Looks like a good court decision on the reciprocal access issue for 
interconnection agreements.

Do we know what's meant by "advanced services" in the amendment to the Tauzin 
Bill requiring ILEC sale of advanced services at wholesale prices for three 
years?  


Sue Nord, Sr. Director
Government Affairs
713 345-4196

----- Forwarded by Sue Nord/NA/Enron on 05/09/2001 08:16 AM -----

	"Telecommunications Reports International, Inc." <trnews@tr.com>
	05/08/2001 05:07 PM
		 
		 To: "Telecommunications Reports International, Inc." <tr_news_letter@cch.com>
		 cc: 
		 Subject: TR Daily, 08 May, 2001


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Table of Contents
Click here for the full issue:
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/index.htm

AS COMMERCE COMMITTEE VOTE NEARS ON HR 1542,
BELLS SPAR WITH CLECs, IXCs OVER `SUBSTITUTE'
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801.htm

JUDGE:  CLECs DON'T HAVE TO GIVE 
ILECs ACCESS TO RIGHTS-OF-WAY
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801-01.htm

FCC PROPOSES CHANGING USF 
CONTRIBUTION SYSTEM
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801-02.htm

FCC's WIRELESS BUREAU SIDES WITH PUBLIC 
SAFETY AGENCIES ON `E911' COSTS
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801-03.htm

STUDY SAYS MOBILE PHONE USE
PLAYS LITTLE ROLE IN ACCIDENTS
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801-04.htm

CABLEVISION WON'T HELP AT&T 
SELL $2B CABLEVISION STAKE
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801-05.htm

FCC SEEKS EXTRA $4M FOR ENGINEERING PROGRAM
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801-06.htm

NEWS IN BRIEF
http://www.tr.com/online/trd/2001/td050801/Td050801-07.htm


***************************************************************
AS COMMERCE COMMITTEE VOTE NEARS ON HR 1542,
BELLS SPAR WITH CLECs, IXCs OVER `SUBSTITUTE'

Bell company interests predict the Internet Freedom and Broadband
Deployment Act, HR 1542, will clear the House Energy and Commerce
Committee by a comfortable margin tomorrow.  Opponents, however,
hope that enough amendments and opposition will surface to dampen
Congress's enthusiasm for broadband "relief" legislation.

"It looks like it will pass," U.S. Telecom Association interim
President and Chief Executive Officer Gary S. Lytle told TR today
after a press briefing to review the legislation.  "It should get
somewhere in the mid to high 30s," he said, referring to the
number of members on the 57-person panel that USTA predicts will
vote for the bill at tomorrow's markup session.  The bill cleared
the telecommunications and the Internet subcommittee last month
by a 19-14 vote (TR, April 30).

Meanwhile, a "substitute" version of HR 1542 that began
circulating late last night (Monday) has sparked another round of
bickering between Bell company interests and members of the
competitive local exchange carrier and interexchange carrier
industries.  The substitute, released by Commerce Committee
Chairman W.J. (Billy) Tauzin (R., La.), incorporates the four
amendments that were approved by the telecom subcommittee.  It
also adds new language regarding FCC rules on ILECs' resale of
advanced services and "line sharing" and new definitions for
"Internet backbone services" and "Internet access service."

H. Russell Frisby Jr., president of the Competitive
Telecommunications Association, said the new provisions would
make the legislation "go from bad to worse under the guise of
compromise."  The new definition of "Internet backbone services"
is too broad, he said, as it would include too many services in a
deregulated regime.

Mr. Frisby also pointed to language that purportedly would
preserve CLECs' ability to implement line sharing.  The FCC's
line-sharing rules permit CLECs to offer data services over the
high-frequency portion of a line while the ILEC continues to
provide voice services over the lower-frequency portion.  But Mr.
Frisby said the substitute bill would invalidate later FCC orders
that "put the meat on the bones" of the line-sharing mandates.

According to a copy of the substitute draft, the FCC's rules on
line sharing would remain intact, but ILECs wouldn't be required
to provide access to the high-frequency portion of the loop at
the remote terminal -- a provision that another critic agrees
would "undercut" the Commission's line-sharing rules.  "If line
sharing is not allowed through remote terminals, then 35% of
consumers will be denied residential broadband competition
because of this bill," the CLEC source said.

That claim, however, was disputed by Thomas J. Tauke, senior vice
president-public policy and external affairs for Verizon
Communications, Inc.  Speaking with reporters at the USTA press
briefing, Mr. Tauke said the bill's new line-sharing language
would have a "minimal effect" on CLECs in Verizon's service
territory because "very few of them use" line sharing.  For
Verizon, the substitute language would eliminate the "economic
and practical problems of providing for line sharing when we have
fiber in the local loop," he said.

Rep. Tauzin's substitute bill also has new language requiring
ILECs to continue reselling advanced services at wholesale rates
for as many as three years after enactment of the bill.  The
original version of the bill would have given ILECs an immediate
exemption from resale obligations.

Committee staffers were said to be working out last-minute
details on another amendment that's expected to be offered
tomorrow by Reps. Cliff Stearns (R., Fla.), Bobby L. Rush (D.,
Ill.), and Thomas C. Sawyer (D., Ohio).  According to sources,
the amendment would give ILECs immediate regulatory relief.  But
it would require ILECs to make about 70% of their central offices
DSL (digital subscriber line)-ready by a date certain, most
likely within three years of enactment.

Mr. Tauke said Verizon would oppose any DSL buildout
requirements, saying "it's good public policy not to have a
buildout provision in this legislation."  The government should
mandate buildout requirements "only when the market isn't
working," he said.

Many of the same amendments that were withdrawn during the
telecom subcommittee's review are being teed up for tomorrow,
including several from Rep. Tom Davis III (R., Va.) and one from
Rep. Anna Eshoo (D., Calif.) to require Bell companies to
continue filing service-quality and accounting reports at the
FCC.  Rep. Tauzin has said he would address FCC "enforcement"
issues at tomorrow's markup session, but he may not tackle those
issues through legislation.

Asked by TR whether Rep. Tauzin planned to offer an FCC
enforcement amendment to HR 1542, spokesman Ken Johnson said
today, "I can only confirm that Reps. Tauzin and [Rep. Fred Upton
(R., Mich.)] will offer an amendment before the bill gets to the
House floor to substantially beef up the FCC's enforcement"
tools.


***************************************************************
JUDGE:  CLECs DON'T HAVE TO GIVE ILECs ACCESS TO RIGHTS-OF-WAY

A federal district judge in Lincoln, Neb., has ruled that
competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) aren't required to
give incumbent local exchange carriers (ILECs) access to their
poles, ducts, and rights-of-way.  Judge Richard G. Kopf made the
determination in "AT&T Communications of the Midwest, Inc., v. U
S WEST Communications, Inc., et al." (case no. 4:97CV3286).

AT&T brought the lawsuit in 1997, seeking to overturn the
Nebraska Public Service Commission's approval of an
interconnection agreement.  That agreement required AT&T to give
U S WEST (now Qwest Corp.) "reciprocal access" to poles, ducts,
and rights-of-way.  Consideration of the lawsuit was delayed by
judicial challenges to the FCC's landmark 1996 order on carrier
interconnection.

Judge Kopf was faced with a split among federal courts on how to
handle an apparent contradiction in the Communications Act of
1934, as amended by the Telecommunications Act of 1996.  Section
251 of the Act appears to require all local exchange carriers
(LECs) -- whether ILECs or CLECs -- to grant access to their
rights-of-way, the judge said.  But section 224 seems to require
that all LECs grant access only to competitive, not incumbent,
local exchange carriers, he said.

The FCC had based its regulations on section 224, and most
federal district courts had deferred to that interpretation,
Judge Kopf said.  But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth
Circuit (San Francisco) has said it "doubts the soundness of the
FCC's interpretation of section 251."

Judge Kopf, however, followed the other district courts and
deferred to the FCC's interpretation.  He concluded that "in
light of the Act's purpose, [which is] to promote competition,. .
.the FCC's interpretation that no ILEC may seek access to the
facilities or rights-of-way of a LEC or any utility under either
section 225 of section 251 is based on a permissible construction
of the statutes and does not conflict with the plain meaning of
the Act."

Judge Kopf ruled that the reciprocal-access portion of the
companies' interconnection agreement violated the Act and the
FCC's rules.  He enjoined Qwest from enforcing that portion of
the agreement.


***************************************************************
FCC PROPOSES CHANGING USF CONTRIBUTION SYSTEM

The FCC has proposed "streamlining and simplifying" the way it
collects Universal Service Fund (USF) contributions.  The
proposals, which include limiting how carriers recover
contributions from their customers and using a flat-rate
assessment, are aimed at dealing with recent changes and
developing trends in the industry.

The FCC recently tweaked the USF contribution system to reduce
the "lag time" between accrual of revenues and payment of
contributions based on those revenues (TR, March 19).  At that
time, it said it soon would consider "more fundamental modifica-
tions" to the USF contribution mechanism.  The USF supports
affordable service in "high-cost" areas and discounted service
for low-income customers, schools, libraries, and rural health
care providers.

USF contributions currently are assessed as a percentage of
carriers' interstate and international end-user telecom service
revenues.  The percentage is based on revenues as of six months
before the contributions are collected.  The FCC allows carriers
to decide for themselves whether and how to recover contribution
costs from their customers.

In a statement today, the FCC said the following industry trends
affect USF contributions:  (1) the entrance of new companies --
such as the Bells -- into certain long distance markets, (2)
growth in the wireless telecom sector, to the extent that
wireless carriers' interstate revenues may exceed the FCC's
interim "safe harbor" threshold for contributions, and (3)
increased bundling of services, making it difficult to
distinguish interstate from intrastate revenues.

The FCC is seeking comments on whether it should require carriers
to contribute a percentage of their collected revenues, rather
than a percentage of their billed revenues, to the USF.  It wants
to know whether it should assess contributions based on current
or projected revenues.

The Commission also asks whether it should use a flat assessment,
such as a fixed per-line charge; if it should require that
carriers give customers a uniform description of contribution
recovery charges; and whether those charges should be limited to
the amount of the contribution assessment.


***************************************************************
FCC's WIRELESS BUREAU SIDES WITH PUBLIC SAFETY AGENCIES ON `E911'
COSTS

The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau has sided with
public safety agencies in a dispute over who should bear more of
the financial burden for installing Phase I "enhanced 911" (E911)
systems.

In a May 7 letter to the King County (Wash.) E911 Program, bureau
Chief Thomas J. Sugrue clarified that the 911 selective router
maintained by incumbent local exchange carriers is the proper
demarcation point for allocating E911 implementation costs
between wireless carriers and public safety answering points
(PSAPs).

The bureau's determination supports the view held by PSAPs. 
Carriers, on the other hand, had maintained that PSAPs should be
responsible for E911 network components or upgrades beginning at
carriers' switches.  The bureau sought comments on the issue last
year in response to King County's request for a clarification of
the FCC's position (TR, Aug. 21 and Sept. 25, 2000).

In the letter, Mr. Sugrue stressed that the agency "continues to
favor negotiation between the parties as the most efficacious and
efficient means for resolving disputes regarding cost allocations
for implementing Phase I."  But PSAPs still will have to bear
some costs, he said, including upgrades to the 911 selective
router, trunking equipment, and other hardware and software.


***************************************************************
STUDY SAYS MOBILE PHONE USE
PLAYS LITTLE ROLE IN ACCIDENTS

Mobile phones are responsible for distracting drivers in only a
small percentage of vehicle accidents, according to an analysis
of accident data released today.  The University of North
Carolina's Highway Safety Research Center compiled the study for
the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety using data from the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Crashworthiness
Data System.

The data were collected from 1995 to 1999 on 32,303 vehicles
involved in crashes in which at least one vehicle was towed from
the scene.  Results were weighted to calculate national
estimates.

In crashes where driver distraction was a factor, 29.4% of the
time that distraction was something outside the driver's vehicle,
the study found.  Drivers' attempts to adjust car radios was a
factor in 11.4% of collisions involving driver distraction, and
passengers were a factor in 10.9% of those crashes, the study
said.

Mobile phones were number eight on the list of driver
distractions.  Use of wireless phones preceded 1.5% of crashes
where driver distraction was a factor, the study said.  The
margin of error for each category varied from 0.4% to 7.2%; for
mobile phone use, it was 0.9%.

Jane Stutts, manager of epidemiological studies at the UNC center
and the study's author, told TR that the mobile phone results
were "surprising just because people assume that cell phones
cause a lot of crashes."  But she stressed that many drivers may
be reluctant to tell police that they were distracted by using a
phone.  "They may try to hide it," she said.  The estimates for
mobile phone use were based on only 42 reported cases.

Ms. Stutts also noted that the driver distraction was listed as
"unknown" for almost 36% of the cases studied.  She said this
fact highlights the need for improved collection of accident
data.


***************************************************************
CABLEVISION WON'T HELP AT&T SELL $2B CABLEVISION STAKE

Cablevision Systems Corp. executives today said they don't intend
to help AT&T Corp. sell $2 billion in Cablevision shares.  AT&T
had asked Cablevision, a cable TV system operator based in
Bethpage, N.Y., to register the 30 million shares with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, allowing for a public sale
(TR, April 16).

"Cablevision has notified AT&T that we will not proceed at this
time with the registration of their shares" of Cablevision common
stock, said William Bell, Cablevision's vice chairman.  Instead,
Cablevision is considering its own public stock sale to raise
funds to improve its cable TV networks, he said during a
conference call with investors and analysts.

Cablevision's decision may complicate AT&T's efforts to sell the
shares, which it inherited in the 1999 takeover of Tele-
Communications, Inc.  AT&T wants to sell the stake to raise funds
for debt reduction and to thin its cable TV holdings.  The FCC's
rules regarding cable TV ownership are in limbo after being
vacated by the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington.  But AT&T has
been maneuvering to sell some cable TV holdings in preparation
for the enactment of new rules.

AT&T still can sell the Cablevision shares, Mr. Bell said.  AT&T
has "piggyback" registration rights that entitle it, under
certain conditions, to add its shares to Cablevision's public
stock offerings, according to SEC documents.  "AT&T may or may
not be able to exercise some piggyback rights," Mr. Bell said. 
"It really will depend on market conditions and what
Cablevision's needs are."


***************************************************************
FCC SEEKS EXTRA $4M FOR ENGINEERING PROGRAM

The FCC is asking congressional appropriators to earmark an
additional $4 million for its fiscal year 2002 budget.  The funds
would help pay for a new "Excellence in Engineering" training and
recruitment program.  President Bush has proposed $248 million
for the FCC for FY 2002 -- an 8% increase over the Commission's
current appropriation level (TR, April 16).

In a letter to Sen. Conrad Burns (R., Mont.), FCC Chairman
Michael K. Powell says the extra money would be used for
recruitment incentives, educational initiatives for advanced and
"non"-engineers at the FCC, and upgrading the agency's technical
equipment.

"The overarching goal of the program is to ensure that the
Commission maintains a high level of technical expertise so that
it is at least as fluent in technology and engineering issues as
are the entities it regulates," Mr. Powell said in the May 4
letter.

Mr. Powell's letter included draft legislation that would allow
the FCC to establish salaries for engineers and other technical
and professional hires that are "more competitive with the
private sector."  The proposal also authorizes each Commissioner
to hire a professional engineering assistant in addition to the
three professional assistants they currently are allowed.

A Burns spokeswoman said the lawmaker was "working with Mr.
Powell to submit the budget request."  Sen. Burns is chairman of
the communications subcommittee and is a member of the
Appropriations Committee. 


***************************************************************
NEWS IN BRIEF

Frank Malpartida has been named managing director-international
sales in the new Miami office of Progress Telecom, a Florida-
based "carrier's carrier."  He was an independent consultant for
European and Latin American telecom companies.  Progress Telecom,
a subsidiary of Progress Energy, has opened a Miami office to
take advantage of the new NAP (Network Access Point) of the
Americas, a network interconnection site in South Florida....

Susan R. Lichtenstein has been named senior vice president,
general counsel, and secretary at Tellabs, Inc., succeeding
retiring SVP Carol Coghlan Gavin.  Ms. Lichtenstein has been VP,
general counsel, and secretary at Ameritech Corp....

Rachel Lipman Reiber has joined UtiliCorp Communications Services
as vice president-regulatory and governmental affairs.  Ms.
Reiber was Sprint Corp.'s director-state regulatory affairs and
was a member of the Kansas Corporation Commission from 1991 to
1995....

Matt Milstead has been named president-Latin American division at
360networks, Inc.  He was the company's general manager-eastern
operations and earlier was senior vice president and chief
operating officer at Lightwave Spectrum International....

Canadian carrier Call-Net Enterprises, Inc., will reduce expenses
by cutting its workforce by 360 people, or 15%, by year-end. 
Call-Net said it also would trim its capital expenditure
budget....

NTL Communications Corp., a subsidiary of NTL, Inc., is
attempting to raise $500 million through the private sale of
convertible senior notes.  The New York-based company, which
offers cable TV and telecom services in Europe, said it would use
part of the money to fund its business needs during the next
three years....

Senate communications subcommittee Chairman Conrad Burns (R.,
Mont.) is considering holding a hearing in September to review
enhanced "911" service implementation issues, a Burns aide said
today at a forum sponsored by the ComCARE Alliance....

The National Emergency Number Association (NENA) has launched a
field testing and certification program to ascertain whether
wireless carriers are complying with the FCC's rules for
deploying Phase II "enhanced 911" (E911) systems.  NENA has
formed an alliance with RCC Consultants, Inc., a consulting firm,
to implement the initiative....

The FCC's Wireless Telecommunications Bureau is seeking comments
on a request by Leap Wireless International, Inc., for a waiver
of the agency's broadband PCS (personal communications service)
construction requirements.  Leap wants an extension of the build-
out period for 38 licenses it recently acquired.  It wants a one-
year extension for 21 licenses covering 16 markets and a two-year
extension for 17 licenses covering 15 markets.  Comments are due
May 22 and replies May 30.  All filings should reference DA 01-
1172....

The FCC has denied Coleman Enterprises, Inc.'s request that it
reconsider imposing a forfeiture of $750,000 against the company. 
The forfeiture was for violations of FCC rules on "slamming" --
making unauthorized changes to a customer's presubscribed telecom
service provider.  CEI had asked the FCC to reduce or rescind the
fine because it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. 
The FCC said it denied the request because of the "egregious
nature of the violations at issue, combined with the fact that
CEI is a going concern."....

Anadarko Petroleum Corp., a Houston-based energy exploration and
production company, has agreed to make a $15,000 contribution to
the U.S. Treasury and to implement a rules-compliance program to
settle charges that it transferred control of 49 land mobile and
microwave licenses without FCC approval.  The company has signed
a consent decree with the FCC's Enforcement Bureau.  A memorandum
opinion and order in the case was released today in file no. EB-
01-IH-0215.


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