| (a) Purpose. The purpose of this section is to implement
Public Utility Regulatory Act (PURA) §60.021, which requires
an incumbent local exchange company (ILEC), at a minimum, to unbundle
its network to the extent ordered by the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC).
(b) Application.
(1) The provisions of this section apply, as of its
effective date, to each ILEC that serves one million or more access
lines.
(2) The provisions of this section apply upon a bona
fide request to each ILEC that serves fewer than one million access
lines.
(c) Unbundling requirements.
(1) Unbundling in accordance with current FCC requirements.
Each ILEC that is subject to this section must unbundle as specified
in subparagraphs (A) and (B) of this paragraph. An ILEC with interstate
tariffs in effect must unbundle its network or services under the
same terms and conditions, except for price, as it unbundles its interstate
services, unless ordered otherwise by the commission. The ILEC must
also not impose a charge or rate element that is not included in its
interstate tariffs for these unbundled rate elements. Nothing in this
paragraph precludes the commission from requiring further unbundling
of local exchange company services, including the services unbundled
in accordance with this paragraph.
(A) The ILEC's network must be unbundled to the extent
ordered by the FCC in compliance with its open network architecture
requirements; and
(B) Signaling for tandem switching must be unbundled
to the extent ordered by the FCC in compliance with CC Docket Number
91-141, Third Report and Order, In the Matter of Expanded Interconnection
with Local Telephone Company Facilities, Transport Phase II.
(2) Unbundling in accordance with future FCC requirements.
An ILEC must unbundle its network or services for intrastate services
to the extent ordered, in the future, by the FCC for interstate services.
An ILEC with interstate tariffs in effect must unbundle these services
under the same terms and conditions, except for price, as it unbundles
its interstate services, unless ordered otherwise by the commission.
The ILEC must also not impose a charge or rate element that is not
included in its interstate tariffs for unbundling. Nothing in this
paragraph precludes the commission from requiring further unbundling
of local exchange company services, including the services unbundled
in accordance with this paragraph.
(d) Costing and pricing of services in compliance with
this section.
(1) Cost standard. Services unbundled in compliance
with this section must be subject to the following cost standard.
(A) The cost standard for unbundled services must be
the long run incremental costs (LRIC) of providing the service.
(B) Any ILEC subject to §26.214 of this title
(relating to Long Run Incremental Cost (LRIC) Methodology for Services
provided by Certain Incumbent Local Exchange Companies (ILECs)) or §26.215
of this title (relating to Long Run Incremental Cost Methodology for
Dominant Certificated Telecommunications Utility Services), as applicable,
must file LRIC studies in accordance with that rule for unbundled
components specified in subsection (c)(1) of this section.
(C) For any ILEC that is subject to §26.214 or §26.215
of this title, the cost standard for unbundled services required under
subsection (c)(2) of this section must be the long run incremental
costs as prescribed by §26.214 or §26.215 of this title,
as applicable.
(D) The long run incremental cost standard does not
apply if the ILEC proposes rates that are the same as the rates in
effect for the carrier's interstate provision of the same or equivalent
unbundled service or if the ILEC adopts rates of another ILEC in accordance
with paragraph (2)(B) of this subsection.
(2) Pricing standard. Services unbundled in compliance
with this section must be subject to the following pricing standard.
(A) Any ILEC may propose rates, without cost justification,
that are at parity with the rates in effect for the carrier's interstate
provision of the same or equivalent unbundled service. The ILEC must
amend its intrastate rates, terms and conditions to be consistent
with subsequent revisions in its interstate tariffs providing for
unbundling in accordance with the filing requirements established
in subsection (f)(4) of this section.
(B) In addition to the provision in subparagraph (A)
of this paragraph, ILECs that are not subject to §26.214 or §26.215
of this title may adopt the rates of another ILEC that are developed
in accordance with the requirements of this section.
(C) If an ILEC proposes rates that are not at parity
with the rates in effect for the carrier's interstate provision of
the same or equivalent unbundled service or does not adopt the rates
of another ILEC in accordance with subparagraph (B) of this paragraph,
the following requirements apply to any service approved under this
section:
(i) Unless waived or modified by the presiding officer,
the service must be offered in every exchange served by the ILEC,
except exchanges in which the ILEC's facilities do not have the technical
capability to provide the service.
(ii) If the sum of the rates of the new unbundled components
is equal to the price of the original bundled service and if the ratio
of the rate of each unbundled component to its LRIC is the same for
each unbundled component, there is a rebuttable presumption that the
rate of an unbundled component is reasonable.
(iii) The proposed rates and terms of the service must
not be unreasonably preferential, prejudicial, or discriminatory,
subsidized directly or indirectly by regulated monopoly services,
or predatory or anticompetitive.
(D) Rates based upon the new LRIC cost studies required
under paragraph (1)(B) of this subsection are subject to §26.214
or §26.215 of this title, as applicable, to the same extent as
any other service offered by an ILEC subject to the applicable provision.
(e) Basket assignment. An ILEC electing for incentive
regulation under PURA Chapter 58 must, in its compliance tariff filed
in accordance with subsection (f) of this section, include a proposal
and rationale for designating the unbundled components as basic services
or non-basic services.
(f) Filing requirements.
(1) Initial filing to implement subsection (c)(1) of
this section in effect for ILECs serving one million or more access
lines. An ILEC serving one million or more access lines must file
initial tariff amendments to implement the provisions of subsection
(c)(1) of this section not later than 60 days from the effective date
of this section. The proposed effective date of such filings must
be not later than 30 days after the filing date, unless suspended.
Tariff revisions filed in accordance with this paragraph must not
be combined in a single application with any other tariff revision.
(2) Filings to comply with subsection (c)(2) of this
section for ILECs serving one million or more access lines. An ILEC
serving one million or more access lines must file tariff amendments
to implement the provisions of subsection (c)(2) of this section,
within 60 days of the effective date of its interstate tariff providing
for unbundling. The proposed effective date of such filings must be
not later than 30 days after the filing date, unless suspended. Tariff
revisions filed in accordance with this paragraph must not be combined
in a single application with any other tariff revision.
(3) Filings to implement subsections (c)(1) and (2)
of this section for ILECs serving fewer than one million access lines.
If an ILEC serving fewer than one million access lines receives a
bona fide request, the ILEC must unbundle its network or services
in accordance with the bona fide request within 90 days from the date
of receipt of the bona fide request or has the burden of demonstrating
the reasons for not unbundling in accordance with the bona fide request.
(4) Filings to comply with subsection (d)(2)(A) of
this section. An ILEC proposing rates in accordance with subsection
(d)(2)(A) of this section must file tariff amendments to implement
the revisions in its interstate tariffs providing for unbundling,
within 30 days of the effective date of its interstate tariff providing
for unbundling. The proposed effective date of such filings must be
not later than 30 days after the filing date, unless suspended. Tariff
revisions filed in accordance with this paragraph must not be combined
in a single application with any other tariff revision.
(g) Requirements for notice and contents of application
in compliance with this section.
Cont'd... |
