HB 1785 -- Telecommunications Service

Co-Sponsors:  DeMarce, Farnen

This bill requires the Public Service Commission to begin a
proceeding to establish guidelines and procedures to implement
expanded local calling scopes between exchanges that are:

(1)  wholly or partly within the same county or wholly or partly
within the City of St. Louis; or

(2)  not more than 30 miles apart from one rate center to the
other.

The commission is authorized to order the implementation of
expanded local calling scopes.  Within 3 months of initiating
the proceeding, the commission must hold at least 6 public
hearings on this issue in locations around the state.  The
commission must require incumbent local exchange companies
providing interexchange service to file a tariff for expanded
local calling scopes by April 1, 2000.

In developing a plan, the commission will require
telecommunications companies to negotiate to provide expanded
local calling scopes throughout their service areas.  If no
agreement is reached, the commission is authorized to impose its
own plan and to determine the method of funding by first using
companies' available unauthorized excess earnings.

The commission is not authorized to mandate a transfer of funds
from one telephone company to another to implement expanded
local calling scopes unless or until all other remedies are
exhausted.  Any company wanting to recover lost revenues
resulting from implementation of the expanded scopes must
demonstrate its financial hardship to the commission.  The
commission is authorized to allow and to determine the method of
recovery.  Recovery may consist of an increase in rates and
charges, a sharing of lost revenues, and increased expenses by
another telephone company in the plan.

The bill requires the commission to establish an access line
charge for residential and business customers in each exchange
in the expanded local calling scope area.  The fee is mandatory
in the exchange and is in addition to the charge for local basic
service.  The fee will be the lesser of:

(1)  50% of the company's charge for local basic service for
residential or business customers; or

(2)  Three dollars and 50 cents per month for residential
customers and $6 per month for business customers.

The bill makes expanded local calling scope service a mandatory
local service.  Telephone companies providing service in high--
cost service areas are eligible to receive funding from the
Universal Service Fund to bring customer charges within the
parameters defined in this bill.  A small local exchange carrier
that voluntarily applies by April 1, 2000, to reduce its
intrastate exchange access rates may receive funding from this
fund to replace any lost revenue.

The commission is authorized to delay the establishment of the
expanded local calling scope in given exchanges if providing the
service would impose an undue economic burden on
telecommunications customers.  If the commission delays the
service, it must promptly begin to devise another plan.

Metropolitan exchanges and exchanges which share two-way local
calling with metropolitan exchanges are not eligible for
expanded local calling scope service.  This service is a
supplement to the existing metropolitan calling area plans.

The bill prohibits incumbent local exchange companies providing
basic local or basic interexchange service as of January 1,
1998, from abandoning service, with specific exceptions and
qualifications, subject to commission review.

The bill has an emergency clause.