.

Under Nevada law, a discretionary service is a service that isn't 
necessary for provisioning basic service.  If it were classified 
as discretionary, the service wouldn't be price regulated.  
Comments on the application are due Nov. 7.  (Advice letter 49)

______________________________________________________

OREGON -- Leap offers local wireless service in Salem

Leap Wireless International, Inc., has introduced its "cricket 
comfortable wireless service" in Salem.  The service offers 
subscribers flat-rate "all-you-can-talk" local wireless service 
while within a local calling area.

______________________________________________________

PENNSYLVANIA -- Dimension completes Chester County fiber network

The North American region of Dimension Data Holdings plc has 
completed a new fiber-optic network in Chester County.  The 
network uses Internet protocol telephony and video conferencing 
supplied by Cisco Systems, Inc., to connect the county's 12 
school districts, three colleges, county government offices, and 
the library.  The company used 225 miles of fiber to complete the 
project.

Major funding for the network came from a state grant.  The 
remaining monies were raised from community organizations and 
local school districts.

______________________________________________________

NEW YORK, OHIO -- Earthlink, AOL launch broadband services

Earthlink, Inc., and AOL Time Warner, Inc., today separately 
announced that they were each offering high-speed Internet 
service to consumers in Western Ohio.  Time Warner Cable networks 
will supply the broadband service to both companies.

Earthlink said that it would offer the broadband service 
initially for $41.95 a month for downstream speeds of up to 2 
megabits per second and upstream speeds of 384 kilobits per 
second.

AOL said customers who sign up for its high-speed service would 
pay $44.95 for unlimited use of their broadband account and $2.95 
for dial-up use.  Users that want unlimited use of their 
broadband account and unlimited dial-up from any location will 
pay $54.95 for the service.

Earthlink also launched high-speed service in Albany, N.Y.  Time 
Warner will supply the broadband service there as well.

Tom Andrus, vice president-products and services at EarthLink, 
said that availability of service to these consumers "is the 
culmination of hard work and the exemplary cooperation of Time 
Warner Cable."  Under the agreement, Earthlink will now have 
access to about 300,000 consumers in Time Warner's Albany service 
area and 420,000 consumers in Time Warner's Western Ohio service 
area.


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Gayle Kansagor, E-mail: mailto:gkansagor@tr.com
Editor

Susan McGovern,  E-mail: mailto:smcgovern@tr.com
Senior Telecommunications Analyst

Victoria Curtis,  E-mail: mailto:vcurtis@tr.com
Senior Research Analyst

Michael Johnson,  E-mail: mailto:mjohnson@tr.com
Senior Telecommunications Analyst

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