ADELSTEIN PRAISES STATE UNE ROLE, PREDICTS THEY'LL ‘SURPRISE THE SKEPTICS’

Adelstein said state commissions “had a huge positive impact on the decisions made in the Triennial Review” of UNE policy that FCC completed last week. He said courts directed that FCC “get granular” in analyzing need for UNE-P in markets: “You [states] are in the best position to determine which network elements are essential. The nay-sayers say you won’t be up to the task we've given you.” He said states in past have successfully carried out duties delegated to them by Telecom Act and FCC, “and I expect you will succeed again” when evaluating UNEs. In response to question, Adelstein said FCC still believes facilities-based competition should be policy goal, but recognized that transition from UNE-P to facilities will take time: “The idea now is to find out where UNE switching is still needed.”

Adelstein applauded NARUC’s move to establish central task force for coordinating state efforts on UNEs: “I believe your coordination efforts will produce more coherent outcomes across multiple states.” With UNE issue out of way for now, Adelstein said he'd like FCC to turn its attention to universal service fund and how to restructure it to today’s telecom industry conditions. He said states will be valued partners as FCC grapples with questions of who should pay into fund, how carriers should be assessed and where money should go in competitive environment. He said main universal service issue is treatment of rural areas.

In other NARUC action, Telecom Committee decided to table policy resolution that would have deplored spam e-mails and urgied Congress, FTC and “other authorized agencies” to take steps to restrict spam and enforce those restrictions. Resolution ran into same problem on Telecom Committee that nearly doomed it at staff subcommittee level, namely that many states didn’t believe NARUC, as state commissions’ representative body, should take any position on Internet- related matter that may be outside states’ jurisdiction. Bob Rowe of Mont. PSC argued that spam is consumer protection issue and falls into same category as cramming or slamming. But he failed to prevail and panel decided to table resolution until summer meeting.

Telecom Committee adopted wireless broadband resolution that urged Congress, FCC, NTIA and other policymakers to encourage innovative wireless broadband technologies such as Wi Fi, ensure adequate unlicensed spectrum for Wi Fi and related technologies, and address impediments that could limit innovation in broadband access devices. Panel also adopted Internet telephony resolution urging FCC to confirm its tentative 1998 conclusion that some phone-to-phone calls placed with voice over Internet protocols (VoIP) are telecom services, and to convene a joint conference to address impacts of VoIP on jurisdictional rate and separations issues and on intercarrier compensation regimes. Telecom Committee also adopted resolution commending FCC for rechartering Consumer Advisory Committee, which advises FCC on telecom consumer education, telecom access by disabled persons, consumer impacts of new telecom technologies and ways to encourage consumer participation in FCC proceedings.

NARUC Consumer Affairs Committee adopted resolution asking FCC for rulemaking to develop mandatory minimum requirements for exchange of customer account information between carriers when customer makes change. Resolution urged that rules should specify customer information that must be exchanged and timelines for exchanging account information. Consumer Affairs panel also approved resolution commending Verison, Sprint and other wireless carriers who have started process of implementing wireless number portability by making requests of other carriers for portability in major wireless markets. Resolution also encouraged FCC to allow states authority to start portability process by making portability requests where no carrier does so or drop requirement that carrier requests are necessary to trigger wireless portability implementation. Resolutions of Telecom and Consumer Affairs Committees must be approved by NARUC’s Board of Directors before becoming official policy. - - Herb Kirchhoff