BILL REQ. #:  S-1484.1 

Read first time 02/17/2003.   Referred to Committee on Technology & Communications.

     AN ACT Relating to tariffs of local exchange companies; amending RCW 80.04.530; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The purpose of this act is to provide pricing flexibility in the telecommunications industry.

Sec. 2   RCW 80.04.530 and 1995 c 110 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1)(a) ((Except as provided in (b) of this subsection,)) The following do not apply to a local exchange company that serves less than two percent of the access lines in the state of Washington: RCW 80.04.080, 80.04.300 through 80.04.330, and, except for RCW 80.08.140, chapters 80.08, 80.12, and 80.16 RCW.
     (b) ((Nothing in this subsection (1) shall affect the commission's authority over the rates, service, accounts, valuations, estimates, or determinations of costs, as well as the authority to determine whether any expenditure is fair, reasonable, and commensurate with the service, material, supplies, or equipment received.
     (c))) For purposes of this subsection, the number of access lines served by a local exchange company includes the number of access lines served in this state by any affiliate of that local exchange company.
     (2) Except as provided in subsection (3) of this section, RCW 80.04.110 through 80.04.130, 80.04.150, 80.36.110, 80.36.140, and 80.36.150 do not apply to existing, new, and revised tariff schedules, contracts and charges, and rules and regulations, except for such tariffs, or portions of tariffs, that set forth access rates charged to other telecommunications companies for origination and termination of interexchange toll traffic, filed with the commission by a local exchange company that serves less than two percent of the access lines in the state of Washington. Nor shall RCW 80.36.080 be construed to authorize the commission to investigate the rates, tolls, contracts and charges, and rules and regulations of a local exchange company for which an exemption is provided under this subsection.
     (3) Upon petition of the local exchange company or upon petition of ten percent of the then current access line subscribers, or five hundred subscribers, whichever is the lesser, of any local exchange company:
     (a) Filed with the commission not less than ten days before the proposed effective date of new or revised tariff schedules, the commission may impose the procedures of RCW 80.04.110 through 80.04.130, 80.04.150, 80.36.110, 80.36.140, and 80.36.150, or any part thereof, to any such new or revised tariff schedules of the local exchange company for which an exemption is provided pursuant to subsection (2) of this section.
     (b) After notice and hearing and a finding that such action is required by the public interest, the commission may revoke any exemption granted pursuant to subsection (2) of this section, or any part thereof, or impose reasonable conditions on the continued exercise of any such exemption.
     (4) Any local exchange company for which an exemption is provided pursuant to subsection (2) of this section shall notify its affected customers of any rate increase for local exchange services, except access service, at least forty-five days before the proposed effective date of the increase.
     (5) Any local exchange company for which an exemption is provided under this section shall not be required to file reports or data with the commission, except each such company shall file with the commission an annual report that consists of its annual balance sheet and results of operations, both presented on a Washington state jurisdictional basis. This requirement may be satisfied by the filing of information or reports and underlying studies filed with exchange carrier entities or regulatory agencies if the jurisdictionally separated results of operations for Washington state can be obtained from the information or reports. This subsection shall not be applied to exempt a local exchange company from an obligation to respond to data requests in an adjudicative proceeding in which it is a party.
     (((3))) (6) The commission may, in response to customer complaints or on its own motion and after notice and hearing, establish additional reporting requirements for a specific local exchange company.