Telecommunications Reports presents . . . . . TR's State NewsWire
January 29, 2001 2 P.M. Edition


STATES
UTAH -- Bill takes aim at municipalities getting into the telecom
business
MISSOURI -- Lawmakers seek stricter telemarketing rules
PA. -- Competitors laud ALJ's recommendation to proceed with Verizon
split
CALIFORNIA -- PUC turns attention to performance incentives
TENNESSEE -- Bill aims to stop drivers' use of wireless phones
PA. -- Growing population in two exchanges results in rate increase
MAINE -- Bill would allow PUC to expand basic service areas
CALIF. -- Bill offers tax credit for free ISP service to low-income
households
MARYLAND -- Senator wants to bar telemarketers' blocking caller ID data


STATE & LOCAL GOVERNMENT
UTAH
Bill takes aim at municipalities getting into the telecom business

Rep. Greg Curtis (R., District 49) plans to introduce a bill that would
address municipalities such as Provo, Utah, that are getting into the
telecommunications business, legislative staff told TR.  The city of
Provo recently bought the local cable TV company, Provo Cable, and now
is competing against AT&T Corp.  The bill Curtis plans to introduce
would regulate government-owned telecom companies.  The bill's language
was expected to be made public later today or tomorrow.

Provo is building a high-speed broadband system to bring advanced
telecom services to every resident of the city, Michael Mower, Provo's
director of community and governmental relations, told TR.  Mower said
AT&T only provides services to select businesses and portions of the
city.  A private company administers the Provo system.

The legislative staff said one concern lawmakers have about Provo owning
its own telecom company is state constitutional language barring the
state from regulating cities.  That would mean that the Public Service
Commission wouldn't be able to regulate a municipal telecom company.

Mower said Curtis wants to level the regulatory playing field.  Mower
said he hopes legislators understand that the leveling process goes both
ways and that huge corporations hold some advantages over city-owned
systems.



CUSTOMER-AFFECTING
MISSOURI
Lawmakers seek stricter telemarketing rules

Rep. Rick Johnson (D., District 90) and several other representatives
have introduced HB 511 to help shield consumers from abusive
telemarketing practices by amending section 407.1095, RSMo 2000, which
defines telemarketing practices.

The bill is designed to protect consumers who sign up for the state's
"no-call" list under the assumption that they would stop receiving calls
from telemarketers, a legislative staff member told TR.  The existing
definitions of telephone solicitation provide too many loopholes for
telemarketers, the staff member said.

Under present law, telephone solicitation doesn't include calls from any
entity with which a consumer had contact with for business purposes
during the past 180 days.  The proposed legislation would sweep in such
calls, if the caller encouraged the consumer to rent, purchase, or
invest in goods or services.

HB 511 also would remove a section of the existing law that excludes
calls from entities regulated by federal agencies.  Additionally, it
would eliminate a section stating that telephone solicitation doesn't
include calls from people responding to referrals or from people working
from their own homes.

The text of HB 511 is available at
http://www.house.state.mo.us/bills01/biltxt01/intro01/HB0511I.htm.



SECTION 251/252
PENNSYLVANIA
Competitors laud ALJ's recommendation to proceed with Verizon split

The Competitive Telecommunications Association (CompTel), WorldCom,
Inc., and AT&T Corp. have piled praise on an administrative law judge's
recommended decision that the Public Utility Commission proceed with
plans to require Verizon Pennsylvania, Inc., to separate its wholesale
and retail operations in the state.

The recommended decision came in a 10-month proceeding to determine the
details of the split.  Structural separation was required by the PUC's
1999 "global order" on telecom competition.  The ALJ rejected Verizon's
proposed separation plan, and also refused to follow suggestions by
competing carriers and other parties.  Instead the ALJ recommended
several specific separation requirements, such as appointing separate
corporate officers and maintaining separate books.  (1/26/01 p.m.)

H. Russell Frisby, Jr., president of CompTel, said, "We are generally
pleased with the ALJ's decision and the fact that it recognizes that the
only way to achieve true competition is through structural
separation.''  CompTel said the ALJ's proposal "encourages the
commission to adopt additional safeguards, and to consider prohibitions
against joint marketing activities and product packaging between the
wholesale and retail affiliates."

AT&T said the recommended decision is "a step closer to local phone
choice."  Jim Ginty, president of AT&T-Pennsylvania, said it recognizes
"the need to implement full structural separation."  He said "strong
medicine is needed--with competitors in New York exiting the market, the
possibility of Verizon re-monopolizing the local and long distance
market is clearly very real and could happen very quickly."

A WorldCom, Inc., spokesperson said that since the PUC's 1999 global
order, Verizon has been using "scare tactics and confusion" to try to
prevent regulators from implementing the split.  "The judge was right-on
when he said Verizon needs to stop whining about not wanting to comply
with the order and turn its attention to how it's going to separate its
retail and wholesale divisions," the WorldCom spokesperson said.

According to a PUC spokesperson the commission could take up the
recommended decision as early as March or April.  (Docket no.
M-00001353)



LONG DISTANCE
CALIFORNIA
PUC turns attention to performance incentives

The California Public Utilities Commission has scheduled a three-day
workshop Feb. 7-9 to focus on performance incentives for Pacific Bell's
bid to enter the interLATA (local access and transport area) services
market under section 271 of the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996.

The PUC noted that during the last year, it and participating parties
have directed "significant efforts" toward the performance assessment
side of Pacific Bell's performance remedies plan.  The workshop will
focus on the performance incentives part of the plan, it said.

Many parties submitted their incentive plan proposals more than two
years ago and may wish to revise or review them, the PUC said.  It
suggested some should take into account the PUC's Interim Opinion on
Performance Incentives, which was issued earlier this month, when
re-examining their plans.  (1/19/01 a.m.)

During the workshop, active parties will attempt to reach agreements on
present incentive plan scopes, issues, principles, elements, and
conceptual models.  Workshop sessions will be facilitated meetings,
rather than formal hearings.  The commission said the sessions will give
parties the opportunity to work together to make fundamental decisions,
rather than reargue their positions.  The PUC plans to hold at least one
more set of workshop sessions.

The workshop agendas are available at
http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/PUBLISHED/RULINGS/4791.htm.  (Rulemaking
97-10-016 and Investigation 97-10-017)



WIRELESS
TENNESSEE
Bill aims to stop drivers' use of wireless phones

Rep. Henri E. Brooks (D., District 92) has introduced a bill that would
prohibit using a wireless phone while operating a vehicle unless the
driver had both hands on the steering wheel.  Violators of HB 186 would
be subject to a $25 fine and court costs of up to $10.

HB 186 would exempt drivers using wireless phones in emergency
situations, or using phones designed for hands-free use.  The bill also
would exempt emergency response workers acting in their official
capacity.

The bill text is available at
http://www.legislature.state.tn.us/bills/currentga/Bill/HB0186.pdf.



PRICING
PENNSYLVANIA
Growing population in two exchanges results in rate increase

The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission has approved a request by
Commonwealth Telephone Co. to increase its revenues $43,396 annually in
the Dushore and Montrose exchanges by reclassifying them to a higher
"rate group."  A carrier can reclassify an exchange to the next higher
rate group when the number of customers in the exchange exceeds the
existing rate group limitations.

Starting Feb. 1, the average monthly residential bill for customers in
Dushore will increase 25 cents, from $8.41 to $8.66, while the average
monthly residential bill for customers in Montrose will increase 30
cents, from $8.66 to $8.96.  (Docket no. R-00005965)



PRICING
MAINE
Bill would allow PUC to expand basic service areas

Sen. Susan W. Longley (D., District 11) has introduced legislation (SB
17) that would allow the Public Utilities Commission to expand a basic
service calling area when petitioned by five or more customers.  The
measure would apply only to basic service areas that encompass single
exchanges.

A carrier would be permitted to recover costs associated with expanding
its calling area only when the PUC determines that the carrier otherwise
would fail to earn a "reasonable rate of return."

The bill has been referred to the Senate Committee on Utilities and
Energy.  Its text is available at
http://janus.state.me.us/legis/bills/billtexts/LD003301-1.asp.



ADVANCED SERVICES
CALIFORNIA
Bill offers tax credit for free ISP service to low-income households

Sen. Kevin Murray (D., District 26) has introduced a bill (SB 121) that
would authorize a tax credit for any Internet service providers (ISPs)
that offer free Internet access and personal computers to low-income
households.  The credit would be $200 multiplied by the number of
low-income households being provided unlimited use of Internet access
and a personal computer.

The credit would be allowed only for the first taxable year that an ISP
offered the free Internet access.

Personal computers donated under SB 121 would have to have a
56-kilobits-per-second internal modem, a 380 megahertz processor, 64
megabytes of RAM, a 4- gigabyte hard drive, a 32 speed CD-ROM, a word
processing software program copyrighted in 2000 or later, and offer the
same level of technical assistance provided to any purchaser of the PC
or Internet access service.



CUSTOMER-AFFECTING
MARYLAND
Senator wants to bar telemarketers' blocking caller ID data

Sen. Leo E. Green (D., District 23) has introduced a bill (SB 79) that
would prohibit telemarketers from blocking their caller ID information
when making solicitation calls.  Telemarketers violating the proposed
misdemeanor would be subject to a fine of up to $1,000 for the first
offense and up to $5,000 for subsequent offenses.  The bill awaits
consideration by the Senate Finance Committee.



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