| (h) Revised rates. No later than October 15 of each calendar year, upon request from a municipality pursuant to paragraphs (l) and (2) of this subsection, the commission shall establish revised access line rates for each category of access line in a municipality, as applicable. A CTP shall apply the revised rates to access lines in a municipality in January of the next calendar year and compensate a municipality pursuant to the revised rates. (1) Adjustments within established rates. No later than September 1 of each calendar year, a municipality may change its rates within the maximum rates by notifying the commission and all CTPs in that municipality that its wishes to revise its access line rate for the next calendar year. In its notification to the commission and the CTPs, the municipality shall indicate the rates that it wishes to have the commission apply in the next calendar year. Upon such notification, the commission shall revise the rates accordingly. (2) Revising allocation formula. No later than September 1 of each calendar year, and not more than once every 24 months, a municipality may petition a modification of the default allocation or its own allocation by notifying the commission and all affected CTPs in the municipality. In its notification to the commission and the CTPs, the municipality shall designate the allocation that it wishes to have the commission apply in the next calendar year. (i) Resolution of municipal allocations. (1) The commission shall implement a municipality's allocation unless, the commission determines that the allocation is not just and reasonable, is not competitively neutral, or is discriminatory. (2) No later than March 15, 2000 any affected CTP may complain regarding a municipality's initial allocation filed pursuant to §26.463 of this title. No later than April 7, 2000 any affected CTP may complain regarding a municipality's updated allocation filed pursuant to subsection (g)(1)(B) of this section. No later than September 15 of any calendar year any affected CTP may complain regarding a municipality's revised allocation filed pursuant to subsection (h)(2) of this section. (3) Where the market price of a telecommunications service is less than or equal to the amount derived from multiplying the access line rates with the number of access lines used to provide that service, the allocation used to develop the access line rate shall be presumed to be discriminatory, not just and reasonable and not competitively neutral. (j) Consumer price index (CPI) adjustment to commission-established rates. Beginning 24 months after the commission establishes access line rates, the commission shall annually adjust the rates per access line by category for each municipality by an amount equal to one-half the annual change, if any, in the most recent consumer price index (CPI), as determined by the Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. (k) CTP implementation of commission-established rates. The requirements listed in this subsection shall apply to all CTPs in the State of Texas, except those exempted pursuant to §26.465 of this title. (1) Interim compensation. CTPs shall continue to compensate municipalities at the rates required under the terms of the expired or terminated agreements or ordinances until the CTP implements the commission-established rates. A CTP not subject to an existing franchise agreement or ordinance that wants to construct facilities to offer telecommunications services in the municipality shall pay fees that are competitively neutral and non-discriminatory, consistent with the charges of the most recent agreement or ordinance between the municipality and the CTP serving the largest number of access lines within the municipality until the right-of-way fees established by the commission take effect. (2) Billing systems. A CTP shall develop and maintain billing systems as necessary to implement access line rates, by category, as established by the commission. These systems must be sufficient to substantiate compliance with the access line reporting requirements in this section. (3) Quarterly compensation and reporting. All CTPs are responsible for reporting to the commission their own quarterly access line count report and compensating each municipality, absent a reporting arrangement as described in subsection (l) of this section. All CTPs shall implement commission-established rates for each quarter. Unless otherwise specified, periodic reporting shall be consistent with this subsection and §26.465 of this title. (A) Quarterly access line count report. (i) No later than 45 days from the end of the preceding calendar quarter, a CTP shall file a quarterly access line count report for the preceding calendar quarter with the commission. (ii) The quarterly access line count report shall include a count of the number of access lines, by category, by municipality, for the end of each month of the preceding quarter. (iii) If a CTP deducts or includes a direct write-off pursuant to subsection (m)(2) of this section, the CTP shall complete a reconciliation report, showing a monthly delineation of the amount added to the total payment due to previously uncollectible direct write-offs, and the amount deducted from the total payment due to direct write-offs. This report shall be part of the quarterly access line count report filing. (iv) The report shall exclude lines that are resold, leased or otherwise provided to other CTPs unless the CTP is reporting on behalf of another CTP pursuant to subsection (l) of this section. (v) The CTP contact person listed in the Municipal Access Line Reporting System (MARS) at the time that the quarterly access line counts are entered for each quarter shall be the duly authorized representative of the CTP who certifies that the information contained in the report is based upon personal knowledge and is true and correct. (vi) The CTP shall respond to any request for additional information from the commission within 30 days from receipt of the request. (vii) Reports required under this subsection may be used by the commission only to verify the number of access lines that serve customer premises within a municipality. (viii) On request and subject to the confidentiality protections of the Local Government Code, §283.005, each CTP shall provide each affected municipality with a copy of the report required by this subsection. (B) Compensation. (i) All CTPs shall apply the most recent commission-established rates to access lines in a municipality. (ii) The municipal compensation shall be an amount equal to the rate per category of access line multiplied by the number of access lines in that category in that municipality at the end of each month in a calendar quarter as reflected in reports filed pursuant to subparagraph (A) of this paragraph. (iii) All payments for calendar quarters shall be made no later than 45 days from the end of that quarter. (4) Adequate proof of reporting and compensation responsibilities. (A) Definition of "underlying CTP" and "reselling CTP." (i) An underlying CTP is a CTP that owns facilities or provides facilities or capacity to another CTP in the rights-of-way of municipalities. (ii) A reselling CTP is a CTP to whom an underlying CTP resold, leased or otherwise provided access lines that extend to the end-use customer's premises. (B) For the purposes of this paragraph, "adequate proof" shall consist of a written agreement that specifically cites, and assigns responsibility for compliance with, the Texas Local Government Code, Chapter 283, and the reporting and compensation requirements of this subchapter. (C) To ensure that each CTP reports and compensates municipalities for those lines that it uses to serve end-use customers, underlying CTPs and their reselling CTPs shall, as part of their business relationship, enter into an agreement that meets the adequate proof standard of this paragraph. (D) An underlying CTP shall obtain adequate proof that the reselling CTP will directly report its lines and remit the related payments to municipalities. (E) A reselling CTP must provide adequate proof to the underlying CTP upon request. (F) The underlying CTP must acquire this adequate proof within 90 days of the effective date of this section, at the time of the signing of an initial interconnection agreement, or at the time of signing its agreement for the provision of services if the parties do not have an interconnection agreement (G) If the underlying CTP fails to obtain adequate proof that the reselling CTP will include the access line in its monthly count and remit payment on those access lines to the municipality, the underlying CTP must include such lines in its monthly count of access lines and remit a right-of-way fee to the municipality. Cont'd... |
