[Title 47 CFR ]
[Code of Federal Regulations (annual edition) - October 1, 2014 Edition]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



[[Page i]]



          Title 47

Telecommunication


________________________

Parts 40 to 69

                         Revised as of October 1, 2014

          Containing a codification of documents of general
          applicability and future effect

          As of October 1, 2014
                    Published by the Office of the Federal Register
                    National Archives and Records Administration as a
                    Special Edition of the Federal Register

[[Page ii]]

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[[Page iii]]




                            Table of Contents



                                                                    Page
  Explanation.................................................       v

  Title 47:
          Chapter I--Federal Communications Commission
          (Continued)                                                3
  Finding Aids:
      Table of CFR Titles and Chapters........................     545
      Alphabetical List of Agencies Appearing in the CFR......     565
      Table of OMB Control Numbers............................     575
      List of CFR Sections Affected...........................     585

[[Page iv]]





                     ----------------------------

                     Cite this Code: CFR
                     To cite the regulations in
                       this volume use title,
                       part and section number.
                       Thus, 47 CFR 42.01 refers
                       to title 47, part 42,
                       section 01.

                     ----------------------------

[[Page v]]



                               EXPLANATION

    The Code of Federal Regulations is a codification of the general and
permanent rules published in the Federal Register by the Executive
departments and agencies of the Federal Government. The Code is divided
into 50 titles which represent broad areas subject to Federal
regulation. Each title is divided into chapters which usually bear the
name of the issuing agency. Each chapter is further subdivided into
parts covering specific regulatory areas.
    Each volume of the Code is revised at least once each calendar year
and issued on a quarterly basis approximately as follows:

Title 1 through Title 16.................................as of January 1
Title 17 through Title 27..................................as of April 1
Title 28 through Title 41...................................as of July 1
Title 42 through Title 50................................as of October 1

    The appropriate revision date is printed on the cover of each
volume.

LEGAL STATUS

    The contents of the Federal Register are required to be judicially
noticed (44 U.S.C. 1507). The Code of Federal Regulations is prima facie
evidence of the text of the original documents (44 U.S.C. 1510).

HOW TO USE THE CODE OF FEDERAL REGULATIONS

    The Code of Federal Regulations is kept up to date by the individual
issues of the Federal Register. These two publications must be used
together to determine the latest version of any given rule.
    To determine whether a Code volume has been amended since its
revision date (in this case, October 1, 2014), consult the ``List of CFR
Sections Affected (LSA),'' which is issued monthly, and the ``Cumulative
List of Parts Affected,'' which appears in the Reader Aids section of
the daily Federal Register. These two lists will identify the Federal
Register page number of the latest amendment of any given rule.

EFFECTIVE AND EXPIRATION DATES

    Each volume of the Code contains amendments published in the Federal
Register since the last revision of that volume of the Code. Source
citations for the regulations are referred to by volume number and page
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Code a note has been inserted to reflect the future effective date. In
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inserted following the text.

OMB CONTROL NUMBERS

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 (Pub. L. 96-511) requires
Federal agencies to display an OMB control number with their information
collection request.

[[Page vi]]

Many agencies have begun publishing numerous OMB control numbers as
amendments to existing regulations in the CFR. These OMB numbers are
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PAST PROVISIONS OF THE CODE

    Provisions of the Code that are no longer in force and effect as of
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Code users may find the text of provisions in effect on any given date
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``[RESERVED]'' TERMINOLOGY

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INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

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This material, like any other properly issued regulation, has the force
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    (a) The incorporation will substantially reduce the volume of
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alphabetical list of agencies publishing in the CFR are also included in
this volume.

[[Page vii]]

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    The e-CFR is a regularly updated, unofficial editorial compilation
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available at www.ecfr.gov.

    Charles A. Barth,
    Director,
    Office of the Federal Register.
    October 1, 2014.







[[Page ix]]



                               THIS TITLE

    Title 47--Telecommunication is composed of five volumes. The parts
in these volumes are arranged in the following order: Parts 0-19, parts
20-39, parts 40-69, parts 70-79, and part 80 to end. All five volumes
contain chapter I--Federal Communications Commission. The last volume,
part 80 to end, also includes chapter II--Office of Science and
Technology Policy and National Security Council, chapter III--National
Telecommunications and Information Administration, Department of
Commerce, and chapter IV--National Telecommunications and Information
Administration, Department of Commerce, and National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration, Department of Transportation. The contents of
these volumes represent all current regulations codified under this
title of the CFR as of October 1, 2014.

    Part 73 contains a numerical designation of FM broadcast channels
(Sec.  73.201) and a table of FM allotments designated for use in
communities in the United States, its territories, and possessions
(Sec.  73.202). Part 73 also contains a numerical designation of
television channels (Sec.  73.603) and a table of allotments which
contain channels designated for the listed communities in the United
States, its territories, and possessions (Sec.  73.606).

    The OMB control numbers for the Federal Communications Commission,
appear in Sec.  0.408 of chapter I. For the convenience of the user
Sec.  0.408 is reprinted in the Finding Aids section of the second
through fifth volumes.

    For this volume, Michele Bugenhagen was Chief Editor. The Code of
Federal Regulations publication program is under the direction of John
Hyrum Martinez, assisted by Jim Hemphill.

[[Page 1]]



                       TITLE 47--TELECOMMUNICATION




                   (This book contains parts 40 to 69)

  --------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                    Part

chapter i--Federal Communications Commission (Continued)....          42

[[Page 3]]



        CHAPTER I--FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (CONTINUED)




  --------------------------------------------------------------------

            SUBCHAPTER B--COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED)
Part                                                                Page
40-41

[Reserved]

42              Preservation of records of communication
                    common carriers.........................           5
43              Reports of communication common carriers and
                    certain affiliates......................           7
51              Interconnection.............................          14
52              Numbering...................................          89
53              Special provisions concerning Bell operating
                    companies...............................         115
54              Universal service...........................         120
59              Infrastructure sharing......................         243
61              Tariffs.....................................         244
63              Extension of lines, new lines, and
                    discontinuance, reduction, outage and
                    impairment of service by common
                    carriers; and grants of recognized
                    private operating agency status.........         283
64              Miscellaneous rules relating to common
                    carriers................................         315
65              Interstate rate of return prescription
                    procedures and methodologies............         455
68              Connection of terminal equipment to the
                    telephone network.......................         464
69              Access charges..............................         498

Supplementary Publications: Annual Reports of the Federal Communications
  Commission to Congress.

  Federal Communications Commission Reports of Orders and Decisions.

  Communications Act of 1934 (with amendments and index thereto), Recap.
Version, May 1989.

  Study Guide and Reference Material for Commercial Radio Operator
Examinations, May 1979 edition.

[[Page 5]]



            SUBCHAPTER B_COMMON CARRIER SERVICES (CONTINUED)



                         PARTS 40	41 [RESERVED]



PART 42_PRESERVATION OF RECORDS OF COMMUNICATION COMMON CARRIERS--Table
of Contents



                              Applicability

Sec.
42.01 Applicability.

                          General Instructions

42.1 Scope of the regulations in this part.
42.2 Designation of a supervisory official.
42.3 Protection and storage of records.
42.4 Index of records.
42.5 Preparation and preservation of reproductions of original records.
42.6 Retention of telephone toll records.
42.7 Retention of other records.

   Specific Instructions for Carriers Offering Interexchange Services

42.10 Public availability of information concerning interexchange
          services.
42.11 Retention of information concerning detariffed interexchange
          services.

    Authority: Sec. 4(i), 48 Stat. 1066, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 154(i).
Interprets or applies secs. 219 and 220, 48 Stat. 1077-78, 47 U.S.C.
219, 220.

    Source: 51 FR 32653, Sept. 15, 1986, unless otherwise noted.

                              Applicability



Sec. 42.01  Applicability.

    This part prescribes the regulations governing the preservation of
records of communication common carriers that are fully subject to the
jurisdiction of the Commission.

                          General Instructions



Sec. 42.1  Scope of the regulations in this part.

    (a) The regulations in this part apply to all accounts, records,
memoranda, documents, papers, and correspondence prepared by or on
behalf of the carrier as well as those which come into its possession in
connection with the acquisition of property, such as by purchase,
consolidation, merger, etc.
    (b) The regulations in this part shall not be construed as requiring
the preparation of accounts, records, or memoranda not required to be
prepared by other regulations, such as the Uniform System of Accounts,
except as provided hereinafter.
    (c) The regulations in this part shall not be construed as excusing
compliance with any other lawful requirement for the preservation of
records.



Sec. 42.2  Designation of a supervisory official.

    Each carrier subject to the regulations in this part shall designate
one or more officials to supervise the preservation of its records.



Sec. 42.3  Protection and storage of records.

    The carrier shall protect records subject to the regulations in this
part from damage from fires, and other hazards and, in the selection of
storage spaces, safeguard the records from unnecessary exposure to
deterioration.



Sec. 42.4  Index of records.

    Each carrier shall maintain at its operating company headquarters a
master index of records. The master index shall identify the records
retained, the related retention period, and the locations where the
records are maintained. The master index shall be subject to review by
Commission staff and the Commission shall reserve the right to add
records, or lengthen retention periods upon finding that retention
periods may be insufficient for its regulatory purposes. When any
records are lost or destroyed before expiration of the retention period
set forth in the master index, a certified statement shall be added to
the master index, as soon as practicable, listing, as far as may be
determined, the records lost or destroyed and describing the
circumstances of the premature loss or destruction. At each office of
the carrier where records are kept or stored, the carrier shall arrange,
file, and currently index the records on site so that

[[Page 6]]

they may be readily identified and made available to representatives of
the Commission.



Sec. 42.5  Preparation and preservation of reproductions of original records.

    (a) Each carrier may use a retention medium of its choice to
preserve records in lieu of original records, provided that they observe
the requirements of paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.
    (b) A paper or microfilm record need not be created to satisfy the
requirements of this part if the record is initially prepared in
machine-readable medium such as punched cards, magnetic tapes, and
disks. Each record kept in a machine-readable medium shall be
accompanied by a statement clearly indicating the type of data included
in the record and certifying that the information contained in it has
been accurately duplicated. This statement shall be executed by a person
duplicating the records. The records shall be indexed and retained in
such a manner that they are easily accessible, and the carrier shall
have the facilities available to locate, identify and reproduce the
records in readable form without loss of clarity.
    (c) Records may be retained on microfilm provided they meet the
requirements of the Federal Business Records Act (28 U.S.C. 1732).



Sec. 42.6  Retention of telephone toll records.

    Each carrier that offers or bills toll telephone service shall
retain for a period of 18 months such records as are necessary to
provide the following billing information about telephone toll calls:
the name, address, and telephone number of the caller, telephone number
called, date, time and length of the call. Each carrier shall retain
this information for toll calls that it bills whether it is billing its
own toll service customers for toll calls or billing customers for
another carrier.

[51 FR 39536, Oct. 29, 1986]



Sec. 42.7  Retention of other records.

    Except as specified in Sec. 42.6, each carrier shall retain records
identified in its master index of records for the period established
therein. Records relevant to complaint proceedings not already contained
in the index of records should be added to the index as soon as a
complaint is filed and retained until final disposition of the
complaint. Records a carrier is directed to retain as the result of a
proceeding or inquiry by the Commission to the extent not already
contained in the index will also be added to the index and retained
until final disposition of the proceeding or inquiry.

   Specific Instructions for Carriers Offering Interexchange Services



Sec. 42.10  Public availability of information concerning interexchange
services.

    (a) A nondominant interexchange carrier (IXC) shall make available
to any member of the public, in at least one location, during regular
business hours, information concerning its current rates, terms and
conditions for all of its international and interstate, domestic,
interexchange services. Such information shall be made available in an
easy to understand format and in a timely manner. Following an inquiry
or complaint from the public concerning rates, terms and conditions for
such services, a carrier shall specify that such information is
available and the manner in which the public may obtain the information.
    (b) In addition, a nondominant IXC that maintains an Internet
website shall make such rate and service information specified in
paragraph (a) of this section available on-line at its Internet website
in a timely and easily accessible manner, and shall update this
information regularly.

[64 FR 19725, Apr. 22, 1999, as amended at 66 FR 16879, Mar. 28, 2001]



Sec. 42.11  Retention of information concerning detariffed interexchange
services.

    (a) A nondominant IXC shall maintain, for submission to the
Commission and to state regulatory commissions upon request, price and
service information regarding all of the carrier's international and
interstate, domestic, interexchange service offerings. A commercial
mobile radio service (CMRS) provider shall maintain such price and

[[Page 7]]

service information only about its international common carrier service
offerings and only for those routes on which the CMRS provider is
classified as dominant under Sec. 63.10 of this Chapter due to an
affiliation with a foreign carrier that collects settlement payments
from U.S. carriers for terminating U.S. international switched traffic
at the foreign end of the route. Such a CMRS provider is not required to
maintain its price and service information, however, on any such
affiliated route if it provides service on that route solely through the
resale of an unaffiliated facilities-based provider's international
switched services. The price and service information maintained for
purposes of this paragraph shall include documents supporting the rates,
terms, and conditions of the carrier's international and interstate,
domestic, interexchange offerings. The information maintained pursuant
to this section shall be maintained in a manner that allows the carrier
to produce such records within ten business days. For purposes of this
paragraph, affiliated and foreign carrier are defined in Sec. 63.09 of
this chapter.
    (b) The price and service information maintained pursuant to this
section shall be retained for a period of at least two years and six
months following the date the carrier ceases to provide services
pursuant to such rates, terms and conditions.

[61 FR 59366, Nov. 22, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 59604, Nov. 4, 1997; 64
FR 19725, Apr. 22, 1999; 66 FR 16879, Mar. 28, 2001]



PART 43_REPORTS OF COMMUNICATION COMMON CARRIERS AND CERTAIN
AFFILIATES--Table of Contents



Sec.
43.01 Applicability.
43.11 Reports of local exchange competition data.
43.21 Transactions with affiliates.
43.41 [Reserved]
43.43 Reports of proposed changes in depreciation rates.
43.51 Contracts and concessions.
43.61 Reports of international telecommunications traffic.
43.62 Reporting requirements for holders of international Section 214
          authorizations and providers of international services.
43.72 [Reserved]
43.82 International circuit status reports.

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154; Telecommunications Act of 1996; Pub. L.
104-104, sec. 402(b)(2)(B), (c), 110 Stat. 56 (1996) as amended unless
otherwise noted. 47 U.S.C. 211, 219, 220, as amended; Cable Landing
License Act of 1921, 47 U.S.C. 35-39.

    Source: 28 FR 13214, Dec. 5, 1963, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 43.01  Applicability.

    (a) The sections in this part include requirements which have been
promulgated under authority of sections 211 and 219 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, with respect to the filing by
communication common carriers and certain of their affiliates of
periodic reports and certain other data, but do not include certain
requirements relating to the filing of information with respect to
specific services, accounting systems and other matters incorporated in
other parts of this chapter.
    (b) Except as provided in paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section,
carriers becoming subject to the provisions of the several sections of
this part for the first time, shall, within thirty (30) days of becoming
subject, file the required data as set forth in the various sections of
this part.
    (c) Carriers becoming subject to the provisions of Sec. Sec. 43.21
and 43.43 for the first time, because their annual operating revenues
equal or exceed the indexed revenue threshold for a given year, shall
begin collecting data pursuant to such provisions in the calendar year
following the publication of that indexed revenue threshold in the
Federal Register. With respect to such initial filing of reports by any
carrier, pursuant to the provisions of Sec. 43.21 (d), (e), (f), (g),
(h), (i), (j), and (k), the carrier is to begin filing data for the
calendar year following the publication of that indexed revenue
threshold in the Federal Register by April 1 of the second calendar year
following publication of that indexed revenue threshold in the Federal
Register.
    (d) Common carriers subject to the provisions of Sec. 43.11 shall
file data semi-annually. Reports shall be filed each year on or before
March 1st (reporting data about their deployment of local exchange
services as of December 31 of

[[Page 8]]

the prior year) and September 1st (reporting data about their deployment
of local exchange services as of June 31 of the current year). Common
carriers becoming subject to the provisions of Sec. 43.11 for the first
time within a calendar year shall file data for the reporting period in
which they become eligible and semi-annually thereafter. Common carriers
subject to the provisions of Sec. 43.11 shall make an initial filing of
the FCC Form 477 on May 15, 2000 (reporting data about their deployment
of local exchange services as of December 31, 1999).

[28 FR 13214, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 62 FR 39778, July 24, 1997; 65
FR 19685, Apr. 12, 2000; 78 FR 49149, Aug. 13, 2013]



Sec. 43.11  Reports of local exchange competition data.

    (a) All common carriers and their affiliates (as defined in 47
U.S.C. 153(1)) providing telephone exchange or exchange access service
(as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153(16) and (47)), commercial mobile radio
service (CMRS) providers offering mobile telephony (as defined in Sec.
20.15(b)(1) of this chapter), and Interconnected Voice over IP service
providers (as defined in Sec. 9.3 of this chapter), shall file with the
Commission a completed FCC Form 477, in accordance with the Commission's
rules and the instructions to the FCC Form 477.
    (b) Respondents identified in paragraph (a) of this section shall
include in each report a certification signed by an appropriate official
of the respondent (as specified in the instructions to FCC Form 477) and
shall report the title of their certifying official.
    (c) Disclosure of data contained in FCC Form 477 will be addressed
as follows:
    (1) Emergency operations contact information contained in FCC Form
477 are information that should not be routinely available for public
inspection pursuant to Sec. 0.457 of this chapter.
    (2) Respondents may make requests for Commission non-disclosure of
the following data contained in FCC Form 477 under Sec. 0.459 of this
chapter by so indicating on Form 477 at the time that the subject data
are submitted:
    (i) Provider-specific subscription data and
    (ii) Provider-specific mobile deployment data that includes specific
spectrum and speed parameters that may be used by providers for internal
network planning purposes.
    (3) Respondents seeking confidential treatment of any other data
contained in FCC Form 477 must submit a request that the data be treated
as confidential with the submission of their Form 477 filing, along with
their reasons for withholding the information from the public, pursuant
to Sec. 0.459 of this chapter.
    (4) The Commission shall make all decisions regarding non-disclosure
of provider-specific information, except that the Chief of the Wireline
Competition Bureau may release provider-specific information to:
    (i) A state commission provided that the state commission has
protections in place that would preclude disclosure of any confidential
information, and
    (ii) ``Eligible entities,'' as those entities are defined in the
Broadband Data Improvement Act, in an aggregated format and pursuant to
confidentiality conditions prescribed by the Commission, and
    (iii) Others, to the extent that access to such data can be
accomplished in a manner that addresses concerns about the competitive
sensitivity of the data and precludes public disclosure of any
confidential information.
    (d) Respondents identified in paragraph (b) of this section shall
file a revised version of FCC Form 477 if and when they discover a
significant error in their filed FCC Form 477. For counts, a difference
amounting to 5 percent of the filed number is considered significant.
For percentages, a difference of 5 percentage points is considered
significant.
    (e) Failure to file FCC Form 477 in accordance with the Commission's
rules and the instructions to Form 477 may lead to enforcement action
pursuant to the Act and any other applicable law.

[65 FR 19685, Apr. 12, 2000, as amended at 69 FR 77938, Dec. 29, 2004;
73 FR 37881, July 2, 2008; 78 FR 49149, Aug. 13, 2013]



Sec. 43.21  Transactions with affiliates.

    (a) Communication common carriers having annual operating revenues
in

[[Page 9]]

excess of the indexed revenue threshold, as defined in Sec. 32.9000,
and certain companies (as indicated in paragraph (b) of this section)
directly or indirectly controlling such carriers shall file with the
Commission annual reports or an annual letter as provided in this
section. Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, each
annual report required by this section shall be filed no later than
April 1 of each year, covering the preceding calendar year. It shall be
filed on the appropriate report form prescribed by the Commission (see
Sec. 1.785 of this chapter) and shall contain full and specific answers
to all questions propounded and information requested in the currently
effective report forms. The number of copies to be filed shall be
specified in the applicable report form. At least one copy of this
report shall be signed on the signature page by the responsible
accounting officer. A copy of each annual report shall be as retained in
the principal office of the respondent and shall be filed in such manner
to be readily available for reference and inspection.
    (b) Each company, not itself a communication common carrier, that
directly or indirectly controls any communication common carrier that
has annual operating revenues equal to or above the indexed revenue
threshold, as defined in Sec. 32.9000, shall file annually with the
Commission, not later than the date prescribed by the Securities and
Exchange Commission for its purposes, two complete copies of any annual
report Forms 10-K (or any superseding form) filed with that Commission.
    (c) Each miscellaneous common carrier (as defined by Sec. 21.2 of
this chapter) with operating revenues for a calendar year in excess of
the indexed revenue threshold, as defined in Sec. 32.9000, shall file
with the Common Carrier Bureau Chief a letter showing its operating
revenues for that year and the value of its total communications plant
at the end of that year. This letter must be filed no later than April 1
of the following year. Those miscellaneous common carriers with annual
operating revenues that equal or surpass the indexed revenue threshold
for the first time may file the letter up to one month after publication
of the adjusted revenue threshold in the Federal Register, but in no
event shall such carriers be required to file the letter prior to April
1.
    (d) Each communications common carrier required by order to file a
manual allocating its costs between regulated and nonregulated
operations shall file, on or before April 1:
    (1) A three-year forecast of regulated and nonregulated use of
network plant for the current calendar year and the two calendar years
following, and investment pool projections and allocations for the
current calendar year; and
    (2) A report of the actual use of network plant investment for the
prior calendar year.
    (e) Each incumbent local exchange carrier, except mid-sized
incumbent local exchange carriers, as defined by Sec. 32.9000 with
annual operating revenues equal to or above the indexed revenue
threshold shall file, no later than April 1 of each year:
    (1) Its revenues, expenses and investment for all accounts
established in part 32 of this chapter, on an operating company basis,
    (2) The same part 32 of this chapter, on a study area basis, with
data for regulated and nonregulated operations for those accounts which
are related to the carrier's revenue requirement, and
    (3) The separations categories on a study area basis, with each
category further divided into access elements and a nonaccess interstate
category.
    (f) Each incumbent local exchange carrier with operating revenues
for the preceding year that equal or exceed the indexed revenue
threshold shall file, no later than April 1 of each year, a report
showing for the previous calendar year its revenues, expenses, taxes,
plant in service, other investment and depreciation reserves, and other
such data as are required by the Commission, on computer media
prescribed by the Commission. The total operating results shall be
allocated between regulated and nonregulated operations, and the
regulated data shall be further divided into the following categories:
State and interstate, and the interstate will be further divided into
common line, traffic sensitive access, special access, and nonaccess.

[[Page 10]]

    (g) Each incumbent local exchange carrier for whom price cap
regulation is mandatory and every incumbent local exchange carrier that
elects to be covered by the price cap rules shall file, by April 1 of
each year, a report designed to capture trends in service quality under
price cap regulation. The report shall contain data relative to network
measures of service quality, as defined by the Wireline Competition
Bureau, from the previous calendar year on a study area basis.
    (h) Each incumbent local exchange carrier for whom price cap
regulation is mandatory shall file, by April 1 of each year, a report
designed to capture trends in service quality under price cap
regulation. The report shall contain data relative to customer measures
of service quality, as defined by the Wireline Competition Bureau, from
the previous calendar year a study area basis.
    (i) Each incumbent local exchange carrier for whom price regulation
is mandatory shall file, by April 1 of each year, a report containing
data from the previous calendar year on a study area basis that are
designed to capture trends in telephone industry infrastructure
development under price cap regulation.
    (j) Each incumbent local exchange carrier with annual operating
revenues that equal or exceed the indexed revenue threshold shall file,
no later than April 1 of each year, a report containing data from the
previous calendar year on an operating company basis. Such report shall
combine statistical data designed to monitor network growth, usage, and
reliability.
    (k) Each designated interstate carrier with operating revenues for
the preceding year that equal or exceed the indexed revenue threshold
shall file, no later than April 1 of each year, a report showing for the
previous calendar year its revenues, expenses, taxes, plant in service,
other investments and depreciation reserves, and such other data as are
required by the Commission, on computer media prescribed by the
Commission. The total operating results shall be allocated between
regulated and nonregulated operations, and the regulated data shall be
further divided into the following categories: State and interstate, and
the interstate will be further divided into common line, traffic
sensitive access, special access, and nonaccess.

[28 FR 13214, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 49 FR 10122, Mar. 19, 1984; 50
FR 41153, Oct. 9, 1985; 51 FR 37024, Oct. 17, 1986; 52 FR 35918, Sept.
24, 1987; 58 FR 36143, July 6, 1993; 61 FR 50245, Sept. 25, 1996; 62 FR
39778, July 24, 1997; 67 FR 5700, Feb. 6, 2002; 67 FR 13225, Mar. 21,
2002]



Sec. 43.41  [Reserved]



Sec. 43.43  Reports of proposed changes in depreciation rates.

    (a) Each communication common carrier with annual operating expenses
that equal or exceed the indexed revenue threshold, as defined in Sec.
32.9000, and that has been found by this Commission to be a dominant
carrier with respect to any communications service shall, before making
any changes in the depreciation rates applicable to its operated plant,
file with the Commission a report furnishing the data described in the
subsequent paragraphs of this section, and also comply with the other
requirements thereof.
    (b) Each such report shall contain the following:
    (1) A schedule showing for each class and subclass of plant (whether
or not the depreciation rate is proposed to be changed) an appropriate
designation therefor, the depreciation rate currently in effect, the
proposed rate, and the service-life and net-salvage estimates underlying
both the current and proposed depreciation rates;
    (2) An additional schedule showing for each class and subclass, as
well as the totals for all depreciable plant, (i) the book cost of plant
at the most recent date available, (ii) the estimated amount of
depreciation accruals determined by applying the currently effective
rate to the amount of such book cost, (iii) the estimated amount of
depreciation accruals determined by applying the rate proposed to be
used to the amount of such book cost, and (iv) the difference between
the amounts determined in paragraphs (b)(2) (ii) and (iii) of this
section;
    (3) A statement giving the reasons for the proposed change in each
rate;

[[Page 11]]

    (4) A statement describing the method or methods employed in the
development of the service-life and salvage estimates underlying each
proposed change in a depreciation rate; and
    (5) The date as of which the revised rates are proposed to be made
effective in the accounts.
    (c) Except as specified in paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(3) of this
section, when the change in the depreciation rate proposed for any class
or subclass of plant (other than one occasioned solely by a shift in the
relative investment in the several subclasses of the class of plant)
amounts to twenty percent (20%) or more of the rate currently applied
thereto, or when the proposed change will produce an increase or
decrease of one percent (1%) or more of the aggregate depreciation
charges for all depreciable plant (based on the amounts determined in
compliance with paragraph (b)(2) of this section) the carrier shall
supplement the data required by paragraph (b) of this section) with
copies of the underlying studies, including calculations and charts,
developed by the carrier to support service-life and net-salvage
estimates. If a carrier must submit data of a repetitive nature to
comply with this requirement, the carrier need only submit a fully
illustrative portion thereof.
    (1) A Local Exchange Carrier regulated under price caps, pursuant to
Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter, is not required to
submit the supplemental information described in paragraph (c)
introductory text of this section for a specific account if: The
carrier's currently prescribed depreciation rate for the specific
accounts derived from basic factors that fall within the basic factor
ranges established for that same account; and the carrier's proposed
depreciation rate for the specific account would also be derived from
basic factors that fall within the basic factor ranges for the same
account.
    (2) Local Exchange Carriers that are regulated under price caps,
pursuant to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter, and have
selected basic factors that fall within the basic factor ranges for all
accounts are exempt from paragraphs (b)(3), (b)(4), and (c) introductory
text of this section. They shall instead comply with paragraphs (b)(1),
(b)(2) and (b)(5) of this section and provide a book and theoretical
reserve summary and a summary of basic factors underlying proposed rates
by account.
    (3) Interexchange carriers regulated under price caps, pursuant to
Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter, are exempted from
submitting the supplemental information as described in paragraph (c)
introductory text of this section. They shall instead submit: Generation
data, a summary of basic factors underlying proposed depreciation rates
by account and a short narrative supporting those basic factors,
including company plans of forecasted retirements and additions, recent
annual retirements, salvage and cost of removal.
    (d) Each report shall be filed in duplicate and the original shall
be signed by the responsible official to whom correspondence related
thereto should be addressed.
    (e) Unless otherwise directed or approved by the Commission, the
following shall be observed: Proposed changes in depreciation rates
shall be filed at least ninety (90) days prior to the last day of the
month with respect to which the revised rates are first to be applied in
the accounts (e.g., if the new rates are to be first applied in the
depreciation accounts for September, they must be filed on or before
July 1). Such rates may be made retroactive to a date not prior to the
beginning of the year in which the filing is made: Provided however,
that in no event shall a carrier for which the Commission has prescribed
depreciation rates make any changes in such rates unless the changes are
prescribed by the Commission. Carriers who select basic factors that
fall within the basic factor ranges for all accounts are exempt from
depreciation rate prescription by the Commission.
    (f) Any changes in depreciation rates that are made under the
provisions of paragraph (e) of this section shall not be construed as
having been approved

[[Page 12]]

by the Commission unless the carrier has been specifically so informed.

[28 FR 13214, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 30 FR 3223, Mar. 9, 1965; 53
FR 49987, Dec. 13, 1988; 58 FR 58790, Nov. 4, 1993; 61 FR 50246, Sept.
25, 1996; 62 FR 39779, July 24, 1997; 65 FR 18931, Apr. 10, 2000]



Sec. 43.51  Contracts and concessions.

    (a)(1) Any communication common carrier described in paragraph (b)
of this section must file with the Commission, within thirty (30) days
of execution, a copy of each contract, agreement, concession, license,
authorization, operating agreement or other arrangement to which it is a
party and amendments thereto (collectively hereinafter referred to as
``agreement'' for purposes of this rule) with respect to the following:
    (i) The exchange of services; and,
    (ii) The interchange or routing of traffic and matters concerning
rates, accounting rates, division of tolls, or the basis of settlement
of traffic balances, except as provided in paragraph (c) of this
section.
    (2) If the contract, agreement, concession, license, authorization,
operating agreement or other arrangement and amendments thereto is made
other than in writing, a certified statement covering all details
thereof must be filed by at least one of the parties to the agreement.
Each other party to the agreement which is also subject to these
provisions may, in lieu of also filing a copy of the agreement, file a
certified statement referencing the filed document. The Commission may,
at any time and upon reasonable request, require any communication
common carrier not subject to the provisions of this section to submit
the documents referenced in this section.
    (b) The following communication common carriers must comply with the
requirements of paragraph (a) of this section:
    (1) A carrier that is engaged in domestic communications and has not
been classified as non-dominant pursuant to Sec. 61.3 of this Chapter;
or
    (2) A carrier that is engaged in foreign communications and that has
been classified as dominant for any service on any of the U.S.-
international routes included in the contract, except for a carrier
classified as dominant on a particular route due only to a foreign
carrier affiliation under Sec. 63.10 of this chapter.
    (c) With respect to contracts coming within the scope of paragraph
(a)(1)(ii) of this section between subject telephone carriers and
connecting carriers, except those contracts related to communications
with foreign or overseas points, such documents shall not be filed with
the Commission; but each subject telephone carrier shall maintain a copy
of such contracts to which it is a party in appropriate files at a
central location upon its premises, copies of which shall be readily
accessible to Commission staff and members of the public upon reasonable
request therefor; and upon request by the Commission, a subject
telephone carrier shall promptly forward individual contracts to the
Commission.
    (d) Any U.S. carrier, other than a provider of commercial mobile
radio services, that is engaged in foreign communications, and enters
into an agreement with a foreign carrier, is subject to the Commission's
authority to require the U.S. carrier providing service on any U.S.-
international routes to file, on an as-needed basis, a copy of each
agreement to which it is a party.

    Note 1 to Sec. 43.51: For purposes of this section, affiliated and
foreign carrier are defined in Sec. 63.09 of this chapter.
    Note 2 to Sec. 43.51: To the extent that a foreign government
provides telecommunications services directly through a governmental
organization, body or agency, it shall be treated as a foreign carrier
for the purposes of this section.

[66 FR 16879, Mar. 28, 2001, as amended at 69 FR 23153, Apr. 28, 2004;
78 FR 11112, Feb. 15, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 11112, Feb. 15, 2013, Sec. 43.51 was
amended by revising paragraph (d). This paragraph (d) contains
information collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not
become effective until approval has been given by the Office of
Management and Budget.



Sec. 43.61  Reports of international telecommunications traffic.

    (a) Each common carrier engaged in providing international
telecommunications service between the United

[[Page 13]]

States (as defined in the Communications Act, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153)
and any country or point outside that area shall file a report with the
Commission not later than July 31 of each year for service actually
provided in the preceding calendar year.
    (1) The information contained in the reports shall include actual
traffic and revenue data for each and every service provided by a common
carrier, divided among service billed in the United States, service
billed outside the United States, and service transiting the United
States.
    (2) Each common carrier shall submit a revised report by October 31
identifying and correcting any inaccuracies included in the annual
report exceeding five percent of the reported figure.
    (3) The information required under this section shall be furnished
in conformance with the instructions and reporting requirements prepared
under the direction of the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, prepared
and published as a manual, in consultation and coordination with the
Chief, International Bureau.
    (b) [Reserved]

[57 FR 8580, Mar. 11, 1992, as amended at 60 FR 5333, Jan. 27, 1995; 62
FR 5541, Feb. 6, 1997; 62 FR 45761, Aug. 29, 1997; 64 FR 19061, Apr. 19,
1999; 66 FR 67112, Dec. 28, 2001; 67 FR 13225, Mar. 21, 2002; 67 FR
45390, July 9, 2002; 76 FR 42573, July 19, 2011]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013, Sec. 43.61 was
removed. This section contains information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 43.62  Reporting requirements for holders of international Section
214 authorizations and providers of international services.

    (a) Circuit Capacity Reports. Not later than March 31 of each year:
    (1) Satellite and Terrestrial Circuits. Each facilities-based common
carrier shall file a report showing its active common carrier circuits
between the United States and any foreign point as of December 31 of the
preceding calendar year in any terrestrial or satellite facility for the
provision of service to an end user or resale carrier, which includes
active circuits used by themselves or their affiliates. Each non-common
carrier satellite licensee shall file a report showing its active
circuits between the United States and any foreign point as of December
31 of the preceding calendar sold or leased to any customer, including
themselves or their affiliates, other than a carrier authorized by the
Commission to provide U.S. international common carrier services.
    (2) International Submarine Cable Capacity--(i) The licensee(s) of a
submarine cable between the United States and any foreign point shall
file a report showing the capacity of the submarine cable as of December
31 of the preceding calendar year. The licensee(s) shall also file a
report showing the planned capacity of the submarine cable (the intended
capacity of the submarine cable two years from December 31 of the
preceding calendar year). Only one cable landing licensee shall file the
capacity data for each submarine cable. For cables with more than one
licensee, the licensees shall determine which licensee will file the
reports.
    (ii) Each cable landing licensee and common carrier shall file a
report showing its capacity on submarine cables between the United
States and any foreign point as of December 31 of the preceding calendar
year.
    (b) Traffic and revenue reports. (1) Not later than July 31 of each
year, each person or entity that holds an authorization pursuant to
section 214 to provide international telecommunications service shall
report whether it provided international telecommunications services
during the preceding calendar year.
    (2) Not later than July 31 of each year, each common carrier engaged
in providing international telecommunications service, and each person
or entity engaged in providing Voice over Internet Protocol service
connected to the public switched telephone network, between the United
States and any foreign point shall file a report with the Commission
showing revenues, payouts, and traffic for such international
telecommunications service and Voice over Internet Protocol service
connected to the public switched telephone network provided during the
preceding calendar year.

[[Page 14]]

    (3) Entities filing such reports shall submit a revised report by
October 31 identifying and correcting any inaccuracies included in the
annual report exceeding one percent of the reported figure.

    Note to paragraphs (a) and (b):
    United States is defined in section 3 of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153.

    (c)(1) A Registration Form, containing information about the filer,
such as address, phone number, email address, etc., shall be filed with
each report filed pursuant to paragraphs (a) and (b).
    (2) The Registration Form shall include a certification enabling the
filer to check a box to indicate that the filer requests that its
circuit capacity data or traffic and revenue data be treated as
confidential. If a filer checks that box, the Commission shall treat the
data contained in the accompanying report as confidential. Upon receipt
of a request for inspection of such information, the Commission shall
notify the filer; at that point, the filer must justify continued
confidentiality of the information consistent with section 0.459(b) of
the Commission's rules.
    (d) Filing Manual. Authority is delegated to the Chief,
International Bureau to prepare instructions and reporting requirements
for the filing of these reports prepared and published as a Filing
Manual. The information required under this section shall be furnished
in conformance with the instructions and reporting requirements in the
Filing Manual.

    Note to paragraph (d):
    The instructions and reporting requirements prepared by the Chief,
International Bureau, shall be consistent with the terms of Reporting
Requirements for U.S. Providers of International Telecommunications
Services; Amendment of Part 43 of the Commission's Rules, IB Docket No.
04-112, Second Report and Order, FCC 13-6 (rel. January 15, 2013).

[78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013, Sec. 43.62 was
added. This section contains information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 43.72  [Reserved]



Sec. 43.82  International circuit status reports.

    (a) Each facilities-based common carrier engaged in providing
international telecommunications service between the United States (as
defined in the Communications Act, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153) and any
country or point outside that area shall file a circuit-status report
with the Chief, International Bureau, not later than March 31 each year
showing the status of its circuits used to provide international
services as of December 31 of the preceding calendar year.
    (b) The information contained in the reports shall include the total
number of activated and the total number of idle circuits by the
categories of submarine cable, satellite and terrestrial facilities to
geographic points outside the United States for the services designated
by the Chief, International Bureau.
    (c) The information required under this section shall be furnished
in conformance with instructions and reporting requirements prepared
under the direction of the Chief, International Bureau, prepared and
published as a manual.
    (d) Authority is hereby delegated to the Chief, International Bureau
to prepare instructions and reporting requirements for the filing of the
annual international circuit status reports.

[60 FR 51368, Oct. 2, 1995, as amended at 76 FR 42573, July 19, 2011]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013, Sec. 43.82 was
removed. This section contains information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



PART 51_INTERCONNECTION--Table of Contents



                      Subpart A_General Information

Sec.
51.1 Basis and purpose.
51.3 Applicability to negotiated agreements.
51.5 Terms and definitions.

                  Subpart B_Telecommunications Carriers

51.100 General duty.

[[Page 15]]

          Subpart C_Obligations of All Local Exchange Carriers

51.201 Resale.
51.203 Number portability.
51.205 Dialing parity: General.
51.207 Local dialing parity.
51.209 Toll dialing parity.
51.213 Toll dialing parity implementation plans.
51.215 Dialing parity: Cost recovery.
51.217 Nondiscriminatory access: Telephone numbers, operator services,
          directory assistance services, and directory listings.
51.219 Access to rights of way.
51.221 Reciprocal compensation.
51.223 Application of additional requirements.
51.230 Presumption of acceptability for deployment of an advanced
          services loop technology.
51.231 Provision of information on advanced services deployment.
51.232 Binder group management.
51.233 Significant degradation of services caused by deployment of
          advanced services.

  Subpart D_Additional Obligations of Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers

51.301 Duty to negotiate.
51.303 Preexisting agreements.
51.305 Interconnection.
51.307 Duty to provide access on an unbundled basis to network elements.
51.309 Use of unbundled network elements.
51.311 Nondiscriminatory access to unbundled network elements.
51.313 Just, reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms and conditions for
          the provision of unbundled network elements.
51.315 Combination of unbundled network elements.
51.316 Conversion of unbundled network elements and services.
51.317 Standards for requiring the unbundling of network elements.
51.318 Eligibility criteria for access to certain unbundled network
          elements.
51.319 Specific unbundling requirements.
51.320 Assumption of responsibility by the Commission.
51.321 Methods of obtaining interconnection and access to unbundled
          elements under section 251 of the Act.
51.323 Standards for physical collocation and virtual collocation.
51.325 Notice of network changes: Public notice requirement.
51.327 Notice of network changes: Content of notice.
51.329 Notice of network changes: Methods for providing notice.
51.331 Notice of network changes: Timing of notice.
51.333 Notice of network changes: Short term notice, objections thereto
          and objections to retirement of copper loops or copper
          subloops.
51.335 Notice of network changes: Confidential or proprietary
          information.

Subpart E_Exemptions, Suspensions, and Modifications of Requirements of
                         Section 251 of the Act

51.401 State authority.
51.403 Carriers eligible for suspension or modification under section
          251(f)(2) of the Act.
51.405 Burden of proof.

                      Subpart F_Pricing of Elements

51.501 Scope.
51.503 General pricing standard.
51.505 Forward-looking economic cost.
51.507 General rate structure standard.
51.509 Rate structure standards for specific elements.
51.511 Forward-looking economic cost per unit.
51.513 Proxies for forward-looking economic cost.
51.515 Application of access charges.

                            Subpart G_Resale

51.601 Scope of resale rules.
51.603 Resale obligation of all local exchange carriers.
51.605 Additional obligations of incumbent local exchange carriers.
51.607 Wholesale pricing standard.
51.609 Determination of avoided retail costs.
51.611 Interim wholesale rates.
51.613 Restrictions on resale.
51.615 Withdrawal of services.
51.617 Assessment of end user common line charge on resellers.

   Subpart H_Reciprocal Compensation for Transport and Termination of
                       Telecommunications Traffic

51.700 Purpose of this subpart.
51.701 Scope of transport and termination pricing rules.
51.703 Non-Access reciprocal compensation obligation of LECs.
51.705 LECs' rates for transport and termination.
51.707 [Reserved]
51.709 Rate structure for transport and termination.
51.711 Symmetrical reciprocal compensation.
51.713 Bill-and-keep arrangements.
51.715 Interim transport and termination pricing.
51.717 [Reserved]

[[Page 16]]

    Subpart I_Procedures for Implementation of Section 252 of the Act

51.801 Commission action upon a state commission's failure to act to
          carry out its responsibility under section 252 of the Act.
51.803 Procedures for Commission notification of a state commission's
          failure to act.
51.805 The Commission's authority over proceedings and matters.
51.807 Arbitration and mediation of agreements by the Commission
          pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act.
51.809 Availability of provisions of agreements to other
          telecommunications carriers under section 252(i) of the Act.

              Subpart J_Transitional Access Service Pricing

51.901 Purpose and scope of transitional access service pricing rules.
51.903 Definitions.
51.905 Implementation.
51.907 Transition of price cap carrier access charges.
51.909 Transition of rate-of-return carrier access charges.
51.911 Access reciprocal compensation rates for competitive LECs.
51.913 Transition for VoIP-PSTN traffic.
51.915 Recovery mechanism for price cap carriers.
51.917 Revenue recovery for Rate of Return carriers.
51.919 Reporting and monitoring.

    Authority: Sections 1-5, 7, 201-05, 207-09, 218, 220, 225-27, 251-
54, 256, 271, 303(r), 332, 706 of the Telecommunication Act of 1996, 48
Stat. 1070, as amended, 1077; 47 U.S.C. 151-55, 157, 201-05, 207-09,
218, 220, 225-27, 251-54, 256, 271, 303(r), 332, 1302, 47 U.S.C. 157
note, unless otherwise noted.

    Source: 61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, unless otherwise noted.



                      Subpart A_General Information



Sec. 51.1  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. These rules are issued pursuant to the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of these rules is to implement sections 251
and 252 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 251 and
252.



Sec. 51.3  Applicability to negotiated agreements.

    To the extent provided in section 252(e)(2)(A) of the Act, a state
commission shall have authority to approve an interconnection agreement
adopted by negotiation even if the terms of the agreement do not comply
with the requirements of this part.



Sec. 51.5  Terms and definitions.

    Terms used in this part have the following meanings:
    Act. The Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    Advanced intelligent network. Advanced intelligent network is a
telecommunications network architecture in which call processing, call
routing, and network management are provided by means of centralized
databases located at points in an incumbent local exchange carrier's
network.
    Advanced services. The term ``advanced services'' is defined as high
speed, switched, broadband, wireline telecommunications capability that
enables users to originate and receive high-quality voice, data,
graphics or video telecommunications using any technology.
    Arbitration, final offer. Final offer arbitration is a procedure
under which each party submits a final offer concerning the issues
subject to arbitration, and the arbitrator selects, without
modification, one of the final offers by the parties to the arbitration
or portions of both such offers. ``Entire package final offer
arbitration,'' is a procedure under which the arbitrator must select,
without modification, the entire proposal submitted by one of the
parties to the arbitration. ``Issue-by-issue final offer arbitration,''
is a procedure under which the arbitrator must select, without
modification, on an issue-by-issue basis, one of the proposals submitted
by the parties to the arbitration.
    Billing. Billing involves the provision of appropriate usage data by
one telecommunications carrier to another to facilitate customer billing
with attendant acknowledgements and status reports. It also involves the
exchange of information between telecommunications carriers to process
claims and adjustments.
    Binder or binder group. Copper pairs bundled together, generally in
groups of 25, 50 or 100.
    Business line. A business line is an incumbent LEC-owned switched
access

[[Page 17]]

line used to serve a business customer, whether by the incumbent LEC
itself or by a competitive LEC that leases the line from the incumbent
LEC. The number of business lines in a wire center shall equal the sum
of all incumbent LEC business switched access lines, plus the sum of all
UNE loops connected to that wire center, including UNE loops provisioned
in combination with other unbundled elements. Among these requirements,
business line tallies:
    (1) Shall include only those access lines connecting end-user
customers with incumbent LEC end-offices for switched services,
    (2) Shall not include non-switched special access lines,
    (3) Shall account for ISDN and other digital access lines by
counting each 64 kbps-equivalent as one line. For example, a DS1 line
corresponds to 24 64 kbps-equivalents, and therefore to 24 ``business
lines.''
    Commercial Mobile Radio Service (CMRS). CMRS has the same meaning as
that term is defined in Sec. 20.3 of this chapter.
    Commingling. Commingling means the connecting, attaching, or
otherwise linking of an unbundled network element, or a combination of
unbundled network elements, to one or more facilities or services that a
requesting telecommunications carrier has obtained at wholesale from an
incumbent LEC, or the combining of an unbundled network element, or a
combination of unbundled network elements, with one or more such
facilities or services. Commingle means the act of commingling.
    Commission. Commission refers to the Federal Communications
Commission.
    Day. Day means calendar day.
    Dialing parity. The term dialing parity means that a person that is
not an affiliate of a local exchange carrier is able to provide
telecommunications services in such a manner that customers have the
ability to route automatically, without the use of any access code,
their telecommunications to the telecommunications service provider of
the customer's designation from among 2 or more telecommunications
service providers (including such local exchange carrier).
    Directory assistance service. Directory assistance service includes,
but is not limited to, making available to customers, upon request,
information contained in directory listings.
    Directory listings. Directory listings are any information:
    (1) Identifying the listed names of subscribers of a
telecommunications carrier and such subscriber's telephone numbers,
addresses, or primary advertising classifications (as such
classifications are assigned at the time of the establishment of such
service), or any combination of such listed names, numbers, addresses or
classifications; and
    (2) That the telecommunications carrier or an affiliate has
published, caused to be published, or accepted for publication in any
directory format.
    Downstream database. A downstream database is a database owned and
operated by an individual carrier for the purpose of providing number
portability in conjunction with other functions and services.
    Enhanced extended link. An enhanced extended link or EEL consists of
a combination of an unbundled loop and unbundled dedicated transport,
together with any facilities, equipment, or functions necessary to
combine those network elements.
    Equipment necessary for interconnection or access to unbundled
network elements. For purposes of section 251(c)(2) of the Act, the
equipment used to interconnect with an incumbent local exchange
carrier's network for the transmission and routing of telephone exchange
service, exchange access service, or both. For the purposes of section
251(c)(3) of the Act, the equipment used to gain access to an incumbent
local exchange carrier's unbundled network elements for the provision of
a telecommunications service.
    Fiber-based collocator. A fiber-based collocator is any carrier,
unaffiliated with the incumbent LEC, that maintains a collocation
arrangement in an incumbent LEC wire center, with active electrical
power supply, and operates a fiber-optic cable or comparable
transmission facility that
    (1) Terminates at a collocation arrangement within the wire center;

[[Page 18]]

    (2) Leaves the incumbent LEC wire center premises; and
    (3) Is owned by a party other than the incumbent LEC or any
affiliate of the incumbent LEC, except as set forth in this paragraph.
Dark fiber obtained from an incumbent LEC on an indefeasible right of
use basis shall be treated as non-incumbent LEC fiber-optic cable. Two
or more affiliated fiber-based collocators in a single wire center shall
collectively be counted as a single fiber-based collocator. For purposes
of this paragraph, the term affiliate is defined by 47 U.S.C. 153(1) and
any relevant interpretation in this Title.
    Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier (Incumbent LEC). With respect to an
area, the local exchange carrier that:
    (1) On February 8, 1996, provided telephone exchange service in such
area; and
    (2)(i) On February 8, 1996, was deemed to be a member of the
exchange carrier association pursuant to Sec. 69.601(b) of this
chapter; or
    (ii) Is a person or entity that, on or after February 8, 1996,
became a successor or assign of a member described in paragraph (2)(i)
of this section.
    Information services. The term information services means the
offering of a capability for generating, acquiring, storing,
transforming, processing, retrieving, utilizing, or making available
information via telecommunications, and includes electronic publishing,
but does not include any use of any such capability for the management,
control, or operation of a telecommunications system or the management
of a telecommunications service.
    Interconnection. Interconnection is the linking of two networks for
the mutual exchange of traffic. This term does not include the transport
and termination of traffic.
    Known disturber. An advanced services technology that is prone to
cause significant interference with other services deployed in the
network.
    Intermodal. The term intermodal refers to facilities or technologies
other than those found in traditional telephone networks, but that are
utilized to provide competing services. Intermodal facilities or
technologies include, but are not limited to, traditional or new cable
plant, wireless technologies, and power line technologies.
    Local Access and Transport Area (LATA). A Local Access and Transport
Area is a contiguous geographic area--
    (1) Established before February 8, 1996 by a Bell operating company
such that no exchange area includes points within more than 1
metropolitan statistical area, consolidated metropolitan statistical
area, or State, except as expressly permitted under the AT&T Consent
Decree; or
    (2) Established or modified by a Bell operating company after
February 8, 1996 and approved by the Commission.
    Local Exchange Carrier (LEC). A LEC is any person that is engaged in
the provision of telephone exchange service or exchange access. Such
term does not include a person insofar as such person is engaged in the
provision of a commercial mobile service under section 332(c) of the
Act, except to the extent that the Commission finds that such service
should be included in the definition of the such term.
    Maintenance and repair. Maintenance and repair involves the exchange
of information between telecommunications carriers where one initiates a
request for maintenance or repair of existing products and services or
unbundled network elements or combination thereof from the other with
attendant acknowledgements and status reports.
    Meet point. A meet point is a point of interconnection between two
networks, designated by two telecommunications carriers, at which one
carrier's responsibility for service begins and the other carrier's
responsibility ends.
    Meet point interconnection arrangement. A meet point interconnection
arrangement is an arrangement by which each telecommunications carrier
builds and maintains its network to a meet point.
    Mobile wireless service. A mobile wireless service is any mobile
wireless telecommunications service, including any commercial mobile
radio service.
    Multi-functional equipment. Multi-functional equipment is equipment
that combines one or more functions that are necessary for
interconnection

[[Page 19]]

or access to unbundled network elements with one or more functions that
would not meet that standard as stand-alone functions.
    Network element. A network element is a facility or equipment used
in the provision of a telecommunications service. Such term also
includes, but is not limited to, features, functions, and capabilities
that are provided by means of such facility or equipment, including but
not limited to, subscriber numbers, databases, signaling systems, and
information sufficient for billing and collection or used in the
transmission, routing, or other provision of a telecommunications
service.
    Operator services. Operator services are any automatic or live
assistance to a consumer to arrange for billing or completion of a
telephone call. Such services include, but are not limited to, busy line
verification, emergency interrupt, and operator-assisted directory
assistance services.
    Physical collocation. Physical collocation is an offering by an
incumbent LEC that enables a requesting telecommunications carrier to:
    (1) Place its own equipment to be used for interconnection or access
to unbundled network elements within or upon an incumbent LEC's
premises;
    (2) Use such equipment to interconnect with an incumbent LEC's
network facilities for the transmission and routing of telephone
exchange service, exchange access service, or both, or to gain access to
an incumbent LEC's unbundled network elements for the provision of a
telecommunications service;
    (3) Enter those premises, subject to reasonable terms and
conditions, to install, maintain, and repair equipment necessary for
interconnection or access to unbundled elements; and
    (4) Obtain reasonable amounts of space in an incumbent LEC's
premises, as provided in this part, for the equipment necessary for
interconnection or access to unbundled elements, allocated on a first-
come, first-served basis.
    Premises. Premises refers to an incumbent LEC's central offices and
serving wire centers; all buildings or similar structures owned, leased,
or otherwise controlled by an incumbent LEC that house its network
facilities; all structures that house incumbent LEC facilities on public
rights-of-way, including but not limited to vaults containing loop
concentrators or similar structures; and all land owned, leased, or
otherwise controlled by an incumbent LEC that is adjacent to these
central offices, wire centers, buildings, and structures.
    Pre-ordering and ordering. Pre-ordering and ordering includes the
exchange of information between telecommunications carriers about:
current or proposed customer products and services; or unbundled network
elements, or some combination thereof. This information includes loop
qualification information, such as the composition of the loop material,
including but not limited to: fiber optics or copper; the existence,
location and type of any electronic or other equipment on the loop,
including but not limited to, digital loop carrier or other remote
concentration devices, feeder/distribution interfaces, bridge taps, load
coils, pair-gain devices, disturbers in the same or adjacent binder
groups; the loop length, including the length and location of each type
of transmission media; the wire gauge(s) of the loop; and the electrical
parameters of the loop, which may determine the suitability of the loop
for various technologies.
    Provisioning. Provisioning involves the exchange of information
between telecommunications carriers where one executes a request for a
set of products and services or unbundled network elements or
combination thereof from the other with attendant acknowledgements and
status reports.
    Rural telephone company. A rural telephone company is a LEC
operating entity to the extent that such entity:
    (1) Provides common carrier service to any local exchange carrier
study area that does not include either:
    (i) Any incorporated place of 10,000 inhabitants or more, or any
part thereof, based on the most recently available population statistics
of the Bureau of the Census; or
    (ii) Any territory, incorporated or unincorporated, included in an
urbanized area, as defined by the Bureau of the Census as of August 10,
1993;

[[Page 20]]

    (2) Provides telephone exchange service, including exchange access,
to fewer than 50,000 access lines;
    (3) Provides telephone exchange service to any local exchange
carrier study area with fewer than 100,000 access lines; or
    (4) Has less than 15 percent of its access lines in communities of
more than 50,000 on February 8, 1996.
    Service control point. A service control point is a computer
database in the public switched network which contains information and
call processing instructions needed to process and complete a telephone
call.
    Service creation environment. A service creation environment is a
computer containing generic call processing software that can be
programmed to create new advanced intelligent network call processing
services.
    Service provider. A service provider is a provider of
telecommunications services or a provider of information services.
    Signal transfer point. A signal transfer point is a packet switch
that acts as a routing hub for a signaling network and transfers
messages between various points in and among signaling networks.
    State. The term state includes the District of Columbia and the
Territories and possessions.
    State commission. A state commission means the commission, board, or
official (by whatever name designated) which under the laws of any state
has regulatory jurisdiction with respect to intrastate operations of
carriers. As referenced in this part, this term may include the
Commission if it assumes responsibility for a proceeding or matter,
pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act or Sec. 51.320. This term
shall also include any person or persons to whom the state commission
has delegated its authority under sections 251 and 252 of the Act and
this part.
    State proceeding. A state proceeding is any administrative
proceeding in which a state commission may approve or prescribe rates,
terms, and conditions including, but not limited to, compulsory
arbitration pursuant to section 252(b) of the Act, review of a Bell
operating company statement of generally available terms pursuant to
section 252(f) of the Act, and a proceeding to determine whether to
approve or reject an agreement adopted by arbitration pursuant to
section 252(e) of the Act.
    Technically feasible. Interconnection, access to unbundled network
elements, collocation, and other methods of achieving interconnection or
access to unbundled network elements at a point in the network shall be
deemed technically feasible absent technical or operational concerns
that prevent the fulfillment of a request by a telecommunications
carrier for such interconnection, access, or methods. A determination of
technical feasibility does not include consideration of economic,
accounting, billing, space, or site concerns, except that space and site
concerns may be considered in circumstances where there is no
possibility of expanding the space available. The fact that an incumbent
LEC must modify its facilities or equipment to respond to such request
does not determine whether satisfying such request is technically
feasible. An incumbent LEC that claims that it cannot satisfy such
request because of adverse network reliability impacts must prove to the
state commission by clear and convincing evidence that such
interconnection, access, or methods would result in specific and
significant adverse network reliability impacts.
    Telecommunications carrier. A telecommunications carrier is any
provider of telecommunications services, except that such term does not
include aggregators of telecommunications services (as defined in
section 226 of the Act). A telecommunications carrier shall be treated
as a common carrier under the Act only to the extent that it is engaged
in providing telecommunications services, except that the Commission
shall determine whether the provision of fixed and mobile satellite
service shall be treated as common carriage. This definition includes
CMRS providers, interexchange carriers (IXCs) and, to the extent they
are acting as telecommunications carriers, companies that provide both
telecommunications and information services. Private Mobile Radio
Service providers are telecommunications carriers to the extent they
provide domestic or

[[Page 21]]

international telecommunications for a fee directly to the public.
    Telecommunications service. The term telecommunications service
refers to the offering of telecommunications for a fee directly to the
public, or to such classes of users as to be effectively available
directly to the public, regardless of the facilities used.
    Telephone exchange service. A telephone exchange service is:
    (1) A service within a telephone exchange, or within a connected
system of telephone exchanges within the same exchange area operated to
furnish to subscribers intercommunicating service of the character
ordinarily furnished by a single exchange, and which is covered by the
exchange service charge, or
    (2) A comparable service provided through a system of switches,
transmission equipment, or other facilities (or combination thereof) by
which a subscriber can originate and terminate a telecommunications
service.
    Telephone toll service. The term telephone toll service refers to
telephone service between stations in different exchange areas for which
there is made a separate charge not included in contracts with
subscribers for exchange service.
    Unreasonable dialing delay. For the same type of calls, dialing
delay is ``unreasonable'' when the dialing delay experienced by the
customer of a competing provider is greater than that experienced by a
customer of the LEC providing dialing parity, or nondiscriminatory
access to operator services or directory assistance.
    Triennial Review Order. The Triennial Review Order means the
Commission's Report and Order and Order on Remand and Further Notice of
Proposed Rulemaking in CC Docket Nos. 01-338, 96-98, and 98-147.
    Triennial Review Remand Order. The Triennial Review Remand Order is
the Commission's Order on Remand in CC Docket Nos. 01-338 and 04-313
(released February 4, 2005).
    Virtual collocation. Virtual collocation is an offering by an
incumbent LEC that enables a requesting telecommunications carrier to:
    (1) Designate or specify equipment to be used for interconnection or
access to unbundled network elements to be located within or upon an
incumbent LEC's premises, and dedicated to such telecommunications
carrier's use;
    (2) Use such equipment to interconnect with an incumbent LEC's
network facilities for the transmission and routing of telephone
exchange service, exchange access service, or both, or for access to an
incumbent LEC's unbundled network elements for the provision of a
telecommunications service; and
    (3) Electronically monitor and control its communications channels
terminating in such equipment.
    Wire center. A wire center is the location of an incumbent LEC local
switching facility containing one or more central offices, as defined in
the Appendix to part 36 of this chapter. The wire center boundaries
define the area in which all customers served by a given wire center are
located.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 61 FR 47348, Sept. 6, 1996;
64 FR 23241, Apr. 30, 1999; 65 FR 1344, Jan. 10, 2000; 65 FR 2550, Jan.
18, 2000; 65 FR 54438, Sept. 8, 2000; 66 FR 43521, Aug. 20, 2001; 68 FR
52293, Sept. 2, 2003; 70 FR 8952, Feb. 24, 2005]



                  Subpart B_Telecommunications Carriers



Sec. 51.100  General duty.

    (a) Each telecommunications carrier has the duty:
    (1) To interconnect directly or indirectly with the facilities and
equipment of other telecommunications carriers; and
    (2) To not install network features, functions, or capabilities that
do not comply with the guidelines and standards as provided in the
Commission's rules or section 255 or 256 of the Act.
    (b) A telecommunication carrier that has interconnected or gained
access under sections 251(a)(1), 251(c)(2), or 251(c)(3) of the Act, may
offer information services through the same arrangement, so long as it
is offering telecommunications services through the same arrangement as
well.

[[Page 22]]



          Subpart C_Obligations of All Local Exchange Carriers



Sec. 51.201  Resale.

    The rules governing resale of services by an incumbent LEC are set
forth in subpart G of this part.



Sec. 51.203  Number portability.

    The rules governing number portability are set forth in part 52,
subpart C of this chapter.



Sec. 51.205  Dialing parity: General.

    A local exchange carrier (LEC) shall provide local and toll dialing
parity to competing providers of telephone exchange service or telephone
toll service, with no unreasonable dialing delays. Dialing parity shall
be provided for all originating telecommunications services that require
dialing to route a call.

[61 FR 47349, Sept. 6, 1996]



Sec. 51.207  Local dialing parity.

    A LEC shall permit telephone exchange service customers within a
local calling area to dial the same number of digits to make a local
telephone call notwithstanding the identity of the customer's or the
called party's telecommunications service provider.

[61 FR 47349, Sept. 6, 1996]



Sec. 51.209  Toll dialing parity.

    (a) A LEC shall implement throughout each state in which it offers
telephone exchange service intraLATA and interLATA toll dialing parity
based on LATA boundaries. When a single LATA covers more than one state,
the LEC shall use the implementation procedures that each state has
approved for the LEC within that state's borders.
    (b) A LEC shall implement toll dialing parity through a
presubscription process that permits a customer to select a carrier to
which all designated calls on a customer's line will be routed
automatically. LECs shall allow a customer to presubscribe, at a
minimum, to one telecommunications carrier for all interLATA toll calls
and to presubscribe to the same or to another telecommunications carrier
for all intraLATA toll calls.
    (c) A LEC may not assign automatically a customer's intraLATA toll
traffic to itself, to its subsidiaries or affiliates, to the customer's
presubscribed interLATA or interstate toll carrier, or to any other
carrier, except when, in a state that already has implemented
intrastate, intraLATA toll dialing parity, the subscriber has selected
the same presubscribed carrier for both intraLATA and interLATA toll
calls.
    (d) Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraphs (a) and (b) of
this section, states may require that toll dialing parity be based on
state boundaries if it deems that the provision of intrastate and
interstate toll dialing parity is procompetitive and otherwise in the
public interest.

[61 FR 47349, Sept. 6, 1996]



Sec. 51.213  Toll dialing parity implementation plans.

    (a) A LEC must file a plan for providing intraLATA toll dialing
parity throughout each state in which it offers telephone exchange
service. A LEC cannot offer intraLATA toll dialing parity within a state
until the implementation plan has been approved by the appropriate state
commission or the Commission.
    (b) A LEC's implementation plan must include:
    (1) A proposal that explains how the LEC will offer intraLATA toll
dialing parity for each exchange that the LEC operates in the state, in
accordance with the provisions of this section, and a proposed time
schedule for implementation; and
    (2) A proposal for timely notification of its subscribers and the
methods it proposes to use to enable subscribers to affirmatively select
an intraLATA toll service provider.
    (3) A LEC that is not a BOC also shall identify the LATA with which
it will associate for the purposes of providing intraLATA and interLATA
toll dialing parity under this subpart.

[61 FR 47349, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006]

[[Page 23]]



Sec. 51.215  Dialing parity: Cost recovery.

    (a) A LEC may recover the incremental costs necessary for the
implementation of toll dialing parity. The LEC must recover such costs
from all providers of telephone exchange service and telephone toll
service in the area served by the LEC, including that LEC. The LEC shall
use a cost recovery mechanism established by the state.
    (b) Any cost recovery mechanism for the provision of toll dialing
parity pursuant to this section that a state adopts must not:
    (1) Give one service provider an appreciable cost advantage over
another service provider, when competing for a specific subscriber
(i.e., the recovery mechanism may not have a disparate effect on the
incremental costs of competing service providers seeking to serve the
same customer); or
    (2) Have a disparate effect on the ability of competing service
providers to earn a normal return on their investment.

[61 FR 47350, Sept. 6, 1996]



Sec. 51.217  Nondiscriminatory access: Telephone numbers, operator
services, directory assistance services, and directory listings.

    (a) Definitions. As used in this section, the following definitions
apply:
    (1) Competing provider. A ``competing provider'' is a provider of
telephone exchange or telephone toll services that seeks
nondiscriminatory access from a local exchange carrier (LEC) in that
LEC's service area.
    (2) Nondiscriminatory access. ``Nondiscriminatory access'' refers to
access to telephone numbers, operator services, directory assistance and
directory listings that is at least equal to the access that the
providing local exchange carrier (LEC) itself receives.
Nondiscriminatory access includes, but is not limited to:
    (i) Nondiscrimination between and among carriers in the rates,
terms, and conditions of the access provided; and
    (ii) The ability of the competing provider to obtain access that is
at least equal in quality to that of the providing LEC.
    (3) Providing local exchange carrier (LEC). A ``providing local
exchange carrier'' is a local exchange carrier (LEC) that is required to
permit nondiscriminatory access to a competing provider.
    (b) General rule. A local exchange carrier (LEC) that provides
operator services, directory assistance services or directory listings
to its customers, or provides telephone numbers, shall permit competing
providers of telephone exchange service or telephone toll service to
have nondiscriminatory access to that service or feature, with no
unreasonable dialing delays.
    (c) Specific requirements. A LEC subject to paragraph (b) of this
section must also comply with the following requirements:
    (1) Telephone numbers. A LEC shall permit competing providers to
have access to telephone numbers that is identical to the access that
the LEC provides to itself.
    (2) Operator services. A LEC must permit telephone service customers
to connect to the operator services offered by that customer's chosen
local service provider by dialing ``0,'' or ``0'' plus the desired
telephone number, regardless of the identity of the customer's local
telephone service provider.
    (3) Directory assistance services and directory listings--(i) Access
to directory assistance. A LEC shall permit competing providers to have
access to its directory assistance services, including directory
assistance databases, so that any customer of a competing provider can
obtain directory listings, except as provided in paragraph (c)(3)(iv) of
this section, on a nondiscriminatory basis, notwithstanding the identity
of the customer's local service provider, or the identity of the
provider for the customer whose listing is requested. A LEC must supply
access to directory assistance in the manner specified by the competing
provider, including transfer of the LECs' directory assistance databases
in readily accessible magnetic tape, electronic or other convenient
format, as provided in paragraph (c)(3)(iii) of this section. Updates to
the directory assistance database shall be made in the same format as
the initial transfer (unless the requesting LEC requests otherwise), and
shall be performed in a timely manner, taking no longer than those made
to the

[[Page 24]]

providing LEC's own database. A LEC shall accept the listings of those
customers served by competing providers for inclusion in its directory
assistance/operator services databases.
    (ii) Access to directory listings. A LEC that compiles directory
listings shall share directory listings with competing providers in the
manner specified by the competing provider, including readily accessible
tape or electronic formats, as provided in paragraph (c)(3)(iii) of this
section. Such data shall be provided in a timely fashion.
    (iii) Format. A LEC shall provide access to its directory assistance
services, including directory assistance databases, and to its directory
listings in any format the competing provider specifies, if the LEC's
internal systems can accommodate that format.
    (A) If a LEC's internal systems do not permit it provide directory
assistance or directory listings in the format the specified by the
competing provider, the LEC shall:
    (1) Within thirty days of receiving the request, inform the
competing provider that the requested format cannot be accommodated and
tell the requesting provider which formats can be accommodated; and
    (2) Provide the requested directory assistance or directory listings
in the format the competing provider chooses from among the available
formats.
    (B) [Reserved]
    (iv) Unlisted numbers. A LEC shall not provide access to unlisted
telephone numbers, or other information that its customer has asked the
LEC not to make available, with the exception of customer name and
address. The LEC shall ensure that access is permitted to the same
directory information, including customer name and address, that is
available to its own directory assistance customers.
    (v) Adjuncts to services. Operator services and directory assistance
services must be made available to competing providers in their
entirety, including access to any adjunct features (e.g., rating tables
or customer information databases) necessary to allow competing
providers full use of these services.
    (d) Branding of operator services and directory assistance services.
The refusal of a providing local exchange carrier (LEC) to comply with
the reasonable request of a competing provider that the providing LEC
rebrand its operator services and directory assistance, or remove its
brand from such services, creates a presumption that the providing LEC
is unlawfully restricting access to its operator services and directory
assistance. The providing LEC can rebut this presumption by
demonstrating that it lacks the capability to comply with the competing
provider's request.
    (e) Disputes--(1) Disputes involving nondiscriminatory access. In
disputes involving nondiscriminatory access to operator services,
directory assistance services, or directory listings, a providing LEC
shall bear the burden of demonstrating with specificity:
    (i) That it is permitting nondiscriminatory access, and
    (ii) That any disparity in access is not caused by factors within
its control. ``Factors within its control'' include, but are not limited
to, physical facilities, staffing, the ordering of supplies or
equipment, and maintenance.
    (2) Disputes involving unreasonable dialing delay. In disputes
between providing local exchange carriers (LECs) and competing providers
involving unreasonable dialing delay in the provision of access to
operator services and directory assistance, the burden of proof is on
the providing LEC to demonstrate with specificity that it is processing
the calls of the competing provider's customers on terms equal to that
of similar calls from the providing LEC's own customers.

[61 FR 47350, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 51911, Sept. 27, 1999]



Sec. 51.219  Access to rights of way.

    The rules governing access to rights of way are set forth in part 1,
subpart J of this chapter.



Sec. 51.221  Reciprocal compensation.

    The rules governing reciprocal compensation are set forth in subpart
H of this part.



Sec. 51.223  Application of additional requirements.

    (a) A state may not impose the obligations set forth in section
251(c) of the Act on a LEC that is not classified as

[[Page 25]]

an incumbent LEC as defined in section 251(h)(1) of the Act, unless the
Commission issues an order declaring that such LECs or classes or
categories of LECs should be treated as incumbent LECs.
    (b) A state commission, or any other interested party, may request
that the Commission issue an order declaring that a particular LEC be
treated as an incumbent LEC, or that a class or category of LECs be
treated as incumbent LECs, pursuant to section 251(h)(2) of the Act.



Sec. 51.230  Presumption of acceptability for deployment of an advanced
services loop technology.

    (a) An advanced services loop technology is presumed acceptable for
deployment under any one of the following circumstances, where the
technology:
    (1) Complies with existing industry standards; or
    (2) Is approved by an industry standards body, the Commission, or
any state commission; or
    (3) Has been successfully deployed by any carrier without
significantly degrading the performance of other services.
    (b) An incumbent LEC may not deny a carrier's request to deploy a
technology that is presumed acceptable for deployment unless the
incumbent LEC demonstrates to the relevant state commission that
deployment of the particular technology will significantly degrade the
performance of other advanced services or traditional voiceband
services.
    (c) Where a carrier seeks to establish that deployment of a
technology falls within the presumption of acceptability under paragraph
(a)(3) of this section, the burden is on the requesting carrier to
demonstrate to the state commission that its proposed deployment meets
the threshold for a presumption of acceptability and will not, in fact,
significantly degrade the performance of other advanced services or
traditional voice band services. Upon a successful demonstration by the
requesting carrier before a particular state commission, the deployed
technology shall be presumed acceptable for deployment in other areas.

[65 FR 1345, Jan. 10, 2000]



Sec. 51.231  Provision of information on advanced services deployment.

    (a) An incumbent LEC must provide to requesting carriers that seek
access to a loop or high frequency portion of the loop to provide
advanced services:
    (1) Uses in determining which services can be deployed; and
information with respect to the spectrum management procedures and
policies that the incumbent LEC.
    (2) Information with respect to the rejection of the requesting
carrier's provision of advanced services, together with the specific
reason for the rejection; and
    (3) Information with respect to the number of loops using advanced
services technology within the binder and type of technology deployed on
those loops.
    (b) A requesting carrier that seeks access to a loop or a high
frequency portion of a loop to provide advanced services must provide to
the incumbent LEC information on the type of technology that the
requesting carrier seeks to deploy.
    (1) Where the requesting carrier asserts that the technology it
seeks to deploy fits within a generic power spectral density (PSD) mask,
it also must provide Spectrum Class information for the technology.
    (2) Where a requesting carrier relies on a calculation-based
approach to support deployment of a particular technology, it must
provide the incumbent LEC with information on the speed and power at
which the signal will be transmitted.
    (c) The requesting carrier also must provide the information
required under paragraph (b) of this section when notifying the
incumbent LEC of any proposed change in advanced services technology
that the carrier uses on the loop.

[65 FR 1345, Jan. 10, 2000]



Sec. 51.232  Binder group management.

    (a) With the exception of loops on which a known disturber is
deployed, the incumbent LEC shall be prohibited from designating,
segregating or reserving particular loops or binder groups for use
solely by any particular advanced services loop technology.

[[Page 26]]

    (b) Any party seeking designation of a technology as a known
disturber should file a petition for declaratory ruling with the
Commission seeking such designation, pursuant to Sec. 1.2 of this
chapter.

[65 FR 1346, Jan. 10, 2000]



Sec. 51.233  Significant degradation of services caused by deployment
of advanced services.

    (a) Where a carrier claims that a deployed advanced service is
significantly degrading the performance of other advanced services or
traditional voiceband services, that carrier must notify the deploying
carrier and allow the deploying carrier a reasonable opportunity to
correct the problem. Where the carrier whose services are being degraded
does not know the precise cause of the degradation, it must notify each
carrier that may have caused or contributed to the degradation.
    (b) Where the degradation asserted under paragraph (a) of this
section remains unresolved by the deploying carrier(s) after a
reasonable opportunity to correct the problem, the carrier whose
services are being degraded must establish before the relevant state
commission that a particular technology deployment is causing the
significant degradation.
    (c) Any claims of network harm presented to the deploying carrier(s)
or, if subsequently necessary, the relevant state commission, must be
supported with specific and verifiable information.
    (d) Where a carrier demonstrates that a deployed technology is
significantly degrading the performance of other advanced services or
traditional voice band services, the carrier deploying the technology
shall discontinue deployment of that technology and migrate its
customers to technologies that will not significantly degrade the
performance of other such services.
    (e) Where the only degraded service itself is a known disturber, and
the newly deployed technology satisfies at least one of the criteria for
a presumption that it is acceptable for deployment under Sec. 51.230,
the degraded service shall not prevail against the newly-deployed
technology.

[65 FR 1346, Jan. 10, 2000]



  Subpart D_Additional Obligations of Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers



Sec. 51.301  Duty to negotiate.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall negotiate in good faith the terms and
conditions of agreements to fulfill the duties established by sections
251 (b) and (c) of the Act.
    (b) A requesting telecommunications carrier shall negotiate in good
faith the terms and conditions of agreements described in paragraph (a)
of this section.
    (c) If proven to the Commission, an appropriate state commission, or
a court of competent jurisdiction, the following actions or practices,
among others, violate the duty to negotiate in good faith:
    (1) Demanding that another party sign a nondisclosure agreement that
precludes such party from providing information requested by the
Commission, or a state commission, or in support of a request for
arbitration under section 252(b)(2)(B) of the Act;
    (2) Demanding that a requesting telecommunications carrier attest
that an agreement complies with all provisions of the Act, federal
regulations, or state law;
    (3) Refusing to include in an arbitrated or negotiated agreement a
provision that permits the agreement to be amended in the future to take
into account changes in Commission or state rules;
    (4) Conditioning negotiation on a requesting telecommunications
carrier first obtaining state certifications;
    (5) Intentionally misleading or coercing another party into reaching
an agreement that it would not otherwise have made;
    (6) Intentionally obstructing or delaying negotiations or
resolutions of disputes;
    (7) Refusing throughout the negotiation process to designate a
representative with authority to make binding representations, if such
refusal significantly delays resolution of issues; and

[[Page 27]]

    (8) Refusing to provide information necessary to reach agreement.
Such refusal includes, but is not limited to:
    (i) Refusal by an incumbent LEC to furnish information about its
network that a requesting telecommunications carrier reasonably requires
to identify the network elements that it needs in order to serve a
particular customer; and
    (ii) Refusal by an incumbent LEC to furnish cost data that would be
relevant to setting rates if the parties were in arbitration.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 68 FR 52294, Sept. 2, 2003]



Sec. 51.303  Preexisting agreements.

    (a) All interconnection agreements between an incumbent LEC and a
telecommunications carrier, including those negotiated before February
8, 1996, shall be submitted by the parties to the appropriate state
commission for approval pursuant to section 252(e) of the Act.
    (b) Interconnection agreements negotiated before February 8, 1996,
between Class A carriers, as defined by Sec. 32.11(a)(1) of this
chapter, shall be filed by the parties with the appropriate state
commission no later than June 30, 1997, or such earlier date as the
state commission may require.
    (c) If a state commission approves a preexisting agreement, it shall
be made available to other parties in accordance with section 252(i) of
the Act and Sec. 51.809 of this part. A state commission may reject a
preexisting agreement on the grounds that it is inconsistent with the
public interest, or for other reasons set forth in section 252(e)(2)(A)
of the Act.



Sec. 51.305  Interconnection.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall provide, for the facilities and equipment
of any requesting telecommunications carrier, interconnection with the
incumbent LEC's network:
    (1) For the transmission and routing of telephone exchange traffic,
exchange access traffic, or both;
    (2) At any technically feasible point within the incumbent LEC's
network including, at a minimum:
    (i) The line-side of a local switch;
    (ii) The trunk-side of a local switch;
    (iii) The trunk interconnection points for a tandem switch;
    (iv) Central office cross-connect points;
    (v) Out-of-band signaling transfer points necessary to exchange
traffic at these points and access call-related databases; and
    (vi) The points of access to unbundled network elements as described
in Sec. 51.319;
    (3) That is at a level of quality that is equal to that which the
incumbent LEC provides itself, a subsidiary, an affiliate, or any other
party. At a minimum, this requires an incumbent LEC to design
interconnection facilities to meet the same technical criteria and
service standards that are used within the incumbent LEC's network. This
obligation is not limited to a consideration of service quality as
perceived by end users, and includes, but is not limited to, service
quality as perceived by the requesting telecommunications carrier; and
    (4) On terms and conditions that are just, reasonable, and
nondiscriminatory in accordance with the terms and conditions of any
agreement, the requirements of sections 251 and 252 of the Act, and the
Commission's rules including, but not limited to, offering such terms
and conditions equally to all requesting telecommunications carriers,
and offering such terms and conditions that are no less favorable than
the terms and conditions upon which the incumbent LEC provides such
interconnection to itself. This includes, but is not limited to, the
time within which the incumbent LEC provides such interconnection.
    (b) A carrier that requests interconnection solely for the purpose
of originating or terminating its interexchange traffic on an incumbent
LEC's network and not for the purpose of providing to others telephone
exchange service, exchange access service, or both, is not entitled to
receive interconnection pursuant to section 251(c)(2) of the Act.
    (c) Previous successful interconnection at a particular point in a
network, using particular facilities, constitutes substantial evidence
that interconnection is technically feasible at that point, or at
substantially similar

[[Page 28]]

points, in networks employing substantially similar facilities.
Adherence to the same interface or protocol standards shall constitute
evidence of the substantial similarity of network facilities.
    (d) Previous successful interconnection at a particular point in a
network at a particular level of quality constitutes substantial
evidence that interconnection is technically feasible at that point, or
at substantially similar points, at that level of quality.
    (e) An incumbent LEC that denies a request for interconnection at a
particular point must prove to the state commission that interconnection
at that point is not technically feasible.
    (f) If technically feasible, an incumbent LEC shall provide two-way
trunking upon request.
    (g) An incumbent LEC shall provide to a requesting
telecommunications carrier technical information about the incumbent
LEC's network facilities sufficient to allow the requesting carrier to
achieve interconnection consistent with the requirements of this
section.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 61 FR 47351, Sept. 6, 1996;
68 FR 52294, Sept. 2, 2003]



Sec. 51.307  Duty to provide access on an unbundled basis to network
elements.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall provide, to a requesting
telecommunications carrier for the provision of a telecommunications
service, nondiscriminatory access to network elements on an unbundled
basis at any technically feasible point on terms and conditions that are
just, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory in accordance with the terms and
conditions of any agreement, the requirements of sections 251 and 252 of
the Act, and the Commission's rules.
    (b) The duty to provide access to unbundled network elements
pursuant to section 251(c)(3) of the Act includes a duty to provide a
connection to an unbundled network element independent of any duty to
provide interconnection pursuant to this part and section 251(c)(2) of
the Act.
    (c) An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting telecommunications
carrier access to an unbundled network element, along with all of the
unbundled network element's features, functions, and capabilities, in a
manner that allows the requesting telecommunications carrier to provide
any telecommunications service that can be offered by means of that
network element.
    (d) An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting telecommunications
carrier access to the facility or functionality of a requested network
element separate from access to the facility or functionality of other
network elements, for a separate charge.
    (e) An incumbent LEC shall provide to a requesting
telecommunications carrier technical information about the incumbent
LEC's network facilities sufficient to allow the requesting carrier to
achieve access to unbundled network elements consistent with the
requirements of this section.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 61 FR 47351, Sept. 6, 1996]



Sec. 51.309  Use of unbundled network elements.

    (a) Except as provided in Sec. 51.318, an incumbent LEC shall not
impose limitations, restrictions, or requirements on requests for, or
the use of, unbundled network elements for the service a requesting
telecommunications carrier seeks to offer.
    (b) A requesting telecommunications carrier may not access an
unbundled network element for the exclusive provision of mobile wireless
services or interexchange services.
    (c) A telecommunications carrier purchasing access to an unbundled
network facility is entitled to exclusive use of that facility for a
period of time, or when purchasing access to a feature, function, or
capability of a facility, a telecommunications carrier is entitled to
use of that feature, function, or capability for a period of time. A
telecommunications carrier's purchase of access to an unbundled network
element does not relieve the incumbent LEC of the duty to maintain,
repair, or replace the unbundled network element.
    (d) A requesting telecommunications carrier that accesses and uses
an unbundled network element consistent

[[Page 29]]

with paragraph (b) of this section may provide any telecommunications
services over the same unbundled network element.
    (e) Except as provided in Sec. 51.318, an incumbent LEC shall
permit a requesting telecommunications carrier to commingle an unbundled
network element or a combination of unbundled network elements with
wholesale services obtained from an incumbent LEC.
    (f) Upon request, an incumbent LEC shall perform the functions
necessary to commingle an unbundled network element or a combination of
unbundled network elements with one or more facilities or services that
a requesting telecommunications carrier has obtained at wholesale from
an incumbent LEC.
    (g) An incumbent LEC shall not deny access to an unbundled network
element or a combination of unbundled network elements on the grounds
that one or more of the elements:
    (1) Is connected to, attached to, linked to, or combined with, a
facility or service obtained from an incumbent LEC; or
    (2) Shares part of the incumbent LEC's network with access services
or inputs for mobile wireless services and/or interexchange services.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 68 FR 52294, Sept. 2, 2003;
70 FR 8952, Feb. 24, 2005]



Sec. 51.311  Nondiscriminatory access to unbundled network elements.

    (a) The quality of an unbundled network element, as well as the
quality of the access to the unbundled network element, that an
incumbent LEC provides to a requesting telecommunications carrier shall
be the same for all telecommunications carriers requesting access to
that network element.
    (b) To the extent technically feasible, the quality of an unbundled
network element, as well as the quality of the access to such unbundled
network element, that an incumbent LEC provides to a requesting
telecommunications carrier shall be at least equal in quality to that
which the incumbent LEC provides to itself. If an incumbent LEC fails to
meet this requirement, the incumbent LEC must prove to the state
commission that it is not technically feasible to provide the requested
unbundled network element, or to provide access to the requested
unbundled network element, at a level of quality that is equal to that
which the incumbent LEC provides to itself.
    (c) Previous successful access to an unbundled element at a
particular point in a network, using particular facilities, is
substantial evidence that access is technically feasible at that point,
or at substantially similar points, in networks employing substantially
similar facilities. Adherence to the same interface or protocol
standards shall constitute evidence of the substantial similarity of
network facilities.
    (d) Previous successful provision of access to an unbundled element
at a particular point in a network at a particular level of quality is
substantial evidence that access is technically feasible at that point,
or at substantially similar points, at that level of quality.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 68 FR 52294, Sept. 2, 2003]



Sec. 51.313  Just, reasonable and nondiscriminatory terms and conditions
for the provision of unbundled network elements.

    (a) The terms and conditions pursuant to which an incumbent LEC
provides access to unbundled network elements shall be offered equally
to all requesting telecommunications carriers.
    (b) Where applicable, the terms and conditions pursuant to which an
incumbent LEC offers to provide access to unbundled network elements,
including but not limited to, the time within which the incumbent LEC
provisions such access to unbundled network elements, shall, at a
minimum, be no less favorable to the requesting carrier than the terms
and conditions under which the incumbent LEC provides such elements to
itself.
    (c) An incumbent LEC must provide a carrier purchasing access to
unbundled network elements with the pre-ordering, ordering,
provisioning, maintenance and repair, and billing functions of the
incumbent LEC's operations support systems.

[[Page 30]]



Sec. 51.315  Combination of unbundled network elements.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall provide unbundled network elements in a
manner that allows requesting telecommunications carriers to combine
such network elements in order to provide a telecommunications service.
    (b) Except upon request, an incumbent LEC shall not separate
requested network elements that the incumbent LEC currently combines.
    (c) Upon request, an incumbent LEC shall perform the functions
necessary to combine unbundled network elements in any manner, even if
those elements are not ordinarily combined in the incumbent LEC's
network, provided that such combination:
    (1) Is technically feasible; and
    (2) Would not undermine the ability of other carriers to obtain
access to unbundled network elements or to interconnect with the
incumbent LEC's network.
    (d) Upon request, an incumbent LEC shall perform the functions
necessary to combine unbundled network elements with elements possessed
by the requesting telecommunications carrier in any technically feasible
manner.
    (e) An incumbent LEC that denies a request to combine elements
pursuant to paragraph (c)(1) or paragraph (d) of this section must prove
to the state commission that the requested combination is not
technically feasible.
    (f) An incumbent LEC that denies a request to combine unbundled
network elements pursuant to paragraph (c)(2) of this section must
demonstrate to the state commission that the requested combination would
undermine the ability of other carriers to obtain access to unbundled
network elements or to interconnect with the incumbent LEC's network.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 68 FR 52294, Sept. 2, 2003]



Sec. 51.316  Conversion of unbundled network elements and services.

    (a) Upon request, an incumbent LEC shall convert a wholesale
service, or group of wholesale services, to the equivalent unbundled
network element, or combination of unbundled network elements, that is
available to the requesting telecommunications carrier under section
251(c)(3) of the Act and this part.
    (b) An incumbent LEC shall perform any conversion from a wholesale
service or group of wholesale services to an unbundled network element
or combination of unbundled network elements without adversely affecting
the service quality perceived by the requesting telecommunications
carrier's end-user customer.
    (c) Except as agreed to by the parties, an incumbent LEC shall not
impose any untariffed termination charges, or any disconnect fees, re-
connect fees, or charges associated with establishing a service for the
first time, in connection with any conversion between a wholesale
service or group of wholesale services and an unbundled network element
or combination of unbundled network elements.

[68 FR 52294, Sept. 2, 2003]



Sec. 51.317  Standards for requiring the unbundling of network elements.

    (a) Proprietary network elements. A network element shall be
considered to be proprietary if an incumbent LEC can demonstrate that it
has invested resources to develop proprietary information or
functionalities that are protected by patent, copyright or trade secret
law. The Commission shall undertake the following analysis to determine
whether a proprietary network element should be made available for
purposes of section 251(c)(3) of the Act:
    (1) Determine whether access to the proprietary network element is
``necessary.'' A network element is ``necessary'' if, taking into
consideration the availability of alternative elements outside the
incumbent LEC's network, including self-provisioning by a requesting
telecommunications carrier or acquiring an alternative from a third-
party supplier, lack of access to the network element precludes a
requesting telecommunications carrier from providing the services that
it seeks to offer. If access is ``necessary,'' the Commission may
require the unbundling of such proprietary network element.
    (2) In the event that such access is not ``necessary,'' the
Commission may

[[Page 31]]

require unbundling if it is determined that:
    (i) The incumbent LEC has implemented only a minor modification to
the network element in order to qualify for proprietary treatment;
    (ii) The information or functionality that is proprietary in nature
does not differentiate the incumbent LEC's services from the requesting
telecommunications carrier's services; or
    (iii) Lack of access to such element would jeopardize the goals of
the Act.
    (b) Non-proprietary network elements. The Commission shall determine
whether a non-proprietary network element should be made available for
purposes of section 251(c)(3) of the Act by analyzing, at a minimum,
whether lack of access to a non-proprietary network element ``impairs''
a requesting carrier's ability to provide the service it seeks to offer.
A requesting carrier's ability to provide service is ``impaired'' if,
taking into consideration the availability of alternative elements
outside the incumbent LEC's network, including elements self-provisioned
by the requesting carrier or acquired as an alternative from a third-
party supplier, lack of access to that element poses a barrier or
barriers to entry, including operational and economic barriers, that are
likely to make entry into a market by a reasonably efficient competitor
uneconomic.

[70 FR 8952, Feb. 24, 2005]



Sec. 51.318  Eligibility criteria for access to certain unbundled
network elements.

    (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, an
incumbent LEC shall provide access to unbundled network elements and
combinations of unbundled network elements without regard to whether the
requesting telecommunications carrier seeks access to the elements to
establish a new circuit or to convert an existing circuit from a service
to unbundled network elements.
    (b) An incumbent LEC need not provide access to an unbundled DS1
loop in combination, or commingled, with a dedicated DS1 transport or
dedicated DS3 transport facility or service, or to an unbundled DS3 loop
in combination, or commingled, with a dedicated DS3 transport facility
or service, or an unbundled dedicated DS1 transport facility in
combination, or commingled, with an unbundled DS1 loop or a DS1 channel
termination service, or to an unbundled dedicated DS3 transport facility
in combination, or commingled, with an unbundled DS1 loop or a DS1
channel termination service, or to an unbundled DS3 loop or a DS3
channel termination service, unless the requesting telecommunications
carrier certifies that all of the following conditions are met:
    (1) The requesting telecommunications carrier has received state
certification to provide local voice service in the area being served
or, in the absence of a state certification requirement, has complied
with registration, tariffing, filing fee, or other regulatory
requirements applicable to the provision of local voice service in that
area.
    (2) The following criteria are satisfied for each combined circuit,
including each DS1 circuit, each DS1 enhanced extended link, and each
DS1-equivalent circuit on a DS3 enhanced extended link:
    (i) Each circuit to be provided to each customer will be assigned a
local number prior to the provision of service over that circuit;
    (ii) Each DS1-equivalent circuit on a DS3 enhanced extended link
must have its own local number assignment, so that each DS3 must have at
least 28 local voice numbers assigned to it;
    (iii) Each circuit to be provided to each customer will have 911 or
E911 capability prior to the provision of service over that circuit;
    (iv) Each circuit to be provided to each customer will terminate in
a collocation arrangement that meets the requirements of paragraph (c)
of this section;
    (v) Each circuit to be provided to each customer will be served by
an interconnection trunk that meets the requirements of paragraph (d) of
this section;
    (vi) For each 24 DS1 enhanced extended links or other facilities
having equivalent capacity, the requesting telecommunications carrier
will have at least one active DS1 local service interconnection trunk
that meets the

[[Page 32]]

requirements of paragraph (d) of this section; and
    (vii) Each circuit to be provided to each customer will be served by
a switch capable of switching local voice traffic.
    (c) A collocation arrangement meets the requirements of this
paragraph if it is:
    (1) Established pursuant to section 251(c)(6) of the Act and located
at an incumbent LEC premises within the same LATA as the customer's
premises, when the incumbent LEC is not the collocator; and
    (2) Located at a third party's premises within the same LATA as the
customer's premises, when the incumbent LEC is the collocator.
    (d) An interconnection trunk meets the requirements of this
paragraph if the requesting telecommunications carrier will transmit the
calling party's number in connection with calls exchanged over the
trunk.

[68 FR 52295, Sept. 2, 2003, as amended at 68 FR 64000, Nov. 12, 2003]



Sec. 51.319  Specific unbundling requirements.

    (a) Local loops. An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to the local
loop on an unbundled basis, in accordance with section 251(c)(3) of the
Act and this part and as set forth in paragraphs (a)(1) through (8) of
this section. The local loop network element is defined as a
transmission facility between a distribution frame (or its equivalent)
in an incumbent LEC central office and the loop demarcation point at an
end-user customer premises. This element includes all features,
functions, and capabilities of such transmission facility, including the
network interface device. It also includes all electronics, optronics,
and intermediate devices (including repeaters and load coils) used to
establish the transmission path to the end-user customer premises as
well as any inside wire owned or controlled by the incumbent LEC that is
part of that transmission path.
    (1) Copper loops. An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to the copper
loop on an unbundled basis. A copper loop is a stand-alone local loop
comprised entirely of copper wire or cable. Copper loops include two-
wire and four-wire analog voice-grade copper loops, digital copper loops
(e.g., DS0s and integrated services digital network lines), as well as
two-wire and four-wire copper loops conditioned to transmit the digital
signals needed to provide digital subscriber line services, regardless
of whether the copper loops are in service or held as spares. The copper
loop includes attached electronics using time division multiplexing
technology, but does not include packet switching capabilities as
defined in paragraph (a)(2)(i) of this section. The availability of DS1
and DS3 copper loops is subject to the requirements of paragraphs (a)(4)
and (5) of this section.
    (i) Line splitting. An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier that obtains an unbundled copper loop from
the incumbent LEC with the ability to engage in line splitting
arrangements with another competitive LEC using a splitter collocated at
the central office where the loop terminates into a distribution frame
or its equivalent. Line splitting is the process in which one
competitive LEC provides narrowband voice service over the low frequency
portion of a copper loop and a second competitive LEC provides digital
subscriber line service over the high frequency portion of that same
loop. The high frequency portion of the loop consists of the frequency
range on the copper loop above the range that carries analog circuit-
switched voice transmissions. This portion of the loop includes the
features, functions, and capabilities of the loop that are used to
establish a complete transmission path on the high frequency range
between the incumbent LEC's distribution frame (or its equivalent) in
its central office and the demarcation point at the end-user customer
premises, and includes the high frequency portion of any inside wire
owned or controlled by the incumbent LEC.

[[Page 33]]

    (A) An incumbent LEC's obligation, under paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this
section, to provide a requesting telecommunications carrier with the
ability to engage in line splitting applies regardless of whether the
carrier providing voice service provides its own switching or obtains
local circuit switching from the incumbent LEC.
    (B) An incumbent LEC must make all necessary network modifications,
including providing nondiscriminatory access to operations support
systems necessary for pre-ordering, ordering, provisioning, maintenance
and repair, and billing for loops used in line splitting arrangements.
    (ii) Line conditioning. The incumbent LEC shall condition a copper
loop at the request of the carrier seeking access to a copper loop under
paragraph (a)(1) of this section or a copper subloop under paragraph (b)
of this section to ensure that the copper loop or copper subloop is
suitable for providing digital subscriber line services, whether or not
the incumbent LEC offers advanced services to the end-user customer on
that copper loop or copper subloop. If the incumbent LEC seeks
compensation from the requesting telecommunications carrier for line
conditioning, the requesting telecommunications carrier has the option
of refusing, in whole or in part, to have the line conditioned; and a
requesting telecommunications carrier's refusal of some or all aspects
of line conditioning will not diminish any right it may have, under
paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, to access the copper loop or the
copper subloop.
    (A) Line conditioning is defined as the removal from a copper loop
or copper subloop of any device that could diminish the capability of
the loop or subloop to deliver high-speed switched wireline
telecommunications capability, including digital subscriber line
service. Such devices include, but are not limited to, bridge taps, load
coils, low pass filters, and range extenders.
    (B) Incumbent LECs shall recover the costs of line conditioning from
the requesting telecommunications carrier in accordance with the
Commission's forward-looking pricing principles promulgated pursuant to
section 252(d)(1) of the Act and in compliance with rules governing
nonrecurring costs in Sec. 51.507(e).
    (C) Insofar as it is technically feasible, the incumbent LEC shall
test and report troubles for all the features, functions, and
capabilities of conditioned copper lines, and may not restrict its
testing to voice transmission only.
    (iii) Maintenance, repair, and testing. (A) An incumbent LEC shall
provide, on a nondiscriminatory basis, physical loop test access points
to a requesting telecommunications carrier at the splitter, through a
cross-connection to the requesting telecommunications carrier's
collocation space, or through a standardized interface, such as an
intermediate distribution frame or a test access server, for the purpose
of testing, maintaining, and repairing copper loops and copper subloops.
    (B) An incumbent LEC seeking to utilize an alternative physical
access methodology may request approval to do so from the state
commission, but must show that the proposed alternative method is
reasonable and nondiscriminatory, and will not disadvantage a requesting
telecommunications carrier's ability to perform loop or service testing,
maintenance, or repair.
    (iv) Control of the loop and splitter functionality. In situations
where a requesting telecommunications carrier is obtaining access to the
high frequency portion of a copper loop through a line splitting
arrangement, the incumbent LEC may maintain control over the loop and
splitter equipment and functions, and shall provide to the requesting
telecommunications carrier loop and splitter functionality that is
compatible with any transmission technology that the requesting
telecommunications carrier seeks to deploy using the high frequency
portion of the loop, as defined in paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section,
provided that such transmission technology is presumed to be deployable
pursuant to Sec. 51.230.
    (2) Hybrid loops. A hybrid loop is a local loop composed of both
fiber optic cable, usually in the feeder plant, and copper wire or
cable, usually in the distribution plant.

[[Page 34]]

    (i) Packet switching facilities, features, functions, and
capabilities. An incumbent LEC is not required to provide unbundled
access to the packet switched features, functions and capabilities of
its hybrid loops. Packet switching capability is the routing or
forwarding of packets, frames, cells, or other data units based on
address or other routing information contained in the packets, frames,
cells or other data units, and the functions that are performed by the
digital subscriber line access multiplexers, including but not limited
to the ability to terminate an end-user customer's copper loop (which
includes both a low-band voice channel and a high-band data channel, or
solely a data channel); the ability to forward the voice channels, if
present, to a circuit switch or multiple circuit switches; the ability
to extract data units from the data channels on the loops; and the
ability to combine data units from multiple loops onto one or more
trunks connecting to a packet switch or packet switches.
    (ii) Broadband services. When a requesting telecommunications
carrier seeks access to a hybrid loop for the provision of broadband
services, an incumbent LEC shall provide the requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to the time
division multiplexing features, functions, and capabilities of that
hybrid loop, including DS1 or DS3 capacity (where impairment has been
found to exist), on an unbundled basis to establish a complete
transmission path between the incumbent LEC's central office and an end
user's customer premises. This access shall include access to all
features, functions, and capabilities of the hybrid loop that are not
used to transmit packetized information.
    (iii) Narrowband services. When a requesting telecommunications
carrier seeks access to a hybrid loop for the provision of narrowband
services, the incumbent LEC may either:
    (A) Provide nondiscriminatory access, on an unbundled basis, to an
entire hybrid loop capable of voice-grade service (i.e., equivalent to
DS0 capacity), using time division multiplexing technology; or
    (B) Provide nondiscriminatory access to a spare home-run copper loop
serving that customer on an unbundled basis.
    (3) Fiber loops--(i) Definitions--(A) Fiber-to-the-home loops. A
fiber-to-the-home loop is a local loop consisting entirely of fiber
optic cable, whether dark or lit, serving an end user's customer
premises or, in the case of predominantly residential multiple dwelling
units (MDUs), a fiber optic cable, whether dark or lit, that extends to
the multiunit premises' minimum point of entry (MPOE).
    (B) Fiber-to-the-curb loops. A fiber-to-the-curb loop is a local
loop consisting of fiber optic cable connecting to a copper distribution
plant that is not more than 500 feet from the customer's premises or, in
the case of predominantly residential MDUs, not more than 500 feet from
the MDU's MPOE. The fiber optic cable in a fiber-to-the-curb loop must
connect to a copper distribution plant at a serving area interface from
which every other copper distribution subloop also is not more than 500
feet from the respective customer's premises.
    (ii) New builds. An incumbent LEC is not required to provide
nondiscriminatory access to a fiber-to-the-home loop or a fiber-to-the-
curb loop on an unbundled basis when the incumbent LEC deploys such a
loop to an end user's customer premises that previously has not been
served by any loop facility.
    (iii) Overbuilds. An incumbent LEC is not required to provide
nondiscriminatory access to a fiber-to-the-home loop or a fiber-to-the-
curb loop on an unbundled basis when the incumbent LEC has deployed such
a loop parallel to, or in replacement of, an existing copper loop
facility, except that:
    (A) The incumbent LEC must maintain the existing copper loop
connected to the particular customer premises after deploying the fiber-
to-the-home loop or the fiber-to-the-curb loop and provide
nondiscriminatory access to that copper loop on an unbundled basis
unless the incumbent LEC retires the copper loops pursuant to paragraph
(a)(3)(iv) of this section.
    (B) An incumbent LEC that maintains the existing copper loops
pursuant to paragraph (a)(3)(iii)(A) of this section need not incur any
expenses to

[[Page 35]]

ensure that the existing copper loop remains capable of transmitting
signals prior to receiving a request for access pursuant to that
paragraph, in which case the incumbent LEC shall restore the copper loop
to serviceable condition upon request.
    (C) An incumbent LEC that retires the copper loop pursuant to
paragraph (a)(3)(iv) of this section shall provide nondiscriminatory
access to a 64 kilobits per second transmission path capable of voice
grade service over the fiber-to-the-home loop or fiber-to-the-curb loop
on an unbundled basis.
    (iv) Retirement of copper loops or copper subloops. Prior to
retiring any copper loop or copper subloop that has been replaced with a
fiber-to-the-home loop or a fiber-to-the-curb loop, an incumbent LEC
must comply with:
    (A) The network disclosure requirements set forth in section
251(c)(5) of the Act and in Sec. 51.325 through Sec. 51.335; and
    (B) Any applicable state requirements.
    (4) DS1 loops. (i) Subject to the cap described in paragraph
(a)(4)(ii) of this section, an incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to a DS1 loop
on an unbundled basis to any building not served by a wire center with
at least 60,000 business lines and at least four fiber-based
collocators. Once a wire center exceeds both of these thresholds, no
future DS1 loop unbundling will be required in that wire center. A DS1
loop is a digital local loop having a total digital signal speed of
1.544 megabytes per second. DS1 loops include, but are not limited to,
two-wire and four-wire copper loops capable of providing high-bit rate
digital subscriber line services, including T1 services.
    (ii) Cap on unbundled DS1 loop circuits. A requesting
telecommunications carrier may obtain a maximum of ten unbundled DS1
loops to any single building in which DS1 loops are available as
unbundled loops.
    (5) DS3 loops. (i) Subject to the cap described in paragraph
(a)(5)(ii) of this section, an incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to a DS3 loop
on an unbundled basis to any building not served by a wire center with
at least 38,000 business lines and at least four fiber-based
collocators. Once a wire center exceeds both of these thresholds, no
future DS3 loop unbundling will be required in that wire center. A DS3
loop is a digital local loop having a total digital signal speed of
44.736 megabytes per second.
    (ii) Cap on unbundled DS3 loop circuits. A requesting
telecommunications carrier may obtain a maximum of a single unbundled
DS3 loop to any single building in which DS3 loops are available as
unbundled loops.
    (6) Dark fiber loops. An incumbent LEC is not required to provide
requesting telecommunications carriers with access to a dark fiber loop
on an unbundled basis. Dark fiber is fiber within an existing fiber
optic cable that has not yet been activated through optronics to render
it capable of carrying communications services.
    (7) Routine network modifications. (i) An incumbent LEC shall make
all routine network modifications to unbundled loop facilities used by
requesting telecommunications carriers where the requested loop facility
has already been constructed. An incumbent LEC shall perform these
routine network modifications to unbundled loop facilities in a
nondiscriminatory fashion, without regard to whether the loop facility
being accessed was constructed on behalf, or in accordance with the
specifications, of any carrier.
    (ii) A routine network modification is an activity that the
incumbent LEC regularly undertakes for its own customers. Routine
network modifications include, but are not limited to, rearranging or
splicing of cable; adding an equipment case; adding a doubler or
repeater; adding a smart jack; installing a repeater shelf; adding a
line card; deploying a new multiplexer or reconfiguring an existing
multiplexer; and attaching electronic and other equipment that the
incumbent LEC ordinarily attaches to a DS1 loop to activate such loop
for its own customer. Routine network modifications may entail
activities such as accessing manholes, deploying bucket trucks to reach
aerial cable, and installing equipment casings. Routine network

[[Page 36]]

modifications do not include the construction of a new loop, or the
installation of new aerial or buried cable for a requesting
telecommunications carrier.
    (8) Engineering policies, practices, and procedures. An incumbent
LEC shall not engineer the transmission capabilities of its network in a
manner, or engage in any policy, practice, or procedure, that disrupts
or degrades access to a local loop or subloop, including the time
division multiplexing-based features, functions, and capabilities of a
hybrid loop, for which a requesting telecommunications carrier may
obtain or has obtained access pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section.
    (b) Subloops. An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to subloops on
an unbundled basis in accordance with section 251(c)(3) of the Act and
this part and as set forth in paragraph (b) of this section.
    (1) Copper subloops. An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to a copper
subloop on an unbundled basis. A copper subloop is a portion of a copper
loop, or hybrid loop, comprised entirely of copper wire or copper cable
that acts as a transmission facility between any point of technically
feasible access in an incumbent LEC's outside plant, including inside
wire owned or controlled by the incumbent LEC, and the end-user customer
premises. A copper subloop includes all intermediate devices (including
repeaters and load coils) used to establish a transmission path between
a point of technically feasible access and the demarcation point at the
end-user customer premises, and includes the features, functions, and
capabilities of the copper loop. Copper subloops include two-wire and
four-wire analog voice-grade subloops as well as two-wire and four-wire
subloops conditioned to transmit the digital signals needed to provide
digital subscriber line services, regardless of whether the subloops are
in service or held as spares.
    (i) Point of technically feasible access. A point of technically
feasible access is any point in the incumbent LEC's outside plant where
a technician can access the copper wire within a cable without removing
a splice case. Such points include, but are not limited to, a pole or
pedestal, the serving area interface, the network interface device, the
minimum point of entry, any remote terminal, and the feeder/distribution
interface. An incumbent LEC shall, upon a site-specific request, provide
access to a copper subloop at a splice near a remote terminal. The
incumbent LEC shall be compensated for providing this access in
accordance with Sec. Sec. 51.501 through 51.515.
    (ii) Rules for collocation. Access to the copper subloop is subject
to the Commission's collocation rules at Sec. Sec. 51.321 and 51.323.
    (2) Subloops for access to multiunit premises wiring. An incumbent
LEC shall provide a requesting telecommunications carrier with
nondiscriminatory access to the subloop for access to multiunit premises
wiring on an unbundled basis regardless of the capacity level or type of
loop that the requesting telecommunications carrier seeks to provision
for its customer. The subloop for access to multiunit premises wiring is
defined as any portion of the loop that it is technically feasible to
access at a terminal in the incumbent LEC's outside plant at or near a
multiunit premises. One category of this subloop is inside wire, which
is defined for purposes of this section as all loop plant owned or
controlled by the incumbent LEC at a multiunit customer premises between
the minimum point of entry as defined in Sec. 68.105 of this chapter
and the point of demarcation of the incumbent LEC's network as defined
in Sec. 68.3 of this chapter.
    (i) Point of technically feasible access. A point of technically
feasible access is any point in the incumbent LEC's outside plant at or
near a multiunit premises where a technician can access the wire or
fiber within the cable without removing a splice case to reach the wire
or fiber within to access the wiring in the multiunit premises. Such
points include, but are not limited to, a pole or pedestal, the network
interface device, the minimum point of

[[Page 37]]

entry, the single point of interconnection, and the feeder/distribution
interface.
    (ii) Single point of interconnection. Upon notification by a
requesting telecommunications carrier that it requests interconnection
at a multiunit premises where the incumbent LEC owns, controls, or
leases wiring, the incumbent LEC shall provide a single point of
interconnection that is suitable for use by multiple carriers. This
obligation is in addition to the incumbent LEC's obligations, under
paragraph (b)(2) of this section, to provide nondiscriminatory access to
a subloop for access to multiunit premises wiring, including any inside
wire, at any technically feasible point. If the parties are unable to
negotiate rates, terms, and conditions under which the incumbent LEC
will provide this single point of interconnection, then any issues in
dispute regarding this obligation shall be resolved in state proceedings
under section 252 of the Act.
    (3) Other subloop provisions--(i) Technical feasibility. If parties
are unable to reach agreement through voluntary negotiations as to
whether it is technically feasible, or whether sufficient space is
available, to unbundle a copper subloop or subloop for access to
multiunit premises wiring at the point where a telecommunications
carrier requests, the incumbent LEC shall have the burden of
demonstrating to the state commission, in state proceedings under
section 252 of the Act, that there is not sufficient space available, or
that it is not technically feasible to unbundle the subloop at the point
requested.
    (ii) Best practices. Once one state commission has determined that
it is technically feasible to unbundle subloops at a designated point,
an incumbent LEC in any state shall have the burden of demonstrating to
the state commission, in state proceedings under section 252 of the Act,
that it is not technically feasible, or that sufficient space is not
available, to unbundle its own loops at such a point.
    (c) Network interface device. Apart from its obligation to provide
the network interface device functionality as part of an unbundled loop
or subloop, an incumbent LEC also shall provide nondiscriminatory access
to the network interface device on an unbundled basis, in accordance
with section 251(c)(3) of the Act and this part. The network interface
device element is a stand-alone network element and is defined as any
means of interconnection of customer premises wiring to the incumbent
LEC's distribution plant, such as a cross-connect device used for that
purpose. An incumbent LEC shall permit a requesting telecommunications
carrier to connect its own loop facilities to on-premises wiring through
the incumbent LEC's network interface device, or at any other
technically feasible point.
    (d) Dedicated transport. An incumbent LEC shall provide a requesting
telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to dedicated
transport on an unbundled basis, in accordance with section 251(c)(3) of
the Act and this part, as set forth in paragraphs (d) through (d)(4) of
this section. A ``route'' is a transmission path between one of an
incumbent LEC's wire centers or switches and another of the incumbent
LEC's wire centers or switches. A route between two points (e.g., wire
center or switch ``A'' and wire center or switch ``Z'') may pass through
one or more intermediate wire centers or switches (e.g., wire center or
switch ``X''). Transmission paths between identical end points (e.g.,
wire center or switch ``A'' and wire center or switch ``Z'') are the
same ``route,'' irrespective of whether they pass through the same
intermediate wire centers or switches, if any.
    (1) Definition. For purposes of this section, dedicated transport
includes incumbent LEC transmission facilities between wire centers or
switches owned by incumbent LECs, or between wire centers or switches
owned by incumbent LECs and switches owned by requesting
telecommunications carriers, including, but not limited to, DS1-, DS3-,
and OCn-capacity level services, as well as dark fiber, dedicated to a
particular customer or carrier.
    (2) Availability.
    (i) Entrance facilities. An incumbent LEC is not obligated to
provide a requesting carrier with unbundled access to dedicated
transport that does not

[[Page 38]]

connect a pair of incumbent LEC wire centers.
    (ii) Dedicated DS1 transport. Dedicated DS1 transport shall be made
available to requesting carriers on an unbundled basis as set forth in
paragraphs (d)(2)(ii)(A) and (B) of this section. Dedicated DS1
transport consists of incumbent LEC interoffice transmission facilities
that have a total digital signal speed of 1.544 megabytes per second and
are dedicated to a particular customer or carrier.
    (A) General availability of DS1 transport. Incumbent LECs shall
unbundle DS1 transport between any pair of incumbent LEC wire centers
except where, through application of tier classifications described in
paragraph (d)(3) of this section, both wire centers defining the route
are Tier 1 wire centers. As such, an incumbent LEC must unbundle DS1
transport if a wire center at either end of a requested route is not a
Tier 1 wire center, or if neither is a Tier 1 wire center.
    (B) Cap on unbundled DS1 transport circuits. A requesting
telecommunications carrier may obtain a maximum of ten unbundled DS1
dedicated transport circuits on each route where DS1 dedicated transport
is available on an unbundled basis.
    (iii) Dedicated DS3 transport. Dedicated DS3 transport shall be made
available to requesting carriers on an unbundled basis as set forth in
paragraphs (d)(2)(iii)(A) and(B) of this section. Dedicated DS3
transport consists of incumbent LEC interoffice transmission facilities
that have a total digital signal speed of 44.736 megabytes per second
and are dedicated to a particular customer or carrier.
    (A) General availability of DS3 transport. Incumbent LECs shall
unbundle DS3 transport between any pair of incumbent LEC wire centers
except where, through application of tier classifications described in
paragraph (d)(3) of this section, both wire centers defining the route
are either Tier 1 or Tier 2 wire centers. As such, an incumbent LEC must
unbundle DS3 transport if a wire center on either end of a requested
route is a Tier 3 wire center.
    (B) Cap on unbundled DS3 transport circuits. A requesting
telecommunications carrier may obtain a maximum of 12 unbundled DS3
dedicated transport circuits on each route where DS3 dedicated transport
is available on an unbundled basis.
    (iv) Dark fiber transport. Dark fiber transport consists of
unactivated optical interoffice transmission facilities. Incumbent LECs
shall unbundle dark fiber transport between any pair of incumbent LEC
wire centers except where, through application of tier classifications
described in paragraph (d)(3) of this section, both wire centers
defining the route are either Tier 1 or Tier 2 wire centers. An
incumbent LEC must unbundle dark fiber transport if a wire center on
either end of a requested route is a Tier 3 wire center.
    (3) Wire center tier structure. For purposes of this section,
incumbent LEC wire centers shall be classified into three tiers, defined
as follows:
    (i) Tier 1 wire centers are those incumbent LEC wire centers that
contain at least four fiber-based collocators, at least 38,000 business
lines, or both. Tier 1 wire centers also are those incumbent LEC tandem
switching locations that have no line-side switching facilities, but
nevertheless serve as a point of traffic aggregation accessible by
competitive LECs. Once a wire center is determined to be a Tier 1 wire
center, that wire center is not subject to later reclassification as a
Tier 2 or Tier 3 wire center.
    (ii) Tier 2 wire centers are those incumbent LEC wire centers that
are not Tier 1 wire centers, but contain at least 3 fiber-based
collocators, at least 24,000 business lines, or both. Once a wire center
is determined to be a Tier 2 wire center, that wire center is not
subject to later reclassification as a Tier 3 wire center.
    (iii) Tier 3 wire centers are those incumbent LEC wire centers that
do not meet the criteria for Tier 1 or Tier 2 wire centers.
    (4) Routine network modifications. (i) An incumbent LEC shall make
all routine network modifications to unbundled dedicated transport
facilities used by requesting telecommunications carriers where the
requested dedicated transport facilities have already been constructed.
An incumbent LEC shall perform all routine network modifications to
unbundled dedicated

[[Page 39]]

transport facilities in a nondiscriminatory fashion, without regard to
whether the facility being accessed was constructed on behalf, or in
accordance with the specifications, of any carrier.
    (ii) A routine network modification is an activity that the
incumbent LEC regularly undertakes for its own customers. Routine
network modifications include, but are not limited to, rearranging or
splicing of cable; adding an equipment case; adding a doubler or
repeater; installing a repeater shelf; and deploying a new multiplexer
or reconfiguring an existing multiplexer. They also include activities
needed to enable a requesting telecommunications carrier to light a dark
fiber transport facility. Routine network modifications may entail
activities such as accessing manholes, deploying bucket trucks to reach
aerial cable, and installing equipment casings. Routine network
modifications do not include the installation of new aerial or buried
cable for a requesting telecommunications carrier.
    (e) 911 and E911 databases. An incumbent LEC shall provide a
requesting telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to
911 and E911 databases on an unbundled basis, in accordance with section
251(c)(3) of the Act and this part.
    (f) Operations support systems. An incumbent LEC shall provide a
requesting telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to
operations support systems on an unbundled basis, in accordance with
section 251(c)(3) of the Act and this part. Operations support system
functions consist of pre-ordering, ordering, provisioning, maintenance
and repair, and billing functions supported by an incumbent LEC's
databases and information. An incumbent LEC, as part of its duty to
provide access to the pre-ordering function, shall provide the
requesting telecommunications carrier with nondiscriminatory access to
the same detailed information about the loop that is available to the
incumbent LEC.

[68 FR 52295, Sept. 4, 2003, as amended at 68 FR 64000, Nov. 12, 2003;
69 FR 54591, Sept. 9, 2004; 69 FR 77953, Dec. 29, 2004; 70 FR 8953, Feb.
24, 2005:78 FR 5746, Jan. 28, 2013]



Sec. 51.320  Assumption of responsibility by the Commission.

    If a state commission fails to exercise its authority under Sec.
51.319, any party seeking that the Commission step into the role of the
state commission shall file with the Commission and serve on the state
commission a petition that explains with specificity the bases for the
petition and information that supports the claim that the state
commission has failed to act. Subsequent to the Commission's issuing a
public notice and soliciting comments on the petition from interested
parties, the Commission will rule on the petition within 90 days of the
date of the public notice. If it agrees that the state commission has
failed to act, the Commission will assume responsibility for the
proceeding, and within nine months from the date it assumed
responsibility for the proceeding, make any findings in accordance with
the Commission's rules.

[68 FR 52305, Sept. 2, 2003]



Sec. 51.321  Methods of obtaining interconnection and access to
unbundled elements under section 251 of the Act.

    (a) Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this section, an
incumbent LEC shall provide, on terms and conditions that are just,
reasonable, and nondiscriminatory in accordance with the requirements of
this part, any technically feasible method of obtaining interconnection
or access to unbundled network elements at a particular point upon a
request by a telecommunications carrier.
    (b) Technically feasible methods of obtaining interconnection or
access to unbundled network elements include, but are not limited to:
    (1) Physical collocation and virtual collocation at the premises of
an incumbent LEC; and
    (2) Meet point interconnection arrangements.
    (c) A previously successful method of obtaining interconnection or
access to unbundled network elements at a particular premises or point
on any incumbent LEC's network is substantial evidence that such method
is technically feasible in the case of substantially similar network
premises or

[[Page 40]]

points. A requesting telecommunications carrier seeking a particular
collocation arrangement, either physical or virtual, is entitled to a
presumption that such arrangement is technically feasible if any LEC has
deployed such collocation arrangement in any incumbent LEC premises.
    (d) An incumbent LEC that denies a request for a particular method
of obtaining interconnection or access to unbundled network elements on
the incumbent LEC's network must prove to the state commission that the
requested method of obtaining interconnection or access to unbundled
network elements at that point is not technically feasible.
    (e) An incumbent LEC shall not be required to provide for physical
collocation of equipment necessary for interconnection or access to
unbundled network elements at the incumbent LEC's premises if it
demonstrates to the state commission that physical collocation is not
practical for technical reasons or because of space limitations. In such
cases, the incumbent LEC shall be required to provide virtual
collocation, except at points where the incumbent LEC proves to the
state commission that virtual collocation is not technically feasible.
If virtual collocation is not technically feasible, the incumbent LEC
shall provide other methods of interconnection and access to unbundled
network elements to the extent technically feasible.
    (f) An incumbent LEC shall submit to the state commission, subject
to any protective order as the state commission may deem necessary,
detailed floor plans or diagrams of any premises where the incumbent LEC
claims that physical collocation is not practical because of space
limitations. These floor plans or diagrams must show what space, if any,
the incumbent LEC or any of its affiliates has reserved for future use,
and must describe in detail the specific future uses for which the space
has been reserved and the length of time for each reservation. An
incumbent LEC that contends space for physical collocation is not
available in an incumbent LEC premises must also allow the requesting
carrier to tour the entire premises in question, not only the area in
which space was denied, without charge, within ten days of the receipt
of the incumbent's denial of space. An incumbent LEC must allow a
requesting telecommunications carrier reasonable access to its selected
collocation space during construction.
    (g) An incumbent LEC that is classified as a Class A company under
Sec. 32.11 of this chapter and that is not a National Exchange Carrier
Association interstate tariff participant as provided in part 69,
subpart G, shall continue to provide expanded interconnection service
pursuant to interstate tariff in accordance with Sec. Sec. 64.1401,
64.1402, 69.121 of this chapter, and the Commission's other
requirements.
    (h) Upon request, an incumbent LEC must submit to the requesting
carrier within ten days of the submission of the request a report
describing in detail the space that is available for collocation in a
particular incumbent LEC premises. This report must specify the amount
of collocation space available at each requested premises, the number of
collocators, and any modifications in the use of the space since the
last report. This report must also include measures that the incumbent
LEC is taking to make additional space available for collocation. The
incumbent LEC must maintain a publicly available document, posted for
viewing on the incumbent LEC's publicly available Internet site,
indicating all premises that are full, and must update such a document
within ten days of the date at which a premises runs out of physical
collocation space.
    (i) An incumbent LEC must, upon request, remove obsolete unused
equipment from their premises to increase the amount of space available
for collocation.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 28, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 23241, Apr. 30, 1999;
65 FR 54438, Sept. 8, 2000; 66 FR 43521, Aug. 20, 2001]



Sec. 51.323  Standards for physical collocation and virtual collocation.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall provide physical collocation and virtual
collocation to requesting telecommunications carriers.
    (b) An incumbent LEC shall permit the collocation and use of any
equipment necessary for interconnection or access to unbundled network
elements.

[[Page 41]]

    (1) Equipment is necessary for interconnection if an inability to
deploy that equipment would, as a practical, economic, or operational
matter, preclude the requesting carrier from obtaining interconnection
with the incumbent LEC at a level equal in quality to that which the
incumbent obtains within its own network or the incumbent provides to
any affiliate, subsidiary, or other party.
    (2) Equipment is necessary for access to an unbundled network
element if an inability to deploy that equipment would, as a practical,
economic, or operational matter, preclude the requesting carrier from
obtaining nondiscriminatory access to that unbundled network element,
including any of its features, functions, or capabilities.
    (3) Multi-functional equipment shall be deemed necessary for
interconnection or access to an unbundled network element if and only if
the primary purpose and function of the equipment, as the requesting
carrier seeks to deploy it, meets either or both of the standards set
forth in paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) of this section. For a piece of
equipment to be utilized primarily to obtain equal in quality
interconnection or nondiscriminatory access to one or more unbundled
network elements, there also must be a logical nexus between the
additional functions the equipment would perform and the
telecommunication services the requesting carrier seeks to provide to
its customers by means of the interconnection or unbundled network
element. The collocation of those functions of the equipment that, as
stand-alone functions, do not meet either of the standards set forth in
paragraphs (b)(1) and (b)(2) of this section must not cause the
equipment to significantly increase the burden on the incumbent's
property.
    (c) Whenever an incumbent LEC objects to collocation of equipment by
a requesting telecommunications carrier for purposes within the scope of
section 251(c)(6) of the Act, the incumbent LEC shall prove to the state
commission that the equipment is not necessary for interconnection or
access to unbundled network elements under the standards set forth in
paragraph (b) of this section. An incumbent LEC may not object to the
collocation of equipment on the grounds that the equipment does not
comply with safety or engineering standards that are more stringent than
the safety or engineering standards that the incumbent LEC applies to
its own equipment. An incumbent LEC may not object to the collocation of
equipment on the ground that the equipment fails to comply with Network
Equipment and Building Specifications performance standards or any other
performance standards. An incumbent LEC that denies collocation of a
competitor's equipment, citing safety standards, must provide to the
competitive LEC within five business days of the denial a list of all
equipment that the incumbent LEC locates at the premises in question,
together with an affidavit attesting that all of that equipment meets or
exceeds the safety standard that the incumbent LEC contends the
competitor's equipment fails to meet. This affidavit must set forth in
detail: the exact safety requirement that the requesting carrier's
equipment does not satisfy; the incumbent LEC's basis for concluding
that the requesting carrier's equipment does not meet this safety
requirement; and the incumbent LEC's basis for concluding why
collocation of equipment not meeting this safety requirement would
compromise network safety.
    (d) When an incumbent LEC provides physical collocation, virtual
collocation, or both, the incumbent LEC shall:
    (1) Provide an interconnection point or points, physically
accessible by both the incumbent LEC and the collocating
telecommunications carrier, at which the fiber optic cable carrying an
interconnector's circuits can enter the incumbent LEC's premises,
provided that the incumbent LEC shall designate interconnection points
as close as reasonably possible to its premises;
    (2) Provide at least two such interconnection points at each
incumbent LEC premises at which there are at least two entry points for
the incumbent LEC's cable facilities, and at which space is available
for new facilities in at least two of those entry points;
    (3) Permit interconnection of copper or coaxial cable if such
interconnection

[[Page 42]]

is first approved by the state commission; and
    (4) Permit physical collocation of microwave transmission facilities
except where such collocation is not practical for technical reasons or
because of space limitations, in which case virtual collocation of such
facilities is required where technically feasible.
    (e) When providing virtual collocation, an incumbent LEC shall, at a
minimum, install, maintain, and repair collocated equipment meeting the
standards set forth in paragraph (b) of this section within the same
time periods and with failure rates that are no greater than those that
apply to the performance of similar functions for comparable equipment
of the incumbent LEC itself.
    (f) An incumbent LEC shall provide space for the collocation of
equipment meeting the standards set forth in paragraph (b) of this
section in accordance with the following requirements:
    (1) An incumbent LEC shall make space available within or on its
premises to requesting telecommunications carriers on a first-come,
first-served basis, provided, however, that the incumbent LEC shall not
be required to lease or construct additional space to provide for
physical collocation when existing space has been exhausted;
    (2) To the extent possible, an incumbent LEC shall make contiguous
space available to requesting telecommunications carriers that seek to
expand their existing collocation space;
    (3) When planning renovations of existing facilities or constructing
or leasing new facilities, an incumbent LEC shall take into account
projected demand for collocation of equipment;
    (4) An incumbent LEC may retain a limited amount of floor space for
its own specific future uses, provided, however, that neither the
incumbent LEC nor any of its affiliates may reserve space for future use
on terms more favorable than those that apply to other
telecommunications carriers seeking to reserve collocation space for
their own future use;
    (5) An incumbent LEC shall relinquish any space held for future use
before denying a request for virtual collocation on the grounds of space
limitations, unless the incumbent LEC proves to the state commission
that virtual collocation at that point is not technically feasible; and
    (6) An incumbent LEC may impose reasonable restrictions on the
warehousing of unused space by collocating telecommunications carriers,
provided, however, that the incumbent LEC shall not set maximum space
limitations applicable to such carriers unless the incumbent LEC proves
to the state commission that space constraints make such restrictions
necessary.
    (7) An incumbent LEC must assign collocation space to requesting
carriers in a just, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory manner. An
incumbent LEC must allow each carrier requesting physical collocation to
submit space preferences prior to assigning physical collocation space
to that carrier. At a minimum, an incumbent LEC's space assignment
policies and practices must meet the following principles:
    (A) An incumbent LEC's space assignment policies and practices must
not materially increase a requesting carrier's collocation costs.
    (B) An incumbent LEC's space assignment policies and practices must
not materially delay a requesting carrier occupation and use of the
incumbent LEC's premises.
    (C) An incumbent LEC must not assign physical collocation space that
will impair the quality of service or impose other limitations on the
service a requesting carrier wishes to offer.
    (D) An incumbent LEC's space assignment policies and practices must
not reduce unreasonably the total space available for physical
collocation or preclude unreasonably physical collocation within the
incumbent's premises.
    (g) An incumbent LEC shall permit collocating telecommunications
carriers to collocate equipment and connect such equipment to unbundled
network transmission elements obtained from the incumbent LEC, and shall
not require such telecommunications carriers to bring their own
transmission facilities to the incumbent LEC's premises in which they
seek to collocate equipment.

[[Page 43]]

    (h) As described in paragraphs (1) and (2) of this section, an
incumbent LEC shall permit a collocating telecommunications carrier to
interconnect its network with that of another collocating
telecommunications carrier at the incumbent LEC's premises and to
connect its collocated equipment to the collocated equipment of another
telecommunications carrier within the same premises, provided that the
collocated equipment is also used for interconnection with the incumbent
LEC or for access to the incumbent LEC's unbundled network elements.
    (1) An incumbent LEC shall provide, at the request of a collocating
telecommunications carrier, a connection between the equipment in the
collocated spaces of two or more telecommunications carriers, except to
the extent the incumbent LEC permits the collocating parties to provide
the requested connection for themselves or a connection is not required
under paragraph (h)(2) of this section. Where technically feasible, the
incumbent LEC shall provide the connection using copper, dark fiber, lit
fiber, or other transmission medium, as requested by the collocating
telecommunications carrier.
    (2) An incumbent LEC is not required to provide a connection between
the equipment in the collocated spaces of two or more telecommunications
carriers if the connection is requested pursuant to section 201 of the
Act, unless the requesting carrier submits to the incumbent LEC a
certification that more than 10 percent of the amount of traffic to be
transmitted through the connection will be interstate. The incumbent LEC
cannot refuse to accept the certification, but instead must provision
the service promptly. Any incumbent LEC may file a section 208 complaint
with the Commission challenging the certification if it believes that
the certification is deficient. No such certification is required for a
request for such connection under section 251 of the Act.
    (i) As provided herein, an incumbent LEC may require reasonable
security arrangements to protect its equipment and ensure network
reliability. An incumbent LEC may only impose security arrangements that
are as stringent as the security arrangements that the incumbent LEC
maintains at its own premises for its own employees or authorized
contractors. An incumbent LEC must allow collocating parties to access
their collocated equipment 24 hours a day, seven days a week, without
requiring either a security escort of any kind or delaying a
competitor's employees' entry into the incumbent LEC's premises. An
incumbent LEC may require a collocating carrier to pay only for the
least expensive, effective security option that is viable for the
physical collocation space assigned. Reasonable security measures that
the incumbent LEC may adopt include:
    (1) Installing security cameras or other monitoring systems; or
    (2) Requiring competitive LEC personnel to use badges with
computerized tracking systems; or
    (3) Requiring competitive LEC employees to undergo the same level of
security training, or its equivalent, that the incumbent's own
employees, or third party contractors providing similar functions, must
undergo; provided, however, that the incumbent LEC may not require
competitive LEC employees to receive such training from the incumbent
LEC itself, but must provide information to the competitive LEC on the
specific type of training required so the competitive LEC's employees
can conduct their own training.
    (4) Restricting physical collocation to space separated from space
housing the incumbent LEC's equipment, provided that each of the
following conditions is met:
    (i) Either legitimate security concerns, or operational constraints
unrelated to the incumbent's or any of its affiliates' or subsidiaries
competitive concerns, warrant such separation;
    (ii) Any physical collocation space assigned to an affiliate or
subsidiary of the incumbent LEC is separated from space housing the
incumbent LEC's equipment;
    (iii) The separated space will be available in the same time frame
as, or a shorter time frame than, non-separated space;

[[Page 44]]

    (iv) The cost of the separated space to the requesting carrier will
not be materially higher than the cost of non-separated space; and
    (v) The separated space is comparable, from a technical and
engineering standpoint, to non-separated space.
    (5) Requiring the employees and contractors of collocating carriers
to use a central or separate entrance to the incumbent's building,
provided, however, that where an incumbent LEC requires that the
employees or contractors of collocating carriers access collocated
equipment only through a separate entrance, employees and contractors of
the incumbent LEC's affiliates and subsidiaries must be subject to the
same restriction.
    (6) Constructing or requiring the construction of a separate
entrance to access physical collocation space, provided that each of the
following conditions is met:
    (i) Construction of a separate entrance is technically feasible;
    (ii) Either legitimate security concerns, or operational constraints
unrelated to the incumbent's or any of its affiliates' or subsidiaries
competitive concerns, warrant such separation;
    (iii) Construction of a separate entrance will not artificially
delay collocation provisioning; and
    (iv) Construction of a separate entrance will not materially
increase the requesting carrier's costs.
    (j) An incumbent LEC shall permit a collocating telecommunications
carrier to subcontract the construction of physical collocation
arrangements with contractors approved by the incumbent LEC, provided,
however, that the incumbent LEC shall not unreasonably withhold approval
of contractors. Approval by an incumbent LEC shall be based on the same
criteria it uses in approving contractors for its own purposes.
    (k) An incumbent LEC's physical collocation offering must include
the following:
    (1) Shared collocation cages. A shared collocation cage is a caged
collocation space shared by two or more competitive LECs pursuant to
terms and conditions agreed to by the competitive LECs. In making shared
cage arrangements available, an incumbent LEC may not increase the cost
of site preparation or nonrecurring charges above the cost for
provisioning such a cage of similar dimensions and material to a single
collocating party. In addition, the incumbent must prorate the charge
for site conditioning and preparation undertaken by the incumbent to
construct the shared collocation cage or condition the space for
collocation use, regardless of how many carriers actually collocate in
that cage, by determining the total charge for site preparation and
allocating that charge to a collocating carrier based on the percentage
of the total space utilized by that carrier. An incumbent LEC must make
shared collocation space available in single-bay increments or their
equivalent, i.e., a competing carrier can purchase space in increments
small enough to collocate a single rack, or bay, of equipment.
    (2) Cageless collocation. Incumbent LECs must allow competitors to
collocate without requiring the construction of a cage or similar
structure. Incumbent LECs must permit collocating carriers to have
direct access to their equipment. An incumbent LEC may not require
competitors to use an intermediate interconnection arrangement in lieu
of direct connection to the incumbent's network if technically feasible.
An incumbent LEC must make cageless collocation space available in
single-bay increments, meaning that a competing carrier can purchase
space in increments small enough to collocate a single rack, or bay, of
equipment.
    (3) Adjacent space collocation. An incumbent LEC must make
available, where physical collocation space is legitimately exhausted in
a particular incumbent LEC structure, collocation in adjacent controlled
environmental vaults, controlled environmental huts, or similar
structures located at the incumbent LEC premises to the extent
technically feasible. The incumbent LEC must permit a requesting
telecommunications carrier to construct or otherwise procure such an
adjacent structure, subject only to reasonable safety and maintenance
requirements. The incumbent must provide power and

[[Page 45]]

physical collocation services and facilities, subject to the same
nondiscrimination requirements as applicable to any other physical
collocation arrangement. The incumbent LEC must permit the requesting
carrier to place its own equipment, including, but not limited to,
copper cables, coaxial cables, fiber cables, and telecommunications
equipment, in adjacent facilities constructed by the incumbent LEC, the
requesting carrier, or a third-party. If physical collocation space
becomes available in a previously exhausted incumbent LEC structure, the
incumbent LEC must not require a carrier to move, or prohibit a
competitive LEC from moving, a collocation arrangement into that
structure. Instead, the incumbent LEC must continue to allow the carrier
to collocate in any adjacent controlled environmental vault, controlled
environmental vault, or similar structure that the carrier has
constructed or otherwise procured.
    (l) An incumbent LEC must offer to provide and provide all forms of
physical collocation (i.e., caged, cageless, shared, and adjacent)
within the following deadlines, except to the extent a state sets its
own deadlines or the incumbent LEC has demonstrated to the state
commission that physical collocation is not practical for technical
reasons or because of space limitations.
    (1) Within ten days after receiving an application for physical
collocation, an incumbent LEC must inform the requesting carrier whether
the application meets each of the incumbent LEC's established
collocation standards. A requesting carrier that resubmits a revised
application curing any deficiencies in an application for physical
collocation within ten days after being informed of them retains its
position within any collocation queue that the incumbent LEC maintains
pursuant to paragraph (f)(1) of this section.
    (2) Except as stated in paragraphs (l)(3) and (l)(4) of this
section, an incumbent LEC must complete provisioning of a requested
physical collocation arrangement within 90 days after receiving an
application that meets the incumbent LEC's established collocation
application standards.
    (3) An incumbent LEC need not meet the deadline set forth in
paragraph (l)(2) of this section if, after receipt of any price
quotation provided by the incumbent LEC, the telecommunications carrier
requesting collocation does not notify the incumbent LEC that physical
collocation should proceed.
    (4) If, within seven days of the requesting carrier's receipt of any
price quotation provided by the incumbent LEC, the telecommunications
carrier requesting collocation does not notify the incumbent LEC that
physical collocation should proceed, then the incumbent LEC need not
complete provisioning of a requested physical collocation arrangement
until 90 days after receiving such notification from the requesting
telecommunications carrier.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 28, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 23242, Apr. 30, 1999;
65 FR 54439, Sept. 8, 2000; 66 FR 43521, Aug. 20, 2001]



Sec. 51.325  Notice of network changes: Public notice requirement.

    (a) An incumbent local exchange carrier (``LEC'') must provide
public notice regarding any network change that:
    (1) Will affect a competing service provider's performance or
ability to provide service;
    (2) Will affect the incumbent LEC's interoperability with other
service providers; or
    (3) Will affect the manner in which customer premises equipment is
attached to the interstate network.
    (4) Will result in the retirement of copper loops or copper
subloops, and the replacement of such loops with fiber-to-the-home loops
or fiber-to-the-curb loops, as those terms are defined in Sec.
51.319(a)(3).
    (b) For purposes of this section, interoperability means the ability
of two or more facilities, or networks, to be connected, to exchange
information, and to use the information that has been exchanged.
    (c) Until public notice has been given in accordance with Sec. Sec.
51.325 through 51.335, an incumbent LEC may not disclose to separate
affiliates, separated affiliates, or unaffiliated entities (including
actual or potential competing service providers or competitors),
information about planned network

[[Page 46]]

changes that are subject to this section.
    (d) For the purposes of Sec. Sec. 51.325 through 51.335, the term
services means telecommunications services or information services.

[61 FR 47351, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 14148, Mar. 24, 1999;
68 FR 52305, Sept. 2, 2003; 69 FR 77954, Dec. 29, 2004]



Sec. 51.327  Notice of network changes: Content of notice.

    (a) Public notice of planned network changes must, at a minimum,
include:
    (1) The carrier's name and address;
    (2) The name and telephone number of a contact person who can supply
additional information regarding the planned changes;
    (3) The implementation date of the planned changes;
    (4) The location(s) at which the changes will occur;
    (5) A description of the type of changes planned (Information
provided to satisfy this requirement must include, as applicable, but is
not limited to, references to technical specifications, protocols, and
standards regarding transmission, signaling, routing, and facility
assignment as well as references to technical standards that would be
applicable to any new technologies or equipment, or that may otherwise
affect interconnection); and
    (6) A description of the reasonably foreseeable impact of the
planned changes.
    (b) The incumbent LEC also shall follow, as necessary, procedures
relating to confidential or proprietary information contained in Sec.
51.335.

[61 FR 47351, Sept. 6, 1996]



Sec. 51.329  Notice of network changes: Methods for providing notice.

    (a) In providing the required notice to the public of network
changes, an incumbent LEC may use one of the following methods:
    (1) Filing a public notice with the Commission; or
    (2) Providing public notice through industry fora, industry
publications, or the carrier's publicly accessible Internet site. If an
incumbent LEC uses any of the methods specified in paragraph (a)(2) of
this section, it also must file a certification with the Commission that
includes:
    (i) A statement that identifies the proposed changes;
    (ii) A statement that public notice has been given in compliance
with Sec. Sec. 51.325 through 51.335; and
    (iii) A statement identifying the location of the change information
and describing how this information can be obtained.
    (b) Until the planned change is implemented, an incumbent LEC must
keep the notice available for public inspection, and amend the notice to
keep the information complete, accurate and up-to-date.
    (c) Specific filing requirements. Commission filings under this
section must be made as follows:
    (1) The public notice or certification must be labeled with one of
the following titles, as appropriate: ``Public Notice of Network Change
Under Rule 51.329(a),'' ``Certification of Public Notice of Network
Change Under Rule 51.329(a),'' ``Short Term Public Notice Under Rule
51.333(a),'' or ``Certification of Short Term Public Notice Under Rule
51.333(a).''
    (2) Two paper copies of the incumbent LEC's public notice or
certification, required under paragraph (a) of this section, must be
sent to ``Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC
20554.'' The date on which this filing is received by the Secretary is
considered the official filing date.

[61 FR 47351, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 67 FR 13225, Mar. 21, 2002;
71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006]



Sec. 51.331  Notice of network changes: Timing of notice.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall give public notice of planned changes at
the make/buy point, as defined in paragraph (b) of this section, but at
least 12 months before implementation, except as provided below:
    (1) If the changes can be implemented within twelve months of the
make/buy point, public notice must be given at the make/buy point, but
at least six months before implementation.
    (2) If the changes can be implemented within six months of the make/
buy

[[Page 47]]

point, public notice may be given pursuant to the short term notice
procedures provided in Sec. 51.333.
    (b) For purposes of this section, the make/buy point is the time at
which an incumbent LEC decides to make for itself, or to procure from
another entity, any product the design of which affects or relies on a
new or changed network interface. If an incumbent LEC's planned changes
do not require it to make or to procure a product, then the make/buy
point is the point at which the incumbent LEC makes a definite decision
to implement a network change.
    (1) For purposes of this section, a product is any hardware r
software for use in an incumbent LEC's network or in conjunction with
its facilities that, when installed, could affect the compatibility of
an interconnected service provider's network, facilities or services
with an incumbent LEC's existing telephone network, facilities or
services, or with any of an incumbent carrier's services or
capabilities.
    (2) For purposes of this section a definite decision is reached when
an incumbent LEC determines that the change is warranted, establishes a
timetable for anticipated implementation, and takes any action toward
implementation of the change within its network.
    (c) Competing service providers may object to incumbent LEC notice
of retirement of copper loops or copper subloops and replacement with
fiber-to-the-home loops or fiber-to-the-curb loops in the manner set
forth in Sec. 51.333(c).

[61 FR 47352, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 68 FR 52305, Sept. 2, 2003;
69 FR 77954, Dec. 29, 2004]



Sec. 51.333  Notice of network changes: Short term notice, objections
thereto and objections to retirement of copper loops or copper subloops.

    (a) Certificate of service. If an incumbent LEC wishes to provide
less than six months notice of planned network changes, the public
notice or certification that it files with the Commission must include a
certificate of service in addition to the information required by Sec.
51.327(a) or Sec. 51.329(a)(2), as applicable. The certificate of
service shall include:
    (1) A statement that, at least five business days in advance of its
filing with the Commission, the incumbent LEC served a copy of its
public notice upon each telephone exchange service provider that
directly interconnects with the incumbent LEC's network; and
    (2) The name and address of each such telephone exchange service
provider upon which the notice was served.
    (b) Implementation date. The Commission will release a public notice
of filings of such short term notices or notices of replacement of
copper loops or copper subloops with fiber-to-the-home loops or fiber-
to-the-curb loops. The effective date of the network changes referenced
in those filings shall be subject to the following requirements:
    (1) Short term notice. Short term notices shall be deemed final on
the tenth business day after the release of the Commission's public
notice, unless an objection is filed pursuant to paragraph (c) of this
section.
    (2) Replacement of copper loops or copper subloops with fiber-to-
the-home loops or fiber-to-the-curb loops. Notices of replacement of
copper loops or copper subloops with fiber-to-the-home loops or fiber-
to-the-curb loops shall be deemed approved on the 90th day after the
release of the Commission's public notice of the filing, unless an
objection is filed pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section. Incumbent
LEC notice of intent to retire any copper loops or copper subloops and
replace such loops or subloops with fiber-to-the-home loops or fiber-to-
the-curb loops shall be subject to the short term notice provisions of
this section, but under no circumstances may an incumbent LEC provide
less than 90 days notice of such a change.
    (c) Objection procedures for short term notice and notices of
replacement of copper loops or copper subloops with fiber-to-the-home
loops or fiber-to-the-curb loops. An objection to an incumbent LEC's
short term notice or to its notice that it intends to retire copper
loops or copper subloops and replace such loops or subloops with fiber-
to-the-home loops or fiber-to-the-curb loops may be filed by an
information service provider or telecommunications service provider

[[Page 48]]

that directly interconnects with the incumbent LEC's network. Such
objections must be filed with the Commission, and served on the
incumbent LEC, no later than the ninth business day following the
release of the Commission's public notice. All objections filed under
this section must:
    (1) State specific reasons why the objector cannot accommodate the
incumbent LEC's changes by the date stated in the incumbent LEC's public
notice and must indicate any specific technical information or other
assistance required that would enable the objector to accommodate those
changes;
    (2) List steps the objector is taking to accommodate the incumbent
LEC's changes on an expedited basis;
    (3) State the earliest possible date (not to exceed six months from
the date the incumbent LEC gave its original public notice under this
section) by which the objector anticipates that it can accommodate the
incumbent LEC's changes, assuming it receives the technical information
or other assistance requested under paragraph (c)(1) of this section;
    (4) Provide any other information relevant to the objection; and
    (5) Provide the following affidavit, executed by the objector's
president, chief executive officer, or other corporate officer or
official, who has appropriate authority to bind the corporation, and
knowledge of the details of the objector's inability to adjust its
network on a timely basis:

    ``I, (name and title), under oath and subject to penalty for
perjury, certify that I have read this objection, that the statements
contained in it are true, that there is good ground to support the
objection, and that it is not interposed for purposes of delay. I have
appropriate authority to make this certification on behalf of (objector)
and I agree to provide any information the Commission may request to
allow the Commission to evaluate the truthfulness and validity of the
statements contained in this objection.''

    (d) Response to objections. If an objection is filed, an incumbent
LEC shall have until no later than the fourteenth business day following
the release of the Commission's public notice to file with the
Commission a response to the objection and to serve the response on all
parties that filed objections. An incumbent LEC's response must:
    (1) Provide information responsive to the allegations and concerns
identified by the objectors;
    (2) State whether the implementation date(s) proposed by the
objector(s) are acceptable;
    (3) Indicate any specific technical assistance that the incumbent
LEC is willing to give to the objectors; and
    (4) Provide any other relevant information.
    (e) Resolution. If an objection is filed pursuant to paragraph (c)
of this section, then the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, will issue
an order determining a reasonable public notice period, provided
however, that if an incumbent LEC does not file a response within the
time period allotted, or if the incumbent LEC's response accepts the
latest implementation date stated by an objector, then the incumbent
LEC's public notice shall be deemed amended to specify the
implementation date requested by the objector, without further
Commission action. An incumbent LEC must amend its public notice to
reflect any change in the applicable implementation date pursuant to
Sec. 51.329(b).
    (f) Resolution of objections to replacement of copper loops or
copper subloops with fiber-to-the-home loops or fiber-to-the-curb loops.
An objection to a notice that an incumbent LEC intends to retire any
copper loops or copper subloops and replace such loops or subloops with
fiber-to-the-home loops or fiber-to-the-curb loops shall be deemed
denied 90 days after the date on which the Commission releases public
notice of the incumbent LEC filing, unless the Commission rules
otherwise within that time. Until the Commission has either ruled on an
objection or the 90-day period for the Commission's consideration has
expired, an incumbent LEC may not retire those copper loops or copper
subloops at issue for replacement with fiber-to-the-home loops or fiber-
to-the-curb loops.

[61 FR 47352, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002;
68 FR 52305, Sept. 2, 2003; 69 FR 77954; Dec. 29, 2004]

[[Page 49]]



Sec. 51.335  Notice of network changes: Confidential or proprietary
information.

    (a) If an incumbent LEC claims that information otherwise required
to be disclosed is confidential or proprietary, the incumbent LEC's
public notice must include, in addition to the information identified in
Sec. 51.327(a), a statement that the incumbent LEC will make further
information available to those signing a nondisclosure agreement.
    (b) Tolling the public notice period. Upon receipt by an incumbent
LEC of a competing service provider's request for disclosure of
confidential or proprietary information, the applicable public notice
period will be tolled until the parties agree on the terms of a
nondisclosure agreement. An incumbent LEC receiving such a request must
amend its public notice as follows:
    (1) On the date it receives a request from a competing service
provider for disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, to
state that the notice period is tolled; and
    (2) On the date the nondisclosure agreement is finalized, to specify
a new implementation date.

[61 FR 47352, Sept. 6, 1996]



Subpart E_Exemptions, Suspensions, and Modifications of Requirements of
                         Section 251 of the Act



Sec. 51.401  State authority.

    A state commission shall determine whether a telephone company is
entitled, pursuant to section 251(f) of the Act, to exemption from, or
suspension or modification of, the requirements of section 251 of the
Act. Such determinations shall be made on a case-by-case basis.



Sec. 51.403  Carriers eligible for suspension or modification under
section 251(f)(2) of the Act.

    A LEC is not eligible for a suspension or modification of the
requirements of section 251(b) or section 251(c) of the Act pursuant to
section 251(f)(2) of the Act if such LEC, at the holding company level,
has two percent or more of the subscriber lines installed in the
aggregate nationwide.



Sec. 51.405  Burden of proof.

    (a) Upon receipt of a bona fide request for interconnection,
services, or access to unbundled network elements, a rural telephone
company must prove to the state commission that the rural telephone
company should be entitled, pursuant to section 251(f)(1) of the Act, to
continued exemption from the requirements of section 251(c) of the Act.
    (b) A LEC with fewer than two percent of the nation's subscriber
lines installed in the aggregate nationwide must prove to the state
commission, pursuant to section 251(f)(2) of the Act, that it is
entitled to a suspension or modification of the application of a
requirement or requirements of section 251(b) or 251(c) of the Act.
    (c) In order to justify continued exemption under section 251(f)(1)
of the Act once a bona fide request has been made, an incumbent LEC must
offer evidence that the application of the requirements of section
251(c) of the Act would be likely to cause undue economic burden beyond
the economic burden that is typically associated with efficient
competitive entry.
    (d) In order to justify a suspension or modification under section
251(f)(2) of the Act, a LEC must offer evidence that the application of
section 251(b) or section 251(c) of the Act would be likely to cause
undue economic burden beyond the economic burden that is typically
associated with efficient competitive entry.



                      Subpart F_Pricing of Elements



Sec. 51.501  Scope.

    (a) The rules in this subpart apply to the pricing of network
elements, interconnection, and methods of obtaining access to unbundled
elements, including physical collocation and virtual collocation.
    (b) As used in this subpart, the term ``element'' includes network
elements, interconnection, and methods of obtaining interconnection and
access to unbundled elements.

[[Page 50]]



Sec. 51.503  General pricing standard.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall offer elements to requesting
telecommunications carriers at rates, terms, and conditions that are
just, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory.
    (b) An incumbent LEC's rates for each element it offers shall comply
with the rate structure rules set forth in Sec. Sec. 51.507 and 51.509,
and shall be established, at the election of the state commission--
    (1) Pursuant to the forward-looking economic cost-based pricing
methodology set forth in Sec. Sec. 51.505 and 51.511; or
    (2) Consistent with the proxy ceilings and ranges set forth in Sec.
51.513.
    (c) The rates that an incumbent LEC assesses for elements shall not
vary on the basis of the class of customers served by the requesting
carrier, or on the type of services that the requesting carrier
purchasing such elements uses them to provide.



Sec. 51.505  Forward-looking economic cost.

    (a) In general. The forward-looking economic cost of an element
equals the sum of:
    (1) The total element long-run incremental cost of the element, as
described in paragraph (b); and
    (2) A reasonable allocation of forward-looking common costs, as
described in paragraph (c).
    (b) Total element long-run incremental cost. The total element long-
run incremental cost of an element is the forward-looking cost over the
long run of the total quantity of the facilities and functions that are
directly attributable to, or reasonably identifiable as incremental to,
such element, calculated taking as a given the incumbent LEC's provision
of other elements.
    (1) Efficient network configuration. The total element long-run
incremental cost of an element should be measured based on the use of
the most efficient telecommunications technology currently available and
the lowest cost network configuration, given the existing location of
the incumbent LEC's wire centers.
    (2) Forward-looking cost of capital. The forward-looking cost of
capital shall be used in calculating the total element long-run
incremental cost of an element.
    (3) Depreciation rates. The depreciation rates used in calculating
forward-looking economic costs of elements shall be economic
depreciation rates.
    (c) Reasonable allocation of forward-looking common costs--(1)
Forward-looking common costs. Forward-looking common costs are economic
costs efficiently incurred in providing a group of elements or services
(which may include all elements or services provided by the incumbent
LEC) that cannot be attributed directly to individual elements or
services.
    (2) Reasonable allocation. (i) The sum of a reasonable allocation of
forward-looking common costs and the total element long-run incremental
cost of an element shall not exceed the stand-alone costs associated
with the element. In this context, stand-alone costs are the total
forward-looking costs, including corporate costs, that would be incurred
to produce a given element if that element were provided by an efficient
firm that produced nothing but the given element.
    (ii) The sum of the allocation of forward-looking common costs for
all elements and services shall equal the total forward-looking common
costs, exclusive of retail costs, attributable to operating the
incumbent LEC's total network, so as to provide all the elements and
services offered.
    (d) Factors that may not be considered. The following factors shall
not be considered in a calculation of the forward-looking economic cost
of an element:
    (1) Embedded costs. Embedded costs are the costs that the incumbent
LEC incurred in the past and that are recorded in the incumbent LEC's
books of accounts;
    (2) Retail costs. Retail costs include the costs of marketing,
billing, collection, and other costs associated with offering retail
telecommunications services to subscribers who are not
telecommunications carriers, described in Sec. 51.609;
    (3) Opportunity costs. Opportunity costs include the revenues that
the incumbent LEC would have received for the sale of telecommunications
services, in the absence of competition

[[Page 51]]

from telecommunications carriers that purchase elements; and
    (4) Revenues to subsidize other services. Revenues to subsidize
other services include revenues associated with elements or
telecommunications service offerings other than the element for which a
rate is being established.
    (e) Cost study requirements. An incumbent LEC must prove to the
state commission that the rates for each element it offers do not exceed
the forward-looking economic cost per unit of providing the element,
using a cost study that complies with the methodology set forth in this
section and Sec. 51.511.
    (1) A state commission may set a rate outside the proxy ranges or
above the proxy ceilings described in Sec. 51.513 only if that
commission has given full and fair effect to the economic cost based
pricing methodology described in this section and Sec. 51.511 in a
state proceeding that meets the requirements of paragraph (e)(2) of this
section.
    (2) Any state proceeding conducted pursuant to this section shall
provide notice and an opportunity for comment to affected parties and
shall result in the creation of a written factual record that is
sufficient for purposes of review. The record of any state proceeding in
which a state commission considers a cost study for purposes of
establishing rates under this section shall include any such cost study.



Sec. 51.507  General rate structure standard.

    (a) Element rates shall be structured consistently with the manner
in which the costs of providing the elements are incurred.
    (b) The costs of dedicated facilities shall be recovered through
flat-rated charges.
    (c) The costs of shared facilities shall be recovered in a manner
that efficiently apportions costs among users. Costs of shared
facilities may be apportioned either through usage-sensitive charges or
capacity-based flat-rated charges, if the state commission finds that
such rates reasonably reflect the costs imposed by the various users.
    (d) Recurring costs shall be recovered through recurring charges,
unless an incumbent LEC proves to a state commission that such recurring
costs are de minimis. Recurring costs shall be considered de minimis
when the costs of administering the recurring charge would be excessive
in relation to the amount of the recurring costs.
    (e) State commissions may, where reasonable, require incumbent LECs
to recover nonrecurring costs through recurring charges over a
reasonable period of time. Nonrecurring charges shall be allocated
efficiently among requesting telecommunications carriers, and shall not
permit an incumbent LEC to recover more than the total forward-looking
economic cost of providing the applicable element.
    (f) State commissions shall establish different rates for elements
in at least three defined geographic areas within the state to reflect
geographic cost differences.
    (1) To establish geographically-deaveraged rates, state commissions
may use existing density-related zone pricing plans described in Sec.
69.123 of this chapter, or other such cost-related zone plans
established pursuant to state law.
    (2) In states not using such existing plans, state commissions must
create a minimum of three cost-related rate zones.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 32207, June 16, 1999;
64 FR 68637, Dec. 8, 1999]



Sec. 51.509  Rate structure standards for specific elements.

    In addition to the general rules set forth in Sec. 51.507, rates
for specific elements shall comply with the following rate structure
rules.
    (a) Local loop and subloop. Loop and subloop costs shall be
recovered through flat-rated charges.
    (b) Local switching. Local switching costs shall be recovered
through a combination of a flat-rated charge for line ports and one or
more flat-rated or per-minute usage charges for the switching matrix and
for trunk ports.
    (c) Dedicated transmission links. Dedicated transmission link costs
shall be recovered through flat-rated charges.
    (d) Shared transmission facilities between tandem switches and end
offices. The costs of shared transmission facilities between tandem
switches and end offices may be recovered through

[[Page 52]]

usage-sensitive charges, or in another manner consistent with the manner
that the incumbent LEC incurs those costs.
    (e) Tandem switching. Tandem switching costs may be recovered
through usage-sensitive charges, or in another manner consistent with
the manner that the incumbent LEC incurs those costs.
    (f) Signaling and call-related database services. Signaling and
call-related database service costs shall be usage-sensitive, based on
either the number of queries or the number of messages, with the
exception of the dedicated circuits known as signaling links, the cost
of which shall be recovered through flat-rated charges.
    (g) Collocation. Collocation costs shall be recovered consistent
with the rate structure policies established in the Expanded
Interconnection proceeding, CC Docket No. 91-141.
    (h) Network interface device. An incumbent LEC must establish a
price for the network interface device when that unbundled network
element is purchased on a stand-alone basis pursuant to Sec. 51.319(c).

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 68 FR 52306, Sept. 2, 2003]



Sec. 51.511  Forward-looking economic cost per unit.

    (a) The forward-looking economic cost per unit of an element equals
the forward-looking economic cost of the element, as defined in Sec.
51.505, divided by a reasonable projection of the sum of the total
number of units of the element that the incumbent LEC is likely to
provide to requesting telecommunications carriers and the total number
of units of the element that the incumbent LEC is likely to use in
offering its own services, during a reasonable measuring period.
    (b)(1) With respect to elements that an incumbent LEC offers on a
flat-rate basis, the number of units is defined as the discrete number
of elements (e.g., local loops or local switch ports) that the incumbent
LEC uses or provides.
    (2) With respect to elements that an incumbent LEC offers on a
usage-sensitive basis, the number of units is defined as the unit of
measurement of the usage (e.g., minutes of use or call-related database
queries) of the element.



Sec. 51.513  Proxies for forward-looking economic cost.

    (a) A state commission may determine that the cost information
available to it with respect to one or more elements does not support
the adoption of a rate or rates that are consistent with the
requirements set forth in Sec. Sec. 51.505 and 51.511. In that event,
the state commission may establish a rate for an element that is
consistent with the proxies specified in this section, provided that:
    (1) Any rate established through use of such proxies shall be
superseded once the state commission has completed review of a cost
study that complies with the forward-looking economic cost based pricing
methodology described in Sec. Sec. 51.505 and 51.511, and has concluded
that such study is a reasonable basis for establishing element rates;
and
    (2) The state commission sets forth in writing a reasonable basis
for its selection of a particular rate for the element.
    (b) The constraints on proxy-based rates described in this section
apply on a geographically averaged basis. For purposes of determining
whether geographically deaveraged rates for elements comply with the
provisions of this section, a geographically averaged proxy-based rate
shall be computed based on the weighted average of the actual,
geographically deaveraged rates that apply in separate geographic areas
in a state.
    (c) Proxies for specific elements--(1) Local loops. For each state
listed below, the proxy-based monthly rate for unbundled local loops, on
a statewide weighted average basis, shall be no greater than the figures
listed in the table below. (The Commission has not established a default
proxy ceiling for loop rates in Alaska.)

                                  Table
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                  Proxy
                             State                               ceiling
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alabama.......................................................    $17.25
Arizona.......................................................     12.85
Arkansas......................................................     21.18
California....................................................     11.10
Colorado......................................................     14.97

[[Page 53]]


Connecticut...................................................     13.23
Delaware......................................................     13.24
District of Columbia..........................................     10.81
Florida.......................................................     13.68
Georgia.......................................................     16.09
Hawaii........................................................     15.27
Idaho.........................................................     20.16
Illinois......................................................     13.12
Indiana.......................................................     13.29
Iowa..........................................................     15.94
Kansas........................................................     19.85
Kentucky......................................................     16.70
Louisiana.....................................................     16.98
Maine.........................................................     18.69
Maryland......................................................     13.36
Massachusetts.................................................      9.83
Michigan......................................................     15.27
Minnesota.....................................................     14.81
Mississippi...................................................     21.97
Missouri......................................................     18.32
Montana.......................................................     25.18
Nebraska......................................................     18.05
Nevada........................................................     18.95
New Hampshire.................................................     16.00
New Jersey....................................................     12.47
New Mexico....................................................     18.66
New York......................................................     11.75
North Carolina................................................     16.71
North Dakota..................................................     25.36
Ohio..........................................................     15.73
Oklahoma......................................................     17.63
Oregon........................................................     15.44
Pennsylvania..................................................     12.30
Puerto Rico...................................................     12.47
Rhode Island..................................................     11.48
South Carolina................................................     17.07
South Dakota..................................................     25.33
Tennessee.....................................................     17.41
Texas.........................................................     15.49
Utah..........................................................     15.12
Vermont.......................................................     20.13
Virginia......................................................     14.13
Washington....................................................     13.37
West Virginia.................................................     19.25
Wisconsin.....................................................     15.94
Wyoming.......................................................     25.11
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (2) Local switching. (i) The blended proxy-based rate for the usage-
sensitive component of the unbundled local switching element, including
the switching matrix, the functionalities used to provide vertical
features, and the trunk ports, shall be no greater than 0.4 cents
($0.004) per minute, and no less than 0.2 cents ($0.002) per minute,
except that, where a state commission has, before August 8, 1996,
established a rate less than or equal to 0.5 cents ($0.005) per minute,
that rate may be retained pending completion of a forward-looking
economic cost study. If a flat-rated charge is established for these
components, it shall be converted to a per-minute rate by dividing the
projected average minutes of use per flat-rated subelement, for purposes
of assessing compliance with this proxy. A weighted average of such
flat-rate or usage-sensitive charges shall be used in appropriate
circumstances, such as when peak and off-peak charges are used.
    (ii) The blended proxy-based rate for the line port component of the
local switching element shall be no less than $1.10, and no more than
$2.00, per line port per month for ports used in the delivery of basic
residential and business exchange services.
    (3) Dedicated transmission links. The proxy-based rates for
dedicated transmission links shall be no greater than the incumbent
LEC's tariffed interstate charges for comparable entrance facilities or
direct-trunked transport offerings, as described in Sec. Sec. 69.110
and 69.112 of this chapter.
    (4) Shared transmission facilities between tandem switches and end
offices. The proxy-based rates for shared transmission facilities
between tandem switches and end offices shall be no greater than the
weighted per-minute equivalent of DS1 and DS3 interoffice dedicated
transmission link rates that reflects the relative number of DS1 and DS3
circuits used in the tandem to end office links (or a surrogate based on
the proportion of copper and fiber facilities in the interoffice
network), calculated using a loading factor of 9,000 minutes per month
per voice-grade circuit, as described in Sec. 69.112 of this chapter.
    (5) Tandem switching. The proxy-based rate for tandem switching
shall be no greater than 0.15 cents ($0.0015) per minute of use.
    (6) Collocation. To the extent that the incumbent LEC offers a
comparable form of collocation in its interstate expanded
interconnection tariffs, as described in Sec. Sec. 64.1401 and 69.121
of this chapter, the proxy-based rates for collocation shall be no
greater than the effective rates for equivalent services in the
interstate expanded interconnection tariff. To the extent that the
incumbent LEC does not offer a comparable form of collocation in its
interstate expanded interconnection tariffs, a state commission may, in
its discretion, establish a proxy-based rate, provided that the state
commission sets

[[Page 54]]

forth in writing a reasonable basis for concluding that its rate would
approximate the result of a forward-looking economic cost study, as
described in Sec. 51.505.
    (7) Signaling, call-related database, and other elements. To the
extent that the incumbent LEC has established rates for offerings
comparable to other elements in its interstate access tariffs, and has
provided cost support for those rates pursuant to Sec. 61.49(h) of this
chapter, the proxy-based rates for those elements shall be no greater
than the effective rates for equivalent services in the interstate
access tariffs. In other cases, the proxy-based rate shall be no greater
than a rate based on direct costs plus a reasonable allocation of
overhead loadings, pursuant to Sec. 61.49(h) of this chapter.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 61 FR 52709, Oct. 8, 1996]



Sec. 51.515  Application of access charges.

    (a)-(b) [Reserved]
    (c) Notwithstanding Sec. Sec. 51.505, 51.511, and 51.513(d)(2) and
paragraph (a) of this section, an incumbent LEC may assess upon
telecommunications carriers that purchase unbundled local switching
elements, as described in Sec. 51.319(c)(1), for intrastate toll
minutes of use traversing such unbundled local switching elements,
intrastate access charges comparable to those listed in paragraph (b)
and any explicit intrastate universal service mechanism based on access
charges, only until the earliest of the following, and not thereafter:
    (1) June 30, 1997;
    (2) The effective date of a state commission decision that an
incumbent LEC may not assess such charges; or
    (3) With respect to a Bell operating company only, the date on which
that company is authorized to offer in-region interLATA service in the
state pursuant to section 271 of the Act. The end date for Bell
operating companies that are authorized to offer interLATA service shall
apply only to the recovery of access charges in those states in which
the Bell operating company is authorized to offer such service.
    (d) Interstate access charges described in part 69 shall not be
assessed by incumbent LECs on each element purchased by requesting
carriers providing both telephone exchange and exchange access services
to such requesting carriers' end users.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 45587, Aug. 28, 1997;
71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006]



                            Subpart G_Resale



Sec. 51.601  Scope of resale rules.

    The provisions of this subpart govern the terms and conditions under
which LECs offer telecommunications services to requesting
telecommunications carriers for resale.



Sec. 51.603  Resale obligation of all local exchange carriers.

    (a) A LEC shall make its telecommunications services available for
resale to requesting telecommunications carriers on terms and conditions
that are reasonable and non-discriminatory.
    (b) A LEC must provide services to requesting telecommunications
carriers for resale that are equal in quality, subject to the same
conditions, and provided within the same provisioning time intervals
that the LEC provides these services to others, including end users.



Sec. 51.605  Additional obligations of incumbent local exchange
carriers.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall offer to any requesting
telecommunications carrier any telecommunications service that the
incumbent LEC offers on a retail basis to subscribers that are not
telecommunications carriers for resale at wholesale rates that are, at
the election of the state commission--
    (1) Consistent with the avoided cost methodology described in
Sec. Sec. 51.607 and 51.609; or
    (2) Interim wholesale rates, pursuant to Sec. 51.611.
    (b) For purposes of this subpart, exchange access services, as
defined in section 3 of the Act, shall not be considered to be
telecommunications services that incumbent LECs must make available for
resale at wholesale rates to requesting telecommunications carriers.
    (c) For purposes of this subpart, advanced telecommunications
services

[[Page 55]]

sold to Internet Service Providers as an input component to the Internet
Service Providers' retail Internet service offering shall not be
considered to be telecommunications services offered on a retail basis
that incumbent LECs must make available for resale at wholesale rates to
requesting telecommunications carriers.
    (d) Notwithstanding paragraph (b) of this section, advanced
telecommunications services that are classified as exchange access
services are subject to the obligations of paragraph (a) of this section
if such services are sold on a retail basis to residential and business
end-users that are not telecommunications carriers.
    (e) Except as provided in Sec. 51.613, an incumbent LEC shall not
impose restrictions on the resale by a requesting carrier of
telecommunications services offered by the incumbent LEC.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 65 FR 6915, Feb. 11, 2000]



Sec. 51.607  Wholesale pricing standard.

    The wholesale rate that an incumbent LEC may charge for a
telecommunications service provided for resale to other
telecommunications carriers shall equal the rate for the
telecommunications service, less avoided retail costs, as described in
section 51.609. For purposes of this subpart, exchange access services,
as defined in section 3 of the Act, shall not be considered to be
telecommunications services that incumbent LECs must make available for
resale at wholesale rates to requesting telecommunications carriers.

[65 FR 6915, Feb. 11, 2000]



Sec. 51.609  Determination of avoided retail costs.

    (a) Except as provided in Sec. 51.611, the amount of avoided retail
costs shall be determined on the basis of a cost study that complies
with the requirements of this section.
    (b) Avoided retail costs shall be those costs that reasonably can be
avoided when an incumbent LEC provides a telecommunications service for
resale at wholesale rates to a requesting carrier.
    (c) For incumbent LECs that are designated as Class A companies
under Sec. 32.11 of this chapter, except as provided in paragraph (d)
of this section, avoided retail costs shall:
    (1) Include as direct costs, the costs recorded in USOA accounts
6611 (product management and sales), 6613 (product advertising), 6621
(call completion services), 6622, (number services), and 6623 (customer
services) (Sec. Sec. 32.6611, 32.6613, 32.6621, 32.6622, and 32.6623 of
this chapter);
    (2) Include, as indirect costs, a portion of the costs recorded in
USOA accounts 6121-6124 (general support expenses), 6720 (corporate
operations expenses), and uncollectible telecommunications revenue
included in 5300 (uncollectible revenue) (Secs. 32.6121 through 32.6124,
32.6720 and 32.5300 of this chapter); and
    (3) Not include plant-specific expenses and plant non-specific
expenses, other than general support expenses (Sec. Sec. 32.6112-6114,
32.6211-6565 of this chapter).
    (d) Costs included in accounts 6611, 6613 and 6621-6623 described in
paragraph (c) of this section (Sec. Sec. 32.6611, 32.6613, and 32.6621-
6623 of this chapter) may be included in wholesale rates only to the
extent that the incumbent LEC proves to a state commission that specific
costs in these accounts will be incurred and are not avoidable with
respect to services sold at wholesale, or that specific costs in these
accounts are not included in the retail prices of resold services. Costs
included in accounts 6112-6114 and 6211-6565 described in paragraph (c)
of this section (Sec. Sec. 32.6112-32.6114, 32.6211-32.6565 of this
chapter) may be treated as avoided retail costs, and excluded from
wholesale rates, only to the extent that a party proves to a state
commission that specific costs in these accounts can reasonably be
avoided when an incumbent LEC provides a telecommunications service for
resale to a requesting carrier.
    (e) For incumbent LECs that are designated as Class B companies
under Sec. 32.11 of this chapter and that record information in summary
accounts instead of specific USOA accounts, the entire relevant summary
accounts may

[[Page 56]]

be used in lieu of the specific USOA accounts listed in paragraphs (c)
and (d) of this section.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 67 FR 5700, Feb. 6, 2002; 69
FR 53652, Sept. 2, 2004]



Sec. 51.611  Interim wholesale rates.

    (a) If a state commission cannot, based on the information available
to it, establish a wholesale rate using the methodology prescribed in
Sec. 51.609, then the state commission may elect to establish an
interim wholesale rate as described in paragraph (b) of this section.
    (b) The state commission may establish interim wholesale rates that
are at least 17 percent, and no more than 25 percent, below the
incumbent LEC's existing retail rates, and shall articulate the basis
for selecting a particular discount rate. The same discount percentage
rate shall be used to establish interim wholesale rates for each
telecommunications service.
    (c) A state commission that establishes interim wholesale rates
shall, within a reasonable period of time thereafter, establish
wholesale rates on the basis of an avoided retail cost study that
complies with Sec. 51.609.



Sec. 51.613  Restrictions on resale.

    (a) Notwithstanding Sec. 51.605(b), the following types of
restrictions on resale may be imposed:
    (1) Cross-class selling. A state commission may permit an incumbent
LEC to prohibit a requesting telecommunications carrier that purchases
at wholesale rates for resale, telecommunications services that the
incumbent LEC makes available only to residential customers or to a
limited class of residential customers, from offering such services to
classes of customers that are not eligible to subscribe to such services
from the incumbent LEC.
    (2) Short term promotions. An incumbent LEC shall apply the
wholesale discount to the ordinary rate for a retail service rather than
a special promotional rate only if:
    (i) Such promotions involve rates that will be in effect for no more
than 90 days; and
    (ii) The incumbent LEC does not use such promotional offerings to
evade the wholesale rate obligation, for example by making available a
sequential series of 90-day promotional rates.
    (b) With respect to any restrictions on resale not permitted under
paragraph (a), an incumbent LEC may impose a restriction only if it
proves to the state commission that the restriction is reasonable and
nondiscriminatory.
    (c) Branding. Where operator, call completion, or directory
assistance service is part of the service or service package an
incumbent LEC offers for resale, failure by an incumbent LEC to comply
with reseller unbranding or rebranding requests shall constitute a
restriction on resale.
    (1) An incumbent LEC may impose such a restriction only if it proves
to the state commission that the restriction is reasonable and
nondiscriminatory, such as by proving to a state commission that the
incumbent LEC lacks the capability to comply with unbranding or
rebranding requests.
    (2) For purposes of this subpart, unbranding or rebranding shall
mean that operator, call completion, or directory assistance services
are offered in such a manner that an incumbent LEC's brand name or other
identifying information is not identified to subscribers, or that such
services are offered in such a manner that identifies to subscribers the
requesting carrier's brand name or other identifying information.



Sec. 51.615  Withdrawal of services.

    When an incumbent LEC makes a telecommunications service available
only to a limited group of customers that have purchased such a service
in the past, the incumbent LEC must also make such a service available
at wholesale rates to requesting carriers to offer on a resale basis to
the same limited group of customers that have purchased such a service
in the past.



Sec. 51.617  Assessment of end user common line charge on resellers.

    (a) Notwithstanding the provision in Sec. 69.104(a) of this chapter
that the end user common line charge be assessed upon end users, an
incumbent LEC shall assess this charge, and the charge for changing the
designated primary

[[Page 57]]

interexchange carrier, upon requesting carriers that purchase telephone
exchange service for resale. The specific end user common line charge to
be assessed will depend upon the identity of the end user served by the
requesting carrier.
    (b) When an incumbent LEC provides telephone exchange service to a
requesting carrier at wholesale rates for resale, the incumbent LEC
shall continue to assess the interstate access charges provided in part
69 of this chapter, other than the end user common line charge, upon
interexchange carriers that use the incumbent LEC's facilities to
provide interstate or international telecommunications services to the
interexchange carriers' subscribers.



   Subpart H_Reciprocal Compensation for Transport and Termination of
                       Telecommunications Traffic

    Editorial Note: Nomenclature changes to subpart H of part 51 appear
at 66 FR 26806, May 15, 2001.



Sec. 51.700  Purpose of this subpart.

    The purpose of this subpart, as revised in 2011 by FCC 11-161 is to
establish rules governing the transition of intercarrier compensation
from a calling-party's-network pays system to a default bill-and-keep
methodology. Following the transition, the exchange of
telecommunications traffic between and among service providers will, by
default, be governed by bill-and-keep arrangements.

    Note to Sec. 51.700: See FCC 11-161, figure 9 (chart identifying
steps in the transition).

[76 FR 73854, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.701  Scope of transport and termination pricing rules.

    (a) Effective December 29, 2011, compensation for telecommunications
traffic exchanged between two telecommunications carriers that is
interstate or intrastate exchange access, information access, or
exchange services for such access, other than special access, is
specified in subpart J of this part. The provisions of this subpart
apply to Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation for transport and
termination of Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic between LECs and
other telecommunications carriers.
    (b) Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic. For purposes of this
subpart, Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic means:
    (1) Telecommunications traffic exchanged between a LEC and a
telecommunications carrier other than a CMRS provider, except for
telecommunications traffic that is interstate or intrastate exchange
access, information access, or exchange services for such access (see
FCC 01-131, paragraphs 34, 36, 39, 42-43); or
    (2) Telecommunications traffic exchanged between a LEC and a CMRS
provider that, at the beginning of the call, originates and terminates
within the same Major Trading Area, as defined in Sec. 24.202(a) of
this chapter.
    (3) This definition includes telecommunications traffic exchanged
between a LEC and another telecommunications carrier in Time Division
Multiplexing (TDM) format that originates and/or terminates in IP format
and that otherwise meets the definitions in paragraphs (b)(1) or (b)(2)
of this section. Telecommunications traffic originates and/or terminates
in IP format if it originates from and/or terminates to an end-user
customer of a service that requires Internet protocol-compatible
customer premises equipment.
    (c) Transport. For purposes of this subpart, transport is the
transmission and any necessary tandem switching of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic subject to section 251(b)(5) of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 251(b)(5), from the
interconnection point between the two carriers to the terminating
carrier's end office switch that directly serves the called party, or
equivalent facility provided by a carrier other than an incumbent LEC.
    (d) Termination. For purposes of this subpart, termination is the
switching of Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic at the terminating
carrier's end office switch, or equivalent facility, and delivery of
such traffic to the called party's premises.

[[Page 58]]

    (e) Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation. For purposes of this
subpart, a Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation arrangement between two
carriers is either a bill-and-keep arrangement, per Sec. 51.713, or an
arrangement in which each carrier receives intercarrier compensation for
the transport and termination of Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 66 FR 26806, May 15, 2001; 76
FR 73855, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.703  Non-Access reciprocal compensation obligation of LECs.

    (a) Each LEC shall establish Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation
arrangements for transport and termination of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic with any requesting telecommunications
carrier.
    (b) A LEC may not assess charges on any other telecommunications
carrier for Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic that originates on the
LEC's network.
    (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules, a
LEC shall be entitled to assess and collect the full charges for the
transport and termination of Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic,
regardless of whether the local exchange carrier assessing the
applicable charges itself delivers such traffic to the called party's
premises or delivers the call to the called party's premises via
contractual or other arrangements with an affiliated or unaffiliated
provider of interconnected VoIP service, as defined in 47 U.S.C.
153(25), or a non-interconnected VoIP service, as defined in 47 U.S.C.
153(36), that does not itself seek to collect Non-Access Reciprocal
Compensation charges for the transport and termination of that Non-
Access Telecommunications Traffic. In no event may the total charges
that a LEC may assess for such service to the called location exceed the
applicable transport and termination rate. For purposes of this section,
the facilities used by the LEC and affiliated or unaffiliated provider
of interconnected VoIP service or a non-interconnected VoIP service for
the transport and termination of such traffic shall be deemed an
equivalent facility under Sec. 51.701.

[76 FR 73855, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.705  LECs' rates for transport and termination.

    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules,
by default, transport and termination for Non-Access Telecommunications
Traffic exchanged between a local exchange carrier and a CMRS provider
within the scope of Sec. 51.701(b)(2) shall be pursuant to a bill-and-
keep arrangement, as provided in Sec. 51.713.
    (b) Establishment of incumbent LECs' rates for transport and
termination:
    (1) This provision applies when, in the absence of a negotiated
agreement between parties, state commissions establish Non-Access
Reciprocal Compensation rates for the exchange of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic between a local exchange carrier and a
telecommunications carrier other than a CMRS provider where the
incumbent local exchange carriers did not have any such rates as of
December 29, 2011. Any rates established pursuant to this provision
apply between December 29, 2011 and the date at which they are
superseded by the transition specified in paragraphs (c)(2) through
(c)(5) of this section.
    (2) An incumbent LEC's rates for transport and termination of
telecommunications traffic shall be established, at the election of the
state commission, on the basis of:
    (i) The forward-looking economic costs of such offerings, using a
cost study pursuant to Sec. Sec. 51.505 and 51.511; or
    (ii) A bill-and-keep arrangement, as provided in Sec. 51.713.
    (3) In cases where both carriers in a Non-Access Reciprocal
Compensation arrangement are incumbent LECs, state commissions shall
establish the rates of the smaller carrier on the basis of the larger
carrier's forward-looking costs, pursuant to Sec. 51.711.
    (c) Except as provided by paragraph (a) of this section, and
notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules, default
transitional Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation rates shall be
determined as follows:

[[Page 59]]

    (1) Effective December 29, 2011, no telecommunications carrier may
increase a Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation for transport or
termination above the level in effect on December 29, 2011. All Bill-
and-Keep Arrangements in effect on December 29, 2011 shall remain in
place unless both parties mutually agree to an alternative arrangement.
    (2) Beginning July 1, 2012, if any telecommunications carrier's Non-
Access Reciprocal Compensation rates in effect on December 29, 2011 or
established pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section subsequent to
December 29, 2011, exceed that carrier's interstate access rates for
functionally equivalent services in effect in the same state on December
29, 2011, that carrier shall reduce its reciprocal compensation rate by
one half of the difference between the Non-Access Reciprocal
Compensation rate and the corresponding functionally equivalent
interstate access rate.
    (3) Beginning July 1, 2013, no telecommunications carrier's Non-
Access Reciprocal Compensation rates shall exceed that carrier's
tariffed interstate access rate in effect in the same state on January 1
of that same year, for equivalent functionality.
    (4) After July 1, 2018, all Price-Cap Local Exchange Carrier's Non-
Access Reciprocal Compensation rates and all non-incumbent LECs that
benchmark access rates to Price Cap Carrier shall be set pursuant to
Bill-and-Keep arrangements for Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation as
defined in this subpart.
    (5) After July 1, 2020, all Rate-of-Return Local Exchange Carrier's
Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation rates and all non-incumbent LECs that
benchmark access rates to Rate-of-Return Carriers shall be set pursuant
to Bill-and-Keep arrangements for Non-Access Reciprocal Compensation as
defined in this subpart.

[76 FR 73855, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.707  [Reserved]



Sec. 51.709  Rate structure for transport and termination.

    (a) In state proceedings, where a rate for Non-Access Reciprocal
Compensation does not exist as of December 29, 2011, a state commission
shall establish initial rates for the transport and termination of Non-
Access Telecommunications Traffic that are structured consistently with
the manner that carriers incur those costs, and consistently with the
principles in this section.
    (b) The rate of a carrier providing transmission facilities
dedicated to the transmission of non-access traffic between two
carriers' networks shall recover only the costs of the proportion of
that trunk capacity used by an interconnecting carrier to send non-
access traffic that will terminate on the providing carrier's network.
Such proportions may be measured during peak periods.
    (c) For Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic exchanged between a
rate-of-return regulated rural telephone company as defined in Sec.
51.5 and a CMRS provider, the rural rate-of-return incumbent local
exchange carrier will be responsible for transport to the CMRS
provider's interconnection point when it is located within the rural
rate-of-return incumbent local exchange carrier's service area. When the
CMRS provider's interconnection point is located outside the rural rate-
of-return incumbent local exchange carrier's service area, the rural
rate-of-return incumbent local exchange carrier's transport and
provisioning obligation stops at its meet point and the CMRS provider is
responsible for the remaining transport to its interconnection point.
This paragraph (c) is a default provision and applicable in the absence
of an existing agreement or arrangement otherwise.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.711  Symmetrical reciprocal compensation.

    (a) Rates for transport and termination of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic shall be symmetrical, unless carriers
mutually agree otherwise, except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c)
of this section.
    (1) For purposes of this subpart, symmetrical rates are rates that a
carrier other than an incumbent LEC assesses upon an incumbent LEC for
transport and termination of Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic equal
to those

[[Page 60]]

that the incumbent LEC assesses upon the other carrier for the same
services.
    (2) In cases where both parties are incumbent LECs, or neither party
is an incumbent LEC, a state commission shall establish the symmetrical
rates for transport and termination based on the larger carrier's
forward-looking costs.
    (3) Where the switch of a carrier other than an incumbent LEC serves
a geographic area comparable to the area served by the incumbent LEC's
tandem switch, the appropriate rate for the carrier other than an
incumbent LEC is the incumbent LEC's tandem interconnection rate.
    (b) Except as provided in Sec. 51.705, a state commission may
establish asymmetrical rates for transport and termination of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic only if the carrier other than the incumbent
LEC (or the smaller of two incumbent LECs) proves to the state
commission on the basis of a cost study using the forward-looking
economic cost based pricing methodology described in Sec. Sec. 51.505
and 51.511, that the forward-looking costs for a network efficiently
configured and operated by the carrier other than the incumbent LEC (or
the smaller of two incumbent LECs), exceed the costs incurred by the
incumbent LEC (or the larger incumbent LEC), and, consequently, that
such that a higher rate is justified.
    (c) Pending further proceedings before the Commission, a state
commission shall establish the rates that licensees in the Paging and
Radiotelephone Service (defined in part 22, subpart E of this chapter),
Narrowband Personal Communications Services (defined in part 24, subpart
D of this chapter), and Paging Operations in the Private Land Mobile
Radio Services (defined in part 90, subpart P of this chapter) may
assess upon other carriers for the transport and termination of
telecommunications traffic based on the forward-looking costs that such
licensees incur in providing such services, pursuant to Sec. Sec.
51.505 and 51.511. Such licensees' rates shall not be set based on the
default proxies described in Sec. 51.707.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996 , as amended at 76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.713  Bill-and-keep arrangements.

    Bill-and-keep arrangements are those in which carriers exchanging
telecommunications traffic do not charge each other for specific
transport and/or termination functions or services.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.715  Interim transport and termination pricing.

    (a) Upon request from a telecommunications carrier without an
existing interconnection arrangement with an incumbent LEC, the
incumbent LEC shall provide transport and termination of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic immediately under an interim arrangement,
pending resolution of negotiation or arbitration regarding transport and
termination rates and approval of such rates by a state commission under
sections 251 and 252 of the Act.
    (1) This requirement shall not apply when the requesting carrier has
an existing interconnection arrangement that provides for the transport
and termination of Non-Access Telecommunications Traffic by the
incumbent LEC.
    (2) A telecommunications carrier may take advantage of such an
interim arrangement only after it has requested negotiation with the
incumbent LEC pursuant to Sec. 51.301.
    (b) Upon receipt of a request as described in paragraph (a) of this
section, an incumbent LEC must, without unreasonable delay, establish an
interim arrangement for transport and termination of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic at symmetrical rates.
    (1) In a state in which the state commission has established
transport and termination rates based on forward-looking economic cost
studies, an incumbent LEC shall use these state-determined rates as
interim transport and termination rates.
    (2) In a state in which the state commission has not established
transport and termination rates based on forward-looking economic cost
studies, an incumbent LEC shall set interim transport and termination
rates either at the default ceilings specified in Sec. 51.705(c) or in
accordance with a bill-and-keep methodology as defined in Sec. 51.713.

[[Page 61]]

    (3) In a state in which the state commission has neither established
transport and termination rates based on forward-looking economic cost
studies nor established transport and termination rates consistent with
the default price ranges described in Sec. 51.707, an incumbent LEC
shall set interim transport and termination rates at the default
ceilings for end-office switching (0.4 cents per minute of use), tandem
switching (0.15 cents per minute of use), and transport (as described in
Sec. 51.707(b)(2)).
    (c) An interim arrangement shall cease to be in effect when one of
the following occurs with respect to rates for transport and termination
of telecommunications traffic subject to the interim arrangement:
    (1) A voluntary agreement has been negotiated and approved by a
state commission;
    (2) An agreement has been arbitrated and approved by a state
commission; or
    (3) The period for requesting arbitration has passed with no such
request.
    (d) If the rates for transport and termination of Non-Access
Telecommunications Traffic in an interim arrangement differ from the
rates established by a state commission pursuant to Sec. 51.705, the
state commission shall require carriers to make adjustments to past
compensation. Such adjustments to past compensation shall allow each
carrier to receive the level of compensation it would have received had
the rates in the interim arrangement equalled the rates later
established by the state commission pursuant to Sec. 51.705.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 51.717  [Reserved]



    Subpart I_Procedures for Implementation of Section 252 of the Act



Sec. 51.801  Commission action upon a state commission's failure to act
to carry out its responsibility under section 252 of the Act.

    (a) If a state commission fails to act to carry out its
responsibility under section 252 of the Act in any proceeding or other
matter under section 252 of the Act, the Commission shall issue an order
preempting the state commission's jurisdiction of that proceeding or
matter within 90 days after being notified (or taking notice) of such
failure, and shall assume the responsibility of the state commission
under section 252 of the Act with respect to the proceeding or matter
and shall act for the state commission.
    (b) For purposes of this part, a state commission fails to act if
the state commission fails to respond, within a reasonable time, to a
request for mediation, as provided for in section 252(a)(2) of the Act,
or for a request for arbitration, as provided for in section 252(b) of
the Act, or fails to complete an arbitration within the time limits
established in section 252(b)(4)(C) of the Act.
    (c) A state shall not be deemed to have failed to act for purposes
of section 252(e)(5) of the Act if an agreement is deemed approved under
section 252(e)(4) of the Act.



Sec. 51.803  Procedures for Commission notification of a state
commission's failure to act.

    (a) Any party seeking preemption of a state commission's
jurisdiction, based on the state commission's failure to act, shall
notify the Commission in accordance with following procedures:
    (1) Such party shall file with the Secretary of the Commission a
petition, supported by an affidavit, that states with specificity the
basis for the petition and any information that supports the claim that
the state has failed to act, including, but not limited to, the
applicable provisions of the Act and the factual circumstances
supporting a finding that the state commission has failed to act;
    (2) Such party shall ensure that the state commission and the other
parties to the proceeding or matter for which preemption is sought are
served with the petition required in paragraph (a)(1) of this section on
the same date that the petitioning party serves the petition on the
Commission; and
    (3) Within fifteen days from the date of service of the petition
required in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the applicable state
commission and parties

[[Page 62]]

to the proceeding may file with the Commission a response to the
petition.
    (b) The party seeking preemption must prove that the state has
failed to act to carry out its responsibilities under section 252 of the
Act.
    (c) The Commission, pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act, may
take notice upon its own motion that a state commission has failed to
act. In such a case, the Commission shall issue a public notice that the
Commission has taken notice of a state commission's failure to act. The
applicable state commission and the parties to a proceeding or matter in
which the Commission has taken notice of the state commission's failure
to act may file, within fifteen days of the issuance of the public
notice, comments on whether the Commission is required to assume the
responsibility of the state commission under section 252 of the Act with
respect to the proceeding or matter.
    (d) The Commission shall issue an order determining whether it is
required to preempt the state commission's jurisdiction of a proceeding
or matter within 90 days after being notified under paragraph (a) of
this section or taking notice under paragraph (c) of this section of a
state commission's failure to carry out its responsibilities under
section 252 of the Act.



Sec. 51.805  The Commission's authority over proceedings and matters.

    (a) If the Commission assumes responsibility for a proceeding or
matter pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act, the Commission shall
retain jurisdiction over such proceeding or matter. At a minimum, the
Commission shall approve or reject any interconnection agreement adopted
by negotiation, mediation or arbitration for which the Commission,
pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act, has assumed the state's
commission's responsibilities.
    (b) Agreements reached pursuant to mediation or arbitration by the
Commission pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act are not required to
be submitted to the state commission for approval or rejection.



Sec. 51.807  Arbitration and mediation of agreements by the Commission
pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act.

    (a) The rules established in this section shall apply only to
instances in which the Commission assumes jurisdiction under section
252(e)(5) of the Act.
    (b) When the Commission assumes responsibility for a proceeding or
matter pursuant to section 252(e)(5) of the Act, it shall not be bound
by state laws and standards that would have applied to the state
commission in such proceeding or matter.
    (c) In resolving, by arbitration under section 252(b) of the Act,
any open issues and in imposing conditions upon the parties to the
agreement, the Commission shall:
    (1) Ensure that such resolution and conditions meet the requirements
of section 251 of the Act, including the rules prescribed by the
Commission pursuant to that section;
    (2) Establish any rates for interconnection, services, or network
elements according to section 252(d) of the Act, including the rules
prescribed by the Commission pursuant to that section; and
    (3) Provide a schedule for implementation of the terms and
conditions by the parties to the agreement.
    (d) An arbitrator, acting pursuant to the Commission's authority
under section 252(e)(5) of the Act, shall use final offer arbitration,
except as otherwise provided in this section:
    (1) At the discretion of the arbitrator, final offer arbitration may
take the form of either entire package final offer arbitration or issue-
by-issue final offer arbitration.
    (2) Negotiations among the parties may continue, with or without the
assistance of the arbitrator, after final arbitration offers are
submitted. Parties may submit subsequent final offers following such
negotiations.
    (3) To provide an opportunity for final post-offer negotiations, the
arbitrator will not issue a decision for at least fifteen days after
submission to the arbitrator of the final offers by the parties.

[[Page 63]]

    (e) Final offers submitted by the parties to the arbitrator shall be
consistent with section 251 of the Act, including the rules prescribed
by the Commission pursuant to that section.
    (f) Each final offer shall:
    (1) Meet the requirements of section 251, including the rules
prescribed by the Commission pursuant to that section;
    (2) Establish rates for interconnection, services, or access to
unbundled network elements according to section 252(d) of the Act,
including the rules prescribed by the Commission pursuant to that
section; and
    (3) Provide a schedule for implementation of the terms and
conditions by the parties to the agreement. If a final offer submitted
by one or more parties fails to comply with the requirements of this
section or if the arbitrator determines in unique circumstances that
another result would better implement the Communications Act, the
arbitrator has discretion to take steps designed to result in an
arbitrated agreement that satisfies the requirements of section 252(c)
of the Act, including requiring parties to submit new final offers
within a time frame specified by the arbitrator, or adopting a result
not submitted by any party that is consistent with the requirements of
section 252(c) of the Act, and the rules prescribed by the Commission
pursuant to that section.
    (g) Participation in the arbitration proceeding will be limited to
the requesting telecommunications carrier and the incumbent LEC, except
that the Commission will consider requests by third parties to file
written pleadings.
    (h) Absent mutual consent of the parties to change any terms and
conditions adopted by the arbitrator, the decision of the arbitrator
shall be binding on the parties.

[61 FR 45619, Aug. 29, 1996, as amended at 66 FR 8520, Feb. 1, 2001]



Sec. 51.809  Availability of agreements to other telecommunications
carriers under section 252(i) of the Act.

    (a) An incumbent LEC shall make available without unreasonable delay
to any requesting telecommunications carrier any agreement in its
entirety to which the incumbent LEC is a party that is approved by a
state commission pursuant to section 252 of the Act, upon the same
rates, terms, and conditions as those provided in the agreement. An
incumbent LEC may not limit the availability of any agreement only to
those requesting carriers serving a comparable class of subscribers or
providing the same service (i.e., local, access, or interexchange) as
the original party to the agreement.
    (b) The obligations of paragraph (a) of this section shall not apply
where the incumbent LEC proves to the state commission that:
    (1) The costs of providing a particular agreement to the requesting
telecommunications carrier are greater than the costs of providing it to
the telecommunications carrier that originally negotiated the agreement,
or
    (2) The provision of a particular agreement to the requesting
carrier is not technically feasible.
    (c) Individual agreements shall remain available for use by
telecommunications carriers pursuant to this section for a reasonable
period of time after the approved agreement is available for public
inspection under section 252(h) of the Act.

[69 FR 43771, July 22, 2004]



              Subpart J_Transitional Access Service Pricing

    Source: 76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 51.901  Purpose and scope of transitional access service pricing
rules.

    (a) The purpose of this section is to establish rules governing the
transition of intercarrier compensation from a calling-party's-network
pays system to a default bill-and-keep methodology. Following the
transition, the exchange of traffic between and among service providers
will, by default, be governed by bill-and-keep arrangements.
    (b) Effective December 29, 2011, the provisions of this subpart
apply to reciprocal compensation for telecommunications traffic
exchanged between telecommunications providers that is interstate or
intrastate exchange access, information access, or

[[Page 64]]

exchange services for such access, other than special access.

    Note to Sec. 51.901: See FCC 11-161, figure 9 (chart identifying
steps in the transition).



Sec. 51.903  Definitions.

    For the purposes of this subpart:
    (a) Competitive Local Exchange Carrier. A Competitive Local Exchange
Carrier is any local exchange carrier, as defined in Sec. 51.5, that is
not an incumbent local exchange carrier .
    (b) Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate means terminating
End Office Access Service revenue, calculated using demand for a given
time period, divided by end office switching minutes for the same time
period.
    (c) Dedicated Transport Access Service means originating and
terminating transport on circuits dedicated to the use of a single
carrier or other customer provided by an incumbent local exchange
carrier or any functional equivalent of the incumbent local exchange
carrier access service provided by a non-incumbent local exchange
carrier. Dedicated Transport Access Service rate elements for an
incumbent local exchange carrier include the entrance facility rate
elements specified in Sec. 69.110 of this chapter, the dedicated
transport rate elements specified in Sec. 69.111 of this chapter, the
direct-trunked transport rate elements specified in Sec. 69.112 of this
chapter, and the intrastate rate elements for functionally equivalent
access services. Dedicated Transport Access Service rate elements for a
non-incumbent local exchange carrier include any functionally equivalent
access services.
    (d) End Office Access Service means:
    (1) The switching of access traffic at the carrier's end office
switch and the delivery to or from of such traffic to the called party's
premises;
    (2) The routing of interexchange telecommunications traffic to or
from the called party's premises, either directly or via contractual or
other arrangements with an affiliated or unaffiliated entity, regardless
of the specific functions provided or facilities used; or
    (3) Any functional equivalent of the incumbent local exchange
carrier access service provided by a non-incumbent local exchange
carrier. End Office Access Service rate elements for an incumbent local
exchange carrier include the local switching rate elements specified in
Sec. 69.106 of this chapter, the carrier common line rate elements
specified in Sec. 69.154 of this chapter, and the intrastate rate
elements for functionally equivalent access services. End Office Access
Service rate elements for an incumbent local exchange carrier also
include any rate elements assessed on local switching access minutes,
including the information surcharge and residual rate elements. End
office Access Service rate elements for a non-incumbent local exchange
carrier include any functionally equivalent access service.

    Note to paragraph (d):
    For incumbent local exchange carriers, residual rate elements may
include, for example, state Transport Interconnection Charges, Residual
Interconnection Charges, and PICCs. For non-incumbent local exchange
carriers, residual rate elements may include any functionally equivalent
access service.

    (e) Fiscal Year 2011 means October 1, 2010 through September 30,
2011.
    (f) Price Cap Carrier has the same meaning as that term is defined
in Sec. 61.3(aa) of this chapter.
    (g) Rate-of-Return Carrier is any incumbent local exchange carrier
not subject to price cap regulation as that term is defined in Sec.
61.3(aa) of this chapter, but only with respect to the territory in
which it operates as an incumbent local exchange carrier.
    (h) Access Reciprocal Compensation means telecommunications traffic
exchanged between telecommunications service providers that is
interstate or intrastate exchange access, information access, or
exchange services for such access, other than special access.
    (i) Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service means:
    (1) Tandem switching and common transport between the tandem switch
and end office; or
    (2) Any functional equivalent of the incumbent local exchange
carrier access service provided by a non-incumbent local exchange
carrier via other facilities. Tandem-Switched Transport rate elements
for an incumbent local exchange carrier include the rate elements
specified in Sec. 69.111 of this chapter, except for the dedicated
transport rate elements specified in that section,

[[Page 65]]

and intrastate rate elements for functionally equivalent service. Tandem
Switched Transport Access Service rate elements for a non-incumbent
local exchange carrier include any functionally equivalent access
service.
    (j) Transitional Intrastate Access Service means terminating End
Office Access Service that was subject to intrastate access rates as of
December 31, 2011; terminating Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service
that was subject to intrastate access rates as of December 31, 2011; and
originating and terminating Dedicated Transport Access Service that was
subject to intrastate access rates as of December 31, 2011.



Sec. 51.905  Implementation.

    (a) The rates set forth in this section are default rates.
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules,
telecommunications carriers may agree to rates different from the
default rates.
    (b) LECs who are otherwise required to file tariffs are required to
tariff rates no higher than the default transitional rates specified by
this subpart.
    (1) With respect to interstate switched access services governed by
this subpart, LECs shall tariff rates for those services in their
federal tariffs. Except as expressly superseded below, LECs shall follow
the procedures specified in part 61 of this chapter when filing such
tariffs.
    (2) With respect to Transitional Intrastate Access Services governed
by this subpart, LECs shall follow the procedures specified by relevant
state law when filing such tariffs, price lists or other instrument
(referred to collectively as ``tariffs'').
    (c) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require a carrier
to file or maintain a tariff or to amend an existing tariff if it is not
otherwise required to do so under applicable law.



Sec. 51.907  Transition of price cap carrier access charges.

    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules,
on December 29, 2011, a Price Cap Carrier shall cap the rates for all
interstate and intrastate rate elements for services contained in the
definitions of Interstate End Office Access Services, Tandem Switched
Transport Access Services, and Dedicated Transport Access Services. In
addition, a Price Cap Carrier shall also cap the rates for any
interstate and intrastate rate elements in the traffic sensitive
basket'' and the ``trunking basket'' as described in 47 CFR 61.42(d)(2)
and (3) to the extent that such rate elements are not contained in the
definitions of Interstate End Office Access Services, Tandem Switched
Transport Access Services, and Dedicated Transport Access Services.
Carriers will remove these services from price cap regulation in their
July 1, 2012 annual tariff filing.
    (b) Step 1. Beginning July 1, 2012, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Each Price Cap Carrier shall file tariffs, in accordance with
Sec. 51.905(b)(2), with the appropriate state regulatory authority,
that set forth the rates applicable to Transitional Intrastate Access
Service in each state in which it provides Transitional Intrastate
Access Service.
    (2) Each Price Cap Carrier shall establish the rates for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service using the following methodology:
    (i) Calculate total revenue from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service at the carrier's interstate access rates in effect on December
29, 2011, using Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate switched access demand for
each rate element.
    (ii) Calculate total revenue from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service at the carrier's intrastate access rates in effect on December
29, 2011, using Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate switched access demand for
each rate element.
    (iii) Calculate the Step 1 Access Revenue Reduction. The Step 1
Access Revenue Reduction is equal to one-half of the difference between
the amount calculated in paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section and the
amount calculated in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section.
    (iv) A Price Cap Carrier may elect to establish rates for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service using its intrastate access rate
structure. Carriers using this option shall establish rates for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service such that Transitional Intrastate
Access Service revenue at the

[[Page 66]]

proposed rates is no greater than Transitional Intrastate Access Service
revenue at the intrastate rates in effect as of December 29, 2011 less
the Step 1 Access Revenue Reduction, using Fiscal Year 2011 demand.
Carriers electing to establish rates for Transitional Intrastate Access
Service in this manner shall notify the appropriate state regulatory
authority of their election in the filing required by Sec.
51.907(b)(1).
    (v) A Price Cap Carrier may elect to apply its interstate access
rate structure and interstate rates to Transitional Intrastate Access
Service. In addition to applicable interstate access rates, the carrier
may, between July 1, 2012 and July 1, 2013, assess a transitional per-
minute charge on Transitional Intrastate Access Service end office
switching minutes (previously billed as intrastate access). The
transitional per-minute charge shall be no greater than the Step 1
Access Revenue Reduction divided by Fiscal Year 2011 Transitional
Intrastate Access Service end office switching minutes. Carriers
electing to establish rates for Transitional Intrastate Access Service
in this manner shall notify the appropriate state regulatory authority
of their election in the filing required by paragraph (b)(1) of this
section.
    (vi) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(3) of this section, nothing
in this section obligates or allows a Price Cap Carrier that has
intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates
to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions to
increase such rates.
    (3) If a Price Cap Carrier must make an intrastate switched access
rate reduction pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section, and that
Price Cap Carrier has an intrastate rate for a rate element that is
below the comparable interstate rate for that element, the Price Cap
Carrier shall:
    (i) Increase the rate for any intrastate rate element that is below
the comparable interstate rate for that element to the interstate rate
no later than July 1, 2013;
    (ii) Include any increases made pursuant to paragraph (b)(3)(i) of
this section in the calculation of its eligible recovery for 2012.
    (c) Step 2. Beginning July 1, 2013, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Transitional Intrastate Access Service rates shall be no higher
than the Price Cap Carrier's interstate access rates. Once the Price Cap
Carrier's Transitional Intrastate Access Service rates are equal to its
functionally equivalent interstate access rates, they shall be subject
to the same rate structure and all subsequent rate and rate structure
modifications. Except as provided in paragraph (c)(4) of this section,
nothing in this section obligates or allows a Price Cap Carrier that has
intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates
to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions to
increase such rates.
    (2) In cases where a Price Cap Carrier does not have intrastate
rates that permit it to determine composite intrastate End Office Access
Service rates, the carrier shall establish End Office Access Service
rates such that the ratio between its composite intrastate End Office
Access Service revenues and its total intrastate switched access
revenues may not exceed the ratio between its composite interstate End
Office Access Service revenues and its total interstate switched access
revenues.
    (3) [Reserved]
    (4) If a Price Cap Carrier made an intrastate switched access rate
reduction in 2012 pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section, and that
Price Cap Carrier has an intrastate rate for a rate element that is
below the comparable interstate rate for that element, the Price Cap
Carrier shall:
    (i) Increase the rate for any intrastate rate element that is below
the comparable interstate rate for that element to the interstate rate
on July 1, 2013; and
    (ii) Include any increases made pursuant to paragraph (b)(4)(i) of
this section in the calculation of its eligible recovery for 2013.
    (d) Step 3. Beginning July 1, 2014, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) A Price Cap Carrier shall establish separate originating and
terminating

[[Page 67]]

rate elements for all per-minute components within interstate and
intrastate End Office Access Service. For fixed charges, the Price Cap
Carrier shall divide the rate between originating and terminating rate
elements based on relative originating and terminating end office
switching minutes. If sufficient originating and terminating end office
switching minute data is not available, the carrier shall divide such
charges equally between originating and terminating elements.
    (2) Each Price Cap Carrier shall establish rates for interstate or
intrastate terminating End Office Access Service using the following
methodology:
    (i) Each Price Cap Carrier shall calculate the 2011 Baseline
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2011 Baseline
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate means the Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate calculated using Fiscal Year 2011
interstate demand multiplied by the interstate End Office Access Service
rates at the levels in effect on December 29, 2011, and then dividing
the result by 2011 Fiscal Year interstate local switching demand.
    (ii) Each Price Cap Carrier shall calculate its 2014 Target
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2014 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate means $0.0007 per minute plus two-
thirds of any difference between the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating
End Office Access Rate and $0.0007 per minute.
    (iii) Beginning July 1, 2014, no Price Cap Carrier's interstate
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate shall exceed its 2014
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. A price cap carrier
shall determine compliance by calculating interstate Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rates using the relevant Fiscal Year 2011
interstate demand multiplied by the respective interstate rates as of
July 1, 2014, and then dividing the result by the relevant 2011 Fiscal
Year interstate terminating local switching demand. A price cap
carrier's intrastate terminating end office access rates may not exceed
the comparable interstate terminating end office access rates. In the
alternative, any Price Cap Carrier may elect to implement a single per
minute rate element for both interstate and intrastate terminating End
Office Access Service no greater than the 2014 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate if its intrastate terminating end
office access rates would be at rate parity with its interstate
terminating end office access rates.
    (e) Step 4. Beginning July 1, 2015, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Each Price Cap Carrier shall establish interstate or intrastate
rates for terminating End Office Access Service using the following
methodology:
    (i) Each Price Cap Carrier shall calculate its 2015 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2015 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate means $0.0007 per minute plus one-
third of any difference between the 2011 Composite Terminating End
Office Access Rate and $0.0007 per minute.
    (ii) Beginning July 1, 2015, no Price Cap Carrier's interstate
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate shall exceed its 2015
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. A price cap carrier
shall determine compliance by calculating interstate Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rates using the relevant Fiscal Year 2011
interstate demand multiplied by the respective interstate rates as of
July 1, 2015, and then dividing the result by the relevant 2011 Fiscal
Year interstate terminating local switching demand. A price cap
carrier's intrastate terminating end office access rates may not exceed
the comparable interstate terminating end office access rates. In the
alternative, any Price Cap Carrier may elect to implement a single per
minute rate element for both interstate and intrastate terminating End
Office Access Service no greater than the 2015 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate if its intrastate terminating end
office access rates would be at rate parity with its interstate
terminating end office access rates.
    (2) Nothing in this section obligates or allows a Price Cap Carrier
that has

[[Page 68]]

intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates
to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions
raising such rates.
    (f) Step 5. Beginning July 1, 2016, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules, each Price Cap Carrier shall
establish interstate terminating End Office Access Service rates such
that its Composite Terminating End Office Access Service rate does not
exceed $0.0007 per minute. A price cap carrier shall determine
compliance by calculating interstate Composite Terminating End Office
Access Rates using the relevant Fiscal Year 2011 interstate demand
multiplied by the respective interstate rates as of July 1, 2016, and
then dividing the result by the relevant 2011 Fiscal Year interstate
terminating local switching demand. A price cap carrier's intrastate
terminating end office access rates may not exceed the comparable
interstate terminating end office access rates. In the alternative, any
Price Cap Carrier may elect to implement a single per-minute rate
element for both interstate and intrastate Terminating End Office Access
Service no greater than the 2016 Target Composite Terminating End Office
Access Rate if its intrastate terminating end office access rates would
be at rate parity with its interstate terminating end office access
rates. Nothing in this section obligates or allows a Price Cap Carrier
that has intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent
interstate rates to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate
tariff revisions raising such rates.
    (g) Step 6. Beginning July 1, 2017, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Each Price Cap Carrier shall, in accordance with a bill-and-keep
methodology, refile its interstate access tariffs and any state tariffs,
in accordance with Sec. 51.905(b)(2), removing any intercarrier charges
for terminating End Office Access Service.
    (2) Each Price Cap Carrier shall establish, for interstate and
intrastate terminating traffic traversing a tandem switch that the
terminating carrier or its affiliates owns, Tandem-Switched Transport
Access Service rates no greater than $0.0007 per minute.
    (3) Nothing in this section obligates or allows a Price Cap Carrier
that has intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent
interstate rates to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate
tariff revisions raising such rates.
    (h) Step 7. Beginning July 1, 2018, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules, each Price Cap carrier shall, in
accordance with bill-and-keep, as defined in Sec. 51.713, revise and
refile its interstate switched access tariffs and any state tariffs to
remove any intercarrier charges applicable to terminating tandem-
switched access service traversing a tandem switch that the terminating
carrier or its affiliate owns.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 48452, Aug. 14, 2012;
79 FR 28844, May 20, 2014]



Sec. 51.909  Transition of rate-of-return carrier access charges.

    (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules,
on December 29, 2011, a Rate-of-Return Carrier shall:
    (1) Cap the rates for all rate elements for services contained in
the definitions of End Office Access Service, Tandem Switched Transport
Access Service, and Dedicated Transport Access Service, as well as all
other interstate switched access rate elements, in its interstate
switched access tariffs at the rate that was in effect on the December
29, 2011; and
    (2) Cap, in accordance with Sec. 51.505(b)(2), the rates for rate
all elements in its intrastate switched access tariffs associated with
the provision of terminating End Office Access Service and terminating
Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service at the rates that were in
effect on the December 29, 2011,
    (i) Using the terminating rates if specifically identified; or
    (ii) Using the rate for the applicable rate element if the tariff
does not distinguish between originating and terminating.
    (3) Except as provided in paragraphs (a)(6) and (b)(4) of this
section, nothing in this section obligates or allows a

[[Page 69]]

Rate-of-Return Carrier that has intrastate rates lower than its
functionally equivalent interstate rates to make any intrastate tariff
filing or intrastate tariff revisions raising such rates.
    (4) Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraph (a)(1) of this
section, if a Rate-of-Return Carrier enters or exits the National
Exchange Carrier Association (Association), as defined in Sec. 69.2(d)
of this chapter, traffic-sensitive tariff pursuant to the provisions of
Sec. 69.3(e)(6) of this chapter, the Association shall adjust its
switched access rate caps referenced in paragraph (a)(1) of this
section.
    (i) For each entering Rate-of-Return Carrier, the Association shall:
    (A) Determine each entering Rate-of-Return Carrier's interstate
switched access revenues for the preceding calendar year;
    (B) Determine the revenues that would have been realized by the
entering Rate-of-Return Carrier in the preceding calendar year if it had
used the Association's switched access rates (employing the rates for
the appropriate bands) as of December 31 of the preceding year and the
entering Rate-of-Return Carrier's switched access demand used to
determine switched access revenues under paragraph (a)(4)(i)(A) of this
section; and
    (C) Subtract the sum of the revenues determined pursuant to
paragraph (a)(4)(i)(B) of this section from the sum of the revenues
determined pursuant to paragraph (a)(4)(i)(A) of this section.
    (ii) The Association shall determine the amount by which each
exiting Rate-of-Return Carrier is a net contributor or net recipient to
or from the switched access segment of the Association pool as follows:
    (A) The Association shall calculate the difference between each
exiting Rate-of-Return Carrier's 2011-2012 tariff year projected
interstate switched access revenues excluding Local Switching Support
and the Rate-of-Return Carrier's projected switched access pool
settlements excluding Local Switching Support for the same period with a
net contribution amount being treated as a positive amount and a net
recipient amount being treated as a negative amount. The Association
shall divide the calculated difference by the Rate-of-Return Carrier's
2011-2012 tariff year projected interstate switched access revenues
excluding Local Switching Support to produce a percent net contribution
or net receipt factor.
    (B) The Association shall multiply the factor calculated in
paragraph (a)(4)(ii)(A) of this section by the Rate-of-Return Carrier's
switched access revenues for the preceding calendar year to yield the
amount of the Rate-of-Return Carrier's net contribution or net receipts
for the calendar year.
    (iii) To determine the Association's adjusted switched access rate
caps, the Association shall:
    (A) Add the amounts calculated under paragraphs (a)(4)(i) and
(a)(4)(ii) of this section;
    (B) Divide the amount determined in paragraph (a)(4)(iii)(A) of this
section by the preceding year's switched access revenues of the Rate-of-
Return Carriers that will participate in the Association traffic-
sensitive tariff for the next annual tariff period;
    (C) The Association shall proportionately adjust its June 30
switched access rate caps by the percentage amount determined in
paragraph (a)(4)(iii)(B) of this section.
    (iv) The interstate switched access rate caps determined pursuant to
paragraph (a)(4)(iii)(C) of this section shall be the new capped
interstate switched access rates for purposes of Sec. 51.909(a). The
Association shall provide support in its annual access tariff filing to
justify the revised interstate switched access rate caps, the Access
Recovery Charges that will be assessed, and the amount of Connect
America Fund ICC support each carrier will be eligible to receive.
    (5) A Rate-of-Return Carrier exiting the Association traffic-
sensitive tariff pursuant to Sec. 69.3(e)(6) of this chapter must
establish new switched access rate caps as follows:
    (i) The Rate-of-Return Carrier shall multiply the factor determined
in paragraph (a)(4)(ii)(A) of this section by negative one and then
proportionately adjust the Association's capped switched access rates as
of the date preceding the effective date of the exiting Rate-of-Return
Carrier's next annual tariff filing by this percentage.

[[Page 70]]

A Rate-of-Return Carrier that was a net contributor to the pool will
have rate caps that are lower than the Association's switched access
rate caps, while a net recipient will have switched access rate caps
that are higher than the Association's switched access rate caps;
    (ii) The interstate switched access rate caps determined pursuant to
paragraph (a)(5)(i) of this section shall be the new capped interstate
switched access rates of the exiting Rate-of-Return Carrier for purposes
of Sec. 51.909(a). An exiting Rate-of-Return Carrier shall provide
support in its annual access tariff filing to justify the revised
interstate switched access rate caps, the Access Recovery Charges that
will be assessed, and the amount of Connect America Fund ICC support the
carrier will be eligible to receive.
    (6) If the Association revises its interstate switched access rate
caps pursuant to paragraph (a)(4) of this section, each Rate-of-Return
Carrier participating in the upcoming annual Association traffic-
sensitive tariff shall:
    (i) Revise any of its intrastate switched access rates that would
have reached parity with its interstate switched access rates in 2013 to
parity with the revised interstate switched access rate levels;
    (ii) The Association shall provide Rate-of-Return Carriers that are
participating in the Association traffic-sensitive pool with notice of
any revisions the Association proposes under paragraph (a)(4) of this
section no later than May 1.
    (b) Step 1. Beginning July 1, 2012, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall file intrastate access tariff
provisions, in accordance with Sec. 51.505(b)(2), that set forth the
rates applicable to Transitional Intrastate Access Service in each state
in which it provides Transitional Intrastate Access Service.
    (2) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall establish the rates for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service using the following methodology:
    (i) Calculate total revenue from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service at the carrier's interstate access rates in effect on December
29, 2011, using Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate switched access demand for
each rate element.
    (ii) Calculate total revenue from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service at the carrier's intrastate access rates in effect on December
29, 2011, using Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate switched access demand for
each rate element.
    (iii) Calculate the Step 1 Access Revenue Reduction. The Step 1
Access Revenue Reduction is equal to one-half of the difference between
the amount calculated in (b)(2)(i) of this section and the amount
calculated in (b)(2)(ii) of this section.
    (iv) A Rate-of-Return Carrier may elect to establish rates for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service using its intrastate access rate
structure. Carriers using this option shall establish rates for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service such that Transitional Intrastate
Access Service revenue at the proposed rates is no greater than
Transitional Intrastate Access Service revenue at the intrastate rates
in effect as of December 29, 2011 less the Step 1 Access Revenue
Reduction, using Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate switched access demand.
Carriers electing to establish rates for Transitional Intrastate Access
Service in this manner shall notify the appropriate state regulatory
authority of their election in the filing required by Sec.
51.907(b)(1).
    (v) A Rate-of-Return Carrier may elect to apply its interstate
access rate structure and interstate rates to Transitional Intrastate
Access Service. In addition to applicable interstate access rates, the
carrier may, between July 1, 2012 and July 1, 2013, assess a
transitional per-minute charge on Transitional Intrastate Access Service
end office switching minutes (previously billed as intrastate access).
The transitional per-minute charge shall be no greater than the Step 1
Access Revenue Reduction divided by Fiscal Year 2011 Transitional
Intrastate Access Service end office switching minutes. Carriers
electing to establish rates for Transitional Intrastate Access Service
in this manner shall notify the appropriate state regulatory authority
of their election in the filing required by Sec. 51.907(b)(1).
    (3) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(4) of this section, nothing
in this

[[Page 71]]

section obligates or allows a Rate-of-Return carrier that has intrastate
rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates to make
any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions raising such
rates.
    (4) If a Rate-of-Return Carrier must make an intrastate switched
access rate reduction pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section, and
that Rate-of-Return Carrier has an intrastate rate for a rate element
that is below the comparable interstate rate for that element, the Rate-
of-Return Carrier shall:
    (i) Increase the rate for any intrastate rate element that is below
the comparable interstate rate for that element to the interstate rate
no later than July 1, 2013;
    (ii) Include any increases made pursuant to paragraph (b)(4)(i) of
this section in the calculation of its eligible recovery for 2012.
    (c) Step 2. Beginning July 1, 2013, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Transitional Intrastate Access Service rates shall be no higher
than the Rate-of-Return Carrier's interstate Terminating End Office
Access Service, Terminating Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service,
and Originating and Terminating Dedicated Transport Access Service rates
and subject to the same rate structure and all subsequent rate and rate
structure modifications. Except as provided in paragraph (c)(2) of this
section, nothing in this section obligates or allows a Rate-of-Return
Carrier that has intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent
interstate rates to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate
tariff revisions to increase such rates.
    (2) If a Rate-of-Return Carrier made an intrastate switched access
rate reduction in 2012 pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section, and
that Rate-of-Return Carrier has an intrastate rate for a rate element
that is below the comparable interstate rate for that element, the Rate-
of-Return Carrier shall:
    (i) Increase any intrastate rate element that is below the
comparable interstate rate to the interstate rate by July 1, 2013; and
    (ii) Include any increases made pursuant to paragraph (c)(2)(i) of
this section in the calculation of its eligible recovery for 2013.
    (d) Step 3. Beginning July 1, 2014, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Notwithstanding the rate structure rules set forth in Sec.
69.106 of this chapter or anything else in the Commission's rules, a
Rate-of-Return Carrier shall establish separate originating and
terminating interstate and intrastate rate elements for all components
within interstate End Office Access Service. For fixed charges, the
Rate-of-Return Carrier shall divide the amount based on relative
originating and terminating end office switching minutes. If sufficient
originating and terminating end office switching minute data is not
available, the carrier shall divide such charges equally between
originating and terminating elements.
    (2) Nothing in this Step shall affect Tandem-Switched Transport
Access Service or Dedicated Transport Access Service.
    (3) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall establish rates for interstate
and intrastate terminating End Office Access Service using the following
methodology:
    (i) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall calculate the 2011 Baseline
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2011 Baseline
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate means the Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate calculated using Fiscal Year 2011
interstate demand and the interstate End Office Access Service rates at
the levels in effect on December 29, 2011.
    (ii) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall calculate its 2014 Target
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2014 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate means $0.005 per minute plus two-
thirds of any difference between the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating
End Office Access Rate and $0.005 per minute.
    (iii) Beginning July 1, 2014, no Rate-of-Return Carrier's interstate
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate shall exceed its 2014
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. A rate-of-return
carrier shall determine compliance by calculating

[[Page 72]]

interstate Composite Terminating End Office Access Rates using the
relevant projected interstate demand for the tariff period multiplied by
the respective interstate rates as of July 1, 2014, and then dividing by
the projected interstate terminating end office local switching demand
for the tariff period. A rate-of-return carrier's intrastate terminating
end office access rates may not exceed the comparable interstate
terminating end office access rates. In the alternative, any Rate-of-
Return Carrier may elect to implement a single per minute rate element
for both interstate and intrastate terminating End Office Access Service
no greater than the 2014 Target Composite Terminating End Office Access
Rate if its intrastate terminating end office access rates would be at
rate parity with its interstate terminating end office access rates.
    (4) Nothing in this section obligates or allows a Rate-of-Return
Carrier that has intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent
interstate rates to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate
tariff revisions raising such rates.
    (e) Step 4. Beginning July 1, 2015, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall establish rates for interstate
and intrastate terminating End Office Access Service using the following
methodology:
    (i) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall calculate its 2015 Target
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2015 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate means $0.005 per minute plus one-
third of any difference between the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating
End Office Access Rate and $0.005 per minute.
    (ii) Beginning July 1, 2015, no Rate-of-Return Carrier's interstate
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate shall exceed its 2015
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. A rate-of-return
carrier shall determine compliance by calculating interstate Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rates using the relevant projected
interstate demand for the tariff period multiplied by the respective
interstate rates as of July 1, 2015, and then dividing by the projected
interstate terminating end office local switching demand for the tariff
period. A rate-of-return carrier's intrastate terminating end office
access rates may not exceed the comparable interstate terminating end
office access rates. In the alternative, any Rate-of-Return Carrier may
elect to implement a single per minute rate element for both interstate
and intrastate terminating End Office Access Service no greater than the
2015 Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate if its
intrastate terminating end office access rates would be at rate parity
with its interstate terminating end office access rates. Nothing in this
section obligates or allows a Rate-of-Return Carrier that has intrastate
rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates to make
any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions raising such
rates.
    (2) [Reserved]
    (f) Step 5. Beginning July 1, 2016, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules, each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall
establish interstate terminating End Office Access Service rates such
that its interstate Composite Terminating End Office Access Service rate
does not exceed $0.005 per minute. A rate-of-return carrier shall
determine compliance by calculating interstate Composite Terminating End
Office Access Rates using the relevant projected interstate demand for
the tariff period multiplied by the respective interstate rates as of
July 1, 2016, and then dividing by the projected interstate terminating
end office local switching demand for the tariff period. A rate-of-
return carrier's intrastate terminating end office access rates may not
exceed the comparable interstate terminating end office access rates. In
the alternative, any Rate-of-Return Carrier may elect to implement a
single per minute rate element for both interstate and intrastate
terminating End Office Access Service no greater than the 2016 Target
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate if its intrastate
terminating end office access rates would be at rate parity with its
interstate terminating end office access rates. Nothing in this section
obligates or allows a Rate-of-

[[Page 73]]

Return Carrier that has intrastate rates lower than its functionally
equivalent interstate rates to make any intrastate tariff filing or
intrastate tariff revisions raising such rates.
    (g) Step 6. Beginning July 1, 2017, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall establish interstate and
intrastate rates for terminating End Office Access Service using the
following methodology:
    (i) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall calculate its 2017 Target
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2017 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate means $0.0007 per minute plus two-
thirds of any difference between that carrier's 2016 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate and $0.0007 per minute.
    (ii) Beginning July 1, 2017, no Rate-of-Return Carrier's interstate
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate shall exceed its 2017
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. A rate-of-return
carrier shall determine compliance by calculating interstate Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rates using the relevant projected
interstate demand for the tariff period multiplied by the respective
interstate rates as of July 1, 2017, and then dividing by the projected
interstate terminating end office local switching demand for the tariff
period. A rate-of-return carrier's intrastate terminating end office
access rates may not exceed the comparable interstate terminating end
office access rates. In the alternative, any Rate-of-Return Carrier may
elect to implement a single per minute rate element for both interstate
and intrastate terminating End Office Access Service no greater than the
2017 Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate if its
intrastate terminating end office access rates would be at rate parity
with its interstate terminating end office access rates. Nothing in this
section obligates or allows a Rate-of-Return Carrier that has intrastate
rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates to make
any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions raising such
rates.
    (2) [Reserved]
    (h) Step 7. Beginning July 1, 2018, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall establish interstate and
intrastate rates for terminating End Office Access Service using the
following methodology:
    (i) Each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall calculate its 2018 Target
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. The 2018 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate means $0.0007 per minute plus one-
third of any difference between that carrier's 2016 Target Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate and $0.0007 per minute.
    (ii) Beginning July 1, 2018, no Rate-of-Return Carrier's interstate
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate shall exceed its 2018
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. A rate-of-return
carrier shall determine compliance by calculating interstate Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rates using the relevant projected
interstate demand for the tariff period multiplied by the respective
interstate rates as of July 1, 2018 and then dividing by the projected
interstate terminating end office local switching demand for the tariff
period. A rate-of-return carrier's intrastate terminating end office
access rates may not exceed the comparable interstate terminating end
office access rates. In the alternative, any Rate-of-Return Carrier may
elect to implement a single per minute rate element for both interstate
and intrastate terminating End Office Access Service no greater than the
2018 interstate Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate if
its intrastate terminating end office access rates would be at rate
parity with its interstate terminating end office access rates. Nothing
in this section obligates or allows a Rate-of-Return Carrier that has
intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates
to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions
raising such rates.
    (2) [Reserved]
    (i) Step 8. Beginning July 1, 2019, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules, each Rate-of-

[[Page 74]]

Return Carrier shall establish interstate and intrastate rates for
terminating End Office Access Service that do not exceed $0.0007 per
minute.
    (j) Step 9. Beginning July 1, 2020, notwithstanding any other
provision of the Commission's rules, each Rate-of-Return Carrier shall,
in accordance with a bill-and-keep methodology, revise and refile its
federal access tariffs and any state tariffs to remove any intercarrier
charges for terminating End Office Access Service.
    (k) As set forth in FCC 11-161, states will facilitate
implementation of changes to intrastate access rates to ensure
compliance with the Order. Nothing in this section shall alter the
authority of a state to monitor and oversee filing of intrastate
tariffs.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 48452, Aug. 14, 2012;
78 FR 26267, May 6, 2013; 79 FR 28845, May 20, 2014]



Sec. 51.911  Access reciprocal compensation rates for competitive LECs.

    (a) Caps on Access Reciprocal Compensation and switched access
rates. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules:
    (1) In the case of Competitive LECs operating in an area served by a
Price Cap Carrier, no such Competitive LEC may increase the rate for any
originating or terminating intrastate switched access service above the
rate for such service in effect on December 29, 2011.
    (2) In the case of Competitive LEC operating in an area served by an
incumbent local exchange carrier that is a Rate-of-Return Carrier or
Competitive LECs that are subject to the rural exemption in Sec.
61.26(e) of this chapter, no such Competitive LEC may increase the rate
for any originating or terminating intrastate switched access service
above the rate for such service in effect on December 29, 2011, with the
exception of intrastate originating access service. For such Competitive
LECs, intrastate originating access service subject to this subpart
shall remain subject to the same state rate regulation in effect
December 31, 2011, as may be modified by the state thereafter.
    (b) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(7) of this section,
beginning July 3, 2012, notwithstanding any other provision of the
Commission's rules, each Competitive LEC that has tariffs on file with
state regulatory authorities shall file intrastate access tariff
provisions, in accordance with Sec. 51.505(b)(2), that set forth the
rates applicable to Transitional Intrastate Access Service in each state
in which it provides Transitional Intrastate Access Service. Each
Competitive Local Exchange Carrier shall establish the rates for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service using the following methodology.
    (1) Calculate total revenue from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service at the carrier's interstate access rates in effect on December
29, 2011, using Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate switched access demand for
each rate element.
    (2) Calculate total revenue from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service at the carrier's intrastate access rates in effect on December
29, 2011, using Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate switched access demand for
each rate element.
    (3) Calculate the Step 1 Access Revenue Reduction. The Step 1 Access
Revenue Reduction is equal to one-half of the difference between the
amount calculated in (b)(1) of this section and the amount calculated in
(b)(2) of this section.
    (4) A Competitive Local Exchange Carrier may elect to establish
rates for Transitional Intrastate Access Service using its intrastate
access rate structure. Carriers using this option shall establish rates
for Transitional Intrastate Access Service such that Transitional
Intrastate Access Service revenue at the proposed rates is no greater
than Transitional Intrastate Access Service revenue at the intrastate
rates in effect as of December 29, 2011 less the Step 1 Access Revenue
Reduction, using Fiscal year 2011 intrastate switched access demand.
    (5) In the alternative, a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier may
elect to apply its interstate access rate structure and interstate rates
to Transitional Intrastate Access Service. In addition to applicable
interstate access rates, the carrier may assess a transitional per-
minute charge on Transitional Intrastate Access Service end office
switching minutes (previously

[[Page 75]]

billed as intrastate access). The transitional charge shall be no
greater than the Step 1 Access Revenue Reduction divided by Fiscal year
2011 intrastate switched access demand
    (6) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(7) of this section, nothing
in this section obligates or allows a Competitive LEC that has
intrastate rates lower than its functionally equivalent interstate rates
to make any intrastate tariff filing or intrastate tariff revisions
raising such rates.
    (7) If a Competitive LEC must make an intrastate switched access
rate reduction pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section, and that
Competitive LEC has an intrastate rate for a rate element that is below
the comparable interstate rate for that element, the Competitive LEC may
increase the rate for any intrastate rate element that is below the
comparable interstate rate for that element to the interstate rate no
later than July 1, 2013;
    (c) Beginning July 1, 2013, notwithstanding any other provision of
the Commission's rules, all Competitive Local Exchange Carrier Access
Reciprocal Compensation rates for switched exchange access services
subject to this subpart shall be no higher than the Access Reciprocal
Compensation rates charged by the competing incumbent local exchange
carrier, in accordance with the same procedures specified in Sec. 61.26
of this chapter.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 48452, Aug. 14, 2012]



Sec. 51.913  Transition for VoIP-PSTN traffic.

    (a)(1) Terminating Access Reciprocal Compensation subject to this
subpart exchanged between a local exchange carrier and another
telecommunications carrier in Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) format
that originates and/or terminates in IP format shall be subject to a
rate equal to the relevant interstate terminating access charges
specified by this subpart. Interstate originating Access Reciprocal
Compensation subject to this subpart exchanged between a local exchange
carrier and another telecommunications carrier in Time Division
Multiplexing (TDM) format that originates and/or terminates in IP format
shall be subject to a rate equal to the relevant interstate originating
access charges specified by this subpart.
    (2) Until June 30, 2014, intrastate originating Access Reciprocal
Compensation subject to this subpart exchanged between a local exchange
carrier and another telecommunications carrier in Time Division
Multiplexing (TDM) format that originates and/or terminates in IP format
shall be subject to a rate equal to the relevant intrastate originating
access charges specified by this subpart. Effective July 1, 2014,
originating Access Reciprocal Compensation subject to this subpart
exchanged between a local exchange carrier and another
telecommunications carrier in Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) format
that originates and/or terminates in IP format shall be subject to a
rate equal to the relevant interstate originating access charges
specified by this subpart.
    (3) Telecommunications traffic originates and/or terminates in IP
format if it originates from and/or terminates to an end-user customer
of a service that requires Internet protocol-compatible customer
premises equipment.
    (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules, a
local exchange carrier shall be entitled to assess and collect the full
Access Reciprocal Compensation charges prescribed by this subpart that
are set forth in a local exchange carrier's interstate or intrastate
tariff for the access services defined in Sec. 51.903 regardless of
whether the local exchange carrier itself delivers such traffic to the
called party's premises or delivers the call to the called party's
premises via contractual or other arrangements with an affiliated or
unaffiliated provider of interconnected VoIP service, as defined in 47
U.S.C. 153(25), or a non-interconnected VoIP service, as defined in 47
U.S.C. 153(36), that does not itself seek to collect Access Reciprocal
Compensation charges prescribed by this subpart for that traffic. This
rule does not permit a local exchange carrier to charge for functions
not performed by the local exchange carrier itself or the affiliated or
unaffiliated provider of interconnected VoIP service or non-

[[Page 76]]

interconnected VoIP service. For purposes of this provision, functions
provided by a LEC as part of transmitting telecommunications between
designated points using, in whole or in part, technology other than TDM
transmission in a manner that is comparable to a service offered by a
local exchange carrier constitutes the functional equivalent of the
incumbent local exchange carrier access service.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 31536, May 29, 2012]
    (a) Access Reciprocal Compensation subject to this subpart exchanged
between a local exchange carrier and another telecommunications carrier
in Time Division Multiplexing (TDM) format that originates and/or
terminates in IP format shall be subject to a rate equal to the relevant
interstate access charges specified by this subpart. Telecommunications
traffic originates and/or terminates in IP format if it originates from
and/or terminates to an end-user customer of a service that requires
Internet protocol-compatible customer premises equipment.
    (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules, a
local exchange carrier shall be entitled to assess and collect the full
Access Reciprocal Compensation charges prescribed by this subpart that
are set forth in a local exchange carrier's interstate or intrastate
tariff for the access services defined in Sec. 51.903 regardless of
whether the local exchange carrier itself delivers such traffic to the
called party's premises or delivers the call to the called party's
premises via contractual or other arrangements with an affiliated or
unaffiliated provider of interconnected VoIP service, as defined in 47
U.S.C. 153(25), or a non-interconnected VoIP service, as defined in 47
U.S.C. 153(36), that does not itself seek to collect Access Reciprocal
Compensation charges prescribed by this subpart for that traffic. This
rule does not permit a local exchange carrier to charge for functions
not performed by the local exchange carrier itself or the affiliated or
unaffiliated provider of interconnected VoIP service or non-
interconnected VoIP service. For purposes of this provision, functions
provided by a LEC as part of transmitting telecommunications between
designated points using, in whole or in part, technology other than TDM
transmission in a manner that is comparable to a service offered by a
local exchange carrier constitutes the functional equivalent of the
incumbent local exchange carrier access service.



Sec. 51.915  Recovery mechanism for price cap carriers.

    (a) Scope. This section sets forth the extent to which Price Cap
Carriers may recover certain revenues, through the recovery mechanism
outlined below, to implement reforms adopted in FCC 11-161 and as
required by Sec. 20.11(b) of this chapter, and Sec. Sec. 51.705 and
51.907.
    (b) Definitions. As used in this section and Sec. 51.917, the
following terms mean:
    (1) CALLS Study Area. A CALLS Study Area means a Price Cap Carrier
study area that participated in the CALLS plan at its inception. See
Access Charge Reform, Price Cap Performance Review for Local Exchange
Carriers, Low-Volume Long-Distance Users, Federal-State Joint Board on
Universal Service, Sixth Report and Order in CC Docket Nos. 96-262 and
94-1, Report and Order in CC Docket No. 99-249, Eleventh Report and
Order in CC Docket No. 96-45, 15 FCC Rcd 12962 (2000).
    (2) CALLS Study Area Base Factor. The CALLS Study Area Base Factor
is equal to ninety (90) percent.
    (3) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues. CMRS Net Reciprocal
Compensation Revenues means the reduction in net reciprocal compensation
revenues required by Sec. 20.11 of this chapter associated with CMRS
traffic as described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2), which is equal to its Fiscal
Year 2011 net reciprocal compensation revenues from CMRS carriers.
    (4) Expected Revenues for Access Recovery Charges. Expected Revenues
for Access Recovery Charges are calculated using the tariffed Access
Recovery Charge rate for each class of service and the forecast demand
for each class of service.
    (5) Initial Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate. Initial
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate means Fiscal Year 2011
terminating interstate End Office Access Service revenue divided by
Fiscal Year 2011 terminating

[[Page 77]]

interstate end office switching minutes.
    (6) Lifeline Customer. A Lifeline Customer is a residential lifeline
subscriber as defined by Sec. 54.400(a) of this chapter that does not
pay a Residential and/or Single-Line Business End User Common Line
Charge.
    (7) Net Reciprocal Compensation. Net Reciprocal Compensation means
the difference between a carrier's reciprocal compensation revenues from
non-access traffic less its reciprocal compensation payments for non-
access traffic during a stated period of time. For purposes of the
calculations made under Sec. Sec. 51.915 and 51.917, the term does not
include reciprocal compensation revenues for non-access traffic
exchanged between Local Exchange Carriers and CMRS providers; recovery
for such traffic is addressed separately in these sections.
    (8) Non-CALLS Study Area. Non-CALLS Study Area means a Price Cap
Carrier study area that did not participate in the CALLS plan at its
inception.
    (9) Non-CALLS Study Area Base Factor. The Non-CALLS Study Area Base
Factor is equal to one hundred (100) percent for five (5) years
beginning July 1, 2012. Beginning July 1, 2017, the Non-CALLS Price Cap
Carrier Base Factor will be equal to ninety (90) percent.
    (10) Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor. The Price Cap Carrier
Traffic Demand Factor, as used in calculating eligible recovery, is
equal to ninety (90) percent for the one-year period beginning July 1,
2012. It is reduced by ten (10) percent of its previous value in each
subsequent annual tariff filing.
    (11) Rate Ceiling Component Charges. The Rate Ceiling Component
Charges consists of the federal end user common line charge and the
Access Recovery Charge; the flat rate for residential local service
(sometimes know as the ``1FR'' or ``R1'' rate), mandatory extended area
service charges, and state subscriber line charges; per-line state high
cost and/or state access replacement universal service contributions,
state E911 charges, and state TRS charges.
    (12) Residential Rate Ceiling. The Residential Rate Ceiling, which
consists of the total of the Rate Ceiling Component Charges, is set at
$30 per month. The Residential Rate Ceiling will be the higher of the
rate in effect on January 1, 2012, or the rate in effect on January 1 in
any subsequent year.
    (13) True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charge. True-up revenues
for Access Recovery Charge are equal to (projected demand minus actual
realized demand for Access Recovery Charges) times the tariffed Access
Recovery Charge. This calculation shall be made separately for each
class of service and shall be adjusted to reflect any changes in
tariffed rates for the Access Recovery Charge. Realized demand is the
demand for which payment has been received by the time the true-up is
made.
    (14) Intrastate 2014 Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate.
The Intrastate 2014 Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate as used
in this section is determined by
    (i) If a separate terminating rate is not already generally
available, developing separate intrastate originating and terminating
end office rates in accordance with Sec. 51.907(d)(1) using end office
access rates at their June 30, 2014, rate caps;
    (ii) Multiplying the existing terminating June 30, 2014, intrastate
end office access rates, or the terminating rates developed in paragraph
(b)(14)(i) of this section, by the relevant Fiscal Year 2011 intrastate
demand; and
    (iii) Dividing the sum of the revenues determined in paragraph
(b)(14)(ii) of this section by 2011 Fiscal Year intrastate terminating
local switching minutes.
    (c) 2011 Price Cap Carrier Base Period Revenue. 2011 Price Cap
Carrier Base Period Revenue is equal to the sum of the following three
components:
    (1) Terminating interstate end office switched access revenues and
interstate Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service revenues for Fiscal
Year 2011 received by March 31, 2012;
    (2) Fiscal Year 2011 revenues from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service received by March 31, 2012; and
    (3) Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation revenues received by
March 31, 2012, less fiscal year 2011 reciprocal compensation payments
made by March 31, 2012.

[[Page 78]]

    (d) Eligible recovery for Price Cap Carriers.(1) Notwithstanding any
other provision of the Commission's rules, a Price Cap Carrier may
recover the amounts specified in this paragraph through the mechanisms
described in paragraphs (e) and (f) of this section.
    (i) Beginning July 1, 2012, a Price Cap Carrier's eligible recovery
will be equal to the CALLS Study Area Base Factor and/or the Non-CALLS
Study Area Base Factor, as applicable, multiplied by the sum of the
following three components:
    (A) The amount of the reduction in Transitional Intrastate Access
Service revenues determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(b)(2) multiplied by
the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (B) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues multiplied by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (C) A Price Cap Carrier's reductions in Fiscal Year 2011 net
reciprocal compensation revenues resulting from rate reductions required
by Sec. 51.705, other than those associated with CMRS traffic as
described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2), which may be calculated in one of the
following ways:
    (1) Calculate the reduction in Fiscal Year 2011 net reciprocal
compensation revenue as a result of rate reductions required by Sec.
51.705 using Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation demand, and then
multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (2) By using a composite reciprocal compensation rate as follows:
    (i) Establish a composite reciprocal compensation rate for its
Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation receipts and its Fiscal Year
2011 reciprocal compensation payments by dividing its Fiscal Year 2011
reciprocal compensation receipts and payments by its respective Fiscal
Year 2011 demand excluding demand for traffic exchanged pursuant to a
bill-and-keep arrangement;
    (ii) Calculate the difference between each of the composite
reciprocal compensation rates and the target reciprocal compensation
rate set forth in Sec. 51.705 for the year beginning July 1, 2012
multiply by the appropriate Fiscal Year 2011 demand, and then multiply
by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; or
    (3) For the purpose of establishing its recovery for net reciprocal
compensation, a Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo this step and
receive no recovery for reductions in net reciprocal compensation. If a
carrier elects this option, it may not change its election at a later
date.
    (ii) Beginning July 1, 2013, a Price Cap Carrier's eligible recovery
will be equal to the CALLS Study Area Base Factor and/or the Non-CALLS
Study Area Base Factor, as applicable, multiplied by the sum of the
following three components:
    (A) The cumulative amount of the reduction in Transitional
Intrastate Access Service revenues determined pursuant to Sec.
51.907(b)(2) and (c) multiplied by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand
Factor; and
    (B) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues multiplied by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (C) A Price Cap Carrier's cumulative reductions in Fiscal Year 2011
net reciprocal compensation revenues other than those associated with
CMRS traffic as described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2) resulting from rate
reductions required by Sec. 51.705 may be calculated in one of the
following ways:
    (1) Calculate the cumulative reduction in Fiscal Year 2011 net
reciprocal compensation revenue as a result of rate reductions required
by Sec. 51.705 using Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation demand
and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (2) By using a composite reciprocal compensation rate as follows:
    (i) Establish a composite reciprocal compensation rate for its
Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation receipts and its Fiscal Year
2011 reciprocal compensation payments by dividing its Fiscal Year 2011
reciprocal compensation receipts and payments by its respective Fiscal
Year 2011 demand excluding demand for traffic exchanged pursuant to a
bill-and-keep arrangement;
    (ii) Calculate the difference between each of the composite
reciprocal compensation rates and the target reciprocal compensation
rate set forth in Sec. 51.705 for the year beginning July 1, 2013,
using the appropriate Fiscal Year

[[Page 79]]

2011 demand, and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand
Factor; or
    (3) For the purpose of establishing its recovery for net reciprocal
compensation, a Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo this step and
receive no recovery for reductions in net reciprocal compensation. If a
carrier elects this option, it may not change its election at a later
date.
    (iii) Beginning July 1, 2014, a Price Cap Carrier's eligible
recovery will be equal to the CALLS Study Area Base Factor and/or the
Non-CALLS Study Area Base Factor, as applicable, multiplied by the sum
of the amounts in paragraphs (d)(1)(iii)(A) through (d)(1)(iii)(E), of
this section, and then adding the amount in paragraph (d)(1)(iii)(F) of
this section to that amount:
    (A) The amount of the reduction in Transitional Intrastate Access
Service revenues determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(b)(2) and (c)
multiplied by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (B) The reduction in interstate switched access revenues equal to
the difference between the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating End
Office Access Rate and the 2014 Target Composite Terminating End Office
Access Rate determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(d) using Fiscal Year
2011 terminating interstate end office switching minutes, and then
multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (C) If the carrier reduced its 2014 Intrastate Terminating End
Office Access Rate(s) pursuant to Sec. 51.907(d)(2), the reduction in
revenues equal to the difference between either the Intrastate 2014
Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate and the Composite
Terminating End Office Access Rate based on the maximum terminating end
office rates that could have been charged on July 1, 2014, or the 2014
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate, as applicable,
using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating intrastate end office switching
minutes, and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand
Factor;
    (D) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues multiplied by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (E) A Price Cap Carrier's cumulative reductions in Fiscal Year 2011
net reciprocal compensation revenues other than those associated with
CMRS traffic as described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2) resulting from rate
reductions required by Sec. 51.705 may be calculated in one of the
following ways:
    (1) Calculate the cumulative reduction in Fiscal Year 2011 net
reciprocal compensation revenue as a result of rate reductions required
by Sec. 51.705 using Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation demand,
and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (2) By using a composite reciprocal compensation rate as follows:
    (i) Establish a composite reciprocal compensation rate for its
Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation receipts and its Fiscal Year
2011 reciprocal compensation payments by dividing its Fiscal Year 2011
reciprocal compensation receipts and payments by its respective Fiscal
Year 2011 demand excluding demand for traffic exchanged pursuant to a
bill-and-keep arrangement;
    (ii) Calculate the difference between each of the composite
reciprocal compensation rates and the target reciprocal compensation
rate set forth in Sec. 51.705 for the year beginning July 1, 2014,
using the appropriate Fiscal Year 2011 demand, and then multiply by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; or
    (3) For the purpose of establishing its recovery for net reciprocal
compensation, a Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo this step and
receive no recovery for reductions in net reciprocal compensation. If a
carrier elects this option, it may not change its election at a later
date.
    (F) An amount equal to True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charges
for the year beginning July 1, 2012.
    (iv) Beginning July 1, 2015, a Price Cap Carrier's eligible recovery
will be equal to the CALLS Study Area Base Factor and/or the Non-CALLS
Study Area Base Factor, as applicable, multiplied by the sum of the
amounts in paragraphs (d)(1)(iv)(A) through (d)(1)(iv)(E) of this
section and then adding the amount in paragraph

[[Page 80]]

(d)(1)(iv)(F) of this section to that amount:
    (A) The amount of the reduction in Transitional Intrastate Access
Service revenues determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(b)(2) and (c)
multiplied by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (B) The reduction in interstate switched access revenues equal to
the difference between the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating End
Office Access Rate and the 2015 Target Composite Terminating End Office
Access Rate determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(e) using Fiscal Year
2011 terminating interstate end office switching minutes, and then
multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (C) If the carrier reduced its Intrastate Terminating End Office
Access Rate(s) pursuant to Sec. 51.907(e)(1), the reduction in
intrastate switched access revenues equal to the difference between
either the intrastate 2014 Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate
and the Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate based on the
maximum terminating end office rates that could have been charged on
July 1, 2015, or the 2015 Target Composite Terminating End Office Access
Rate, as applicable, using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating intrastate end
office switching minutes, and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier
Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (D) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues multiplied by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (E) A Price Cap Carrier's cumulative reductions in Fiscal Year 2011
net reciprocal compensation revenues other than those associated with
CMRS traffic as described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2) resulting from rate
reductions required by Sec. 51.705 may be calculated in one of the
following ways:
    (1) Calculate the cumulative reduction in Fiscal Year 2011 net
reciprocal compensation revenue as a result of rate reductions required
by Sec. 51.705 using Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation demand,
and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (2) By using a composite reciprocal compensation rate as follows:
    (i) Establish a composite reciprocal compensation rate for its
Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation receipts and its Fiscal Year
2011 reciprocal compensation payments by dividing its Fiscal Year 2011
reciprocal compensation receipts and payments by its respective Fiscal
Year 2011 demand excluding demand for traffic exchanged pursuant to a
bill-and-keep arrangement;
    (ii) Calculate the difference between each of the composite
reciprocal compensation rates and the target reciprocal compensation
rate set forth in Sec. 51.705 for the year beginning July 1, 2015,
using the appropriate Fiscal Year 2011 demand, and then multiply by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; or
    (3) For the purpose of establishing its recovery for net reciprocal
compensation, a Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo this step and
receive no recovery for reductions in net reciprocal compensation. If a
carrier elects this option, it may not change its election at a later
date.
    (F) An amount equal to True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charges
for the year beginning July 1, 2013.
    (v) Beginning July 1, 2016, a Price Cap Carrier's eligible recovery
will be equal to the CALLS Study Area Base Factor and/or the Non-CALLS
Study Area Base Factor, as applicable, multiplied by the sum of the
amounts in paragraphs (d)(1)(v)(A) through (d)(1)(v)(E), of this section
and then adding the amount in paragraph (d)(1)(v)(F) of this section to
that amount:
    (A) The amount of the reduction in Transitional Intrastate Access
Service revenues determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(b)(2) and (c)
multiplied by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (B) The reduction in interstate switched access revenues equal to
the difference between the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating End
Office Access Rate and $0.0007 determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(f)
using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating interstate end office switching
minutes, and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand
Factor;
    (C) If the carrier reduced its Intrastate Terminating End Office
Access

[[Page 81]]

Rate(s) pursuant to Sec. 51.907(f), the reduction in revenues equal to
the difference between either the Intrastate 2014 Composite Terminating
End Office Access Rate and $0.0007 based on the maximum terminating end
office rates that could have been charged on July 1, 2016, or the 2016
Target Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate, as applicable,
using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating intrastate end office minutes, and
then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (D) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues multiplied by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (E) A Price Cap Carrier's cumulative reductions in Fiscal Year 2011
net reciprocal compensation revenues other than those associated with
CMRS traffic as described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2) resulting from rate
reductions required by Sec. 51.705 may be calculated in one of the
following ways:
    (1) Calculate the cumulative reduction in Fiscal Year 2011 net
reciprocal compensation revenue as a result of rate reductions required
by Sec. 51.705 using Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation demand,
and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (2) By using a composite reciprocal compensation rate as follows:
    (i) Establish a composite reciprocal compensation rate for its
Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation receipts and its Fiscal Year
2011 reciprocal compensation payments by dividing its Fiscal Year 2011
reciprocal compensation receipts and payments by its respective Fiscal
Year 2011 demand excluding demand for traffic exchanged pursuant to a
bill-and-keep arrangement;
    (ii) Calculate the difference between each of the composite
reciprocal compensation rates and the target reciprocal compensation
rate set forth in Sec. 51.705 for the year beginning July 1, 2016,
using the appropriate Fiscal Year 2011 demand, and then multiply by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; or
    (3) For the purpose of establishing its recovery for net reciprocal
compensation, a Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo this step and
receive no recovery for reductions in net reciprocal compensation. If a
carrier elects this option, it may not change its election at a later
date.
    (F) An amount equal to True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charges
for the year beginning July 1, 2014.
    (vi) Beginning July 1, 2017, a Price Cap Carrier's eligible recovery
will be equal to ninety (90) percent of the sum of the amounts in
paragraphs (d)(1)(vi) through (d)(1)(vi)(F) of this section, and then
adding the amount in paragraph (d)(1)(vi)(G) f this section to that
amount:
    (A) The amount of the reduction in Transitional Intrastate Access
Service revenues determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(b)(2) and (c)
multiplied by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (B) The reduction in interstate switched access revenues equal to
the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate using
Fiscal Year 2011 terminating interstate end office switching minutes,
and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (C) The reduction in revenues equal to the intrastate 2014 Composite
terminating End Office Access Rate using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating
intrastate end office switching minutes, and then multiply by the Price
Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (D) The reduction in revenues resulting from reducing the
terminating Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service rate to $0.0007
pursuant to Sec. 51.907(g)(2) using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating
tandem-switched minutes, and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier
Traffic Demand Factor;
    (E) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues multiplied by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (F) A Price Cap Carrier's cumulative reductions in Fiscal Year 2011
net reciprocal compensation revenues other than those associated with
CMRS traffic as described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2) resulting from rate
reductions required by Sec. 51.705 may be calculated in one of the
following ways:
    (1) Calculate the cumulative reduction in Fiscal Year 2011 net
reciprocal compensation revenue as a result of rate reductions required
by Sec. 51.705

[[Page 82]]

using Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation demand, and then multiply
by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (2) By using a composite reciprocal compensation rate as follows:
    (i) Establish a composite reciprocal compensation rate for its
Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation receipts and its Fiscal Year
2011 reciprocal compensation payments by dividing its Fiscal Year 2011
reciprocal compensation receipts and payments by its respective Fiscal
Year 2011 demand excluding demand for traffic exchanged pursuant to a
bill-and-keep arrangement;
    (ii) Calculate the difference between each of the composite
reciprocal compensation rates and the target reciprocal compensation
rate set forth in Sec. 51.705 for the year beginning July 1, 2017,
using the appropriate Fiscal Year 2011 demand, and then multiply by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; or
    (3) For the purpose of establishing its recovery for net reciprocal
compensation, a Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo this step and
receive no recovery for reductions in net reciprocal compensation. If a
carrier elects this option, it may not change its election at a later
date.
    (G) An amount equal to True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charges
for the year beginning July 1, 2015.
    (vii) Beginning July 1, 2018, a Price Cap Carrier's eligible
recovery will be equal to ninety (90) percent of the sum of the amounts
in paragraphs (d)(1)(vii)(A) though (d)(1)(vii)(G) of this section, and
then adding the amount in paragraph (d)(1)(vii)(H) of this section to
that amount:
    (A) The amount of the reduction in Transitional Intrastate Access
Service revenues determined pursuant to Sec. 51.907(b)(2) and (c)
multiplied by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and:
    (B) The reduction in interstate switched access revenues equal to
the 2011 Baseline Composite Terminating End Office Access Rate using
Fiscal Year 2011 terminating interstate end office switching minutes,
and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (C) The reduction in revenues equal to the intrastate 2014 Composite
terminating End Office Access Rate using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating
intrastate end office switching minutes, and then multiply by the Price
Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (D) The reduction in revenues resulting from reducing the
terminating Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service rate to $0.0007
pursuant to Sec. 51.907(g)(2) using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating
tandem-switched minutes, and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier
Traffic Demand Factor;
    (E) The reduction in revenues resulting from moving from a
terminating Tandem-Switched Transport Access Service rate tariffed at a
maximum of $0.0007 to removal of intercarrier charges pursuant to Sec.
51.907(h), if applicable, using Fiscal Year 2011 terminating tandem-
switched minutes, and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic
Demand Factor;
    (F) CMRS Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues multiplied by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; and
    (G) A Price Cap Carrier's cumulative reductions in Fiscal Year 2011
net reciprocal compensation revenues other than those associated with
CMRS traffic as described in Sec. 51.701(b)(2) resulting from rate
reductions required by Sec. 51.705 may be calculated in one of the
following ways:
    (1) Calculate the cumulative reduction in Fiscal Year 2011 net
reciprocal compensation revenue as a result of rate reductions required
by Sec. 51.705 using Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation demand,
and then multiply by the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor;
    (2) By using a composite reciprocal compensation rate as follows:
    (i) Establish a composite reciprocal compensation rate for its
Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation receipts and its Fiscal Year
2011 reciprocal compensation payments by dividing its Fiscal Year 2011
reciprocal compensation receipts and payments by its respective Fiscal
Year 2011 demand excluding demand for traffic exchanged pursuant to a
bill-and-keep arrangement;

[[Page 83]]

    (ii) Calculate the difference between each of the composite
reciprocal compensation rates and the target reciprocal compensation
rate set forth in Sec. 51.705 for the year beginning July 1, 2018,
using the appropriate Fiscal Year 2011 demand, and then multiply by the
Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor; or
    (3) For the purpose of establishing its recovery for net reciprocal
compensation, a Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo this step and
receive no recovery for reductions in net reciprocal compensation. If a
carrier elects this option, it may not change its election at a later
date.
    (H) An amount equal to True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charges
for the year beginning July 1, 2016.
    (viii) Beginning July 1, 2019, and in subsequent years, a Price Cap
Carrier's eligible recovery will be equal to the amount calculated in
paragraph (d)(1)(vii)(A) through (d)(1)(vii)(H) of this section before
the application of the Price Cap Carrier Traffic Demand Factor
applicable in 2018 multiplied by the appropriate Price Cap Carrier
Traffic Demand Factor for the year in question, and then adding an
amount equal to True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charges for the
year beginning July 1 two years earlier.
    (2) If a Price Cap Carrier recovers any costs or revenues that are
already being recovered through Access Recovery Charges or the Connect
America Fund from another source, that carrier's ability to recover
reduced switched access revenue from Access Recovery Charges or the
Connect America Fund shall be reduced to the extent it receives
duplicative recovery. Any duplicative recovery shall be reflected as a
reduction to a carrier's Eligible Recovery calculated pursuant to Sec.
51.915(d).
    (3) A Price Cap Carrier seeking revenue recovery must annually
certify as part of its tariff filings to the Commission and to the
relevant state commission that the carrier is not seeking duplicative
recovery in the state jurisdiction for any Eligible Recovery subject to
the recovery mechanism.
    (4) If a Price Cap Carrier receives payment for Access Recovery
Charges after the period used to measure the adjustment to reflect the
differences between estimated and actual revenues, it shall treat such
payments as actual revenues in the year the payment is received and
shall reflect this as an additional adjustment for that year.
    (e) Access Recovery Charge. (1) A charge that is expressed in
dollars and cents per line per month may be assessed upon end users that
may be assessed an end user common line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.152
of this chapter, to the extent necessary to allow the Price Cap Carrier
to recover some or all of its eligible recovery determined pursuant to
paragraph (d) of this section, subject to the caps described in
paragraph (e)(5) of this section. A Price Cap Carrier may elect to forgo
charging some or all of the Access Recovery Charge.
    (2) Total Access Recovery Charges calculated by multiplying the
tariffed Access Recovery Charge by the projected demand for the year in
question may not recover more than the amount of eligible recovery
calculated pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section for the year
beginning on July 1.
    (3) For the purposes of this section, a Price Cap Carrier holding
company includes all of its wholly-owned operating companies that are
price cap incumbent local exchange carriers. A Price Cap Carrier Holding
Company may recover the eligible recovery attributable to any price cap
study areas operated by its wholly-owned operating companies through
assessments of the Access Recovery Charge on end users in any price cap
study areas operated by its wholly owned operating companies that are
price cap incumbent local exchange carriers.
    (4) Distribution of Access Recovery Charges among lines of different
types. (i) A Price Cap Carrier holding company that does not receive
ICC-replacement CAF support (whether because it elects not to or because
it does not have sufficient eligible recovery after the Access Recovery
Charge is assessed or imputed) may not recover a higher fraction of its
total revenue recovery from Access Recovery Charges assessed on
Residential and Single Line Business lines than:

[[Page 84]]

    (A) The number of Residential and Single-Line Business lines divided
by
    (B) The sum of the number of Residential and Single-Line Business
lines and two (2) times the number of End User Common Line charges
assessed on Multi-Line Business customers.
    (ii) For purposes of this subpart, Residential and Single Line
Business lines are lines (other than lines of Lifeline Customers)
assessed the residential and single line business end user common line
charge and lines assessed the non-primary residential end user common
line charge.
    (iii) For purposes of this subpart, Multi-Line Business Lines are
lines assessed the multi-line business end user common line charge.
    (5) Per-line caps and other limitations on Access Recovery Charges
    (i) For each line other than lines of Lifeline Customers assessed a
primary residential or single-line business end user common line charge
or a non-primary residential end user common line charge pursuant to
Sec. 69.152 of this Chapter, a Price Cap Carrier may assess an Access
Recovery Charge as follows:
    (A) Beginning July 1, 2012, a maximum of $0.50 per month for each
line;
    (B) Beginning July 1, 2013, a maximum of $1.00 per month for each
line;
    (C) Beginning July 1, 2014, a maximum of $1.50 per month for each
line;
    (D) Beginning July 1, 2015, a maximum of $2.00 per month for each
line; and
    (E) Beginning July 1, 2016, a maximum of $2.50 per month for each
line.
    (ii) For each line assessed a multi-line business end user common
line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.152 of this chapter, a Price Cap
Carrier may assess an Access Recovery Charge as follows:
    (A) Beginning July 1, 2012, a maximum of $1.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed;
    (B) Beginning July 1, 2013, a maximum of $2.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed;
    (C) Beginning July 1, 2014, a maximum of $3.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed;
    (D) Beginning July 1, 2015, a maximum of $4.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed; and
    (E) Beginning July 1, 2016, a maximum of $5.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed.
    (iii) The Access Recovery Charge allowed by paragraph (e)(5)(i) of
this section may not be assessed to the extent that its assessment would
bring the total of the Rate Ceiling Component Charges above the
Residential Rate Ceiling on January 1 of that year. This limitation
applies only to the first residential line obtained by a residential end
user and does not apply to single-line business customers.
    (iv) The Access Recovery Charge allowed by paragraph (e)(5)(ii) of
this section may not be assessed to the extent that its assessment would
bring the total of the multi-line business end user common line charge
and the Access Recovery Charge above $12.20 per line.
    (v) The Access Recovery Charge assessed on lines assessed the non-
primary residential line end user common line charge in a study area may
not exceed the Access Recovery Charge assessed on residential end-users'
first residential line in that study area.
    (vi) The Access Recovery Charge may not be assessed on lines of any
Lifeline Customers.
    (vii) If in any year, the Price Cap Carrier's Access Recovery Charge
is not at its maximum, the succeeding year's Access Recovery Charge may
not increase more than $.0.50 per line per month for charges assessed
under paragraph (e)(5)(i) of this section or $1.00 per line per month
for charges assessed under paragraph (e)(5)(ii) of this section.
    (f) Price Cap Carrier eligibility for CAF ICC Support.(1) A Price
Cap Carrier shall elect in its July 1, 2012 access tariff filing whether
it will receive CAF ICC Support under this paragraph. A Price Cap
Carrier eligible to receive CAF ICC Support subsequently may elect at
any time not to receive such funding. Once it makes the election not to
receive CAFF ICC Support, it may not elect to receive such funding at a
later date.

[[Page 85]]

    (2) Beginning July 1, 2012, a Price Cap Carrier may recover any
eligible recovery allowed by paragraph (d) that it could not have
recovered through charges assessed pursuant to paragraph (e) of this
section from CAF ICC Support pursuant to Sec. 54.304. For this purpose,
the Price Cap Carrier must impute the maximum charges it could have
assessed under paragraph (e)of this section.
    (3) Beginning July 1, 2017, a Price Cap Carrier may recover two-
thirds (\2/3\) of the amount it otherwise would have been eligible to
recover under paragraph (f)(2) from CAF ICC Support.
    (4) Beginning July 1, 2018, a Price Cap Carrier may recover one-
third (1/3) of the amount it otherwise would have been eligible to
recover under paragraph (f)(2) of this section from CAF ICC Support.
    (5) Beginning July 1, 2019, a Price Cap Carrier may no longer
recover any amount related to revenue recovery under this paragraph from
CAF ICC Support.
    (6) A Price Cap Carrier that elects to receive CAF ICC support must
certify with its annual access tariff filing that it has complied with
paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section, and, after doing so, is eligible
to receive the CAF ICC support requested pursuant to paragraph (f) of
this section.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 48453, Aug. 14, 2012;
78 FR 26268, May 6, 2013;79 FR 28846, May 20, 2014]



Sec. 51.917  Revenue recovery for Rate-of-Return Carriers.

    (a) Scope. This section sets forth the extent to which Rate-of-
Return Carriers may recover, through the recovery mechanism outlined in
paragraphs (d) through (f) of this section, a portion of revenues lost
due to rate reductions required by Sec. 20.11(b) of this chapter, and
Sec. Sec. 51.705 and 51.909.
    (b) Definitions.
    (1) 2011 Interstate Switched Access Revenue Requirement. 2011
Interstate Switched Access Revenue Requirement means:
    (i) For a Rate-of-Return Carrier that participated in the NECA 2011
annual switched access tariff filing, its projected interstate switched
access revenue requirement associated with the NECA 2011 annual
interstate switched access tariff filing;
    (ii) For a Rate-of-Return Carrier subject to Sec. 61.38 of this
chapter that filed its own annual access tariff in 2010 and did not
participate in the NECA 2011 annual switched access tariff filing, its
projected interstate switched access revenue requirement in its 2010
annual interstate switched access tariff filing; and
    (iii) For a Rate-of-Return Carrier subject to Sec. 61.39 of this
chapter that filed its own annual switched access tariff in 2011, its
historically-determined annual interstate switched access revenue
requirement filed with its 2011 annual interstate switched access tariff
filing.
    (2) Expected Revenues. Expected Revenues from an access service are
calculated using the default transition rate for that service specified
by Sec. 51.909 and forecast demand for that service. Expected Revenues
from a non-access service are calculated using the default transition
rate for that service specified by Sec. 20.11 of this chapter or Sec.
51.705 of this chapter and forecast net demand for that service.
    (3) Rate-of-Return Carrier Baseline Adjustment Factor. The Rate-of-
Return Carrier Baseline Adjustment Factor, as used in calculating
eligible recovery for Rate-of-Return Carriers, is equal to ninety-five
(95) percent for the period beginning July 1, 2012. It is reduced by
five (5) percent of its previous value in each subsequent annual tariff
filing.
    (4) Revenue Requirement. Revenue Requirement is equal to a carrier's
regulated operating costs plus an 11.25 percent return on a carrier's
net rate base calculated in compliance with the provisions of parts 36,
65 and 69 of this chapter. For an average schedule carrier, its Revenue
Requirement shall be equal to the average schedule settlements it
received from the pool, adjusted to reflect an 11.25 percent rate of
return, or what it would have received if it had been a participant in
the pool. If the reference is to an operating segment, these references
are to the Revenue Requirement associated with that segment.
    (5) True-up Adjustment. The True-up Adjustment is equal to the True-
up

[[Page 86]]

Revenues for any particular service for the period in question.
    (6) True-up Revenues. True-up Revenues from an access service are
equal to (projected demand minus actual realized demand for that
service) times the default transition rate for that service specified by
Sec. 51.909. True-up Revenues from a non-access service are equal to
(projected demand minus actual realized net demand for that service)
times the default transition rate for that service specified by Sec.
20.11(b) of this chapter or Sec. 51.705. Realized demand is the demand
for which payment has been received, or has been made, as appropriate,
by the time the true-up is made.
    (7) 2011 Rate-of-Return Carrier Base Period Revenue. 2011 Rate-of-
Return Carrier Base Period Revenue is the sum of:
    (i) 2011 Interstate Switched Access Revenue Requirement;
    (ii) Fiscal Year 2011 revenues from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service received by March 31, 2012; and
    (iii) Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation revenues received by
March 31, 2012, less Fiscal Year 2011 reciprocal compensation payments
paid and/or payable by March 31, 2012
    (c) 2011 Rate-of-Return Carrier Base Period Revenue shall be
adjusted to reflect the removal of any increases in revenue requirement
or revenues resulting from access stimulation activity the Rate-of-
Return Carrier engaged in during the relevant measuring period. A Rate-
of-Return Carrier should make this adjustment for its initial July 1,
2012, tariff filing, but the adjustment may result from a subsequent
Commission or court ruling.
    (d) Eligible Recovery for Rate-of-Return Carriers.(1)
Notwithstanding any other provision of the Commission's rules, a Rate-
of-Return Carrier may recover the amounts specified in this paragraph
through the mechanisms described in paragraphs (e) and (f) of this
section.
    (i) Beginning July 1, 2012, a Rate-of-Return Carrier's eligible
recovery will be equal to the 2011 Rate-of-Return Carrier Base Period
Revenue multiplied by the Rate-of-Return Carrier Baseline Adjustment
Factor less:
    (A) The Expected Revenues from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service for the year beginning July 1, 2012, reflecting forecasted
demand multiplied by the rates in the rate transition contained in Sec.
51.909;
    (B) The Expected Revenues from interstate switched access for the
year beginning July 1, 2012, reflecting forecasted demand multiplied by
the rates in the rate transition contained in Sec. 51.909; and
    (C) Expected Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues for the year
beginning July 1, 2012 using the target methodology required by Sec.
51.705.
    (ii) Beginning July 1, 2013, a Rate-of-Return Carrier's eligible
recovery will be equal to the 2011 Rate-of-Return Carrier Base Period
Revenue multiplied by the Rate-of-Return Carrier Baseline Adjustment
Factor less:
    (A) The Expected Revenues from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service for the year beginning July 1, 2013, reflecting forecasted
demand multiplied by the rates in the rate transition contained in Sec.
51.909;
    (B) The Expected Revenues from interstate switched access for the
year beginning July 1, 2013, reflecting forecasted demand multiplied by
the rates in the rate transition contained in Sec. 51.909; and
    (C) Expected Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues for the year
beginning July 1, 2013 using the target methodology required by Sec.
51.705.
    (iii) Beginning July 1, 2014, a Rate-of-Return Carrier's eligible
recovery will be equal to the 2011 Rate-of-Return Carrier Base Period
Revenue multiplied by the Rate-of-Return Carrier Baseline Adjustment
Factor less:
    (A) The Expected Revenues from Transitional Intrastate Access
Service for the year beginning July 1, 2014, reflecting forecasted
demand multiplied by the rates in the rate transition contained in Sec.
51.909 (including the reduction in intrastate End Office Switched Access
Service rates), adjusted to reflect the True-Up Adjustment for
Transitional Intrastate Access Service for the year beginning July 1,
2012;
    (B) The Expected Revenues from interstate switched access for the
year beginning July 1, 2014, reflecting forecasted demand multiplied by
the rates in the rate transition contained in Sec. 51.909, adjusted to
reflect the True-Up

[[Page 87]]

Adjustment for Interstate Switched Access for the year beginning July 1,
2012; and
    (C) Expected Net Reciprocal Compensation Revenues for the year
beginning July 1, 2014 using the target methodology required by Sec.
51.705, adjusted to reflect the True-Up Adjustment for Reciprocal
Compensation for the year beginning July 1, 2012.
    (D) An amount equal to True-up Revenues for Access Recovery Charges
for the year beginning July 1, 2012 multiplied by negative one.
    (iv) Beginning July 1, 2015, and for all subsequent years, a Rate-
of-Return Carrier's eligible recovery will be calculated by updating the
procedures set forth in paragraph (d)(1)(iii) of this section for the
period beginning July 1, 2014, to reflect the passage of an additional
year in each subsequent year.
    (v) If a Rate-of-Return Carrier receives payments for intrastate or
interstate switched access services or for Access Recovery Charges after
the period used to measure the adjustments to reflect the differences
between estimated and actual revenues, it shall treat such payments as
actual revenue in the year the payment is received and shall reflect
this as an additional adjustment for that year.
    (vi) If a Rate-of-Return Carrier receives or makes reciprocal
compensation payments after the period used to measure the adjustments
to reflect the differences between estimated and actual net reciprocal
compensation revenues, it shall treat such amounts as actual revenues or
payments in the year the payment is received or made and shall reflect
this as an additional adjustment for that year.
    (vii) If a Rate-of-Return Carrier recovers any costs or revenues
that are already being recovered as Eligible Recovery through Access
Recovery Charges or the Connect America Fund from another source, that
carrier's ability to recover reduced switched access revenue from Access
Recovery Charges or the Connect America Fund shall be reduced to the
extent it receives duplicative recovery. Any duplicative recovery shall
be reflected as a reduction to a carrier's Eligible Recovery calculated
pursuant to Sec. 51.917(d). A Rate-of-Return Carrier seeking revenue
recovery must annually certify as part of its tariff filings to the
Commission and to the relevant state commission that the carrier is not
seeking duplicative recovery in the state jurisdiction for any Eligible
Recovery subject to the recovery mechanism.
    (e) Access Recovery Charge. (1) A charge that is expressed in
dollars and cents per line per month may be assessed upon end users that
may be assessed a subscriber line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.104 of
this chapter, to the extent necessary to allow the Rate-of-Return
Carrier to recover some or all of its Eligible Recovery determined
pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section, subject to the caps described
in paragraph (e)(6) of this section. A Rate-of-Return Carrier may elect
to forgo charging some or all of the Access Recovery Charge.
    (2) Total Access Recovery Charges calculated by multiplying the
tariffed Access Recovery Charge by the projected demand for the year may
not recover more than the amount of eligible recovery calculated
pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section for the year beginning on July
1.
    (3) For the purposes of this section, a Rate-of-Return Carrier
holding company includes all of its wholly-owned operating companies. A
Rate-of-Return Carrier Holding Company may recover the eligible recovery
attributable to any Rate-of-Return study areas operated by its wholly-
owned operating companies that are Rate-of-Return incumbent local
exchange carriers through assessments of the Access Recovery Charge on
end users in any Rate-of-Return study areas operated by its wholly-owned
operating companies that are Rate-of-Return incumbent local exchange
carriers.
    (4) Distribution of Access Recovery Charges among lines of different
types
    (i) A Rate-of-Return Carrier that does not receive ICC-replacement
CAF support (whether because they elect not to or because they do not
have sufficient eligible recovery after the Access Recovery Charge is
assessed or imputed) may not recover a higher ratio of its total revenue
recovery from Access Recovery Charges assessed on Residential and Single
Line Business lines

[[Page 88]]

than the following ratio (using holding company lines):
    (A) The number of Residential and Single-Line Business lines
assessed an End User Common Line charge (excluding Lifeline Customers),
divided by
    (B) The sum of the number of Residential and Single-Line Business
lines assessed an End User Common Line charge (excluding Lifeline
Customers), and two (2) times the number of End User Common Line charges
assessed on Multi-Line Business customers.
    (5) For purposes of this subpart, Residential and Single Line
Business lines are lines (other than lines of Lifeline Customers)
assessed the residential and single line business end user common line
charge.
    (i) For purposes of this subpart, Multi-Line Business Lines are
lines assessed the multi-line business end user common line charge.
    (ii) [Reserved]
    (6) Per-line caps and other limitations on Access Recovery
Charges.(i) For each line other than lines of Lifeline Customers
assessed a primary residential or single-line business end user common
line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.104 of this chapter, a Rate-of-Return
Carrier may assess an Access Recovery Charge as follows:
    (A) Beginning July 1, 2012, a maximum of $0.50 per month for each
line;
    (B) Beginning July 1, 2013, a maximum of $1.00 per month for each
line;
    (C) Beginning July 1, 2014, a maximum of $1.50 per month for each
line;
    (D) Beginning July 1, 2015, a maximum of $2.00 per month for each
line;
    (E) Beginning July 1, 2016, a maximum of $2.50 per month for each
line; and
    (F) Beginning July 1, 2017, a maximum of $3.00 per month for each
line.
    (ii) For each line assessed a multi-line business end user common
line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.104 of this chapter, a Rate-of-Return
Carrier may assess an Access Recovery Charge as follows:
    (A) Beginning July 1, 2012, a maximum of $1.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed;
    (B) Beginning July 1, 2013, a maximum of $2.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed;
    (C) Beginning July 1, 2014, a maximum of $3.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed;
    (D) Beginning July 1, 2015, a maximum of $4.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed;
    (E) Beginning July 1, 2016, a maximum of $5.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed; and
    (F) Beginning July 1, 2017, a maximum of $6.00 per month for each
multi-line business end user common line charge assessed.
    (iii) The Access Recovery Charge allowed by paragraph (e)(6)(i) of
this section may not be assessed to the extent that its assessment would
bring the total of the Rate Ceiling Component Charges above the
Residential Rate Ceiling. This limitation does not apply to single-line
business customers.
    (iv) The Access Recovery Charge allowed by paragraph (e)(6)(ii) of
this section may not be assessed to the extent that its assessment would
bring the total of the multi-line business end user common line charge
and the Access Recovery Charge above $12.20 per line.
    (v) The Access Recovery Charge may not be assessed on lines of
Lifeline Customers.
    (vi) If in any year, the Rate of return carriers' Access Recovery
Charge is not at its maximum, the succeeding year's Access Recovery
Charge may not increase more than $0.50 per line for charges under
paragraph (e)(6)(i) of this section or $1.00 per line for charges
assessed under paragraph (e)(6)(ii) of this section.
    (vii) A Price Cap Carrier with study areas that are subject to rate-
of-return regulation shall recover its eligible recovery for such study
areas through the recovery procedures specified in this section. For
that purpose, the provisions of paragraph (e)(3) of this section shall
apply to the rate-of-return study areas if the applicable conditions in
paragraph (e)(3) of this section are met.
    (f) Rate-of-Return Carrier eligibility for CAF ICC Recovery. (1) A
Rate-of-Return

[[Page 89]]

Carrier shall elect in its July 1, 2012 access tariff filing whether it
will receive CAF ICC Support under this paragraph. A Rate-of-Return
Carrier eligible to receive CAF ICC Support subsequently may elect at
any time not to receive such funding. Once it makes the election not to
receive CAF ICC Support, it may not elect to receive such funding at a
later date.
    (2) Beginning July 1, 2012, a Rate-of-Return Carrier may recover any
eligible recovery allowed by paragraph (d) of this section that it could
not have recovered through charges assessed pursuant to paragraph (e) of
this section from CAF ICC Support pursuant to Sec. 54.304. For this
purpose, the Rate-of-Return Carrier must impute the maximum charges it
could have assessed under paragraph (e) of this section.
    (3) A Rate-of-Return Carrier that elects to receive CAF ICC support
must certify with its annual access tariff filing that it has complied
with paragraphs (d) and (e), and, after doing so, is eligible to receive
the CAF ICC support requested pursuant to paragraph (f) of this section.

[76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 14302, Mar. 9, 2012; 78
FR 26268, May 6, 2013; 79 FR 28847, May 20, 2014]



Sec. 51.919  Reporting and monitoring.

    (a) A Price Cap Carrier that elects to participate in the recovery
mechanism outlined in Sec. 51.915 shall, beginning in 2012, file with
the Commission the data consistent with Section XIII (f)(3) of FCC 11-
161 with its annual access tariff filing.
    (b) A Rate-of-Return Carrier that elects to participate in the
recovery mechanism outlined in Sec. 51.917 shall file with the
Commission the data consistent with Section XIII (f)(3) of FCC 11-161
with its annual interstate access tariff filing, or on the date such a
filing would have been required if it had been required to file in that
year.

    Effective Date Note: At 76 FR 73856, Nov. 29, 2011, Sec. 51.919 was
added. This section contains information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



PART 52_NUMBERING--Table of Contents



                      Subpart A_Scope and Authority

Sec.
52.1 Basis and purpose.
52.3 General.
52.5 Definitions.

                        Subpart B_Administration

52.7 Definitions.
52.9 General requirements.
52.11 North American Numbering Council.
52.12 North American Numbering Plan Administrator and B&C Agent.
52.13 North American Numbering Plan Administrator.
52.15 Central office code administration.
52.16 Billing and Collection Agent.
52.17 Costs of number administration.
52.19 Area code relief.

                      Subpart C_Number Portability

52.20 Thousands-block number pooling.
52.21 Definitions.
52.23 Deployment of long-term database methods for number portability by
          LECs.
52.25 Database architecture and administration.
52.26 NANC Recommendations on Local Number Portability Administration.
52.31 Deployment of long-term database methods for number portability by
          CMRS providers.
52.32 Allocation of the shared costs of long-term number portability.
52.33 Recovery of carrier-specific costs directly related to providing
          long-term number portability.
52.34 Obligations regarding local number porting to and from
          interconnected VoIP or Internet-based TRS providers.
52.35 Porting Intervals.
52.36 Standard data fields for simple port order processing.
52.37-52.99 [Reserved]

                       Subpart D_Toll Free Numbers

52.101 General definitions.
52.103 Lag times.
52.105 Warehousing.
52.107 Hoarding.
52.109 Permanent cap on number reservations.
52.111 Toll free number assignment.

Appendix to Part 52--Deployment Schedule for Long-Term Database Methods
          for Local Number Portability

    Authority: Secs. 1, 2, 4, 5, 48 Stat. 1066, as amended; 47 U.S.C.
151, 152, 154 and 155 unless otherwise noted. Interpret or apply secs.
3, 4, 201-05, 207-09, 218, 225-27, 251-52, 271 and 332, 48 Stat. 1070,
as amended, 1077; 47 U.S.C. 153,

[[Page 90]]

154, 201-05, 207-09, 218, 225-27, 251-52, 271 and 332 unless otherwise
noted.

    Source: 61 FR 38637, July 25, 1996, unless otherwise noted.



                      Subpart A_Scope and Authority

    Source: 61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 52.1  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. These rules are issued pursuant to the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151 et. seq.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of these rules is to establish, for the
United States, requirements and conditions for the administration and
use of telecommunications numbers for provision of telecommunications
services.



Sec. 52.3  General.

    The Commission shall have exclusive authority over those portions of
the North American Numbering Plan (NANP) that pertain to the United
States. The Commission may delegate to the States or other entities any
portion of such jurisdiction.



Sec. 52.5  Definitions.

    As used in this part:
    (a) Incumbent local exchange carrier. With respect to an area, an
``incumbent local exchange carrier'' is a local exchange carrier that:
    (1) On February 8, 1996, provided telephone exchange service in such
area; and
    (2)(i) On February 8, 1996, was deemed to be a member of the
exchange carrier association pursuant to Sec. 69.601(b) of this chapter
(47 CFR 69.601(b)); or
    (ii) Is a person or entity that, on or after February 8, 1996,
became a successor or assign of a member described in paragraph
(a)(2)(i) of this section.
    (b) North American Numbering Council (NANC). The ``North American
Numbering Council'' is an advisory committee created under the Federal
Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C., App (1988), to advise the Commission
and to make recommendations, reached through consensus, that foster
efficient and impartial number administration.
    (c) North American Numbering Plan (NANP). The ``North American
Numbering Plan'' is the basic numbering scheme for the
telecommunications networks located in American Samoa, Anguilla,
Antigua, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Canada,
Cayman Islands, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Jamaica,
Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent, Turks & Caicos
Islands, Trinidad & Tobago, and the United States (including Puerto
Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands).
    (d) State. The term ``state'' includes the District of Columbia and
the Territories and possessions.
    (e) State commission. The term ``state commission'' means the
commission, board, or official (by whatever name designated) which under
the laws of any state has regulatory jurisdiction with respect to
intrastate operations of carriers.
    (f) Telecommunications. ``Telecommunications'' means the
transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of
information of the user's choosing, without change in the form or
content of the information as sent and received.
    (g) Telecommunications carrier. A ``telecommunications carrier'' is
any provider of telecommunications services, except that such term does
not include aggregators of telecommunications services (as defined in 47
U.S.C. 226(a)(2)).
    (h) Telecommunications service. The term ``telecommunications
service'' refers to the offering of telecommunications for a fee
directly to the public, or to such classes of users as to be effectively
available directly to the public, regardless of the facilities used.
    (i) Service provider. The term ``service provider'' refers to a
telecommunications carrier or other entity that receives numbering
resources from the NANPA, a Pooling Administrator or a
telecommunications carrier for the purpose of providing or establishing
telecommunications service.

[61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 65 FR 37707, June 16, 2000;
71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006]

[[Page 91]]



                        Subpart B_Administration

    Source: 61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 52.7  Definitions.

    As used in this subpart:
    (a) Area code or numbering plan area (NPA). The term ``area code or
numbering plan area'' refers to the first three digits (NXX) of a ten-
digit telephone number in the form NXX-NXX-XXXX, where N represents any
one of the numbers 2 through 9 and X represents any one of the numbers 0
through 9.
    (b) Area code relief. The term ``area code relief'' refers to the
process by which central office codes are made available when there are
few or no unassigned central office codes remaining in an existing area
code and a new area code is introduced. Area code relief includes
planning for area code ``jeopardy,'' which is a situation where central
office codes may become exhausted before an area code relief plan can be
implemented.
    (c) Central office (CO) code. The term ``central office code''
refers to the second three digits (NXX) of a ten-digit telephone number
in the form NXX-NXX-XXXX, where N represents any one of the numbers 2
through 9 and X represents any one of the numbers 0 through 9.
    (d) Central office (CO) code administrator. The term ``central
office code administrator'' refers to the entity or entities responsible
for managing central office codes in each area code.
    (e) North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA). The term
``North American Numbering Plan Administrator'' refers to the entity or
entities responsible for managing the NANP.
    (f) Billing and Collection Agent. The term ``Billing & Collection
Agent'' (``B&C Agent'') refers to the entity responsible for the
collection of funds to support numbering administration for
telecommunications services from the United States telecommunications
industry and NANP member countries.
    (g) Pooling Administrator (PA). The term ``Pooling Administrator''
refers to the entity or entities responsible for administering a
thousands-block number pool.
    (h) Contamination. Contamination occurs when at least one telephone
number within a block of telephone numbers is not available for
assignment to end users or customers. For purposes of this provision, a
telephone number is ``not available for assignment'' if it is classified
as administrative, aging, assigned, intermediate, or reserved as defined
in Sec. 52.15(f)(1).
    (i) Donation. The term ``donation'' refers to the process by which
carriers are required to contribute telephone numbers to a thousands-
block number pool.
    (j) Inventory. The term ``inventory'' refers to all telephone
numbers distributed, assigned or allocated:
    (1) To a service provider; or
    (2) To a pooling administrator for the purpose of establishing or
maintaining a thousands-block number pool.

[61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 55180, Oct. 23, 1997;
65 FR 37707, June 16, 2000]



Sec. 52.9  General requirements.

    (a) To ensure that telecommunications numbers are made available on
an equitable basis, the administration of telecommunications numbers
shall, in addition to the specific requirements set forth in this
subpart:
    (1) Facilitate entry into the telecommunications marketplace by
making telecommunications numbering resources available on an efficient,
timely basis to telecommunications carriers;
    (2) Not unduly favor or disfavor any particular telecommunications
industry segment or group of telecommunications consumers; and
    (3) Not unduly favor one telecommunications technology over another.
    (b) If the Commission delegates any telecommunications numbering
administration functions to any State or other entity pursuant to 47
U.S.C. 251(e)(1), such State or entity shall perform these functions in
a manner consistent with this part.

[[Page 92]]



Sec. 52.11  North American Numbering Council.

    The duties of the North American Numbering Council (NANC), may
include, but are not limited to:
    (a) Advising the Commission on policy matters relating to the
administration of the NANP in the United States;
    (b) Making recommendations, reached through consensus, that foster
efficient and impartial number administration;
    (c) Initially resolving disputes, through consensus, that foster
efficient and impartial number administration in the United States by
adopting and utilizing dispute resolution procedures that provide
disputants, regulators, and the public notice of the matters at issue, a
reasonable opportunity to make oral and written presentations, a
reasoned recommended solution, and a written report summarizing the
recommendation and the reasons therefore;
    (d) [Reserved]
    (e) Recommending to the Commission an appropriate mechanism for
recovering the costs of NANP administration in the United States,
consistent with Sec. 52.17;
    (f) Carrying out the duties described in Sec. 52.25; and
    (g) Carrying out this part as directed by the Commission;
    (h) Monitoring the performance of the NANPA and the B&C Agent on at
least an annual basis; and
    (i) Implementing, at the direction of the Commission, any action
necessary to correct identified problems with the performance of the
NANPA and the B&C Agent, as deemed necessary.

[61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 55180, Oct. 23, 1997;
71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006]



Sec. 52.12  North American Numbering Plan Administrator and B&C Agent.

    The North American Numbering Plan Administrator (``NANPA'') and the
associated ``B&C Agent'' will conduct their respective operations in
accordance with this section. The NANPA and the B&C Agent will conduct
their respective operations with oversight from the Federal
Communications Commission (the ``Commission'') and with recommendations
from the North American Numbering Council (``NANC'').
    (a)(1) Neutrality. The NANPA and the B&C Agent shall be non-
governmental entities that are impartial and not aligned with any
particular telecommunication industry segment. Accordingly, while
conducting their respective operations under this section, the NANPA and
B&C Agent shall ensure that they comply with the following neutrality
criteria:
    (i) The NANPA and B&C Agent may not be an affiliate of any
telecommunications service provider(s) as defined in the
Telecommunications Act of 1996, or an affiliate of any interconnected
VoIP provider as that term is defined in Sec. 52.21(h). ``Affiliate''
is a person who controls, is controlled by, or is under the direct or
indirect common control with another person. A person shall be deemed to
control another if such person possesses, directly or indirectly--
    (A) An equity interest by stock, partnership (general or limited)
interest, joint venture participation, or member interest in the other
person ten (10%) percent or more of the total outstanding equity
interests in the other person, or
    (B) The power to vote ten (10%) percent or more of the securities
(by stock, partnership (general or limited) interest, joint venture
participation, or member interest) having ordinary voting power for the
election of directors, general partner, or management of such other
person, or
    (C) The power to direct or cause the direction of the management and
policies of such other person, whether through the ownership of or right
to vote voting rights attributable to the stock, partnership (general or
limited) interest, joint venture participation, or member interest) of
such other person, by contract (including but not limited to stockholder
agreement, partnership (general or limited) agreement, joint venture
agreement, or operating agreement), or otherwise;
    (ii) The NANPA and B&C Agent, and any affiliate thereof, may not
issue a majority of its debt to, nor may it derive a majority of its
revenues from, any telecommunications service provider. ``Majority''
shall mean greater than 50 percent, and ``debt'' shall mean

[[Page 93]]

stocks, bonds, securities, notes, loans or any other instrument of
indebtedness; and
    (iii) Notwithstanding the neutrality criteria set forth in
paragraphs (a)(1) (i) and (ii) of this section, the NANPA and B&C Agent
may be determined to be or not to be subject to undue influence by
parties with a vested interest in the outcome of numbering
administration and activities. NANC may conduct an evaluation to
determine whether the NANPA and B&C Agent meet the undue influence
criterion.
    (2) Any subcontractor that performs--
    (i) NANP administration and central office code administration, or
    (ii) Billing and Collection functions, for the NANPA or for the B&C
Agent must also meet the neutrality criteria described in paragraph
(a)(1).
    (b) Term of administration. The NANPA shall provide numbering
administration, including central office code administration, for the
United States portion of the North American Numbering Plan (``NANP'')
for an initial period of five (5) years. At any time prior to the
termination of the initial or subsequent term of administration, such
term may be renewed for up to five (5) years with the approval of the
Commission and the agreement of the NANPA. The B&C Agent shall provide
billing and collection functions for an initial period of five (5)
years. At any time prior to the termination of the initial or subsequent
term of administration, such term may be renewed for up to five (5)
years with the approval of the Commission and the agreement of the B&C
Agent.
    (c) Changes to regulations, rules, guidelines or directives. In the
event that regulatory authorities or industry groups (including, for
example, the Industry Numbering Committee--INC, or its successor) issue
rules, requirements, guidelines or policy directives which may affect
the functions performed by the NANPA and the B&C Agent, the NANPA and
the B&C Agent shall, within 10 business days from the date of official
notice of such rules, requirements, guidelines or policy directives,
assess the impact on its operations and advise the Commission of any
changes required. NANPA and the B&C Agent shall provide written
explanation why such changes are required. To the extent the Commission
deems such changes are necessary, the Commission will recommend to the
NANP member countries appropriate cost recovery adjustments, if
necessary.
    (d) Performance review process. NANPA and the B&C Agent shall
develop and implement an internal, documented performance monitoring
mechanism and shall provide such performance review on request of the
Commission on at least an annual basis. The annual assessment process
will not preclude telecommunications industry participants from
identifying performance problems to the NANPA, the B&C Agent and the
NANC as they occur, and from seeking expeditious resolution. If
performance problems are identified by a telecommunications industry
participant, the NANC, B&C Agent or NANPA shall investigate and report
within 10 business days of notice to the participant of corrective
action, if any, taken or to be taken. The NANPA, B&C Agent or NANC (as
appropriate) shall be permitted reasonable time to take corrective
action, including the necessity of obtaining the required consent of the
Commission.
    (e) Termination. If the Commission determines at any time that the
NANPA or the B&C Agent fails to comply with the neutrality criteria set
forth in paragraph (a) of this section or substantially or materially
defaults in the performance of its obligations, the Commission shall
advise immediately the NANPA or the B&C Agent of said failure or
default, request immediate corrective action, and permit the NANPA or
B&C Agent reasonable time to correct such failure or default. If the
NANPA or B&C Agent is unwilling or unable to take corrective action, the
Commission may, in a manner consistent with the requirements of the
Administrative Procedure Act and the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended, take any action that it deems appropriate, including
termination of the NANPA's or B&C Agent's term of administration.
    (f) Required and optional enterprise services. Enterprise Services,
which are services beyond those described in Sec. 52.13 that may be
provided by the new

[[Page 94]]

NANPA for specified fees, may be offered with prior approval of the
Commission.
    (1) Required Enterprise Services. At the request of a code holder,
the NANPA shall, in accordance with industry standards and for
reasonable fees, enter certain routing and rating information, into the
industry-approved database(s) for dissemination of such information.
This task shall include reviewing the information and assisting in its
preparation.
    (2) Optional Enterprise Services. The NANPA may, subject to prior
approval and for reasonable fees, offer ``Optional Enterprise Services''
which are any services not described elsewhere in this section.
    (3) Annual report. NANPA shall identify and record all direct costs
associated with providing Enterprise Services separately from the costs
associated with the non-enterprise NANPA functions. The NANPA shall
submit an annual report to the NANC summarizing the revenues and costs
for providing each Enterprise Service. NANPA shall be audited by an
independent auditor after the first year of operations and every two
years thereafter, and submit the report to the Commission for
appropriate review and action.

[63 FR 55180, Oct. 23, 1997, as amended at 73 FR 9481, Feb. 21, 2008]



Sec. 52.13  North American Numbering Plan Administrator.

    (a) The North American Numbering Plan Administrator (NANPA) shall be
an independent and impartial non-government entity.
    (b) The NANPA shall administer the numbering resources identified in
paragraph (d) of this section. It shall assign and administer NANP
resources in an efficient, effective, fair, unbiased, and non-
discriminatory manner consistent with industry-developed guidelines and
Commission regulations. It shall support the Commission's efforts to
accommodate current and future numbering needs. It shall perform
additional functions, including but not limited to:
    (1) Ensuring the efficient and effective administration and
assignment of numbering resources by performing day-to-day number
resource assignment and administrative activities;
    (2) Planning for the long-term need for NANP resources to ensure the
continued viability of the NANP by implementing a plan for number
resource administration that uses effective forecasting and management
skills in order to make the industry aware of the availability of
numbering resources and to meet the current and future needs of the
industry;
    (3) Complying with guidelines of the North American Industry
Numbering Committee (INC) or its successor, related industry
documentation, Commission regulations and orders, and the guidelines of
other appropriate policy-making authorities;
    (4) Providing management supervision for all of the services it
provides, including responsibility for achieving performance measures
established by the NANC and the INC in industry guidelines;
    (5) Participating in the NANC annual performance review as described
in Sec. Sec. 52.11 and 52.12;
    (6) Establishing and maintaining relationships with current
governmental and regulatory bodies, and their successors, including the
United States Federal Communications Commission, Industry Canada, the
Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, and other
United States, Canadian, and Caribbean numbering authorities and
regulatory agencies, and addressing policy directives from these bodies;
    (7) Cooperating with and actively participating in numbering
standards bodies and industry fora, such as INC and, upon request, the
Canadian Steering Committee on Numbering (CSCN);
    (8) Representing the NANP to national and international numbering
bodies;
    (9) Developing and maintaining communications channels with other
countries who also participate in the NANP to ensure that numbering
needs of all countries served by the NANP are met;
    (10) Attending United States Study Group A meetings and maintaining
a working knowledge of Study Group 2 International Telecommunications
Union activities on behalf of the

[[Page 95]]

United States telecommunications industry;
    (11) Reviewing requests for all numbering resources to implement new
applications and services and making assignments in accordance with
industry-developed resource planning and assignment guidelines;
    (12) Referring requests for particular numbering resources to the
appropriate industry body where guidelines do not exist for those
resources;
    (13) Participating in industry activities to determine whether, when
new telecommunications services requiring numbers are proposed, NANP
numbers are appropriate and what level of resource is required (e.g.,
line numbers, central office codes, NPA codes);
    (14) Maintaining necessary administrative staff to handle the legal,
financial, technical, staffing, industry, and regulatory issues relevant
to the management of all numbering resources, as well as maintaining the
necessary equipment, facilities, and proper billing arrangements
associated with day-to-day management of all numbering resources;
    (15) Managing the NANP in accordance with published guidelines
adopted in conjunction with the industry and the appropriate NANP member
countries' governing agencies, and referring issues to the appropriate
industry body for resolution when they have not been addressed by the
industry;
    (16) Responding to requests from the industry and from regulators
for information about the NANP and its administration, as the primary
repository for numbering information in the industry;
    (17) Providing upon request information regarding how to obtain
current documents related to NANP administration;
    (18) Providing assistance to users of numbering resources and
suggesting numbering administration options, when possible, that will
optimize number resource utilization;
    (19) Coordinating its numbering resource activities with the
Canadian Number Administrator and other NANP member countries'
administrators to ensure efficient and effective management of NANP
numbering resources; and
    (20) Determining the final allocation methodology for sharing costs
between NANP countries.
    (c) In performing the functions outlined in paragraph (b) of this
section, the NANPA shall:
    (1) Ensure that the interests of all NANP member countries are
considered;
    (2) Assess fairly requests for assignments of NANP numbering
resources and ensure the assignment of numbering resources to
appropriate service providers;
    (3) Develop, operate and maintain the computer hardware, software
(database) and mechanized systems required to perform the NANPA and
central office (CO) Code Administration functions;
    (4) Manage projects such as Numbering Plan Area (NPA) relief (area
code relief) planning, Numbering Resource Utilization and Forecast
(NRUF) data collection, and NPA and NANP exhaust projection;
    (5) Facilitate NPA relief planning meetings;
    (6) Participate in appropriate industry activities;
    (7) Manage proprietary data and competitively sensitive information
and maintain the confidentiality thereof;
    (8) Act as an information resource for the industry concerning all
aspects of numbering (i.e., knowledge and experience in numbering
resource issues, International Telecommunications Union (ITU)
Recommendation E.164, the North American Numbering Plan (NANP), NANP
Administration, INC, NANP area country regulatory issues affecting
numbering, number resource assignment guidelines, central office code
administration, relief planning, international numbering issues, etc.);
and
    (9) Ensure that any action taken with respect to number
administration is consistent with this part.
    (d) The NANPA and, to the extent applicable, the B&C Agent, shall
administer numbering resources in an efficient and non-discriminatory
manner, in accordance with Commission rules and regulations and the
guidelines developed by the INC and other industry groups pertaining to
administration

[[Page 96]]

and assignment of numbering resources, including, but not limited to:
    (1) Numbering Plan Area (NPA) codes,
    (2) Central Office codes for the 809 area,
    (3) International Inbound NPA 456 NXX codes,
    (4) (NPA) 500 NXX codes,
    (5) (NPA) 900 NXX codes,
    (6) N11 Service codes,
    (7) 855-XXXX line numbers,
    (8) 555-XXXX line numbers,
    (9) Carrier Identification Codes,
    (10) Vertical Service Codes,
    (11) ANI Information Integer (II) Digit Pairs,
    (12) Non Dialable Toll Points, and
    (13) New numbering resources as may be defined.
    (e) Relationships with other NANP member countries' administrators
and authorities. The NANPA shall address policy directives from other
NANP member countries' governmental and regulatory authorities and
coordinate its activities with other NANP member countries'
administrators, if any, to ensure efficient and effective management of
NANP resources.
    (f) Transition plan. The NANPA shall implement a transition plan,
subject to Commission approval, leading to its assumption of NANPA
functions within 90 days of the effective date of a Commission order
announcing the selection of the NANPA.
    (g) Transfer of intellectual property. The new NANPA must make
available any and all intellectual property and associated hardware
resulting from its activities as numbering administrator including, but
not limited to, systems and the data contained therein, software,
interface specifications and supporting documentation and make such
property available to whomever NANC directs free of charge. The new
NANPA must specify any intellectual property it proposes to exclude from
the provisions of this paragraph based on the existence of such property
prior to its selection as NANPA.

[61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 55181, Oct. 23, 1997;
71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006]



Sec. 52.15  Central office code administration.

    (a) Central Office Code Administration shall be performed by the
NANPA, or another entity or entities, as designated by the Commission.
    (b) Duties of the entity or entities performing central office code
administration may include, but are not limited to:
    (1) Processing central office code assignment applications and
assigning such codes in a manner that is consistent with this part;
    (2) Accessing and maintaining central office code assignment
databases;
    (3) Conducting the Numbering Resource Utilization and Forecast
(NRUF) data collection;
    (4) Monitoring the use of central office codes within each area code
and forecasting the date by which all central office codes within that
area code will be assigned; and
    (5) Planning for and initiating area code relief, consistent with
Sec. 52.19.
    (c) [Reserved]
    (d) Central Office (CO) Code Administration functional requirements.
The NANPA shall manage the United States CO code numbering resource,
including CO code request processing, NPA code relief and jeopardy
planning, and industry notification functions. The NANPA shall perform
its CO Code administration functions in accordance with the published
industry numbering resource administration guidelines and Commission
orders and regulations of 47 CFR chapter I.
    (e) [Reserved]
    (f) Mandatory reporting requirements--(1) Number use categories.
Numbering resources must be classified in one of the following
categories:
    (i) Administrative numbers are numbers used by telecommunications
carriers to perform internal administrative or operational functions
necessary to maintain reasonable quality of service standards.
    (ii) Aging numbers are disconnected numbers that are not available
for assignment to another end user or customer for a specified period of
time. Numbers previously assigned to residential customers may be aged
for no more than 90 days. Numbers previously

[[Page 97]]

assigned to business customers may be aged for no more than 365 days.
    (iii) Assigned numbers are numbers working in the Public Switched
Telephone Network under an agreement such as a contract or tariff at the
request of specific end users or customers for their use, or numbers not
yet working but having a customer service order pending. Numbers that
are not yet working and have a service order pending for more than five
days shall not be classified as assigned numbers.
    (iv) Available numbers are numbers that are available for assignment
to subscriber access lines, or their equivalents, within a switching
entity or point of interconnection and are not classified as assigned,
intermediate, administrative, aging, or reserved.
    (v) Intermediate numbers are numbers that are made available for use
by another telecommunications carrier or non-carrier entity for the
purpose of providing telecommunications service to an end user or
customer. Numbers ported for the purpose of transferring an established
customer's service to another service provider shall not be classified
as intermediate numbers.
    (vi) Reserved numbers are numbers that are held by service providers
at the request of specific end users or customers for their future use.
Numbers held for specific end users or customers for more than 180 days
shall not be classified as reserved numbers.
    (2) Reporting carrier. The term ``reporting carrier'' refers to a
telecommunications carrier that receives numbering resources from the
NANPA, a Pooling Administrator or another telecommunications carrier.
    (3) Data collection procedures. (i) Reporting carriers shall report
utilization and forecast data to the NANPA.
    (ii) Reporting shall be by separate legal entity and must include
company name, company headquarters address, Operating Company Number
(OCN), parent company OCN, and the primary type of business in which the
reporting carrier is engaged. The term ``parent company'' refers to the
highest related legal entity located within the state for which the
reporting carrier is reporting data.
    (iii) All data shall be filed electronically in a format approved by
the Common Carrier Bureau.
    (4) Forecast data reporting. (i) Reporting carriers shall submit to
the NANPA a five-year forecast of their yearly numbering resource
requirements.
    (ii) In areas where thousands-block number pooling has been
implemented:
    (A) Reporting carriers that are required to participate in
thousands-block number pooling shall report forecast data at the
thousands-block (NXX-X) level per rate center;
    (B) Reporting carriers that are not required to participate in
thousands-block number pooling shall report forecast data at the central
office code (NXX) level per rate center.
    (iii) In areas where thousands-block number pooling has not been
implemented, reporting carriers shall report forecast data at the
central office code (NXX) level per NPA.
    (iv) Reporting carriers shall identify and report separately initial
numbering resources and growth numbering resources.
    (5) Utilization data reporting. (i) Reporting carriers shall submit
to the NANPA a utilization report of their current inventory of
numbering resources. The report shall classify numbering resources in
the following number use categories: assigned, intermediate, reserved,
aging, and administrative.
    (ii) Rural telephone companies, as defined in the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153(37), that provide telecommunications
service in areas where local number portability has not been implemented
shall report utilization data at the central office code (NXX) level per
rate center in those areas.
    (iii) All other reporting carriers shall report utilization data at
the thousands-block (NXX-X) level per rate center.
    (6) Reporting frequency. (i) Reporting carriers shall file forecast
and utilization reports semi-annually on or before February 1 for the
preceding reporting period ending on December 31, and on

[[Page 98]]

or before August 1 for the preceding reporting period ending on June 30.
Mandatory reporting shall commence August 1, 2000.
    (ii) State commissions may reduce the reporting frequency for NPAs
in their states to annual. Reporting carriers operating in such NPAs
shall file forecast and utilization reports annually on or before August
1 for the preceding reporting period ending on June 30, commencing
August 1, 2000.
    (iii) A state commission seeking to reduce the reporting frequency
pursuant to paragraph (f) (6)(ii) of this section shall notify the
Wireline Competition Bureau and the NANPA in writing prior to reducing
the reporting frequency.
    (7) Access to data and confidentiality--States shall have access to
data reported to the NANPA provided that they have appropriate
protections in place to prevent public disclosure of disaggregated,
carrier-specific data.
    (g) Applications for numbering resources--(1) General requirements.
All applications for numbering resources must include the company name,
company headquarters address, OCN, parent company's OCN(s), and the
primary type of business in which the numbering resources will be used.
    (2) Initial numbering resources. Applications for initial numbering
resources shall include evidence that:
    (i) The applicant is authorized to provide service in the area for
which the numbering resources are being requested; and
    (ii) The applicant is or will be capable of providing service within
sixty (60) days of the numbering resources activation date.
    (3) Growth numbering resources. (i) Applications for growth
numbering resources shall include:
    (A) A Months-to-Exhaust Worksheet that provides utilization by rate
center for the preceding six months and projected monthly utilization
for the next twelve (12) months; and
    (B) The applicant's current numbering resource utilization level for
the rate center in which it is seeking growth numbering resources.
    (ii) The numbering resource utilization level shall be calculated by
dividing all assigned numbers by the total numbering resources in the
applicant's inventory and multiplying the result by 100. Numbering
resources activated in the Local Exchange Routing Guide (LERG) within
the preceding 90 days of reporting utilization levels may be excluded
from the utilization calculation.
    (iii) All service providers shall maintain no more than a six-month
inventory of telephone numbers in each rate center or service area in
which it provides telecommunications service.
    (iv) The NANPA shall withhold numbering resources from any U.S.
carrier that fails to comply with the reporting and numbering resource
application requirements established in this part. The NANPA shall not
issue numbering resources to a carrier without an OCN. The NANPA must
notify the carrier in writing of its decision to withhold numbering
resources within ten (10) days of receiving a request for numbering
resources. The carrier may challenge the NANPA's decision to the
appropriate state regulatory commission. The state commission may affirm
or overturn the NANPA's decision to withhold numbering resources from
the carrier based on its determination of compliance with the reporting
and numbering resource application requirements herein.
    (4) Non-compliance. The NANPA shall withhold numbering resources
from any U.S. carrier that fails to comply with the reporting and
numbering resource application requirements established in this part.
The NANPA shall not issue numbering resources to a carrier without an
Operating Company Number (OCN). The NANPA must notify the carrier in
writing of its decision to withhold numbering resources within ten (10)
days of receiving a request for numbering resources. The carrier may
challenge the NANPA's decision to the appropriate state regulatory
commission. The state commission may affirm, or may overturn, the
NANPA's decision to withhold numbering resources from the carrier based
on its determination that the carrier has complied with the reporting
and numbering resource application requirements herein. The state
commission also may overturn the NANPA's decision to withhold numbering
resources from the carrier based on its

[[Page 99]]

determination that the carrier has demonstrated a verifiable need for
numbering resources and has exhausted all other available remedies.
    (5) State access to applications. State regulatory commissions shall
have access to service provider's applications for numbering resources.
The state commissions should request copies of such applications from
the service providers operating within their states, and service
providers must comply with state commission requests for copies of
numbering resource applications. Carriers that fail to comply with a
state commission request for numbering resource application materials
shall be denied numbering resources.
    (h) National utilization threshold. All applicants for growth
numbering resources shall achieve a 60% utilization threshold,
calculated in accordance with paragraph (g)(3)(ii) of this section, for
the rate center in which they are requesting growth numbering resources.
This 60% utilization threshold shall increase by 5% on June 30, 2002,
and annually thereafter until the utilization threshold reaches 75%.
    (i) Reclamation of numbering resources. (1) Reclamation refers to
the process by which service providers are required to return numbering
resources to the NANPA or the Pooling Administrator.
    (2) State commissions may investigate and determine whether service
providers have activated their numbering resources and may request proof
from all service providers that numbering resources have been activated
and assignment of telephone numbers has commenced.
    (3) Service providers may be required to reduce contamination levels
to facilitate reclamation and/or pooling.
    (4) State commissions shall provide service providers an opportunity
to explain the circumstances causing the delay in activating and
commencing assignment of their numbering resources prior to initiating
reclamation.
    (5) The NANPA and the Pooling Administrator shall abide by the state
commission's determination to reclaim numbering resources if the state
commission is satisfied that the service provider has not activated and
commenced assignment to end users of their numbering resources within
six months of receipt.
    (6) The NANPA and Pooling Administrator shall initiate reclamation
within sixty days of expiration of the service provider's applicable
activation deadline.
    (7) If a state commission declines to exercise the authority
delegated to it in this paragraph, the entity or entities designated by
the Commission to serve as the NANPA shall exercise this authority with
respect to NXX codes and the Pooling Administrator shall exercise this
authority with respect to thousands-blocks. The NANPA and the Pooling
Administrator shall consult with the Wireline Competition Bureau prior
to exercising the authority delegated to it in this provision.
    (j) Sequential number assignment. (1) All service providers shall
assign all available telephone numbers within an opened thousands-block
before assigning telephone numbers from an uncontaminated thousands-
block, unless the available numbers in the opened thousands-block are
not sufficient to meet a specific customer request. This requirement
shall apply to a service provider's existing numbering resources as well
as any new numbering resources it obtains in the future.
    (2) A service provider that opens an uncontaminated thousands-block
prior to assigning all available telephone numbers within an opened
thousands-block should be prepared to demonstrate to the state
commission:
    (i) A genuine request from a customer detailing the specific need
for telephone numbers; and
    (ii) The service provider's inability to meet the specific customer
request for telephone numbers from the available numbers within the
service provider's opened thousands-blocks.
    (3) Upon a finding by a state commission that a service provider
inappropriately assigned telephone numbers from an uncontaminated
thousands-block, the NANPA or the Pooling Administrator shall suspend
assignment or allocation of any additional numbering resources to that
service provider in the applicable NPA until the service provider
demonstrates that it does not

[[Page 100]]

have sufficient numbering resources to meet a specific customer request.
    (k) Numbering audits. (1) All telecommunications service providers
shall be subject to ``for cause'' and random audits to verify carrier
compliance with Commission regulations and applicable industry
guidelines relating to numbering administration.
    (2) The Enforcement Bureau will oversee the conduct and scope of all
numbering audits conducted under the Commission's jurisdiction, and
determine the audit procedures necessary to perform the audit. Numbering
audits performed by independent auditors pursuant to this section shall
be conducted in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards
and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants' standards
for compliance attestation engagements, as supplemented by the guidance
and direction of the Chief of the Enforcement Bureau.
    (3) Requests for ``for cause'' audits shall be forwarded to the
Chief of the Enforcement Bureau, with a copy to the Chief of the Common
Carrier Bureau. Requests must state the reason for which a ``for cause''
audit is being requested and include documentation of the alleged
anomaly, inconsistency, or violation of the Commission rules or orders
or applicable industry guidelines. The Chief of the Enforcement Bureau
will provide carriers up to 30 days to provide a written response to a
request for a ``for cause'' audit.

[61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 55182, Oct. 23, 1997;
65 FR 37707, June 16, 2000; 66 FR 9531, Feb. 8, 2001; 67 FR 6434, Feb.
12, 2002; 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002; 68 FR 25843, May 14, 2003; 71 FR
65750, Nov. 9, 2006]



Sec. 52.16  Billing and Collection Agent.

    The B&C Agent shall:
    (a) Calculate, assess, bill and collect payments for all numbering
administration functions and distribute funds to the NANPA, or other
agent designated by the Common Carrier Bureau that performs functions
related to numbering administration, on a monthly basis;
    (b) Distribute to carriers the ``Telecommunications Reporting
Worksheet,'' described in Sec. 52.17(b).
    (c) Keep confidential all data obtained from carriers and not
disclose such data in company-specific form unless authorized by the
Commission. Subject to any restrictions imposed by the Chief of the
Wireline Competition Bureau, the B & C Agent may share data obtained
from carriers with the administrators of the universal service support
mechanism (See 47 CFR 54.701 of this chapter), the TRS Fund (See 47 CFR
64.604(c)(4)(iii)(H) of this chapter), and the local number portability
cost recovery (See 47 CFR 52.32). The B & C Agent shall keep
confidential all data obtained from other administrators. The B & C
Agent shall use such data, from carriers or administrators, only for
calculating, collecting and verifying payments. The Commission shall
have access to all data reported to the Administrator. Contributors may
make requests for Commission nondisclosure of company-specific revenue
information under Sec. 0.459 of this chapter by so indicating on the
Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet at the time that the subject data
are submitted. The Commission shall make all decisions regarding
nondisclosure of company-specific information.
    (d) Develop procedures to monitor industry compliance with reporting
requirements and propose specific procedures to address reporting
failures and late payments;
    (e) File annual reports with the appropriate regulatory authorities
of the NANP member countries as requested; and
    (f) Obtain an audit from an independent auditor after the first year
of operations and annually thereafter, which shall evaluate the validity
of calculated payments. The B&C Agent shall submit the audit report to
the Commission for appropriate review and action.
    (g) For the purposes of this rule, the term ``carrier(s)'' shall
include interconnected VoIP providers as that term is defined in Sec.
52.21(h).

[62 FR 55183, Oct. 23, 1997, as amended at 64 FR 41330, July 30, 1999;
66 FR 9532, Feb. 8, 2001; 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002; 73 FR 9481, Feb.
21, 2008]

[[Page 101]]



Sec. 52.17  Costs of number administration.

    All telecommunications carriers in the United States shall
contribute on a competitively neutral basis to meet the costs of
establishing numbering administration.
    (a) Contributions to support numbering administration shall be the
product of the contributors' end-user telecommunications revenues for
the prior calendar year and a contribution factor determined annually by
the Chief of the Common Carrier Bureau; such contributions to be no less
than twenty-five dollars ($25). The contribution factor shall be based
on the ratio of expected number administration expenses to end-user
telecommunications revenues. Carriers that have no end-user
telecommunications revenues shall contribute twenty-five dollars ($25).
In the event that contributions exceed or are inadequate to cover
administrative costs, the contribution factor for the following year
shall be adjusted by an appropriate amount.
    (b) All telecommunications carriers in the United States shall
complete and submit a ``Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet'' (as
published by the Commission in the Federal Register), which sets forth
the information needed to calculate contributions referred to in
paragraph (a) of this section. The worksheet shall be certified to by an
officer of the contributor, and subject to verification by the
Commission or the B & C Agent at the discretion of the Commission. The
Chief of the Common Carrier Bureau may waive, reduce, modify, or
eliminate contributor reporting requirements that prove unnecessary and
require additional reporting requirements that the Bureau deems
necessary to the sound and efficient administration of the number
administration cost recovery.
    (c) For the purposes of this section, the term ``telecommunications
carrier'' or ``carrier'' shall include interconnected VoIP providers as
that term is defined in Sec. 52.21(h).

[64 FR 41331, July 30, 1999, as amended at 73 FR 9481, Feb. 21, 2008]



Sec. 52.19  Area code relief.

    (a) State commissions may resolve matters involving the introduction
of new area codes within their states. Such matters may include, but are
not limited to: Directing whether area code relief will take the form of
a geographic split, an overlay area code, or a boundary realignment;
establishing new area code boundaries; establishing necessary dates for
the implementation of area code relief plans; and directing public
education efforts regarding area code changes.
    (b) State commissions may perform any or all functions related to
initiation and development of area code relief plans, so long as they
act consistently with the guidelines enumerated in this part, and
subject to paragraph (b)(2) of this section. For the purposes of this
paragraph, initiation and development of area code relief planning
encompasses all functions related to the implementation of new area
codes that were performed by central office code administrators prior to
February 8, 1996. Such functions may include: declaring that the area
code relief planning process should begin; convening and conducting
meetings to which the telecommunications industry and the public are
invited on area code relief for a particular area code; and developing
the details of a proposed area code relief plan or plans.
    (1) The entity or entities designated by the Commission to serve as
central office code administrator(s) shall initiate and develop area
code relief plans for each area code in each state that has not notified
such entity or entities, pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section,
that the state will handle such functions.
    (2) Pursuant to paragraph (b)(1) of this section, a state commission
must notify the entity or entities designated by the Commission to serve
as central office code administrator(s) for its state that such state
commission intends to perform matters related to initiation and
development of area code relief planning efforts in its state.
Notification shall be written and shall include a description of the
specific functions the state commission intends to perform. Where the
NANP Administrator serves as the central office code

[[Page 102]]

administrator, such notification must be made within 120 days of the
selection of the NANP Administrator.
    (c) New area codes may be introduced through the use of:
    (1) A geographic area code split, which occurs when the geographic
area served by an area code in which there are few or no central office
codes left for assignment is split into two or more geographic parts;
    (2) An area code boundary realignment, which occurs when the
boundary lines between two adjacent area codes are shifted to allow the
transfer of some central office codes from an area code for which
central office codes remain unassigned to an area code for which few or
no central office codes are left for assignment; or
    (3) An all services area code overlay, which occurs when a new area
code is introduced to serve the same geographic area as one or more
existing area code(s), subject to the following conditions:
    (i) No all services area code overlay may be implemented unless all
numbering resources in the new overlay area code are assigned to those
entities requesting assignment on a first-come, first-serve basis,
regardless of the identity of, technology used by, or type of service
provided by that entity, except to the extent that a technology- or
service-specific overlay is authorized by the Commission. No group of
telecommunications carriers shall be excluded from assignment of
numbering resources in the existing area code, or be assigned such
resources only from the all services overlay area code, based solely on
that group's provision of a specific type of telecommunications service
or use of a particular technology; and
    (ii) No area code overlay may be implemented unless there exists, at
the time of implementation, mandatory ten-digit dialing for every
telephone call within and between all area codes in the geographic area
covered by the overlay area code.
    (4) A technology-specific or service-specific overlay, which occurs
when a new area code is introduced to serve the same geographic area as
one or more existing area code(s) and numbering resources in the new
area code overlay are assigned to a specific technology(ies) or
service(s). State commissions may not implement a technology-specific or
service-specific overlay without express authority from the Commission.

[61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 63617, Nov. 16, 1998;
64 FR 62984, Nov. 18, 1999; 67 FR 6434, Feb. 12, 2002]



                      Subpart C_Number Portability

    Source: 61 FR 38637, July 25, 1996, unless otherwise noted.
Redesignated at 61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996.



Sec. 52.20  Thousands-block number pooling.

    (a) Definition. Thousands-block number pooling is a process by which
the 10,000 numbers in a central office code (NXX) are separated into ten
sequential blocks of 1,000 numbers each (thousands-blocks), and
allocated separately within a rate center.
    (b) General requirements. Pursuant to the Commission's adoption of
thousands-block number pooling as a mandatory nationwide numbering
resource optimization strategy, all carriers, except those exempted by
the Commission, must participate in thousands-block number pooling where
it is implemented and in accordance with the national thousands-block
number pooling framework and implementation schedule established by the
Commission.
    (c) Donation of thousands-blocks. (1) All service providers required
to participate in thousands-block number pooling shall donate thousands-
blocks with ten percent or less contamination to the thousands-block
number pool for the rate center within which the numbering resources are
assigned.
    (2) All service providers required to participate in thousands-block
number pooling shall be allowed to retain at least one thousands-block
per rate center, even if the thousands-block is ten percent or less
contaminated, as an initial block or footprint block.
    (d) Thousands-Block Pooling Administrator. (1) The Pooling
Administrator shall be a non-governmental entity that is impartial and
not aligned with any particular telecommunication industry segment, and
shall comply with

[[Page 103]]

the same neutrality requirements that the NANPA is subject to under this
part.
    (2) The Pooling Administrator shall maintain no more than a six-
month inventory of telephone numbers in each thousands-block number
pool.

[65 FR 37709, June 16, 2000, as amended at 66 FR 9532, Feb. 8, 2001; 68
FR 43009, July 21, 2003]



Sec. 52.21  Definitions.

    As used in this subpart:
    (a) The term 100 largest MSAs includes the 100 largest MSAs as
identified in the 1990 U.S. Census reports, as set forth in the Appendix
to this part, as well as those areas identified as one of the largest
100 MSAs on subsequent updates to the U.S. Census reports.
    (b) The term broadband PCS has the same meaning as that term is
defined in Sec. 24.5 of this chapter.
    (c) The term cellular service has the same meaning as that term is
defined in Sec. 22.99 of this chapter.
    (d) The term covered CMRS means broadband PCS, cellular, and 800/900
MHz SMR licensees that hold geographic area licenses or are incumbent
SMR wide area licensees, and offer real-time, two-way switched voice
service, are interconnected with the public switched network, and
utilize an in-network switching facility that enables such CMRS systems
to reuse frequencies and accomplish seamless hand-offs of subscriber
calls.
    (e) The term database method means a number portability method that
utilizes one or more external databases for providing called party
routing information.
    (f) The term downstream database means a database owned and operated
by an individual carrier for the purpose of providing number portability
in conjunction with other functions and services.
    (g) The term incumbent wide area SMR licensee has the same meaning
as that term is defined in Sec. 20.3 of this chapter.
    (h) The term ``interconnected VoIP provider'' is an entity that
provides interconnected VoIP service as that term is defined in 47 CFR
9.3.
    (i) The term IP Relay provider means an entity that provides IP
Relay as defined by 47 CFR 64.601.
    (j) The term local exchange carrier means any person that is engaged
in the provision of telephone exchange service or exchange access. For
purposes of this subpart, such term does not include a person insofar as
such person is engaged in the provision of a commercial mobile service
under 47 U.S.C. 332(c).
    (k) The term local number portability administrator (LNPA) means an
independent, non-governmental entity, not aligned with any particular
telecommunications industry segment, whose duties are determined by the
NANC.
    (l) The term location portability means the ability of users of
telecommunications services to retain existing telecommunications
numbers without impairment of quality, reliability, or convenience when
moving from one physical location to another.
    (m) The term long-term database method means a database method that
complies with the performance criteria set forth in Sec. 52.3(a).
    (n) The term number portability means the ability of users of
telecommunications services to retain, at the same location, existing
telecommunications numbers without impairment of quality, reliability,
or convenience when switching from one telecommunications carrier to
another.
    (o) The term regional database means an SMS database or an SMS/SCP
pair that contains information necessary for carriers to provide number
portability in a region as determined by the NANC.
    (p) The term Registered Internet-based TRS User has the meaning set
forth in 47 CFR 64.601.
    (q) The term service control point (SCP) means a database in the
public switched network which contains information and call processing
instructions needed to process and complete a telephone call. The
network switches access an SCP to obtain such information. Typically,
the information contained in an SCP is obtained from the SMS.
    (r) The term service management system (SMS) means a database or
computer system not part of the public switched network that, among
other things:

[[Page 104]]

    (1) Interconnects to an SCP and sends to that SCP the information
and call processing instructions needed for a network switch to process
and complete a telephone call; and
    (2) Provides telecommunications carriers with the capability of
entering and storing data regarding the processing and completing of a
telephone call.
    (s) The term service portability means the ability of users of
telecommunications services to retain existing telecommunications
numbers without impairment of quality, reliability, or convenience when
switching from one telecommunications service to another, without
switching from one telecommunications carrier to another.
    (t) The term service provider portability means the ability of users
of telecommunications services to retain, at the same location, existing
telecommunications numbers without impairment of quality, reliability,
or convenience when switching from one telecommunications carrier to
another.
    (u) The term transitional number portability measure means a method
that allows one local exchange carrier to transfer telephone numbers
from its network to the network of another telecommunications carrier,
but does not comply with the performance criteria set forth in 52.3(a).
Transitional number portability measures are technically feasible
methods of providing number portability including Remote Call Forwarding
(RCF), Direct Inward Dialing (DID), Route Indexing--Portability Hub (RI-
PH), Directory Number Route Indexing (DNRI) and other comparable
methods.
    (v) The term VRS provider means an entity that provides VRS as
defined by 47 CFR 64.601.
    (w) The term 2009 LNP Porting Intervals Order refers to In the
Matters of Local Number Portability Porting Interval and Validation
Requirements; Telephone Number Portability, WC Docket No. 07-244, CC
Docket No. 95-116, Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed
Rulemaking, FCC 09-41 (2009).

[61 FR 38637, July 25, 1996. Redesignated at 61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996,
as amended at 61 FR 47355, Sept. 6, 1996; 63 FR 68203, Dec. 10, 1998; 67
FR 6435, Feb. 12, 2002; 68 FR 43009, July 21, 2003; 73 FR 9481, Feb. 21,
2008; 73 FR 41293, July 18, 2008; 74 FR 31638, July 2, 2009]



Sec. 52.23  Deployment of long-term database methods for number
portability by LECs.

    (a) Subject to paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, all local
exchange carriers (LECs) must provide number portability in compliance
with the following performance criteria:
    (1) Supports network services, features, and capabilities existing
at the time number portability is implemented, including but not limited
to emergency services, CLASS features, operator and directory assistance
services, and intercept capabilities;
    (2) Efficiently uses numbering resources;
    (3) Does not require end users to change their telecommunications
numbers;
    (4) Does not result in unreasonable degradation in service quality
or network reliability when implemented;
    (5) Does not result in any degradation in service quality or network
reliability when customers switch carriers;
    (6) Does not result in a carrier having a proprietary interest;
    (7) Is able to migrate to location and service portability; and
    (8) Has no significant adverse impact outside the areas where number
portability is deployed.
    (b)(1) All LECs must provide a long-term database method for number
portability in the 100 largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs), as
defined in Sec. 52.21(k), in switches for which another carrier has
made a specific request for the provision of number portability, subject
to paragraph (b)(2) of this section.
    (2) Any procedure to identify and request switches for deployment of
number portability must comply with the following criteria:
    (i) Any wireline carrier that is certified (or has applied for
certification) to provide local exchange service in a state, or any
licensed CMRS provider, must be permitted to make a request

[[Page 105]]

for deployment of number portability in that state;
    (ii) Carriers must submit requests for deployment at least nine
months before the deployment deadline for the MSA;
    (iii) A LEC must make available upon request to any interested
parties a list of its switches for which number portability has been
requested and a list of its switches for which number portability has
not been requested; and
    (iv) After the deadline for deployment of number portability in an
MSA in the 100 largest MSAs, according to the deployment schedule set
forth in the appendix to this part, a LEC must deploy number portability
in that MSA in additional switches upon request within the following
time frames:
    (A) For remote switches supported by a host switch equipped for
portability (``Equipped Remote Switches''), within 30 days;
    (B) For switches that require software but not hardware changes to
provide portability (``Hardware Capable Switches''), within 60 days;
    (C) For switches that require hardware changes to provide
portability (``Capable Switches Requiring Hardware''), within 180 days;
and
    (D) For switches not capable of portability that must be replaced
(``Non-Capable Switches''), within 180 days.
    (c) Beginning January 1, 1999, all LECs must make a long-term
database method for number portability available within six months after
a specific request by another telecommunications carrier in areas in
which that telecommunications carrier is operating or plans to operate.
    (d) The Chief, Common Carrier Bureau, may waive or stay any of the
dates in the implementation schedule, as the Chief determines is
necessary to ensure the efficient development of number portability, for
a period not to exceed 9 months (i.e., no later than September 30,
1999).
    (e) In the event a LEC is unable to meet the Commission's deadlines
for implementing a long-term database method for number portability, it
may file with the Commission at least 60 days in advance of the deadline
a petition to extend the time by which implementation in its network
will be completed. A LEC seeking such relief must demonstrate through
substantial, credible evidence the basis for its contention that it is
unable to comply with the deployment schedule set forth in the appendix
to this part 52. Such requests must set forth:
    (1) The facts that demonstrate why the carrier is unable to meet the
Commission's deployment schedule;
    (2) A detailed explanation of the activities that the carrier has
undertaken to meet the implementation schedule prior to requesting an
extension of time;
    (3) An identification of the particular switches for which the
extension is requested;
    (4) The time within which the carrier will complete deployment in
the affected switches; and
    (5) A proposed schedule with milestones for meeting the deployment
date.
    (f) The Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, shall monitor the
progress of local exchange carriers implementing number portability, and
may direct such carriers to take any actions necessary to ensure
compliance with the deployment schedule set forth in the appendix to
this part 52.
    (g) Carriers that are members of the Illinois Local Number
Portability Workshop must conduct a field test of any technically
feasible long-term database method for number portability in the
Chicago, Illinois, area. The carriers participating in the test must
jointly file with the Common Carrier Bureau a report of their findings
within 30 days following completion of the test. The Chief, Common
Carrier Bureau, shall monitor developments during the field test, and
may adjust the field test completion deadline as necessary.
    (h)(1) Porting from a wireline carrier to a wireless carrier is
required where the requesting wireless carrier's ``coverage area,'' as
defined in paragraph (h)(2) of this section, overlaps the geographic
location in which the customer's wireline number is provisioned,
provided that the porting-in carrier maintains the number's original
rate center designation following the port.
    (2) The wireless ``coverage area'' is defined as the area in which
wireless

[[Page 106]]

service can be received from the wireless carrier.

[61 FR 38637, July 25, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 18294, Apr. 15, 1997;
67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002; 68 FR 43009, July 21, 2003; 73 FR 9481, Feb.
21, 2008]



Sec. 52.25  Database architecture and administration.

    (a) The North American Numbering Council (NANC) shall direct
establishment of a nationwide system of regional SMS databases for the
provision of long-term database methods for number portability.
    (b) All telecommunications carriers shall have equal and open access
to the regional databases.
    (c) The NANC shall select a local number portability
administrator(s) (LNPA(s)) to administer the regional databases within
seven months of the initial meeting of the NANC.
    (d) The NANC shall determine whether one or multiple
administrator(s) should be selected, whether the LNPA(s) can be the same
entity selected to be the North American Numbering Plan Administrator,
how the LNPA(s) should be selected, the specific duties of the LNPA(s),
the geographic coverage of the regional databases, the technical
interoperability and operational standards, the user interface between
telecommunications carriers and the LNPA(s), the network interface
between the SMS and the downstream databases, and the technical
specifications for the regional databases.
    (e) Once the NANC has selected the LNPA(s) and determined the
locations of the regional databases, it must report its decisions to the
Commission.
    (f) The information contained in the regional databases shall be
limited to the information necessary to route telephone calls to the
appropriate telecommunications carriers. The NANC shall determine what
specific information is necessary.
    (g) Any state may opt out of its designated regional database and
implement a state-specific database. A state must notify the Wireline
Competition Bureau and NANC that it plans to implement a state-specific
database within 60 days from the release date of the Public Notice
issued by the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, identifying the
administrator selected by the NANC and the proposed locations of the
regional databases. Carriers may challenge a state's decision to opt out
of the regional database system by filing a petition with the
Commission.
    (h) Individual state databases must meet the national requirements
and operational standards recommended by the NANC and adopted by the
Commission. In addition, such state databases must be technically
compatible with the regional system of databases and must not interfere
with the scheduled implementation of the regional databases.
    (i) Individual carriers may download information necessary to
provide number portability from the regional databases into their own
downstream databases. Individual carriers may mix information needed to
provide other services or functions with the information downloaded from
the regional databases at their own downstream databases. Carriers may
not withhold any information necessary to provide number portability
from the regional databases on the grounds that such data has been
combined with other information in its downstream database.

[61 FR 38637, July 25, 1996. Redesignated at 61 FR 47353, Sept. 6, 1996,
as amended at 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 52.26  NANC Recommendations on Local Number Portability
Administration.

    (a) Local number portability administration shall comply with the
recommendations of the North American Numbering Council (NANC) as set
forth in the report to the Commission prepared by the NANC's Local
Number Portability Administration Selection Working Group, dated April
25, 1997 (Working Group Report) and its appendices, which are
incorporated by reference pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51.
Except that: Section 7.10 of Appendix D and the following portions of
Appendix E: Section 7, Issue Statement I of Appendix A, and Appendix B
in the Working Group Report are not incorporated herein.
    (b) In addition to the requirements set forth in the Working Group
Report,

[[Page 107]]

the following requirements are established:
    (1) If a telecommunictions carrier transmits a telephone call to a
local exchange carrier's switch that contains any ported numbers, and
the telecommunications carrier has failed to perform a database query to
determine if the telephone number has been ported to another local
exchange carrier, the local exchange carrier may block the unqueried
call only if performing the database query is likely to impair network
reliability;
    (2) The regional limited liability companies (LLCs), already
established by telecommunications carriers in each of the original Bell
Operating Company regions, shall manage and oversee the local number
portability administrators, subject to review by the NANC, but only on
an interim basis, until the conclusion of a rulemaking to examine the
issue of local number portability administrator oversight and management
and the question of whether the LLCs should continue to act in this
capacity; and
    (3) The NANC shall provide ongoing oversight of number portability
administration, including oversight of the regional LLCs, subject to
Commission review. Parties shall attempt to resolve issues regarding
number portability deployment among themselves and, if necessary, under
the auspices of the NANC. If any party objects to the NANC's proposed
resolution, the NANC shall issue a written report summarizing the
positions of the parties and the basis for the recommendation adopted by
the NANC. The NANC Chair shall submit its proposed resolution of the
dispuited issue to the Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau as a
recommendation for Commission review. The Chief of the Wireline
Competition Bureau will place the NANC's proposed resolution on public
notice. Recommendations adopted by the NANC and forwarded to the Bureau
may be implemented by the parties pending review of the recommendation.
Within 90 days of the conclusion of the comment cycle, the Chief of the
Wireline Competition Bureau may issue an order adopting, modifying, or
rejecting the recommendation. If the Chief does not act within 90 days
of the conclusion of the comment cycle, the recommendation will be
deemed to have been adopted by the Bureau.
    (c) The Director of the Federal Register approves this incorporation
by reference in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51.
Copies of the Working Group Report and its appendices can be obtained
from the Commission's contract copier, Best Copy and Printing, Inc.
(BCPI), Portals II, 445 12th Street, SW, Room CY-B402, Washington, DC
20554, (202) 488-5300, or via e-mail at [email protected], and can be
inspected during normal business hours at the following locations:
Reference Information Center, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY--A257,
Washington, DC 20554 or at the National Archives and Records
Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of this
material at NARA, call (202) 741-6030, or go to: http://
www.archives.gov/federal-register/cfr/ibr-locations.html. The Working
Group Report and its appendices are also available on the Internet at
http://www.fcc.gov/wcb/cpd/Nanc/lnpastuf.html.

[62 FR 48786, Sept. 17, 1997, as amended at 65 FR 58466, Sept. 29, 2000;
67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002; 69 FR 18803, Apr. 9, 2004; 74 FR 31638, July
2, 2009; 75 FR 35315, June 22, 2010]



Sec. 52.31  Deployment of long-term database methods for number
portability by CMRS providers.

    (a) By November 24, 2003, all covered CMRS providers must provide a
long-term database method for number portability, including the ability
to support roaming, in the 100 largest MSAs, as defined in Sec.
52.21(k), in compliance with the performance criteria set forth in
section 52.23(a) of this part, in switches for which another carrier has
made a specific request for the provision of number portability, subject
to paragraph (a)(1) of this section. A licensee may have more than one
CMRS system, but only the systems that satisfy the definition of covered
CMRS are required to provide number portability.
    (1) Any procedure to identify and request switches for development
of number portability must comply with the following criteria:
    (i) Any wireline carrier that is certified (or has applied for
certification) to provide local exchange service in a

[[Page 108]]

state, or any licensed CMRS provider, must be permitted to make a
request for deployment of number portability in that state;
    (ii) Carries requesting deployment in the 100 largest MSAs by
November 24, 2003 must submit requests by February 24, 2003.
    (iii) A covered CMRS provider must make available upon request to
any interested parties a list of its switches for which number
portability has been requested and a list of its switches for which
number portability has not been requested;
    (iv) After November 24, 2003, a covered CMRS provider must deploy
number portability in additional switches serving the 100 largest MSAs
upon request within the following time frames:
    (A) For remote switches supported by a host switch equipped for
portability (``Equipped Remote Switches''), within 30 days;
    (B) For switches that require software but not hardware changes to
provide portability (``Hardware Capable Switches''), within 60 days;
    (C) For switches that require hardware changes to provide
portability (``Capable Switches Requiring Hardware''), within 180 days;
and
    (D) For switches not capable of portability that must be replaced
(``Non-Capable Switches''), within 180 days.
    (v) Carriers must be able to request deployment in any wireless
switch that serves any area within the MSA, even if the wireless switch
is outside that MSA, or outside any of the MSAs identified in the
Appendix to this part.
    (2) By November 24, 2002, all covered CMRS providers must be able to
support roaming nationwide.
    (b) By December 31, 1998, all covered CMRS providers must have the
capability to obtain routing information, either by querying the
appropriate database themselves or by making arrangements with other
carriers that are capable of performing database queries, so that they
can deliver calls from their networks to any party that has retained its
number after switching from one telecommunications carrier to another.
    (c) [Reserved]
    (d) In the event a carrier subject to paragraphs (a) and (b) of this
section is unable to meet the Commission's deadlines for implementing a
long-term number portability method, it may file with the Commission at
least 60 days in advance of the deadline a petition to extend the time
by which implementation in its network will be completed. A carrier
seeking such relief must demonstrate through substantial, credible
evidence the basis for its contention that it is unable to comply with
paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section. Such requests must set forth:
    (1) The facts that demonstrate why the carrier is unable to meet our
deployment schedule;
    (2) A detailed explanation of the activities that the carrier has
undertaken to meet the implementation schedule prior to requesting an
extension of time;
    (3) An identification of the particular switches for which the
extension is requested;
    (4) The time within which the carrier will complete deployment in
the affected switches; and
    (5) A proposed schedule with milestones for meeting the deployment
date.
    (e) The Chief, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, may establish
reporting requirements in order to monitor the progress of covered CMRS
providers implementing number portability, and may direct such carriers
to take any actions necessary to ensure compliance with this deployment
schedule.

[61 FR 38637, July 25, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 18295, Apr. 15, 1997;
63 FR 68204, Dec. 10, 1998; 64 FR 22563, Apr. 27, 1999; 68 FR 43009,
July 21, 2003; 71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006]



Sec. 52.32  Allocation of the shared costs of long-term number
portability.

    (a) The local number portability administrator, as defined in Sec.
52.21(h), of each regional database, as defined in Sec. 52.21(1), shall
recover the shared costs of long-term number portability attributable to
that regional database from all telecommunications carriers providing
telecommunications service in areas that regional database serves.
Pursuant to its duties under Sec. 52.26, the local number portability
administrator shall collect sufficient revenues to fund

[[Page 109]]

the operation of the regional database by:
    (1) Assessing a $100 yearly contribution on each telecommunications
carrier identified in paragraph (a) introductory text that has no
intrastate, interstate, or international end-user telecommunications
revenue derived from providing telecommunications service in the areas
that regional database serves, and
    (2) Assessing on each of the other telecommunications carriers
providing telecommunications service in areas that regional database
serves, a charge that recovers the remaining shared costs of long-term
number portability attributable to that regional database in proportion
to the ratio of:
    (i) The sum of the intrastate, interstate, and international end-
user telecommunications revenues that such telecommunications carrier
derives from providing telecommunications service in the areas that
regional database serves, ii) to the sum of the intrastate, interstate,
and international end-user telecommunications revenues that all
telecommunications carriers derive from providing telecommunications
service in the areas that regional database serves.
    (b) All telecommunications carriers providing service in the United
States shall complete and submit a ``Telecommunications Reporting
Worksheet'' (as published by the Commission in the Federal Register),
which sets forth the information needed to calculate contributions
referred to in paragraph (a) of this section. The worksheet shall be
certified to by an officer of the contributor, and subject to
verification by the Commission or the administrator at the discretion of
the Commission. The Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau may waive,
reduce, modify, or eliminate contributor reporting requirements that
prove unnecessary and require additional reporting requirements that the
Bureau deems necessary to the sound and efficient administration of
long-term number portability.
    (c) Local number portability administrators shall keep all data
obtained from contributors confidential and shall not disclose such data
in company-specific form unless directed to do so by the Commission.
Subject to any restrictions imposed by the Chief of the Wireline
Competition Bureau, the local number portability administrators may
share data obtained from carriers with the administrators of the
universal service support mechanism (See 47 CFR 54.701 of this chapter),
the TRS Fund (See 47 CFR 64.604(c)(4)(iii)(H) of this chapter), and the
North American Numbering Plan cost recovery (See 47 CFR 52.16). The
local number portability administrators shall keep confidential all data
obtained from other administrators. The administrators shall use such
data, from carriers or administrators, only for purposes of
administering local number portability. The Commission shall have access
to all data reported to the Administrator. Contributors may make
requests for Commission nondisclosure of company-specific revenue
information under Sec. 0.459 of this chapter by so indicating on the
Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet at the time that the subject data
are submitted. The Commission shall make all decisions regarding
nondisclosure of company-specific information.
    (d) Once a telecommunications carrier has been allocated, pursuant
to paragraph (a)(1) or (a)(2) of this section, its portion of the shared
costs of long-term number portability attributable to a regional
database, the carrier shall treat that portion as a carrier-specific
cost directly related to providing number portability.
    (e) For the purposes of this section, the term ``telecommunications
carrier'' shall include interconnected VoIP providers as that term is
defined in Sec. 52.21(h); and ``telecommunications service'' shall
include ``interconnected VoIP service'' as that term is defined in 47
CFR 9.3.

[63 FR 35160, June 29, 1998, as amended at 64 FR 41331, July 30, 1999;
67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002; 73 FR 9481, Feb. 21, 2008]



Sec. 52.33  Recovery of carrier-specific costs directly related to
providing long-term number portability.

    (a) Incumbent local exchange carriers may recover their carrier-
specific costs directly related to providing long-term number
portability by establishing in tariffs filed with the Federal

[[Page 110]]

Communications Commission a monthly number-portability charge, as
specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, a number portability
query-service charge, as specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this section,
and a monthly number-portability query/administration charge, as
specified in paragraph (a)(3) of this section.
    (1) The monthly number-portability charge may take effect no earlier
than February 1, 1999, on a date the incumbent local exchange carrier
selects, and may end no later than 5 five years after the incumbent
local exchange carrier's monthly number-portability charge takes effect.
    (i) An incumbent local exchange carrier may assess each end user it
serves in the 100 largest metropolitan statistical areas, and each end
user it serves from a number-portability-capable switch outside the 100
largest metropolitan statistical areas, one monthly number-portability
charge per line except that:
    (A) One PBX trunk shall receive nine monthly number-portability
charges.
    (B) One PRI ISDN line shall receive five monthly number-portability
charges.
    (C) Lifeline Assistance Program customers shall not receive the
monthly number-portability charge.
    (ii) An incumbent local exchange carrier may assess on carriers that
purchase the incumbent local exchange carrier's switching ports as
unbundled network elements under section 251 of the Communications Act,
and/or Feature Group A access lines, and resellers of the incumbent
local exchange carrier's local service, the same charges as described in
paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section, as if the incumbent local exchange
carrier were serving those carriers' end users.
    (iii) An incumbent local exchange carrier may not assess a monthly
number-portability charge for local loops carriers purchase as unbundled
network elements under section 251.
    (iv) The incumbent local exchange carrier shall levelize the monthly
number-portability charge over five years by setting a rate for the
charge at which the present value of the revenue recovered by the charge
does not exceed the present value of the cost being recovered, using a
discount rate equal to the rate of return on investment which the
Commission has prescribed for interstate access services pursuant to
Part 65 of the Commission's Rules.
    (2) The number portability query-service charge may recover only
carrier-specific costs directly related to providing long-term number
portability that the incumbent local exchange carrier incurs to provide
long-term number portability query service to carriers on a prearranged
and default basis.
    (3) An incumbent local exchange carrier serving an area outside the
100 largest metropolitan statistical areas that is not number-
portability capable but that participates in an extended area service
calling plan with any one of the 100 largest metropolitan statistical
areas or with an adjacent number portability-capable local exchange
carrier may assess each end user it serves one monthly number-
portability query/administration charge per line to recover the costs of
queries, as specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, and carrier-
specific costs directly related to the carrier's allocated share of the
regional local number portability administrator's costs, except that
per-line monthly number-portability query/administration charges shall
be assigned as specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section with
respect to monthly number-portability charges.
    (i) Such incumbent local exchange carriers may assess a separate
monthly number-portability charge as specified in paragraph (a)(1) of
this section but such charge may recover only the costs incurred to
implement number portability functionality and shall not include costs
recovered through the monthly number-portability query/administration
charge.
    (ii) The monthly number-portability query/administration charge may
end no later than five years after the incumbent local exchange
carrier's monthly number-portability query/administration charge takes
effect. The monthly number-portability query/administration charge may
be collected over a different five-year period than the monthly number-
portability charge. These five-year periods may

[[Page 111]]

run either consecutively or concurrently, in whole or in part.
    (b) All interconnected VoIP providers and telecommunications
carriers other than incumbent local exchange carriers may recover their
number portability costs in any manner consistent with applicable state
and federal laws and regulations.

[63 FR 35161, June 29, 1998, as amended at 67 FR 40620, June 13, 2002;
73 FR 9481, Feb. 21, 2008]



Sec. 52.34  Obligations regarding local number porting to and from
interconnected VoIP or Internet-based TRS providers.

    (a) An interconnected VoIP or VRS or IP Relay provider must
facilitate an end-user customer's or a Registered Internet-based TRS
User's valid number portability request, as it is defined in this
subpart, either to or from a telecommunications carrier or an
interconnected VoIP or VRS or IP Relay provider. ``Facilitate'' is
defined as the interconnected VoIP or VRS or IP Relay provider's
affirmative legal obligation to take all steps necessary to initiate or
allow a port-in or port-out itself or through the telecommunications
carriers, if any, that it relies on to obtain numbering resources,
subject to a valid port request, without unreasonable delay or
unreasonable procedures that have the effect of delaying or denying
porting of the NANP-based telephone number.
    (b) An interconnected VoIP or VRS or IP Relay provider may not enter
into any agreement that would prohibit an end-user customer or a
Registered Internet-based TRS User from porting between interconnected
VoIP or VRS or IP Relay providers, or to or from a telecommunications
carrier.

[73 FR 9481, Feb, 21, 2008, as amended at 73 FR 41294, July 18, 2008]



Sec. 52.35  Porting Intervals.

    (a) All telecommunications carriers required by the Commission to
port telephone numbers must complete a simple wireline-to-wireline or
simple intermodal port request within one business day unless a longer
period is requested by the new provider or by the customer. The
traditional work week of Monday through Friday represents mandatory
business days and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. represents minimum business hours,
excluding the current service provider's company-defined holidays. An
accurate and complete Local Service Request (LSR) must be received by
the current service provider between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. local time for a
simple port request to be eligible for activation at midnight on the
same day. Any simple port LSRs received after this time will be
considered received on the following business day at 8 a.m. local time.
    (b) Small providers, as described in the 2009 LNP Porting Interval
Order, must comply with this section by February 2, 2011.
    (c) Unless directed otherwise by the Commission, any
telecommunications carrier granted a waiver by the Commission of the
one-business day porting interval described in paragraph (a) must
complete a simple wireline-to-wireline or simple intermodal port request
within four business days unless a longer period is requested by the new
provider or by the customer.
    (d) All telecommunications carriers required by the Commission to
port telephone numbers must complete a non-simple wireline-to-wireline
or non-simple intermodal port request within four business days unless a
longer period is requested by the new provider or by the customer.
    (e) For purposes of this section:
    (1) The term ``telecommunications carrier'' includes an
interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) provider as that term
in defined in Sec. 52.21(h);
    (2) The term ``local time'' means the predominant time zone of the
Number Portability Administration Center (NPAC) Region in which the
telephone number is being ported; and
    (3) The term ``intermodal ports'' includes
    (i) Wireline-to-wireless ports;
    (ii) Wireless-to-wireline ports; and
    (iii) Ports involving interconnected VoIP service.

[75 FR 35315, June 22, 2010]



Sec. 52.36  Standard data fields for simple port order processing.

    (a) A telecommunications carrier may require only the data described
in

[[Page 112]]

paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section to accomplish a simple port order
request from an end user customer's new telecommunication's carrier.
    (b) Required standard data fields.
    (1) Ported telephone number;
    (2) Account number;
    (3) Zip code;
    (4) Company code;
    (5) New network service provider;
    (6) Desired due date;
    (7) Purchase order number;
    (8) Version;
    (9) Number portability direction indicator;
    (10) Customer carrier name abbreviation;
    (11) Requisition type and status;
    (12) Activity;
    (13) Telephone number of initiator; and
    (14) Agency authority status.
    (c) Optional standard data field. The Passcode field shall be
optional unless the passcode has been requested and assigned by the end
user.
    (d) For purposes of this section, the term ``telecommunications
carrier'' includes an interconnected VoIP provider as that term is
defined in Sec. 52.21(h).

[75 FR 35315, June 22, 2010]



Sec. Sec. 52.37-52.99  [Reserved]



                       Subpart D_Toll Free Numbers

    Source: 62 FR 20127, Apr. 25, 1997, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 52.101  General definitions.

    As used in this part:
    (a) Number Administration and Service Center (``NASC''). The entity
that provides user support for the Service Management System database
and administers the Service Management System database on a day-to-day
basis.
    (b) Responsible Organization (``RespOrg''). The entity chosen by a
toll free subscriber to manage and administer the appropriate records in
the toll free Service Management System for the toll free subscriber.
    (c) Service Control Points. The regional databases in the toll free
network.
    (d) Service Management System Database (``SMS Database''). The
administrative database system for toll free numbers. The Service
Management System is a computer system that enables Responsible
Organizations to enter and amend the data about toll free numbers within
their control. The Service Management System shares this information
with the Service Control Points. The entire system is the SMS database.
    (e) Toll Free Subscriber. The entity that requests a Responsible
Organization to reserve a toll free number from the SMS database.
    (f) Toll Free Number. A telephone number for which the toll charges
for completed calls are paid by the toll free subscriber. The toll free
subscriber's specific geographic location has no bearing on what toll
free number it can obtain from the SMS database.



Sec. 52.103  Lag times.

    (a) Definitions. As used in this section, the following definitions
apply:
    (1) Assigned Status. A toll free number record that has specific
subscriber routing information entered by the Responsible Organization
in the Service Management System database and is pending activation in
the Service Control Points.
    (2) Disconnect Status. The toll free number has been discontinued
and an exchange carrier intercept recording is being provided.
    (3) Lag Time. The interval between a toll free number's reservation
in the Service Management System database and its conversion to working
status, as well as the period of time between disconnection or
cancellation of a toll free number and the point at which that toll free
number may be reassigned to another toll free subscriber.
    (4) Reserved Status. The toll free number has been reserved from the
Service Management System database by a Responsible Organization for a
toll free subscriber.
    (5) Seasonal Numbers. Toll free numbers held by toll free
subscribers who do not have a year-round need for a toll free number.
    (6) Spare Status. The toll free number is available for assignment
by a Responsible Organization.
    (7) Suspend Status. The toll free service has been temporarily
disconnected and is scheduled to be reactivated.

[[Page 113]]

    (8) Unavailable Status. The toll free number is not available for
assignment due to an unusual condition.
    (9) Working Status. The toll free number is loaded in the Service
Control Points and is being utilized to complete toll free service
calls.
    (b) Reserved Status. Toll free numbers may remain in reserved status
for up to 45 days. There shall be no extension of the reservation period
after expiration of the initial 45-day interval.
    (c) Assigned Status. Toll free numbers may remain in assigned status
until changed to working status or for a maximum of 6 months, whichever
occurs first. Toll free numbers that, because of special circumstances,
require that they be designated for a particular subscriber far in
advance of their actual usage shall not be placed in assigned status,
but instead shall be placed in unavailable status.
    (d) Disconnect Status. Toll free numbers may remain in disconnect
status for up to 4 months. No requests for extension of the 4-month
disconnect interval shall be granted. All toll free numbers in
disconnect status must go directly into the spare category upon
expiration of the 4-month disconnect interval. Responsible Organizations
shall not retrieve a toll free number from disconnect status and return
that number directly to working status at the expiration of the 4-month
disconnect interval.
    (e) Suspend Status. Toll free numbers may remain in suspend status
until changed to working status or for a maximum of 8 months, whichever
occurs first. Only numbers involved in billing disputes shall be
eligible for suspend status.
    (f) Unavailable Status. (1) Written requests to make a specific toll
free number unavailable must be submitted to DSMI by the Responsible
Organization managing the records of the toll free number. The request
shall include the appropriate documentation of the reason for the
request. DSMI is the only entity that can assign this status to or
remove this status from a number. Responsible Organizations that have a
toll free subscriber with special circumstances requiring that a toll
free number be designated for that particular subscriber far in advance
of its actual usage may request that DSMI place such a number in
unavailable status.
    (2) Seasonal numbers shall be placed in unavailable status. The
Responsible Organization for a toll free subscriber who does not have a
year round need for a toll free number shall follow the procedures
outlined in Sec. 52.103(f)(1) of these rules if it wants DSMI to place
a particular toll free number in unavailable status.



Sec. 52.105  Warehousing.

    (a) As used in this section, warehousing is the practice whereby
Responsible Organizations, either directly or indirectly through an
affiliate, reserve toll free numbers from the Service Management System
database without having an actual toll free subscriber for whom those
numbers are being reserved.
    (b) Responsible Organizations shall not warehouse toll free numbers.
There shall be a rebuttable presumption that a Responsible Organization
is warehousing toll free numbers if:
    (1) The Responsible Organization does not have an identified toll
free subscriber agreeing to be billed for service associated with each
toll free number reserved from the Service Management System database;
or
    (2) The Responsible Organization does not have an identified toll
free subscriber agreeing to be billed for service associated with a toll
free number before switching that toll free number from reserved or
assigned to working status.
    (c) Responsible Organizations shall not maintain a toll free number
in reserved status if there is not a prospective toll free subscriber
requesting that toll free number.
    (d) A Responsible Organization's act of reserving a number from the
Service Management System database shall serve as that Responsible
Organization's certification that there is an identified toll free
subscriber agreeing to be billed for service associated with the toll
free number.
    (e) Tariff Provision. The following provision shall be included in
the Service Management System tariff and in the local exchange carriers'
toll free database access tariffs:


[[Page 114]]


    [T]he Federal Communications Commission (``FCC'') has concluded that
warehousing, which the FCC defines as Responsible Organizations, either
directly or indirectly through an affiliate, reserving toll free numbers
from the SMS database without having an identified toll free subscriber
from whom those numbers are being reserved, is an unreasonable practice
under Sec. 201(b) of the Communications Act and is inconsistent with
the Commission's obligation under Sec. 251(e) of the Communications Act
to ensure that numbers are made available on an equitable basis; and if
a Responsible Organization does not have an identified toll free
subscriber agreeing to be billed for service associated with each toll
free number reserved from the database, or if a Responsible Organization
does not have an identified, billed toll free subscriber before
switching a number from reserved or assigned to working status, then
there is a rebuttable presumption that the Responsible Organization is
warehousing numbers. Responsible Organizations that warehouse numbers
will be subject to penalties.



Sec. 52.107  Hoarding.

    (a) As used in this section, hoarding is the acquisition by a toll
free subscriber from a Responsible Organization of more toll free
numbers than the toll free subscriber intends to use for the provision
of toll free service. The definition of hoarding also includes number
brokering, which is the selling of a toll free number by a private
entity for a fee.
    (1) Toll free subscribers shall not hoard toll free numbers.
    (2) No person or entity shall acquire a toll free number for the
purpose of selling the toll free number to another entity or to a person
for a fee.
    (3) Routing multiple toll free numbers to a single toll free
subscriber will create a rebuttable presumption that the toll free
subscriber is hoarding or brokering toll free numbers.
    (b) Tariff Provision. The following provision shall be included in
the Service Management System tariff and in the local exchange carriers'
toll free database access tariffs:

    [T]he Federal Communications Commission (``FCC'') has concluded that
hoarding, defined as the acquisition of more toll free numbers than one
intends to use for the provision of toll free service, as well as the
sale of a toll free number by a private entity for a fee, is contrary to
the public interest in the conservation of the scarce toll free number
resource and contrary to the FCC's responsibility to promote the orderly
use and allocation of toll free numbers.



Sec. 52.109  Permanent cap on number reservations.

    (a) A Responsible Organization may have in reserve status, at any
one time, either 2000 toll free numbers or 7.5 percent of that
Responsible Organization's numbers in working status, whichever is
greater.
    (b) A Responsible Organization shall never reserve more than 3
percent of the quantity of toll free numbers in spare status as of the
previous Sunday at 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time.
    (c) The Wireline Competition Bureau shall modify the quantity of
numbers a Responsible Organization may have in reserve status or the
percentage of numbers in the spare poll that a Responsible Organization
may reserve when exigent circumstances make such action necessary. The
Wireline Competition Bureau shall establish, modify, and monitor toll
free number conservation plans when exigent circumstances necessitate
such action.

[62 FR 20127, Apr. 25, 1997, as amended at 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 52.111  Toll free number assignment.

    Toll free numbers shall be made available on a first-come, first-
served basis unless otherwise directed by the Commission.

[63 FR 16441, Apr. 3, 1998]



  Sec. Appendix to Part 52--Deployment Schedule for Long-Term Database
                  Methods for Local Number Portability

    Implementation must be completed by the carriers in the relevant
MSAs during the periods specified below:

                        Phase I--10/1/97-3/31/98

Chicago, IL...................................................         3
Philadelphia, PA..............................................         4
Atlanta, GA...................................................         8
New York, NY..................................................         2
Los Angeles, CA...............................................         1
Houston, TX...................................................         7
Minneapolis, MN...............................................        12

                        Phase II--1/1/98-5/15/98

Detroit, MI...................................................         6
Cleveland, OH.................................................        20
Washington, DC................................................         5

[[Page 115]]


Baltimore, MD.................................................        18
Miami, FL.....................................................        24
Fort Lauderdale, FL...........................................        39
Orlando, FL...................................................        40
Cincinnati, OH................................................        30
Tampa, FL.....................................................        23
Boston, MA....................................................         9
Riverside, CA.................................................        10
San Diego, CA.................................................        14
Dallas, TX....................................................        11
St. Louis, MO.................................................        16
Phoenix, AZ...................................................        17
Seattle, WA...................................................        22

                        Phase III--4/1/98-6/30/98

Indianapolis, IN..............................................        34
Milwaukee, WI.................................................        35
Columbus, OH..................................................        38
Pittsburgh, PA................................................        19
Newark, NJ....................................................        25
Norfolk, VA...................................................        32
New Orleans, LA...............................................        41
Charlotte, NC.................................................        43
Greensboro, NC................................................        48
Nashville, TN.................................................        51
Las Vegas, NV.................................................        50
Nassau, NY....................................................        13
Buffalo, NY...................................................        44
Orange Co, CA.................................................        15
Oakland, CA...................................................        21
San Francisco, CA.............................................        29
Rochester, NY.................................................        49
Kansas City, KS...............................................        28
Fort Worth, TX................................................        33
Hartford, CT..................................................        46
Denver, CO....................................................        26
Portland, OR..................................................        27

                        Phase IV--7/1/98-9/30/98

Grand Rapids, MI..............................................        56
Dayton, OH....................................................        61
Akron, OH.....................................................        73
Gary, IN......................................................        80
Bergen, NJ....................................................        42
Middlesex, NJ.................................................        52
Monmouth, NJ..................................................        54
Richmond, VA..................................................        63
Memphis, TN...................................................        53
Louisville, KY................................................        57
Jacksonville, FL..............................................        58
Raleigh, NC...................................................        59
West Palm Beach, FL...........................................        62
Greenville, SC................................................        66
Honolulu, HI..................................................        65
Providence, RI................................................        47
Albany, NY....................................................        64
San Jose, CA..................................................        31
Sacramento, CA................................................        36
Fresno, CA....................................................        68
San Antonio, TX...............................................        37
Oklahoma City, OK.............................................        55
Austin, TX....................................................        60
Salt Lake City, UT............................................        45
Tucson, AZ....................................................        71

                        Phase V--10/1/98-12/31/98

Toledo, OH....................................................        81
Youngstown, OH................................................        85
Ann Arbor, MI.................................................        95
Fort Wayne, IN................................................       100
Scranton, PA..................................................        78
Allentown, PA.................................................        82
Harrisburg, PA................................................        83
Jersey City, NJ...............................................        88
Wilmington, DE................................................        89
Birmingham, AL................................................        67
Knoxville, KY.................................................        79
Baton Rouge, LA...............................................        87
Charleston, SC................................................        92
Sarasota, FL..................................................        93
Mobile, AL....................................................        96
Columbia, SC..................................................        98
Tulsa, OK.....................................................        70
Syracuse, NY..................................................        69
Springfield, MA...............................................        86
Ventura, CA...................................................        72
Bakersfield, CA...............................................        84
Stockton, CA..................................................        94
Vallejo, CA...................................................        99
El Paso, TX...................................................        74
Little Rock, AR...............................................        90
Wichita, KS...................................................        97
New Haven, CT.................................................        91
Omaha, NE.....................................................        75
Albuquerque, NM...............................................        76
Tacoma, WA....................................................        77



[62 FR 18295, Apr. 15, 1997]



PART 53_SPECIAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING BELL OPERATING COMPANIES--Table of
Contents



                      Subpart A_General Information

Sec.
53.1 Basis and purpose.
53.3 Terms and definitions.

Subpart B--Bell Operating Company Entry Into InterLATA Services [Reserved]

                Subpart C_Separate Affiliate; Safeguards

53.201 Services for which a section 272 affiliate is required.
53.203 Structural and transactional requirements.
53.205 Fulfillment of certain requests. [Reserved]
53.207 Successor or assign.
53.209 Biennial audit.
53.211 Audit planning.

[[Page 116]]

53.213 Audit analysis and evaluation.

           Subpart D_Manufacturing by Bell Operating Companies

53.301 [Reserved]

       Subpart E_Electronic Publishing by Bell Operating Companies

53.401 [Reserved]

                   Subpart F_Alarm Monitoring Services

53.501 [Reserved]

    Authority: Sections 1-5, 7, 201-05, 218, 251, 253, 271-75, 48 Stat.
1070, as amended, 1077; 47 U.S.C. 151-55, 157, 201-05, 218, 251, 253,
271-75, unless otherwise noted.

    Source: 62 FR 2967, Jan. 21, 1997, unless otherwise noted.



                      Subpart A_General Information



Sec. 53.1  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. The rules in this part are issued pursuant to the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of the rules in this part is to implement
sections 271 and 272 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47
U.S.C. 271 and 272.



Sec. 53.3  Terms and definitions.

    Terms used in this part have the following meanings:
    Act. The Act means the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    Affiliate. An affiliate is a person that (directly or indirectly)
owns or controls, is owned or controlled by, or is under common
ownership or control with, another person. For purposes of this part,
the term ``own'' means to own an equity interest (or the equivalent
thereof) of more than 10 percent.
    AT&T Consent Decree. The AT&T Consent Decree is the order entered
August 24, 1982, in the antitrust action styled United States v. Western
Electric, Civil Action No. 82-0192, in the United States District Court
for the District of Columbia, and any judgment or order with respect to
such action entered on or after August 24, 1982.
    Bell Operating Company (BOC). The term Bell operating company
    (1) Means any of the following companies: Bell Telephone Company of
Nevada, Illinois Bell Telephone Company, Indiana Bell Telephone Company,
Incorporated, Michigan Bell Telephone Company, New England Telephone and
Telegraph Company, New Jersey Bell Telephone Company, New York Telephone
Company, U S West Communications Company, South Central Bell Telephone
Company, Southern Bell Telephone and Telegraph Company, Southwestern
Bell Telephone Company, The Bell Telephone Company of Pennsylvania, The
Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company, The Chesapeake and Potomac
Telephone Company of Maryland, The Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone
Company of Virginia, The Chesapeake and Potomac Telephone Company of
West Virginia, The Diamond State Telephone Company, The Ohio Bell
Telephone Company, The Pacific Telephone and Telegraph Company, or
Wisconsin Telephone Company; and
    (2) Includes any successor or assign of any such company that
provides wireline telephone exchange service; but
    (3) Does not include an affiliate of any such company, other than an
affiliate described in paragraphs (1) or (2) of this definition.
    In-Region InterLATA service. In-region interLATA service is
interLATA service that originates in any of a BOC's in-region states,
which are the states in which the BOC or any of its affiliates was
authorized to provide wireline telephone exchange service pursuant to
the reorganization plan approved under the AT&T Consent Decree, as in
effect on February 7, 1996. For the purposes of this part, 800 service,
private line service, or equivalent services that terminate in a BOC's
in-region state and allow the called party to determine the interLATA
carrier are considered to be in-region interLATA service.
    InterLATA Information Service. An interLATA information service is
an information service that incorporates as a necessary, bundled element
an interLATA telecommunications transmission component, provided to the
customer for a single charge.
    InterLATA Service. An interLATA service is a service that involves
telecommunications between a point located in a LATA and a point located
outside such area. The term

[[Page 117]]

``interLATA service'' includes both interLATA telecommunications
services and interLATA information services.
    Local Access and Transport Area (LATA). A LATA is a contiguous
geographic area:
    (1) Established before February 8, 1996 by a BOC such that no
exchange area includes points within more than one metropolitan
statistical area, consolidated metropolitan statistical area, or state,
except as expressly permitted under the AT&T Consent Decree; or
    (2) Established or modified by a BOC after February 8, 1996 and
approved by the Commission.
    Local Exchange Carrier (LEC). A LEC is any person that is engaged in
the provision of telephone exchange service or exchange access. Such
term does not include a person insofar as such person is engaged in the
provision of commercial mobile service under section 332(c) of the Act,
except to the extent that the Commission finds that such service should
be included in the definition of such term.
    Out-of-Region InterLATA service. Out-of-region interLATA service is
interLATA service that originates outside a BOC's in-region states.
    Section 272 affiliate. A section 272 affiliate is a BOC affiliate
that complies with the separate affiliate requirements of section 272(b)
of the Act and the regulations contained in this part.

Subpart B--Bell Operating Company Entry Into InterLATA Services
[Reserved]



                Subpart C_Separate Affiliate; Safeguards



Sec. 53.201  Services for which a section 272 affiliate is required.

    For the purposes of applying section 272(a)(2) of the Act:
    (a) Previously authorized activities. When providing previously
authorized activities described in section 271(f) of the Act, a BOC
shall comply with the following:
    (1) A BOC shall provide previously authorized interLATA information
services and manufacturing activities through a section 272 affiliate no
later than February 8, 1997.
    (2) A BOC shall provide previously authorized interLATA
telecommunications services in accordance with the terms and conditions
of the orders entered by the United States District Court for the
District of Columbia pursuant to section VII or VIII(C) of the AT&T
Consent Decree that authorized such services.
    (b) InterLATA information services. A BOC shall provide an interLATA
information service through a section 272 affiliate when it provides the
interLATA telecommunications transmission component of the service
either over its own facilities, or by reselling the interLATA
telecommunications services of an interexchange provider.
    (c) Out-of-region interLATA information services. A BOC shall
provide out-of-region interLATA information services through a section
272 affiliate.



Sec. 53.203  Structural and transactional requirements.

    (a) Operational independence. A section 272 affiliate and the BOC of
which it is an affiliate shall not jointly own transmission and
switching facilities or the land and buildings where those facilities
are located.
    (b) Separate books, records, and accounts. A section 272 affiliate
shall maintain books, records, and accounts, which shall be separate
from the books, records, and accounts maintained by the BOC of which it
is an affiliate.
    (c) Separate officers, directors, and employees. A section 272
affiliate shall have separate officers, directors, and employees from
the BOC of which it is an affiliate.
    (d) Credit arrangements. A section 272 affiliate shall not obtain
credit under any arrangement that would permit a creditor, upon default,
to have recourse to the assets of the BOC of which it is an affiliate.
    (e) Arm's-length transactions. A section 272 affiliate shall conduct
all transactions with the BOC of which it is an affiliate on an arm's
length basis, pursuant to the accounting rules described in Sec. 32.27
of this chapter, with

[[Page 118]]

any such transactions reduced to writing and available for public
inspection.

[62 FR 2967, Jan. 21, 1997, as amended at 69 FR 16496, Mar. 30, 2004; 70
FR 55302, Sept. 21, 2005]



Sec. 53.205  Fulfillment of certain requests. [Reserved]



Sec. 53.207  Successor or assign.

    If a BOC transfers to an affiliated entity ownership of any network
elements that must be provided on an unbundled basis pursuant to section
251(c)(3) of the Act, such entity will be deemed to be an ``assign'' of
the BOC under section 3(4) of the Act with respect to such transferred
network elements. A BOC affiliate shall not be deemed a ``successor or
assign'' of a BOC solely because it obtains network elements from the
BOC pursuant to section 251(c)(3) of the Act.

[62 FR 2967, Jan. 21, 1997; 63 FR 34604, June 25, 1998]



Sec. 53.209  Biennial audit.

    (a) A Bell operating company required to operate a separate
affiliate under section 272 of the Act shall obtain and pay for a
Federal/State joint audit every two years conducted by an independent
auditor to determine whether the Bell operating company has complied
with the rules promulgated under section 272 and particularly the audit
requirements listed in paragraph (b) of this section.
    (b) The independent audit shall determine:
    (1) Whether the separate affiliate required under section 272 of the
Act has:
    (i) Operated independently of the Bell operating company;
    (ii) Maintained books, records, and accounts in the manner
prescribed by the Commission that are separate from the books, records
and accounts maintained by the Bell operating company;
    (iii) Officers, directors and employees that are separate from those
of the Bell operating company;
    (iv) Not obtained credit under any arrangement that would permit a
creditor, upon default, to have recourse to the assets of the Bell
operating company; and
    (v) Conducted all transactions with the Bell operating company on an
arm's length basis with the transactions reduced to writing and
available for public inspection.
    (2) Whether or not the Bell operating company has:
    (i) Discriminated between the separate affiliate and any other
entity in the provision or procurement of goods, services, facilities,
and information, or the establishment of standards;
    (ii) Accounted for all transactions with the separate affiliate in
accordance with the accounting principles and rules approved by the
Commission.
    (3) Whether or not the Bell operating company and an affiliate
subject to section 251(c) of the Act:
    (i) Have fulfilled requests from unaffiliated entities for telephone
exchange service and exchange access within a period no longer than the
period in which it provides such telephone exchange service and exchange
access to itself or its affiliates;
    (ii) Have made available facilities, services, or information
concerning its provision of exchange access to other providers of
interLATA services on the same terms and conditions as it has to its
affiliate required under section 272 that operates in the same market;
    (iii) Have charged its separate affiliate under section 272, or
imputed to itself (if using the access for its provision of its own
services), an amount for access to its telephone exchange service and
exchange access that is no less than the amount charged to any
unaffiliated interexchange carriers for such service; and
    (iv) Have provided any interLATA or intraLATA facilities or services
to its interLATA affiliate and made available such services or
facilities to all carriers at the same rates and on the same terms and
conditions, and allocated the associated costs appropriately.
    (c) An independent audit shall be performed on the first full year
of operations of the separate affiliate required under section 272 of
the Act, and biennially thereafter.
    (d) The Chief, Enforcement Bureau, shall work with the regulatory
agencies in the states having jurisdiction over the Bell operating
company's local telephone services, to attempt to form a Federal/State
joint audit team with the responsibility for overseeing

[[Page 119]]

the planning of the audit as specified in Sec. 53.211 and the analysis
and evaluation of the audit as specified in Sec. 53.213. The Federal/
State joint audit team may direct the independent auditor to take any
actions necessary to ensure compliance with the audit requirements
listed in paragraph (b) of this section. If the state regulatory
agencies having jurisdiction choose not to participate in the Federal/
State joint audit team, the Chief, Enforcement Bureau, shall establish
an FCC audit team to oversee and direct the independent auditor to take
any actions necessary to ensure compliance with the audit requirements
in paragraph (b) of this section.

[62 FR 2926, Jan. 21, 1997, as amended at 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 53.211  Audit planning.

    (a) Before selecting an independent auditor, the Bell operating
company shall submit preliminary audit requirements, including the
proposed scope of the audit and the extent of compliance and substantive
testing, to the Federal/State joint audit team organized pursuant to
Sec. 53.209(d);
    (b) The Federal/State joint audit team shall review the preliminary
audit requirements to determine whether it is adequate to meet the audit
requirements in Sec. 53.209 (b). The Federal/State joint audit shall
have 30 days to review the audit requirements and determine any
modifications that shall be incorporated into the final audit
requirements.
    (c) After the audit requirements have been approved by the Federal/
State joint audit team, the Bell operating company shall engage within
30 days an independent auditor to conduct the biennial audit. In making
its selection, the Bell operating company shall not engage any
independent auditor who has been instrumental during the past two years
in designing any of the accounting or reporting systems under review in
the biennial audit.
    (d) The independent auditor selected by the Bell operating company
to conduct the audit shall develop a detailed audit program based on the
final audit requirements and submit it to the Federal/State joint audit
team. The Federal/State joint audit team shall have 30 days to review
the audit program and determine any modifications that shall be
incorporated into the final audit program.
    (e) During the course of the biennial audit, the independent
auditor, among other things, shall:
    (1) Inform the Federal/State joint audit team of any revisions to
the final audit program or to the scope of the audit.
    (2) Notify the Federal/State joint audit team of any meetings with
the Bell operating company or its separate affiliate in which audit
findings are discussed.
    (3) Submit to the Chief, Enforcement Bureau, any accounting or rule
interpretations necessary to complete the audit.

[62 FR 2926, Jan. 21, 1997, as amended at 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 53.213  Audit analysis and evaluation.

    (a) Within 60 dates after the end of the audit period, but prior to
discussing the audit findings with the Bell operating company or the
separate affiliate, the independent auditor shall submit a draft of the
audit report to the Federal/State joint audit team.
    (1) The Federal/State joint audit team shall have 45 days to review
the audit findings and audit workpapers, and offer its recommendations
concerning the conduct of the audit or the audit findings to the
independent auditor. Exceptions of the Federal/State joint audit team to
the finding and conclusions of the independent auditor that remain
unresolved shall be included in the final audit report.
    (2) Within 15 days after receiving the Federal/State joint audit
team's recommendations and making appropriate revisions to the audit
report, the independent auditor shall submit the audit report to the
Bell operating company for its response to the audit findings and send a
copy to the Federal/State joint audit team. The independent auditor may
request additional time to perform additional audit work as recommended
by the Federal/State joint audit team.
    (b) Within 30 days after receiving the audit report, the Bell
operating company will respond to the audit findings and send a copy of
its response to the Federal/State joint audit team. The

[[Page 120]]

Bell operating company's response shall be included as part of the final
audit report along with any reply that the independent auditor wishes to
make to the response.
    (c) Within 10 days after receiving the response of the Bell
operating company, the independent auditor shall make available for
public inspection the final audit report by filing it with the
Commission and the state regulatory agencies participating on the joint
audit team.
    (d) Interested parties may file comments with the Commission within
60 days after the audit report is made available for public inspection.

[62 FR 2927, Jan. 21, 1997]



           Subpart D_Manufacturing by Bell Operating Companies



Sec. 53.301  [Reserved]



       Subpart E_Electronic Publishing by Bell Operating Companies



Sec. 53.401  [Reserved]



                   Subpart F_Alarm Monitoring Services



Sec. 53.501  [Reserved]



PART 54_UNIVERSAL SERVICE--Table of Contents



                      Subpart A_General Information

Sec.
54.1 Basis and purpose.
54.5 Terms and definitions.
54.7 Intended use of federal universal service support.
54.8 Prohibition on participation: suspension and debarment.

                Subpart B_Services Designated for Support

54.101 Supported services for rural, insular and high cost areas.

        Subpart C_Carriers Eligible for Universal Service Support

54.201 Definition of eligible telecommunications carriers, generally.
54.202 Additional requirements for Commission designation of eligible
          telecommunications carriers.
54.203 Designation of eligible telecommunications carriers for unserved
          areas.
54.205 Relinquishment of universal service.
54.207 Service areas.

         Subpart D_Universal Service Support for High Cost Areas

54.301 Local switching support.
54.302 Monthly per-line limit on universal service support.
54.304 Administration of Connect America Fund Intercarrier Compensation
          Replacement.
54.305 Sale or transfer of exchanges.
54.307 Support to a competitive eligible telecommunications carrier.
54.309 Connect America Fund Phase II Public Interest Obligations.
54.310 Connect America Fund for Price Cap Territories--Phase II
54.312 Connect America Fund for Price Cap Territories--Phase I.
54.313 Annual reporting requirements for high-cost recipients.
54.314 Certification of support for eligible telecommunications
          carriers.
54.318 High-cost support; limitations on high-cost support.
54.319 Elimination of high-cost support in areas with 100 percent
          coverage by an unsubsidized competitor.
54.320 Compliance and recordkeeping for the high-cost program.

      Subpart E_Universal Service Support for Low Income Consumers

54.400 Terms and definitions.
54.401 Lifeline defined.
54.403 Lifeline support amount.
54.404 The National Lifeline Accountability Database.
54.405 Carrier obligation to offer Lifeline.
54.407 Reimbursement for offering Lifeline.
54.409 Consumer qualification for Lifeline.
54.410 Subscriber eligibility determination and certification.
54.412 Off reservation Tribal lands designation process.
54.413 Link Up for Tribal lands.
54.414 Reimbursement for Tribal Link Up.
54.416 Annual certifications by eligible telecommunications carriers.
54.417 Recordkeeping requirements.
54.418 Digital television transition notices by eligible
          telecommunications carriers.
54.419 Validity of electronic signatures.
54.420 Low income program audits.
54.422 Annual reporting for eligible telecommunications carriers that
          receive low-income support.

      Subpart F_Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries

54.500 Terms and definitions.

[[Page 121]]

54.501 Eligible recipients.
54.502 Eligible services.
54.503 Competitive bidding requirements.
54.504 Requests for services.
54.505 Discounts.
54.506 [Reserved]
54.507 Cap.
54.508 [Reserved]
54.509 Adjustments to the discount matrix.
54.511 Ordering services.
54.513 Resale and transfer of services.
54.514 Payment for discounted services.
54.515 Distributing support.
54.516 Auditing.
54.517 [Reserved]
54.518 Support for wide area networks.
54.519 State telecommunications networks.
54.520 Children's Internet Protection Act certifications required from
          recipients of discounts under the federal universal service
          support mechanism for schools and libraries.
54.522 [Reserved]
54.523 Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services.

      Subpart G_Universal Service Support for Health Care Providers

                      Defined Terms and Eligibility

54.600 Terms and definitions.
54.601 Health care provider eligibility.
54.602 Health care support mechanism.

                       Telecommunications Program

54.603 Competitive bidding and certification requirements.
54.604 Consortia, telecommunications services, and existing contracts.
54.605 Determining the urban rate.
54.607 Determining the rural rate.
54.609 Calculating support.
54.613 Limitations on supported services for rural health care
          providers.
54.615 Obtaining services.
54.619 Audits and recordkeeping.
54.623 Annual filing and funding commitment requirement.
54.625 Support for telecommunications services beyond the maximum
          supported distance for rural health care providers.

                         Healthcare Connect Fund

54.630 Eligible recipients.
54.631 Designation of Consortium Leader.
54.632 Letters of agency (LOA).
54.633 Health care provider contribution.
54.634 Eligible services.
54.635 Eligible equipment.
54.636 Eligible participant-constructed and owned network facilities for
          consortium applicants.
54.637 Off-site data centers and off-site administrative offices.
54.638 Upfront payments.
54.639 Ineligible expenses.
54.640 Eligible vendors.
54.642 Competitive bidding requirement and exemptions.
54.643 Funding commitments.
54.644 Multi-year commitments.
54.645 Payment process.
54.646 Site and service substitutions.
54.647 Data collection and reporting.
54.648 Audits and recordkeeping.
54.649 Certifications.

                           General Provisions

54.671 Resale.
54.672 Duplicate support.
54.675 Cap.
54.679 Election to offset support against annual universal service fund
          contribution.
54.680 Validity of electronic signatures.

                        Subpart H_Administration

54.701 Administrator of universal service support mechanisms.
54.702 Administrator's functions and responsibilities.
54.703 The Administrator's Board of Directors.
54.704 The Administrator's Chief Executive Officer.
54.705 Committees of the Administrator's Board of Directors.
54.706 Contributions.
54.707 Audit controls.
54.708 De minimis exemption.
54.709 Computations of required contributions to universal service
          support mechanisms.
54.711 Contributor reporting requirements.
54.712 Contributor recovery of universal service costs from end users.
54.713 Contributors' failure to report or to contribute.
54.715 Administrative expenses of the Administrator.
54.717 Audits of the Administrator.

        Subpart I_Review of Decisions Issued by the Administrator

54.719 Parties permitted to seek review of Administrator decision.
54.720 Filing deadlines.
54.721 General filing requirements.
54.722 Review by the Wireline Competition Bureau or the Commission.
54.723 Standard of review.
54.724 Time periods for Commission approval of Administrator decisions.
54.725 Universal service disbursements during pendency of a request for
          review and Administrator decision.

     Subpart J_Interstate Access Universal Service Support Mechanism

54.800 Terms and definitions.
54.801 General.

[[Page 122]]

54.802 Obligations of local exchange carriers and the Administrator.
54.803 Universal service zones.
54.804 Preliminary minimum access universal service support for a study
          area calculated by the Administrator.
54.805 Zone and study area above benchmark revenues calculated by the
          Administrator.
54.806 Calculation by the Administrator of interstate access universal
          service support for areas served by price cap local exchange
          carriers.
54.807 Interstate access universal service support.
54.808 Transition provisions and periodic calculation.
54.809 Carrier certification.

 Subpart K_Interstate Common Line Support Mechanism for Rate-of-Return
                                Carriers

54.901 Calculation of Interstate Common Line Support.
54.902 Calculation of Interstate Common Line Support for transferred
          exchanges.
54.903 Obligations of rate-of-return carriers and the Administrator.
54.904 Carrier certification.

                         Subpart L_Mobility Fund

54.1001 Mobility Fund--Phase I.
54.1002 Geographic areas eligible for support.
54.1003 Provider eligibility.
54.1004 Service to Tribal Lands.
54.1005 Application process.
54.1006 Public interest obligations.
54.1007 Letter of credit.
54.1008 Mobility Fund Phase I disbursements.
54.1009 Annual reports.
54.1010 Record retention for Mobility Fund Phase I.

      Subpart M_High Cost Loop Support for Rate-of-Return Carriers

54.1301 General.
54.1302 Calculation of incumbent local exchange carrier portion of
          nationwide loop cost expense adjustment for rate-of-return
          carriers.
54.1303 Calculation of the rural growth factor.
54.1304 Calculation of safety net additive.
54.1305 Submission of information to the National Exchange Carrier
          Association (NECA).
54.1306 Updating information submitted to the National Exchange Carrier
          Association.
54.1307 Submission of information by the National Exchange Carrier
          Association.
54.1308 Study area total unseparated loop cost.
54.1309 National and study area average unseparated loop costs.
54.1310 Expense adjustment.

    Authority: Sections 1, 4(i), 5, 201, 205, 214, 219, 220, 254,
303(r), and 403 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, and
section 706 of the Communications Act of 1996, as amended; 47 U.S.C.
151, 154(i), 155, 201, 205, 214, 219, 220, 254, 303(r), 403, and 1302
unless otherwise noted.

    Source: 62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, unless otherwise noted.



                      Subpart A_General Information



Sec. 54.1  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. These rules are issued pursuant to the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of these rules is to implement section 254
of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 USC 254.



Sec. 54.5  Terms and definitions.

    Terms used in this part have the following meanings:
    Act. The term ``Act'' refers to the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended.
    Administrator. The term ``Administrator'' shall refer to the
Universal Service Administrative Company that is an independent
subsidiary of the National Exchange Carrier Association, Inc., and that
has been appointed the permanent Administrator of the federal universal
service support mechanisms.
    Community anchor institutions. For the purpose of high-cost support,
``community anchor institutions'' refers to schools, libraries, health
care providers, community colleges, other institutions of higher
education, and other community support organizations and entities.
    Competitive eligible telecommunications carrier. A ``competitive
eligible telecommunications carrier'' is a carrier that meets the
definition of an ``eligible telecommunications carrier'' below and does
not meet the definition of an ``incumbent local exchange carrier'' in
Sec. 51.5 of this chapter.

[[Page 123]]

    Contributor. The term ``contributor'' shall refer to an entity
required to contribute to the universal service support mechanisms
pursuant to Sec. 54.706.
    Eligible telecommunications carrier. ``Eligible telecommunications
carrier'' means a carrier designated as such under subpart C of this
part.
    High-cost support. ``High-cost support'' refers to those support
mechanisms in existence as of October 1, 2011, specifically, high-cost
loop support, safety net additive and safety valve provided pursuant to
subpart F of part 36, local switching support pursuant to Sec. 54.301,
forward-looking support pursuant to Sec. 54.309, interstate access
support pursuant to Sec. Sec. 54.800 through 54.809, and interstate
common line support pursuant to Sec. Sec. 54.901 through 54.904,
support provided pursuant to Sec. Sec. 51.915, 51.917, and 54.304,
support provided to competitive eligible telecommunications carriers as
set forth in Sec. 54.307(e), Connect America Fund support provided
pursuant to Sec. 54.312, and Mobility Fund support provided pursuant to
subpart L of this part.
    Incumbent local exchange carrier. ``Incumbent local exchange
carrier'' or ``ILEC'' has the same meaning as that term is defined in
Sec. 51.5 of this chapter.
    Information service. ``Information service'' is the offering of a
capability for generating, acquiring, storing, transforming, processing,
retrieving, utilizing, or making available information via
telecommunications, and includes electronic publishing, but does not
include any use of any such capability for the management, control, or
operation of a telecommunications system or the management of a
telecommunications service.
    Interconnected VoIP Provider. An ``interconnected VoIP provider'' is
an entity that provides interconnected VoIP service, as that term is
defined in section 9.3 of these rules.
    Internet access. ``Internet access'' includes the following
elements:
    (1) The transmission of information as common carriage; and
    (2) The transmission of information as part of a gateway to an
information service, when that transmission does not involve the
generation or alteration of the content of information, but may include
data transmission, address translation, protocol conversion, billing
management, introductory information content, and navigational systems
that enable users to access information services, and that do not affect
the presentation of such information to users.
    Interstate telecommunication. ``Interstate telecommunication'' is a
communication or transmission:
    (1) From any State, Territory, or possession of the United States
(other than the Canal zone), or the District of Columbia, to any other
State, Territory, or possession of the United States (other than the
Canal Zone), or the District of Columbia,
    (2) From or to the United States to or from the Canal Zone, insofar
as such communication or transmission takes place within the United
States, or
    (3) Between points within the United States but through a foreign
country.
    Interstate transmission. ``Interstate transmission'' is the same as
interstate telecommunication.
    Intrastate telecommunication. ``Intrastate telecommunication'' is a
communication or transmission from within any State, Territory, or
possession of the United States, or the District of Columbia to a
location within that same State, Territory, or possession of the United
States, or the District of Columbia.
    Intrastate transmission. ``Intrastate transmission'' is the same as
intrastate telecommunication.
    LAN. ``LAN'' is a local area network, which is a set of high-speed
links connecting devices, generally computers, on a single shared
medium, usually on the user's premises.
    Rate-of-return carrier. ``Rate-of-return carrier'' shall refer to
any incumbent local exchange carrier not subject to price cap regulation
as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(ee) of this chapter.
    Rural area. For purposes of the schools and libraries universal
support mechanism, a ``rural area'' is a nonmetropolitan county or
county equivalent, as defined in the Office of Management and Budget's
(OMB) Revised Standards for Defining Metropolitan Areas in the 1990s and
identifiable from the most recent Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)
list released by OMB, or any contiguous non-urban Census

[[Page 124]]

Tract or Block Numbered Area within an MSA-listed metropolitan county
identified in the most recent Goldsmith Modification published by the
Office of Rural Health Policy of the U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services.
    Rural incumbent local exchange carrier. ``Rural incumbent local
exchange carrier'' is a carrier that meets the definitions of ``rural
telephone company'' and ``incumbent local exchange carrier,'' as those
terms are defined in Sec. 51.5 of this chapter.
    Rural telephone company. ``Rural telephone company'' has the same
meaning as that term is defined in Sec. 51.5 of this chapter.
    State commission. The term ``state commission'' means the
commission, board or official (by whatever name designated) that, under
the laws of any state, has regulatory jurisdiction with respect to
intrastate operations of carriers.
    Technically feasible. ``Technically feasible'' means capable of
accomplishment as evidenced by prior success under similar
circumstances. For example, preexisting access at a particular point
evidences the technical feasibility of access at substantially similar
points. A determination of technical feasibility does not consider
economic, accounting, billing, space or site except that space and site
may be considered if there is no possibility of expanding available
space.
    Telecommunications. ``Telecommunications'' is the transmission,
between or among points specified by the user, of information of the
user's choosing, without change in the form or content of the
information as sent and received.
    Telecommunications carrier. A ``telecommunications carrier'' is any
provider of telecommunications services, except that such term does not
include aggregators of telecommunications services as defined in section
226 of the Act. A telecommunications carrier shall be treated as a
common carrier under the Act only to the extent that it is engaged in
providing telecommunications services, except that the Commission shall
determine whether the provision of fixed and mobile satellite service
shall be treated as common carriage. This definition includes cellular
mobile radio service (CMRS) providers, interexchange carriers (IXCs)
and, to the extent they are acting as telecommunications carriers,
companies that provide both telecommunications and information services.
Private mobile radio service (PMRS) providers are telecommunications
carriers to the extent they provide domestic or international
telecommunications for a fee directly to the public.
    Telecommunications channel. ``Telecommunications channel'' means a
telephone line, or, in the case of wireless communications, a
transmittal line or cell site.
    Telecommunications service. ``Telecommunications service'' is the
offering of telecommunications for a fee directly to the public, or to
such classes of users as to be effectively available directly to the
public, regardless of the facilities used.
    Tribal lands. For the purposes of high-cost support, ``Tribal
lands'' include any federally recognized Indian tribe's reservation,
pueblo or colony, including former reservations in Oklahoma, Alaska
Native regions established pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims
Settlement Act (85 Stat. 688) and Indian Allotments, see Sec.
54.400(e), as well as Hawaiian Home Lands--areas held in trust for
native Hawaiians by the state of Hawaii, pursuant to the Hawaiian Homes
Commission Act, 1920, July 9, 1921, 42 Stat 108, et seq., as amended.
    Unsubsidized competitor. An ``unsubsidized competitor'' is a
facilities-based provider of residential fixed voice and broadband
service that does not receive high-cost support.
    Website. The term ``website'' shall refer to any websites operated
by the Administrator in connection with the schools and libraries
support mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, the high
cost mechanism, and the low income mechanism.
    Wire center. A wire center is the location of a local switching
facility containing one or more central offices, as defined in the
Appendix to part 36 of

[[Page 125]]

this chapter. The wire center boundaries define the area in which all
customers served by a given wire center are located.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 41303, Aug. 1, 1997; 63
FR 70571, Dec. 21, 1998; 64 FR 67431, Dec. 1, 1999; 66 FR 30087, June 5,
2001; 66 FR 59726, Nov. 30, 2001; 70 FR 6372, Feb. 7, 2005; 71 FR 38796,
July 10, 2006; 76 FR 73869, Nov. 29, 2011; 77 FR 12966, Mar. 2, 2012; 77
FR 20553, Apr. 5, 2012; 77 FR 30913, May 24, 2012; 78 FR 13982, Mar. 1,
2013; 79 FR 49197, Aug. 19, 2014]



Sec. 54.7  Intended use of federal universal service support.

    (a) A carrier that receives federal universal service support shall
use that support only for the provision, maintenance, and upgrading of
facilities and services for which the support is intended.
    (b) The use of federal universal service support that is authorized
by paragraph (a) of this section shall include investments in plant that
can, either as built or with the addition of plant elements, when
available, provide access to advanced telecommunications and information
services.

[76 FR 73869, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 54.8  Prohibition on participation: suspension and debarment.

    (a) Definitions--(1) Activities associated with or related to the
schools and libraries support mechanism, the high-cost support
mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, and the low-income
support mechanism. Such matters include the receipt of funds or
discounted services through one or more of these support mechanisms, or
consulting with, assisting, or advising applicants or service providers
regarding one or more of these support mechanisms.
    (2) Civil liability. The disposition of a civil action by any court
of competent jurisdiction, whether entered by verdict, decision,
settlement with admission of liability, stipulation, or otherwise
creating a civil liability for the wrongful acts complained of, or a
final determination of liability under the Program Fraud Civil Remedies
Act of 1988 (31 U.S.C. 3801-12).
    (3) Consultant. A person that for consideration advises or consults
a person regarding the schools and libraries support mechanism, but who
is not employed by the person receiving the advice or consultation.
    (4) Conviction. A judgment or conviction of a criminal offense by
any court of competent jurisdiction, whether entered by verdict or a
plea, including a plea of nolo contendere.
    (5) Debarment. Any action taken by the Commission in accordance with
these regulations to exclude a person from activities associated with or
relating to the schools and libraries support mechanism, the high-cost
support mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, and the low-
income support mechanism. A person so excluded is ``debarred.''
    (6) Person. Any individual, group of individuals, corporation,
partnership, association, unit of government or legal entity, however
organized.
    (7) Suspension. An action taken by the Commission in accordance with
these regulations that immediately excludes a person from activities
associated with or relating to the schools and libraries support
mechanism, the high-cost support mechanism, the rural health care
support mechanism, and the low-income support mechanism for a temporary
period, pending completion of the debarment proceedings. A person so
excluded is ``suspended.''
    (b) Suspension and debarment in general. The Commission shall
suspend and debar a person for any of the causes in paragraph (c) of
this section using procedures established in this section, absent
extraordinary circumstances.
    (c) Causes for suspension and debarment. Causes for suspension and
debarment are conviction of or civil judgment for attempt or commission
of criminal fraud, theft, embezzlement, forgery, bribery, falsification
or destruction of records, making false statements, receiving stolen
property, making false claims, obstruction of justice and other fraud or
criminal offense arising out of activities associated with or related to
the schools and libraries support mechanism, the high-cost support
mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, and the low-income
support mechanism.
    (d) Effect of suspension and debarment. Unless otherwise ordered,
any

[[Page 126]]

persons suspended or debarred shall be excluded from activities
associated with or related to the schools and libraries support
mechanism, the high-cost support mechanism, the rural health care
support mechanism, and the low-income support mechanism. Suspension and
debarment of a person other than an individual constitutes suspension
and debarment of all divisions and/or other organizational elements from
participation in the program for the suspension and debarment period,
unless the notice of suspension and proposed debarment is limited by its
terms to one or more specifically identified individuals, divisions, or
other organizational elements or to specific types of transactions.
    (e) Procedures for suspension and debarment. The suspension and
debarment process shall proceed as follows:
    (1) Upon evidence that there exists cause for suspension and
debarment, the Commission shall provide prompt notice of suspension and
proposed debarment to the person. Suspension shall be effective upon the
earlier of receipt of notification or publication in the Federal
Register.
    (2) The notice shall:
    (i) Give the reasons for the proposed debarment in terms sufficient
to put a person on notice of the conduct or transaction(s) upon which it
is based and the cause relied upon, namely, the entry of a criminal
conviction or civil judgment arising out of activities associated with
or related to the schools and libraries support mechanism, the high-cost
support mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, and the low-
income support mechanism;
    (ii) Explain the applicable debarment procedures;
    (iii) Describe the effect of debarment.
    (3) A person subject to proposed debarment, or who has an existing
contract with a person subject to proposed debarment or intends to
contract with such a person to provide or receive services in matters
arising out of activities associated with or related to the schools and
libraries support mechanism, the high-cost support mechanism, the rural
health care support mechanism, and the low-income support mechanism may
contest debarment or the scope of the proposed debarment. A person
contesting debarment or the scope of proposed debarment must file
arguments and any relevant documentation within thirty (30) calendar
days of receipt of notice or publication in the Federal Register,
whichever is earlier.
    (4) A person subject to proposed debarment, or who has an existing
contract with a person subject to proposed debarment or intends to
contract with such a person to provide or receive services in matters
arising out of activities associated with or related to the schools and
libraries support mechanism, the high-cost support mechanism, the rural
health care support mechanism, and the low-income support mechanism may
also contest suspension or the scope of suspension, but such action will
not ordinarily be granted. A person contesting suspension or the scope
of suspension must file arguments and any relevant documentation within
thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of notice or publication in the
Federal Register, whichever is earlier.
    (5) Within ninety (90) days of receipt of any information submitted
by the respondent, the Commission, in the absence of extraordinary
circumstances, shall provide the respondent prompt notice of the
decision to debar. Debarment shall be effective upon the earlier of
receipt of notice or publication in the Federal Register.
    (f) Reversal or limitation of suspension or debarment. The
Commission may reverse a suspension or debarment, or limit the scope or
period of suspension or debarment, upon a finding of extraordinary
circumstances, after due consideration following the filing of a
petition by an interested party or upon motion by the Commission.
Reversal of the conviction or civil judgment upon which the suspension
and debarment was based is an example of extraordinary circumstances.
    (g) Time period for debarment. A debarred person shall be prohibited
from involvement with the schools and libraries support mechanism for
three (3) years from the date of debarment. The Commission may, if
necessary to protect the public interest, set a longer period of
debarment or extend the existing period of debarment. If multiple

[[Page 127]]

convictions or judgments have been rendered, the Commission shall
determine based on the facts before it whether debarments shall run
concurrently or consecutively.

[68 FR 36943, June 20, 2003. Redesignated and amended at 72 FR 54218,
Sept. 24, 2007]



                Subpart B_Services Designated for Support



Sec. 54.101  Supported services for rural, insular and high cost areas.

    (a) Services designated for support. Voice Telephony services shall
be supported by federal universal service support mechanisms. Eligible
voice telephony services must provide voice grade access to the public
switched network or its functional equivalent; minutes of use for local
service provided at no additional charge to end users; access to the
emergency services provided by local government or other public safety
organizations, such as 911 and enhanced 911, to the extent the local
government in an eligible carrier's service area has implemented 911 or
enhanced 911 systems; and toll limitation services to qualifying low-
income consumers as provided in subpart E of this part.
    (b) An eligible telecommunications carrier must offer voice
telephony service as set forth in paragraph (a) of this section in order
to receive federal universal service support.

[76 FR 73870, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 12966, Mar. 2, 2012]



        Subpart C_Carriers Eligible for Universal Service Support



Sec. 54.201  Definition of eligible telecommunications carriers,
generally.

    (a) Carriers eligible to receive support. (1) Only eligible
telecommunications carriers designated under this subpart shall receive
universal service support distributed pursuant to part 36 of this
chapter, and subparts D and E of this part.
    (2) [Reserved]
    (3) This paragraph does not apply to offset or reimbursement support
distributed pursuant to subpart G of this part.
    (4) This paragraph does not apply to support distributed pursuant to
subpart F of this part.
    (b) A state commission shall upon its own motion or upon request
designate a common carrier that meets the requirements of paragraph (d)
of this section as an eligible telecommunications carrier for a service
area designated by the state commission.
    (c) Upon request and consistent with the public interest,
convenience, and necessity, the state commission may, in the case of an
area served by a rural telephone company, and shall, in the case of all
other areas, designate more than one common carrier as an eligible
telecommunications carrier for a service area designated by the state
commission, so long as each additional requesting carrier meets the
requirements of paragraph (d) of this section. Before designating an
additional eligible telecommunications carrier for an area served by a
rural telephone company, the state commission shall find that the
designation is in the public interest.
    (d) A common carrier designated as an eligible telecommunications
carrier under this section shall be eligible to receive universal
service support in accordance with section 254 of the Act and shall,
throughout the service area for which the designation is received:
    (1) Offer the services that are supported by federal universal
service support mechanisms under subpart B of this part and section
254(c) of the Act, either using its own facilities or a combination of
its own facilities and resale of another carrier's services (including
the services offered by another eligible telecommunications carrier);
and
    (2) Advertise the availability of such services and the charges
therefore using media of general distribution.
    (e) For the purposes of this section, the term facilities means any
physical components of the telecommunications network that are used in
the transmission or routing of the services that are designated for
support pursuant to subpart B of this part.
    (f) For the purposes of this section, the term ``own facilities''
includes, but is not limited to, facilities obtained as unbundled
network elements pursuant to part 51 of this chapter, provided that

[[Page 128]]

such facilities meet the definition of the term ``facilities'' under
this subpart.
    (g) A state commission shall not require a common carrier, in order
to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (d)(1) of this section, to use
facilities that are located within the relevant service area, as long as
the carrier uses facilities to provide the services designated for
support pursuant to subpart B of this part within the service area.
    (h) A state commission shall not designate a common carrier as an
eligible telecommunications carrier for purposes of receiving support
only under subpart E of this part unless the carrier seeking such
designation has demonstrated that it is financially and technically
capable of providing the supported Lifeline service in compliance with
subpart E of this part.
    (i) A state commission shall not designate as an eligible
telecommunications carrier a telecommunications carrier that offers the
services supported by federal universal service support mechanisms
exclusively through the resale of another carrier's services.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 63 FR 2125, Jan. 13, 1998; 64
FR 62123, Nov. 16, 1999; 71 FR 65750, Nov. 9, 2006; 77 FR 12966, Mar. 2,
2012]



Sec. 54.202  Additional requirements for Commission designation of
eligible telecommunications carriers.

    (a) In order to be designated an eligible telecommunications carrier
under section 214(e)(6), any common carrier in its application must:
    (1)(i) Certify that it will comply with the service requirements
applicable to the support that it receives.
    (ii) Submit a five-year plan that describes with specificity
proposed improvements or upgrades to the applicant's network throughout
its proposed service area. Each applicant shall estimate the area and
population that will be served as a result of the improvements. Except,
a common carrier seeking designation as an eligible telecommunications
carrier in order to provide supported services only under subpart E of
this part does not need to submit such a five-year plan.
    (2) Demonstrate its ability to remain functional in emergency
situations, including a demonstration that it has a reasonable amount of
back-up power to ensure functionality without an external power source,
is able to reroute traffic around damaged facilities, and is capable of
managing traffic spikes resulting from emergency situations.
    (3) Demonstrate that it will satisfy applicable consumer protection
and service quality standards. A commitment by wireless applicants to
comply with the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association's
Consumer Code for Wireless Service will satisfy this requirement. Other
commitments will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
    (4) For common carriers seeking designation as an eligible
telecommunications carrier for purposes of receiving support only under
subpart E of this part, demonstrate that it is financially and
technically capable of providing the Lifeline service in compliance with
subpart E of this part.
    (5) For common carriers seeking designation as an eligible
telecommunications carrier for purposes of receiving support only under
subpart E of this part, submit information describing the terms and
conditions of any voice telephony service plans offered to Lifeline
subscribers, including details on the number of minutes provided as part
of the plan, additional charges, if any, for toll calls, and rates for
each such plan. To the extent the eligible telecommunications carrier
offers plans to Lifeline subscribers that are generally available to the
public, it may provide summary information regarding such plans, such as
a link to a public Web site outlining the terms and conditions of such
plans.
    (b) Public interest standard. Prior to designating an eligible
telecommunications carrier pursuant to section 214(e)(6), the Commission
determines that such designation is in the public interest.
    (c) A common carrier seeking designation as an eligible
telecommunications carrier under section 214(e)(6) for any part of
Tribal lands shall provide a copy of its petition to the affected tribal
government and tribal regulatory authority, as applicable, at the time
it files its petition with the Federal Communications Commission.

[[Page 129]]

In addition, the Commission shall send any public notice seeking comment
on any petition for designation as an eligible telecommunications
carrier on Tribal lands, at the time it is released, to the affected
tribal government and tribal regulatory authority, as applicable, by the
most expeditious means available.

[77 FR 12966, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.203  Designation of eligible telecommunications carriers for
unserved areas.

    (a) If no common carrier will provide the services that are
supported by federal universal service support mechanisms under section
254(c) of the Act and subpart B of this part to an unserved community or
any portion thereof that requests such service, the Commission, with
respect to interstate services, or a state commission, with respect to
intrastate services, shall determine which common carrier or carriers
are best able to provide such service to the requesting unserved
community or portion thereof and shall order such carrier or carriers to
provide such service for that unserved community or portion thereof.
    (b) Any carrier or carriers ordered to provide such service under
this section shall meet the requirements of section 54.201(d) and shall
be designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier for that
community or portion thereof.



Sec. 54.205  Relinquishment of universal service.

    (a) A state commission shall permit an eligible telecommunications
carrier to relinquish its designation as such a carrier in any area
served by more than one eligible telecommunications carrier. An eligible
telecommunications carrier that seeks to relinquish its eligible
telecommunications carrier designation for an area served by more than
one eligible telecommunications carrier shall give advance notice to the
state commission of such relinquishment.
    (b) Prior to permitting a telecommunications carrier designated as
an eligible telecommunications carrier to cease providing universal
service in an area served by more than one eligible telecommunications
carrier, the state commission shall require the remaining eligible
telecommunications carrier or carriers to ensure that all customers
served by the relinquishing carrier will continue to be served, and
shall require sufficient notice to permit the purchase or construction
of adequate facilities by any remaining eligible telecommunications
carrier. The state commission shall establish a time, not to exceed one
year after the state commission approves such relinquishment under this
section, within which such purchase or construction shall be completed.



Sec. 54.207  Service areas.

    (a) The term service area means a geographic area established by a
state commission for the purpose of determining universal service
obligations and support mechanisms. A service area defines the overall
area for which the carrier shall receive support from federal universal
service support mechanisms.
    (b) In the case of a service area served by a rural telephone
company, service area means such company's ``study area'' unless and
until the Commission and the states, after taking into account
recommendations of a Federal-State Joint Board instituted under section
410(c) of the Act, establish a different definition of service area for
such company.
    (c) If a state commission proposes to define a service area served
by a rural telephone company to be other than such company's study area,
the Commission will consider that proposed definition in accordance with
the procedures set forth in this paragraph.
    (1) A state commission or other party seeking the Commission's
agreement in redefining a service area served by a rural telephone
company shall submit a petition to the Commission. The petition shall
contain:
    (i) The definition proposed by the state commission; and
    (ii) The state commission's ruling or other official statement
presenting the state commission's reasons for adopting its proposed
definition, including an analysis that takes into account the
recommendations of any Federal-State

[[Page 130]]

Joint Board convened to provide recommendations with respect to the
definition of a service area served by a rural telephone company.
    (2) The Commission shall issue a Public Notice of any such petition
within fourteen (14) days of its receipt.
    (3) The Commission may initiate a proceeding to consider the
petition within ninety (90) days of the release date of the Public
Notice.
    (i) If the Commission initiates a proceeding to consider the
petition, the proposed definition shall not take effect until both the
state commission and the Commission agree upon the definition of a rural
service area, in accordance with paragraph (b) of this section and
section 214(e)(5) of the Act.
    (ii) If the Commission does not act on the petition within ninety
(90) days of the release date of the Public Notice, the definition
proposed by the state commission will be deemed approved by the
Commission and shall take effect in accordance with state procedures.
    (d) The Commission may, on its own motion, initiate a proceeding to
consider a definition of a service area served by a rural telephone
company that is different from that company's study area. If it proposes
such different definition, the Commission shall seek the agreement of
the state commission according to this paragraph.
    (1) The Commission shall submit a petition to the state commission
according to that state commission's procedures. The petition submitted
to the relevant state commission shall contain:
    (i) The definition proposed by the Commission; and
    (ii) The Commission's decision presenting its reasons for adopting
the proposed definition, including an analysis that takes into account
the recommendations of any Federal-State Joint Board convened to provide
recommendations with respect to the definition of a service area served
by a rural telephone company.
    (2) The Commission's proposed definition shall not take effect until
both the state commission and the Commission agree upon the definition
of a rural service area, in accordance with paragraph (b) of this
section and section 214(e)(5) of the Act.
    (e) The Commission delegates its authority under paragraphs (c) and
(d) of this section to the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002]



         Subpart D_Universal Service Support for High Cost Areas



Sec. 54.301  Local switching support.

    (a) Calculation of local switching support.(1) Beginning January 1,
1998 and ending December 31, 2011, an incumbent local exchange carrier
that has been designated an eligible telecommunications carrier and that
serves a study area with 50,000 or fewer access lines shall receive
support for local switching costs using the following formula: The
carrier's projected annual unseparated local switching revenue
requirement, calculated pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section, shall
be multiplied by the local switching support factor. Beginning January
1, 2012 and ending June 30, 2012, a rate-of-return carrier, as that term
is defined in Sec. 54.5 of this chapter, that is an incumbent local
exchange carrier that has been designated an eligible telecommunications
carrier and that serves a study area with 50,000 or fewer access lines
and is not affiliated with a price cap carrier, as that term is defined
in Sec. 61.3(aa) of this chapter, shall receive support for local
switching costs frozen at the same support level received for calendar
year 2011, subject to true-up. For purposes of this section, local
switching costs shall be defined as Category 3 local switching costs
under part 36 of this chapter. Beginning January 1, 2012, no carrier
that is a price cap carrier, as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(aa)
of this chapter, or a rate-of-return carrier, as that term is defined in
Sec. 54.5 of this chapter, that is affiliated with a price cap carrier,
shall receive local switching support. Beginning July 1, 2012, no
carrier shall receive local switching support.
    (2) Local switching support factor. (i) The local switching support
factor shall be defined as the difference between the 1996 weighted
interstate

[[Page 131]]

DEM factor, calculated pursuant to Sec. 36.125(f) of this chapter, and
the 1996 unweighted interstate DEM factor.
    (ii) If the number of a study area's access lines increases such
that, under Sec. 36.125(f) of this chapter, the weighted interstate DEM
factor for 1997 or any successive year would be reduced, that lowered
weighted interstate DEM factor shall be applied to the study area's 1996
unweighted interstate DEM factor to derive a new local switching support
factor. If the number of a study area's access lines decreases or has
decreased such that, under Sec. 36.125(f) of this chapter, the weighted
interstate DEM factor for 2010 or any successive year would be raised,
that higher weighted interstate DEM factor shall be applied to the study
area's 1996 unweighted interstate DEM factor to derive a new local
switching support factor.
    (3) Beginning January 1, 1998, the sum of the unweighted interstate
DEM factor, as defined in Sec. 36.125(a)(5) of this chapter, and the
local switching support factor shall not exceed 0.85. If the sum of
those two factors would exceed 0.85, the local switching support factor
shall be reduced to a level that would reduce the sum of the factors to
0.85.
    (b) Submission of data to the Administrator. Until October 1, 2011,
each incumbent local exchange carrier that has been designated an
eligible telecommunications carrier and that serves a study area with
50,000 or fewer access lines shall, for each study area, provide the
Administrator with the projected total unseparated dollar amount
assigned to each account listed below for the calendar year following
each filing. This information must be provided to the Administrator no
later than October 1 of each year. The Administrator shall use this
information to calculate the projected annual unseparated local
switching revenue requirement pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section.

                                   I
Telecommunications Plant in    Account 2001
 Service (TPIS).
Telecommunications Plant--     Accounts 2002, 2003, 2005
 Other.
General Support Assets.......  Account 2110
Central Office Assets........  Accounts 2210, 2220, 2230
Central Office-switching,      Account 2210, Category 3
 Category 3 (local switching).
Information Origination/       Account 2310
 termination Assets.
Cable and Wire Facilities      Account 2410
 Assets.
Amortizable Tangible Assets..  Account 2680
Intangibles..................  Account 2690
                                   II
Rural Telephone Bank (RTB)     Included in Account 1410
 Stock.
Materials and Supplies.......  Account 1220.1
Cash Working Capital.........  Defined in 47 CFR 65.820(d)

                                  III
Accumulated Depreciation.....  Account 3100
Accumulated Amortization.....  Included in Accounts 2005, 2680, 2690,
                                3410
Net Deferred Operating Income  Accounts 4100, 4340
 Taxes.
Network Support Expenses.....  Account 6110
General Support Expenses.....  Account 6120
Central Office Switching,      Accounts 6210, 6220, 6230
 Operator Systems, and
 Central Office Transmission
 Expenses.
Information Origination/       Account 6310
 Termination Expenses.
Cable and Wire Facilities      Account 6410
 Expenses.
Other Property, Plant and      Account 6510
 Equipment Expenses.
Network Operations Expenses..  Account 6530
Access Expense...............  Account 6540
Depreciation and Amortization  Account 6560
 Expense.
Marketing Expense............  Account 6610
Services Expense.............  Account 6620
Corporate Operations Expense.  Account 6720

[[Page 132]]


Operating Taxes..............  Accounts 7230, 7240
Federal Investment Tax         Account 7210
 Credits.
Provision for Deferred         Account 7250
 Operating Income Taxes-Net.
Allowance for Funds Used       Included in Account 7300
 During Construction.
Charitable Contributions.....  Included in Account 7300
Interest and Related Items...  Account 7500
                                   IV
Other Non-Current Assets.....  Included in Account 1410
Deferred Maintenance and       Included in Account 1438
 Retirements.
Deferred Charges.............  Included in Account 1438
Other Jurisdictional Assets    Accounts 1500, 4370
 and Liabilities.
Customers' Deposits..........  Account 4040
Other Long-Term Liabilities..  Included in Account 4300


    (c) Allocation of accounts to switching. The Administrator shall
allocate to local switching, the accounts reported pursuant to paragraph
(b) of this section as prescribed in this paragraph.
    (1) General Support Assets (Account 2110); Amortizable Tangible
Assets (Account 2680); Intangibles (Account 2690); and General Support
Expenses (Account 6120) shall be allocated according to the following
factor:

Account 2210 Category/3 (Account 2210 + Account 2220 + Account 2230 +
          Account 2310 + Account 2410).

    (2) Telecommunications Plant--Other (Accounts 2002, 2003, 2005);
Rural Telephone Bank (RTB) Stock (included in Account 1410); Materials
and Supplies (Account 1220.1); Cash Working Capital (Sec. 65.820(d) of
this chapter); Accumulated Amortization (Included in Accounts 2005,
2680, 2690, 3410); Net Deferred Operating Income Taxes (Accounts 4100,
4340); Network Support Expenses (Account 6110); Other Property, Plant
and Equipment Expenses (Account 6510); Network Operations Expenses
(Account 6530); Marketing Expense (Account 6610); Services Expense
(Account 6620); Operating Taxes (Accounts 7230, 7240); Federal
Investment Tax Credits (Accounts 7210); Provision for Deferred Operating
Income Taxes--Net (Account 7250); Interest and Related Items (Account
7500); Allowance for Funds Used During Construction (Included in Account
7300); Charitable Contributions (included in Account 7300); Other Non-
current Assets (Included in Account 1410); Other Jurisdictional Assets
and Liabilities (Accounts 1500, 4370); Customer Deposits (Account 4040);
Other Long-term Liabilities (Included in Account 4300); and Deferred
Maintenance and Retirements (Included in Account 1438) shall be
allocated according to the following factor:

Account 2210 Category 3 Account 2001.

    (3) Accumulated Depreciation for Central Office--switching (Account
3100 associated with Account 2210) and Depreciation and Amortization
Expense for Central Office--switching (Account 6560 associated with
Account 2210) shall be allocated according to the following factor:

Account 2210 Category 3/Account 2210.

    (4) Accumulated Depreciation for General Support Assets (Account
3100 associated with Account 2110) and Depreciation and Amortization
Expense for General Support Assets (Account 6560 associated with Account
2110) shall be allocated according to the following factor:

Account 2210 Category 3 / Account 2001.

    (5) Corporate Operations Expenses (Account 6720) shall be allocated
according to the following factor:

[[Account 2210 Category 3 (Account 2210 + Account 2220 + Account 2230)]]
          x (Account 6210 + Account 6220 + Account 6230)] + [(Account
          6530 + Account 6610 + Account 6620) x (Account 2210 Category 3
          Account 2001)] (Account 6210 + Account 6220 + Account 6230 +
          Account 6310 + Account 6410 + Account 6530 + Account 6610 +
          Account 6620).

    (6) Central Office Switching, Operator Systems, and Central Office
Transmission Expenses (Account 6210,

[[Page 133]]

Account 6220, Account 6230) shall be allocated according to the
following factor:

Account 2210 Category 3 / (Accounts 2210 + 2220 + 2230).

    (d) Calculation of the projected annual unseparated local switching
revenue requirement. The Administrator shall calculate the projected
annual unseparated local switching revenue requirement by summing the
components listed in this paragraph.
    (1) Return on Investment attributable to COE Category 3 shall be
obtained by multiplying the average projected unseparated local
switching net investment by the authorized interstate rate of return.
Projected unseparated local switching net investment shall be calculated
as of each December 31 by deducting the accumulated reserves, deferrals
and customer deposits attributable to the COE Category 3 investment from
the gross investment attributable to COE Category 3. The average
projected unseparated local switching net investment shall be calculated
by summing the projected unseparated local switching net investment as
of December 31 of the calendar year following the filing year and such
investment as of December 31 of the filing year and dividing by 2.
    (2) Depreciation expense attributable to COE Category 3 investment,
allocated pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section.
    (3) All expenses, excluding depreciation expense, collected in
paragraph (b) of this section, allocated pursuant to paragraph (c) of
this section.
    (4) Federal income tax attributable to COE Category 3 shall be
calculated using the following formula; the accounts listed shall be
allocated pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section:

[Return on Investment attributable to COE Category 3--Included in
          Account 7300--Account 7500-Account 7210)] x [Federal Income
          Tax Rate (1--Federal Income Tax Rate)].

    (e) True-up adjustment--(1) Submission of true-up data. Until
December 31, 2012, each incumbent local exchange carrier that has been
designated an eligible telecommunications carrier and that serves a
study area with 50,000 or fewer access lines shall, for each study area,
provide the Administrator with the historical total unseparated dollar
amount assigned to each account listed in paragraph (b) of this section
for each calendar year no later than 12 months after the end of such
calendar year
    (2) Calculation of true-up adjustment. (i) The Administrator shall
calculate the historical annual unseparated local switching revenue
requirement for each carrier when historical data for each calendar year
are submitted.
    (ii) The Administrator shall calculate each carrier's local
switching support payment, calculated pursuant to 54.301(a), using its
historical annual unseparated local switching revenue requirement.
    (iii) For each carrier receiving local switching support, the
Administrator shall calculate the difference between the support payment
calculated pursuant to paragraph (e)(2)(ii) of this section and its
support payment calculated using its projected annual unseparated local
switching revenue requirement.
    (iv) The Administrator shall adjust each carrier's local switching
support payment by the difference calculated in paragraph (e)(2)(iii) of
this section no later than 15 months after the end of the calendar year
for which historical data are submitted.

[63 FR 2126, Jan. 13, 1998; 63 FR 33585, June 19, 1998, as amended at 67
FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002; 67 FR 5701, Feb. 6, 2002; 75 FR 17874, Apr. 8,
2010; 76 FR 73870, Nov. 29, 2011; 77 FR 14302, Mar. 9, 2012]



Sec. 54.302  Monthly per-line limit on universal service support.

    (a) Beginning July 1, 2012 and until June 30, 2013, each study
area's universal service monthly support (not including Connect America
Fund support provided pursuant to Sec. 54.304) on a per-line basis
shall not exceed $250 per-line plus two-thirds of the difference between
its uncapped per-line monthly support and $250. Beginning July 1, 2013
and until June 30, 2014, each study area's universal service monthly
support on a per-line basis shall not exceed $250 per-line plus one
third of the difference between its uncapped per-line monthly support
and $250. Beginning July 1, 2014, each study area's universal

[[Page 134]]

service monthly per-line support shall not exceed $250.
    (b) For purposes of this section, universal service support is
defined as the sum of the amounts calculated pursuant to Sec. Sec.
54.1304 and 54.1310, and Sec. Sec. 54.305, and 54.901 through 54.904.
Line counts for purposes of this section shall be as of the most recent
line counts reported pursuant to Sec. 54.1306(i).
    (c) The Administrator, in order to limit support to $250 for
affected carriers, shall reduce safety net additive support, high-cost
loop support, safety valve support, and interstate common line support
in proportion to the relative amounts of each support the study area
would receive absent such limitation.

[76 FR 73870, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 79 FR 39188, July 9, 2014]



Sec. 54.304  Administration of Connect America Fund Intercarrier
Compensation Replacement.

    (a) The Administrator shall administer CAF ICC support pursuant to
Sec. 51.915 and Sec. 51.917 of this chapter.
    (b) The funding period is the period beginning July 1 through June
30 of the following year.
    (c) For price cap carriers that are eligible and elect, pursuant to
Sec. 51.915(f) of this chapter, to receive CAF ICC support, the
following provisions govern the filing of data with the Administrator,
the Commission, and the relevant state commissions and the payment by
the Administrator to those carriers of CAF ICC support amounts that the
carrier is eligible to receive pursuant to Sec. 51.915 of this chapter.
    (1) A Price Cap Carrier seeking CAF ICC support pursuant to Sec.
51.915 of this chapter shall file data with the Administrator, the
Commission, and the relevant state commissions no later than June 30,
2012, for the first year, and on the date it files its annual access
tariff filing with the Commission, in subsequent years, establishing the
amount of the Price Cap Carrier's eligible CAF ICC funding during the
upcoming funding period pursuant to Sec. 51.915 of this chapter. The
amount shall include any true-ups, pursuant to Sec. 51.915 of this
chapter, associated with an earlier funding period.
    (2) The Administrator shall monthly pay each price cap carrier one-
twelfth (1/12) of the amount the carrier is eligible to receive during
that funding period.
    (d) For rate-of-return carriers that are eligible and elect,
pursuant to Sec. 51.917(f) of this chapter, to receive CAF ICC support,
the following provisions govern the filing of data with the
Administrator, the Commission, and the relevant state commissions and
the payment by the Administrator to those carriers of CAF ICC support
amounts that the rate-of-return carrier is eligible to receive pursuant
to Sec. 51.917 of this chapter.
    (1) A Rate-of-Return Carrier seeking CAF ICC support shall file data
with the Administrator, the Commission, and the relevant state
commissions no later than June 30, 2012, for the first year, and on the
date it files its annual access tariff filing with the Commission, in
subsequent years, establishing the Rate-of-Return Carrier's projected
eligibility for CAF ICC funding during the upcoming funding period
pursuant to Sec. 51.917 of this chapter. The projected amount shall
include any true-ups, pursuant to Sec. 51.917 of this chapter,
associated with an earlier funding period.
    (2) The Administrator shall monthly pay each rate-of-return carrier
one-twelfth (1/12) of the amount the carrier is to be eligible to
receive during that funding period.

[76 FR 73871, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 78 FR 26268, May 6, 2013]



Sec. 54.305  Sale or transfer of exchanges.

    (a) The provisions of this section are not applicable to the sale or
transfer of exchanges between non-rural carriers after the complete
phase-down of interim hold-harmless support, pursuant to Sec. 54.311,
for the non-rural carriers subject to the transaction. After December
31, 2011, the provisions of this section shall not be used to determine
support for any price cap incumbent local exchange carrier or a rate-of-
return carrier, as that term is defined in Sec. 54.5 that is affiliated
with a price cap incumbent local exchange carrier.
    (b) Beginning January 1, 2012, any carrier subject to the provisions
of this paragraph shall receive support pursuant to this paragraph or
support based

[[Page 135]]

on the actual costs of the acquired exchanges, whichever is less. Except
as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, a carrier that acquires
telephone exchanges from an unaffiliated carrier shall receive universal
service support for the acquired exchanges at the same per-line support
levels for which those exchanges were eligible prior to the transfer of
the exchanges. If the acquired exchanges are incorporated into an
existing rural incumbent local exchange carrier study area, the rural
incumbent local exchange carrier shall maintain the costs associated
with the acquired exchanges separate from the costs associated with its
pre-acquisition study area. The transferred exchanges may be eligible
for safety valve support for loop related costs pursuant to paragraph
(d) of this section.
    (c) A carrier that has entered into a binding agreement to buy or
acquire exchanges from an unaffiliated carrier prior to May 7, 1997 will
receive universal service support for the newly acquired lines based
upon the average cost of all of its lines, both those newly acquired and
those it had prior to execution of the sales agreement.
    (d) Transferred exchanges in study areas operated by rural telephone
companies that are subject to the limitations on loop-related universal
service support in paragraph (b) of this section may be eligible for a
safety valve loop cost expense adjustment based on the difference
between the rural incumbent local exchange carrier's index year expense
adjustment and subsequent year loop cost expense adjustments for the
acquired exchanges. Safety valve loop cost expense adjustments shall
only be available to rural incumbent local exchange carriers that, in
the absence of restrictions on high-cost loop support in paragraph (b)
of this section, would qualify for high-cost loop support for the
acquired exchanges under Sec. 54.1310.
    (1) For carriers that buy or acquire telephone exchanges on or after
January 10, 2005, from an unaffiliated carrier, the index year expense
adjustment for the acquiring carrier's first year of operation shall
equal the selling carrier's loop-related expense adjustment for the
transferred exchanges for the 12-month period prior to the transfer of
the exchanges. At the acquiring carrier's option, the first year of
operation for the transferred exchanges, for purposes of calculating
safety valve support, shall commence at the beginning of either the
first calendar year or the next calendar quarter following the transfer
of exchanges. For the first year of operation, a loop cost expense
adjustment, using the costs of the acquired exchanges submitted in
accordance with Sec. Sec. 54.1305 and 54.1306, shall be calculated
pursuant to Sec. 54.1310 and then compared to the index year expense
adjustment. Safety valve support for the first period of operation will
then be calculated pursuant to paragraph (d)(3) of this section. The
index year expense adjustment for years after the first year of
operation shall be determined using cost data for the first year of
operation of the transferred exchanges. Such cost data for the first
year of operation shall be calculated in accordance with Sec. Sec.
54.1305, 54.1306, and 54.1310. For each year, ending on the same
calendar quarter as the first year of operation, a loop cost expense
adjustment, using the loop costs of the acquired exchanges, shall be
submitted and calculated pursuant to Sec. Sec. 54.1305, 54.1306, and
54.1310 and will be compared to the index year expense adjustment.
Safety valve support for the second year of operation and thereafter
will then be calculated pursuant to paragraph (d)(3) of this section.
    (2) For carriers that bought or acquired exchanges from an
unaffiliated carrier before January 10, 2005, and are not subject to the
exception in paragraph (c) of this section, the index year expense
adjustment for acquired exchange(s) shall be equal to the rural
incumbent local exchange carrier's high-cost loop expense adjustment for
the acquired exchanges calculated for the carrier's first year of
operation of the acquired exchange(s). At the carrier's option, the
first year of operation of the transferred exchanges shall commence at
the beginning of either the first calendar year or the next calendar
quarter following the transfer of exchanges. The index year expense
adjustment shall be determined using cost data for the acquired
exchange(s) submitted in accordance with Sec. Sec. 54.1305 and 54.1306
and shall be calculated in

[[Page 136]]

accordance with Sec. 54.1310. The index year expense adjustment for
rural telephone companies that have operated exchanges subject to this
section for more than a full year on August 8, 2014 shall be based on
loop cost data submitted in accordance with Sec. 54.1306 for the year
ending on the nearest calendar quarter following August 8, 2014. For
each subsequent year, ending on the same calendar quarter as the index
year, a loop cost expense adjustment, using the costs of the acquired
exchanges, will be calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1310 and will be
compared to the index year expense adjustment. Safety valve support is
calculated pursuant to paragraph (d)(3) of this section.
    (3) Up to fifty (50) percent of any positive difference between the
transferred exchanges loop cost expense adjustment and the index year
expense adjustment will be designated as the transferred exchange's
safety valve loop cost expense adjustment and will be available in
addition to the per-line loop-related support transferred from the
selling carrier to the acquiring carrier pursuant to paragraph (b) of
this section. In no event shall a study area's safety valve loop cost
expense adjustment exceed the difference between the carrier's study
area loop cost expense adjustment calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1310
and transferred support amounts available to the acquired exchange(s)
under paragraph (b) of this section. Safety valve support shall not
transfer with acquired exchanges.
    (e) The sum of the safety valve loop cost expense adjustment for all
eligible study areas operated by rural telephone companies shall not
exceed five (5) percent of the total rural incumbent local exchange
carrier portion of the annual nationwide loop cost expense adjustment
calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1302. The five (5) percent cap on the
safety valve mechanism shall be based on the lesser of the rural
incumbent local exchange carrier portion of the annual nationwide loop
cost expense adjustment calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1302 or the sum
of rural incumbent local exchange carrier expense adjustments calculated
pursuant to Sec. 54.1310. The percentage multiplier used to derive
study area safety valve loop cost expense adjustments for rural
telephone companies shall be the lesser of fifty (50) percent or a
percentage calculated to produce the maximum total safety valve loop
cost expense adjustment for all eligible study areas pursuant to this
paragraph. The safety valve loop cost expense adjustment of an
individual rural incumbent local exchange carrier also may be further
reduced as described in paragraph (d)(3) of this section.
    (f) Once an acquisition is complete, the acquiring rural incumbent
local exchange carrier shall provide written notice to the Administrator
that it has acquired access lines that may be eligible for safety valve
support. Rural telephone companies also shall provide written notice to
the Administrator defining their index year for those years after the
first year of operation for purposes of calculating the safety valve
loop cost expense adjustment.

[70 FR 10060, Mar. 2, 2005, as amended at 76 FR 73871, Nov. 29, 2011; 79
FR 39188, July 9, 2014]



Sec. 54.307  Support to a competitive eligible telecommunications
carrier.

    (a) Calculation of support. A competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive universal service support to
the extent that the competitive eligible telecommunications carrier
captures the subscriber lines of an incumbent local exchange carrier
(LEC) or serves new subscriber lines in the incumbent LEC's service
area.
    (1) A competitive eligible telecommunications carrier serving loops
in the service area of a rural incumbent local exchange carrier, as that
term is defined in Sec. 54.5 of this chapter, shall receive support for
each line it serves in a particular service area based on the support
the incumbent LEC would receive for each such line, disaggregated by
cost zone if disaggregation zones have been established within the
service area pursuant to Sec. 54.315 of this subpart. A competitive
eligible telecommunications carrier serving loops in the service area of
a non-rural incumbent local exchange carrier shall receive support for
each line it serves in a particular wire center based on the support the
incumbent LEC would receive for each such line. A

[[Page 137]]

competitive eligible telecommunications carrier serving loops in the
service area of a rate-of-return carrier shall be eligible to receive
Interstate Common Line Support for each line it serves in the service
area in accordance with the formula in Sec. 54.901.
    (2) A competitive eligible telecommunications carrier that uses
switching purchased as unbundled network elements pursuant to Sec.
51.307 of this chapter to provide the supported services shall receive
the lesser of the unbundled network element price for switching or the
per-line DEM support of the incumbent LEC, if any. A competitive
eligible telecommunications carrier that uses loops purchased as
unbundled network elements pursuant to Sec. 51.307 of this chapter to
provide the supported services shall receive the lesser of the unbundled
network element price for the loop or the incumbent LEC's per-line
payment from the high-cost loop support, LTS, and Interstate Common Line
Support mechanisms, if any. The incumbent LEC providing
nondiscriminatory access to unbundled network elements to such
competitive eligible telecommunications carrier shall receive the
difference between the level of universal service support provided to
the competitive eligible telecommunications carrier and the per-customer
level of support that the incumbent LEC would have received.
    (3) A competitive eligible telecommunications carrier that provides
the supported services using neither unbundled network elements
purchased pursuant to Sec. 51.307 of this chapter nor wholesale service
purchased pursuant to section 251(c)(4) of the Act will receive the full
amount of universal service support that the incumbent LEC would have
received for that customer.
    (b) In order to receive support pursuant to this subpart, a
competitive eligible telecommunications carrier must report to the
Administrator the number of working loops it serves in a service area
pursuant to the schedule set forth in paragraph (c) of this section. For
a competitive eligible telecommunications carrier serving loops in the
service area of a rural incumbent local exchange carrier, as that term
is defined in Sec. 54.5, the carrier must report, by customer class,
the number of working loops it serves in the service area, disaggregated
by cost zone if disaggregation zones have been established within the
service area pursuant to Sec. 54.315. For a competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier serving loops in the service area of a non-
rural telephone company, the carrier must report the number of working
loops it serves in the service area, by customer class if the non-rural
telephone company receives Interstate Common Line Support pursuant to
Sec. 54.901 and by disaggregation zone if disaggregation zones have
been established within the service area pursuant to Sec. 54.315 of
this subpart, and the number of working loops it serves in each wire
center in the service area. For universal service support purposes,
working loops are defined as the number of working Exchange Line C&WF
loops used jointly for exchange and message telecommunications service,
including C&WF subscriber lines associated with pay telephones in C&WF
Category 1, but excluding WATS closed end access and TWX service.
Competitive eligible telecommunications carriers providing mobile
wireless service in an incumbent LEC's service area shall use the
customer's billing address for purposes of identifying the service
location of a mobile wireless customer in a service area.
    (c) A competitive eligible telecommunications carrier must submit
the data required pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section according to
the schedule.
    (1) No later than July 31st of each year, submit data as of December
31st of the previous calendar year;
    (2) No later than September 30th of each year, submit data as of
March 31st of the existing calendar year;
    (3) No later than December 30th of each year, submit data as of June
30th of the existing calendar year;
    (4) No later than March 30th of each year, submit data as of
September 30th of the previous calendar year.
    (d) Newly designated eligible telecommunications carriers.
Notwithstanding the deadlines in paragraph (c)

[[Page 138]]

of this section, a carrier shall be eligible to receive support as of
the effective date of its designation as an eligible telecommunications
carrier under section 214(e)(2) or (e)(6), provided that it submits the
data required pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section within 60 days
of that effective date. Thereafter, the eligible telecommunications
carrier must submit the data required in paragraph (b) of this section
pursuant to the schedule in paragraph (c) of this section.
    (e) Support Beginning January 1, 2012. Competitive eligible
telecommunications carriers will, beginning January 1, 2012, receive
support based on the methodology described in this paragraph and not
based on paragraph (a) of this section.
    (1) Baseline Support Amount. Each competitive eligible
telecommunication carrier will have a ``baseline support amount'' equal
to its total 2011 support in a given study area, or an amount equal to
$3,000 times the number of reported lines for 2011, whichever is lower.
Each competitive eligible telecommunications carrier will have a
``monthly baseline support amount'' equal to its baseline support amount
divided by twelve.
    (i) ``Total 2011 support'' is the amount of support disbursed to a
competitive eligible telecommunication carrier for 2011, without regard
to prior period adjustments related to years other than 2011 and as
determined by the Administrator on January 31, 2012.
    (ii) For the purpose of calculating the $3,000 per line limit, the
average of lines reported by a competitive eligible telecommunication
carrier pursuant to line count filings required for December 31, 2010,
and December 31, 2011 shall be used. The $3,000 per line limit shall be
applied to support amounts determined for each incumbent study area
served by the competitive eligible telecommunications carrier.
    (2) Monthly Support Amounts. Competitive eligible telecommunications
carriers shall receive the following support amounts, except as provided
in paragraphs (e)(3) through (e)(6) of this section.
    (i) From January 1, 2012, to June 30, 2012, each competitive
eligible telecommunications carrier shall receive its monthly baseline
support amount each month.
    (ii) From July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2013, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 80 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (iii) From July 1, 2013, to June 30, 2014, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 60 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (iv) From July 1, 2014, to June 30, 2015, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 40 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (v) From July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 20 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (vi) Beginning July 1, 2016, no competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive universal service support
pursuant to this section.
    (3) Delayed Phase Down for Remote Areas in Alaska. Certain
competitive eligible telecommunications carriers serving remote areas in
Alaska shall have their support phased down on a later schedule than
that described in paragraph (e)(2) of this section.
    (i) Remote Areas in Alaska. For the purpose of this paragraph,
``remote areas in Alaska'' includes all of Alaska except;
    (A) The ACS-Anchorage incumbent study area;
    (B) The ACS-Juneau incumbent study area;
    (C) The fairbankszone1 disaggregation zone in the ACS-Fairbanks
incumbent study area; and
    (D) The Chugiak 1 and 2 and Eagle River 1 and 2 disaggregation zones
of the Matunuska Telephone Association incumbent study area.
    (ii) Carriers Subject to Delayed Phase Down. A competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall be subject to the delayed phase down
described in paragraph (e)(3) of this section to the extent that it
serves remote areas in Alaska, and it certified that it served covered
locations in its September 30, 2011, filing of line counts with the
Administrator. To the extent

[[Page 139]]

a competitive eligible telecommunications carrier serving Alaska is not
subject to the delayed phase down, it will be subject to the phase down
of support on the schedule described in paragraph (e)(2) of this
section.
    (iii) Baseline for Delayed Phase Down. For purpose of the delayed
phase down for remote areas in Alaska, the baseline amount for each
competitive eligible telecommunications carrier subject to the delayed
phase down shall be the annualized monthly support amount received for
June 2014 or the last full month prior to the implementation of Mobility
Fund Phase II, whichever is later.
    (iv) Monthly Support Amounts. Competitive eligible
telecommunications carriers subject to the delayed phase down for remote
areas in Alaska shall receive the following support amounts, except as
provided in paragraphs (e)(4) through (e)(6) of this section.
    (A) From July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 80 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (B) From July 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 60 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (C) From July 1, 2016, to June 30, 2017, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 40 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (D) From July 1, 2017, to June 30, 2018, each competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive 20 percent of its monthly
baseline support amount each month.
    (E) Beginning July 1, 2018, no competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier serving remote areas in Alaska shall receive
universal service support pursuant to this section.
    (v) Interim Support for Remote Areas in Alaska. From January 1,
2012, until June 30, 2014 or the last full month prior to the
implementation of Mobility Fund Phase II, whichever is later,
competitive eligible telecommunications carriers subject to the delayed
phase down for remote areas in Alaska shall continue to receive the
support, as calculated by the Administrator, that each competitive
telecommunications carrier would have received under the frozen per-line
support amount as of December 31, 2011 capped at $3,000 per year,
provided that the total amount of support for all such competitive
eligible telecommunications carriers shall be capped pursuant to
paragraph (e)(3)(v)(A) of this section.
    (A) Cap Amount. The total amount of support available on an annual
basis for competitive eligible telecommunications carriers subject to
the delayed phase down for remote areas in Alaska shall be equal to the
sum of ``total 2011 support,'' as defined in paragraph (e)(1)(i) of this
section, received by all competitive eligible telecommunications
carriers subject to the delayed phase down for serving remote areas in
Alaska.
    (B) Reduction Factor. To effectuate the cap, the Administrator shall
apply a reduction factor as necessary to the support that would
otherwise be received by all competitive eligible telecommunications
carriers serving remote areas in Alaska subject to the delayed phase
down. The reduction factor will be calculated by dividing the total
amount of support available amount by the total support amount
calculated for those carriers in the absence of the cap.
    (4) Further reductions. If a competitive eligible telecommunications
carrier ceases to provide services to high-cost areas it had previously
served, the Commission may reduce its baseline support amount.
    (5) Implementation of Mobility Fund Phase II Required. In the event
that the implementation of Mobility Fund Phase II has not occurred by
June 30, 2014, competitive eligible telecommunications carriers will
continue to receive support at the level described in paragraph
(e)(2)(iii) of this section until Mobility Fund Phase II is implemented.
In the event that Mobility Fund Phase II for Tribal lands is not
implemented by June 30, 2014, competitive eligible telecommunications
carriers serving Tribal lands shall continue to receive support at the
level described in paragraph (e)(2)(iii) of this section until Mobility
Fund Phase II for Tribal lands is implemented, except

[[Page 140]]

that competitive eligible telecommunications carriers serving remote
areas in Alaska and subject to paragraph (e)(3) of this section shall
continue to receive support at the level described in paragraph
(e)(3)(v) of this section.
    (6) Eligibility after Implementation of Mobility Fund Phase II. If a
competitive eligible telecommunications carrier becomes eligible to
receive high-cost support pursuant to the Mobility Fund Phase II, it
will cease to be eligible for phase-down support in the first month for
which it receives Mobility Fund Phase II support.
    (7) Line Count Filings. Competitive eligible telecommunications
carriers, except those subject to the delayed phase down described in
paragraph (e)(3) of this section, shall no longer be required to file
line counts beginning January 1, 2012. Competitive eligible
telecommunications carriers subject to the delayed phase down described
in paragraph (e)(3) of this section shall no longer be required to file
line counts beginning July 1, 2014, or the date after the first line
count filing following the implementation of Mobility Fund Phase II,
whichever is later.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 63 FR 2128, Jan. 13, 1998; 64
FR 67431, Dec. 1, 1999; 65 FR 26516, May 8, 2000; 66 FR 30087, June 5,
2001; 66 FR 59726, Nov. 30, 2001; 68 FR 31623, May 28, 2003; 69 FR
34602, June 22, 2004; 70 FR 29979, May 25, 2005; 76 FR 73871, Nov. 29,
2011; 77 FR 14302, Mar. 9, 2012; 77 FR 30913, May 24, 2012; 77 FR 52618,
Aug. 30, 2012]



Sec. 54.309  Connect America Fund Phase II Public Interest Obligations.

    (a) A price cap carrier electing Phase II model-based support is
required to provide broadband service at actual speeds of at least 4
Mbps downstream/1 Mbps upstream, with latency suitable for real-time
applications, including Voice over Internet Protocol, and usage capacity
that is reasonably comparable to comparable offerings in urban areas, at
rates that are reasonable comparable to rates for comparable offerings
in urban areas.
    (b) In addition, a price cap carrier electing Phase II model-based
support is required to provide broadband service with actual speeds of
at least 6 Mbps downstream to a specified number of locations, and
upstream speeds of at least 1.5 Mbps to a specified number of locations,
as determined by the Wireline Competition Bureau.

[79 FR 11335, Feb. 28, 2014]



Sec. 54.310  Connect America Fund for Price Cap Territories--Phase II

    (a) Geographic areas eligible for support. Connect America Phase II
support may be made available for census blocks or other areas
identified as eligible by public notice, including locations identified
by the forward-looking cost model as extremely high-cost. The number of
supported locations will be identified for each area eligible for
support will be identified by public notice.
    (b) Term of support. Connect America Phase II model-based support
shall be provided to price cap carriers that elect to make a state-wide
commitment for five years. Connect America Phase II support awarded
through a competitive bidding process shall be provided for ten years.
    (c) Deployment schedule. Recipients of Phase II funding must
complete deployment to 85% of supported locations within three years of
notification of Phase II support authorization and to 100% of supported
locations within five years of notification of Phase II support
authorization. For purposes of meeting the obligation to deploy to the
requisite number of supported locations, incumbent price cap carriers
accepting a state-level commitment may serve locations in census blocks
with costs above the extremely high-cost threshold instead of locations
in eligible census blocks, provided that they meet the public interest
obligations set forth in Sec. 54.309 for those locations, and provided
that the total number of locations covered is greater than or equal to
the number of locations in the eligible census blocks for which the
state-level commitment is made.
    (d) Disbursement of Phase II funding. An eligible telecommunications
carrier will be advised by public notice when it is authorized to
receive support. The public notice will detail how disbursements will be
made.
    (e) Provider eligibility. Any eligible telecommunications carrier is
eligible to receive Connect America Phase II support in eligible areas.

[[Page 141]]

    (1) An entity may obtain eligible telecommunications carrier
designation after public notice of winning bidders in a competitive
bidding process for the offer of Phase II Connect America support. An
applicant in the competitive bidding process shall certify that it is
financially and technically qualified to provide the services supported
by Connect America Phase II in order to receive such support.
    (2) To the extent an applicant in the competitive bidding process
seeks eligible telecommunications carrier designation prior to public
notice of winning bidders for Phase II Connect America support, its
designation as an eligible telecommunications carrier may be conditional
subject to the receipt of Phase II Connect America support.
    (f) Transition to model-based support. Eligible telecommunications
carriers electing model-based support in states where that support is
less than their Phase I frozen support will transition to model-based
support as follows: In addition to model-based support, in the first
year of Phase II, they will receive 75% of the difference between Phase
I frozen support and model-based support; in the second year of Phase
II, they will receive 50% of the difference between Phase I frozen
support and model-based support; and in the third year of Phase II, they
will receive 25% of the difference between Phase I frozen support and
model-based support.

[79 FR 11335, Feb. 28, 2014, as amended at 79 FR 39188, July 9, 2014]

    Effective Date Note: At 79 FR 39188, July 9, 2014, Sec. 54.310 was
amended by revising paragraph (e)(1). This paragraph contains
information colection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become
effective until approval has been given by the Office of Management and
Budget.



Sec. 54.312  Connect America Fund for Price Cap Territories--Phase I.

    (a) Frozen High-Cost Support. Beginning January 1, 2012, each price
cap local exchange carrier and rate-of-return carrier affiliated with a
price cap local exchange carrier will have a ``baseline support amount''
equal to its total 2011 support in a given study area, or an amount
equal to $3,000 times the number of reported lines for 2011, whichever
is lower. For purposes of this section, price cap carriers are defined
pursuant to Sec. 61.3(aa) of this chapter and affiliated companies are
determined by Sec. 32.9000 of this chapter. Each price cap local
exchange carrier and rate-of-return carrier affiliated with a price cap
local exchange carrier will have a ``monthly baseline support amount''
equal to its baseline support amount divided by twelve. Beginning
January 1, 2012, on a monthly basis, eligible carriers will receive
their monthly baseline support amount.
    (1) ``Total 2011 support'' is the amount of support disbursed to a
price cap local exchange carrier or rate-of-return carrier affiliated
with a price cap local exchange carrier for 2011, without regard to
prior period adjustments related to years other than 2011 and as
determined by USAC on January 31, 2012.
    (2) For the purpose of calculating the $3,000 per line limit, the
average of lines reported by a price cap local exchange carrier or rate-
of-return carrier affiliated with a price cap local exchange carrier
pursuant to line count filings required for December 31, 2010, and
December 31, 2011 shall be used.
    (3) A carrier receiving frozen high cost support under this rule
shall be deemed to be receiving Interstate Access Support and Interstate
Common Line Support equal to the amount of support the carrier to which
the carrier was eligible under those mechanisms in 2011.
    (b) Incremental Support in 2012. From January 1, 2012, to December
31, 2012, support in addition to baseline support defined in paragraph
(a) of this section will be available for certain price cap local
exchange carriers and rate-of-return carriers affiliated with price cap
local exchange carriers as follows.
    (1) For each carrier for which the Wireline Competition Bureau
determines that it has appropriate data or for which it determines that
it can make reasonable estimates, the Bureau will determine an average
per-location cost for each wire center using a simplified cost-
estimation function derived from the Commission's cost model.
Incremental support will be based on the wire centers for which the
estimated per-location cost exceeds the

[[Page 142]]

funding threshold. The funding threshold will be determined by
calculating which funding threshold would allocate all available
incremental support, if each carrier that would be offered incremental
support were to accept it.
    (2) An eligible telecommunications carrier accepting incremental
support must deploy broadband to a number of unserved locations, as
shown as unserved by fixed broadband on the then-current version of the
National Broadband Map, equal to the amount of incremental support it
accepts divided by $775.
    (3) A carrier may elect to accept or decline incremental support. A
holding company may do so on a holding-company basis on behalf of its
operating companies that are eligible telecommunications carriers, whose
eligibility for incremental support, for these purposes, shall be
considered on an aggregated basis. A carrier must provide notice to the
Commission, relevant state commissions, and any affected Tribal
government, stating the amount of incremental support it wishes to
accept and identifying the areas by wire center and census block in
which the designated eligible telecommunications carrier will deploy
broadband to meet its deployment obligation, or stating that it declines
incremental support. Such notification must be made within 90 days of
being notified of any incremental support for which it would be
eligible. Along with its notification, a carrier accepting incremental
support must also submit a certification that the locations to be served
to satisfy the deployment obligation are not shown as served by fixed
broadband provided by any entity other than the certifying entity or its
affiliate on the then-current version of the National Broadband Map;
that, to the best of the carrier's knowledge, the locations are, in
fact, unserved by fixed broadband; that the carrier's current capital
improvement plan did not already include plans to complete broadband
deployment within the next three years to the locations to be counted to
satisfy the deployment obligation; and that incremental support will not
be used to satisfy any merger commitment or similar regulatory
obligation. If a carrier intends to deploy to census blocks not
initially identified at the time of election, it must inform the
Commission, the Administrator, relevant state commissions, and any
affected Tribal government of the change at least 90 days prior to
commencing deployment in the new census blocks. No sooner than 46 days
after the Wireline Competition Bureau issues a public notice announcing
the updated deployment plans but prior to commencing deployment, the
carrier must make the certifications described in this paragraph with
respect to the new census blocks. If a carrier no longer intends to
deploy to a previously identified census block, it must inform the
Commission, the Administrator, relevant state commission, and any
affected Tribal government prior to filing its certification pursuant to
Sec. 54.313(b)(2).
    (c) Incremental Support in 2013. From January 1, 2013, to December
31, 2013, support in addition to baseline support defined in paragraph
(a) of this section will be available for certain price cap local
exchange carriers and rate-of-return carriers affiliated with price cap
local exchange carriers as follows:

    (1) For each carrier for which the Wireline Competition Bureau
determines that it has appropriate data or for which it determines that
it can make reasonable estimates, the Bureau will determine an average
per-location cost for each wire center using a simplified cost-
estimation function derived from the Commission's high-cost proxy model.
Incremental support will be based on the wire centers for which the
estimated per-location cost exceeds the funding threshold. The funding
threshold will be determined by calculating which funding threshold
would allocate all available incremental support, if each carrier that
would be offered incremental support were to accept it.
    (2) An eligible telecommunications carrier accepting incremental
support must deploy broadband to a number of unserved locations, shown
as unserved by fixed Internet access with speeds of at least 768 kbps
downstream and 200 kbps upstream on the then-current version of the
National Broadband Map, equal to the amount of incremental support it
accepts divided by $775.
    (3) An eligible telecommunications carrier must accept funding
pursuant to paragraph (c)(2) of this section before it may accept
funding pursuant to paragraph (c)(3) of this section. If an eligible
telecommunications carrier has committed to deploy to all locations
eligible for support under paragraph

[[Page 143]]

(c)(2) of this section on routes or projects that can economically be
built with $775 in Connect America funding for each location unserved by
768 kbps downstream and 200 kbps upstream plus an equal amount of non-
Connect America carrier capital expenditure funding, but the carrier has
not fully utilized its allotted funding, it may also count towards its
deployment obligation locations shown as unserved by fixed Internet
access with speeds of at least 3 Mbps downstream and 768 kbps upstream
equal to the amount of remaining incremental support divided by $550.
    (4) A carrier may elect to accept or decline incremental support. A
holding company may do so on a holding-company basis on behalf of its
operating companies that are eligible telecommunications carriers, whose
eligibility for incremental support, for these purposes, shall be
considered on an aggregated basis. A carrier must provide notice to the
Commission, the Administrator, relevant state commissions, and any
affected Tribal government, stating the amount of incremental support it
wishes to accept, the number of locations at the $775 amount, and the
number of locations at the $550 amount, and identifying the areas by
wire center and census block in which the designated eligible
telecommunications carrier will deploy broadband to meet its deployment
obligation; or stating that it declines incremental support. Such
notification must be made within 75 days of being notified of any
incremental support for which it would be eligible. If a carrier intends
to deploy to census blocks not initially identified at the time of
election, it must inform the Commission, the Administrator, relevant
state commissions, and any affected Tribal government of the change at
least 90 days prior to commencing deployment in the new census blocks.
No sooner than 46 days after the Wireline Competition Bureau issues a
public notice announcing the updated deployment plans but prior to
commencing deployment, the carrier must make the certifications
described in paragraph (c)(5) of this section with respect to the new
census blocks. If a carrier no longer intends to deploy to a previously
identified census block, it must inform the Commission, the
Administrator, relevant state commission, and any affected Tribal
government prior to filing its certification pursuant to Sec.
54.313(b)(2).
    (5) Along with its notification, an eligible telecommunications
carrier accepting incremental support must submit the following
certifications:
    (i) The locations to be served to satisfy the deployment obligation
are not shown as served by fixed broadband at the speeds specified in
paragraph (c)(2) or (c)(3) of this section provided by any entity other
than the certifying entity or its affiliate on the then-current version
of the National Broadband Map or that it is challenging the National
Broadband Map's designation of that census block under the challenge
process in paragraph (c)(7) of this section;
    (ii) To the best of the carrier's knowledge, the locations are, in
fact, unserved by fixed Internet access with speeds of at least 3 Mbps
downstream and 768 kbps upstream, or 768 kbps downstream and 200 kbps
upstream, as appropriate;
    (iii) The carrier's current capital improvement plan did not already
include plans to complete broadband deployment within the next three
years to the locations to be counted to satisfy the deployment
obligation;
    (iv) Incremental support will not be used to satisfy any merger
commitment or similar regulatory obligation; and
    (v) The carrier has undertaken due diligence to determine the
locations in question are not within the service area of either
Broadband Initiatives Program or the Broadband Technology Opportunities
Program projects that will provide Internet access with speeds of at
least 3 Mbps downstream and 768 upstream.
    (6) An eligible telecommunications carrier deploying to locations
unserved by 3 Mbps downstream and 768 kbps upstream under paragraph
(c)(3) of this section must also certify that it has prioritized its
planned projects or routes so as to maximize the deployment of
broadband-capable infrastructure to locations lacking Internet access
with speeds of 768 kbps downstream and 200 kbps upstream.
    (7) A person may challenge the designation of a census block as
served or unserved by a certain speed as shown on the National Broadband
Map. When the Wireline Competition Bureau determines that the evidence
presented makes it more likely than not that the census block should be
designated as served by broadband with speeds of at least 3 Mbps
downstream and 768 kbps upstream, that locations in that census block
will be treated as served by broadband and therefore ineligible to be
counted for the purposes of paragraph (c)(3) of this section. When the
Wireline Competition Bureau determines that the evidence presented makes
it more likely than not that the census block should be designated as
served by Internet service with speeds of 768 kbps downstream and 200
kbps upstream, but unserved by broadband with speeds of at least 3 Mbps
downstream and 768 kbps upstream, locations in that census block will be
treated as served by Internet access with speeds of 768 kbps downstream
and 200 kbps upstream and therefore eligible to be counted for the
purposes of paragraph (c)(3) of this section. When the Wireline
Competition Bureau determines that the evidence presented makes it more
likely than not that the census block should be designated as unserved
by Internet

[[Page 144]]

service with speeds of 768 kbps downstream and 200 kbps upstream,
locations in that census block will be treated as unserved by Internet
access with speeds of 768 kbps downstream and 200 kbps upstream and
therefore eligible to be counted for the purposes of paragraph (c)(2) of
this section.
    (8) If no entity other than the carrier or its affiliate provides
Internet service with speeds of 3 Mbps downstream and 768 kbps upstream
or greater as shown on the National Broadband Map or as determined by
the process described in paragraph (c)(7), the carrier may satisfy its
deployment obligations at a location shown by the National Broadband Map
as being served by that carrier or its affiliate with such service by
certifying that it is the only entity providing such service, that the
location does not actually receive speeds of 3 Mbps downstream and 768
kbps upstream, and the location is served through a copper-fed digital
subscriber line access multiplexer. The carrier must specifically
identify such locations in its election. Such locations will be treated
the same as locations under paragraph (c)(3) of this section.
    (9) An eligible telecommunications carrier must complete deployment
of broadband-capable infrastructure to two-thirds of the required number
of locations within two years of providing notification of acceptance of
funding, and must complete deployment to all required locations within
three years. To satisfy its deployment obligation, the eligible
telecommunications carrier must offer broadband service to such
locations of at least 4 Mbps downstream and 1 Mbps upstream, with
latency sufficiently low to enable the use of real-time communications,
including Voice over Internet Protocol, and with usage allowances, if
any, associated with a specified price for a service offering that are
reasonably comparable to comparable offerings in urban areas.

[76 FR 73872, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 31536, May 29, 2012; 78
FR 38233, June 26, 2013; 78 FR 48624, Aug. 9, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 48624, Aug. 9, 2013, Sec. 54.312 was
amended by revising paragraphs and (c)(4). These paragraph contain
information collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not
become effective until approval has been given by the Office of
Management and Budget.



Sec. 54.313  Annual reporting requirements for high-cost recipients.

    (a) Any recipient of high-cost support shall provide the following,
with the information and data required by paragraphs (a)(1) through (7)
of this section separately broken out for both voice service and
broadband service:
    (1) A progress report on its five-year service quality improvement
plan pursuant to Sec. 54.202(a), including maps detailing its progress
towards meeting its plan targets, an explanation of how much universal
service support was received and how it was used to improve service
quality, coverage, or capacity, and an explanation regarding any network
improvement targets that have not been fulfilled in the prior calendar
year. The information shall be submitted at the wire center level or
census block as appropriate;
    (2) Detailed information on any outage in the prior calendar year,
as that term is defined in 47 CFR 4.5, of at least 30 minutes in
duration for each service area in which an eligible telecommunications
carrier is designated for any facilities it owns, operates, leases, or
otherwise utilizes that potentially affect
    (i) At least ten percent of the end users served in a designated
service area; or
    (ii) A 911 special facility, as defined in 47 CFR 4.5(e).
    (iii) Specifically, the eligible telecommunications carrier's annual
report must include information detailing:
    (A) The date and time of onset of the outage;
    (B) A brief description of the outage and its resolution;
    (C) The particular services affected;
    (D) The geographic areas affected by the outage;
    (E) Steps taken to prevent a similar situation in the future; and
    (F) The number of customers affected.
    (3) The number of requests for service from potential customers
within the recipient's service areas that were unfulfilled during the
prior calendar year. The carrier shall also detail how it attempted to
provide service to those potential customers;
    (4) The number of complaints per 1,000 connections (fixed or mobile)
in the prior calendar year;
    (5) Certification that it is complying with applicable service
quality standards and consumer protection rules;
    (6) Certification that the carrier is able to function in emergency
situations as set forth in Sec. 54.202(a)(2);

[[Page 145]]

    (7) The company's price offerings in a format as specified by the
Wireline Competition Bureau;
    (8) The recipient's holding company, operating companies,
affiliates, and any branding (a ``dba,'' or ``doing-business-as
company'' or brand designation), as well as universal service
identifiers for each such entity by Study Area Codes, as that term is
used by the Administrator. For purposes of this paragraph,
``affiliates'' has the meaning set forth in section 3(2) of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended;
    (9) Beginning July 1, 2013. To the extent the recipient serves
Tribal lands, documents or information demonstrating that the ETC had
discussions with Tribal governments that, at a minimum, included:
    (i) A needs assessment and deployment planning with a focus on
Tribal community anchor institutions;
    (ii) Feasibility and sustainability planning;
    (iii) Marketing services in a culturally sensitive manner;
    (iv) Rights of way processes, land use permitting, facilities
siting, environmental and cultural preservation review processes; and
    (v) Compliance with Tribal business and licensing requirements.
Tribal business and licensing requirements include business practice
licenses that Tribal and non-Tribal business entities, whether located
on or off Tribal lands, must obtain upon application to the relevant
Tribal government office or division to conduct any business or trade,
or deliver any goods or services to the Tribes, Tribal members, or
Tribal lands. These include certificates of public convenience and
necessity, Tribal business licenses, master licenses, and other related
forms of Tribal government licensure.
    (10) Beginning July 1, 2013. A letter certifying that the pricing of
the company's voice services is no more than two standard deviations
above the applicable national average urban rate for voice service, as
specified in the most recent public notice issued by the Wireline
Competition Bureau and Wireless Telecommunications Bureau; and
    (11) Beginning July 1, 2013. The results of network performance
tests pursuant to the methodology and in the format determined by the
Wireline Competition Bureau, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau, and
Office of Engineering and Technology.
    (b) In addition to the information and certifications in paragraph
(a) of this section:

    (1) Any recipient of incremental Connect America Phase I support
pursuant to Sec. 54.312(b) and (c) shall provide:
    (i) In its next annual report due after two years after filing a
notice of acceptance of funding pursuant to Sec. 54.312(b) and (c), a
certification that the company has deployed to no fewer than two-thirds
of the required number of locations; and
    (ii) In its next annual report due after three years after filing a
notice of acceptance of funding pursuant to Sec. 54.312(b) and (c), a
certification that the company has deployed to all required locations
and that it is offering broadband service of at least 4 Mbps downstream
and 1 Mbps upstream, with latency sufficiently low to enable the use of
real-time communications, including Voice over Internet Protocol, and
with usage allowances, if any, associated with a specified price for a
service offering that are reasonably comparable to comparable offerings
in urban areas.
    (2) In addition to the information and certifications required in
paragraph (b)(1) of this section, any recipient of incremental Connect
America Phase I support pursuant to Sec. 54.312(c) shall provide:
    (i) In its annual reports due after one, two, and three years after
filing a notice of acceptance of funding pursuant to Sec. 54.312(c), a
certification that, to the best of the recipient's knowledge, the
locations in question are not receiving support under the Broadband
Initiatives Program or the Broadband Technology Opportunities Program
for projects that will provide broadband with speeds of at least 4 Mbps/
1 Mbps; and
    (ii) In its annual reports due after one, two, and three years after
filing a notice of acceptance of funding pursuant to Sec. 54.312(c), a
statement of the total amount of capital funding expended in the
previous year in meeting Connect America Phase I deployment obligations,
accompanied by a list of census blocks indicating where funding was
spent.
    (c) In addition to the information and certifications in paragraph
(a) of this section, price cap carriers that receive frozen high-cost
support pursuant to Sec. 54.312(a) shall provide:

[[Page 146]]

    (1) By July 1, 2013. A certification that frozen high-cost support
the company received in 2012 was used consistent with the goal of
achieving universal availability of voice and broadband;
    (2) By July 1, 2014. A certification that at least one-third of the
frozen-high cost support the company received in 2013 was used to build
and operate broadband-capable networks used to offer the provider's own
retail broadband service in areas substantially unserved by an
unsubsidized competitor;
    (3) By July 1, 2015. A certification that at least two-thirds of the
frozen-high cost support the company received in 2014 was used to build
and operate broadband-capable networks used to offer the provider's own
retail broadband service in areas substantially unserved by an
unsubsidized competitor; and
    (4) By July 1, 2016 and in subsequent years. A certification that
all frozen-high cost support the company received in the previous year
was used to build and operate broadband-capable networks used to offer
the provider's own retail broadband service in areas substantially
unserved by an unsubsidized competitor.
    (d) In addition to the information and certifications in paragraph
(a) of this section, beginning July 1, 2013, price cap carriers
receiving high-cost support to offset reductions in access charges shall
provide a certification that the support received pursuant to Sec.
54.304 in the prior calendar year was used to build and operate
broadband-capable networks used to offer provider's own retail service
in areas substantially unserved by an unsubsidized competitor.
    (e) In addition to the information and certifications in paragraph
(a) of this section, any recipient of CAF Phase II support shall
provide:
    (1) In the calendar year no later than three years after
notification of authorization of CAF Phase II funding, a certification
that the recipient is providing broadband meeting the requisite public
interest obligations specified in Sec. 54.309 to 85% of its supported
locations.
    (2) In the calendar year no later than five years after notification
of authorization of CAF Phase II funding, a certification that the
recipient is providing broadband meeting the requisite public interest
obligations specified in Sec. 54.309 to 100% of its supported
locations.
    (3) In the calendar year after the filing of its initial five-year
service quality improvement plan, and every year thereafter, a progress
report on the company's five-year service quality improvement plan,
including the following information:
    (i) A letter certifying that it is meeting the interim deployment
milestones as set forth, and that it is taking reasonable steps to meet
increased speed obligations that will exist for all supported locations
at the expiration of the five-year term for CAF Phase II funding; and
    (ii) The number, names, and addresses of community anchor
institutions to which the ETC newly began providing access to broadband
service in the preceding calendar year.
    (f) In addition to the information and certifications in paragraph
(a) of this section, any rate-of-return carrier shall provide:
    (1) Beginning July 1, 2015. A progress report on its five-year
service quality plan pursuant to Sec. 54.202(a) that includes the
following information:
    (i) A letter certifying that it is taking reasonable steps to
provide upon reasonable request broadband service at actual speeds of at
least 4 Mbps downstream/1 Mbps upstream, with latency suitable for real-
time applications, including Voice over Internet Protocol, and usage
capacity that is reasonably comparable to comparable offerings in urban
areas as determined in an annual survey, and that requests for such
service are met within a reasonable amount of time; and
    (ii) The number, names, and addresses of community anchor
institutions to which the ETC newly began providing access to broadband
service in the preceding calendar year.
    (2) Privately held rate-of-return carriers only. A full and complete
annual report of the company's financial condition and operations as of
the end of the preceding fiscal year.

[[Page 147]]

    (i) Recipients of loans from the Rural Utility Service (RUS) shall
provide copies of their RUS Operating Report for Telecommunications
Borrowers as filed with the RUS. Such carriers must make their
underlying audit and related workpapers and financial information
available upon request by the Commission, USAC, or the relevant state
commission, relevant authority in a U.S. Territory, or Tribal
government, as appropriate.
    (ii) All privately held rate-of-return carriers that are not
recipients of loans from the RUS and whose financial statements are
audited in the ordinary course of business must provide either: A copy
of their audited financial statement; or a financial report in a format
comparable to RUS Operating Report for Telecommunications Borrowers,
accompanied by a copy of a management letter issued by the independent
certified public accountant that performed the company's financial
audit. A carrier choosing the latter option must make its audit and
related workpapers and financial information available upon request by
the Commission, USAC, or the relevant state commission, relevant
authority in a U.S. Territory, or Tribal government, as appropriate.
    (iii) All other privately held rate-of-return carriers must provide
either: A copy of their financial statement which has been subject to
review by an independent certified public accountant; or a financial
report in a format comparable to RUS Operating Report for
Telecommunications Borrowers, with the underlying information subjected
to a review by an independent certified public accountant and
accompanied by an officer certification that: The carrier was not
audited in the ordinary course of business for the preceding fiscal
year; and that the reported data are accurate. If the carrier elects the
second option, it must make the review and related workpapers and
financial information available upon request by the Commission, USAC, or
the relevant state commission, relevant authority in a U.S. Territory,
or Tribal government, as appropriate.
    (g) Areas with No Terrestrial Backhaul. Carriers without access to
terrestrial backhaul that are compelled to rely exclusively on satellite
backhaul in their study area must certify annually that no terrestrial
backhaul options exist. Any such funding recipients must certify they
offer broadband service at actual speeds of at least 1 Mbps downstream
and 256 kbps upstream within the supported area served by satellite
middle-mile facilities. To the extent that new terrestrial backhaul
facilities are constructed, or existing facilities improve sufficiently
to meet the relevant speed, latency and capacity requirements then in
effect for broadband service supported by the CAF, within twelve months
of the new backhaul facilities becoming commercially available, funding
recipients must provide the certifications required in paragraphs (e) or
(f) of this section in full. Carriers subject to this paragraph must
comply with all other requirements set forth in the remaining paragraphs
of this section.
    (h) Additional voice rate data. (1) All incumbent local exchange
carrier recipients of high-cost support must report all of their rates
for residential local service for all portions of their service area, as
well as state fees as defined pursuant to Sec. 54.318(e), to the extent
the sum of those rates and fees are below the rate floor as defined in
Sec. 54.318, and the number of lines for each rate specified. Carriers
shall report lines and rates in effect as of June 1.
    (2) In addition to the annual filing, local exchange carriers may
file updates of their rates for residential local service, as well as
state fees as defined pursuant to Sec. 54.318(e), on January 2 of each
year. If a local exchange carrier reduces its rates and the sum of the
reduced rates and state fees are below the rate floor as defined in
Sec. 54.318, the local exchange carrier shall file such an update. For
the update, carriers shall report lines and rates in effect as of
December 1.
    (i) All reports pursuant to this section shall be filed with the
Office of the Secretary of the Commission clearly referencing WC Docket
No. 14-58, with the Administrator, and with the relevant state
commissions or relevant authority in a U.S. Territory, or Tribal
governments, as appropriate.

[[Page 148]]

    (j) Filing deadlines. In order for a recipient of high-cost support
to continue to receive support for the following calendar year, or
retain its eligible telecommunications carrier designation, it must
submit the annual reporting information required by this section no
later than July 1, 2012, except as otherwise specified in this section
to begin in a subsequent year, and thereafter annually by July 1 of each
year. Eligible telecommunications carriers that file their reports after
the July 1 deadline shall receive support pursuant to the following
schedule:
    (1) Eligible telecommunication carriers that file no later than
October 1 shall receive support for the second, third and fourth
quarters of the subsequent year.
    (2) Eligible telecommunication carriers that file no later than
January 1 of the subsequent year shall receive support for the third and
fourth quarters of the subsequent year.
    (3) Eligible telecommunication carriers that file no later than
April 1 of the subsequent year shall receive support for the fourth
quarter of the subsequent year.
    (k) This section does not apply to recipients that solely receive
support from the Phase I Mobility Fund.

[76 FR 73873, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 14302, Mar. 9, 2012; 77
FR 30914, May 24, 2012; 78 FR 22201, Apr. 15, 2013; 78 FR 29656, May 21,
2013; 78 FR 3843, Jan. 17, 2013; 78 FR 38233, June 26, 2013; 79 FR
11336, Feb. 28, 2014; 79 FR 39189, July 9, 2014]

    Effective Date Notes: 1. At 77 FR 14302, Mar. 9, 2012, Sec. 54.313
was amended by revising paragraphs (a)(9) introductory text and (f)(2).
These paragraphs contain information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.
    2. At 79 FR 11336, Feb. 28, 2014, Sec. 54.313 was amended by
revising paragraphs (e)(1), (e)(2) and (e)(3) introductory text. These
paragraphs contain information collection and recordkeeping requirements
and will not become effective until approval has been given by the
Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 54.314  Certification of support for eligible telecommunications
carriers.

    (a) Certification. States that desire eligible telecommunications
carriers to receive support pursuant to the high-cost program must file
an annual certification with the Administrator and the Commission
stating that all federal high-cost support provided to such carriers
within that State was used in the preceding calendar year and will be
used in the coming calendar year only for the provision, maintenance,
and upgrading of facilities and services for which the support is
intended. High-cost support shall only be provided to the extent that
the State has filed the requisite certification pursuant to this
section.
    (b) Carriers not subject to State jurisdiction. An eligible
telecommunications carrier not subject to the jurisdiction of a State
that desires to receive support pursuant to the high-cost program must
file an annual certification with the Administrator and the Commission
stating that all federal high-cost support provided to such carrier was
used in the preceding calendar year and will be used in the coming
calendar year only for the provision, maintenance, and upgrading of
facilities and services for which the support is intended. Support
provided pursuant to the high-cost program shall only be provided to the
extent that the carrier has filed the requisite certification pursuant
to this section.
    (c) Certification format. (1) A certification pursuant to this
section may be filed in the form of a letter from the appropriate
regulatory authority for the State, and must be filed with both the
Office of the Secretary of the Commission clearly referencing WC Docket
No. 14-58, and with the Administrator of the high-cost support
mechanism, on or before the deadlines set forth in paragraph (d) of this
section. If provided by the appropriate regulatory authority for the
State, the annual certification must identify which carriers in the
State are eligible to receive federal support during the applicable 12-
month period, and must certify that those carriers only used support
during the preceding calendar year and will only use support in the
coming calendar year for the provision, maintenance, and upgrading of
facilities and services for which support is intended. A State may file
a supplemental certification for carriers not subject to the State's
annual certification. All certificates filed by a State pursuant

[[Page 149]]

to this section shall become part of the public record maintained by the
Commission.
    (2) An eligible telecommunications carrier not subject to the
jurisdiction of a State shall file a sworn affidavit executed by a
corporate officer attesting that the carrier only used support during
the preceding calendar year and will only use support in the coming
calendar year for the provision, maintenance, and upgrading of
facilities and services for which support is intended. The affidavit
must be filed with both the Office of the Secretary of the Commission
clearly referencing WC Docket No. 14-58, and with the Administrator of
the high-cost universal service support mechanism, on or before the
deadlines set forth in paragraph (d) of this section. All affidavits
filed pursuant to this section shall become part of the public record
maintained by the Commission.
    (d) Filing deadlines. In order for an eligible telecommunications
carrier to receive federal high-cost support, the State or the carrier,
if not subject to the jurisdiction of a State, must file an annual
certification, as described in paragraph (c) of this section, with both
the Administrator and the Commission. Upon the filing of the
certification described in this section, support shall be provided in
accordance with the following schedule:
    (1) Certifications filed on or before October 1. Carriers subject to
certifications filed on or before October 1 shall receive support in the
first, second, third, and fourth quarters of the succeeding year.
    (2) Certifications filed on or before January 1. Carriers subject to
certifications filed on or before January 1 shall receive support in the
second, third, and fourth quarters of that year. Such carriers shall not
receive support in the first quarter of that year.
    (3) Certifications filed on or before April 1. Carriers subject to
certifications filed on or before April 1 shall receive support in the
third and fourth quarters of that year. Such carriers shall not receive
support in the first or second quarters of that year.
    (4) Certifications filed on or before July 1. Carriers subject to
certifications filed on or before July 1 shall receive support beginning
in the fourth quarter of that year. Such carriers shall not receive
support in the first, second, or third quarters of that year.
    (5) Certifications filed after July 1. Carriers subject to
certifications filed after July 1 shall not receive support in that
year.
    (6) Newly designated eligible telecommunications carriers.
Notwithstanding the deadlines in paragraph (d) of this section, a
carrier shall be eligible to receive support as of the effective date of
its designation as an eligible telecommunications carrier under section
214(e)(2) or (e)(6) of the Act, provided that it files the certification
described in paragraph (b) of this section or the state commission files
the certification described in paragraph (a) of this section within 60
days of the effective date of the carrier's designation as an eligible
telecommunications carrier. Thereafter, the certification required by
paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section must be submitted pursuant to the
schedule in paragraph (d) of this section.

[76 FR 73875, Nov. 29, 2011; 79 FR 39189, July 9, 2014]



Sec. 54.318  High-cost support; limitations on high-cost support.

    (a) Beginning July 1, 2012, each carrier receiving high-cost support
in a study area under this subpart will receive the full amount of high-
cost support it otherwise would be entitled to receive if its rates for
residential local service plus state regulated fees as defined in
paragraph (e) of this section exceed a local urban rate floor
representing the national average of local urban rates plus state
regulated fees under the schedule specified in paragraph (f) of this
section.
    (b) Carriers whose rates for residential local service plus state
regulated fees offered for voice service are below the specified local
urban rate floor under the schedule below plus state regulated fees
shall have high-cost support reduced by an amount equal to the extent to
which its rates for residential local service plus state regulated fees
are below the local urban rate floor, multiplied by the number of lines
for which it is receiving support.

[[Page 150]]

    (c) This rule will apply only to rate-of-return carriers as defined
in Sec. 54.5 and carriers subject to price cap regulation as that term
is defined in Sec. 61.3 of this chapter.
    (d) For purposes of this section, high-cost support is defined as
the support available pursuant to Sec. 54.1310 and frozen high-cost
support provided to price cap carriers to the extent it is based on
support previously provided pursuant to Sec. 54.1310 or former high-
cost proxy model support.
    (e) State regulated fees. (1) Beginning on July 1, 2012, for
purposes of calculating limitations on high-cost support under this
section, state regulated fees shall be limited to state subscriber line
charges, state universal service fees and mandatory extended area
service charges, which shall be determined as part of a local rate
survey, the results of which shall be published annually.
    (2) Federal subscriber line charges shall not be included in
calculating limitations on high-cost support under this section.
    (f) Schedule. High-cost support will be limited where the rate for
residential local service plus state regulated fees are below the local
urban rate floor representing the national average of local urban rates
plus state regulated fees under the schedule specified in this
paragraph. To the extent end user rates plus state regulated fees are
below local urban rate floors plus state regulated fees, appropriate
reductions in high-cost support will be made by the Universal Service
Administrative Company.
    (g) Any reductions in high-cost support under this section will not
be redistributed to other carriers that receive support pursuant to
Sec. 54.1310.
    (h) If, due to changes in local service rates, a local exchange
carrier makes an updated rate filing pursuant to section 54.313(h)(2),
the Universal Service Administrative Company will update the support
reduction applied pursuant to paragraphs (b) and (f) of this section.
    (i) For the purposes of this section and the reporting of rates
pursuant to paragraph 313(h), rates for residential local service
provided pursuant to measured or message rate plans or as part of a
bundle of services should be calculated as follows:
    (1) Rates for measured or message service shall be calculated by
adding the basic rate for local service plus the additional charges
incurred for measured service, using the mean number of minutes or
message units for all customers subscribing to that rate plan multiplied
by the applicable rate per minute or message unit. The local service
rate includes additional charges for measured service only to the extent
that the average number of units used by subscribers to that rate plan
exceeds the number of units that are included in the plan. Where
measured service plans have multiple rates for additional units, such as
peak and off-peak rates, the calculation should reflect the average
number of units that subscribers to the rate plan pay at each rate.
    (2) For bundled service, the residential local service rate is the
local service rate as tariffed, if applicable, or as itemized on end-
user bills. If a carrier neither tariffs nor itemizes the local voice
service rate on bills for bundled services, the local service rate is
the rate of a similar stand-alone local voice service that it offers to
consumers in that study area.

[76 FR 73876, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 14302, Mar. 9, 2012; 77
FR 30914, May 24, 2012; 79 FR 39190, July 9, 2014]



Sec. 54.319  Elimination of high-cost support in areas with 100 percent
coverage by an unsubsidized competitor.

    (a) Universal service support shall be eliminated in an incumbent
local exchange carrier study area where an unsubsidized competitor, or
combination of unsubsidized competitors, as defined in Sec. 54.5,
offers to 100 percent of residential and business locations in the study
area voice and broadband service at speeds of at least 4 Mbps
downstream/1 Mbps upstream, with latency suitable for real-time
applications, including Voice over Internet Protocol, and usage capacity
that is reasonably comparable to comparable offerings in urban areas, at
rates that are reasonably comparable to rates for comparable offerings
in urban areas.
    (b) After a determination there is a 100 percent overlap, the
incumbent

[[Page 151]]

local exchange carrier shall receive the following amount of high-cost
support:
    (1) In the first year, two-thirds of the lesser of the incumbent's
total 2010 high-cost support or $3000 times the number of reported lines
as of year-end 2010;
    (2) In the second year, one-third of the lesser of the incumbent's
total 2010 high-cost support or $3000 times the number of reported lines
as of year-end 2010;
    (3) In the third year and thereafter, no support shall be paid.

[79 FR 39190, July 9, 2014]



Sec. 54.320  Compliance and recordkeeping for the high-cost program.

    (a) Eligible telecommunications carriers authorized to receive
universal service high-cost support are subject to random compliance
audits and other investigations to ensure compliance with program rules
and orders.
    (b) All eligible telecommunications carriers shall retain all
records required to demonstrate to auditors that the support received
was consistent with the universal service high-cost program rules. This
documentation must be maintained for at least ten years from the receipt
of funding. All such documents shall be made available upon request to
the Commission and any of its Bureaus or Offices, the Administrator, and
their respective auditors.
    (c) Eligible telecommunications carriers authorized to receive high-
cost support that fail to comply with public interest obligations or any
other terms and conditions may be subject to further action, including
the Commission's existing enforcement procedures and penalties,
reductions in support amounts, potential revocation of ETC designation,
and suspension or debarment pursuant to Sec. 54.8.

[76 FR 73876, Nov. 29, 2011]



      Subpart E_Universal Service Support for Low-Income Consumers



54.400  Terms and definitions.

    As used in this subpart, the following terms shall be defined as
follows:
    (a) Qualifying low-income consumer. A ``qualifying low-income
consumer'' is a consumer who meets the qualifications for Lifeline, as
specified in Sec. 54.409.
    (b) Toll blocking service. ``Toll blocking service'' is a service
provided by an eligible telecommunications carrier that lets subscribers
elect not to allow the completion of outgoing toll calls from their
telecommunications channel.
    (c) Toll control service. ``Toll control service'' is a service
provided by an eligible telecommunications carrier that allows
subscribers to specify a certain amount of toll usage that may be
incurred on their telecommunications channel per month or per billing
cycle.
    (d) Toll limitation service. ``Toll limitation service'' denotes
either toll blocking service or toll control service for eligible
telecommunications carriers that are incapable of providing both
services. For eligible telecommunications carriers that are capable of
providing both services, ``toll limitation service'' denotes both toll
blocking service and toll control service.
    (e) Eligible resident of Tribal lands. An ``eligible resident of
Tribal lands'' is a ``qualifying low-income consumer,'' as defined in
paragraph (a) of this section, living on Tribal lands. For purposes of
this subpart, ``Tribal lands'' include any federally recognized Indian
tribe's reservation, pueblo, or colony, including former reservations in
Oklahoma; Alaska Native regions established pursuant to the Alaska
Native Claims Settlement Act (85 Stat. 688); Indian allotments; Hawaiian
Home Lands--areas held in trust for Native Hawaiians by the state of
Hawaii, pursuant to the Hawaiian Homes Commission Act, 1920 July 9,
1921, 42 Stat. 108, et. seq., as amended; and any land designated as
such by the Commission for purposes of this subpart pursuant to the
designation process in Sec. 54.412.
    (f) Income. ``Income'' is all income actually received by all
members of a household. This includes salary before deductions for
taxes, public assistance benefits, social security payments, pensions,
unemployment compensation, veteran's benefits, inheritances, alimony,
child support payments, worker's compensation benefits, gifts, lottery
winnings, and the like. The

[[Page 152]]

only exceptions are student financial aid, military housing and cost-of-
living allowances, irregular income from occasional small jobs such as
baby-sitting or lawn mowing, and the like.
    (g) Duplicative support. ``Duplicative support'' exists when a
Lifeline subscriber is receiving two or more Lifeline services
concurrently or two or more subscribers in a household are receiving
Lifeline services or Tribal Link Up support concurrently.
    (h) Household. A ``household'' is any individual or group of
individuals who are living together at the same address as one economic
unit. A household may include related and unrelated persons. An
``economic unit'' consists of all adult individuals contributing to and
sharing in the income and expenses of a household. An adult is any
person eighteen years or older. If an adult has no or minimal income,
and lives with someone who provides financial support to him/her, both
people shall be considered part of the same household. Children under
the age of eighteen living with their parents or guardians are
considered to be part of the same household as their parents or
guardians.
    (i) National Lifeline Accountability Database or Database. The
``National Lifeline Accountability Database'' or ``Database'' is an
electronic system, with associated functions, processes, policies and
procedures, to facilitate the detection and elimination of duplicative
support, as directed by the Commission.
    (j) Qualifying assistance program. A ``qualifying assistance
program'' means any of the federal, state, or Tribal assistance programs
participation in which, pursuant to Sec. 54.409(a) or (b), qualifies a
consumer for Lifeline service, including Medicaid; Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program; Supplemental Security Income; Federal
Public Housing Assistance (Section 8); Low-Income Home Energy Assistance
Program; National School Lunch Program's free lunch program; Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families; Bureau of Indian Affairs general
assistance; Tribally administered Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families (Tribal TANF); Head Start (only those households meeting its
income qualifying standard); or the Food Distribution Program on Indian
Reservations (FDPIR), and with respect to the residents of any
particular state, any other program so designated by that state pursuant
to Sec. 54.409(a).

[77 FR 12966, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.401  Lifeline defined.

    (a) As used in this subpart, Lifeline means a non-transferable
retail service offering:
    (1) For which qualifying low-income consumers pay reduced charges as
a result of application of the Lifeline support amount described in
Sec. 54.403; and
    (2) That provides qualifying low-income consumers with voice
telephony service as specified in Sec. 54.101(a). Toll limitation
service does not need to be offered for any Lifeline service that does
not distinguish between toll and non-toll calls in the pricing of the
service. If an eligible telecommunications carrier charges Lifeline
subscribers a fee for toll calls that is in addition to the per month or
per billing cycle price of the subscribers' Lifeline service, the
carrier must offer toll limitation service at no charge to its
subscribers as part of its Lifeline service offering.
    (b) Eligible telecommunications carriers may allow qualifying low-
income consumers to apply Lifeline discounts to any residential service
plan that includes voice telephony service, including bundled packages
of voice and data services; and plans that include optional calling
features such as, but not limited to, caller identification, call
waiting, voicemail, and three-way calling. Eligible telecommunications
carriers may also permit qualifying low-income consumers to apply their
Lifeline discount to family shared calling plans.
    (c) Eligible telecommunications carriers may not collect a service
deposit in order to initiate Lifeline service for plans that:
    (1) Do not charge subscribers additional fees for toll calls; or
    (2) That charge additional fees for toll calls, but the subscriber
voluntarily elects toll limitation service.
    (d) When an eligible telecommunications carrier is designated by a
state commission, the state commission

[[Page 153]]

shall file or require the eligible telecommunications carrier to file
information with the Administrator demonstrating that the carrier's
Lifeline plan meets the criteria set forth in this subpart and
describing the terms and conditions of any voice telephony service plans
offered to Lifeline subscribers, including details on the number of
minutes provided as part of the plan, additional charges, if any, for
toll calls, and rates for each such plan. To the extent the eligible
telecommunications carrier offers plans to Lifeline subscribers that are
generally available to the public, it may provide summary information
regarding such plans, such as a link to a public Web site outlining the
terms and conditions of such plans. Lifeline assistance shall be made
available to qualifying low-income consumers as soon as the
Administrator certifies that the carrier's Lifeline plan satisfies the
criteria set out in this subpart.
    (e) Consistent with Sec. 52.33(a)(1)(i)(C) of this chapter,
eligible telecommunications carriers may not charge Lifeline customers a
monthly number-portability charge.

[77 FR 12967, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.403  Lifeline support amount.

    (a) The federal Lifeline support amount for all eligible
telecommunications carriers shall equal:
    (1) Basic support amount. Federal Lifeline support in the amount of
$9.25 per month will be made available to an eligible telecommunications
carrier providing Lifeline service to a qualifying low-income consumer,
if that carrier certifies to the Administrator that it will pass through
the full amount of support to the qualifying low-income consumer and
that it has received any non-federal regulatory approvals necessary to
implement the rate reduction.
    (2) Tribal lands support amount. Additional federal Lifeline support
of up to $25 per month will be made available to an eligible
telecommunications carrier providing Lifeline service to an eligible
resident of Tribal lands, as defined in Sec. 54.400 (e), to the extent
that the eligible telecommunications carrier certifies to the
Administrator that it will pass through the full Tribal lands support
amount to the qualifying eligible resident of Tribal lands and that it
has received any non-federal regulatory approvals necessary to implement
the required rate reduction.
    (b) Application of Lifeline discount amount. (1) Eligible
telecommunications carriers that charge federal End User Common Line
charges or equivalent federal charges must apply federal Lifeline
support to waive the federal End User Common Line charges for Lifeline
subscribers. Such carriers must apply any additional federal support
amount to a qualifying low-income consumer's intrastate rate, if the
carrier has received the non-federal regulatory approvals necessary to
implement the required rate reduction. Other eligible telecommunications
carriers must apply the federal Lifeline support amount, plus any
additional support amount, to reduce the cost of any generally available
residential service plan or package offered by such carriers that
provides voice telephony service as described in Sec. 54.101, and
charge Lifeline subscribers the resulting amount.
    (2) Where a subscriber makes only a partial payment to an eligible
telecommunications carrier for a bundled service package, the eligible
telecommunications carrier must apply the partial payment first to the
allocated price of the voice telephony service component of the package
and then to the cost of any additional services included in the bundled
package.
    (c) Toll limitation service. An eligible telecommunications carrier
providing toll limitation service voluntarily elected by Lifeline
subscribers whose Lifeline plans would otherwise include a fee for
placing a toll call that would be in addition to the per month or per
billing cycle price of the subscriber's Lifeline service, shall, for
April 2012 Lifeline disbursements through December 2013 Lifeline
disbursements, receive support in an amount equal to the lesser of:
    (1) The eligible telecommunications carrier's incremental cost of
providing either toll blocking services or toll control services to each
Lifeline subscriber who has selected such service; or

[[Page 154]]

    (2) The following amounts for each Lifeline subscriber who has
selected toll blocking services or toll control services:
    (i) $3.00 per month per subscriber during 2012; and
    (ii) $2.00 per month per subscriber during 2013.

[77 FR 12967, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.404  The National Lifeline Accountability Database.

    (a) State certification. An eligible telecommunications carrier
operating in a state that provides an approved valid certification to
the Commission in accordance with this section is not required to comply
with the requirements set forth in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this
section with respect to the eligible telecommunications carriers'
subscribers in that state. A valid certification must include a
statement that the state has a comprehensive system in place to prevent
duplicative federal Lifeline support that is at least as robust as the
system adopted by the Commission and that incorporates information from
all eligible telecommunications carriers receiving low-income support in
the state and their subscribers. A valid certification must also
describe in detail how the state system functions and for each
requirement adopted by the Commission to prevent duplicative support,
how the state system performs the equivalent functions. The
certification must be submitted to the Commission no later than six
months from the effective date of this section of the Commission's rules
to be valid. Such certification will be considered approved unless the
Wireline Competition Bureau rejects the certification within 90 days of
filing.
    (b) The National Lifeline Accountability Database. In order to
receive Lifeline support, eligible telecommunications carriers operating
in states that have not provided the Commission with approved valid
certification pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section must comply with
the following requirements:
    (1) All eligible telecommunications carriers must query the National
Lifeline Accountability Database to determine whether a prospective
subscriber who has executed a certification pursuant to Sec. 54.410(d)
is currently receiving a Lifeline service from another eligible
telecommunications carrier; and whether anyone else living at the
prospective subscriber's residential address is currently receiving a
Lifeline service.
    (2) If the Database indicates that a prospective subscriber, who is
not seeking to port his or her telephone number, is currently receiving
a Lifeline service, the eligible telecommunications carrier must not
provide and shall not seek or receive Lifeline reimbursement for that
subscriber.
    (3) If the Database indicates that another individual at the
prospective subscriber's residential address is currently receiving a
Lifeline service, the eligible telecommunications carrier must not seek
and will not receive Lifeline reimbursement for providing service to
that prospective subscriber, unless the prospective subscriber has
certified, pursuant to Sec. 54.410(d) that to the best of his or her
knowledge, no one in his or her household is already receiving a
Lifeline service.
    (4) An eligible telecommunications carrier is not required to comply
with paragraphs (b)(1) through (3) of this section if it receives notice
from a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency that the
administrator or other agency has queried the Database about a
prospective subscriber and that providing the prospective subscriber
with a Lifeline benefit would not result in duplicative support.
    (5) Eligible telecommunications carriers may query the Database only
for the purposes provided in paragraphs (b)(1) through (b)(3) of this
section, and to determine whether information with respect to its
subscribers already in the Database is correct and complete.
    (6) Eligible telecommunications carriers must transmit to the
Database in a format prescribed by the Administrator each new and
existing Lifeline subscriber's full name; full residential address; date
of birth and the last four digits of the subscriber's Social Security
number or Tribal Identification number, if the subscriber is a member of
a Tribal nation and does not have a Social Security number; the
telephone number associated with the Lifeline service; the date on which
the Lifeline

[[Page 155]]

service was initiated; the date on which the Lifeline service was
terminated, if it has been terminated; the amount of support being
sought for that subscriber; and the means through which the subscriber
qualified for Lifeline.
    (7) In the event that two or more eligible telecommunications
carriers transmit the information required by this paragraph to the
Database for the same subscriber, only the eligible telecommunications
carrier whose information was received and processed by the Database
first, as determined by the Administrator, will be entitled to
reimbursement from the Fund for that subscriber.
    (8) All eligible telecommunications carriers must update an existing
Lifeline subscriber's information in the Database within ten business
days of receiving any change to that information, except as described in
paragraph (b)(10) of this section.
    (9) All eligible telecommunications carriers must obtain, from each
new and existing subscriber, consent to transmit the subscriber's
information. Prior to obtaining consent, the eligible telecommunications
carrier must describe to the subscriber, using clear, easily understood
language, the specific information being transmitted, that the
information is being transmitted to the Administrator to ensure the
proper administration of the Lifeline program, and that failure to
provide consent will result in subscriber being denied the Lifeline
service.
    (10) When an eligible telecommunications carrier de-enrolls a
subscriber, it must transmit to the Database the date of Lifeline
service de-enrollment within one business day of de-enrollment.
    (c) Tribal Link Up and the National Lifeline Accountability
Database. In order to receive universal service support reimbursement
for Tribal Link Up, eligible telecommunications carriers operating in
states that have not provided the Commission with a valid certification
pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, must comply with the
following requirements:
    (1) Such eligible telecommunications carriers must query the
Database to determine whether a prospective Link Up recipient who has
executed a certification pursuant to Sec. 54.410(d) has previously
received a Link Up benefit at the residential address provided by the
prospective subscriber.
    (2) If the Database indicates that a prospective subscriber has
received a Link Up benefit at the residential address provided by the
subscriber, the eligible telecommunications provider must not seek Link
Up reimbursement for that subscriber.
    (3) An eligible telecommunications carrier is not required to comply
with paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(2) of this section, if it receives
notice from a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency that
the administrator or other agency has queried the Database about a
prospective subscriber and that providing the prospective subscriber
with a Link Up benefit would not result in duplicative support or
support to a subscriber who had already received Link Up support at that
residential address.
    (4) All eligible telecommunications carriers must transmit to the
Database in a format prescribed by the Administrator each new and
existing Link Up recipient's full name; residential address; date of
birth; and the last four digits of the subscriber's Social Security
number, or Tribal identification number if the subscriber is a member of
a Tribal nation and does not have a Social Security number; the
telephone number associated with the Link Up support; and the date of
service activation. Where two or more eligible telecommunications
carriers transmit the information required by this paragraph to the
Database for the same subscriber, only the eligible telecommunications
carrier whose information was received and processed by the Database
first, as determined by the Administrator, will be entitled to
reimbursement from the Fund for that subscriber.
    (5) All eligible telecommunications carriers must obtain, from each
new and existing subscriber, consent to transmit the information
required in paragraph (c) of this section. Prior to obtaining consent,
the eligible telecommunications carrier must describe to the subscriber,
using clear, easily

[[Page 156]]

understood language, the specific information being transmitted, that
the information is being transmitted to the Administrator to ensure the
proper administration of the Link Up program, and that failure to
provide consent will result in the subscriber being denied the Link Up
benefit.

[77 FR 12968, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.405  Carrier obligation to offer Lifeline.

    All eligible telecommunications carriers must:
    (a) Make available Lifeline service, as defined in Sec. 54.401, to
qualifying low-income consumers.
    (b) Publicize the availability of Lifeline service in a manner
reasonably designed to reach those likely to qualify for the service.
    (c) Indicate on all materials describing the service, using easily
understood language, that it is a Lifeline service, that Lifeline is a
government assistance program, the service is non-transferable, only
eligible consumers may enroll in the program, and the program is limited
to one discount per household. For the purposes of this section, the
term ``materials describing the service'' includes all print, audio,
video, and web materials used to describe or enroll in the Lifeline
service offering, including application and certification forms.
    (d) Disclose the name of the eligible telecommunications carrier on
all materials describing the service.
    (e) De-enrollment--(1) De-enrollment generally. If an eligible
telecommunications carrier has a reasonable basis to believe that a
Lifeline subscriber no longer meets the criteria to be considered a
qualifying low-income consumer under Sec. 54.409, the carrier must
notify the subscriber of impending termination of his or her Lifeline
service. Notification of impending termination must be sent in writing
separate from the subscriber's monthly bill, if one is provided, and
must be written in clear, easily understood language. A carrier
providing Lifeline service in a state that has dispute resolution
procedures applicable to Lifeline termination, that requires, at a
minimum, written notification of impending termination, must comply with
the applicable state requirements. The carrier must allow a subscriber
30-days following the date of the impending termination letter required
to demonstrate continued eligibility. A subscriber making such a
demonstration must present proof of continued eligibility to the carrier
consistent with applicable annual re-certification requirements, as
described in Sec. 54.410(f). An eligible telecommunications carrier
must terminate any subscriber who fails to demonstrate continued
eligibility within the 30-day time period. A carrier providing Lifeline
service in a state that has dispute resolution procedures applicable to
Lifeline termination must comply with the applicable state requirements.
    (2) De-enrollment for duplicative support. Notwithstanding paragraph
(e)(1) of this section, upon notification by the Administrator to any
eligible telecommunications carrier that a subscriber is receiving
Lifeline service from another eligible telecommunications carrier or
that more than one member of a subscriber's household is receiving
Lifeline service and therefore that the subscriber should be de-enrolled
from participation in that carrier's Lifeline program, the eligible
telecommunications carrier must de-enroll the subscriber from
participation in that carrier's Lifeline program within five business
days. An eligible telecommunications carrier shall not be eligible for
Lifeline reimbursement for any de-enrolled subscriber following the date
of that subscriber's de-enrollment.
    (3) De-enrollment for non-usage. Notwithstanding paragraph (e)(1) of
this section, if a Lifeline subscriber fails to use, as ``usage'' is
defined in Sec. 54.407(c)(2), for 60 consecutive days a Lifeline
service that does not require the eligible telecommunications carrier to
assess or collect a monthly fee from its subscribers, an eligible
telecommunications carrier must provide the subscriber 30 days' notice,
using clear, easily understood language, that the subscriber's failure
to use the Lifeline service within the 30-day notice period will result
in service termination for non-usage under this paragraph. If the
subscriber uses the Lifeline service within 30 days of the carrier
providing such notice, the eligible

[[Page 157]]

telecommunications carrier shall not terminate the subscriber's Lifeline
service. Eligible telecommunications carriers shall report to the
Commission annually the number of subscribers de-enrolled for non-usage
under this paragraph. This de-enrollment information must be reported by
month and must be submitted to the Commission at the time an eligible
telecommunications carrier submits its annual certification report
pursuant to Sec. 54.416.
    (4) De-enrollment for failure to re-certify. Notwithstanding
paragraph (e)(1) of this section, an eligible telecommunications carrier
must de-enroll a Lifeline subscriber who does not respond to the
carrier's attempts to obtain re-certification of the subscriber's
continued eligibility as required by Sec. 54.410(f); who fails to
provide the annual one-per-household re-certifications as required by
Sec. 54.410(f); or who relies on a temporary address and fails to
respond to the carrier's address re-certification attempts pursuant to
Sec. 54.410(g). Prior to de-enrolling a subscriber under this
paragraph, the eligible telecommunications carrier must notify the
subscriber in writing separate from the subscriber's monthly bill, if
one is provided using clear, easily understood language, that failure to
respond to the re-certification request within 30 days of the date of
the request will trigger de-enrollment. If a subscriber does not respond
to the carrier's notice of impending de-enrollment, the carrier must de-
enroll the subscriber from Lifeline within five business days after the
expiration of the subscriber's time to respond to the re-certification
efforts.

[77 FR 12969, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.407  Reimbursement for offering Lifeline.

    (a) Universal service support for providing Lifeline shall be
provided directly to an eligible telecommunications carrier, based on
the number of actual qualifying low-income consumers it serves.
    (b) An eligible telecommunications carrier may receive universal
service support reimbursement for each qualifying low-income consumer
served. For each qualifying low-income consumer receiving Lifeline
service, the reimbursement amount shall equal the federal support
amount, including the support amounts described in Sec. 54.403(a) and
(c). The eligible telecommunications carrier's universal service support
reimbursement shall not exceed the carrier's rate for that offering, or
similar offerings, subscribed to by consumers who do not qualify for
Lifeline.
    (c) An eligible telecommunications carrier offering a Lifeline
service that does not require the eligible telecommunications carrier to
assess or collect a monthly fee from its subscribers:
    (1) Shall not receive universal service support for a subscriber to
such Lifeline service until the subscriber activates the service by
whatever means specified by the carrier, such as completing an outbound
call; and
    (2) After service activation, an eligible telecommunications carrier
shall only continue to receive universal service support reimbursement
for such Lifeline service provided to subscribers who have used the
service within the last 60 days, or who have cured their non-usage as
provided for in Sec. 54.405(e)(3). Any of these activities, if
undertaken by the subscriber will establish ``usage'' of the Lifeline
service:
    (i) Completion of an outbound call;
    (ii) Purchase of minutes from the eligible telecommunications
carrier to add to the subscriber's service plan;
    (iii) Answering an incoming call from a party other than the
eligible telecommunications carrier or the eligible telecommunications
carrier's agent or representative; or
    (iv) Responding to direct contact from the eligible communications
carrier and confirming that he or she wants to continue receiving the
Lifeline service.
    (d) In order to receive universal service support reimbursement, an
eligible telecommunications carrier must certify, as part of each
request for reimbursement, that it is in compliance with all of the
rules in this subpart, and, to the extent required under this subpart,
has obtained valid certification and re-certification forms for each of
the subscribers for whom it is seeking reimbursement.
    (e) In order to receive universal service support reimbursement, an
eligible

[[Page 158]]

telecommunications carrier must keep accurate records of the revenues it
forgoes in providing Lifeline services. Such records shall be kept in
the form directed by the Administrator and provided to the Administrator
at intervals as directed by the Administrator or as provided in this
subpart.

[77 FR 12970, Mar. 2, 2012, as amended at 77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012]



Sec. 54.409  Consumer qualification for Lifeline.

    (a) To constitute a qualifying low-income consumer:
    (1) A consumer's household income as defined in Sec. 54.400(f) must
be at or below 135% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for a household of
that size; or
    (2) The consumer, one or more of the consumer's dependents, or the
consumer's household must receive benefits from one of the following
federal assistance programs: Medicaid; Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program; Supplemental Security Income; Federal Public Housing Assistance
(Section 8); Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program; National School
Lunch Program's free lunch program; or Temporary Assistance for Needy
Families; or
    (3) The consumer meets additional eligibility criteria established
by a state for its residents, provided that such-state specific criteria
are based solely on income or other factors directly related to income.
    (b) A consumer who lives on Tribal lands is eligible for Lifeline
service as a ``qualifying low-income consumer'' as defined by Sec.
54.400(a) and as an ``eligible resident of Tribal lands'' as defined by
Sec. 54.400(e) if that consumer meets the qualifications for Lifeline
specified in paragraph (a) of this section or if the consumer, one or
more of the consumer's dependents, or the consumer's household
participates in one of the following Tribal-specific federal assistance
programs: Bureau of Indian Affairs general assistance; Tribally
administered Temporary Assistance for Needy Families; Head Start (only
those households meeting its income qualifying standard); or the Food
Distribution Program on Indian Reservations.
    (c) In addition to meeting the qualifications provided in paragraph
(a) or (b) of this section, in order to constitute a qualifying low-
income consumer, a consumer must not already be receiving a Lifeline
service, and there must not be anyone else in the subscriber's household
subscribed to a Lifeline service.

[77 FR 12970, Mar. 2, 2012, as amended at 77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012]



Sec. 54.410  Subscriber eligibility determination and certification.

    (a) All eligible telecommunications carriers must implement policies
and procedures for ensuring that their Lifeline subscribers are eligible
to receive Lifeline services. An eligible telecommunications carrier may
not provide a consumer with an activated device that it represents
enables use of Lifeline-supported service, nor may it activate service
that it represents to be Lifeline service, unless and until it has:
    (1) Confirmed that the consumer is a qualifying low-income consumer
pursuant to Sec. 54.409, and;
    (2) Completed the eligibility determination and certification
required by this section and Sec. Sec. 54.404 through 54.405, and
completed any other necessary enrollment steps.
    (b) Initial income-based eligibility determination. (1) Except where
a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency is responsible for
the initial determination of a subscriber's eligibility, when a
prospective subscriber seeks to qualify for Lifeline or using the
income-based eligibility criteria provided for in Sec. 54.409(a)(1) or
(a)(3) an eligible telecommunications carrier:
    (i) Must not seek reimbursement for providing Lifeline to a
subscriber, unless the carrier has received a certification of
eligibility from the prospective subscriber that complies with the
requirements set forth in paragraph (d) of this section and has
confirmed the subscriber's income-based eligibility using the following
procedures:
    (A) If an eligible telecommunications carrier can determine a
prospective subscriber's income-based eligibility by accessing one or
more databases containing information regarding the subscriber's income
(``income databases''), the eligible telecommunications carrier must
access such income databases

[[Page 159]]

and determine whether the prospective subscriber qualifies for Lifeline.
    (B) If an eligible telecommunications carrier cannot determine a
prospective subscriber's income-based eligibility by accessing income
databases, the eligible telecommunications carrier must review
documentation that establishes that the prospective subscriber meets the
income-eligibility criteria set forth in Sec. 54.409(a)(1) or (a)(3).
Acceptable documentation of income eligibility includes the prior year's
state, federal, or Tribal tax return; current income statement from an
employer or paycheck stub; a Social Security statement of benefits; a
Veterans Administration statement of benefits; a retirement/pension
statement of benefits; an Unemployment/Workers' Compensation statement
of benefit; federal or Tribal notice letter of participation in General
Assistance; or a divorce decree, child support award, or other official
document containing income information. If the prospective subscriber
presents documentation of income that does not cover a full year, such
as current pay stubs, the prospective subscriber must present the same
type of documentation covering three consecutive months within the
previous twelve months.
    (ii) Must not retain copies of the documentation of a prospective
subscriber's income-based eligibility for Lifeline.
    (iii) Must, consistent with Sec. 54.417, keep and maintain accurate
records detailing the data source a carrier used to determine a
subscriber's eligibility or the documentation a subscriber provided to
demonstrate his or her eligibility for Lifeline.
    (2) Where a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency is
responsible for the initial determination of a subscriber's eligibility,
an eligible telecommunications carrier must not seek reimbursement for
providing Lifeline service to a subscriber, based on that subscriber's
income eligibility, unless the carrier has received from the state
Lifeline administrator or other state agency:
    (i) Notice that the prospective subscriber meets the income-
eligibility criteria set forth in Sec. 54.409(a)(1) or (a)(3); and
    (ii) A copy of the subscriber's certification that complies with the
requirements set forth in paragraph (d) of this section.
    (c) Initial program-based eligibility determination. (1) Except in
states where a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency is
responsible for the initial determination of a subscriber's program-
based eligibility, when a prospective subscriber seeks to qualify for
Lifeline service using the program-based criteria set forth in Sec.
54.409(a)(2), (a)(3) or (b), an eligible telecommunications carrier:
    (i) Must not seek reimbursement for providing Lifeline to a
subscriber unless the carrier has received a certification of
eligibility from the subscriber that complies with the requirements set
forth in paragraph (d) of this section and has confirmed the
subscriber's program-based eligibility using the following procedures:
    (A) If the eligible telecommunications carrier can determine a
prospective subscriber's program-based eligibility for Lifeline by
accessing one or more databases containing information regarding
enrollment in qualifying assistance programs (``eligibility
databases''), the eligible telecommunications carrier must access such
eligibility databases to determine whether the prospective subscriber
qualifies for Lifeline based on participation in a qualifying assistance
program; or
    (B) If an eligible telecommunications carrier cannot determine a
prospective subscriber's program-based eligibility for Lifeline by
accessing eligibility databases, the eligible telecommunications carrier
must review documentation demonstrating that a prospective subscriber
qualifies for Lifeline under the program-based eligibility requirements.
Acceptable documentation of program eligibility includes the current or
prior year's statement of benefits from a qualifying assistance program,
a notice or letter of participation in a qualifying assistance program,
program participation documents, or another official document
demonstrating that the prospective

[[Page 160]]

subscriber, one or more of the prospective subscriber's dependents or
the prospective subscriber's household receives benefits from a
qualifying assistance program.
    (ii) Must not retain copies of the documentation of a subscriber's
program-based eligibility for Lifeline services.
    (iii) Must, consistent with Sec. 54.417, keep and maintain accurate
records detailing the data source a carrier used to determine a
subscriber's program-based eligibility or the documentation a subscriber
provided to demonstrate his or her eligibility for Lifeline.
    (2) Where a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency is
responsible for the initial determination of a subscriber's eligibility,
when a prospective subscriber seeks to qualify for Lifeline service
using the program-based eligibility criteria provided in Sec. 54.409,
an eligible telecommunications carrier must not seek reimbursement for
providing Lifeline to a subscriber unless the carrier has received from
the state Lifeline administrator or other state agency:
    (i) Notice that the subscriber meets the program-based eligibility
criteria set forth in Sec. Sec. 54.409(a)(2), (a)(3) or (b); and
    (ii) a copy of the subscriber's certification that complies with the
requirements set forth in paragraph (d) of this section.
    (d) Eligibility certifications. Eligible telecommunications carriers
and state Lifeline administrators or other state agencies that are
responsible for the initial determination of a subscriber's eligibility
for Lifeline must provide prospective subscribers Lifeline certification
forms that in clear, easily understood language:
    (1) Provide the following information:
    (i) Lifeline is a federal benefit and that willfully making false
statements to obtain the benefit can result in fines, imprisonment, de-
enrollment or being barred from the program;
    (ii) Only one Lifeline service is available per household;
    (iii) A household is defined, for purposes of the Lifeline program,
as any individual or group of individuals who live together at the same
address and share income and expenses;
    (iv) A household is not permitted to receive Lifeline benefits from
multiple providers;
    (v) Violation of the one-per-household limitation constitutes a
violation of the Commission's rules and will result in the subscriber's
de-enrollment from the program; and
    (vi) Lifeline is a non-transferable benefit and the subscriber may
not transfer his or her benefit to any other person.
    (2) Require each prospective subscriber to provide the following
information:
    (i) The subscriber's full name;
    (ii) The subscriber's full residential address;
    (iii) Whether the subscriber's residential address is permanent or
temporary;
    (iv) The subscriber's billing address, if different from the
subscriber's residential address;
    (v) The subscriber's date of birth;
    (vi) The last four digits of the subscriber's social security
number, or the subscriber's Tribal identification number, if the
subscriber is a member of a Tribal nation and does not have a social
security number;
    (vii) If the subscriber is seeking to qualify for Lifeline under the
program-based criteria, as set forth in Sec. 54.409, the name of the
qualifying assistance program from which the subscriber, his or her
dependents, or his or her household receives benefits; and
    (viii) If the subscriber is seeking to qualify for Lifeline under
the income-based criterion, as set forth in Sec. 54.409, the number of
individuals in his or her household.
    (3) Require each prospective subscriber to certify, under penalty of
perjury, that:
    (i) The subscriber meets the income-based or program-based
eligibility criteria for receiving Lifeline, provided in Sec. 54.409;
    (ii) The subscriber will notify the carrier within 30 days if for
any reason he or she no longer satisfies the criteria for receiving
Lifeline including, as relevant, if the subscriber no longer meets the
income-based or program-based criteria for receiving Lifeline support,
the subscriber is receiving

[[Page 161]]

more than one Lifeline benefit, or another member of the subscriber's
household is receiving a Lifeline benefit.
    (iii) If the subscriber is seeking to qualify for Lifeline as an
eligible resident of Tribal lands, he or she lives on Tribal lands, as
defined in 54.400(e);
    (iv) If the subscriber moves to a new address, he or she will
provide that new address to the eligible telecommunications carrier
within 30 days;
    (v) If the subscriber provided a temporary residential address to
the eligible telecommunications carrier, he or she will be required to
verify his or her temporary residential address every 90 days;
    (vi) The subscriber's household will receive only one Lifeline
service and, to the best of his or her knowledge, the subscriber's
household is not already receiving a Lifeline service;
    (vii) The information contained in the subscriber's certification
form is true and correct to the best of his or her knowledge,
    (viii) The subscriber acknowledges that providing false or
fraudulent information to receive Lifeline benefits is punishable by
law; and
    (ix) The subscriber acknowledges that the subscriber may be required
to re-certify his or her continued eligibility for Lifeline at any time,
and the subscriber's failure to re-certify as to his or her continued
eligibility will result in de-enrollment and the termination of the
subscriber's Lifeline benefits pursuant to Sec. 54.405(e)(4).
    (e) State Lifeline administrators or other state agencies that are
responsible for the initial determination of a subscriber's eligibility
for Lifeline must provide each eligible telecommunications carrier with
a copy of each of the certification forms collected by the state
Lifeline administrator or other state agency from that carrier's
subscribers.
    (f) Annual eligibility re-certification process. (1) All eligible
telecommunications carriers must annually re-certify all subscribers
except for subscribers in states where a state Lifeline administrator or
other state agency is responsible for re-certification of subscribers'
Lifeline eligibility.
    (2) In order to re-certify a subscriber's eligibility, an eligible
telecommunications carrier must confirm a subscriber's current
eligibility to receive Lifeline by:
    (i) Querying the appropriate eligibility databases, confirming that
the subscriber still meets the program-based eligibility requirements
for Lifeline, and documenting the results of that review; or
    (ii) Querying the appropriate income databases, confirming that the
subscriber continues to meet the income-based eligibility requirements
for Lifeline, and documenting the results of that review; or
    (iii) Obtaining a signed certification from the subscriber that
meets the certification requirements in paragraph (d) of this section.
    (3) Where a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency is
responsible for re-certification of a subscriber's Lifeline eligibility,
the state Lifeline administrator or other state agency must confirm a
subscriber's current eligibility to receive a Lifeline service by:
    (i) Querying the appropriate eligibility databases, confirming that
the subscriber still meets the program-based eligibility requirements
for Lifeline, and documenting the results of that review; or
    (ii) Querying the appropriate income databases, confirming that the
subscriber continues to meet the income-based eligibility requirements
for Lifeline, and documenting the results of that review; or
    (iii) Obtaining a signed certification from the subscriber that
meets the certification requirements in paragraph (d) of this section.
    (4) Where a state Lifeline administrator or other state agency is
responsible for re-certification of subscribers' Lifeline eligibility,
the state Lifeline administrator or other state agency must provide to
each eligible telecommunications carrier the results of its annual re-
certification efforts with respect to that eligible telecommunications
carrier's subscribers.
    (5) If an eligible telecommunications carrier is unable to re-
certify a subscriber or has been notified of a state Lifeline
administrator's or other state

[[Page 162]]

agency's inability to re-certify a subscriber, the eligible
telecommunications carrier must comply with the de-enrollment
requirements provided for in Sec. 54.405(e)(4).
    (g) Re-certification of temporary address. An eligible
telecommunications carrier must re-certify, every 90 days, the
residential address of each of its subscribers who have provided a
temporary address as part of the subscriber's initial certification or
re-certification of eligibility, pursuant to paragraphs (d), (e), or (f)
of this section.

[77 FR 12970, Mar. 2, 2012, as amended at 77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012; 78
FR 40970, July 9, 2013]



Sec. 54.412  Off reservation Tribal lands designation process.

    (a) The Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau and the Office of
Native Affairs and Policy may, upon receipt of a request made in
accordance with the requirements of this section, designate as Tribal
lands, for the purposes of the Lifeline and Tribal Link Up program,
areas or communities that fall outside the boundaries of existing Tribal
lands but which maintain the same characteristics as lands identified as
Tribal lands defined as in Sec. 54.400(e).
    (b) A request for designation must be made to the Commission by a
duly authorized official of a federally recognized American Indian Tribe
or Alaska Native Village.
    (c) A request for designation must clearly describe a defined
geographical area for which the requesting party seeks designation as
Tribal lands.
    (d) A request for designation must demonstrate the Tribal character
of the area or community.
    (e) A request for designation must provide sufficient evidence of a
nexus between the area or community and the Tribe, and describe in
detail how program support to the area or community would aid the Tribe
in serving the needs and interests of its citizens and further the
Commission's goal of increasing telecommunications access on Tribal
lands.
    (f) Upon designation by the Wireline Competition Bureau and the
Office of Native Affairs and Policy, the area or community described in
the designation shall be considered Tribal lands for the purposes of
this subpart.

[77 FR 12972, Mar. 2, 2012, as amended at 77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012]



Sec. 54.413  Link Up for Tribal lands.

    (a) Definition. For purposes of this subpart, the term ``Tribal Link
Up'' means an assistance program for eligible residents of Tribal lands
seeking telecommunications service from a telecommunications carrier
that is receiving high-cost support on Tribal lands, pursuant to subpart
D of this part, that provides:
    (1) A 100 percent reduction, up to $100, of the customary charge for
commencing telecommunications service for a single telecommunications
connection at a subscriber's principal place of residence imposed by an
eligible telecommunications carrier that is also receiving high-cost
support on Tribal lands, pursuant to subpart D of this part. For
purposes of this subpart, a ``customary charge for commencing
telecommunications service'' is the ordinary charge an eligible
telecommunications carrier imposes and collects from all subscribers to
initiate service with that eligible telecommunications carrier. A charge
imposed only on qualifying low-income consumers to initiate service is
not a customary charge for commencing telecommunications service.
Activation charges routinely waived, reduced, or eliminated with the
purchase of additional products, services, or minutes are not customary
charges eligible for universal service support; and
    (2) A deferred schedule of payments of the customary charge for
commencing telecommunications service for a single telecommunications
connection at a subscriber's principal place of residence imposed by an
eligible telecommunications carrier that is also receiving high-cost
support on Tribal lands, pursuant to subpart D of this part, for which
the eligible resident of Tribal lands does not pay interest. The
interest charges not assessed to the eligible resident of tribal lands
shall be for a customary charge for connecting telecommunications
service of up to $200 and such interest charges shall be deferred for a
period not to exceed one year.

[[Page 163]]

    (b) An eligible resident of Tribal lands may receive the benefit of
the Tribal Link Up program for a second or subsequent time only for
otherwise qualifying commencement of telecommunications service at a
principal place of residence with an address different from the address
for which Tribal Link Up assistance was provided previously.

[77 FR 12973, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.414  Reimbursement for Tribal Link Up.

    (a) Eligible telecommunications carriers that are receiving high-
cost support, pursuant to subpart D of this part, may receive universal
service support reimbursement for the reduction in their customary
charge for commencing telecommunications service and for providing a
deferred schedule for payment of the customary charge for commencing
telecommunications services for which the subscriber does not pay
interest, in conformity with Sec. 54.413.
    (b) In order to receive universal support reimbursement for
providing Tribal Link Up, eligible telecommunications carriers must
follow the procedures set forth in Sec. 54.410 to determine an eligible
resident of Tribal lands' initial eligibility for Tribal Link Up.
Eligible telecommunications carriers must obtain a certification form
from each eligible resident of Tribal lands that complies with Sec.
54.410 prior to enrolling him or her in Tribal Link Up.
    (c) In order to receive universal service support reimbursement for
providing Tribal Link Up, eligible telecommunications carriers must keep
accurate records of the reductions in their customary charge for
commencing telecommunications service and for providing a deferred
schedule for payment of the charges assessed for commencing service for
which the subscriber does not pay interest, in conformity with Sec.
54.413. Such records shall be kept in the form directed by the
Administrator and provided to the Administrator at intervals as directed
by the Administrator or as provided in this subpart. The reductions in
the customary charge for which the eligible telecommunications carrier
may receive reimbursement shall include only the difference between the
carrier's customary connection or interest charges and the charges
actually assessed to the subscriber receiving Lifeline services.

[77 FR 12973, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.416  Annual certifications by eligible telecommunications
carriers.

    (a) Eligible telecommunications carrier certifications. Eligible
telecommunications carriers are required to make and submit to the
Administrator the following annual certifications, under penalty of
perjury, relating to the Lifeline program:
    (1) An officer of each eligible telecommunications carrier must
certify that the carrier has policies and procedures in place to ensure
that its Lifeline subscribers are eligible to receive Lifeline services.
Each eligible telecommunications carrier must make this certification
annually to the Administrator as part of the carrier's submission of
annual re-certification data pursuant to this section. In instances
where an eligible telecommunications carrier confirms consumer
eligibility by relying on income or eligibility databases, as defined in
Sec. 54.410(b)(1)(i)(A) or (c)(1)(i)(A), the representative must attest
annually as to what specific data sources the eligible
telecommunications carrier used to confirm eligibility.
    (2) An officer of the eligible telecommunications carrier must
certify that the carrier is in compliance with all federal Lifeline
certification procedures. Eligible telecommunications carriers must make
this certification annually to the Administrator as part of the
carrier's submission of re-certification data pursuant to this section.
    (b) All eligible telecommunications carriers must annually provide
the results of their re-certification efforts, performed pursuant to
Sec. 54.410(f), to the Commission and the Administrator. Eligible
telecommunications carriers designated as such by one or more states
pursuant to Sec. 54.201 must also provide, on an annual basis, the
results of their re-certification efforts to state commissions for
subscribers residing in those states where the state designated

[[Page 164]]

the eligible telecommunications carrier. Eligible telecommunications
carriers must also provide their annual re-certification results for
subscribers residing on Tribal lands to the relevant Tribal governments.
    (c) States that mandate Lifeline support may impose additional
standards on eligible telecommunications carriers operating in their
states to ensure compliance with state Lifeline programs.

[77 FR 12973, Mar. 2, 2012, as amended at 77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012]



Sec. 54.417  Recordkeeping requirements.

    (a) Eligible telecommunications carriers must maintain records to
document compliance with all Commission and state requirements governing
the Lifeline and Tribal Link Up program for the three full preceding
calendar years and provide that documentation to the Commission or
Administrator upon request. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence,
eligible telecommunications carriers must maintain the documentation
required in Sec. 54.410(d) and (f) for as long as the subscriber
receives Lifeline service from that eligible telecommunications carrier.
    (b) If an eligible telecommunications carrier provides Lifeline
discounted wholesale services to a reseller, it must obtain a
certification from that reseller that it is complying with all
Commission requirements governing the Lifeline and Tribal Link Up
program.
    (c) Non-eligible-telecommunications-carrier resellers that purchase
Lifeline discounted wholesale services to offer discounted services to
low-income consumers must maintain records to document compliance with
all Commission requirements governing the Lifeline and Tribal Link Up
program for the three full preceding calendar years and provide that
documentation to the Commission or Administrator upon request. To the
extent such a reseller provides discounted services to low-income
consumers, it must fulfill the obligations of an eligible
telecommunications carrier in Sec. Sec. 54.405 and 54.410.

[77 FR 12974, Mar. 2, 2012, as amended at 77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012]



Sec. 54.418  Digital Television Transition Notices by Eligible
Telecommunications Carriers.

    (a) Eligible telecommunications carriers (ETCs) that receive federal
universal service funds shall provide their Lifeline or Link-Up
customers with notices about the transition for over-the-air full power
broadcasting from analog to digital service (the ``DTV Transition'') in
the monthly bills or bill notices received by such customers, or as a
monthly stand-alone mailer (e.g., postcard, brochure), beginning April
1, 2009, and concluding on June 30, 2009.
    (b) The notice must be provided as part of an information section on
the bill or bill notice itself or on a secondary document mailed with
the bill or bill notice, or as part of a monthly stand-alone mailer
(e.g., postcard, brochure) in the same language or languages as the
customer's bill or bill notice. These notices must:
    (1) Be in clear and conspicuous print;
    (2) Convey at least the following information about the DTV
transition:
    (i) The nationwide switch to digital television broadcasting will be
complete on June 12, 2009, but your local television stations may switch
sooner. After the switch, analog-only television sets that receive TV
programming through an antenna will need a converter box to continue to
receive over-the-air TV. Watch your local stations to find out when they
will turn off their analog signal and switch to digital-only
broadcasting. Analog-only TVs should continue to work as before to
receive low power, Class A or translator television stations and with
cable and satellite TV services, gaming consoles, VCRs, DVD players, and
similar products.
    (ii) Information about the DTV transition is available from your
local television stations, http://www.DTV.gov, or 1-888-CALL-FCC (TTY 1-
888-TELL-FCC), and from http://www.dtv2009.gov or 1-888-DTV-2009 (TTY 1-
877-530-2634) for information about subsidized coupons for digital-to-
analog converter boxes;
    (c) If an ETC's Lifeline or Link-Up customer does not receive paper
versions of either a bill or a notice of billing, then that customer
must be

[[Page 165]]

provided with equivalent monthly notices in whatever medium they receive
information about their monthly bill or as a monthly stand-alone mailer
(e.g., postcard, brochure).
    (d) ETCs that receive federal universal service funds shall provide
information on the DTV Transition that is equivalent to the information
provided pursuant to paragraph (b)(2) of this section as part of any
Lifeline or Link-Up publicity campaigns conducted by the ETC between
March 27, 2008, and June 30, 2009.

[73 FR 28732, May 19, 2008, as amended at 74 FR 8878, Feb. 27, 2009]



Sec. 54.419  Validity of electronic signatures.

    (a) For the purposes of this subpart, an electronic signature,
defined by the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce
Act, as an electronic sound, symbol, or process, attached to or
logically associated with a contract or other record and executed or
adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record, has the same
legal effect as a written signature.
    (b) For the purposes of this subpart, an electronic record, defined
by the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act as a
contract or other record created, generated, sent, communicated,
received, or stored by electronic means, constitutes a record.

[77 FR 12974, Mar. 2, 2012]



Sec. 54.420  Low income program audits.

    (a) Independent audit requirements for eligible telecommunications
carriers. Companies that receive $5 million or more annually in the
aggregate, on a holding company basis, in Lifeline reimbursements must
obtain a third party biennial audit of their compliance with the rules
in this subpart. Such engagements shall be agreed upon performance
attestations to assess the company's overall compliance with rules and
the company's internal controls regarding these regulatory requirements.
    (1) For purposes of the $5 million threshold, a holding company
consists of operating companies and affiliates, as that term is defined
in section 3(2) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, that are
eligible telecommunications carriers.
    (2) The initial audit must be completed one year after the
Commission issues a standardized audit plan outlining the scope of the
engagement and the extent of compliance testing to be performed by
third-party auditors and shall be conducted every two years thereafter,
unless directed otherwise by the Commission. The following minimum
requirements shall apply:
    (i) The audit must be conducted by a licensed certified public
accounting firm that is independent of the carrier.
    (ii) The engagement shall be conducted consistent with government
accounting standards (GAGAS).
    (3) The certified public accounting firm shall submit to the
Commission any rule interpretations necessary to complete the biennial
audit, and the Administrator shall notify all firms subject to the
biennial audit requirement of such requests. The audit issue will be
noted, but not held as a negative finding, in future audit reports for
all carriers subject to this requirement unless and until guidance has
been provided by the Commission.
    (4) Within 60 days after completion of the audit work, but prior to
finalization of the report, the third party auditor shall submit a draft
of the audit report to the Commission and the Administrator, who shall
be deemed authorized users of such reports. Finalized audit reports must
be provided to the Commission, the Administrator, and relevant states
and Tribal governments within 30 days of the issuance of the final audit
report. The reports will not be considered or deemed confidential.
    (5) Delegated authority. The Wireline Competition Bureau and the
Office of Managing Director have delegated authority to perform the
functions specified in paragraphs (a)(2) and (a)(3) of this section.
    (b) Audit requirements for new eligible telecommunications carriers.
After a company is designated for the first time in any state or
territory the Administrator will audit that new eligible
telecommunications carrier to assess its overall compliance with the
rules in this subpart and the company's internal controls regarding
these regulatory

[[Page 166]]

requirements. This audit should be conducted within the carrier's first
twelve months of seeking federal low-income Universal Service Fund
support.

[77 FR 12974, Mar. 2, 2012, as amended at 77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012]



Sec. 54.422  Annual reporting for eligible telecommunications carriers
that receive low-income support.

    (a) In order to receive support under this subpart, an eligible
telecommunications carrier must annually report:
    (1) The company name, names of the company's holding company,
operating companies and affiliates, and any branding (a ``dba,'' or
``doing-business-as company'' or brand designation) as well as relevant
universal service identifiers for each such entity by Study Area Code.
For purposes of this paragraph, ``affiliates'' has the meaning set forth
in section 3(2) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended; and
    (2) Information describing the terms and conditions of any voice
telephony service plans offered to Lifeline subscribers, including
details on the number of minutes provided as part of the plan,
additional charges, if any, for toll calls, and rates for each such
plan. To the extent the eligible telecommunications carrier offers plans
to Lifeline subscribers that are generally available to the public, it
may provide summary information regarding such plans, such as a link to
a public Web site outlining the terms and conditions of such plans.
    (b) In order to receive support under this subpart, a common carrier
that is designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier under
section 214(e)(6) of the Act and does not receive support under subpart
D of this part must annually provide:
    (1) Detailed information on any outage in the prior calendar year,
as that term is defined in 47 CFR 4.5, of at least 30 minutes in
duration for each service area in which the eligible telecommunications
carrier is designated for any facilities it owns, operates, leases, or
otherwise utilizes that potentially affect
    (i) At least ten percent of the end users served in a designated
service area; or
    (ii) A 911 special facility, as defined in 47 CFR 4.5(e).
    (iii) Specifically, the eligible telecommunications carrier's annual
report must include information detailing:
    (A) The date and time of onset of the outage;
    (B) A brief description of the outage and its resolution;
    (C) The particular services affected;
    (D) The geographic areas affected by the outage;
    (E) Steps taken to prevent a similar situation in the future; and
    (F) The number of customers affected.
    (2) The number of complaints per 1,000 connections (fixed or mobile)
in the prior calendar year;
    (3) Certification of compliance with applicable service quality
standards and consumer protection rules;
    (4) Certification that the carrier is able to function in emergency
situations as set forth in Sec. 54.202(a)(2).
    (c) All reports required by this section must be filed with the
Office of the Secretary of the Commission, and with the Administrator.
Such reports must also be filed with the relevant state commissions and
the relevant authority in a U.S. territory or Tribal governments, as
appropriate.

[77 FR 38534, June 28, 2012]



      Subpart F_Universal Service Support for Schools and Libraries



Sec. 54.500  Terms and definitions.

    (a) Billed entity. A ``billed entity'' is the entity that remits
payment to service providers for services rendered to eligible schools
and libraries.
    (b) Educational purposes. For purposes of this subpart, activities
that are integral, immediate, and proximate to the education of
students, or in the case of libraries, integral, immediate and proximate
to the provision of library services to library patrons, qualify as
``educational purposes.'' Activities that occur on library or school
property are presumed to be integral, immediate, and proximate to the
education of students or the provision of library services to library
patrons.

[[Page 167]]

    (c) Elementary school. An ``elementary school'' means an elementary
school as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(18), a non-profit institutional day
or residential school, including a public elementary charter school,
that provides elementary education, as determined under state law.
    (d) Library. A ``library'' includes:
    (1) A public library;
    (2) A public elementary school or secondary school library;
    (3) An academic library;
    (4) A research library, which for the purpose of this section means
a library that:
    (i) Makes publicly available library services and materials suitable
for scholarly research and not otherwise available to the public; and
    (ii) Is not an integral part of an institution of higher education;
and
    (5) A private library, but only if the state in which such private
library is located determines that the library should be considered a
library for the purposes of this definition.
    (e) Library consortium. A ``library consortium'' is any local,
statewide, regional, or interstate cooperative association of libraries
that provides for the systematic and effective coordination of the
resources of schools, public, academic, and special libraries and
information centers, for improving services to the clientele of such
libraries. For the purposes of these rules, references to library will
also refer to library consortium.
    (f) Lowest corresponding price. ``Lowest corresponding price'' is
the lowest price that a service provider charges to non-residential
customers who are similarly situated to a particular school, library, or
library consortium for similar services.
    (g) Master contract. A ``master contract'' is a contract negotiated
with a service provider by a third party, the terms and conditions of
which are then made available to an eligible school, library, rural
health care provider, or consortium that purchases directly from the
service provider.
    (h) Minor contract modification. A ``minor contract modification''
is a change to a universal service contract that is within the scope of
the original contract and has no effect or merely a negligible effect on
price, quantity, quality, or delivery under the original contract.
    (i) National school lunch program. The ``national school lunch
program'' is a program administered by the U.S. Department of
Agriculture and state agencies that provides free or reduced price
lunches to economically disadvantaged children. A child whose family
income is between 130 percent and 185 percent of applicable family size
income levels contained in the nonfarm poverty guidelines prescribed by
the Office of Management and Budget is eligible for a reduced price
lunch. A child whose family income is 130 percent or less of applicable
family size income levels contained in the nonfarm income poverty
guidelines prescribed by the Office of Management and Budget is eligible
for a free lunch.
    (j) Pre-discount price. The ``pre-discount price'' means, in this
subpart, the price the service provider agrees to accept as total
payment for its telecommunications or information services. This amount
is the sum of the amount the service provider expects to receive from
the eligible school or library and the amount it expects to receive as
reimbursement from the universal service support mechanisms for the
discounts provided under this subpart.
    (k) Secondary school. A ``secondary school'' means a secondary
school as defined in 20 U.S.C. 7801(38), a non-profit institutional day
or residential school, including a public secondary charter school, that
provides secondary education, as determined under state law except that
the term does not include any education beyond grade 12.
    (l) State telecommunications network. A ``state telecommunications
network'' is a state government entity that procures, among other
things, telecommunications offerings from multiple service providers and
bundles such offerings into packages available to schools, libraries, or
rural health care providers that are eligible for universal service
support, or a state government entity that provides, using its own
facilities, such telecommunications offerings to such schools,
libraries, and rural health care providers.

[[Page 168]]

    (m) Wide area network. For purposes of this subpart, a ``wide area
network'' is a voice or data network that provides connections from one
or more computers within an eligible school or library to one or more
computers or networks that are external to such eligible school or
library. Excluded from this definition is a voice or data network that
provides connections between or among instructional buildings of a
single school campus or between or among non-administrative buildings of
a single library branch.

[63 FR 2128, Jan. 13, 1998, as amended at 68 FR 36942, June 20, 2003; 76
FR 56302, Sept. 13, 2011]

    Effective Date Note: At 79 FR 49197, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.500 was
amended by removing the alphabetical paragraph designations and adding
in alphabetical order definitions for ``basic maintenance,''
``consortium,'' ``internal connections,'' ``managed internal broadband
services,'' and ``voice services'', effective July 1, 2015, For the
convenience of the user, the added text is set forth as follows:



Sec. 54.500  Terms and definitions.

    Basic maintenance. A service is eligible for support as a ``basic
maintenance'' service if, but for the maintenance at issue, the internal
connection would not function and serve its intended purpose with the
degree of reliability ordinarily provided in the marketplace to entities
receiving such services. Basic maintenance services do not include
services that maintain equipment that is not supported by E-rate or that
enhance the utility of equipment beyond the transport of information, or
diagnostic services in excess of those necessary to maintain the
equipment's ability to transport information.

                                * * * * *

    Consortium. A ``consortium'' is any local, statewide, regional, or
interstate cooperative association of schools and/or libraries eligible
for E-rate support that seeks competitive bids for eligible services or
funding for eligible services on behalf of some or all of its members.
Consortium may also include health care providers eligible under subpart
G, and public sector (governmental) entities, including, but not limited
to, state colleges and state universities, state educational
broadcasters, counties, and municipalities, although such entities are
not eligible for support. Eligible schools and libraries may not join
consortia with ineligible private sector members unless the pre-discount
prices of any services that such consortium receives are generally
tariffed rates.

                                * * * * *

    Internal connections. A service is eligible for support as a
component of an institution's ``internal connections'' if such service
is necessary to transport or distribute broadband within one or more
instructional buildings of a single school campus or within one or more
non-administrative buildings that comprise a single library branch.

                                * * * * *

    Managed internal broadband services. A service is eligible for
support as ``managed internal broadband services'' if provided by a
third party for the operation, management, and/or monitoring of the
eligible components of a school or library local area network (LAN) and
wireless LAN.

                                * * * * *

    Voice services. ``Voice services'' include local phone service, long
distance service, plain old telephone service (POTS), radio loop, 800
service, satellite telephone, shared telephone service, Centrex,
wireless telephone service such as cellular, interconnected voice over
Internet protocol (VoIP), and the circuit capacity dedicated to
providing voice services.



Sec. 54.501  Eligible recipients.

    (a) Schools. (1) Only schools meeting the statutory definition of
``elementary school'' or ``secondary school'' as defined in Sec.
54.500(c) or (k) of these rules, and not excluded under paragraphs
(a)(2) or (a)(3) of this section shall be eligible for discounts on
telecommunications and other supported services under this subpart.
    (2) Schools operating as for-profit businesses shall not be eligible
for discounts under this subpart.
    (3) Schools with endowments exceeding $50,000,000 shall not be
eligible for discounts under this subpart.
    (b) Libraries. (1) Only libraries eligible for assistance from a
State library administrative agency under the Library Services and
Technology Act (Pub. L. 104-208) and not excluded under paragraphs
(b)(2) or (3) of this section shall be eligible for discounts under this
subpart.
    (2) A library's eligibility for universal service funding shall
depend on its funding as an independent entity.

[[Page 169]]

Only libraries whose budgets are completely separate from any schools
(including, but not limited to, elementary and secondary schools,
colleges, and universities) shall be eligible for discounts as libraries
under this subpart.
    (3) Libraries operating as for-profit businesses shall not be
eligible for discounts under this subpart.
    (c) Consortia.
    (1) For consortia, discounts under this subpart shall apply only to
the portion of eligible telecommunications and other supported services
used by eligible schools and libraries.
    (2) Service providers shall keep and retain records of rates charged
to and discounts allowed for eligible schools and libraries--on their
own or as part of a consortium. Such records shall be available for
public inspection.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 63 FR 2129, Jan. 13, 1998; 68
FR 36942, June 20, 2003; 75 FR 75411, Dec. 3, 2010; 76 FR 56302, Sept.
13, 2011; 79 FR 49198, Aug. 19, 2014]

    Effective Date Note: At 79 FR 49198, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.501 was
amended by revising paragraph (a)(1), effective July 1, 2015. For the
convenience of the user, the revised text is set forth as follows:



Sec. 54.501  Eligible recipients.

    (a) * * *
    (1) Only schools meeting the statutory definition of ``elementary
school'' and ``secondary school'' as defined in Sec. 54.500 of this
subpart, and not excluded under paragraphs (a)(2) or (3) of this section
shall be eligible for discounts on telecommunications and other
supported services under this subpart.

                                * * * * *



Sec. 54.502  Eligible services.

    (a) Supported services. All supported services are listed in the
Eligible Services List as updated annually in accordance with paragraph
(b) of this section. The services in this subpart will be supported in
addition to all reasonable charges that are incurred by taking such
services, such as state and federal taxes. Charges for termination
liability, penalty surcharges, and other charges not included in the
cost of taking such service shall not be covered by the universal
service support mechanisms. The supported services fall within the
following general categories:
    (1) Category one. Telecommunications services, telecommunications,
and Internet access, as defined in Sec. 54.5 and described in the
Eligible Services List are category one supported services.
    (2) Category two. Internal connections, basic maintenance and
managed internal broadband services as defined in Sec. 54.500 and
described in the Eligible Services List are category two supported
services.
    (b) Funding years 2015 and 2016. Libraries, schools, or school
districts with schools that receive funding for category two services in
funding years 2015 and/or 2016 shall be eligible for support pursuant to
paragraphs (b)(1) through (6) of this section.
    (1) Five-year budget. Each eligible school or library shall be
eligible for a budgeted amount of support for category two services over
a five-year funding cycle. Excluding support for internal connections
received prior to funding year 2015, each school or library shall be
eligible for the total available budget less any support received for
category two services in the prior four funding years.
    (2) School budget. Each eligible school shall be eligible for
support for category two services up to a pre-discount price of $150 per
student over a five-year funding cycle. Applicants shall provide the
student count per school, calculated at the time that the discount is
calculated each funding year. New schools may estimate the number of
students, but shall repay any support provided in excess of the maximum
budget based on student enrollment the following funding year.
    (3) Library budget. Each eligible library shall be eligible for
support for category two services, up to a pre-discount price of $2.30
per square foot over a five-year funding cycle. Libraries shall provide
the total area for all floors, in square feet, of each library outlet
separately, including all areas enclosed by the outer walls of the
library outlet and occupied by the library, including those areas off-
limits to the public.
    (4) Funding floor. Each eligible school and library will be eligible
for support for category two services up to at least a pre-discount
price of $9,200 over five funding years.

[[Page 170]]

    (5) Requests. Applicants shall request support for category two
services for each school or library based on the number of students per
school building or square footage per library building. Category two
funding for a school or library may not be used for another school or
library. If an applicant requests less than the maximum budget available
for a school or library, the applicant may request the remaining balance
in a school's or library's category two budget in subsequent funding
years of a five year cycle. The costs for category two services shared
by multiple eligible entities shall be divided reasonably between each
of the entities for which support is sought in that funding year.
    (6) Non-instructional buildings. Support is not available for
category two services provided to or within non-instructional school
buildings or separate library administrative buildings unless those
category two services are essential for the effective transport of
information to or within one or more instructional buildings of a school
or non-administrative library buildings, or the Commission has found
that the use of those services meets the definition of educational
purpose, as defined in Sec. 54.500. When applying for category two
support for eligible services to a non-instructional school building or
library administrative building, the applicant shall allocate the cost
of providing services to one or more of the eligible school or library
buildings that benefit from those services being provided.
    (c) Funding year 2017 and beyond. Absent further action from the
Commission, each eligible library or school in a school district, which
did not receive funding for category two services in funding years 2015
and/or 2016, shall be eligible for support for category two services,
except basic maintenance services, no more than twice every five funding
years. For the purpose of determining eligibility, the five-year period
begins in any funding year in which the school or library receives
discounted category two services other than basic maintenance services.
If a school or library receives category two services other than basic
maintenance services that are shared with other schools or libraries
(for example, as part of a consortium), the shared services will be
attributed to the school or library in determining whether it is
eligible for support. Support is not available for category two services
provided to or within non-instructional school buildings or separate
library administrative buildings unless those category two services are
essential for the effective transport of information to or within one or
more instructional buildings of a school or non-administrative library
buildings, or the Commission has found that the use of those services
meets the definition of educational purpose, as defined in Sec. 54.500.
    (d) Eligible services list process. The Administrator shall submit
by March 30 of each year a draft list of services eligible for support,
based on the Commission's rules for the following funding year. The
Wireline Competition Bureau will issue a Public Notice seeking comment
on the Administrator's proposed eligible services list. The final list
of services eligible for support will be released at least 60 days prior
to the opening of the application filing window for the following
funding year.

    Effective Date Notes: 1. At 79 FR 49198, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.502
was revised. Paragraphs (b)(2), (b)(3) and (5) contain information
collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective
until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.
    2. At 79 FR 49198, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.502 was revised, however
paragraph (a) does not become effective July 1, 2015.



Sec. 54.503  Competitive bidding requirements.

    (a) All entities participating in the schools and libraries
universal service support program must conduct a fair and open
competitive bidding process, consistent with all requirements set forth
in this subpart.

    Note to paragraph (a):
    The following is an illustrative list of activities or behaviors
that would not result in a fair and open competitive bidding process:
the applicant for supported services has a relationship with a service
provider that would unfairly influence the outcome of a competition or
would furnish the service provider with inside information; someone
other than the applicant or an authorized representative of the
applicant prepares, signs, and submits the FCC

[[Page 171]]

Form 470 and certification; a service provider representative is listed
as the FCC Form 470 contact person and allows that service provider to
participate in the competitive bidding process; the service provider
prepares the applicant's FCC Form 470 or participates in the bid
evaluation or vendor selection process in any way; the applicant turns
over to a service provider the responsibility for ensuring a fair and
open competitive bidding process; an applicant employee with a role in
the service provider selection process also has an ownership interest in
the service provider seeking to participate in the competitive bidding
process; and the applicant's FCC Form 470 does not describe the
supported services with sufficient specificity to enable interested
service providers to submit responsive bids.

    (b) Competitive bid requirements. Except as provided in Sec.
54.511(c), an eligible school, library, or consortium that includes an
eligible school or library shall seek competitive bids, pursuant to the
requirements established in this subpart, for all services eligible for
support under Sec. 54.502. These competitive bid requirements apply in
addition to state and local competitive bid requirements and are not
intended to preempt such state or local requirements.
    (c) Posting of FCC Form 470. (1) An eligible school, library, or
consortium that includes an eligible school or library seeking bids for
eligible services under this subpart shall submit a completed FCC Form
470 to the Administrator to initiate the competitive bidding process.
The FCC Form 470 and any request for proposal cited in the FCC Form 470
shall include, at a minimum, the following information, to the extent
applicable with respect to the services requested:
    (i) A list of specified services for which the school, library, or
consortium requests bids; and
    (ii) Sufficient information to enable bidders to reasonably
determine the needs of the applicant.
    (2) The FCC Form 470 shall be signed by a person authorized to
request bids for eligible services for the eligible school, library, or
consortium, including such entities.
    (i) A person authorized to request bids on behalf of the entities
listed on an FCC Form 470 shall certify under oath that:
    (A) The schools meet the statutory definition of ``elementary
school'' or ``secondary school'' as defined in Sec. 54.500 of these
rules, do not operate as for-profit businesses, and do not have
endowments exceeding $50 million.
    (B) The libraries or library consortia eligible for assistance from
a State library administrative agency under the Library Services and
Technology Act of 1996 do not operate as for-profit businesses and have
budgets that are completely separate from any school (including, but not
limited to, elementary and secondary schools, colleges, and
universities).
    (C) Support under this support mechanism is conditional upon the
school(s) and library(ies) securing access to all of the resources,
including computers, training, software, maintenance, internal
connections, and electrical connections necessary to use the services
purchased effectively.
    (ii) A person authorized to both request bids and order services on
behalf of the entities listed on an FCC Form 470 shall, in addition to
making the certifications listed in paragraph (c)(2)(i) of this section,
certify under oath that:
    (A) The services the school, library, or consortium purchases at
discounts will be used primarily for educational purposes and will not
be sold, resold, or transferred in consideration for money or any other
thing of value, except as allowed by Sec. 54.513.
    (B) All bids submitted for eligible products and services will be
carefully considered, with price being the primary factor, and the bid
selected will be for the most cost-effective service offering consistent
with Sec. 54.511.
    (3) The Administrator shall post each FCC Form 470 that it receives
from an eligible school, library, or consortium that includes an
eligible school or library on its Web site designated for this purpose.
    (4) After posting on the Administrator's Web site an eligible
school, library, or consortium FCC Form 470, the Administrator shall
send confirmation of the posting to the entity requesting service. That
entity shall then wait at least four weeks from the date on which its
description of services is posted on the Administrator's

[[Page 172]]

Web site before making commitments with the selected providers of
services. The confirmation from the Administrator shall include the date
after which the requestor may sign a contract with its chosen
provider(s).
    (d) Gift restrictions. (1) Subject to paragraphs (d)(3) and (4) of
this section, an eligible school, library, or consortium that includes
an eligible school or library may not directly or indirectly solicit or
accept any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment, loan, or any other
thing of value from a service provider participating in or seeking to
participate in the schools and libraries universal service program. No
such service provider shall offer or provide any such gift, gratuity,
favor, entertainment, loan, or other thing of value except as otherwise
provided herein. Modest refreshments not offered as part of a meal,
items with little intrinsic value intended solely for presentation, and
items worth $20 or less, including meals, may be offered or provided,
and accepted by any individuals or entities subject to this rule, if the
value of these items received by any individual does not exceed $50 from
any one service provider per funding year. The $50 amount for any
service provider shall be calculated as the aggregate value of all gifts
provided during a funding year by the individuals specified in paragraph
(d)(2)(ii) of this section.
    (2) For purposes of this paragraph:
    (i) The terms ``school, library, or consortium'' include all
individuals who are on the governing boards of such entities (such as
members of a school committee), and all employees, officers,
representatives, agents, consultants or independent contractors of such
entities involved on behalf of such school, library, or consortium with
the Schools and Libraries Program of the Universal Service Fund (E-rate
Program), including individuals who prepare, approve, sign or submit E-
rate applications, or other forms related to the E-rate Program, or who
prepare bids, communicate or work with E-rate service providers, E-rate
consultants, or with USAC, as well as any staff of such entities
responsible for monitoring compliance with the E-rate Program; and
    (ii) The term ``service provider'' includes all individuals who are
on the governing boards of such an entity (such as members of the board
of directors), and all employees, officers, representatives, agents, or
independent contractors of such entities.
    (3) The restrictions set forth in this paragraph shall not be
applicable to the provision of any gift, gratuity, favor, entertainment,
loan, or any other thing of value, to the extent given to a family
member or a friend working for an eligible school, library, or
consortium that includes an eligible school or library, provided that
such transactions:
    (i) Are motivated solely by a personal relationship,
    (ii) Are not rooted in any service provider business activities or
any other business relationship with any such eligible school, library,
or consortium, and
    (iii) Are provided using only the donor's personal funds that will
not be reimbursed through any employment or business relationship.
    (4) Any service provider may make charitable donations to an
eligible school, library, or consortium that includes an eligible school
or library in the support of its programs as long as such contributions
are not directly or indirectly related to E-rate procurement activities
or decisions and are not given by service providers to circumvent
competitive bidding and other E-rate program rules, including those in
paragraph (c)(2)(i)(C) of this section, requiring schools and libraries
to pay their own non-discount share for the services they are
purchasing.
    (e) Exemption to competitive bidding requirements. An applicant that
seeks support for commercially available high-speed Internet access
services for a pre-discount price of $3,600 or less per school or
library annually is exempt from the competitive bidding requirements in
paragraphs (a) through (c) of this section.
    (1) Internet access, as defined in Sec. 54.5, is eligible for this
exemption only if the purchased service offers at least 100 Mbps
downstream and 10 Mbps upstream.
    (2) The Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, is delegated authority
to lower

[[Page 173]]

the annual cost of high-speed Internet access services or raise the
speed threshold of broadband services eligible for this competitive
bidding exemption, based on a determination of what rates and speeds are
commercially available prior to the start of the funding year.

[75 FR 75412, Dec. 3, 2010, as amended at 76 FR 56302, Sept. 13, 2011;
79 FR 49199, Aug. 19, 2014]

    Effective Date Note: At 79 FR 49199, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.503 was
revised. However, paragraph (c) contains information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 54.504  Requests for services.

    (a) Filing of the FCC Form 471. An eligible school, library, or
consortium that includes an eligible school or library seeking to
receive discounts for eligible services under this subpart shall, upon
entering into a signed contract or other legally binding agreement for
eligible services, submit a completed FCC Form 471 to the Administrator.
    (1) The FCC Form 471 shall be signed by the person authorized to
order eligible services for the eligible school, library, or consortium
and shall include that person's certification under oath that:
    (i) The schools meet the statutory definition of ``elementary
school'' or ``secondary school'' as defined in Sec. 54.500 of this
subpart, do not operate as for-profit businesses, and do not have
endowments exceeding $50 million.
    (ii) The libraries or library consortia eligible for assistance from
a State library administrative agency under the Library Services and
Technology Act of 1996 do not operate as for-profit businesses and whose
budgets are completely separate from any school (including, but not
limited to, elementary and secondary schools, colleges, and
universities).
    (iii) The entities listed on the FCC Form 471 application have
secured access to all of the resources, including computers, training,
software, maintenance, internal connections, and electrical connections,
necessary to make effective use of the services purchased, as well as to
pay the discounted charges for eligible services from funds to which
access has been secured in the current funding year. The billed entity
will pay the non-discount portion of the cost of the goods and services
to the service provider(s).
    (iv) The entities listed on the FCC Form 471 application have
complied with all applicable state and local laws regarding procurement
of services for which support is being sought.
    (v) The services the school, library, or consortium purchases at
discounts will be used primarily for educational purposes and will not
be sold, resold, or transferred in consideration for money or any other
thing of value, except as allowed by Sec. 54.513.
    (vi) The entities listed in the application have complied with all
program rules and acknowledge that failure to do so may result in denial
of discount funding and/or recovery of funding.
    (vii) The applicant understands that the discount level used for
shared services is conditional, for future years, upon ensuring that the
most disadvantaged schools and libraries that are treated as sharing in
the service, receive an appropriate share of benefits from those
services.
    (viii) The applicant recognizes that it may be audited pursuant to
its application, that it will retain for ten years any and all
worksheets and other records relied upon to fill out its application,
and that, if audited, it will make such records available to the
Administrator.
    (ix) Except as exempted by Sec. 54.503(e), all bids submitted to a
school, library, or consortium seeking eligible services were carefully
considered and the most cost-effective bid was selected in accordance
with Sec. 54.503 of this subpart, with price being the primary factor
considered, and it is the most cost-effective means of meeting
educational needs and technology goals.
    (2) All pricing and technology infrastructure information submitted
as part of an FCC Form 471 shall be treated as public and non-
confidential by the Administrator unless the applicant specifies a
statute, rule, or other restriction, such as a court order or an

[[Page 174]]

existing contract limitation barring public release of the information.
    (i) Contracts and other agreements executed after adoption of this
rule may not prohibit disclosure of pricing or technology infrastructure
information.
    (ii) The exemption for existing contract limitations shall not apply
to voluntary extensions or renewals of existing contracts.
    (b) Mixed eligibility requests. If 30 percent or more of a request
for discounts made in an FCC Form 471 is for ineligible services, the
request shall be denied in its entirety.
    (c) Rate disputes. Schools, libraries, and consortia including those
entities, and service providers may have recourse to the Commission,
regarding interstate rates, and to state commissions, regarding
intrastate rates, if they reasonably believe that the lowest
corresponding price is unfairly high or low.
    (1) Schools, libraries, and consortia including those entities may
request lower rates if the rate offered by the carrier does not
represent the lowest corresponding price.
    (2) Service providers may request higher rates if they can show that
the lowest corresponding price is not compensatory, because the relevant
school, library, or consortium including those entities is not similarly
situated to and subscribing to a similar set of services to the customer
paying the lowest corresponding price.
    (d) Service substitution. (1) The Administrator shall grant a
request by an applicant to substitute a service or product for one
identified on its FCC Form 471 where:
    (i) The service or product has the same functionality;
    (ii) The substitution does not violate any contract provisions or
state or local procurement laws;
    (iii) The substitution does not result in an increase in the
percentage of ineligible services or functions; and
    (iv) The applicant certifies that the requested change is within the
scope of the controlling FCC Form 470, including any associated Requests
for Proposal, for the original services.
    (2) In the event that a service substitution results in a change in
the pre-discount price for the supported service, support shall be based
on the lower of either the pre-discount price of the service for which
support was originally requested or the pre-discount price of the new,
substituted service.
    (3) For purposes of this rule, the two categories of eligible
services are not deemed to have the same functionality as one another.
    (e) Mixed eligibility services. A request for discounts for a
product or service that includes both eligible and ineligible components
must allocate the cost of the contract to eligible and ineligible
components.
    (1) Ineligible components. If a product or service contains
ineligible components, costs must be allocated to the extent that a
clear delineation can be made between the eligible and ineligible
components. The delineation must have a tangible basis, and the price
for the eligible portion must be the most cost-effective means of
receiving the eligible service.
    (2) Ancillary ineligible components. If a product or service
contains ineligible components that are ancillary to the eligible
components, and the product or service is the most cost-effective means
of receiving the eligible component functionality, without regard to the
value of the ineligible component, costs need not be allocated between
the eligible and ineligible components. Discounts shall be provided on
the full cost of the product or service. An ineligible component is
``ancillary'' if a price for the ineligible component cannot be
determined separately and independently from the price of the eligible
components, and the specific package remains the most cost-effective
means of receiving the eligible services, without regard to the value of
the ineligible functionality.
    (3) The Administrator shall utilize the cost allocation requirements
of this paragraph in evaluating mixed eligibility requests under
paragraph (e)(1) of this section.
    (f) Filing of FCC Form 473. All service providers eligible to
provide telecommunications and other supported services under this
subpart shall submit annually a completed FCC Form 473 to the
Administrator. The FCC

[[Page 175]]

Form 473 shall be signed by an authorized person and shall include that
person's certification under oath that:
    (1) The prices in any offer that this service provider makes
pursuant to the schools and libraries universal service support program
have been arrived at independently, without, for the purpose of
restricting competition, any consultation, communication, or agreement
with any other offeror or competitor relating to those prices, the
intention to submit an offer, or the methods or factors used to
calculate the prices offered;
    (2) The prices in any offer that this service provider makes
pursuant to the schools and libraries universal service support program
will not be knowingly disclosed by this service provider, directly or
indirectly, to any other offeror or competitor before bid opening (in
the case of a sealed bid solicitation) or contract award (in the case of
a negotiated solicitation) unless otherwise required by law; and
    (3) No attempt will be made by this service provider to induce any
other concern to submit or not to submit an offer for the purpose of
restricting competition.
    (4) The service provider listed on the FCC Form 473 certifies that
the invoices that are submitted by this Service Provider to the Billed
Entity for reimbursement pursuant to Billed Entity Applicant
Reimbursement Forms (FCC Form 472) are accurate and represent payments
from the Billed Entity to the Service Provider for equipment and
services provided pursuant to E-rate program rules.
    (5) The service provider listed on the FCC Form 473 certifies that
the bills or invoices issued by this service provider to the billed
entity are for equipment and services eligible for universal service
support by the Administrator, and exclude any charges previously
invoiced to the Administrator by the service provider.

[79 FR 49199, Aug. 19, 2014]

    Effective Date Notes: At 79 FR 49199, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.504
was revised. However, paragraphs (a) and (f) contain information
collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective
until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.
    2. At 49199, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.504 was revised, however
paragraphs (f)(4) and (f)(5) will become effective July 1, 2016.



Sec. 54.505  Discounts.

    (a) Discount mechanism. Discounts for eligible schools and libraries
shall be set as a percentage discount from the pre-discount price.
    (b) Discount percentages. The discounts available to eligible
schools and libraries shall range from 20 percent to 90 percent of the
pre-discount price for all eligible services provided by eligible
providers, as defined in this subpart. The discounts available to a
particular school, library, or consortium of only such entities shall be
determined by indicators of poverty and high cost.
    (1) For schools and school districts, the level of poverty shall be
based on the percentage of the student enrollment that is eligible for a
free or reduced price lunch under the national school lunch program or a
federally-approved alternative mechanism. School districts shall divide
the total number of students eligible for the National School Lunch
Program within the school district by the total number of students
within the school district to arrive at a percentage of students
eligible. This percentage rate shall then be applied to the discount
matrix to set a discount rate for the supported services purchased by
all schools within the school district. Independent charter schools,
private schools, and other eligible educational facilities should
calculate a single discount percentage rate based on the total number of
students under the control of the central administrative agency.
    (2) For libraries and library consortia, the level of poverty shall
be based on the percentage of the student enrollment that is eligible
for a free or reduced price lunch under the national school lunch
program or a federally-approved alternative mechanism in the public
school district in which they are located and should use that school
district's discount rate when applying as a library system or on behalf
of individual libraries within that system. Library systems that have
branches or outlets in more than one public school district should use
the address of the central outlet or main administrative

[[Page 176]]

office to determine which school district the library system is in, and
should use that school district's discount rate when applying as a
library system or on behalf of individual libraries within that system.
If the library is not in a school district, then its level of poverty
shall be based on an average of the percentage of students eligible for
the national school lunch program in each of the school districts that
children living in the library's location attend.
    (3) The Administrator shall classify schools and libraries as
``urban'' or ``rural'' based on location in an urban or rural area,
according to the following desigantions.
    (i) The Administrator shall designate a school or library as
``urban'' if the school or library is located in an urbanized area as
determined by the most recent rural-urban classification by the Bureau
of the Census. The Administrator shall designate all other schools and
libraries as ``rural.''
    (ii) Any school district or library system that has a majority of
schools or libraries in a rural area qualifies for the additional rural
discount.
    (4) School districts, library systems, or other billed entities
shall calculate discounts on supported services described in Sec.
54.502(a) that are shared by two or more of their schools, libraries, or
consortia members by calculating an average discount based on the
applicable district-wide discounts of all member schools and libraries.
School districts, library systems, or other billed entities shall ensure
that, for each year in which an eligible school or library is included
for purposes of calculating the aggregate discount rate, that eligible
school or library shall receive a proportionate share of the shared
services for which support is sought. For schools, the discount shall be
a simple average of the applicable district-wide percentage for all
schools sharing a portion of the shared services. For libraries, the
average discount shall be a simple average of the applicable discounts
to which the libraries sharing a portion of the shared services are
entitled.
    (c) Matrices. Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section,
the Administrator shall use the following matrices to set discount rates
to be applied to eligible category one and category two services
purchased by eligible schools, school districts, libraries, or consortia
based on the institution's level of poverty and location in an ``urban''
or ``rural'' area.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                     Category one schools and        Category two schools and
                                                     libraries discount matrix       libraries discount matrix
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    % of students eligible for National School            Discount level                  Discount level
                  Lunch Program                  ---------------------------------------------------------------
                                                       Urban           Rural           Urban           Rural
                                                     discount        discount        discount        discount
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
< 1.............................................              20              25              20              25
1-19............................................              40              50              40              50
20-34...........................................              50              60              50              60
35-49...........................................              60              70              60              70
50-74...........................................              80              80              80              80
75-100..........................................              90              90              85              85
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (d) Voice Services. Discounts for category one voice services shall
be reduced by 20 percentage points off applicant discount percentage
rates for each funding year starting in funding year 2015, and reduced
by an additional 20 percentage points off applicant discount percentage
rates each subsequent funding year.
    (e) Interstate and intrastate services. Federal universal service
support for schools and libraries shall be provided for both interstate
and intrastate services.
    (1) Federal universal service support under this subpart for
eligible schools and libraries in a state is contingent upon the
establishment of intrastate discounts no less than the discounts
applicable for interstate services.
    (2) A state may, however, secure a temporary waiver of this latter
requirement based on unusually compelling conditions.

[[Page 177]]

    (f) State support. Federal universal service discounts shall be
based on the price of a service prior to the application of any state
provided support for schools or libraries.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 41304, Aug. 1, 1997; 63
FR 2130, Jan. 13, 1998; 63 FR 70572, Dec. 21, 1998; 75 FR 75414, Dec. 3,
2010; 79 FR 49201, Aug. 19, 2014]



Sec. 54.506  [Reserved]



Sec. 54.507  Cap.

    (a) Amount of the annual cap. The aggregate annual cap on federal
universal service support for schools and libraries shall be $2.25
billion per funding year, of which $1 billion per funding year will be
available for the category two services, as described in Sec.
54.502(a)(2), unless demand for category one services is higher than
available funding.
    (1) Inflation increase. In funding year 2010 and subsequent funding
years, the $2.25 billion funding cap on federal universal service
support for schools and libraries shall be automatically increased
annually to take into account increases in the rate of inflation as
calculated in paragraph (a)(2) of this section.
    (2) Increase calculation. To measure increases in the rate of
inflation for the purposes of this paragraph (a), the Commission shall
use the Gross Domestic Product Chain-type Price Index (GDP-CPI). To
compute the annual increase as required by this paragraph (a), the
percentage increase in the GDP-CPI from the previous year will be used.
For instance, the annual increase in the GDP-CPI from 2008 to 2009 would
be used for the 2010 funding year. The increase shall be rounded to the
nearest 0.1 percent by rounding 0.05 percent and above to the next
higher 0.1 percent and otherwise rounding to the next lower 0.1 percent.
This percentage increase shall be added to the amount of the annual
funding cap from the previous funding year. If the yearly average GDP-
CPI decreases or stays the same, the annual funding cap shall remain the
same as the previous year.
    (3) Public notice. When the calculation of the yearly average GDP-
CPI is determined, the Wireline Competition Bureau shall publish a
public notice in the Federal Register within 60 days announcing any
increase of the annual funding cap based on the rate of inflation.
    (4) Filing window requests. At the close of the filing window, if
requests for category one services are greater than the available
funding, the Administrator shall shift category two funds to provide
support for category one services. If available funds are sufficient to
meet demand for category one services, the Administrator, at the
direction of the Wireline Competition Bureau, shall direct the remaining
additional funds to provide support for category two requests.
    (5) Amount of unused funds. All funds collected that are unused
shall be carried forward into subsequent funding years for use in the
schools and libraries support mechanism in accordance with the public
interest and notwithstanding the annual cap. The Chief, Wireline
Competition Bureau, is delegated authority to determine the proportion
of unused funds, if any, needed to meet category one demand, and to
direct the Administrator to use any remaining funds to provide support
for category two requests. The Administrator shall report to the
Commission, on a quarterly basis, funding that is unused from prior
years of the schools and libraries support mechanism.
    (6) Application of unused funds. On an annual basis, in the second
quarter of each calendar year, all funds that are collected and that are
unused from prior years shall be available for use in the next full
funding year of the schools and libraries mechanism in accordance with
the public interest and notwithstanding the annual cap as described in
this paragraph (a).
    (b) Funding year. A funding year for purposes of the schools and
libraries cap shall be the period July 1 through June 30.
    (c) Requests. Funds shall be available to fund discounts for
eligible schools and libraries and consortia of such eligible entities
on a first-come-first-served basis, with requests accepted beginning on
the first of July prior to each funding year. The Administrator shall
maintain on the Administrator's Web site a running tally of the funds
already committed for the existing

[[Page 178]]

funding year. The Administrator shall implement an initial filing period
that treats all schools and libraries filing within that period as if
their applications were simultaneously received. The initial filing
period shall begin on the date that the Administrator begins to receive
applications for support, and shall conclude on a date to be determined
by the Administrator. The Administrator may implement such additional
filing periods as it deems necessary.
    (d) Annual filing requirement. Schools and libraries, and consortia
of such eligible entities shall file new funding requests for each
funding year no sooner than the July 1 prior to the start of that
funding year. Schools, libraries, and eligible consortia must use
recurring services for which discounts have been committed by the
Administrator within the funding year for which the discounts were
sought. Implementation of non-recurring services may begin on April 1
prior to the July 1 start of the funding year. The deadline for
implementation of non-recurring services will be September 30 following
the close of the funding year. An applicant may request and receive from
the Administrator an extension of the implementation deadline for non-
recurring services if it satisfies one of the following criteria:
    (1) The applicant's funding commitment decision letter is issued by
the Administrator on or after March 1 of the funding year for which
discounts are authorized;
    (2) The applicant receives a service provider change authorization
or service substitution authorization from the Administrator on or after
March 1 of the funding year for which discounts are authorized;
    (3) The applicant's service provider is unable to complete
implementation for reasons beyond the service provider's control; or
    (4) The applicant's service provider is unwilling to complete
installation because funding disbursements are delayed while the
Administrator investigates their application for program compliance.
    (e) Long term contracts. If schools and libraries enter into long
term contracts for eligible services, the Administrator shall only
commit funds to cover the pro rata portion of such a long term contract
scheduled to be delivered during the funding year for which universal
service support is sought.
    (f) Rules of distribution. When the filing period described in
paragraph (c) of this section closes, the Administrator shall calculate
the total demand for both category one and category two support
submitted by applicants during the filing period. If total demand for
the funding year exceeds the total support available for category one or
both categories, the Administrator shall take the following steps:
    (1) Category one. The Administrator shall first calculate the demand
for category one services for all discount levels. The Administrator
shall allocate the category one funds to these requests for support,
beginning with the most economically disadvantaged schools and
libraries, as determined by the schools and libraries discount matrix in
Sec. 54.505(c). Schools and libraries eligible for a 90 percent
discount shall receive first priority for the category one funds. The
Administrator shall next allocate funds toward the requests submitted by
schools and libraries eligible for an 80 percent discount, then for a 70
percent discount, and shall continue committing funds for category one
services in the same manner to the applicants at each descending
discount level until there are no funds remaining.
    (2) Category two. The Administrator shall next calculate the demand
for category two services for all discount categories as determined by
the schools and libraries discount matrix in Sec. 54.505(c). If that
demand exceeds the category two budget for that funding year, the
Administrator shall allocate the category two funds beginning with the
most economically disadvantaged schools and libraries, as determined by
the schools and libraries discount matrix in Sec. 54.505(c). The
Administrator shall allocate funds toward the category two requests
submitted by schools and libraries eligible for an 85 percent discount
first, then for a 80 percent discount, and shall continue committing
funds in the same manner to the applicants at each descending

[[Page 179]]

discount level until there are no category two funds remaining.
    (3) To the extent that there are single discount percentage levels
associated with ``shared services'' under Sec. 54.505(b)(4), the
Administrator shall allocate funds to the applicants at each descending
discount level (e.g., 90 percent, 89 percent, then 88 percent) until
there are no funds remaining.
    (4) For both paragraphs (f)(1) and (2) of this section, if the
remaining funds are not sufficient to support all of the funding
requests within a particular discount level, the Administrator shall
allocate funds at that discount level using the percentage of students
eligible for the National School Lunch Program. Thus, if there is not
enough support to fund all requests at the 40 percent discount level,
the Administrator shall allocate funds beginning with those applicants
with the highest percentage of NSLP eligibility for that discount level
by funding those applicants with 19 percent NSLP eligibility, then 18
percent NSLP eligibility, and shall continue committing funds in the
same manner to applicants at each descending percentage of NSLP until
there are no funds remaining.

[79 FR 49201, Aug. 19, 2014]

    Effective Date Notes: 1. At 79 FR 49201, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.507
was revised. However, paragraph (d) contains information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.
    2. At 79 FR 49201, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.507 was revised however,
paragraphs (a) through (c)and (e) through (f) are effective July 1,
2015.



Sec. 54.508  [Reserved]



Sec. 54.509  Adjustments to the discount matrix.

    (a) Estimating future spending requests. When submitting their
requests for specific amounts of funding for a funding year, schools,
libraries, library consortia, and consortia including such entities
shall also estimate their funding requests for the following funding
year to enable the Administrator, to estimate funding demand for the
following year.
    (b) Reduction in percentage discounts. At all times other than
within a filing period described in Sec. 54.507(c), if the estimates
schools and libraries make of their future funding needs lead the
Administrator to predict that total funding request for a funding year
will exceed the available funding, the Administrator shall calculate the
percentage reduction to all schools and libraries, except those in the
two most disadvantaged categories, necessary to permit all requests in
the next funding year to be fully funded.
    (c) Remaining funds. If funds remain under the cap at the end of the
funding year in which discounts have been reduced below those set in the
matrices, the Administrator shall consult with the Commission to
establish the best way to distribute those funds.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 41304, Aug. 1, 1997; 63
FR 70572, Dec. 21, 1998; 69 FR 6191, Feb. 10, 2004]



Sec. 54.511  Ordering services.

    (a) Selecting a provider of eligible services. Except as exempted in
Sec. 54.503(e), in selecting a provider of eligible services, schools,
libraries, library consortia, and consortia including any of those
entities shall carefully consider all bids submitted and must select the
most cost-effective service offering. In determining which service
offering is the most cost-effective, entities may consider relevant
factors other than the pre-discount prices submitted by providers, but
price should be the primary factor considered.
    (b) Lowest corresponding price. Providers of eligible services shall
not submit bids for or charge schools, school districts, libraries,
library consortia, or consortia including any of these entities a price
above the lowest corresponding price for supported services, unless the
Commission, with respect to interstate services or the state commission
with respect to intrastate services, finds that the lowest corresponding
price is not compensatory. Promotional rates offered by a service
provider for a period of more than 90 days must be included among the
comparable rates upon which the lowest corresponding price is
determined.

[79 FR 59203, Aug. 19, 2014]

[[Page 180]]



Sec. 54.513  Resale and transfer of services.

    (a) Prohibition on resale. Eligible supported services provided at a
discount under this subpart shall not be sold, resold, or transferred in
consideration of money or any other thing of value, except as provided
in paragraph (b) of this section.
    (b) Disposal of obsolete equipment components of eligible services.
Eligible equipment components of eligible services purchased at a
discount under this subpart shall be considered obsolete if the
equipment components have has been installed for at least five years.
Obsolete equipment components of eligible services may be resold or
transferred in consideration of money or any other thing of value,
disposed of, donated, or traded.
    (c) Permissible fees. This prohibition on resale shall not bar
schools, school districts, libraries, and library consortia from
charging either computer lab fees or fees for classes in how to navigate
over the Internet. There is no prohibition on the resale of services
that are not purchased pursuant to the discounts provided in this
subpart.
    (d) Eligible services and equipment components of eligible services
purchased at a discount under this subpart shall not be transferred,
with or without consideration of money or any other thing of value, for
a period of three years after purchase, except that eligible services
and equipment components of eligible services may be transferred to
another eligible school or library in the event that the particular
location where the service originally was received is permanently or
temporarily closed. If an eligible service or equipment component of a
service is transferred due to the permanent or temporary closure of a
school or library, the transferor must notify the Administrator of the
transfer, and both the transferor and recipient must maintain detailed
records documenting the transfer and the reason for the transfer for a
period of five years.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 69 FR 6191, Feb. 10, 2004; 75
FR 75415, Dec. 3, 2010]



Sec. 54.514  Payment for discounted services.

    (a) Invoice filing deadline. Invoices must be submitted to the
Administrator:
    (1) 120 days after the last day to receive service, or
    (2) 120 days after the date of the FCC Form 486 Notification Letter,
whichever is later.
    (b) Invoice deadline extension. In advance of the deadline
calculated pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, service providers
or billed entities may request a one-time extension of the invoicing
deadline. The Administrator shall grant a 120 day extension of the
invoice filing deadline, if it is timely requested.
    (c) Choice of payment method. Service providers providing discounted
services under this subpart in any funding year shall, prior to the
submission of the FCC Form 471, permit the billed entity to choose the
method of payment for the discounted services from those methods
approved by the Administrator, including by making a full, undiscounted
payment and receiving subsequent reimbursement of the discount amount
from the Administrator.

[79 FR 49203, Aug. 19, 2014]

    Effective Date Notes: 1. At 79 FR 49203, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.514
was revised. However, paragraph (a) contains information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.
    2. At 79 FR 49203, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.514 was revised, however,
paragraph (c) is effective July 1, 2016.



Sec. 54.515  Distributing support.

    (a) A telecommunications carrier providing services eligible for
support under this subpart to eligible schools and libraries may, at the
election of the carrier, treat the amount eligible for support under
this subpart as an offset against the carrier's universal service
contribution obligation for the year in which the costs for providing
eligible services were incurred or receive a direct reimbursement from
the Administrator for that amount. Carriers shall elect in January of
each year the method by which they will be reimbursed and shall remain
subject to

[[Page 181]]

that method for the duration of the calendar year. Any support amount
that is owed a carrier that fails to remit its monthly universal service
contribution obligation, however, shall first be applied as an offset to
that carrier's contribution obligation. Such a carrier shall remain
subject to the offsetting method for the remainder of the calendar year
in which it failed to remit their monthly universal service obligation.
A carrier that continues to be in arrears on its universal service
contribution obligations at the end of a calendar year shall remain
subject to the offsetting method for the next calendar year.
    (b) If a telecommunications carrier elects to treat the amount
eligible for support under this subpart as an offset against the
carrier's universal service contribution obligation and the total amount
of support owed to the carrier exceeds its universal service obligation,
calculated on an annual basis, the carrier shall receive a direct
reimbursement in the amount of the difference. Any such reimbursement
due a carrier shall be submitted to that carrier no later than the end
of the first quarter of the calendar year following the year in which
the costs were incurred and the offset against the carrier's universal
service obligation was applied.

[63 FR 67009, Dec. 4, 1998]



Sec. 54.516  Auditing.

    (a) Recordkeeping requirements--(1) Schools and libraries. Schools
and libraries shall retain all documents related to the application for,
receipt, and delivery of discounted telecommunications and other
supported services for at least 5 years after the last day of service
delivered in a particular Funding Year. Any other document that
demonstrates compliance with the statutory or regulatory requirements
for the schools and libraries mechanism shall be retained as well.
Schools and libraries shall maintain asset and inventory records of
equipment purchased as components of supported internal connections
services sufficient to verify the actual location of such equipment for
a period of five years after purchase.
    (2) Service providers. Service providers shall retain documents
related to the delivery of discounted telecommunications and other
supported services for at least 5 years after the last day of the
delivery of discounted services. Any other document that demonstrates
compliance with the statutory or regulatory requirements for the schools
and libraries mechanism shall be retained as well.
    (b) Production of records. Schools, libraries, and service providers
shall produce such records at the request of any representative
(including any auditor) appointed by a state education department, the
Administrator, the FCC, or any local, state or federal agency with
jurisdiction over the entity.
    (c) Audits. Schools, libraries, and service providers shall be
subject to audits and other investigations to evaluate their compliance
with the statutory and regulatory requirements for the schools and
libraries universal service support mechanism, including those
requirements pertaining to what services and products are purchased,
what services and products are delivered, and how services and products
are being used. Schools and libraries receiving discounted services must
provide consent before a service provider releases confidential
information to the auditor, reviewer, or other representative.

[69 FR 55111, Sept. 13, 2004]

    Effective Date Notes: 1.At 79 FR 49203, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.516
was revised, effective July 1, 2015. For the convenience of the user,
the revised text is set forth as follows:



Sec. 54.516  Auditing and inspections.

    (a) Recordkeeping requirements--(1) Schools, libraries, and
consortia. Schools, libraries, and any consortium that includes schools
or libraries shall retain all documents related to the application for,
receipt, and delivery of supported services for at least 10 years after
the latter of the last day of the applicable funding year or the service
delivery deadline for the funding request. Any other document that
demonstrates compliance with the statutory or regulatory requirements
for the schools and libraries mechanism shall be retained as well.
Schools, libraries, and consortia shall maintain asset and inventory
records of equipment purchased as components of supported category two
services sufficient to verify the actual location of such

[[Page 182]]

equipment for a period of 10 years after purchase.
    (2) Service providers. Service providers shall retain documents
related to the delivery of supported services for at least 10 years
after the latter of the last day of the applicable funding year or the
service delivery deadline for the funding request. Any other document
that demonstrates compliance with the statutory or regulatory
requirements for the schools and libraries mechanism shall be retained
as well.
    (b) Production of records. Schools, libraries, consortia, and
service providers shall produce such records at the request of any
representative (including any auditor) appointed by a state education
department, the Administrator, the FCC, or any local, state or federal
agency with jurisdiction over the entity.
    (c) Audits. Schools, libraries, consortia, and service providers
shall be subject to audits and other investigations to evaluate their
compliance with the statutory and regulatory requirements for the
schools and libraries universal service support mechanism, including
those requirements pertaining to what services and products are
purchased, what services and products are delivered, and how services
and products are being used. Schools, libraries, and consortia receiving
discounted services must provide consent before a service provider
releases confidential information to the auditor, reviewer, or other
representative.
    (d) Inspections. Schools, libraries, consortia and service providers
shall permit any representative (including any auditor) appointed by a
state education department, the Administrator, the Commission or any
local, state or federal agency with jurisdiction over the entity to
enter their premises to conduct E-rate compliance inspections.
    2. At 79 FR 49203, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.516 was revised. However,
paragraphs (a) through (c) contain information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 54.517  [Reserved]



Sec. 54.518  Support for wide area networks.

    To the extent that schools, libraries or consortia that include an
eligible school or library build or purchase a wide area network to
provide telecommunications services, the cost of such wide area networks
shall not be eligible for universal service discounts provided under
this subpart.

[75 FR 75415, Dec. 3, 2010]



Sec. 54.519  State telecommunications networks.

    (a) Telecommunications services. State telecommunications networks
may secure discounts under the universal service support mechanisms on
supported telecommunications services (as described in Sec. 54.502(a))
on behalf of eligible schools and libraries (as described in Sec.
54.501) or consortia that include an eligible school or library. Such
state telecommunications networks shall pass on such discounts to
eligible schools and libraries and shall:
    (1) Maintain records listing each eligible school and library and
showing the basis for each eligibility determination;
    (2) Maintain records demonstrating the discount amount to which each
eligible school and library is entitled and the basis for such
determination;
    (3) Take reasonable steps to ensure that each eligible school or
library receives a proportionate share of the shared services;
    (4) Request that service providers apply the appropriate discount
amounts on the portion of the supported services used by each school or
library;
    (5) Direct eligible schools and libraries to pay the discounted
price; and
    (6) Comply with the competitive bid requirements set forth in Sec.
54.503.
    (b) Internet access and installation and maintenance of internal
connections. State telecommunications networks either may secure
discounts on Internet access and installation and maintenance of
internal connections in the manner described in paragraph (a) of this
section with regard to telecommunications, or shall be eligible,
consistent with Sec. 54.502(a), to receive universal service support
for providing such services to eligible schools, libraries, and
consortia including those entities.

[63 FR 2131, Jan. 13, 1998; 63 FR 33586, June 19, 1998, as amended at75
FR 75415, Dec. 3, 2010]



Sec. 54.520  Children's Internet Protection Act certifications required
from recipients of discounts under the federal universal service support

mechanism for schools and libraries.

    (a) Definitions.

[[Page 183]]

    (1) School. For the purposes of the certification requirements of
this rule, school means school, school board, school district, local
education agency or other authority responsible for administration of a
school.
    (2) Library. For the purposes of the certification requirements of
this rule, library means library, library board or authority responsible
for administration of a library.
    (3) Billed entity. Billed entity is defined in Sec. 54.500. In the
case of a consortium, the billed entity is the lead member of the
consortium.
    (4) Statutory definitions.
    (i) The term ``minor'' means any individual who has not attained the
age of 17 years.
    (ii) The term ``obscene'' has the meaning given such term in 18
U.S.C. 1460.
    (iii) The term ``child pornography'' has the meaning given such term
in 18 U.S.C. 2256.
    (iv) The term ``harmful to minors'' means any picture, image,
graphic image file, or other visual depiction that--
    (A) Taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a
prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion;
    (B) Depicts, describes, or represents, in a patently offensive way
with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated
sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted
sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; and
    (C) Taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political,
or scientific value as to minors.
    (v) The terms ``sexual act'' and ``sexual contact'' have the
meanings given such terms in 18 U.S.C. 2246.
    (vi) The term ``technology protection measure'' means a specific
technology that blocks or filters Internet access to the material
covered by a certification under paragraph (c) of this section.
    (b) Who is required to make certifications? (1) A school or library
that receives discounts for Internet access and internal connections
services under the federal universal service support mechanism for
schools and libraries, must make such certifications as described in
paragraph (c) of this section. The certifications required and described
in paragraph (c) of this section must be made in each funding year.
    (2) Schools and libraries that only receive discounts for
telecommunications services under the federal universal service support
mechanism for schools and libraries are not subject to the requirements
47 U.S.C. 254(h) and (l), but must indicate, pursuant to the
certification requirements in paragraph (c) of this section, that they
only receive discounts for telecommunications services.
    (c) Certifications required under 47 U.S.C. 254(h) and (l)--(1)
Schools. The billed entity for a school that receives discounts for
Internet access or internal connections must certify on FCC Form 486
that an Internet safety policy is being enforced. If the school is an
eligible member of a consortium but is not the billed entity for the
consortium, the school must certify instead on FCC Form 479
(``Certification to Consortium Leader of Compliance with the Children's
Internet Protection Act'') that an Internet safety policy is being
enforced.
    (i) The Internet safety policy adopted and enforced pursuant to 47
U.S.C. 254(h) must include a technology protection measure that protects
against Internet access by both adults and minors to visual depictions
that are obscene, child pornography, or, with respect to use of the
computers by minors, harmful to minors. The school must enforce the
operation of the technology protection measure during use of its
computers with Internet access, although an administrator, supervisor,
or other person authorized by the certifying authority under paragraph
(a)(1) of this section may disable the technology protection measure
concerned, during use by an adult, to enable access for bona fide
research or other lawful purpose. This Internet safety policy must also
include monitoring the online activities of minors. Beginning July 1,
2012, schools' Internet safety policies must provide for educating
minors about appropriate online behavior, including interacting with
other individuals on social networking Web sites and in chat rooms and
cyberbullying awareness and response.
    (ii) The Internet safety policy adopted and enforced pursuant to 47
U.S.C.

[[Page 184]]

254(l) must address all of the following issues:
    (A) Access by minors to inappropriate matter on the Internet and
World Wide Web,
    (B) The safety and security of minors when using electronic mail,
chat rooms, and other forms of direct electronic communications,
    (C) Unauthorized access, including so-called ``hacking,'' and other
unlawful activities by minors online;
    (D) Unauthorized disclosure, use, and dissemination of personal
information regarding minors; and
    (E) Measures designed to restrict minors' access to materials
harmful to minors.
    (iii) A school must satisfy its obligations to make certifications
by making one of the following certifications required by paragraph
(c)(1) of this section on FCC Form 486:
    (A) The recipient(s) of service represented in the Funding Request
Number(s) on this Form 486 has (have) complied with the requirements of
the Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified at 47 U.S.C. 254(h)
and (l).
    (B) Pursuant to the Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified
at 47 U.S.C. 254(h) and (l), the recipient(s) of service represented in
the Funding Request Number(s) on this Form 486, for whom this is the
first funding year in the federal universal service support mechanism
for schools and libraries, is (are) undertaking such actions, including
any necessary procurement procedures, to comply with the requirements of
CIPA for the next funding year, but has (have) not completed all
requirements of CIPA for this funding year.
    (C) The Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified at 47 U.S.C.
254(h) and (l), does not apply because the recipient(s) of service
represented in the Funding Request Number(s) on this Form 486 is (are)
receiving discount services only for telecommunications services.
    (2) Libraries. The billed entity for a library that receives
discounts for Internet access and internal connections must certify, on
FCC Form 486, that an Internet safety policy is being enforced. If the
library is an eligible member of a consortium but is not the billed
entity for the consortium, the library must instead certify on FCC Form
479 (``Certification to Consortium Leader of Compliance with the
Children's Internet Protection Act'') that an Internet safety policy is
being enforced.
    (i) The Internet safety policy adopted and enforced pursuant to 47
U.S.C. 254(h) must include a technology protection measure that protects
against Internet access by both adults and minors to visual depictions
that are obscene, child pornography, or, with respect to use of the
computers by minors, harmful to minors. The library must enforce the
operation of the technology protection measure during use of its
computers with Internet access, although an administrator, supervisor,
or other person authorized by the certifying authority under paragraph
(a)(2) of this section may disable the technology protection measure
concerned, during use by an adult, to enable access for bona fide
research or other lawful purpose.
    (ii) The Internet safety policy adopted and enforced pursuant to 47
U.S.C. 254(l) must address all of the following issues:
    (A) Access by minors to inappropriate matter on the Internet and
World Wide Web;
    (B) The safety and security of minors when using electronic mail,
chat rooms, and other forms of direct electronic communications;
    (C) Unauthorized access, including so-called ``hacking,'' and other
unlawful activities by minors online;
    (D) Unauthorized disclosure, use, and dissemination of personal
information regarding minors; and
    (E) Measures designed to restrict minors' access to materials
harmful to minors.
    (iii) A library must satisfy its obligations to make certifications
by making one of the following certifications required by paragraph
(c)(2) of this section on FCC Form 486:
    (A) The recipient(s) of service represented in the Funding Request
Number(s) on this Form 486 has (have) complied with the requirements of
the Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified at 47 U.S.C. 254(h)
and (l).
    (B) Pursuant to the Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified
at 47

[[Page 185]]

U.S.C. 254(h) and (l), the recipient(s) of service represented in the
Funding Request Number(s) on this Form 486, for whom this is the first
funding year in the federal universal service support mechanism for
schools and libraries, is (are) undertaking such actions, including any
necessary procurement procedures, to comply with the requirements of
CIPA for the next funding year, but has (have) not completed all
requirements of CIPA for this funding year.
    (C) The Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified at 47 U.S.C.
254(h) and (l), does not apply because the recipient(s) of service
represented in the Funding Request Number(s) on this Form 486 is (are)
receiving discount services only for telecommunications services.
    (3) Certifications required from consortia members and billed
entities for consortia. (i) The billed entity of a consortium, as
defined in paragraph (a)(3) of this section, other than one requesting
only discounts on telecommunications services for consortium members,
must collect from the authority for each of its school and library
members, one of the following signed certifications on FCC Form 479
(``Certification to Consortium Leader of Compliance with the Children's
Internet Protection Act''), which must be submitted to the billed entity
consistent with paragraph (c)(1) or paragraph (c)(2) of this section:
    (A) The recipient(s) of service under my administrative authority
and represented in the Funding Request Number(s) for which you have
requested or received Funding Commitments has (have) complied with the
requirements of the Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified at
47 U.S.C. 254(h) and (l).
    (B) Pursuant to the Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified
at 47 U.S.C. 254(h) and (l), the recipient(s) of service under my
administrative authority and represented in the Funding Request
Number(s) for which you have requested or received Funding Commitments,
and for whom this is the first funding year in the federal universal
service support mechanism for schools and libraries, is (are)
undertaking such actions, including any necessary procurement
procedures, to comply with the requirements of CIPA for the next funding
year, but has (have) not completed all requirements of CIPA for this
funding year.
    (C) The Children's Internet Protection Act, as codified at 47 U.S.C.
254(h) and (l), does not apply because the recipient(s) of service under
my administrative authority and represented in the Funding Request
Number(s) for which you have requested or received Funding Commitments
is (are) receiving discount services only for telecommunications
services; and
    (ii) The billed entity for a consortium, as defined in paragraph
(a)(3) of this section, must make one of the following two
certifications on FCC Form 486: ``I certify as the Billed Entity for the
consortium that I have collected duly completed and signed Forms 479
from all eligible members of the consortium.''; or I certify ``as the
Billed Entity for the consortium that the only services that I have been
approved for discounts under the universal service support on behalf of
eligible members of the consortium are telecommunications services, and
therefore the requirements of the Children's Internet Protection Act, as
codified at 47 U.S.C. 254(h) and (l), do not apply.''; and
    (iii) The billed entity for a consortium, as defined in paragraph
(a)(3) of this section, who filed an FCC Form 471 as a ``consortium
application'' and who is also a recipient of services as a member of
that consortium must select one of the certifications under paragraph
(c)(3)(i) of this section on FCC Form 486.
    (4) Local determination of content. A determination regarding matter
inappropriate for minors shall be made by the school board, local
educational agency, library, or other authority responsible for making
the determination. No agency or instrumentality of the United States
Government may establish criteria for making such determination; review
the determination made by the certifying school, school board, school
district, local educational agency, library, or other authority; or
consider the criteria employed by the certifying school, school board,
school district, local educational agency, library, or other authority
in the administration of the

[[Page 186]]

schools and libraries universal service support mechanism.
    (5) Availability for review. Each Internet safety policy adopted
pursuant to 47 U.S.C. 254(l) shall be made available to the Commission,
upon request from the Commission, by the school, school board, school
district, local educational agency, library, or other authority
responsible for adopting such Internet safety policy for purposes of the
review of such Internet safety policy by the Commission.
    (d) Failure to provide certifications--(1) Schools and libraries. A
school or library that knowingly fails to submit certifications as
required by this section, shall not be eligible for discount services
under the federal universal service support mechanism for schools and
libraries until such certifications are submitted.
    (2) Consortia. A billed entity's knowing failure to collect the
required certifications from its eligible school and library members or
knowing failure to certify that it collected the required certifications
shall render the entire consortium ineligible for discounts under the
federal universal service support mechanism for school and libraries.
    (3) Reestablishing eligibility. At any time, a school or library
deemed ineligible for discount services under the federal universal
service support mechanism for schools and libraries because of failure
to submit certifications required by this section, may reestablish
eligibility for discounts by providing the required certifications to
the Administrator and the Commission.
    (e) Failure to comply with the certifications--(1) Schools and
libraries. A school or library that knowingly fails to ensure the use of
computers in accordance with the certifications required by this
section, must reimburse any funds and discounts received under the
federal universal service support mechanism for schools and libraries
for the period in which there was noncompliance.
    (2) Consortia. In the case of consortium applications, the
eligibility for discounts of consortium members who ensure the use of
computers in accordance with the certification requirements of this
section shall not be affected by the failure of other school or library
consortium members to ensure the use of computers in accordance with
such requirements.
    (3) Reestablishing compliance. At any time, a school or library
deemed ineligible for discounts under the federal universal service
support mechanism for schools and libraries for failure to ensure the
use of computers in accordance with the certification requirements of
this section and that has been directed to reimburse the program for
discounts received during the period of noncompliance, may reestablish
compliance by ensuring the use of its computers in accordance with the
certification requirements under this section. Upon submittal to the
Commission of a certification or other appropriate evidence of such
remedy, the school or library shall be eligible for discounts under the
universal service mechanism.
    (f) Waivers based on state or local procurement rules and
regulations and competitive bidding requirements. Waivers shall be
granted to schools and libraries when the authority responsible for
making the certifications required by this section, cannot make the
required certifications because its state or local procurement rules or
regulations or competitive bidding requirements, prevent the making of
the certification otherwise required. The waiver shall be granted upon
the provision, by the authority responsible for making the
certifications on behalf of schools or libraries, that the schools or
libraries will be brought into compliance with the requirements of this
section, for schools, before the start of the third program year after
April 20, 2001 in which the school is applying for funds under this
title, and, for libraries, before the start of Funding Year 2005 or the
third program year after April 20, 2001, whichever is later.
    (g) Funding year certification deadlines. For Funding Year 2003 and
for subsequent funding years, billed entities shall provide one of the
certifications required under paragraph (c)(1), (c)(2) or (c)(3) of this
section on an FCC Form 486 in accordance with the existing program
guidelines established by the Administrator.

[[Page 187]]

    (h) Public notice; hearing or meeting. A school or library shall
provide reasonable public notice and hold at least one public hearing or
meeting to address the proposed Internet safety policy.

[66 FR 19396, Apr. 16, 2001; 66 FR 22133, May 3, 2001, as amended at 67
FR 50603, Aug. 5, 2002; 68 FR 47255, Aug. 8, 2003; 76 FR 56303, Sept.
13, 2011]



Sec. 54.522  [Reserved]



Sec. 54.523  Payment for the non-discount portion of supported services.

    An eligible school, library, or consortium must pay the non-discount
portion of services or products purchased with universal service
discounts. An eligible school, library, or consortium may not receive
rebates for services or products purchased with universal service
discounts. For the purpose of this rule, the provision, by the provider
of a supported service, of free services or products unrelated to the
supported service or product constitutes a rebate of the non-discount
portion of the supported services.

[69 FR 6192, Feb. 10, 2004]



      Subpart G_Universal Service Support for Health Care Providers

                      Defined Terms and Eligibility



Sec. 54.600  Terms and definitions.

    As used in this subpart, the following terms shall be defined as
follows:
    (a) Health care provider. A ``health care provider'' is any:
    (1) Post-secondary educational institution offering health care
instruction, including a teaching hospital or medical school;
    (2) Community health center or health center providing health care
to migrants;
    (3) Local health department or agency;
    (4) Community mental health center;
    (5) Not-for-profit hospital;
    (6) Rural health clinic; or
    (7) Consortium of health care providers consisting of one or more
entities described in paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(6) of this section.
    (b) Rural area. (1) A ``rural area'' is an area that is entirely
outside of a Core Based Statistical Area; is within a Core Based
Statistical Area that does not have any Urban Area with a population of
25,000 or greater; or is in a Core Based Statistical Area that contains
an Urban Area with a population of 25,000 or greater, but is within a
specific census tract that itself does not contain any part of a Place
or Urban Area with a population of greater than 25,000. For purposes of
this rule, ``Core Based Statistical Area,'' ``Urban Area,'' and
``Place'' are as identified by the Census Bureau.
    (2) Notwithstanding the definition of ``rural area,'' any health
care provider that is located in a ``rural area'' under the definition
used by the Commission prior to July 1, 2005, and received a funding
commitment from the rural health care program prior to July 1, 2005, is
eligible for support under this subpart.
    (c) Rural health care provider. A ``rural health care provider'' is
an eligible health care provider site located in a rural area.

[78 FR 13982, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.601  Health care provider eligibility.

    (a) Eligible health care providers. (1) Only an entity that is
either a public or non-profit health care provider, as defined in this
subpart, shall be eligible to receive support under this subpart.
    (2) Each separate site or location of a health care provider shall
be considered an individual health care provider for purposes of
calculating and limiting support under this subpart.
    (b) Determination of health care provider eligibility for the
Healthcare Connect Fund. Health care providers in the Healthcare Connect
Fund may certify to the eligibility of particular sites at any time
prior to, or concurrently with, filing a request for services to
initiate competitive bidding for the site. Applicants who utilize a
competitive bidding exemption must provide eligibility information for
the site to the Administrator prior to, or concurrently with, filing a
request for funding for the site. Health care providers must also notify
the Administrator within 30

[[Page 188]]

days of a change in the health care provider's name, site location,
contact information, or eligible entity type.

[78 FR 13982, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.602  Health care support mechanism.

    (a) Telecommunications Program. Rural health care providers may
request support for the difference, if any, between the urban and rural
rates for telecommunications services, subject to the provisions and
limitations set forth in Sec. Sec. 54.600 through 54.625 and Sec. Sec.
54.671 through 54.680. This support is referred to as the
``Telecommunications Program.''
    (b) Healthcare Connect Fund. Eligible health care providers may
request support for eligible services, equipment, and infrastructure,
subject to the provisions and limitations set forth in Sec. Sec. 54.600
through 54.602 and Sec. Sec. 54.630 through 54.680. This support is
referred to as the ``Healthcare Connect Fund.''
    (c) Allocation of discounts. An eligible health care provider that
engages in both eligible and ineligible activities or that collocates
with an ineligible entity shall allocate eligible and ineligible
activities in order to receive prorated support for the eligible
activities only. Health care providers shall choose a method of cost
allocation that is based on objective criteria and reasonably reflects
the eligible usage of the facilities.
    (d) Health care purposes. Services for which eligible health care
providers receive support from the Telecommunications Program or the
Healthcare Connect Fund must be reasonably related to the provision of
health care services or instruction that the health care provider is
legally authorized to provide under the law in the state in which such
health care services or instruction are provided.

[78 FR 13982, Mar. 1, 2013]

                       Telecommunications Program



Sec. 54.603  Competitive bidding and certification requirements.

    (a) Competitive bidding requirement. To select the
telecommunications carriers that will provide services eligible for
universal service support to it under the Telecommunications Program,
each eligible health care provider shall participate in a competitive
bidding process pursuant to the requirements established in this section
and any additional and applicable state, Tribal, local, or other
procurement requirements.
    (b) Posting of FCC Form 465. (1) An eligible health care provider
seeking to receive telecommunications services eligible for universal
service support under the Telecommunications Program shall submit a
completed FCC Form 465 to the Administrator. FCC Form 465 shall be
signed by the person authorized to order telecommunications services for
the health care provider and shall include, at a minimum, that person's
certification under oath that:
    (i) The requester is a public or non-profit entity that falls within
one of the seven categories set forth in the definition of health care
provider, listed in Sec. 54.600(a);
    (ii) The requester is physically located in a rural area;
    (iii) [Reserved]
    (iv) The requested service or services will be used solely for
purposes reasonably related to the provision of health care services or
instruction that the health care provider is legally authorized to
provide under the law in the state in which such health care services or
instruction are provided;
    (v) The requested service or services will not be sold, resold or
transferred in consideration of money or any other thing of value; and
    (vi) If the service or services are being purchased as part of an
aggregated purchase with other entities or individuals, the full details
of any such arrangement, including the identities of all co-purchasers
and the portion of the service or services being purchased by the health
care provider.
    (2) The Rural Health Care Division shall post each FCC Form 465 that
it receives from an eligible health care provider on its website
designated for this purpose.
    (3) After posting an eligible health care providers FCC Form 465 on
the Rural Health Care Corporation website, the Rural Health Care
Division shall send confirmation of the posting to the entity requesting
services. The health

[[Page 189]]

care provider shall wait at least 28 days from the date on which its FCC
Form 465 is posted on the website before making commitments with the
selected telecommunications carrier(s).
    (4) After selecting a telecommunications carrier, the health care
provider shall certify to the Rural Health Care Division that the
provider is selecting the most cost-effective method of providing the
requested service or services, where the most cost-effective method of
providing a service is defined as the method that costs the least after
consideration of the features, quality of transmission, reliability, and
other factors that the health care provider deems relevant to choosing a
method of providing the required health care services. The health care
provider shall submit to the Administrator paper copies of the responses
or bids received in response to the requested services.
    (5) The confirmation from the Rural Health Care Division shall
include the date after which the requester may sign a contract with its
chosen telecommunications carrier(s).

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 41304, Aug. 1, 1997; 63
FR 2131, Jan. 13, 1998; 68 FR 74502, Dec. 24, 2003; 78 FR 13983, Mar. 1,
2013]



Sec. 54.604  Consortia, telecommunications services, and existing
contracts.

    (a) Consortia. (1) Under the Telecommunications Program, an eligible
health care provider may join a consortium with other eligible health
care providers; with schools, libraries, and library consortia eligible
under subpart F of this part; and with public sector (governmental)
entities to order telecommunications services. With one exception,
eligible health care providers participating in consortia with
ineligible private sector members shall not be eligible for supported
services under this subpart. A consortium may include ineligible private
sector entities if such consortium is only receiving services at
tariffed rates or at market rates from those providers who do not file
tariffs.
    (2) For consortia, universal service support under the
Telecommunications Program shall apply only to the portion of eligible
services used by an eligible health care provider.
    (b) Telecommunications Services. Any telecommunications service that
is the subject of a properly completed bona fide request by a rural
health care provider shall be eligible for universal service support,
subject to the limitations described in this paragraph. The length of a
supported telecommunications service may not exceed the distance between
the health care provider and the point farthest from that provider on
the jurisdictional boundary of the largest city in a state as defined in
Sec. 54.625(a).
    (c) Existing contracts. A signed contract for services eligible for
Telecommunications Program support pursuant to this subpart between an
eligible health care provider as defined under Sec. 54.600 and a
telecommunications carrier shall be exempt from the competitive bid
requirements set forth in Sec. 54.603(a) as follows:
    (1) A contract signed on or before July 10, 1997 is exempt from the
competitive bid requirement for the life of the contract.
    (2) [Reserved]
    (d) For rural health care providers that take service under or
pursuant to a master contract, as defined in Sec. 54.500(f), the date
of execution of that master contract represents the applicable date for
purposes of determining whether and to what extent the rural health care
provider is exempt from the competitive bid requirements.
    (e) The competitive bid system will be deemed to be operational when
the Administrator is ready to accept and post FCC Form 465 from rural
health care providers on a website and that website is available for use
by telecommunications carriers.

[63 FR 2131, Jan. 13, 1998; 63 FR 33586, June 19, 1998, as amended at 63
FR 70572, Dec. 21, 1998; 64 FR 22810, Apr. 28, 1999; 71 FR 65750, Nov.
9, 2006; 78 FR 13983, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.605  Determining the urban rate.

    (a) If a rural health care provider requests support for an eligible
service to be funded from the Telecommunications Program that is to be
provided over a distance that is less than or equal to the ``standard
urban distance,'' as defined in paragraph (c) of

[[Page 190]]

this section, for the state in which it is located, the ``urban rate''
for that service shall be a rate no higher than the highest tariffed or
publicly-available rate charged to a commercial customer for a
functionally similar service in any city with a population of 50,000 or
more in that state, calculated as if it were provided between two points
within the city.
    (b) If a rural health care provider requests an eligible service to
be provided over a distance that is greater than the ``standard urban
distance,'' as defined in paragraph (c) of this section, for the state
in which it is located, the urban rate for that service shall be a rate
no higher than the highest tariffed or publicly-available rate charged
to a commercial customer for a functionally similar service provided
over the standard urban distance in any city with a population of 50,000
or more in that state, calculated as if the service were provided
between two points within the city.
    (c) The ``standard urban distance'' for a state is the average of
the longest diameters of all cities with a population of 50,000 or more
within the state.
    (d) The Administrator shall calculate the ``standard urban
distance'' and shall post the ``standard urban distance'' and the
maximum supported distance for each state on its website.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 63 FR 2131, Jan. 13, 1998; 63
FR 70572, Dec. 21, 1998; 68 FR 74502, Dec. 24, 2003; 78 FR 13983, Mar.
1, 2013]



Sec. 54.607  Determining the rural rate.

    (a) The rural rate shall be the average of the rates actually being
charged to commercial customers, other than health care providers, for
identical or similar services provided by the telecommunications carrier
providing the service in the rural area in which the health care
provider is located. The rates included in this average shall be for
services provided over the same distance as the eligible service. The
rates averaged to calculate the rural rate must not include any rates
reduced by universal service support mechanisms. The ``rural rate''
shall be used as described in this subpart to determine the credit or
reimbursement due to a telecommunications carrier that provides eligible
telecommunications services to eligible health care providers.
    (b) If the telecommunications carrier serving the health care
provider is not providing any identical or similar services in the rural
area, then the rural rate shall be the average of the tariffed and other
publicly available rates, not including any rates reduced by universal
service programs, charged for the same or similar services in that rural
area over the same distance as the eligible service by other carriers.
If there are no tariffed or publicly available rates for such services
in that rural area, or if the carrier reasonably determines that this
method for calculating the rural rate is unfair, then the carrier shall
submit for the state commission's approval, for intrastate rates, or the
Commission's approval, for interstate rates, a cost-based rate for the
provision of the service in the most economically efficient, reasonably
available manner.
    (1) The carrier must provide, to the state commission, or intrastate
rates, or to the Commission, for interstate rates, a justification of
the proposed rural rate, including an itemization of the costs of
providing the requested service.
    (2) The carrier must provide such information periodically
thereafter as required, by the state commission for intrastate rates or
the Commission for interstate rates. In doing so, the carrier must take
into account anticipated and actual demand for telecommunications
services by all customers who will use the facilities over which
services are being provided to eligible health care providers.



Sec. 54.609  Calculating support.

    (a) The amount of universal service support provided for an eligible
service to be funded from the Telecommunications Program shall be the
difference, if any, between the urban rate and the rural rate charged
for the service, as defined herein. In addition, all reasonable charges
that are incurred by taking such services, such as state and federal
taxes shall be eligible for universal service support. Charges for

[[Page 191]]

termination liability, penalty surcharges, and other charges not
included in the cost of taking such service shall not be covered by the
universal service support mechanisms. Under the Telecommunications
Program, rural health care providers may choose one of the following two
support options.
    (1) Distance based support. The Administrator shall consider the
base rates for telecommunications services in rural areas to be
reasonably comparable to the base rates charged for functionally similar
telecommunications service in urban areas in that state, and, therefore,
the Administrator shall not include these charges in calculating the
support. The Administrator shall include, in the support calculation,
all other charges specified, and all actual distance-based charges as
follows:
    (i) If the requested service distance is less than or equal to the
SUD for the state, the distance-based charges for the rural health care
provider are reasonably comparable to those in urban areas, so the
health care provider will not receive distance-based support.
    (ii) If the requested service distance is greater than the SUD for
the state, but less than the maximum allowable distance, the distance-
based charge actually incurred for that service can be no higher than
the distance-based charges for a functionally similar service in any
city in that state with a population of 50,000 or more over the SUD.
    (iii) ``Distance-based charges'' are charges based on a unit of
distance, such as mileage-based charges.
    (iv) A telecommunications carrier that provides telecommunications
service to a rural health care provider participating in an eligible
health care consortium, and the consortium must establish the actual
distance-based charges for the health care provider's portion of the
shared telecommunications services.
    (2) Base rate support. If a telecommunications carrier, health care
provider, and/or consortium of health care providers reasonably
determines that the base rates for telecommunications services in rural
areas are not reasonably comparable to the base rates charged for
functionally similar telecommunications service in urban areas in that
state, the telecommunications carrier, health care provider, and/or
consortium of health care providers may request that the Administrator
perform a more comprehensive support calculation. The requester shall
provide to the Administrator the information to establish both the urban
and rural rates consistent with Sec. 54.605 and Sec. 54.607, and
submit to the Administrator with Form 466 all of the documentation
necessary to substantiate the request.
    (3) Base rate support-consortium. A telecommunications carrier that
provides telecommunications service to a rural health care provider
participating in an eligible health care consortium, and the consortium
must establish the applicable rural base rates for telecommunications
service for the health care provider's portion of the shared
telecommunications services, as well as the applicable urban base rates
for the telecommunications service.
    (b) Absent documentation justifying the amount of universal service
support requested for health care providers participating in a
consortium, the Administrator shall not allow telecommunications
carriers to offset, or receive reimbursement for, the amount eligible
for universal service support.
    (c) The universal service support mechanisms shall provide support
for intrastate telecommunications services, as set forth in Sec.
54.101(a), provided to rural health care providers as well as interstate
telecommunications services.
    (d) Satellite services.(1) Rural public and non-profit health care
providers may receive support for rural satellite services under the
Telecommunications Program, even when another functionally similar
terrestrial-based service is available in that rural area. Support for
satellite services shall be capped at the amount the rural health care
provider would have received if they purchased a functionally similar
terrestrial-based alternative.
    (2) Rural health care providers seeking support from the
Telecommunications Program for satellite services shall provide to the
Administrator with the Form 466, documentation of

[[Page 192]]

the urban and rural rates for the terrestrial-based alternatives.
    (3) Where a rural health care provider seeks a more expensive
satellite-based service when a less expensive terrestrial-based
alternative is available, the rural health care provider shall be
responsible for the additional cost.
    (e) Mobile rural health care providers-- (1) Calculation of support.
The support amount allowed under the Telecommunications Program for
satellite services provided to mobile rural health care providers is
calculated by comparing the rate for the satellite service to the rate
for an urban wireline service with a similar bandwidth. Support for
satellite services shall not be capped at an amount of a functionally
similar wireline alternative. Where the mobile rural health care
provider provides service in more than one state, the calculation shall
be based on the urban areas in each state, proportional to the number of
locations served in each state.
    (2) Documentation of support. (i) Mobile rural health care providers
shall provide to the Administrator documentation of the price of
bandwidth equivalent wireline services in the urban area in the state or
states where the service is provided. Mobile rural health care providers
shall provide to the Administrator the number of sites the mobile health
care provider will serve during the funding year.
    (ii) Where a mobile rural health care provider serves less than
eight different sites per year, the mobile rural health care provider
shall provide to the Administrator documentation of the price of
bandwidth equivalent wireline services. In such case, the Administrator
shall determine on a case-by-case basis whether the telecommunications
service selected by the mobile rural health care provider is the most
cost-effective option. Where a mobile rural health care provider seeks a
more expensive satellite-based service when a less expensive wireline
alternative is most cost-effective, the mobile rural health care
provider shall be responsible for the additional cost.

[68 FR 74502, Dec. 24, 2003, as amended at 70 FR 6373, Feb. 7, 2005; 78
FR 13983, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.613  Limitations on supported services for rural health care
providers.

    (a) Upon submitting a bona fide request to a telecommunications
carrier, each eligible rural health care provider is entitled to receive
the most cost-effective, commercially-available telecommunications
service at a rate no higher than the highest urban rate, as defined in
Sec. 54.605, at a distance not to exceed the distance between the
eligible health care provider's site and the farthest point on the
jurisdictional boundary of the city in that state with the largest
population.
    (b) [Reserved]

[64 FR 66787, Nov. 30, 1999, as amended at 68 FR 74503, Dec. 24, 2003;
78 FR 13984, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.615  Obtaining services.

    (a) Selecting a provider. In selecting a telecommunications carrier,
a health care provider shall consider all bids submitted and select the
most cost-effective alternative.
    (b) Receiving supported rate. Upon receiving a bona fide request, as
defined in paragraph (c) of this section, from a rural health care
provider for a telecommunications service that is eligible for support
under the Telecommunications Program, a telecommunications carrier shall
provide the service at a rate no higher than the urban rate, as defined
in Sec. 54.605, subject to the limitations applicable to the
Telecommunications Program.
    (c) Bona fide request. In order to receive services eligible for
support under the Telecommunications Program, an eligible health care
provider must submit a request for services to the telecommunications
carrier, signed by an authorized officer of the health care provider,
and shall include that person's certification under oath that:
    (1) The requester is a public or non-profit entity that falls within
one of the seven categories set forth in the definition of health care
provider, listed in Sec. 54.601(a);
    (2) The requester is physically located in a rural area, or if the
requester is a mobile rural health care provider requesting services
under

[[Page 193]]

Sec. 54.609(e), that the requester has certified that it is serving
eligible rural areas;
    (3) [Reserved]
    (4) The requested service or services will be used solely for
purposes reasonably related to the provision of health care services or
instruction that the health care provider is legally authorized to
provide under the law in the state in which such health care services or
instruction are provided;
    (5) The requested service or services will not be sold, resold or
transferred in consideration of money or any other thing of value;
    (6) If the service or services are being purchased as part of an
aggregated purchase with other entities or individuals, the full details
of any such arrangement, including the identities of all co-purchasers
and the portion of the service or services being purchased by the health
care provider; and
    (7) The requester is selecting the most cost-effective method of
providing the requested service or services, where the most cost-
effective method of providing a service is defined as the method that
costs the least after consideration of the features, quality of
transmission, reliability, and other factors that the health care
provider deems relevant to choosing a method of providing the required
health care services.
    (d) Annual renewal. The certification set forth in paragraph (c) of
this section shall be renewed annually.

[62 FR 32948, June 17, 1997, as amended at 70 FR 6373, Feb. 7, 2005; 78
FR 13984, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.619  Audits and recordkeeping.

    (a) Health care providers. (1) Health care providers shall maintain
for their purchases of services supported under the Telecommunications
Program documentation for five years from the end of the funding year
sufficient to establish compliance with all rules in this subpart.
Documentation must include, among other things, records of allocations
for consortia and entities that engage in eligible and ineligible
activities, if applicable. Mobile rural health care providers shall
maintain annual logs indicating: The date and locations of each clinic
stop; and the number of patients served at each such clinic stop.
    (2) Mobile rural health care providers shall maintain its annual
logs for a period of five years. Mobile rural health care providers
shall make its logs available to the Administrator and the Commission
upon request.
    (b) Production of records. Health care providers shall produce such
records at the request of any auditor appointed by the Administrator or
any other state or federal agency with jurisdiction.
    (c) Random audits. Health care providers shall be subject to random
compliance audits to ensure that requesters are complying with the
certification requirements set forth in Sec. 54.615(c) and are
otherwise eligible to receive universal service support and that rates
charged comply with the statute and regulations.
    (d) Service providers. Service providers shall retain documents
related to the delivery of discounted services under the
Telecommunications Program for at least 5 years after the last day of
the delivery of discounted services. Any other document that
demonstrates compliance with the statutory or regulatory requirements
for the rural health care mechanism shall be retained as well.

[68 FR 74503, Dec. 24, 2003, as amended at 69 FR 12087, Mar. 15, 2004;
70 FR 6373, Feb. 7, 2005; 71 FR 13281, Mar. 15, 2006; 72 FR 54218, Sept.
24, 2007; 78 FR 13984, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.623  Annual filing and funding commitment requirement.

    (a) Annual filing requirement. Health care providers seeking support
under the Telecommunications Program shall file new funding requests for
each funding year.
    (b) Long term contracts. Under the Telecommunications Program, if
health care providers enter into long term contracts for eligible
services, the Administrator shall only commit funds to cover the portion
of such a long term contract scheduled to be delivered during the
funding year for which universal service support is sought.

[78 FR 13984, Mar. 1, 2013]

[[Page 194]]



Sec. 54.625  Support for telecommunications services beyond the maximum
supported distance for rural health care providers.

    (a) The maximum support distance for the Telecommunications Program
is the distance from the health care provider to the farthest point on
the jurisdictional boundary of the city in that state with the largest
population, as calculated by the Administrator.
    (b) An eligible rural health care provider may purchase an eligible
telecommunications service supported under the Telecommunications
Program that is provided over a distance that exceeds the maximum
supported distance.
    (c) If an eligible rural health care provider purchases an eligible
telecommunications service supported under the Telecommunications
Program that exceeds the maximum supported distance, the health care
provider must pay the applicable rural rate for the distance that such
service is carried beyond the maximum supported distance.

[78 FR 13984, Mar. 1, 2013]

                         Healthcare Connect Fund



Sec. 54.630  Eligible recipients.

    (a) Rural health care provider site--individual and consortium.
Under the Healthcare Connect Fund, an eligible rural health care
provider may receive universal service support by applying individually
or through a consortium. For purposes of the Healthcare Connect Fund, a
``consortium'' is a group of two or more health care provider sites that
request support through a single application. Consortia may include
health care providers who are not eligible for support under the
Healthcare Connect Fund, but such health care providers cannot receive
support for their expenses and must participate pursuant to the cost
allocation guidelines in Sec. 54.639(d).
    (b) Limitation on participation of non-rural health care provider
sites in a consortium. An eligible non-rural health care provider site
may receive universal service support only as part of a consortium that
includes more than 50 percent eligible rural health care provider sites.
    (c) Limitation on large non-rural hospitals. Each eligible non-rural
public or non-profit hospital site with 400 or more licensed patient
beds may receive no more than $30,000 per year in Healthcare Connect
Fund support for eligible recurring charges and no more than $70,000 in
Healthcare Connect Fund support every 5 years for eligible nonrecurring
charges, exclusive in both cases of costs shared by the network.

[78 FR 13984, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.631  Designation of Consortium Leader.

    (a) Identifying a Consortium Leader. Each consortium seeking support
from the Healthcare Connect Fund must identify an entity or organization
that will be the lead entity (the ``Consortium Leader'').
    (b) Consortium Leader eligibility. The Consortium Leader may be the
consortium itself (if it is a distinct legal entity); an eligible health
care provider participating in the consortium; or a state organization,
public sector (governmental) entity (including a Tribal government
entity), or non-profit entity that is ineligible for Healthcare Connect
Fund support. Ineligible state organizations, public sector entities, or
non-profit entities may serve as Consortium Leaders or provide
consulting assistance to consortia only if they do not participate as
potential vendors during the competitive bidding process. An ineligible
entity that serves as the Consortium Leader must pass on the full value
of any discounts, funding, or other program benefits secured to the
consortium members that are eligible health care providers.
    (c) Consortium Leader responsibilities. The Consortium Leader's
responsibilities include the following:
    (1) Legal and financial responsibility for supported activities. The
Consortium Leader is the legally and financially responsible entity for
the activities supported by the Healthcare Connect Fund. By default, the
Consortium Leader is the responsible entity if audits or other
investigations by Administrator or the Commission reveal violations of
the Act or Commission rules, with individual consortium members being
jointly and severally liable if the Consortium Leader dissolves, files
for

[[Page 195]]

bankruptcy, or otherwise fails to meet its obligations. Except for the
responsibilities specifically described in paragraphs (c)(2) through
(c)(6) of this section, consortia may allocate legal and financial
responsibility as they see fit, provided that this allocation is
memorialized in a formal written agreement between the affected parties
(i.e., the Consortium Leader, and the consortium as a whole and/or its
individual members), and the written agreement is submitted to the
Administrator for approval with or prior to the Request for Services.
Any such agreement must clearly identify the party(ies) responsible for
repayment if the Administrator is required, at a later date, to recover
disbursements to the consortium due to violations of program rules.
    (2) Point of contact for the FCC and Administrator. The Consortium
Leader is responsible for designating an individual who will be the
``Project Coordinator'' and serve as the point of contact with the
Commission and the Administrator for all matters related to the
consortium. The Consortium Leader is responsible for responding to
Commission and Administrator inquiries on behalf of the consortium
members throughout the application, funding, invoicing, and post-
invoicing period.
    (3) Typical applicant functions, including forms and certifications.
The Consortium Leader is responsible for submitting program forms and
required documentation and ensuring that all information and
certifications submitted are true and correct. The Consortium Leader
must also collect and retain a Letter of Agency (LOA) from each member,
pursuant to Sec. 54.632.
    (4) Competitive bidding and cost allocation. The Consortium Leader
is responsible for ensuring that the competitive bidding process is fair
and open and otherwise complies with Commission requirements. If costs
are shared by both eligible and ineligible entities, the Consortium
Leader must ensure that costs are allocated in a manner that ensures
that only eligible entities receive the benefit of program discounts.
    (5) Invoicing. The Consortium Leader is responsible for notifying
the Administrator when supported services have commenced and for
submitting invoices to the Administrator.
    (6) Recordkeeping, site visits, and audits. The Consortium Leader is
also responsible for compliance with the Commission's recordkeeping
requirements and for coordinating site visits and audits for all
consortium members.

[78 FR 13985, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.632  Letters of agency (LOA).

    (a) Authorizations. Under the Healthcare Connect Fund, the
Consortium Leader must obtain the following authorizations.
    (1) Prior to the submission of the request for services, the
Consortium Leader must obtain authorization, the necessary
certifications, and any supporting documentation from each consortium
member to permit the Consortium Leader to submit the request for
services and prepare and post the request for proposal on behalf of the
member.
    (2) Prior to the submission of the funding request, the Consortium
Leader must secure authorization, the necessary certifications, and any
supporting documentation from each consortium member to permit the
Consortium Leader to submit the funding request and manage invoicing and
payments on behalf of the member.
    (b) Optional two-step process. The Consortium Leader may secure both
required authorizations from each consortium member in either a single
LOA or in two separate LOAs.
    (c) Required Information in LOA. (1) An LOA must include, at a
minimum, the name of the entity filing the application (i.e., lead
applicant or Consortium Leader); name of the entity authorizing the
filing of the application (i.e., the participating health care provider/
consortium member); the physical location of the health care provider/
consortium member site(s); the relationship of each site seeking support
to the lead entity filing the application; the specific timeframe the
LOA covers; the signature, title and contact information (including
phone number, mailing address, and email address) of an official who is
authorized to act on behalf of the health care provider/consortium
member; signature date; and

[[Page 196]]

the type of services covered by the LOA.
    (2) For HCPs located on Tribal lands, if the health care facility is
a contract facility that is run solely by the tribe, the appropriate
tribal leader, such as the tribal chairperson, president, or governor,
shall also sign the LOA, unless the health care responsibilities have
been duly delegated to another tribal government representative.

[78 FR 13985, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.633  Health care provider contribution.

    (a) Health care provider contribution. All health care providers
receiving support under the Healthcare Connect Fund shall receive a 65
percent discount on the cost of eligible expenses and shall be required
to contribute 35 percent of the total cost of all eligible expenses.
    (b) Limits on eligible sources of health care provider contribution.
Only funds from eligible sources may be applied toward the health care
provider's required contribution.
    (1) Eligible sources include the applicant or eligible health care
provider participants; state grants, funding, or appropriations; federal
funding, grants, loans, or appropriations except for other federal
universal service funding; Tribal government funding; and other grant
funding, including private grants.
    (2) Ineligible sources include (but are not limited to) in-kind or
implied contributions from health care providers; direct payments from
vendors or other service providers, including contractors and
consultants to such entities; and for-profit entities.
    (c) Disclosure of health care provider contribution source. Prior to
receiving support, applicants are required to identify with specificity
their sources of funding for their contribution of eligible expenses.
    (d) Future revenues from excess capacity as source of health care
provider contribution. A consortium applicant that receives support for
participant-owned network facilities under Sec. 54.636 may use future
revenues from excess capacity as a source for the required health care
provider contribution, subject to the following limitations.
    (1) The consortium's selection criteria and evaluation for ``cost-
effectiveness'' pursuant to Sec. 54.642 cannot provide a preference to
bidders that offer to construct excess capacity.
    (2) The applicant must pay the full amount of the additional costs
for excess capacity facilities that will not be part of the supported
health care network.
    (3) The additional cost of constructing excess capacity facilities
may not count toward a health care provider's required contribution.
    (4) The inclusion of excess capacity facilities cannot increase the
funded cost of the dedicated health care network in any way.
    (5) An eligible health care provider (typically the consortium,
although it may be an individual health care provider participating in
the consortium) must retain ownership of the excess capacity facilities.
It may make the facilities available to third parties only under an
indefeasible right of use (IRU) or lease arrangement. The lease or IRU
between the participant and the third party must be an arm's length
transaction. To ensure that this is an arm's length transaction, neither
the vendor that installs the excess capacity facilities nor its
affiliate is eligible to enter into an IRU or lease with the
participant.
    (6) Any amount prepaid for use of the excess capacity facilities
(IRU or lease) must be placed in an escrow account. The participant can
then use the escrow account as an eligible source of funds for the
participant's 35 percent contribution to the project.
    (7) All revenues from use of the excess capacity facilities by the
third party must be used for the health care provider contribution or
for sustainability of the health care network supported by the
Healthcare Connect Fund. Network costs that may be funded with any
additional revenues that remain include administration, equipment,
software, legal fees, or other costs not covered by the Healthcare
Connect Fund, as long as they are relevant to sustaining the network.

[78 FR 13985, Mar. 1, 2013]

[[Page 197]]



Sec. 54.634  Eligible services.

    (a) Eligible services. Subject to the provisions of Sec. Sec.
54.600 through 54.602 and Sec. Sec. 54.630 through 54.680, eligible
health care providers may request support from the Healthcare Connect
Fund for any advanced telecommunications or information service that
enables health care providers to post their own data, interact with
stored data, generate new data, or communicate, by providing
connectivity over private dedicated networks or the public Internet for
the provision of health information technology.
    (b) Eligibility of dark fiber. A consortium of eligible health care
providers may receive support for ``dark'' fiber where the customer, not
the vendor, provides the modulating electronics, subject to the
following limitations:
    (1) Support for recurring charges associated with dark fiber is only
available once the dark fiber is ``lit'' and actually being used by the
health care provider. Support for non-recurring charges for dark fiber
is only available for fiber lit within the same funding year, but
applicants may receive up to a one-year extension to light fiber if they
provide documentation to the Administrator that construction was
unavoidably delayed due to weather or other reasons.
    (2) Requests for proposals (RFPs) that solicit dark fiber solutions
must also solicit proposals to provide the needed services over lit
fiber over a time period comparable to the duration of the dark fiber
lease or indefeasible right of use.
    (3) If an applicant intends to request support for equipment and
maintenance costs associated with lighting and operating dark fiber, it
must include such elements in the same RFP as the dark fiber so that the
Administrator can review all costs associated with the fiber when
determining whether the applicant chose the most cost-effective bid.
    (c) Dark and lit fiber maintenance costs. (1) Both individual and
consortium applicants may receive support for recurring maintenance
costs associated with leases of dark or lit fiber.
    (2) Consortium applicants may receive support for upfront payments
for maintenance costs associated with leases of dark or lit fiber,
subject to the limitations in Sec. 54.638.
    (d) Reasonable and customary installation charges. Eligible health
care providers may obtain support for reasonable and customary
installation charges for eligible services, up to an undiscounted cost
of $5,000 per eligible site.
    (e) Upfront charges for vendor deployment of new or upgraded
facilities. (1) Participants may obtain support for upfront charges for
vendor deployment of new or upgraded facilities to serve eligible sites.
    (2) Support is available to extend vendor deployment of facilities
up to the ``demarcation point,'' which is the boundary between
facilities owned or controlled by the vendor, and facilities owned or
controlled by the customer.

[78 FR 13986, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.635  Eligible equipment.

    (a) Both individual and consortium applicants may receive support
for network equipment necessary to make functional an eligible service
that is supported under the Healthcare Connect Fund.
    (b) Consortium applicants may also receive support for network
equipment necessary to manage, control, or maintain an eligible service
or a dedicated health care broadband network. Support for network
equipment is not available for networks that are not dedicated to health
care.
    (c) Network equipment eligible for support includes the following:
    (1) Equipment that terminates a carrier's or other provider's
transmission facility and any router/switch that is directly connected
to either the facility or the terminating equipment. This includes
equipment required to light dark fiber, or equipment necessary to
connect dedicated health care broadband networks or individual health
care providers to middle mile or backbone networks;
    (2) Computers, including servers, and related hardware (e.g.
printers, scanners, laptops) that are used exclusively for network
management;
    (3) Software used for network management, maintenance, or other
network operations, and development of

[[Page 198]]

software that supports network management, maintenance, and other
network operations;
    (4) Costs of engineering, furnishing (i.e. as delivered from the
manufacturer), and installing network equipment; and
    (5) Equipment that is a necessary part of health care provider-owned
network facilities.
    (d) Additional limitations: Support for network equipment is limited
to equipment:
    (1) Purchased or leased by a Consortium Leader or eligible health
care provider; and
    (2) Used for health care purposes.

[78 FR 13986, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.636  Eligible participant-constructed and owned network
facilities for consortium applicants.

    (a) Subject to the funding limitations under Sec. Sec. 54.675 and
54.638 and the following restrictions, consortium applicants may receive
support for network facilities that will be constructed and owned by the
consortium (if the consortium is an eligible health care provider) or
eligible health care providers within the consortium.
    (1) Consortia seeking support to construct and own network
facilities are required to solicit bids for both:
    (i) Services provided over third-party networks; and
    (ii) Construction of participant-owned network facilities, in the
same request for proposals. Requests for proposals must provide
sufficient detail so that cost-effectiveness can be evaluated over the
useful life of the proposed network facility to be constructed.
    (2) Support for participant-constructed and owned network facilities
is only available where the consortium demonstrates that constructing
its own network facilities is the most cost-effective option after
competitive bidding, pursuant to Sec. 54.642.
    (b) [Reserved]

[78 FR 13987, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.637  Off-site data centers and off-site administrative offices.

    (a) The connections and network equipment associated with off-site
data centers and off-site administrative offices used by eligible health
care providers for their health care purposes are eligible for support
under the Healthcare Connect Fund, subject to the conditions and
restrictions set forth in paragraph (b) of this section.
    (1) An ``off-site administrative office'' is a facility that does
not provide hands-on delivery of patient care, but performs
administrative support functions that are critical to the provision of
clinical care by eligible health care providers.
    (2) An ``off-site data center'' is a facility that serves as a
centralized repository for the storage, management, and dissemination of
an eligible health care provider's computer systems, associated
components, and data, including (but not limited to) electronic health
records.
    (b) Conditions and Restrictions. The following conditions and
restrictions apply to support provided under this sections.
    (1) Connections eligible for support are only those that are
between:
    (i) Eligible health care provider sites and off-site data centers or
off-site administrative offices,
    (ii) Two off-site data centers,
    (iii) Two off-site administrative offices,
    (iv) An off-site data center and the public Internet or another
network,
    (v) An off-site administrative office and the public Internet or
another network, or
    (vi) An off-site administrative office and an off-site data center.
    (2) The supported connections and network equipment must be used
solely for health care purposes.
    (3) The supported connections and network equipment must be
purchased by an eligible health care provider or a public or non-profit
health care system that owns and operates eligible health care provider
sites.
    (4) If traffic associated with one or more ineligible health care
provider sites is carried by the supported connection and/or network
equipment, the ineligible health care provider sites must allocate the
cost of that connection and/or equipment between eligible and ineligible
sites, consistent with the ``fair share'' principles set forth in Sec.
54.639(d).

[78 FR 13987, Mar. 1, 2013]

[[Page 199]]



Sec. 54.638  Upfront payments.

    (a) Upfront payments include all non-recurring costs for services,
equipment, or facilities, other than reasonable and customary
installation charges of up to $5,000.
    (b) The following limitations apply to all upfront payments:
    (1) Upfront payments associated with services providing a bandwidth
of less than 1.5 Mbps (symmetrical) are not eligible for support.
    (2) Only consortium applicants are eligible for support for upfront
payments.
    (c) The following limitations apply if a consortium makes a request
for support for upfront payments that exceeds, on average, $50,000 per
eligible site in the consortium:
    (1) The support for the upfront payments must be prorated over at
least three years.
    (2) The upfront payments must be part of a multi-year contract.

[78 FR 13987, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.639  Ineligible expenses.

    (a) Equipment or services not directly associated with eligible
services. Expenses associated with equipment or services that are not
necessary to make an eligible service functional, or to manage, control,
or maintain an eligible service or a dedicated health care broadband
network are ineligible for support.

    Note to paragraph (a):
    The following are examples of ineligible expenses:
    1. Costs associated with general computing, software, applications,
and Internet content development are not supported, including the
following:
    i. Computers, including servers, and related hardware (e.g.,
printers, scanners, laptops), unless used exclusively for network
management, maintenance, or other network operations;
    ii. End user wireless devices, such as smartphones and tablets;
    iii. Software, unless used for network management, maintenance, or
other network operations;
    iv. Software development (excluding development of software that
supports network management, maintenance, and other network operations);
    v. Helpdesk equipment and related software, or services, unless used
exclusively in support of eligible services or equipment;
    vi. Web server hosting;
    vii. Web site portal development;
    viii. Video/audio/web conferencing equipment or services; and
    ix. Continuous power source.
    2. Costs associated with medical equipment (hardware and software),
and other general health care provider expenses are not supported,
including the following:
    i. Clinical or medical equipment;
    ii. Telemedicine equipment, applications, and software;
    iii. Training for use of telemedicine equipment;
    iv. Electronic medical records systems; and
    v. Electronic records management and expenses.

    (b) Inside wiring/internal connections. Expenses associated with
inside wiring or internal connections are ineligible for support under
the Healthcare Connect Fund.
    (c) Administrative expenses. Administrative expenses are not
eligible for support under the Healthcare Connect Fund.

    Note to paragraph (c):
    Ineligible administrative expenses include, but not limited to, the
following expenses:
    1. Personnel costs (including salaries and fringe benefits), except
for personnel expenses in a consortium application that directly relate
to designing, engineering, installing, constructing, and managing a
dedicated broadband network. Ineligible costs of this category include,
for example, personnel to perform program management and coordination,
program administration, and marketing;
    2. Travel costs, except for travel costs that are reasonable and
necessary for network design or deployment and that are specifically
identified and justified as part of a competitive bid for a construction
project;
    3. Legal costs;
    4. Training, except for basic training or instruction directly
related to and required for broadband network installation and
associated network operations;
    5. Program administration or technical coordination (e.g., preparing
application materials, obtaining letters of agency, preparing request
for proposals, negotiating with vendors, reviewing bids, and working
with the Administrator) that involves anything other than the design,
engineering, operations, installation, or construction of the network;
    6. Administration and marketing costs (e.g., administrative costs;
supplies and materials, except as part of network installation/
construction; marketing studies, marketing activities, or outreach to
potential network members; evaluation and feedback studies);

[[Page 200]]

    7. Billing expenses (e.g., expense that vendors may charge for
allocating costs to each health care provider in a network);
    8. Helpdesk expenses (e.g., equipment and related software, or
services); and
    9. Technical support services that provide more than basic
maintenance.

    (d) Cost allocation for ineligible sites, services, or equipment--
(1) Ineligible sites. Eligible health care provider sites may share
expenses with ineligible sites, as long as the ineligible sites pay
their fair share of the expenses. An applicant may seek support for only
the portion of a shared eligible expense attributable to eligible health
care provider sites. To receive support, the applicant must ensure that
ineligible sites pay their fair share of the expense. The fair share is
determined as follows:
    (i) If the vendor charges a separate and independent price for each
site, an ineligible site must pay the full undiscounted price.
    (ii) If there is no separate and independent price for each site,
the applicant must prorate the undiscounted price for the ``shared''
service, equipment, or facility between eligible and ineligible sites on
a proportional fully-distributed basis. Applicants must make this cost
allocation using a method that is based on objective criteria and
reasonably reflects the eligible usage of the shared service, equipment,
or facility. The applicant bears the burden of demonstrating the
reasonableness of the allocation method chosen.
    (2) Ineligible components of a single service or piece of equipment.
Applicants seeking support for a service or piece of equipment that
includes an ineligible component must explicitly request in their
requests for proposals that vendors include pricing for a comparable
service or piece of equipment that is comprised of only eligible
components. If the selected provider also submits a price for the
eligible component on a stand-alone basis, the support amount is
calculated based on the stand-alone price of the eligible component on a
stand-alone basis. If the vendor does not offer the eligible component
on a stand-alone basis, the full price of the entire service or piece of
equipment must be taken into account, without regard to the value of the
ineligible components, when determining the most cost-effective bid.
    (3) Written description. Applicants must submit a written
description of their allocation method(s) to the Administrator with
their funding requests.
    (4) Written agreement. If ineligible entities participate in a
network, the allocation method must be memorialized in writing, such as
a formal agreement among network members, a master services contract, or
for smaller consortia, a letter signed and dated by all (or each)
ineligible entity and the Consortium Leader.

[78 FR 13987, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.640  Eligible vendors.

    (a) Eligibility. For purposes of the Healthcare Connect Fund,
eligible vendors shall include any provider of equipment, facilities, or
services that are eligible for support under Healthcare Connect Fund.
    (b) Obligation to assist health care providers. Vendors in the
Healthcare Connect Fund must certify, as a condition of receiving
support, that they will provide to health care providers, on a timely
basis, all information and documents regarding supported equipment,
facilities, or services that are necessary for the health care provider
to submit required forms or respond to Commission or Administrator
inquiries. The Administrator may withhold disbursements for the vendor
if the vendor, after written notice from the Administrator, fails to
comply with this requirement.

[78 FR 13988, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.642  Competitive bidding requirement and exemptions.

    (a) Competitive bidding requirement. All applicants are required to
engage in a competitive bidding process for supported services,
facilities, or equipment consistent with the requirements set forth in
this subpart, unless they qualify for one or more of the exemptions in
paragraph (h) of this section. In addition, applicants may engage in
competitive bidding even if they qualify for an exemption. Applicants
who

[[Page 201]]

utilize a competitive bidding exemption may proceed directly to filing a
funding request as described in Sec. 54.643.
    (b) Fair and open process. (1) All entities participating in the
Healthcare Connect Fund must conduct a fair and open competitive bidding
process, consistent with all applicable requirements.
    (2) Vendors who intend to bid to provide supported services,
equipment, or facilities to a health care provider may not
simultaneously help the health care provider choose a winning bid. Any
vendor who submits a bid, and any individual or entity that has a
financial interest in such a vendor, is prohibited from:
    (i) Preparing, signing or submitting an applicant's request for
services;
    (ii) Serving as the Consortium Leader or other point of contact on
behalf of applicant(s);
    (iii) Being involved in setting bid evaluation criteria; or
    (iv) Participating in the bid evaluation or vendor selection process
(except in their role as potential vendors).
    (3) All potential bidders must have access to the same information
and must be treated in the same manner.
    (4) All applicants and vendors must comply with any applicable
state, Tribal, or local competitive bidding requirements. The
competitive bidding requirements in this section apply in addition to
state, Tribal, and local competitive bidding requirements and are not
intended to preempt such state, Tribal, or local requirements.
    (c) Cost-effective. For purposes of the Healthcare Connect Fund,
``cost-effective'' is defined as the method that costs the least after
consideration of the features, quality of transmission, reliability, and
other factors that the health care provider deems relevant to choosing a
method of providing the required health care services.
    (d) Bid evaluation criteria. Applicants must develop weighted
evaluation criteria (e.g., scoring matrix) that demonstrate how the
applicant will choose the most ``cost-effective'' bid before submitting
a Request for Services. Price must be a primary factor, but need not be
the only primary factor. A non-price factor can receive an equal weight
to price, but may not receive a greater weight than price.
    (e) Request for services. Applicants must submit the following
documents to the Administrator in order to initiate competitive bidding.
    (1) Form 461, including certifications. The applicant must provide
the following certifications as part of the request for services.
    (i) The person signing the application is authorized to submit the
application on behalf of the applicant and has examined the form and all
attachments, and to the best of his or her knowledge, information, and
belief, all statements of fact contained therein are true.
    (ii) The applicant has followed any applicable state, Tribal, or
local procurement rules.
    (iii) All Healthcare Connect Fund support will be used solely for
purposes reasonably related to the provision of health care service or
instruction that the HCP is legally authorized to provide under the law
of the state in which the services are provided and will not be sold,
resold, or transferred in consideration for money or any other thing of
value.
    (iv) The applicant satisfies all of the requirements under section
254 of the Act and applicable Commission rules.
    (v) The applicant has reviewed all applicable requirements for the
program and will comply with those requirements.
    (2) Bid evaluation criteria. Requirements for bid evaluation
criteria are described in paragraph (d) of this section.
    (3) Declaration of assistance. All applicants must submit a
``Declaration of Assistance'' with their Request for Services. In the
Declaration of Assistance, applicants must identify each and every
consultant, vendor, and other outside expert, whether paid or unpaid,
who aided in the preparation of their applications.
    (4) Request for proposal (if applicable). (i) Any applicant may use
a request for proposals (RFP). Applicants who use an RFP must submit the
RFP and any additional relevant bidding information to the Administrator
with Form 461.
    (ii) An applicant must submit an RFP:

[[Page 202]]

    (A) If it is required to issue an RFP under applicable State,
Tribal, or local procurement rules or regulations;
    (B) If the applicant is a consortium seeking more than $100,000 in
program support during the funding year, including applications that
seek more than $100,000 in program support for a multi-year commitment;
or
    (C) If the applicant is a consortium seeking support for
participant-constructed and owned network facilities.
    (iii) RFP requirements. (A) An RFP must provide sufficient
information to enable an effective competitive bidding process,
including describing the health care provider's service needs and
defining the scope of the project and network costs (if applicable).
    (B) An RFP must specify the period during which bids will be
accepted.
    (C) An RFP must include the bid evaluation criteria described in
paragraph (d) of this section, and solicit sufficient information so
that the criteria can be applied effectively.
    (D) Consortium applicants seeking support for long-term capital
investments whose useful life extends beyond the period of the funding
commitment (e.g., facilities constructed and owned by the applicant,
fiber indefeasible rights of use) must seek bids in the same RFP from
vendors who propose to meet those needs via services provided over
vendor-owned facilities, for a time period comparable to the life of the
proposed capital investment.
    (E) Applicants may prepare RFPs in any manner that complies with the
rules in this subpart and any applicable state, Tribal, or local
procurement rules or regulations.
    (5) Additional requirements for consortium applicants. (i) Network
plan. Consortium applicants must submit a narrative describing specific
elements of their network plan with their Request for Services.
Consortia applicants are required to use program support for the
purposes described in their narrative. The required elements of the
narrative include:
    (A) Goals and objectives of the network;
    (B) Strategy for aggregating the specific needs of health care
providers (including providers that serve rural areas) within a state or
region;
    (C) Strategy for leveraging existing technology to adopt the most
efficient and cost effective means of connecting those providers;
    (D) How the supported network will be used to improve or provide
health care delivery;
    (E) Any previous experience in developing and managing health
information technology (including telemedicine) programs; and
    (F) A project management plan outlining the project's leadership and
management structure, and a work plan, schedule, and budget.
    (ii) Letters of agency. Consortium applicants must submit letters of
agency pursuant to Sec. 54.632.
    (f) Public posting by the Administrator. The Administrator shall
post on its web site the following competitive bidding documents, as
applicable:
    (1) Form 461,
    (2) Bid evaluation criteria,
    (3) Request for proposal, and
    (4) Network plan.
    (g) 28-day waiting period. After posting the documents described in
paragraph (f) of this section on its Web site, the Administrator shall
send confirmation of the posting to the applicant. The applicant shall
wait at least 28 days from the date on which its competitive bidding
documents are posted on the Web site before selecting and committing to
a vendor.
    (1) Selection of the most ``cost-effective'' bid and contract
negotiation. Each applicant subject to competitive bidding is required
to certify to the Administrator that the selected bid is, to the best of
the applicant's knowledge, the most cost-effective option available.
Applicants are required to submit the documentation listed in Sec.
54.643 to support their certifications.
    (2) Applicants who plan to request evergreen status under Sec.
54.642(h)(4)(ii) must enter into a contract that identifies both
parties, is signed and dated by the health care provider or Consortium
Leader after the 28-day waiting period expires, and specifies the type,
term, and cost of service.
    (h) Exemptions to competitive bidding requirements. (1) Annual
undiscounted cost of $10,000 or less. An applicant that seeks support
for $10,000 or less of total undiscounted eligible expenses for a

[[Page 203]]

single year is exempt from the competitive bidding requirements under
this section, if the term of the contract is one year or less.
    (2) Government Master Service Agreement (MSA). Eligible health care
providers that seek support for services and equipment purchased from
MSAs negotiated by federal, state, Tribal, or local government entities
on behalf of such health care providers and others, if such MSAs were
awarded pursuant to applicable federal, state, Tribal, or local
competitive bidding requirements, are exempt from the competitive
bidding requirements under this section.
    (3) Master Service Agreements approved under the Pilot Program or
Healthcare Connect Fund. A eligible health care provider site may opt
into an existing MSA approved under the Pilot Program or Healthcare
Connect Fund and seek support for services and equipment purchased from
the MSA without triggering the competitive bidding requirements under
this section, if the MSA was developed and negotiated in response to an
RFP that specifically solicited proposals that included a mechanism for
adding additional sites to the MSA.
    (4) Evergreen contracts. (i) Subject to the provisions in Sec.
54.644, the Administrator may designate a multi-year contract as
``evergreen,'' which means that the service(s) covered by the contract
need not be re-bid during the contract term.
    (ii) A contract entered into by a health care provider or consortium
as a result of competitive bidding may be designated as evergreen if it
meets all of the following requirements:
    (A) Is signed by the individual health care provider or consortium
lead entity;
    (B) Specifies the service type, bandwidth and quantity;
    (C) Specifies the term of the contract;
    (D) Specifies the cost of services to be provided; and
    (E) Includes the physical location or other identifying information
of the health care provider sites purchasing from the contract.
    (iii) Participants may exercise voluntary options to extend an
evergreen contract without undergoing additional competitive bidding,
if:
    (A) The voluntary extension(s) is memorialized in the evergreen
contract;
    (B) The decision to extend the contract occurs before the
participant files its funding request for the funding year when the
contract would otherwise expire; and
    (C) The voluntary extension(s) do not exceed five years in the
aggregate.
    (5) Schools and libraries program master contracts. Subject to the
provisions in Sec. Sec. 54.500, 54.501(c)(1), and 54.503, an eligible
health care provider in a consortium with participants in the schools
and libraries universal service support program and a party to the
consortium's existing contract is exempt from the Healthcare Connect
Fund competitive bidding requirements if the contract was approved in
the schools and libraries universal service support program as a master
contract. The health care provider must comply with all Healthcare
Connect Fund rules and procedures except for those applicable to
competitive bidding.

[78 FR 13988, Mar. 1, 2013, as amended at 79 FR 49203, Aug. 19, 2014]



Sec. 54.643  Funding commitments.

    (a) Once a vendor is selected, applicants must submit a ``Funding
Request'' (and supporting documentation) to provide information about
the services, equipment, or facilities selected and certify that the
services selected were the most cost-effective option of the offers
received. The following information should be submitted to the
Administrator with the Funding Request.
    (1) Request for funding. The applicant shall submit a request for
funding (Form 462) to identify the service(s), equipment, or facilities;
rates; vendor(s); and date(s) of vendor selection.
    (2) Certifications. The applicant must provide the following
certifications as part of the request for funding:
    (i) The person signing the application is authorized to submit the
application on behalf of the applicant and has examined the form and all
attachments, and to the best of his or her knowledge, information, and
belief, all statements of fact contained therein are true.

[[Page 204]]

    (ii) Each vendor selected is, to the best of the applicant's
knowledge, information and belief, the most cost-effective vendor
available, as defined in Sec. 54.642(c).
    (iii) All Healthcare Connect Fund support will be used only for
eligible health care purposes.
    (iv) The applicant is not requesting support for the same service
from both the Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare Connect
Fund.
    (v) The applicant satisfies all of the requirements under section
254 of the Act and applicable Commission rules, and understands that any
letter from the Administrator that erroneously commits funds for the
benefit of the applicant may be subject to rescission.
    (vi) The applicant has reviewed all applicable requirements for the
program and will comply with those requirements.
    (vii) The applicant will maintain complete billing records for the
service for five years.
    (3) Contracts or other documentation. All applicants must submit a
contract or other documentation that clearly identifies the vendor(s)
selected and the health care provider(s) who will receive the services,
equipment, or facilities; the service, bandwidth, and costs for which
support is being requested; and the term of the service agreement(s) if
applicable (i.e., if services are not being provided on a month-to-month
basis). For services, equipment, or facilities provided under contract,
the applicant must submit a copy of the contract signed and dated (after
the Allowable Contract Selection Date) by the individual health care
provider or Consortium Leader. If the service, equipment, or facilities
are not being provided under contract, the applicant must submit a bill,
service offer, letter, or similar document from the vendor that provides
the required information.
    (4) Competitive bidding documents. Applicants must submit
documentation to support their certifications that they have selected
the most cost-effective option, including a copy of each bid received
(winning, losing, and disqualified), the bid evaluation criteria, and
the following documents (as applicable): bid evaluation sheets; a list
of people who evaluated bids (along with their title/role/relationship
to the applicant organization); memos, board minutes, or similar
documents related to the vendor selection/award; copies of notices to
winners; and any correspondence with vendors during the bidding/
evaluation/award phase of the process. Applicants who claim a
competitive bidding exemption must submit relevant documentation to
allow the Administrator to verify that the applicant is eligible for the
claimed exemption.
    (5) Cost allocation for ineligible entities or components. Pursuant
to Sec. 54.639(d)(3) through (d)(4), where applicable, applicants must
submit a description of how costs will be allocated for ineligible
entities or components, as well as any agreements that memorialize such
arrangements with ineligible entities.
    (6) Additional documentation for consortium applicants. A consortium
applicant must also submit the following:
    (i) Any revisions to the network plan submitted with the Request for
Services pursuant to Sec. 54.642(e)(5)(i), as necessary. If not
previously submitted, the consortium should provide a narrative
description of how the network will be managed, including all
administrative aspects of the network, including but not limited to
invoicing, contractual matters, and network operations. If the
consortium is required to provide a sustainability plan as set forth in
Sec. 54.643(a)(6)(iv), the revised budget should include the budgetary
factors discussed in the sustainability plan requirements.
    (ii) A list of participating health care providers and all of their
relevant information, including eligible (and ineligible, if applicable)
cost information for each participating health care provider.
    (iii) Evidence of a viable source for the undiscounted portion of
supported costs.
    (iv) Sustainability plans for applicants requesting support for
long-term capital expenses: Consortia that seek funding to construct and
own their own facilities or obtain indefeasible right of use or capital
lease interests are required to submit a sustainability plan with their
funding requests demonstrating how they intend to maintain and operate
the facilities that are

[[Page 205]]

supported over the relevant time period. Applicants may incorporate by
reference other portions of their applications (e.g., project management
plan, budget). The sustainability plan must, at a minimum, address the
following points:
    (A) Projected sustainability period. Indicate the sustainability
period, which at a minimum is equal to the useful life of the funded
facility. The consortium's budget must show projected income and
expenses (i.e., for maintenance) for the project at the aggregate level,
for the sustainability period.
    (B) Principal factors. Discuss each of the principal factors that
were considered by the participant to demonstrate sustainability. This
discussion must include all factors that show that the proposed network
will be sustainable for the entire sustainability period. Any factor
that will have a monetary impact on the network must be reflected in the
applicant's budget.
    (C) Terms of membership in the network. Describe generally any
agreements made (or to be entered into) by network members (e.g.,
participation agreements, memoranda of understanding, usage agreements,
or other similar agreements). The sustainability plan must also
describe, as applicable:
    (1) Financial and time commitments made by proposed members of the
network;
    (2) If the project includes excess bandwidth for growth of the
network, describe how such excess bandwidth will be financed; and
    (3) If the network will include ineligible health care providers and
other network members, describe how fees for joining and using the
network will be assessed.
    (D) Ownership structure. Explain who will own each material element
of the network (e.g., fiber constructed, network equipment, end user
equipment). For purposes of this subsection, ``ownership'' includes an
indefeasible right of use interest. Applicants must clearly identify the
legal entity that will own each material element. Applicants must also
describe any arrangements made to ensure continued use of such elements
by the network members for the duration of the sustainability period.
    (E) Sources of future support. Describe other sources of future
funding, including fees to be paid by eligible health care providers
and/or non-eligible entities.
    (F) Management. Describe the management structure of the network for
the duration of the sustainability period. The applicant's budget must
describe how management costs will be funded.
    (v) Material change to sustainability plan. A consortium that is
required to file a sustainability plan must maintain its accuracy. If
there is a material change to a required sustainability plan that would
impact projected income or expenses by more than 20 percent or $100,000
from the previous submission, or if the applicant submits a funding
request based on a new Form 462 (i.e., a new competitively bid
contract), the consortium is required to re-file its sustainability
plan. In the event of a material change, the applicant must provide the
Administrator with the revised sustainability plan no later than the end
of the relevant quarter, clearly showing (i.e., by redlining or
highlighting) what has changed.
    (b) [Reserved]

[78 FR 13990, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.644  Multi-year commitments.

    (a) Participants in the Healthcare Connect Fund are permitted to
enter into multi-year contracts for eligible expenses and may receive
funding commitments from the Administrator for a period that covers up
to three funding years.
    (b) If a long-term contract covers a period of more than three
years, the applicant may also have the contract designated as
``evergreen'' under Sec. 54.642(h)(4) which will allow the applicant to
re-apply for a funding commitment under the contract after three years
without having to undergo additional competitive bidding.

[78 FR 13991, Mar. 1, 2013]

[[Page 206]]



Sec. 54.645  Payment process.

    (a) The Consortium Leader (or health care provider, if participating
individually) must certify to the Administrator that it has paid its
contribution to the vendor before the invoice can be sent to
Administrator and the vendor can be paid.
    (b) Before the Administrator may process and pay an invoice, both
the Consortium Leader (or health care provider, if participating
individually) and the vendor must certify that they have reviewed the
document and that it is accurate. All invoices must be received by the
Administrator within six months of the end date of the funding
commitment.

[78 FR 13991, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.646  Site and service substitutions.

    (a) A Consortium Leader (or health care provider, if participating
individually) may request a site or service substitution if:
    (1) The substitution is provided for in the contract, within the
change clause, or constitutes a minor modification;
    (2) The site is an eligible health care provider and the service is
an eligible service under the Healthcare Connect Fund;
    (3) The substitution does not violate any contract provision or
state, Tribal, or local procurement laws; and
    (4) The requested change is within the scope of the controlling
request for services, including any applicable request for proposal used
in the competitive bidding process.
    (b) Support for a qualifying site and service substitution will be
provided to the extent the substitution does not cause the total amount
of support under the applicable funding commitment to increase.

[78 FR 13991, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.647  Data collection and reporting.

    (a) Each consortium lead entity must file an annual report with the
Administrator on or before September 30 for the preceding funding year,
with the information and in the form specified by the Wireline
Competition Bureau.
    (b) Each consortium is required to file an annual report for each
funding year in which it receives support from the Healthcare Connect
Fund.
    (c) For consortia that receive large upfront payments, the reporting
requirement extends for the life of the supported facility.

[78 FR 13991, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.648  Audits and recordkeeping.

    (a) Random audits. Participants shall be subject to random
compliance audits and other investigations to ensure compliance with
program rules and orders.
    (b) Recordkeeping. (1) Participants, including Consortium Leaders
and health care providers, shall maintain records to document compliance
with program rules and orders for at least 5 years after the last day of
service delivered in a particular funding year. Participants who receive
support for long-term capital investments in facilities whose useful
life extends beyond the period of the funding commitment shall maintain
records for at least 5 years after the end of the useful life of the
facility. Participants shall maintain asset and inventory records of
supported network equipment to verify the actual location of such
equipment for a period of 5 years after purchase.
    (2) Vendors shall retain records related to the delivery of
supported services, facilities, or equipment to document compliance with
program rules and orders for at least 5 years after the last day of the
delivery of supported services, equipment, or facilities in a particular
funding year.
    (3) Both participants and vendors shall produce such records at the
request of the Commission, any auditor appointed by the Administrator or
the Commission, or of any other state or federal agency with
jurisdiction.

[78 FR 13991, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.649  Certifications.

    For individual health care provider applicants, required
certifications must be provided and signed by an officer or director of
the health care provider, or other authorized employee of the health
care provider. For consortium applicants, an officer, director, or other
authorized employee of the Consortium Leader must sign the required

[[Page 207]]

certifications. Pursuant to Sec. 54.680, electronic signatures are
permitted for all required certifications.

[78 FR 13992, Mar. 1, 2013]

                           General Provisions



Sec. 54.671  Resale.

    (a) Prohibition on resale. Services purchased pursuant to universal
service support mechanisms under this subpart shall not be sold, resold,
or transferred in consideration for money or any other thing of value.
    (b) Permissible fees. The prohibition on resale set forth in
paragraph (a) of this section shall not prohibit a health care provider
from charging normal fees for health care services, including
instruction related to services purchased with support provided under
this subpart.

[78 FR 13992, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.672  Duplicate support.

    (a) Eligible health care providers that seek support under the
Healthcare Connect Fund for telecommunications services may not also
request support from the Telecommunications Program for the same
services.
    (b) Eligible health care providers that seek support under the
Telecommunications Program or the Healthcare Connect Fund may not also
request support from any other universal service program for the same
expenses.

[78 FR 13992, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.675  Cap.

    (a) Amount of the annual cap. The aggregate annual cap on federal
universal service support for health care providers shall be $400
million per funding year, of which up to $150 million per funding year
will be available to support upfront payments and multi-year commitments
under the Healthcare Connect Fund.
    (b) Funding year. A funding year for purposes of the health care
providers cap shall be the period July 1 through June 30.
    (c) Requests. Funds shall be available as follows:
    (1) Generally, funds shall be available to eligible health care
providers on a first-come-first-served basis, with requests accepted
beginning on the first of January prior to each funding year.
    (2) For the Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare Connect
Fund, the Administrator shall implement a filing window period that
treats all eligible health care providers filing within the window
period as if their applications were simultaneously received.
    (3) [Reserved]
    (4) The deadline to submit a funding commitment request under the
Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare Connect Fund is June 30
for the funding year that begins on the previous July 1.
    (d) Annual filing requirement. Health care providers shall file new
funding requests for each funding year, except for health care providers
who have received a multi-year funding commitment under Sec. 54.644.
    (e) Long-term contracts. If health care providers enter into long-
term contracts for eligible services, the Administrator shall only
commit funds to cover the portion of such a long-term contract scheduled
to be delivered during the funding year for which universal service
support is sought, except for multi-year funding commitments as
described in Sec. 54.644.
    (f) Pro-rata reductions for Telecommunications Program support. The
Administrator shall act in accordance with this section when a filing
window period for the Telecommunications Program and the Healthcare
Connect Fund, as described in paragraph (c)(2) of this section, is in
effect. When a filing window period described in paragraph (c)(2) of
this section closes, the Administrator shall calculate the total demand
for Telecommunications Program and Healthcare Connect Fund support
submitted by all applicants during the filing window period. If the
total demand during a filing window period exceeds the total remaining
support available for the funding year, the Administrator shall take the
following steps:
    (1) The Administrator shall divide the total remaining funds
available for the funding year by the total amount of Telecommunications
Program and Healthcare Connect Fund support requested by each applicant
that has

[[Page 208]]

filed during the window period, to produce a pro-rata factor.
    (2) The Administrator shall calculate the amount of
Telecommunications Program and Healthcare Connect Fund support requested
by each applicant that has filed during the filing window.
    (3) The Administrator shall multiply the pro-rata factor by the
total dollar amount requested by each applicant filing during the window
period. Administrator shall then commit funds to each applicant for
Telecommunications Program and Healthcare Connect Fund support
consistent with this calculation.

[78 FR 13992, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.679  Election to offset support against annual universal service
fund contribution.

    (a) A service provider that contributes to the universal service
support mechanisms under subpart H of this part and also provides
services eligible for support under this subpart to eligible health care
providers may, at the election of the contributor:
    (1) Treat the amount eligible for support under this subpart as an
offset against the contributor's universal service support obligation
for the year in which the costs for providing eligible services were
incurred; or
    (2) Receive direct reimbursement from the Administrator for that
amount.
    (b) Service providers that are contributors shall elect in January
of each year the method by which they will be reimbursed and shall
remain subject to that method for the duration of the calendar year. Any
support amount that is owed a service provider that fails to remit its
monthly universal service contribution obligation, however, shall first
be applied as an offset to that contributor's contribution obligation.
Such a service provider shall remain subject to the offsetting method
for the remainder of the calendar year in which it failed to remit its
monthly universal service obligation. A service provider that continues
to be in arrears on its universal service contribution obligations at
the end of a calendar year shall remain subject to the offsetting method
for the next calendar year.
    (c) If a service provider providing services eligible for support
under this subpart elects to treat that support amount as an offset
against its universal service contribution obligation and the total
amount of support owed exceeds its universal service obligation,
calculated on an annual basis, the service provider shall receive a
direct reimbursement in the amount of the difference. Any such
reimbursement due a service provider shall be provided by the
Administrator no later than the end of the first quarter of the calendar
year following the year in which the costs were incurred and the offset
against the contributor's universal service obligation was applied.

[78 FR 13992, Mar. 1, 2013]



Sec. 54.680  Validity of electronic signatures.

    (a) For the purposes of this subpart, an electronic signature
(defined by the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce
Act, as an electronic sound, symbol, or process, attached to or
logically associated with a contract or other record and executed or
adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record) has the same
legal effect as a written signature.
    (b) For the purposes of this subpart, an electronic record (defined
by the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act, as a
contract or other record created, generated, sent, communicated,
received, or stored by electronic means) constitutes a record.

[78 FR 13993, Mar. 1, 2013]



                        Subpart H_Administration



Sec. 54.701  Administrator of universal service support mechanisms.

    (a) The Universal Service Administrative Company is appointed the
permanent Administrator of the federal universal service support
mechanisms, subject to a review after one year by the Federal
Communications Commission to determine that the Administrator is
administering the universal service support mechanisms in an efficient,
effective, and competitively neutral manner.

[[Page 209]]

    (b) The Administrator shall establish a nineteen (19) member Board
of Directors, as set forth in Sec. 54.703. The Administrator's Board of
Directors shall establish three Committees of the Board of Directors, as
set forth in Sec. 54.705: (1) the Schools and Libraries Committee,
which shall oversee the schools and libraries support mechanism; (2) the
Rural Health Care Committee, which shall oversee the rural health care
support mechanism; and (3) the High Cost and Low Income Committee, which
shall oversee the high cost and low income support mechanism. The Board
of Directors shall not modify substantially the power or authority of
the Committees of the Board without prior approval from the Federal
Communications Commission.
    (c)(1) The Administrator shall establish three divisions:
    (i) The Schools and Libraries Division, which shall perform duties
and functions in connection with the schools and libraries support
mechanism under the direction of the Schools and Libraries Committee of
the Board, as set forth in Sec. 54.705(a);
    (ii) The Rural Health Care Division, which shall perform duties and
functions in connection with the rural health care support mechanism
under the direction of the Rural Health Care Committee of the Board, as
set forth in Sec. 54.705(b); and
    (iii) The High Cost and Low Income Division, which shall perform
duties and functions in connection with the high cost and low income
support mechanism, the interstate access universal service support
mechanism for price cap carriers described in subpart J of this part,
and the interstate common line support mechanism for rate-of-return
carriers described in subpart K of this part, under the direction of the
High Cost and Low Income Committee of the Board, as set forth in Sec.
54.705(c).
    (2) As directed by the Committees of the Board set forth in Sec.
54.705, these divisions shall perform the duties and functions unique to
their respective support mechanisms.
    (d) The Administrator shall be managed by a Chief Executive Officer,
as set forth in Sec. 54.704. The Chief Executive Officer shall serve on
the Committees of the Board established in Sec. 54.705.

[63 FR 70572, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 65 FR 38689, June 21, 2000;
65 FR 57739, Sept. 26, 2000; 66 FR 59727, Nov. 30, 2001; 68 FR 36943,
June 20, 2003]



Sec. 54.702  Administrator's functions and responsibilities.

    (a) The Administrator, and the divisions therein, shall be
responsible for administering the schools and libraries support
mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, the high-cost
support mechanism, and the low income support mechanism.
    (b) The Administrator shall be responsible for billing contributors,
collecting contributions to the universal service support mechanisms,
and disbursing universal service support funds.
    (c) The Administrator may not make policy, interpret unclear
provisions of the statute or rules, or interpret the intent of Congress.
Where the Act or the Commission's rules are unclear, or do not address a
particular situation, the Administrator shall seek guidance from the
Commission.
    (d) The Administrator may advocate positions before the Commission
and its staff only on administrative matters relating to the universal
service support mechanisms.
    (e) The Administrator shall maintain books of account separate from
those of the National Exchange Carrier Association, of which the
Administrator is an independent subsidiary. The Administrator's books of
account shall be maintained in accordance with generally accepted
accounting principles. The Administrator may borrow start up funds from
the National Exchange Carrier Association. Such funds may not be drawn
from the Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS) fund or TRS
administrative expense accounts.
    (f) The Administrator shall create and maintain a website, as
defined in Sec. 54.5, on which applications for services will be posted
on behalf of schools, libraries and rural health care providers.
    (g) The Administrator shall file with the Commission and Congress an
annual report by March 31 of each year.

[[Page 210]]

The report shall detail the Administrator's operations, activities, and
accomplishments for the prior year, including information about
participation in each of the universal service support mechanisms and
administrative action intended to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse. The
report also shall include an assessment of subcontractors' performance,
and an itemization of monthly administrative costs that shall include
all expenses, receipts, and payments associated with the administration
of the universal service support programs. The Administrator shall
consult each year with Commission staff to determine the scope and
content of the annual report.
    (h) The Administrator shall report quarterly to the Commission on
the disbursement of universal service support program funds. The
Administrator shall keep separate accounts for the amounts of money
collected and disbursed for eligible schools and libraries, rural health
care providers, low-income consumers, and high-cost and insular areas.
    (i) Information based on the Administrator's reports will be made
public by the Commission at least once a year as part of a Monitoring
Report.
    (j) The Administrator shall provide the Commission full access to
the data collected pursuant to the administration of the universal
service support programs.
    (k) Pursuant to Sec. 64.903 of this chapter, the Administrator
shall file with the Commission a cost allocation manual (CAM) that
describes the accounts and procedures the Administrator will use to
allocate the shared costs of administering the universal service support
mechanisms and its other operations.
    (l) The Administrator shall make available to whomever the
Commission directs, free of charge, any and all intellectual property,
including, but not limited to, all records and information generated by
or resulting from its role in administering the support mechanisms, if
its participation in administering the universal service support
mechanisms ends.
    (m) If its participation in administering the universal service
support mechanisms ends, the Administrator shall be subject to close-out
audits at the end of its term.
    (n) The Administrator shall account for the financial transactions
of the Universal Service Fund in accordance with generally accepted
accounting principles for federal agencies and maintain the accounts of
the Universal Service Fund in accordance with the United States
Government Standard General Ledger. When the Administrator, or any
independent auditor hired by the Administrator, conducts audits of the
beneficiaries of the Universal Service Fund, contributors to the
Universal Service Fund, or any other providers of services under the
universal service support mechanisms, such audits shall be conducted in
accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. In
administering the Universal Service Fund, the Administrator shall also
comply with all relevant and applicable federal financial management and
reporting statutes.
    (o) The Administrator shall provide performance measurements
pertaining to the universal service support mechanisms as requested by
the Commission by order or otherwise.

[63 FR 70573, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000;
65 FR 57739, Sept. 26, 2000; 66 FR 59727, Nov. 30, 2001; 67 FR 11259,
Mar. 13, 2002; 69 FR 5719, Feb. 6, 2004; 72 FR 54218, Sept. 24, 2007; 76
FR 73876, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 54.703  The Administrator's Board of Directors.

    (a) The Administrator shall have a Board of Directors separate from
the Board of Directors of the National Exchange Carrier Association. The
National Exchange Carrier Association's Board of Directors shall be
prohibited from participating in the functions of the Administrator.
    (b) Board composition. The independent subsidiary's Board of
Directors shall consist of nineteen (19) directors:
    (1) Three directors shall represent incumbent local exchange
carriers, with one director representing the Bell Operating Companies
and GTE, one director representing ILECs (other than the Bell Operating
Companies) with annual operating revenues in excess of $40 million, and
one director representing ILECs (other than the Bell Operating

[[Page 211]]

Companies) with annual operating revenues of $40 million or less;
    (2) Two directors shall represent interexchange carriers, with one
director representing interexchange carriers with more than $3 billion
in annual operating revenues and one director representing interexchange
carriers with annual operating revenues of $3 billion or less;
    (3) One director shall represent commercial mobile radio service
(CMRS) providers;
    (4) One director shall represent competitive local exchange
carriers;
    (5) One director shall represent cable operators;
    (6) One director shall represent information service providers;
    (7) Three directors shall represent schools that are eligible to
receive discounts pursuant to Sec. 54.501;
    (8) One director shall represent libraries that are eligible to
receive discounts pursuant to Sec. 54.501;
    (9) Two directors shall represent rural health care providers that
are eligible to receive supported services pursuant to Sec. 54.601;
    (10) One director shall represent low-income consumers;
    (11) One director shall represent state telecommunications
regulators;
    (12) One director shall represent state consumer advocates; and
    (13) The Chief Executive Officer of the Administrator.
    (c) Selection process for board of directors. (1) Sixty (60) days
prior to the expiration of a director's term, the industry or non-
industry group that is represented by such director on the
Administrator's Board of Directors, as specified in paragraph (b) of
this section, shall nominate by consensus a new director. The industry
or non-industry group shall submit the name of its nominee for a seat on
the Administrator's Board of Directors, along with relevant professional
and biographical information about the nominee, to the Chairman of the
Federal Communications Commission. Only members of the industry or non-
industry group that a Board member will represent may submit a
nomination for that position.
    (2) The name of an industry or non-industry group's nominee shall be
filed with the Office of the Secretary of the Federal Communications
Commission in accordance with part 1 of this chapter. The document
nominating a candidate shall be captioned ``In the matter of: Nomination
for Universal Service Administrator's Board of Directors'' and shall
reference FCC Docket Nos. 97-21 and 96-45. Each nomination shall specify
the position on the Board of Directors for which such nomination is
submitted. Two copies of the document nominating a candidate shall be
submitted to the Wireline Competition Bureau's Telecommunications Access
Policy Division.
    (3) The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission shall
review the nominations submitted by industry and non-industry groups and
select each director of the Administrator's Board of Directors, as each
director's term expires pursuant to paragraph (d) of this section. If an
industry or non-industry group does not reach consensus on a nominee or
fails to submit a nomination for a position on the Administrator's Board
of Directors, the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission
shall select an individual to represent such group on the
Administrator's Board of Directors.
    (d) Board member terms. The directors of the Administrator's Board
shall be appointed for three-year terms, except that the Chief Executive
Officer shall be a permanent member of the Board. Board member terms
shall run from January 1 of the first year of the term to December 31 of
the third year of the term, except that, for purposes of the term
beginning on January 1, 1999, the terms of the six directors shall
expire on December 31, 2000, the terms of another six directors on
December 31, 2001, and the terms of the remaining six directors on
December 31, 2002. Directors may be reappointed for subsequent terms
pursuant to the initial nomination and appointment process described in
paragraph (c) of this section. If a Board member vacates his or her seat
prior to the completion of his or her term, the Administrator will
notify the Wireline Competition Bureau of such vacancy, and a successor
will be chosen pursuant to the nomination and appointment process
described in paragraph (c) of this section.

[[Page 212]]

    (e) All meetings of the Administrator's Board of Directors shall be
open to the public and held in Washington, D.C.
    (f) Each member of the Administrator's Board of Directors shall be
entitled to receive reimbursement for expenses directly incurred as a
result of his or her participation on the Administrator's Board of
Directors.

[63 FR 70573, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 67 FR 13226, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 54.704  The Administrator's Chief Executive Officer.

    (a) Chief Executive Officer's functions. (1) The Chief Executive
Officer shall have management responsibility for the administration of
the federal universal service support mechanisms.
    (2) The Chief Executive Officer shall have management responsibility
for all employees of the Universal Service Administrative Company. The
Chief Executive Officer may delegate such responsibility to heads of the
divisions established in Sec. 54.701(g).
    (3) The Chief Executive Officer shall serve on the Administrator's
Board of Directors as set forth in Sec. 54.703(b) and on the Committees
of the Board established under Sec. 54.705.
    (b) Selection process for the Chief Executive Officer. (1) The
members of the Board of Directors of the Administrator shall nominate by
consensus a Chief Executive Officer. The Board of Directors shall submit
the name of its nominee for Chief Executive Officer, along with relevant
professional and biographical information about the nominee, to the
Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.
    (2) The Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission shall
review the nomination submitted by the Administrator's Board of
Directors. Subject to the Chairman's approval, the nominee shall be
appointed as the Administrator's Chief Executive Officer.
    (3) If the Board of Directors does not reach consensus on a nominee
or fails to submit a nomination for the Chief Executive Officer, the
Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission shall select a Chief
Executive Officer.

[63 FR 70574, Dec. 21, 1998]



Sec. 54.705  Committees of the Administrator's Board of Directors.

    (a) Schools and Libraries Committee--(1) Committee functions. The
Schools and Libraries Committee shall oversee the administration of the
schools and libraries support mechanism by the Schools and Libraries
Division. The Schools and Libraries Committee shall have the authority
to make decisions concerning:
    (i) How the Administrator projects demand for the schools and
libraries support mechanism;
    (ii) Development of applications and associated instructions as
needed for the schools and libraries support mechanism;
    (iii) Administration of the application process, including
activities to ensure compliance with Federal Communications Commission
rules and regulations;
    (iv) Performance of outreach and education functions;
    (v) Review of bills for services that are submitted by schools and
libraries;
    (vi)-(viii) [Reserved]
    (ix) The classification of schools and libraries as urban or rural
and the use of the discount matrix established in Sec. 54.505(c) of
this chapter to set the discount rate to be applied to services
purchased by eligible schools and libraries;
    (x) Performance of audits of beneficiaries under the schools and
libraries support mechanism; and
    (xi) Development and implementation of other functions unique to the
schools and libraries support mechanism.
    (2) Committee composition. The Schools and Libraries Committee shall
consist of the following members of the Administrator's Board of
Directors:
    (i) Three school representatives;
    (ii) One library representative;
    (iii) One service provider representative;
    (iv) One at-large representative elected by the Administrator's
Board of Directors; and
    (v) The Administrator's Chief Executive Officer.
    (b) Rural Health Care Committee--(1) Committee functions. The Rural
Health Care Committee shall oversee the administration of the rural
health care

[[Page 213]]

support mechanism by the Rural Health Care Division. The Rural Health
Care Committee shall have authority to make decisions concerning:
    (i) How the Administrator projects demand for the rural health care
support mechanism;
    (ii) Development of applications and associated instructions as
needed for the rural health care support mechanism;
    (iii) Administration of the application process, including
activities to ensure compliance with Federal Communications Commission
rules and regulations;
    (iv) Calculation of support levels under Sec. 54.609;
    (v) Performance of outreach and education functions;
    (vi) Review of bills for services that are submitted by rural health
care providers;
    (vii) Monitoring demand for the purpose of determining when the $400
million cap has been reached;
    (viii) Performance of audits of beneficiaries under the rural health
care support mechanism; and
    (ix) Development and implementation of other functions unique to the
rural health care support mechanism.
    (2) Committee composition. The Rural Health Care Committee shall
consist of the following members of the Administrator's Board of
Directors:
    (i) Two rural health care representatives;
    (ii) One service provider representative;
    (iii) Two at-large representatives elected by the Administrator's
Board of Directors;
    (iv) One State telecommunications regulator, one state consumer
advocate; and
    (v) The Administrator's Chief Executive Officer.
    (c) High Cost and Low Income Committee--(1) Committee functions. The
High Cost and Low Income Committee shall oversee the administration of
the high cost and low income support mechanisms, the interstate access
universal service support mechanism for price cap carriers described in
subpart J of this part, and the interstate common line support mechanism
for rate-of-return carriers described in subpart K of this part by the
High Cost and Low Income Division. The High Cost and Low Income
Committee shall have the authority to make decisions concerning:
    (i) How the Administrator projects demand for the high cost, low
income, interstate access universal service, and interstate common line
support mechanisms;
    (ii) Development of applications and associated instructions as
needed for the high cost, low income, interstate access universal
service, and interstate common line support mechanisms;
    (iii) Administration of the application process, including
activities to ensure compliance with Federal Communications Commission
rules and regulations;
    (iv) Performance of audits of beneficiaries under the high cost, low
income, interstate access universal service and interstate common line
support mechanisms; and
    (v) Development and implementation of other functions unique to the
high cost, low income, interstate access universal service and
interstate common line support mechanisms.
    (d) Binding Authority of Committees of the Board. (1) Any action
taken by the Committees of the Board established in paragraphs (a)
through (c) of this section shall be binding on the Board of Directors
of the Administrator, unless such action is presented for review to the
Board by the Administrator's Chief Executive Officer and the Board
disapproves of such action by a two-thirds vote of a quorum of
directors, as defined in the Administrator's by-laws.
    (2) The budgets prepared by each Committee shall be subject to Board
review as part of the Administrator's combined budget. The Board shall
not modify the budgets prepared by the Committees of the Board unless
such modification is approved by a two-thirds vote of a quorum of the
Board, as defined in the Administrator's by-laws.

[63 FR 70574, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000;
65 FR 57739, Sept. 26, 2000; 66 FR 59728, Nov. 30, 2001; 79 FR 49204,
Aug. 19, 2014]

[[Page 214]]



Sec. 54.706  Contributions.

    (a) Entities that provide interstate telecommunications to the
public, or to such classes of users as to be effectively available to
the public, for a fee will be considered telecommunications carriers
providing interstate telecommunications services and must contribute to
the universal service support mechanisms. Certain other providers of
interstate telecommunications, such as payphone providers that are
aggregators, providers of interstate telecommunications for a fee on a
non-common carrier basis, and interconnected VoIP providers, also must
contribute to the universal service support mechanisms. Interstate
telecommunications include, but are not limited to:
    (1) Cellular telephone and paging services;
    (2) Mobile radio services;
    (3) Operator services;
    (4) Personal communications services (PCS);
    (5) Access to interexchange service;
    (6) Special access service;
    (7) WATS;
    (8) Toll-free service;
    (9) 900 service;
    (10) Message telephone service (MTS);
    (11) Private line service;
    (12) Telex;
    (13) Telegraph;
    (14) Video services;
    (15) Satellite service;
    (16) Resale of interstate services;
    (17) Payphone services; and
    (18) Interconnected VoIP services.
    (19) Prepaid calling card providers.
    (b) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, every
entity required to contribute to the federal universal service support
mechanisms under paragraph (a) of this section shall contribute on the
basis of its projected collected interstate and international end-user
telecommunications revenues, net of projected contributions.
    (c) Any entity required to contribute to the federal universal
service support mechanisms whose projected collected interstate end-user
telecommunications revenues comprise less than 12 percent of its
combined projected collected interstate and international end-user
telecommunications revenues shall contribute based only on such entity's
projected collected interstate end-user telecommunications revenues, net
of projected contributions. For purposes of this paragraph, an
``entity'' shall refer to the entity that is subject to the universal
service reporting requirements in Sec. 54.711 and shall include all of
that entity's affiliated providers of interstate and international
telecommunications and telecommunications services.
    (d) Entities providing open video systems (OVS), cable leased
access, or direct broadcast satellite (DBS) services are not required to
contribute on the basis of revenues derived from those services. The
following entities will not be required to contribute to universal
service: non-profit health care providers; broadcasters; systems
integrators that derive less than five percent of their systems
integration revenues from the resale of telecommunications. Prepaid
calling card providers are not required to contribute on the basis of
revenues derived from prepaid calling cards sold by, to, or pursuant to
contract with the Department of Defense (DoD) or a DoD entity.
    (e) Any entity required to contribute to the federal universal
service support mechanisms shall retain, for at least five years from
the date of the contribution, all records that may be required to
demonstrate to auditors that the contributions made were in compliance
with the Commission's universal service rules. These records shall
include without limitation the following: Financial statements and
supporting documentation; accounting records; historical customer
records; general ledgers; and any other relevant documentation. This
document retention requirement also applies to any contractor or
consultant working on behalf of the contributor.

[63 FR 70575, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 64 FR 60358, Nov. 5, 1999; 67
FR 11260, Mar. 13, 2002; 67 FR 79532, Dec. 30, 2002; 71 FR 38796, July
10, 2006; 71 FR 43673, Aug. 2, 2006; 72 FR 54218, Sept. 24, 2007]



Sec. 54.707  Audit controls.

    The Administrator shall have authority to audit contributors and
carriers reporting data to the administrator.

[[Page 215]]

The Administrator shall establish procedures to verify discounts,
offsets, and support amounts provided by the universal service support
programs, and may suspend or delay discounts, offsets, and support
amounts provided to a carrier if the carrier fails to provide adequate
verification of discounts, offsets, or support amounts provided upon
reasonable request, or if directed by the Commission to do so. The
Administrator shall not provide reimbursements, offsets or support
amounts pursuant to part 36 and Sec. 69.116 through 69.117 of this
chapter, and subparts D, E, and G of this part to a carrier until the
carrier has provided to the Administrator a true and correct copy of the
decision of a state commission designating that carrier as an eligible
telecommunications carrier in accordance with Sec. 54.201.



Sec. 54.708  De minimis exemption.

    If a contributor's contribution to universal service in any given
year is less than $10,000 that contributor will not be required to
submit a contribution or Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet for that
year unless it is required to do so to by our rules governing
Telecommunications Relay Service (47 CFR 64.601 et seq. of this
chapter), numbering administration (47 CFR 52.1 et seq. of this
chapter), or shared costs of local number portability (47 CFR 52.21 et
seq. of this chapter). The foregoing notwithstanding, all interconnected
VoIP providers, including those whose contributions would be de minimis,
must file the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet. If a contributor
improperly claims exemption from the contribution requirement, it will
subject to the criminal provisions of sections 220(d) and (e) of the Act
regarding willful false submissions and will be required to pay the
amounts withheld plus interest.

[64 FR 41331, July 30, 1999, as amended at 71 FR 38797, July 10, 2006]



Sec. 54.709  Computations of required contributions to universal service
support mechanisms.

    (a) Prior to April 1, 2003, contributions to the universal service
support mechanisms shall be based on contributors' end-user
telecommunications revenues and on a contribution factor determined
quarterly by the Commission. Contributions to the mechanisms beginning
April 1, 2003 shall be based on contributors' projected collected end-
user telecommunications revenues, and on a contribution factor
determined quarterly by the Commission.
    (1) For funding the federal universal service support mechanisms
prior to April 1, 2003, the subject revenues will be contributors'
interstate and international revenues derived from domestic end users
for telecommunications or telecommunications services, net of prior
period actual contributions. Beginning April 1, 2003, the subject
revenues will be contributors' projected collected interstate and
international revenues derived from domestic end users for
telecommunications or telecommunications services, net of projected
contributions.
    (2) Prior to April 1, 2003, the quarterly universal service
contribution factor shall be determined by the Commission based on the
ratio of total projected quarterly expenses of the universal service
support mechanisms to the total end-user interstate and international
telecommunications revenues, net of prior period actual contributions.
Beginning April 1, 2003, the quarterly universal service contribution
factor shall be determined by the Commission based on the ratio of total
projected quarterly expenses of the universal service support mechanisms
to the total projected collected end-user interstate and international
telecommunications revenues, net of projected contributions. The
Commission shall approve the Administrator's quarterly projected costs
of the universal service support mechanisms, taking into account demand
for support and administrative expenses. The total subject revenues
shall be compiled by the Administrator based on information contained in
the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheets described in Sec.
54.711(a).
    (3) Total projected expenses for the federal universal service
support mechanisms for each quarter must be approved by the Commission
before they

[[Page 216]]

are used to calculate the quarterly contribution factor and individual
contributions. For each quarter, the Administrator must submit its
projections of demand for the federal universal service support
mechanisms for high-cost areas, low-income consumers, schools and
libraries, and rural health care providers, respectively, and the basis
for those projections, to the Commission and the Office of the Managing
Director at least sixty (60) calendar days prior to the start of that
quarter. For each quarter, the Administrator must submit its projections
of administrative expenses for the high-cost mechanism, the low-income
mechanism, the schools and libraries mechanism and the rural health care
mechanism and the basis for those projections to the Commission and the
Office of the Managing Director at least sixty (60) calendar days prior
to the start of that quarter. Based on data submitted to the
Administrator on the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheets, the
Administrator must submit the total contribution base to the Office of
the Managing Director at least thirty (30) days before the start of each
quarter. The projections of demand and administrative expenses and the
contribution factor shall be announced by the Commission in a public
notice and shall be made available on the Commission's website. The
Commission reserves the right to set projections of demand and
administrative expenses at amounts that the Commission determines will
serve the public interest at any time within the fourteen-day period
following release of the Commission's public notice. If the Commission
take no action within fourteen (14) days of the date of release of the
public notice announcing the projections of demand and administrative
expenses, the projections of demand and administrative expenses, and the
contribution factor shall be deemed approved by the Commission. Except
as provided in Sec. 54.706(c), the Administrator shall apply the
quarterly contribution factor, once approved by the Commission, to
contributor's interstate and international end-user telecommunications
revenues to calculate the amount of individual contributions.
    (b) If the contributions received by the Administrator in a quarter
exceed the amount of universal service support program contributions and
administrative costs for that quarter, the excess payments will be
carried forward to the following quarter. The contribution factors for
the following quarter will take into consideration the projected costs
of the support mechanisms for that quarter and the excess contributions
carried over from the previous quarter. The Commission may instruct the
Administrator to treat excess contributions in a manner other than as
prescribed in this paragraph (b). Such instructions may be made in the
form of a Commission Order or a public notice released by the Wireline
Competition Bureau. Any such public notice will become effective
fourteen days after release of the public notice, absent further
Commission action.
    (c) If the contributions received by the Administrator in a quarter
are inadequate to meet the amount of universal service support program
payments and administrative costs for that quarter, the Administrator
shall request authority from the Commission to borrow funds
commercially, with such debt secured by future contributions. Subsequent
contribution factors will take into consideration the projected costs of
the support mechanisms and the additional costs associated with
borrowing funds.
    (d) If a contributor fails to file a Telecommunications Reporting
Worksheet by the date on which it is due, the Administrator shall bill
that contributor based on whatever relevant data the Administrator has
available, including, but not limited to, the number of lines
presubscribed to the contributor and data from previous years, taking
into consideration any estimated changes in such data.

[62 FR 41305, Aug. 1, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 65038, Dec. 10, 1997; 63
FR 2132, Jan. 13, 1998; 63 FR 43098, Aug. 12, 1998; 63 FR 70576, Dec.
21, 1998; 64 FR 41331, July 30, 1999; 64 FR 60358, Nov. 5, 1999; 66 FR
16151, Mar. 23, 2001; 67 FR 11260, Mar. 13, 2002; 67 FR 13227, Mar. 21,
2002; 67 FR 79533, Dec. 30, 2002; 68 FR 38642, June 30, 2003; 71 FR
38267, July 6, 2006; 76 FR 73876, Nov. 29, 2011]

[[Page 217]]



Sec. 54.711  Contributor reporting requirements.

    (a) Contributions shall be calculated and filed in accordance with
the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet which shall be published in
the Federal Register. The Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet sets
forth information that the contributor must submit to the Administrator
on a quarterly and annual basis. The Commission shall announce by Public
Notice published in the Federal Register and on its website the manner
of payment and dates by which payments must be made. An executive
officer of the contributor must certify to the truth and accuracy of
historical data included in the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet,
and that any projections in the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet
represent a good-faith estimate based on the contributor's policies and
procedures. The Commission or the Administrator may verify any
information contained in the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet.
Contributors shall maintain records and documentation to justify
information reported in the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet,
including the methodology used to determine projections, for three years
and shall provide such records and documentation to the Commission or
the Administrator upon request. Inaccurate or untruthful information
contained in the Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet may lead to
prosecution under the criminal provisions of Title 18 of the United
States Code. The Administrator shall advise the Commission of any
enforcement issues that arise and provide any suggested response.
    (b) The Commission shall have access to all data reported to the
Administrator. Contributors may make requests for Commission
nondisclosure of company-specific revenue information under Sec. 0.459
of this chapter by so indicating on the Telecommunications Reporting
Worksheet at the time that the subject data are submitted. The
Commission shall make all decisions regarding nondisclosure of company-
specific information. The Administrator shall keep confidential all data
obtained from contributors, shall not use such data except for purposes
of administering the universal service support programs, and shall not
disclose such data in company-specific form unless directed to do so by
the Commission. Subject to any restrictions imposed by the Chief of the
Wireline Competition Bureau, the Universal Service Administrator may
share data obtained from contributors with the administrators of the
North American Numbering Plan administration cost recovery (See 47 CFR
52.16 of this chapter), the local number portability cost recovery (See
47 CFR 52.32 of this chapter), and the TRS Fund (See 47 CFR
64.604(c)(4)(iii)(H) of this chapter). The Administrator shall keep
confidential all data obtained from other administrators and shall not
use such data except for purposes of administering the universal service
support mechanisms.
    (c) The Bureau may waive, reduce, modify, or eliminate contributor
reporting requirements that prove unnecessary and require additional
reporting requirements that the Bureau deems necessary to the sound and
efficient administration of the universal service support mechanisms.

[64 FR 41332, July 30, 1999, as amended at 66 FR 16151, Mar. 23, 2001;
67 FR 13227, Mar. 21, 2002; 67 FR 79533, Dec. 30, 2002]



Sec. 54.712  Contributor recovery of universal service costs from end
users.

    (a) Federal universal service contribution costs may be recovered
through interstate telecommunications-related charges to end users. If a
contributor chooses to recover its federal universal service
contribution costs through a line item on a customer's bill the amount
of the federal universal service line-item charge may not exceed the
interstate telecommunications portion of that customer's bill times the
relevant contribution factor.
    (b) [Reserved]

[67 FR 79533, Dec. 30, 2002, as amended at 68 FR 15672, Apr. 1, 2003; 71
FR 38797, July 10, 2006]



Sec. 54.713  Contributors' failure to report or to contribute.

    (a) A contributor that fails to file a Telecommunications Reporting
Worksheet and subsequently is billed by the Administrator shall pay the
amount

[[Page 218]]

for which it is billed. The Administrator may bill a contributor a
separate assessment for reasonable costs incurred because of that
contributor's filing of an untruthful or inaccurate Telecommunications
Reporting Worksheet, failure to file the Telecommunications Reporting
Worksheet, or late payment of contributions. Failure to file the
Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet or to submit required quarterly
contributions may subject the contributor to the enforcement provisions
of the Act and any other applicable law. The Administrator shall advise
the Commission of any enforcement issues that arise and provide any
suggested response. Once a contributor complies with the
Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet filing requirements, the
Administrator may refund any overpayments made by the contributor, less
any fees, interest, or costs.
    (b) If a universal service fund contributor fails to make full
payment on or before the date due of the monthly amount established by
the contributor's applicable Form 499-A or Form 499-Q, or the monthly
invoice provided by the Administrator, the payment is delinquent. All
such delinquent amounts shall incur from the date of delinquency, and
until all charges and costs are paid in full, interest at the rate equal
to the U.S. prime rate (in effect on the date of the delinquency) plus
3.5 percent, as well as administrative charges of collection and/or
penalties and charges permitted by the applicable law (e.g., 31 U.S.C.
3717 and implementing regulations).
    (c) If a universal service fund contributor is more than 30 days
delinquent in filing a Telecommunications Reporting Worksheet Form 499-A
or 499-Q, the Administrator shall assess an administrative remedial
collection charge equal to the greater of $100 or an amount computed
using the rate of the U.S. prime rate (in effect on the date the
applicable Worksheet is due) plus 3.5 percent, of the amount due per the
Administrator's calculations. In addition, the contributor is
responsible for administrative charges of collection and/or penalties
and charges permitted by the applicable law (e.g., 31 U.S.C. 3717 and
implementing regulations). The Commission may also pursue enforcement
action against delinquent contributors and late filers, and assess costs
for collection activities in addition to those imposed by the
Administrator.
    (d) In the event a contributor fails both to file the Worksheet and
to pay its contribution, interest will accrue on the greater of the
amounts due, beginning with the earlier of the date of the failure to
file or pay.
    (e) If a universal service fund contributor pays the Administrator a
sum that is less than the amount due for the contributor's universal
service contribution, the Administrator shall adhere to the ``American
Rule'' whereby payment is applied first to outstanding penalty and
administrative cost charges, next to accrued interest, and third to
outstanding principal. In applying the payment to outstanding principal,
the Administrator shall apply such payment to the contributor's oldest
past due amounts first.

[72 FR 54219, Sept. 24, 2007]



Sec. 54.715  Administrative expenses of the Administrator.

    (a) The annual administrative expenses of the Administrator should
be commensurate with the administrative expenses of programs of similar
size, with the exception of the salary levels for officers and employees
of the Administrator described in paragraph (b) of this section. The
annual administrative expenses may include, but are not limited to,
salaries of officers and operations personnel, the costs of borrowing
funds, equipment costs, operating expenses, directors' expenses, and
costs associated with auditing contributors of support recipients.
    (b) All officers and employees of the Administrator may be
compensated at an annual rate of pay, including any non-regular
payments, bonuses, or other compensation, in an amount not to exceed the
rate of basic pay in effect for Level I of the Executive Schedule under
5 U.S.C. 5312.

    Note to paragraph (b):
    The compensation to be included when calculating whether an
employee's rate of pay exceeds Level I of the

[[Page 219]]

Executive Schedule does not include life insurance benefits, retirement
benefits (including payments to 401(k) plans), health insurance
benefits, or other similar benefits, provided that any such benefits are
reasonably comparable to benefits that are provided to employees of the
federal government.

    (c) The Administrator shall submit to the Commission projected
quarterly budgets at least sixty (60) days prior to the start of every
quarter. The Commission must approve the projected quarterly budgets
before the Administrator disburses funds under the federal universal
service support mechanisms. The administrative expenses incurred by the
Administrator in connection with the schools and libraries support
mechanism, the rural health care support mechanism, the high-cost
support mechanism, and the low income support mechanism shall be
deducted from the annual funding of each respective support mechanism.
The expenses deducted from the annual funding for each support mechanism
also shall include the Administrator's joint and common costs allocated
to each support mechanism pursuant to the cost allocation manual filed
by the Administrator under Sec. 64.903 of this chapter.

[63 FR 70576, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000;
65 FR 57739, Sept. 26, 2000; 66 FR 59728, Nov. 30, 2001; 69 FR 5719,
Feb. 6, 2004; 76 FR 73877, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 54.717  Audits of the Administrator.

    The Administrator shall obtain and pay for an annual audit conducted
by an independent auditor to examine its operations and books of account
to determine, among other things, whether the Administrator is properly
administering the universal service support mechanisms to prevent fraud,
waste, and abuse:
    (a) Before selecting an independent auditor, the Administrator shall
submit preliminary audit requirements, including the proposed scope of
the audit and the extent of compliance and substantive testing, to the
Office of Managing Director.
    (b) The Office of Managing Director shall review the preliminary
audit requirements to determine whether they are adequate to meet the
audit objectives. The Office of Managing Director shall prescribe
modifications that shall be incorporated into the final audit
requirements.
    (c) After the audit requirements have been approved by the Office of
Managing Director, the Administrator shall engage within thirty (30)
calendar days an independent auditor to conduct the annual audit
required by this paragraph. In making its selection, the Administrator
shall not engage any independent auditor who has been involved in
designing any of the accounting or reporting systems under review in the
audit.
    (d) The independent auditor selected by the Administrator to conduct
the annual audit shall be instructed by the Administrator to develop a
detailed audit program based on the final audit requirements and shall
be instructed by the Administrator to submit the audit program to the
Office of Managing Director. The Office of Managing Director shall
review the audit program and make modifications, as needed, that shall
be incorporated into the final audit program. During the course of the
audit, the Office of Managing Director may direct the Administrator to
direct the independent auditor to take any actions necessary to ensure
compliance with the audit requirements.
    (e) During the course of the audit, the Administrator shall instruct
the independent auditor to:
    (1) Inform the Office of Managing Director of any revisions to the
final audit program or to the scope of the audit;
    (2) Notify the Office of Managing Director of any meetings with the
Administrator in which audit findings are discussed; and
    (3) Submit to the Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau any
accounting or rule interpretations necessary to complete the audit.
    (f) Within 105 calendar days after the end of the audit period, but
prior to discussing the audit findings with the Administrator, the
independent auditor shall be instructed by the Administrator to submit a
draft of the audit report to the Office of Managing Director Audit
Staff.
    (g) The Office of Managing Director shall review the audit findings
and audit workpapers and offer its recommendations concerning the
conduct

[[Page 220]]

of the audit or the audit findings to the independent auditor.
Exceptions of the Office of Managing Director to the findings and
conclusions of the independent auditor that remain unresolved shall be
included in the final audit report.
    (h) Within fifteen (15) calendar days after receiving the Office of
Managing Director's recommendations and making any revisions to the
audit report, the Administrator shall instruct the independent auditor
to submit the audit report to the Administrator for its response to the
audit findings. At this time the auditor also must send copies of its
audit findings to the Office of Managing Director. The Administrator
shall provide the independent auditor time to perform additional audit
work recommended by the Office of Managing Director.
    (i) Within thirty (30) calendar days after receiving the audit
report, the Administrator shall respond to the audit findings and send
copies of its response to the Office of Managing Director. The
Administrator shall instruct the independent auditor that any reply that
the independent auditor wishes to make to the Administrator's responses
shall be sent to the Office of Managing Director as well as the
Administrator. The Administrator's response and the independent
auditor's replies shall be included in the final audit report;
    (j) Within ten (10) calendar days after receiving the response of
the Administrator, the independent auditor shall file with the
Commission the final audit report.
    (k) Based on the final audit report, the Managing Director may take
any action necessary to ensure that the universal service support
mechanisms operate in a manner consistent with the requirements of this
part, as well as such other action as is deemed necessary and in the
public interest.

[67 FR 13227, Mar. 21, 2002, as amended at 68 FR 18907, Apr. 17, 2003;
71 FR 38267, July 6, 2006; 77 FR 71712, Dec. 4, 2012]



        Subpart I_Review of Decisions Issued by the Administrator



Sec. 54.719  Parties permitted to seek review of Administrator decision.

    (a) Any party aggrieved by an action taken by the Administrator, as
defined in Sec. 54.701, Sec. 54.703, or Sec. 54.705, must first seek
review from the Administrator.
    (b) Any party aggrieved by an action taken by the Administrator,
after seeking review from the Administrator, may then seek review from
the Federal Communications Commission, as set forth in Sec. 54.722.
    (c) Parties seeking waivers of the Commission's rules shall seek
relief directly from the Commission.

[79 FR 49204, Aug. 19, 2014]



Sec. 54.720  Filing deadlines.

    (a) An affected party requesting review of an Administrator decision
by the Commission pursuant to Sec. 54.719, shall file such a request
within sixty (60) days from the date the Administrator issues a
decision.
    (b) In all cases of requests for review filed under Sec. 54.719(a)
through (c) the request for review shall be deemed filed on the postmark
date. If the postmark date cannot be determined, the applicant must file
a sworn affidavit stating the date that the request for review was
mailed.
    (c) Parties shall adhere to the time periods for filing oppositions
and replies set forth in 47 CFR 1.45.

[79 FR 49204, Aug. 19, 2014]

    Effective Date Note: At 79 FR 49204, Aug. 19, 2014, Sec. 54.720 was
revised. However, paragraph (a) contains information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 54.721  General filing requirements.

    (a) Except as otherwise provided herein, a request for review of an
Administrator decision by the Federal Communications Commission shall be
filed with the Federal Communications Commission's Office of the
Secretary in accordance with the general requirements set forth in part
1 of this chapter. The request for review shall be captioned ``In the
matter of Request

[[Page 221]]

for Review by (name of party seeking review) of Decision of Universal
Service Administrator'' and shall reference the applicable docket
numbers.
    (b) A request for review pursuant to Sec. 54.719(a) through (c)
shall contain:
    (1) A statement setting forth the party's interest in the matter
presented for review;
    (2) A full statement of relevant, material facts with supporting
affidavits and documentation;
    (3) The question presented for review, with reference, where
appropriate, to the relevant Federal Communications Commission rule,
Commission order, or statutory provision;
    (4) A statement of the relief sought and the relevant statutory or
regulatory provision pursuant to which such relief is sought.
    (c) A copy of a request for review that is submitted to the Federal
Communications Commission shall be served on the Administrator
consistent with the requirement for service of documents set forth in
Sec. 1.47 of this chapter.
    (d) If a request for review filed pursuant to Sec. 54.720(a)
through (c) alleges prohibitive conduct on the part of a third party,
such request for review shall be served on the third party consistent
with the requirement for service of documents set forth in Sec. 1.47 of
this chapter. The third party may file a response to the request for
review. Any response filed by the third party shall adhere to the time
period for filing replies set forth in Sec. 1.45 of this chapter and
the requirement for service of documents set forth in Sec. 1.47 of this
chapter.

[63 FR 70578, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 68 FR 36944, June 20, 2003]



Sec. 54.722  Review by the Wireline Competition Bureau or the Commission.

    (a) Requests for review of Administrator decisions that are
submitted to the Federal Communications Commission shall be considered
and acted upon by the Wireline Competition Bureau; provided, however,
that requests for review that raise novel questions of fact, law or
policy shall be considered by the full Commission.
    (b) An affected party may seek review of a decision issued under
delegated authority by the Common Carrier Bureau pursuant to the rules
set forth in part 1 of this chapter.

[63 FR 70578, Dec. 21, 1998, as amended at 67 FR 13228, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 54.723  Standard of review.

    (a) The Wireline Competition Bureau shall conduct de novo review of
request for review of decisions issue by the Administrator.
    (b) The Federal Communications Commission shall conduct de novo
review of requests for review of decisions by the Administrator that
involve novel questions of fact, law, or policy; provided, however, that
the Commission shall not conduct de novo review of decisions issued by
the Wireline Competition Bureau under delegated authority.

[67 FR 13228, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 54.724  Time periods for Commission approval of Administrator
decisions.

    (a) The Wireline Competition Bureau shall, within ninety (90) days,
take action in response to a request for review of an Administrator
decision that is properly before it. The Wireline Competition Bureau may
extend the time period for taking action on a request for review of an
Administrator decision for a period of up to ninety days. The Commission
may also at any time, extend the time period for taking action of a
request for review of an Administrator decision pending before the
Wireline Competition Bureau.
    (b) The Commission shall issue a written decision in response to a
request for review of an Administrator decision that involves novel
questions of fact, law, or policy within ninety (90) days. The
Commission may extend the time period for taking action on the request
for review of an Administrator decision. The Wireline Competition Bureau
also may extend action on a request for review of an Administrator
decision for a period of up to ninety days.

[67 FR 13228, Mar. 21, 2002]

[[Page 222]]



Sec. 54.725  Universal service disbursements during pendency of a
request for review and Administrator decision.

    (a) When a party has sought review of an Administrator decision
under Sec. 54.719(a) through (c) in connection with the schools and
libraries support mechanism or the rural health care support mechanism,
the Administrator shall not reimburse a service provider for the
provision of discounted services until a final decision has been issued
either by the Administrator or by the Federal Communications Commission;
provided, however, that the Administrator may disburse funds for any
amount of support that is not the subject of an appeal.
    (b) When a party has sought review of an Administrator decision
under Sec. 54.719(a) through (c) in connection with the high cost and
low income support mechanisms, the Administrator shall not disburse
support to a service provider until a final decision has been issued
either by the Administrator or by the Federal Communications Commission;
provided, however, that the Administrator may disburse funds for any
amount of support that is not the subject of an appeal.



     Subpart J_Interstate Access Universal Service Support Mechanism



Sec. 54.800  Terms and definitions.

    (a) Average Price Cap CMT Revenue Per Line Month in a Study Area has
the same meaning as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(d) of this
chapter, except that it includes exogenous changes in effect prior to
the effective date of a calculation made pursuant to Sec. 54.808 and
exogenous changes not yet effective related to the sale or acquisition
of exchanges, but excludes any other exogenous changes or other changes
made pursuant to Sec. 61.45(i)(4) of this chapter that are not yet
effective.
    (b) Base Period Lines. For purposes of calculations pursuant to this
subpart, Base Period Lines are the number of lines for a given study
area or zone as of the end of the quarter ending 6 months prior to the
effective date of a calculation pursuant to Sec. 54.808.
    (c) Interstate Access Universal Service Support Benchmark shall
mean, for residential and single-line business lines, $7.00, and for
multi-line business lines, $9.20.
    (d) Minimum Adjustment Amount (MAA) is defined in Sec. 54.806(f).
    (e) MAA Phase In Percentage is:
    50% as of July 1, 2000,
    75% as of July 1, 2001,
    100% as of July 1, 2002.
    (f) Minimum Delta (MD) is defined in Sec. 54.806(d).
    (g) Minimum Support Requirement (MSR) is defined in Sec. 54.806(g).
    (h) Nationwide Total Above Benchmark Revenues is defined in Sec.
54.806(b).
    (i) Price Cap Local Exchange Carrier is defined in Sec. 61.3(aa) of
this chapter.
    (j) Preliminary Minimum Access Universal Service Support for a Study
Area is the amount calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.804.
    (k) Preliminary Study Area Universal Service Support (PSAUSS) is
defined in Sec. 54.806(c).
    (l) Study Area Above Benchmark Revenues is the sum of all Zone Above
Benchmark Revenues for all zones in the study area.
    (m) Study Area Access Universal Service Support (SAAUS) is defined
in Sec. 54.806 (i) and (j).
    (n) Total National Minimum Delta (TNMD) is the nationwide sum of all
study area Minimum Deltas.
    (o) Total National Minimum Support Requirement (TNMSR) is the sum of
the MSR for all price cap local exchange carrier area study areas.
    (p) Zone Above Benchmark Revenues is defined in Sec. 54.805(a)(2).
    (q) Zone Average Revenue per Line. The amount calculated as follows:

Zone Average Revenue Per Line = (25% * (Loop + Port)) + U (Uniform
revenue per line adjustment)

Where:

Loop = the price for unbundled loops in a UNE zone.
Port = the price for switch ports in that UNE zone.
U = [(Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month in a study area *
          price cap local exchange carrier Base Period Lines) - (25% *
          S] (price cap local exchange carrier Base Period Lines in a
          UNE Zone * ((Loop + Port) for all zones)))] + price cap

[[Page 223]]

          local exchange carrier Base Period Lines in a study area.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57739, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 54.801  General.

    (a) The total amount of universal service support under this
subpart, excluding administrative expenses, for areas served by price
cap local exchange carriers as of June 30, 2000, is targeted to be $650
million per year, if no exchanges, other than those offered for sale
prior to January 1, 2000, are sold to non-price-cap local exchange
carriers or purchased from non-price cap local exchange carriers by
price cap local exchange carriers.
    (b) In the event that all or a portion of a study area served by a
price cap local exchange carrier is sold to an entity other than a price
cap local exchange carrier, and the study area or portion thereof was
not offered for sale prior to January 1, 2000, then the support that
would otherwise be provided under this subpart, had such study area or
portion thereof not been sold, will not be distributed or collected.
Subsequent calculations will use the last reported data for the study
area or portion thereof that was sold to determine the amount that will
not be distributed or collected.
    (c) In the event that a price cap local exchange carrier acquires
additional exchanges, from an entity other than a price cap local
exchange carrier, that acquisition should be reported to the
Administrator pursuant to Sec. 54.802 and included in the determination
of study area support pursuant to Sec. 54.806 for the areas served by
the acquiring price cap LEC, beginning with the next support
recalculation pursuant to Sec. 54.808.
    (d) In the event that a price cap local exchange carrier acquires
additional exchanges from an entity that is also a price cap local
exchange carrier, the acquiring price cap local exchange carrier will
receive support under this subpart at the same level as the selling
price cap local exchange carrier formerly received, and both carriers
will adjust their line counts accordingly beginning with the next
quarterly report to the Administrator. At the subsequent report to the
Administrator for purposes of recalculating support as required by Sec.
54.808, the acquiring and selling price cap local exchange carriers will
reflect the acquired and sold lines, and will adjust the Average CMT
Revenue per Line month for the affected study areas accordingly.
    (e) The Administrator for the fund created by this subpart shall be
the Universal Service Administrative Company.
    (f) Beginning January 1, 2012, no incumbent or competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier shall receive support pursuant to this
subpart, nor shall any incumbent or competitive eligible
telecommunications carrier be required to complete any filings pursuant
to this subpart after March 31, 2012.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000, as amended at 65 FR 57739, Sept. 26, 2000;
76 FR 73877, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 54.802  Obligations of local exchange carriers and the
Administrator.

    (a) Each Eligible Telecommunications Carrier that is providing
service within an area served by a price cap local exchange carrier
shall submit to the Administrator, on a quarterly basis on the last
business day of March, June, September, and December of each year line
count data showing the number of lines it serves for the period ending
three months prior to the reporting date, within each price cap local
exchange carrier study area disaggregated by UNE Zone if UNE Zones have
been established within that study area, showing residential/single-line
business and multi-line business line counts separately. For purposes of
this report, and for purposes of computing support under this subpart,
the aggregated residential/single-line business class lines reported
include single and non-primary residential lines, single-line business
lines, ISDN BRI and other related residential class lines. Similarly,
the multi-line business class lines reported include multi-line
business, centrex, ISDN PRI and other related business class lines
assessed the End User Common Line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.152 of
this chapter. For purposes of this report and for purposes of computing
support under this subpart, lines served using resale of the price cap
local exchange carrier's service pursuant to section

[[Page 224]]

251(c)(4) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, shall be
considered lines served by the price cap local exchange carrier only and
must be reported accordingly.
    (b) In addition to the information submitted pursuant to paragraph
(a) of this section, each price cap local exchange carrier must submit
to the Administrator, on June 30, 2000, October 15, 2000, and April 16,
2001 and annually thereafter or as determined by the Administrator
according to Sec. 54.808:
    (1)(i) Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month in a study area
for each of its study areas;
    (ii) The rates established for UNE Loops and UNE Line Ports, by zone
in those study areas where UNE Zones have been established as of the
date of filing; and
    (iii) Make available information sufficient to determine the
boundaries of each UNE Zone within each of its study areas where such
zones have been established;
    (2) Provided, however, that after the June 30, 2000 filing, if there
have been no changes since its previous filing a company may submit a
statement that there have been no changes in lieu of such information,
and further provided that, for study areas in which UNE Zones have been
newly established since the last filing pursuant to this paragraph, the
price cap local exchange carrier shall also report the information
required by paragraphs (b)(1)(ii) and (b)(1)(iii) of this section to the
Administrator on July 15, 2000, or January 15, 2001, as required.
    (c) An eligible telecommunications carrier shall be eligible for
support pursuant to this subpart only after it has filed all of the
information required by paragraphs (a) through (c) of this section,
where applicable. An eligible telecommunications carrier shall receive
payment of support pursuant to this subpart only for such months the
carrier is actually providing service to the end user. The Administrator
shall ensure that there is periodic reconciliation of support payments.
    (d) Upon receiving the information required to be filed in
paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, the Administrator shall:
    (1) Perform the calculations described in Sec. Sec. 54.804 through
54.807 of this subpart;
    (2) Publish the results of these calculations showing Interstate
Access Universal Service Support Per Line available in each price cap
local exchange carrier study area, by UNE Zone and customer class;
    (3) Collect the funds necessary to provide support pursuant to this
subpart in accordance with subpart H;
    (4) Distribute support calculated pursuant to the rules contained in
this subpart; and
    (5) Report quarterly to the Commission on the collection and
distribution of funds under this subpart as described in Sec.
54.701(g). Fund distribution reporting will be by state and by eligible
telecommunications carrier within the state.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57739, 57740, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 54.803  Universal service zones.

    (a) The zones used for determining interstate access universal
service support shall be the same zones that would be used for End User
Common Line (EUCL) charge deaveraging as described in Sec. 69.152(q)(2)
of this chapter.
    (b) In a price cap study area where the price cap local exchange
carrier has not established state-approved prices for UNE loops by zone,
the Administrator shall develop an estimate of the local exchange
carrier's Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for transitional purposes, in
order to reserve a portion of the fund for that study area. This
estimate will be included by the Administrator in the Nationwide Study
Area Above Benchmark Revenues calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.806.
    (1) For the purpose of developing this transitional estimate, the
loop and port costs estimated by the FCC cost model, or other substitute
method if no model is available, shall be used.
    (2) For the purpose of developing this transitional estimate, the
administrator shall construct three zones. Wire centers within the study
area will be grouped into these zones in such a way that each zone is
assigned approximately one third of local exchange carrier base period
lines in the study area,

[[Page 225]]

with the lowest cost wire centers assigned to Zone 1, the highest cost
wire centers assigned to Zone 3, and the remainder to Zone 2.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57740, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 54.804  Preliminary minimum access universal service support for a
study area calculated by the Administrator.

    (a) If Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month is greater than
$9.20 then: Preliminary Minimum Access Universal Service Support (for a
study area) = Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month in a study
area * price cap local exchange carrier Base Period Lines * 12)-(($7.00
* price cap local exchange carrier Base Period Residential and Single-
Line Business Lines * 12) + ($9.20 * price cap local exchange carrier
Base Period Multi-line Business Lines * 12)).
    (b) If Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month in a study area
is greater than $7.00 but less than $9.20 then: Preliminary Minimum
Access Universal Service Support (for a study area) = (Average Price Cap
CMT Revenue per Line month in a study area--$7.00) * (price cap local
exchange carrier Base Period Residential and Single-Line Business Lines
* 12).
    (c) If Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month in a study area
is less than $7.00 then the Preliminary Minimum Access Universal Service
Support (for a study area) is zero.

[65 FR 57740, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 54.805  Zone and study area above benchmark revenues calculated by
the Administrator.

    (a) The following steps shall be performed by the Administrator to
determine Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for each price cap local
exchange carrier.
    (1) Calculate Zone Average Revenue Per Line.
    (2) Calculate Zone Above Benchmark Revenues. Zone Above Benchmark
Revenues is the sum of Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for Residential and
Single-Line Business Lines and Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for Multi-
Line Business Lines. Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for Residential and
Single-Line Business Lines is, within each zone, (Zone Average Revenue
Per Line minus $7.00) multiplied by all eligible telecommunications
carrier Base Period Residential and Single-Line Business Lines times 12.
If negative, the Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for Residential and
Single-Line Business Lines for the zone is zero. Zone Above Benchmark
Revenues for Multi-line Business Lines is, within each zone, (Zone
Average Revenue Per Line minus $9.20) multiplied by all eligible
telecommunications carrier zone Base Period Multi-line Business Lines
times 12. If negative, the Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for Multi-line
Business Lines for the zone is zero.
    (b) Study Area Above Benchmark Revenues is the sum of Zone Above
Benchmark Revenues for all zones in the study area.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57740, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 54.806  Calculation by the Administrator of interstate access
universal service support for areas served by price cap local exchange

carriers.

    (a) The Administrator, based on the calculations performed in
Sec. Sec. 54.804 and 54.805, shall calculate the Interstate Access
Universal Service Support for areas served by price cap local exchange
carriers according to the following methodology:
    (b) Calculate Nationwide Total Above Benchmark Revenues. Nationwide
Total Above Benchmark Revenues is the sum of all Study Area Above
Benchmark Revenues for all study areas served by local exchange
carriers.
    (c) Calculate Preliminary Study Area Universal Service Support
(PSAUSS).
    (1) If the Nationwide Total Above Benchmark Revenues is greater than
$650 million, then the Preliminary Study Area Universal Service Support
(PSAUSS) equals the Study Area Above Benchmark Revenues multiplied by
the ratio of $650 million to Nationwide Total Above Benchmark Revenues
(i.e., Preliminary Study Area Universal Service Support = Study Area
Above Benchmark Revenues *($650 Million/Nationwide Total Above Benchmark
Revenues)).
    (2) If the Nationwide Total Above Benchmark Revenues is not greater

[[Page 226]]

than $650 million, PSAUSS equals the Study Area Above Benchmark
Revenues.
    (d) Calculate the Minimum Delta (MD) by study area. Within each
study area the Minimum Delta will be equal to the Preliminary Minimum
Access Universal Service Support less the PSAUSS, if the difference is
greater than zero. If the difference is less than or equal to zero, the
MD is equal to zero.
    (e) Calculate the Total National Minimum Delta (TNMD) by summing all
study area Minimum Deltas nationwide.
    (f) Calculate the Minimum Adjustment Amount. (1) If the TNMD is
greater than $75 million, then the Minimum Adjustment Amount (MAA)
equals the MAA Phase In Percentage times the MD by study area times the
ratio of $75 million to TNMD.
    (2) If the TNMD is less than $75 million, then the MAA equals the
product of the MAA Phase In Percentage and the MD by study area.
    (g) Calculate the Minimum Support Requirement (MSR). The Minimum
Support Requirement for a study area equals the PSAUSS plus the MAA.
    (h) Calculate the Total National Minimum Support Requirement
(TNMSR), which equals the sum of the MSR for all study areas in which
the Preliminary Minimum Access Universal Service Support is greater than
or equal to the PSAUSS.
    (i) Calculate Study Area Access Universal Service Support (SAAUS)
for a study area in which the price cap local exchange carrier has
geographically deaveraged state-approved rates for UNE loops:
    (1) For study areas in which the Preliminary Minimum Access
Universal Service Support is greater than PSAUSS, and within which the
price cap local exchange carrier has established geographically
deaveraged state-approved rates for UNE loops, the SAAUS for that study
area is the MSR.
    (2) For study areas in which the Preliminary Minimum Access
Universal Service Support is less than PSAUSS, and within which the
price cap local exchange carrier has established geographically
deaveraged state-approved rates for UNE loops, the SAAUS for that study
area is equal to:
    PSAUSS * ($650 million - TNMSR) / (the sum of PSAUSS of study areas
where the Preliminary Minimum Access Universal Service Support is less
than PSAUSS).
    (j) Calculate Study Area Access Universal Service Support (SAAUS)
for a price cap local exchange carrier that has not established
geographically deaveraged state-approved rates for UNE loops. In such
study areas, the SAAUS shall be the lesser of the Preliminary Minimum
Access Universal Service Support or:
    (1) For study areas in which the Preliminary Minimum Access
Universal Service Support is greater than PSAUSS, and for which an
estimate has been made for deaveraged UNE loop costs, the SAAUS for that
study area is the MSR.
    (2) For study areas in which the Preliminary Minimum Access
Universal Service Support is less than PSAUSS, and for which an estimate
has been made for deaveraged UNE loop costs, the SAAUS for that study
area is equal to:
    PSAUSS * ($650 million - TNMSR) / (the sum of PSAUSS of study areas
where the Preliminary Minimum Access Universal Service Support is less
than PSAUSS).

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57740, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 54.807  Interstate access universal service support.

    (a) Each Eligible Telecommunications Carrier (ETC) that provides
supported service within the study area of a price cap local exchange
carrier shall receive Interstate Access Universal Service Support for
each line that it serves within that study area.
    (b) In any study area within which the price cap local exchange
carrier has not established state approved geographically deaveraged
rates for UNE loops, the Administrator shall calculate the Interstate
Access Universal Service Support Per Line by dividing Study Area Access
Universal Service Support by twelve times all eligible
telecommunications carriers' base period lines in that study area
adjusted for growth during the relevant support

[[Page 227]]

period based on the average nationwide annual growth in eligible lines
during the three previous years. For the purpose of calculating growth,
the Administrator shall use a simple average of annual growth rates for
total switched access lines for the three most recent years as reported
in the Common Carrier Bureau Report, Statistics of Communications Common
Carriers, Table 6.10--Selected Operating Statistics. Interested parties
may obtain this report from the U.S. Government Printing Office or by
downloading it from the Federal Communication Commission's website
http://www.fcc.gov/ccb/stats.
    (c) In any study area within which the price cap local exchange
carrier has established state approved geographically deaveraged rates
for UNE loops, the Administrator shall calculate the Interstate Access
Universal Service Support Per Line for each customer class and zone
using all eligible telecommunications carriers' base period lines by
customer class and zone adjusted for growth during the relevant support
period based on the average nationwide annual growth in eligible lines
during the three previous years. For the purpose of calculating growth,
the Administrator shall use a simple average of annual growth rates for
total switched access lines for the three most recent years as reported
in the Wireline Competition Bureau Report, Statistics of Communications
Common Carriers, Table 6.10--Selected Operating Statistics. Support
shall be allocated to lines in the highest cost UNE zone first, and will
``cascade'' to lines in lower cost UNE zones to the extent that
sufficient funding is available. Beginning with the zone with the
highest Zone Average Revenue Per Line, support will be applied in the
following order of priority:
    (1) To all lines in the highest zone, to eliminate the amount per
line by which Zone Average Revenue Per Line exceeds the higher of $9.20
or the Average Revenue Per Line in the next highest zone;
    (2) If the Zone Average Revenue Per Line in the next highest zone is
greater than $9.20, then to all lines in both zones to eliminate the
amount per line by which Zone Average Revenue per Line exceeds $9.20 or
the Zone Average Revenue Per Line in the third highest zone. This
application of support will continue to additional zones in the same
fashion until the amount per line by which Zone Average Revenue Per Line
exceeds $9.20 has been eliminated in all zones, or until the available
support has been exhausted;
    (3) To all residential and single-line business lines in the highest
zone, to eliminate the remaining amount per line that Zone Average
Revenue Per Line for these lines exceeds the higher of $7.00 or Zone
Average Revenue Per Line in the next highest zone;
    (4) If the Zone Average Revenue per Line in the next highest zone is
greater than $7.00, then to all residential and single-line business
lines in both zones to eliminate the remaining amount per line by which
Zone Average Revenue Per Line exceeds $7.00. This application of support
will continue to additional zones in the same fashion until the
difference between Zone Average Revenue Per Line and $7.00 has been
eliminated in all zones, or until the available support has been
exhausted.
    (d) Notwithstanding the provisions of Sec. 54.307(a)(2), the per-
line support amount determined within each zone by applicable customer
class under paragraph (b) or (c) of this section is portable among all
eligible telecommunications carriers providing service within that zone.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57740, Sept. 26, 2000, as amended at
67 FR 13228, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 54.808  Transition provisions and periodic calculation.

    Study Area Access Universal Service Support amounts for the area
served by each price cap local exchange carrier will be calculated as of
July 1, 2000, January 1, 2001, July 1, 2001 and thereafter as determined
by the Administrator, but at least annually.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57740, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 54.809  Carrier certification.

    (a) Certification. Carriers that desire to receive support pursuant
to Sec. 54.807 must file a certification with the Administrator and the
Commission stating that all interstate access universal

[[Page 228]]

service support provided to such carrier will be used only for the
provision, maintenance, and upgrading of facilities and services for
which the support is intended. Support provided pursuant to Sec. 54.807
shall only be provided to the extent that the carrier has filed the
requisite certification pursuant to this section.
    (b) Certification format. A certification pursuant to this section
may be filed in the form of a letter from an authorized representative
for the carrier, and must be filed with both the Office of the Secretary
of the Commission clearly referencing CC Docket No. 96-45, and with the
Administrator of the interstate access universal service support
mechanism, on or before the filing deadlines set forth in paragraph (c)
of this section. All of the certifications filed by carriers pursuant to
this section shall become part of the public record maintained by the
Commission.
    (c) Filing deadlines. In order for a price cap local exchange
carrier or an eligible telecommunications carrier serving lines in the
service area of a price cap local exchange carrier to receive interstate
access universal service support, such carrier shall file an annual
certification, as described in paragraph (b) of this section, on the
date that it first files its line count information pursuant to Sec.
54.802, and thereafter on June 30 of each year. Such carrier that files
its line count information after the June 30 deadline shall receive
support pursuant to the following schedule:
    (1) Carriers that file no later than September 30 shall receive
support for the fourth quarter of that year and the first and second
quarters of the subsequent year.
    (2) Carriers that file no later than December 31 shall receive
support for the first and second quarters of the subsequent year.
    (3) Carriers that file no later than March 31 of the subsequent year
shall receive support for the second quarter of the subsequent year.

[65 FR 38690, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57740, Sept. 26, 2000, as amended at
70 FR 29979, May 25, 2005]



 Subpart K_Interstate Common Line Support Mechanism for Rate-of-Return
                                Carriers

    Source: 66 FR 59728, Nov. 30, 2001, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 54.901  Calculation of Interstate Common Line Support.

    (a) Interstate Common Line Support available to a rate-of-return
carrier shall equal the Common Line Revenue Requirement per Study Area
as calculated in accordance with part 69 of this chapter minus:
    (1) The study area revenues obtained from end user common line
charges at their allowable maximum as determined by Sec. Sec. 69.104(n)
and 69.104(o) of this chapter;
    (2) The carrier common line charge revenues to be phased out
pursuant to Sec. 69.105 of this chapter;
    (3) The special access surcharge pursuant to Sec. 69.114 of this
chapter;
    (4) The line port costs in excess of basic analog service pursuant
to Sec. 69.130 of this chapter; and
    (5) Any Long Term Support for which the carrier is eligible or, if
the carrier ceased participation in the NECA common line pool after
October 11, 2001, any Long Term Support for which the carrier would have
been eligible if it had not ceased its participation in the pool.
    (b) The per-line Interstate Common Line Support available to a
competitive eligible telecommunications carrier serving lines in a study
area served by a rate-of-return carrier shall be calculated by the
Administrator as follows:
    (1) If the rate-of-return carrier has disaggregated the support it
receives in the study area pursuant to Sec. 54.315, the Administrator
shall calculate the amount of Interstate Common Line Support targeted to
each disaggregation zone by the rate-of-return carrier (targeted
Interstate Common Line Support). If the rate-of-return carrier has
chosen not to disaggregate its support for a study area pursuant to
Sec. 54.315, then the entirety of its Interstate Common Line Support
for the study area shall be

[[Page 229]]

considered targeted Interstate Common Line Support for purposes of
performing the calculations in this section.
    (2) In each disaggregation zone or undisaggregated study area, the
Administrator shall calculate the Average Interstate Common Line Support
by dividing the rate-of-return carrier's targeted Interstate Common Line
Support by its total lines served.
    (3) The Administrator shall then calculate the Interstate Common
Line Support available to the competitive eligible telecommunications
carrier for each line it serves for each customer class in a
disaggregation zone or undisaggregated study area by the following
formula:
    (i) If the Average Interstate Common Line Support is greater than
$2.70 multiplied by the number of residential and single-line business
lines served by the rate-of-return carrier in the disaggregation zone or
undisaggregated study area, then:
    (A) Interstate Common Line Support per Multi-Line Business Line =
(Average Interstate Common Line Support - $2.70 x residential and
single-line business lines served by the rate-of-return carrier) /
(total lines served by the rate-of-return carrier); and
    (B) Interstate Common Line Support per Residential and Single-Line
Business Line = Interstate Common Line Support per Multi-Line Business
Line + $2.70.
    (ii) If the Average Interstate Common Line Support is less than or
equal to $2.70 multiplied by residential and single-line business lines
served by the rate-of-return carrier in the disaggregation zone or
undisaggregated study area, but greater than $0, then:
    (A) Interstate Common Line Support per Multi-Line Business Line =
$0; and
    (B) Interstate Common Line Support per Residential and Single-Line
Business Line = Average Interstate Common Line Support / residential and
single line business lines served by the rate-of-return carrier.
    (iii) If the Average Interstate Common Line Support is equal to $0,
then the competitive eligible telecommunications carrier shall receive
no Interstate Common Line Support for lines served in that
disaggregation zone or undisaggregated study area.
    (4) Beginning January 1, 2012, competitive eligible
telecommunications carriers shall not receive Interstate Common Line
Support pursuant to this subpart and will instead receive support
consistent with Sec. 54.307(e).
    (c) Beginning January 1, 2012, for purposes of calculating the
amount of Interstate Common Line Support determined pursuant to
paragraph (a) of this section that a non-price cap carrier may receive,
the corporate operations expense allocated to the Common Line Revenue
Requirement, pursuant to Sec. 69.409 of this chapter, shall be limited
to the lesser of:
    (1) The actual average monthly per-loop corporate operations
expense; or
    (2) The portion of the monthly per-loop amount computed pursuant to
Sec. 36.621(a)(4)(iii) of this chapter that would be allocated to the
interstate Common Line Revenue Requirement pursuant to Sec. 69.409 of
this chapter.
    (d) Support After December 31, 2011. Notwithstanding paragraph (a)
of this section, beginning January 1, 2012, no carrier that is a rate-
of-return carrier, as that term is defined in Sec. 54.5 affiliated with
a price cap local exchange carrier, as that term is defined in Sec.
61.3(aa) of this chapter, shall receive support under this subpart.

[66 FR 59728, Nov. 30, 2001, as amended at 76 FR 73877, Nov. 29, 2011;
78 FR 26269, May 6, 2013]



Sec. 54.902  Calculation of Interstate Common Line Support for
transferred exchanges.

    (a) In the event that a rate-of-return carrier acquires exchanges
from an entity that is also a rate-of-return carrier, Interstate Common
Line Support for the transferred exchanges shall be distributed as
follows.
    (1) Each carrier may report its updated line counts to reflect the
transfer in the next quarterly line count filing pursuant to Sec.
54.903(a)(1) that applies to the period in which the transfer occurred.
During a transition period from the filing of the updated line counts
until the end of the funding year, the Administrator shall adjust the
Interstate Common Line Support received by each carrier based on the
updated

[[Page 230]]

line counts and the per-line Interstate Common Line Support, categorized
by customer class and, if applicable, disaggregation zone, of the
selling carrier. If the acquiring carrier does not file a quarterly
update of its line counts, it will not receive Interstate Common Line
Support for those lines during the transition period.
    (2) Each carrier's projected data for the following funding year
filed pursuant to Sec. 54.903(a)(3) shall reflect the transfer of
exchanges.
    (3) Each carrier's actual data filed pursuant to Sec. 54.903(a)(4)
shall reflect the transfer of exchanges. All post-transaction Interstate
Common Line Support shall be subject to true up by the Administrator
pursuant to Sec. 54.903(b)(3).
    (b) In the event that a rate-of-return carrier acquires exchanges
from a price cap carrier that are incorporated into one of the rate-of-
return carrier's existing study areas, Interstate Common Line Support
for the transferred exchanges shall be distributed as follows.
    (1) The acquiring carrier may report its updated line counts for the
study area into which the acquired lines are incorporated in the next
quarterly line count filing pursuant to Sec. 54.903(a)(1) that applies
to the period in which the transfer occurred. During a transition period
from the filing of the updated line counts until the end of the funding
year, the Administrator shall adjust the Interstate Common Line Support
received by the acquiring carrier based on the updated line counts and
the per-line amounts Interstate Common Line Support for the study area
served by the acquiring carrier. If necessary, the Administrator shall
develop an average per-line support amount to reflect various per-line
amounts in multiple disaggregation zones served by the acquiring
carrier. If the acquiring carrier does not file a quarterly update of
its line counts, it will not receive Interstate Common Line Support for
those lines during the transition period.
    (2) The acquiring carrier's projected data for the following funding
year filed pursuant to Sec. 54.903(a)(3) shall reflect the transfer of
exchanges.
    (3) The acquiring carrier's actual data filed pursuant to Sec.
54.903(a)(4) shall reflect the transfer of exchanges. All post-
transaction Interstate Common Line Support shall be subject to true up
by the Administrator pursuant to Sec. 54.903(b)(3).
    (c) In the event that a rate-of-return carrier acquires exchanges
from a price cap carrier that are not incorporated into one of the rate-
of-return carrier's existing study areas, Interstate Common Line Support
for the transferred exchanges shall be distributed as follows.
    (1) The acquiring rate-of-return may submit to the Administrator a
projected Interstate Common Line Revenue Requirement for the acquired
exchanges for the remainder of the funding year in the next quarterly
report to the Administrator. The Administrator shall distribute
Interstate Common Line Support pursuant to the partial year projected
Interstate Common Line Revenue Requirement for the remainder of the
funding year. If the acquiring carrier does not file a projected
Interstate Common Line Revenue Requirement, it will not receive
Interstate Common Line Support for those exchanges during the transition
period.
    (2) The acquiring carrier's projected data for the following funding
year filed pursuant to Sec. 54.903(a)(3) shall reflect the transfer of
exchanges.
    (3) The acquiring carrier's actual data filed pursuant to Sec.
54.903(a)(4) shall reflect the transfer of exchanges. All post-
transaction Interstate Common Line Support shall be subject to true up
by the Administrator pursuant to Sec. 54.903(b)(3)
    (d) In the event that an entity other than a rate-of-return carrier
acquires exchanges from a rate-of-return carrier, per-line Interstate
Common Line Support will not transfer.
    (e) This section does not alter any Commission rule governing the
sale or transfer of exchanges, including the definition of ``study
area'' in part 36.

[66 FR 59728, Nov. 30, 2001, as amended at 68 FR 31623, May 28, 2003]



Sec. 54.903  Obligations of rate-of-return carriers and the
Administrator.

    (a) To be eligible for Interstate Common Line Support, each rate-of-
return carrier shall make the following filings with the Administrator.

[[Page 231]]

    (1) Beginning July 31, 2002, each rate-of-return carrier shall
submit to the Administrator in accordance with the schedule in Sec.
54.1306 the number of lines it serves, within each rate-of-return
carrier study area showing residential and single-line business line
counts and multi-line business line counts separately. For purposes of
this report, and for purposes of computing support under this subpart,
the residential and single-line business class lines reported include
lines assessed the residential and single-line business End User Common
Line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.104 of this chapter, and the multi-line
business class lines reported include lines assessed the multi-line
business End User Common Line charge pursuant to Sec. 69.104 of this
chapter. For purposes of this report, and for purposes of computing
support under this subpart, lines served using resale of the rate-of-
return local exchange carrier's service pursuant to section 251(c)(4) of
the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, shall be considered lines
served by the rate-of-return carrier only and must be reported
accordingly.
    (2) A rate-of-return carrier may submit the information in paragraph
(a) of this section in accordance with the schedule in Sec. 54.1306,
even if it is not required to do so. If a rate-of-return carrier makes a
filing under this paragraph, it shall separately indicate any lines that
it has acquired from another carrier that it has not previously reported
pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section, identified by customer class
and the carrier from which the lines were acquired.
    (3) Each rate-of-return carrier shall submit to the Administrator
annually on March 31st projected data necessary to calculate the
carrier's prospective Interstate Common Line Support, including common
line cost and revenue data, for each of its study areas in the upcoming
funding year. The funding year shall be July 1st of the current year
through June 30th of the next year. Each rate-of-return carrier will be
permitted to submit a correction to the projected data filed on March
31st until June 30th for the upcoming funding year. On June 30th each
rate-of-return carrier will be permitted to submit to the Administrator
an update to the projected data for the funding year ending on that
date.
    (4) Each rate-of-return carrier shall submit to the Administrator on
December 31st of each year the data necessary to calculate a carrier's
Interstate Common Line Support, including common line cost and revenue
data, for the prior calendar year. Such data shall be used by the
Administrator to make adjustments to monthly per-line Interstate Common
Line Support amounts in the final two quarters of the following calendar
year to the extent of any differences between the carrier's ICLS
received based on projected common line cost and revenue data and the
ICLS for which the carrier is ultimately eligible based on its actual
common line cost and revenue data during the relevant period.
    (b) Upon receiving the information required to be filed in paragraph
(a) of this section, the Administrator shall:
    (1) Perform the calculations described in Sec. 54.901;
    (2) Publish the results of these calculations showing Interstate
Common Line Support Per Line available in each rate-of-return carrier
study area, by Disaggregation Zone and customer class;
    (3) Perform periodic reconciliation of the Interstate Common Line
Support provided to each carrier based on projected data filed pursuant
to paragraph (a)(3) of this section and the Interstate Common Line
Support for which each carrier is eligible based on actual data filed
pursuant to paragraph (a)(4) of this section.
    (4) Collect the funds necessary to provide support pursuant to this
subpart in accordance with subpart H of this part;
    (5) Distribute support calculated pursuant to the rules contained in
this subpart; and
    (6) Report quarterly to the Commission on the collection and
distribution of funds under this subpart as described in Sec.
54.702(i). Fund distribution reporting will be by state and by eligible
telecommunications carrier within the state.

[66 FR 59728, Nov. 30, 2001, as amended at 67 FR 15493, Apr. 2, 2002; 67
FR 19809, Apr. 23, 2002; 68 FR 31623, May 28, 2003; 77 FR 14303, Mar. 9,
2012; 79 FR 39190, July 9, 2014]

[[Page 232]]



Sec. 54.904  Carrier certification.

    (a) Certification. Carriers that desire to receive support pursuant
to this subpart shall file a certification with the Administrator and
the Federal Communications Commission stating that all Interstate Common
Line Support provided to such carrier will be used only for the
provision, maintenance, and upgrading of facilities and services for
which the support is intended. Support provided pursuant to this subpart
shall only be provided to the extent that the carrier has filed the
requisite certification pursuant to this section.
    (b) Certification format. A certification pursuant to this section
may be filed in the form of a letter from an authorized representative
for the carrier, and must be filed with both the Administrator and the
Office of the Secretary of the Federal Communication Commission clearly
referencing CC Docket No. 96-45, on or before the filing deadlines set
forth in paragraph (d) of this section.
    (c) All of the certifications filed by carriers pursuant to this
section shall become part of the public record maintained by the
Commission.
    (d) Filing deadlines. In order for a rate-of-return carrier, and/or
an eligible telecommunications carrier serving lines in the service area
of a rate-of-return carrier, to receive Interstate Common Line Support,
such carrier must file an annual certification, as described in
paragraph (b) of this section, on the date that it first files its line
count information pursuant to Sec. 54.903, and thereafter on June 30th
of each year.



                         Subpart L_Mobility Fund

    Source: 76 FR 73877, Nov. 29, 2011, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 54.1001  Mobility Fund--Phase I.

    The Commission will use competitive bidding, as provided in part 1,
subpart AA, of this chapter, to determine the recipients of support
available through Phase I of the Mobility Fund and the amount(s) of
support that they may receive for specific geographic areas, subject to
applicable post-auction procedures.



Sec. 54.1002  Geographic areas eligible for support.

    (a) Mobility Fund Phase I support may be made available for census
blocks identified as eligible by public notice.
    (b) Except as provided in Sec. 54.1004, coverage units for purposes
of conducting competitive bidding and disbursing support based on
designated road miles will be identified by public notice for each
census block eligible for support.



Sec. 54.1003  Provider eligibility.

    (a) Except as provided in Sec. 54.1004, an applicant shall be an
Eligible Telecommunications Carrier in an area in order to receive
Mobility Fund Phase I support for that area. The applicant's designation
as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier may be conditional subject to
the receipt of Mobility Fund support.
    (b) An applicant shall have access to spectrum in an area that
enables it to satisfy the applicable performance requirements in order
to receive Mobility Fund Phase I support for that area. The applicant
shall certify, in a form acceptable to the Commission, that it has
received any Commission approvals necessary for such access at the time
it applies to participate in competitive bidding and at the time that it
applies for support and that it will retain such access for five (5)
years after the date on which it is authorized to receive support.
Pending requests for such approvals are not sufficient to satisfy this
requirement.
    (c) An applicant shall certify that it is financially and
technically qualified to provide the services supported by Mobility Fund
Phase I in order to receive such support.

[76 FR 73877, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 14303, Mar. 9, 2012]

    Effective Date Note: At 77 FR 14303, Mar. 9, 2012, Sec. 54.1003,
paragraph (b) was revised. This paragraph contains information and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 54.1004  Service to Tribal Lands.

    (a) A Tribally-owned or -controlled entity that has pending an
application

[[Page 233]]

to be designated an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier may participate
in any Mobility Fund Phase I auction, including any auction for support
solely in Tribal lands, by bidding for support in areas located within
the boundaries of the Tribal land associated with the Tribe that owns or
controls the entity. To bid on this basis, an entity shall certify that
it is a Tribally-owned or -controlled entity and identify the applicable
Tribe and Tribal lands in its application to participate in the
competitive bidding. A Tribally-owned or -controlled entity shall
receive Mobility Fund Phase I support only after it has become an
Eligible Telecommunications Carrier.
    (b) In any auction for support solely in Tribal lands, coverage
units for purposes of conducting competitive bidding and disbursing
support based on designated population will be identified by public
notice for each census block eligible for support.
    (c) Tribally-owned or -controlled entities may receive a bidding
credit with respect to bids for support within the boundaries of
associated Tribal lands. To qualify for a bidding credit, an applicant
shall certify that it is a Tribally-owned or -controlled entity and
identify the applicable Tribe and Tribal lands in its application to
participate in the competitive bidding. An applicant that qualifies
shall have its bid(s) for support in areas within the boundaries of
Tribal land associated with the Tribe that owns or controls the
applicant reduced by twenty-five (25) percent or purposes of determining
winning bidders without any reduction in the amount of support
available.
    (d) A winning bidder for support in Tribal lands shall notify and
engage the Tribal governments responsible for the areas supported.
    (1) A winning bidder's engagement with the applicable Tribal
government shall consist, at a minimum, of discussion regarding:
    (i) A needs assessment and deployment planning with a focus on
Tribal community anchor institutions;
    (ii) Feasibility and sustainability planning;
    (iii) Marketing services in a culturally sensitive manner;
    (iv) Rights of way processes, land use permitting, facilities
siting, environmental and cultural preservation review processes; and
    (v) Compliance with Tribal business and licensing requirements.
    (2) A winning bidder shall notify the appropriate Tribal government
of its winning bid no later than five (5) business days after being
identified by public notice as a winning bidder.
    (3) A winning bidder shall certify in its application for support
that it has substantively engaged appropriate Tribal officials regarding
the issues specified in Sec. 54.1004(d)(1), at a minimum, as well as
any other issues specified by the Commission, and provide a summary of
the results of such engagement. A copy of the certification and summary
shall be sent to the appropriate Tribal officials when it is sent to the
Commission.
    (4) A winning bidder for support in Tribal lands shall certify in
its annual report, pursuant to Sec. 54.1009(a)(5), and prior to
disbursement of support, pursuant to Sec. 54.1008(c), that it has
substantively engaged appropriate Tribal officials regarding the issues
specified in Sec. 54.1004(d)(1), at a minimum, as well as any other
issues specified by the Commission, and provide a summary of the results
of such engagement. A copy of the certification and summary shall be
sent to the appropriate Tribal officials when it is sent to the
Commission.



Sec. 54.1005  Application process.

    (a) Application to participate in competitive bidding for Mobility
Fund Phase I support. In addition to providing information specified in
Sec. 1.21001(b) of this chapter and any other information required by
the Commission, an applicant to participate in competitive bidding for
Mobility Fund Phase I support also shall:
    (1) Provide ownership information as set forth in Sec. 1.2112(a) of
this chapter;
    (2) Certify that the applicant is financially and technically
capable of meeting the public interest obligations of Sec. 54.1006 in
each area for which it seeks support;
    (3) Disclose its status as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier in
any area for which it will seek support or

[[Page 234]]

as a Tribal entity with a pending application to become an Eligible
Telecommunications Carrier in any such area, and certify that the
disclosure is accurate;
    (4) Describe the spectrum access that the applicant plans to use to
meet obligations in areas for which it will bid for support, including
whether the applicant currently holds a license for or leases the
spectrum, and certify that the description is accurate and that the
applicant will retain such access for at least five (5) years after the
date on which it is authorized to receive support;
    (5) Certify that it will not bid on any areas in which it has made a
public commitment to deploy 3G or better wireless service by December
31, 2012; and
    (6) Make any applicable certifications required in Sec. 54.1004.
    (b) Application by winning bidders for Mobility Fund Phase I
support.--(1) Deadline. Unless otherwise provided by public notice,
winning bidders for Mobility Fund Phase I support shall file an
application for Mobility Fund Phase I support no later than 10 business
days after the public notice identifying them as winning bidders.
    (2) Application contents.--(i) Identification of the party seeking
the support, including ownership information as set forth in Sec.
1.2112(a) of this chapter.
    (ii) Certification that the applicant is financially and technically
capable of meeting the public interest obligations of Sec. 54.1006 in
the geographic areas for which it seeks support.
    (iii) Proof of the applicant's status as an Eligible
Telecommunications Carrier or as a Tribal entity with a pending
application to become an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier in any area
for which it seeks support and certification that the proof is accurate.
    (iv) A description of the spectrum access that the applicant plans
to use to meet obligations in areas for which it is the winning bidder
for support, including whether the applicant currently holds a license
for or leases the spectrum, and a certification that the description is
accurate and that the applicant will retain such access for at least
five (5) years after the date on which it is authorized to receive
support.
    (v) A detailed project description that describes the network,
identifies the proposed technology, demonstrates that the project is
technically feasible, discloses the budget and describes each specific
phase of the project, e.g., network design, construction, deployment,
and maintenance. The applicant shall indicate whether the supported
network will provide third generation (3G) mobile service within the
period prescribed by Sec. 54.1006(a) or fourth generation (4G) mobile
service within the period prescribed by Sec. 54.1006(b).
    (vi) Certifications that the applicant has available funds for all
project costs that exceed the amount of support to be received from
Mobility Fund Phase I and that the applicant will comply with all
program requirements.
    (vii) Any guarantee of performance that the Commission may require
by public notice or other proceedings, including but not limited to the
letters of credit required in Sec. 54.1007, or a written commitment
from an acceptable bank, as defined in Sec. 54.1007(a)(1), to issue
such a letter of credit.
    (viii) Certification that the applicant will offer service in
supported areas at rates that are within a reasonable range of rates for
similar service plans offered by mobile wireless providers in urban
areas for a period extending until five (5) years after the date on
which it is authorized to receive support.
    (ix) Any applicable certifications and showings required in Sec.
54.1004.
    (x) Certification that the party submitting the application is
authorized to do so on behalf of the applicant.
    (xi) Such additional information as the Commission may require.
    (3) Application processing. (i) No application will be considered
unless it has been submitted in an acceptable form during the period
specified by public notice. No applications submitted or demonstrations
made at any other time shall be accepted or considered.
    (ii) Any application that, as of the submission deadline, either
does not identify the applicant seeking support as specified in the
public notice announcing application procedures or

[[Page 235]]

does not include required certifications shall be denied.
    (iii) An applicant may be afforded an opportunity to make minor
modifications to amend its application or correct defects noted by the
applicant, the Commission, the Administrator, or other parties. Minor
modifications include correcting typographical errors in the application
and supplying non-material information that was inadvertently omitted or
was not available at the time the application was submitted.
    (iv) Applications to which major modifications are made after the
deadline for submitting applications shall be denied. Major
modifications include, but are not limited to, any changes in the
ownership of the applicant that constitute an assignment or change of
control, or the identity of the applicant, or the certifications
required in the application.
    (v) After receipt and review of the applications, a public notice
shall identify each winning bidder that may be authorized to receive
Mobility Fund Phase I support after the winning bidder submits a Letter
of Credit and an accompanying opinion letter as required by Sec.
54.1007, in a form acceptable to the Commission, and any final
designation as an Eligible Telecommunications Carrier that any Tribally-
owned or -controlled applicant may still require. Each such winning
bidder shall submit a Letter of Credit and an accompanying opinion
letter as required by Sec. 54.1007, in a form acceptable to the
Commission, and any required final designation as an Eligible
Telecommunications Carrier no later than 10 business days following the
release of the public notice.
    (vi) After receipt of all necessary information, a public notice
will identify each winning bidder that is authorized to receive Mobility
Fund Phase I support.



Sec. 54.1006  Public interest obligations.

    (a) Deadline for construction--3G networks. A winning bidder
authorized to receive Mobility Fund Phase I support that indicated in
its application that it would provide third generation (3G) service on
the supported network shall, no later than two (2) years after the date
on which it was authorized to receive support, submit data from drive
tests covering the area for which support was received demonstrating
mobile transmissions supporting voice and data to and from the network
covering 75% of the designated coverage units in the area deemed
uncovered, or a higher percentage established by Public Notice prior to
the competitive bidding, and meeting or exceeding the following:
    (1) Outdoor minimum data transmission rates of 50 kbps uplink and
200 kbps downlink at vehicle speeds appropriate for the roads covered;
    (2) Transmission latency low enough to enable the use of real time
applications, such as VoIP.
    (b) Deadline for construction--4G networks. A winning bidder
authorized to receive Mobility Fund Phase I support that indicated in
its application that it would provide fourth generation (4G) service on
the supported network shall, no later than three (3) years after the
date on which it was authorized to receive support, submit data from
drive tests covering the area for which support was received
demonstrating mobile transmissions supporting voice and data to and from
the network covering 75% of the designated coverage units in the area
deemed uncovered, or an applicable higher percentage established by
public notice prior to the competitive bidding, and meeting or exceeding
the following:
    (1) Outdoor minimum data transmission rates of 200 kbps uplink and
768 kbps downlink at vehicle speeds appropriate for the roads covered;
    (2) Transmission latency low enough to enable the use of real time
applications, such as VoIP.
    (c) Coverage test data. Drive tests submitted in compliance with a
recipient's public interest obligations shall cover roads designated in
the public notice detailing the procedures for the competitive bidding
that is the basis of the recipient's support. Scattered site tests
submitted in compliance with a recipient's public interest obligations
shall be in compliance with standards set forth in the public notice
detailing the procedures for the competitive bidding that is the basis
of the recipient's authorized support.

[[Page 236]]

    (d) Collocation obligations. During the period when a recipient
shall file annual reports pursuant to Sec. 54.1009, the recipient shall
allow for reasonable collocation by other providers of services that
would meet the technological requirements of Mobility Fund Phase I on
newly constructed towers that the recipient owns or manages in the area
for which it receives support. In addition, during this period, the
recipient may not enter into facilities access arrangements that
restrict any party to the arrangement from allowing others to collocate
on the facilities.
    (e) Voice and data roaming obligations. During the period when a
recipient shall file annual reports pursuant to Sec. 54.1009, the
recipient shall comply with the Commission's voice and data roaming
requirements that were in effect as of October 27, 2011, on networks
that are built through Mobility Fund Phase I support.
    (f) Liability for failing to satisfy public interest obligations. A
winning bidder authorized to receive Mobility Fund Phase I support that
fails to comply with the public interest obligations in this paragraph
or any other terms and conditions of the Mobility Fund Phase I support
will be subject to repayment of the support disbursed together with an
additional performance default payment. Such a winning bidder may be
disqualified from receiving Mobility Fund Phase I support or other USF
support. The additional performance default amount will be a percentage
of the Mobility Fund Phase I support that the winning bidder has been
and is eligible to request be disbursed to it pursuant to Sec. 54.1008.
The percentage will be determined as specified in the public notice
detailing competitive bidding procedures prior to the commencement of
competitive bidding. The percentage will not exceed twenty percent.



Sec. 54.1007  Letter of credit.

    (a) Before being authorized to receive Mobility Fund Phase I
support, a winning bidder shall obtain an irrevocable standby letter of
credit which shall be acceptable in all respects to the Commission. Each
winning bidder authorized to receive Mobility Fund Phase I support shall
maintain its standby letter of credit or multiple standby letters of
credit in an amount equal to the amount of Mobility Fund Phase I support
that the winning bidder has been and is eligible to request be disbursed
to it pursuant to Sec. 54.1008 plus the additional performance default
amount described in Sec. 54.1006(f), until at least 120 days after the
winning bidder receives its final distribution of support pursuant to
Sec. 54.1008(b)(3).
    (1) The bank issuing the letter of credit shall be acceptable to the
Commission. A bank that is acceptable to the Commission is
    (i) Any United States Bank that
    (A) Is among the 50 largest United States banks, determined on the
basis of total assets as of the end of the calendar year immediately
preceding the issuance of the letter of credit,
    (B) Whose deposits are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation, and
    (C) Who has a long-term unsecured credit rating issued by Standard &
Poor's of A- or better (or an equivalent rating from another nationally
recognized credit rating agency); or
    (ii) Any non-U.S. bank that
    (A) Is among the 50 largest non-U.S. banks in the world, determined
on the basis of total assets as of the end of the calendar year
immediately preceding the issuance of the letter of credit (determined
on a U.S. dollar equivalent basis as of such date),
    (B) Has a branch office in the District of Columbia or such other
branch office agreed to by the Commission,
    (C) Has a long-term unsecured credit rating issued by a widely-
recognized credit rating agency that is equivalent to an A- or better
rating by Standard & Poor's, and
    (D) Issues the letter of credit payable in United States dollars.
    (2) [Reserved]
    (b) A winning bidder for Mobility Fund Phase I support shall provide
with its Letter of Credit an opinion letter from its legal counsel
clearly stating, subject only to customary assumptions, limitations, and
qualifications, that in a proceeding under Title 11 of the United States
Code, 11 U.S.C. 101 et seq. (the ``Bankruptcy Code''), the bankruptcy
court would not treat the letter of credit or proceeds of the letter of
credit as property of the winning

[[Page 237]]

bidder's bankruptcy estate under section 541 of the Bankruptcy Code.
    (c) Authorization to receive Mobility Fund Phase I support is
conditioned upon full and timely performance of all of the requirements
set forth in Sec. 54.1006 and any additional terms and conditions upon
which the support was granted.
    (1) Failure by a winning bidder authorized to receive Mobility Fund
Phase I support to comply with any of the requirements set forth in
Sec. 54.1006 or any other term or conditions upon which support was
granted, or its loss of eligibility for any reason for Mobility Fund
Phase I support, will be deemed an automatic performance default, will
entitle the Commission to draw the entire amount of the letter of
credit, and may disqualify the winning bidder from the receipt of
Mobility Fund Phase I support or additional USF support.
    (2) A performance default will be evidenced by a letter issued by
the Chief of either the Wireless Bureau or Wireline Bureau or their
respective designees, which letter, attached to a standby letter of
credit draw certificate, shall be sufficient for a draw on the standby
letter of credit for the entire amount of the standby letter of credit.



Sec. 54.1008  Mobility Fund Phase I disbursements.

    (a) A winning bidder for Mobility Fund Phase I support will be
advised by public notice whether it has been authorized to receive
support. The public notice will detail how disbursement will be made
available.
    (b) Mobility Fund Phase I support will be available for disbursement
to authorized winning bidders in three stages.
    (1) One-third of the total possible support, if coverage were to be
extended to 100 percent of the units deemed unserved in the geographic
area, when the winning bidder is authorized to receive support.
    (2) One-third of the total possible support with respect to a
specific geographic area when the recipient demonstrates coverage of 50
percent of the coverage requirements of Sec. 54.1006(a) or (b), as
applicable.
    (3) The remainder of the total support, based on the final total
units covered, when the recipient demonstrates coverage meeting the
requirements of Sec. 54.1006(a) or (b), as applicable.
    (c) A recipient accepting a final disbursement for a specific
geographic area based on coverage of less than 100 percent of the units
in the area previously deemed unserved waives any claim for the
remainder of potential Mobility Fund Phase I support with respect to
that area.
    (d) Prior to each disbursement request, a winning bidder for support
in a Tribal land will be required to certify that it has substantively
engaged appropriate Tribal officials regarding the issues specified in
Sec. 54.1004(d)(1), at a minimum, as well as any other issues specified
by the Commission and to provide a summary of the results of such
engagement.
    (e) Prior to each disbursement request, a winning bidder will be
required to certify that it is in compliance with all requirements for
receipt of Mobility Fund Phase I support at the time that it requests
the disbursement.



Sec. 54.1009  Annual reports.

    (a) A winning bidder authorized to receive Mobility Fund Phase I
support shall submit an annual report no later than July 1 in each year
for the five years after it was so authorized. Each annual report shall
include the following, or reference the inclusion of the following in
other reports filed with the Commission for the applicable year:
    (1) Electronic Shapefiles site coverage plots illustrating the area
newly reached by mobile services at a minimum scale of 1:240,000;
    (2) A list of relevant census blocks previously deemed unserved,
with road miles and total resident population and resident population
residing in areas newly reached by mobile services (based on Census
Bureau data and estimates);
    (3) If any such testing has been conducted, data received or used
from drive tests, or scattered site testing in areas where drive tests
are not feasible, analyzing network coverage for mobile services in the
area for which support was received;

[[Page 238]]

    (4) Certification that the applicant offers service in supported
areas at rates that are within a reasonable range of rates for similar
service plans offered by mobile wireless providers in urban areas;
    (5) Any applicable certifications and showings required in Sec.
54.1004; and
    (6) Updates to the information provided in Sec. 54.1005(b)(2)(v).
    (b) The party submitting the annual report must certify that they
have been authorized to do so by the winning bidder.
    (c) Each annual report shall be submitted to the Office of the
Secretary of the Commission, clearly referencing WT Docket No. 10-208;
the Administrator; and the relevant state commissions, relevant
authority in a U.S. Territory, or Tribal governments, as appropriate.

[76 FR 73877, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 30915, May 24, 2012]



Sec. 54.1010  Record retention for Mobility Fund Phase I.

    A winning bidder authorized to receive Mobility Fund Phase I support
and its agents are required to retain any documentation prepared for, or
in connection with, the award of Mobility Fund Phase I support for a
period of not less than ten (10) years after the date on which the
winning bidder receives its final disbursement of Mobility Fund Phase I
support.



      Subpart M_High Cost Loop Support for Rate-of-Return Carriers

    Source: 79 FR 39190, July 9, 2014, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 54.1301  General.

    (a) This subpart addresses support for loop-related costs included
in Sec. 54.1308. The expense adjustment calculated pursuant to this
subpart M shall be added to interstate expenses and deducted from state
expenses after expenses and taxes have been apportioned pursuant to
subpart D of part 36 of this chapter. Beginning January 1, 2012, this
subpart will only apply to incumbent local exchange carriers that are
rate-of-return carriers not affiliated, as ``affiliated companies'' are
defined in Sec. 32.9000 of this chapter, with price cap local exchange
carriers. Rate-of-return carriers and price cap local exchange carriers
are defined pursuant to Sec. 54.5 and Sec. 61.3(bb) of this chapter,
respectively.
    (b) The expense adjustment will be computed on the basis of data for
a preceding calendar year which may be updated at the option of the
carrier pursuant to Sec. 54.1306(a).



Sec. 54.1302  Calculation of incumbent local exchange carrier portion of
nationwide loop cost expense adjustment for rate-of-return carriers.

    (a) Beginning January 1, 2013, and each calendar year thereafter,
the total annual amount of the incumbent local exchange carrier portion
of the nationwide loop cost expense adjustment shall not exceed the
amount for the immediately preceding calendar year, multiplied times one
plus the Rural Growth Factor calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1303.
    (b) The annual rural incumbent local exchange carrier portion of the
nationwide loop cost expense adjustment shall be reduced to reflect the
transfer of rural incumbent local exchange carrier access lines that are
eligible for expense adjustments pursuant to Sec. 54.1310. The
reduction shall equal the amount of the Sec. 54.1310 expense adjustment
available to the transferred access lines at the time of the transfer
and shall be effective in the next calendar quarter after the access
lines are transferred.
    (c) Safety net additive support calculated pursuant to Sec.
54.1304, and transferred high-cost support and safety valve support
calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.305 of this part shall not be included
in the rural incumbent local exchange carrier portion of the annual
nationwide loop cost expense adjustment.



Sec. 54.1303  Calculation of the rural growth factor.

    (a) The Rural Growth Factor (RGF) is equal to the sum of the annual
percentage change in the United States Department of Commerce's Gross
Domestic Product--Chained Price Index (GPD-CPI) plus the percentage
change in the total number of rural incumbent

[[Page 239]]

local exchange carrier working loops during the calendar year preceding
the July 31st filing submitted pursuant to Sec. 54.1305. The percentage
change in total rural incumbent local exchange carrier working loops
shall be based upon the difference between the total number of rural
incumbent local exchange carrier working loops on December 31 of the
calendar year preceding the July 31st filing and the total number of
rural incumbent local exchange carrier working loops on December 31 of
the second calendar year preceding that filing, both determined by the
company's submissions pursuant to Sec. 54.1305. Loops acquired by rural
incumbent local exchange carriers shall not be included in the RGF
calculation.
    (b) Beginning July 31, 2012, pursuant to Sec. 54.1301(a), the
calculation of the Rural Growth Factor shall not include price cap
carrier working loops and rate-of-return local exchange carrier working
loops of companies that were affiliated with price cap carriers during
the calendar year preceding the July 31st filing submitted pursuant to
Sec. 54.1305.



Sec. 54.1304  Calculation of safety net additive.

    (a) Safety net additive support. Only those local exchange carriers
that qualified for safety net additive based on 2011 or prior year costs
shall be eligible to receive safety net additive pursuant to paragraph
(c) of this section. A local exchange carrier shall not receive safety
net additive unless the carrier's realized total growth in
Telecommunications Plant in Service (TPIS) was more than 14 percent in
2011 or earlier, pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section.
    (b) Calculation of safety net additive support for companies that
qualified based on 2011 or prior year costs. Safety net additive support
is equal to the amount of capped support calculated pursuant to this
subpart M in the qualifying year minus the amount of support in the year
prior to qualifying for support subtracted from the difference between
the uncapped expense adjustment for the study area in the qualifying
year minus the uncapped expense adjustment in the year prior to
qualifying for support as shown in the following equation: Safety net
additive support = (Uncapped support in the qualifying year-Uncapped
support in the base year)-(Capped support in the qualifying year-Amount
of support received in the base year).
    (c) Operation of safety net additive support for companies that
qualified based on 2011 or prior year costs. (1) In any year in which
the total carrier loop cost expense adjustment is limited by the
provisions of Sec. 54.1302, a rate-of-return incumbent local exchange
carrier shall receive safety net additive support as calculated in
paragraph (b) of this section, if in any study area, the rural incumbent
local exchange carrier realizes growth in end of period TPIS, as
prescribed in Sec. 32.2001, on a per loop basis, of at least 14 percent
more than the study area's TPIS per loop investment at the end of the
prior period.
    (2) If paragraph (c)(1) of this section is met, the rural incumbent
local exchange carrier must notify the Administrator; failure to
properly notify the Administrator of eligibility shall result in
disqualification of that study area for safety net additive, requiring
the rural incumbent local exchange carrier to again meet the eligibility
requirements in paragraph (c)(1) of this section for that study area in
a subsequent period.
    (3) Upon completion of verification by the Administrator that the
study area meets the stated criterion in paragraphs (a), (b), or (c) of
this section, the Administrator shall:
    (i) Pay to any qualifying rural telephone company safety net
additive support for the qualifying study area in accordance with the
calculation set forth in paragraph (b) of this section; and
    (ii) Continue to pay safety net additive support in any of the four
succeeding years in which the total carrier loop expense adjustment is
limited by the provisions of Sec. 54.1302. Safety net additive support
in the succeeding four years shall be the lesser of:
    (A) The sum of capped support and the safety net additive support
received in the qualifying year; or
    (B) The rural telephone company's uncapped support.

[[Page 240]]



Sec. 54.1305  Submission of information to the National Exchange Carrier
Association (NECA)

    (a) In order to allow determination of the study areas and wire
centers that are entitled to an expense adjustment pursuant to Sec.
54.1310, each incumbent local exchange carrier (LEC) must provide the
National Exchange Carrier Association (NECA) (established pursuant to
part 69 of this chapter) with the information listed for each study area
in which such incumbent LEC operates, with the exception of the
information listed in paragraph (h) of this section, which must be
provided for each study area. This information is to be filed with NECA
by July 31st of each year. The information provided pursuant to
paragraph (i) of this section must be updated pursuant to Sec. 54.1306.
Rural telephone companies that acquired exchanges subsequent to May 7,
1997, and incorporated those acquired exchanges into existing study
areas shall separately provide the information required by paragraphs
(b) through (i) of this section for both the acquired and existing
exchanges.
    (b) Unseparated, i.e., state and interstate, gross plant investment
in Exchange Line Cable and Wire Facilities (C&WF) Subcategory 1.3 and
Exchange Line Central Office (CO) Circuit Equipment Category 4.13. This
amount shall be calculated as of December 31st of the calendar year
preceding each July 31st filing.
    (c) Unseparated accumulated depreciation and noncurrent deferred
federal income taxes, attributable to Exchange Line C&WF Subcategory 1.3
investment, and Exchange Line CO Circuit Equipment Category 4.13
investment. These amounts shall be calculated as of December 31st of the
calendar year preceding each July 31st filing, and shall be stated
separately.
    (d) Unseparated depreciation expense attributable to Exchange Line
C&WF Subcategory 1.3 investment, and Exchange Line CO Circuit Equipment
Category 4.13 investment. This amount shall be the actual depreciation
expense for the calendar year preceding each July 31st filing.
    (e) Unseparated maintenance expense attributable to Exchange Line
C&WF Subcategory 1.3 investment and Exchange Line CO Circuit Equipment
Category 4.113 investment. This amount shall be the actual repair
expense for the calendar year preceding each July 31st filing.
    (f) Unseparated corporate operations expenses, operating taxes, and
the benefits and rent proportions of operating expenses. The amount for
each of these categories of expense shall be the actual amount for that
expense for the calendar year preceding each July 31st filing. The
amount for each category of expense listed shall be stated separately.
    (g) Unseparated gross telecommunications plant investment. This
amount shall be calculated as of December 31st of the calendar year
preceding each July 31st filing.
    (h) Unseparated accumulated depreciation and noncurrent deferred
federal income taxes attributable to local unseparated
telecommunications plant investment. This amount shall be calculated as
of December 31st of the calendar year preceding each July 31st filing.
    (i) The number of working loops for each study area. For universal
service support purposes, working loops are defined as the number of
working Exchange Line C&WF loops used jointly for exchange and message
telecommunications service, including C&WF subscriber lines associated
with pay telephones in C&WF Category 1, but excluding WATS closed end
access and TWX service. These figures shall be calculated as of December
31st of the calendar year preceding each July 31st filing.



Sec. 54.1306  Updating Information Submitted to the National Exchange
Carrier Association.

    (a) Any incumbent local exchange carrier subject to Sec. 54.1301(a)
may update the information submitted to the National Exchange Carrier
Association (NECA) on July 31st pursuant to Sec. 54.1305 one or more
times annually on a rolling year basis according to the schedule.
    (1) Submit data covering the last nine months of the previous
calendar year and the first three months of the existing calendar year
no later than September 30th of the existing year;

[[Page 241]]

    (2) Submit data covering the last six months of the previous
calendar year and the first six months of the existing calendar year no
later than December 30th of the existing year;
    (3) Submit data covering the last three months of the second
previous calendar year and the first nine months of the previous
calendar year no later than March 30th of the existing year.
    (b) [Reserved]



Sec. 54.1307  Submission of Information by the National Exchange Carrier
Association.

    (a) On October 1 of each year, the National Exchange Carrier
Association (NECA) shall file with the Commission and Administrator the
information listed below. Information filed with the Commission shall be
compiled from information provided to NECA by telephone companies
pursuant to Sec. 54.1305.
    (1) The unseparated loop cost for each study area and a nationwide-
average unseparated loop cost.
    (2) The annual amount of the high cost expense adjustment for each
study area, and the total nationwide amount of the expense adjustment.
    (3) The dollar amount and percentage of the increase in the
nationwide average unseparated loop cost, as well as the dollar amount
and percentage increase for each study area, for the previous 5 years,
or the number of years NECA has been receiving this information,
whichever is the shorter time period.
    (b) [Reserved]



Sec. 54.1308  Study Area Total Unseparated Loop Cost.

    (a) For the purpose of calculating the expense adjustment, the study
area total unseparated loop cost equals the sum of the following:
    (1) Return component for net unseparated Exchange Line C&WF
subcategory 1.3 investment and Exchange Line CO Circuit Equipment
Category 4.13 investment. This amount is calculated by deducting the
accumulated depreciation and noncurrent deferred Federal income taxes
attributable to C&WF Subcategory 1.3 investment and Exchange Line
Category 4.13 circuit investment reported pursuant to Sec. 54.1305(b)
from the gross investment in Exchange Line C&WF Subcategory 1.3 and CO
Category 4.13 reported pursuant to Sec. 54.1305(a) to obtain the net
unseparated C&WF Subcategory 1.3 investment, and CO Category 4.13
investment. The net unseparated C&WF Subcategory 1.3 investment and CO
Category 4.13 investment is multiplied by the study area's authorized
interstate rate of return.
    (2) Depreciation expense attributable to C&WF Subcategory 1.3
investment, and CO Category 4.13 investment as reported in Sec.
54.1305(c).
    (3) Maintenance expense attributable to C&WF Subcategory 1.3
investment, and CO Category 4.13 investment as reported in Sec.
54.1305(d).
    (4) Corporate Operations Expenses, Operating Taxes and the benefits
and rent portions of operating expenses, as reported in Sec. 54.1305(e)
attributable to investment in C&WF Category 1.3 and COE Category 4.13.
This amount is calculated by multiplying the total amount of these
expenses and taxes by the ratio of the unseparated gross exchange plant
investment in C&WF Category 1.3 and COE Category 4.13, as reported in
Sec. 54.1305(a), to the unseparated gross telecommunications plant
investment, as reported in Sec. 54.1305(f). Total Corporate Operations
Expense for purposes of calculating high-cost loop support payments
beginning January 1, 2012 shall be limited to the lesser of Sec.
54.1308(a)(4)(i) or (ii).
    (i) The actual average monthly per-loop Corporate Operations
Expense; or
    (ii) A monthly per-loop amount computed according to paragraphs
(a)(4)(ii)(A), (a)(4)(ii)(B), (a)(4)(ii)(C), and (a)(4)(ii)(D) of this
section. To the extent that some carriers' corporate operations expenses
are disallowed pursuant to these limitations, the national average
unseparated cost per loop shall be adjusted accordingly.
    (A) For study areas with 6,000 or fewer total working loops the
amount monthly per working loop shall be $42.337 - (.00328 x the number
of total working loops), or, $63,000/the number of total working loops,
whichever is greater;
    (B) For study areas with more than 6,000 but fewer than 17,887 total
working loops, the monthly amount per

[[Page 242]]

working loop shall be $3.007 + (117,990/the number of total working
loops); and
    (C) For study areas with 17,887 or more total working loops, the
monthly amount per working loop shall be $9.562.
    (D) Beginning January 1, 2013, the monthly per-loop amount computed
according to paragraphs (a)(4)(ii)(A), (a)(4)(ii)(B), and (a)(4)(ii)(C)
of this section shall be adjusted each year to reflect the annual
percentage change in the United States Department of Commerce's Gross
Domestic Product-Chained Price Index (GDP-CPI).
    (b) [Reserved]



Sec. 54.1309  National and study area average unseparated loop costs.

    (a) National average unseparated loop cost per working loop. Except
as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, this is equal to the sum
of the Loop Costs for each study area in the country as calculated
pursuant to Sec. 54.1308(a) divided by the sum of the working loops
reported in Sec. 54.1305(h) for each study area in the country. The
national average unseparated loop cost per working loop shall be
calculated by the National Exchange Carrier Association. Beginning July
1, 2001, the national average unseparated loop cost for purposes of
calculating expense adjustments for rural incumbent local exchange
carriers, as that term is defined in Sec. 54.5 of this part is frozen
at $240.00.
    (1) The national average unseparated loop cost per working loop
shall be recalculated by the National Exchange Carrier Association to
reflect the September, December, and March update filings.
    (2) Each new nationwide average shall be used in determining the
additional interstate expense allocation for companies which made
filings by the most recent filing date.
    (3) The calculation of a new national average to reflect the update
filings shall not affect the amount of the additional interstate expense
allocation for companies which did not make an update filing by the most
recent filing date.
    (b) Study area average unseparated loop cost per working loop. This
is equal to the unseparated loop costs for the study area as calculated
pursuant to Sec. 54.1308(a) divided by the number of working loops
reported in Sec. 54.1305(i) for the study area.
    (1) If a company elects to, or is required to, update the data which
it has filed with the National Exchange Carrier Association as provided
in Sec. 54.1306(a), the study area average unseparated loop cost per
working loop and the amount of its additional interstate expense
allocation shall be recalculated to reflect the updated data.
    (2) [Reserved]
    (c) The national average inseparated loop Cost per working loop
shall be the greater of:
    (1) The amount calculated pursuant to the method described in
paragraph (a) of this section; or
    (2) Beginning July 1, 2001, for rural carriers, an amount calculated
to produce the maximum rural incumbent local exchange carrier portion of
nationwide loop cost expense adjustment allowable pursuant to Sec.
54.1302(a).



Sec. 54.1310  Expense adjustment.

    (a) [Reserved]
    (b) [Reserved]
    (c) Beginning January 1, 1988, for study areas reporting 200,000 or
fewer working loops pursuant to Sec. 54.1305(h), the expense adjustment
(additional interstate expense allocation) is equal to the sum of
paragraphs (c)(1) through (2) of this section.
    (1) Sixty-five percent of the study area average unseparated loop
cost per working loop as calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1309(b) in
excess of 115 percent of the national average for this cost but not
greater than 150 percent of the national average for this cost as
calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1309(a) multiplied by the number of
working loops reported in Sec. 54.1305(h) for the study area; and
    (2) Seventy-five percent of the study area average unseparated loop
cost per working loop as calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1309(b) in
excess of 150 percent of the national average for this cost as
calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1309(a) multiplied by the number of
working loops reported in Sec. 54.1305(h) for the study area.
    (d) Beginning April 1, 1989, the expense adjustment calculated
pursuant

[[Page 243]]

to Sec. 54.1310(c) shall be adjusted each year to reflect changes in
the amount of high-cost loop support resulting from adjustments
calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1306(a) made during the previous year.
If the resulting amount exceeds the previous year's fund size, the
difference will be added to the amount calculated pursuant to Sec.
54.1310(c) for the following year. If the adjustments made during the
previous year result in a decrease in the size of the funding
requirement, the difference will be subtracted from the amount
calculated pursuant to Sec. 54.1310(c) for the following year.



PART 59_INFRASTRUCTURE SHARING--Table of Contents



Sec.
59.1 General duty.
59.2 Terms and conditions of infrastructure sharing.
59.3 Information concerning deployment of new services and equipment.
59.4 Definition of ``qualifying carrier''.

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154(i), 154(j), 201-205, 259, 303(r), 403.

    Source: 62 FR 9713, Mar. 4, 1997, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 59.1  General duty.

    Incumbent local exchange carriers (as defined in 47 U.S.C. section
251(h)) shall make available to any qualifying carrier such public
switched network infrastructure, technology, information, and
telecommunications facilities and functions as may be requested by such
qualifying carrier for the purpose of enabling such qualifying carrier
to provide telecommunications services, or to provide access to
information services, in the service area in which such qualifying
carrier has obtained designation as an eligible telecommunications
carrier under section 214(e) of 47 U.S.C.



Sec. 59.2  Terms and conditions of infrastructure sharing.

    (a) An incumbent local exchange carrier subject to the requirements
of section 59.1 shall not be required to take any action that is
economically unreasonable or that is contrary to the public interest.
    (b) An incumbent local exchange carrier subject to the requirements
of section 59.1 may, but shall not be required to, enter into joint
ownership or operation of public switched network infrastructure,
technology, information and telecommunications facilities and functions
and services with a qualifying carrier as a method of fulfilling its
obligations under section 59.1.
    (c) An incumbent local exchange carrier subject to the requirements
of section 59.1 shall not be treated by the Commission or any State as a
common carrier for hire or as offering common carrier services with
respect to any public switched network infrastructure, technology,
information, or telecommunications facilities, or functions made
available to a qualifying carrier in accordance with regulations issued
pursuant to this section.
    (d) An incumbent local exchange carrier subject to the requirements
of section 59.1 shall make such public switched network infrastructure,
technology, information, and telecommunications facilities, or functions
available to a qualifying carrier on just and reasonable terms and
pursuant to conditions that permit such qualifying carrier to fully
benefit from the economies of scale and scope of such local exchange
carrier. An incumbent local exchange carrier that has entered into an
infrastructure sharing agreement pursuant to section 59.1 must give
notice to the qualifying carrier at least sixty days before terminating
such infrastructure sharing agreement.
    (e) An incumbent local exchange carrier subject to the requirements
of section 59.1 shall not be required to engage in any infrastructure
sharing agreement for any services or access which are to be provided or
offered to consumers by the qualifying carrier in such local exchange
carrier's telephone exchange area.
    (f) An incumbent local exchange carrier subject to the requirements
of section 59.1 shall file with the State, or, if the State has made no
provision to accept such filings, with the Commission, for public
inspection, any tariffs, contracts, or other arrangements showing the
rates, terms, and conditions under which such carrier is making
available

[[Page 244]]

public switched network infrastructure, technology, information and
telecommunications facilities and functions pursuant to this part.



Sec. 59.3  Information concerning deployment of new services and
equipment.

    An incumbent local exchange carrier subject to the requirements of
section 59.1 that has entered into an infrastructure sharing agreement
under section 59.1 shall provide to each party to such agreement timely
information on the planned deployment of telecommunications services and
equipment, including any software or upgrades of software integral to
the use or operation of such telecommunications equipment.



Sec. 59.4  Definition of ``qualifying carrier''.

    For purposes of this part, the term ``qualifying carrier'' means a
telecommunications carrier that:
    (a) Lacks economies of scale or scope; and
    (b) Offers telephone exchange service, exchange access, and any
other service that is included in universal service, to all consumers
without preference throughout the service area for which such carrier
has been designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier under
section 214(e) of 47 U.S.C.



PART 61_TARIFFS--Table of Contents



                            Subpart A_General

Sec.
61.1 Purpose and application.
61.2 General tariff requirements.
61.3 Definitions.
61.11-61.12 [Reserved]

                  Subpart B_Rules for Electronic Filing

61.13 Scope.
61.14 Method of filing publications.
61.15 Letters of transmittal and cover letters.
61.16 Base documents.
61.17 Applications for special permission.

            Subpart C_General Rules for Nondominant Carriers

61.18 Scope.
61.19 Detariffing of international and interstate, domestic
          interexchange services.
61.20 Method of filing publications.
61.25 References to other instruments.
61.26 Tariffing of competitive interstate switched exchange access
          services.

   Subpart D_General Tariff Rules for International Dominant Carriers

61.28 International dominant carrier tariff filing requirements.

              Subpart E_General Rules for Dominant Carriers

61.38 Supporting information to be submitted with letters of
          transmittal.
61.39 Optional supporting information to be submitted with letters of
          transmittal for Access Tariff filings by incumbent local
          exchange carriers serving 50,000 or fewer access lines in a
          given study area that are described as subset 3 carriers in
          Sec. 69.602.
61.40 Private line rate structure guidelines.
61.41 Price cap requirements generally.
61.42 Price cap baskets and service categories.
61.43 Annual price cap filings required.
61.44 [Reserved]
61.45 Adjustments to the PCI for Local Exchange Carriers.
61.46 Adjustments to the API.
61.47 Adjustments to the SBI; pricing bands.
61.48 Transition rules for price cap formula calculations.
61.49 Supporting information to be submitted with letters of transmittal
          for tariffs of carriers subject to price cap regulation.
61.50 [Reserved]

  Subpart F_Formatting and Notice Requirements for Tariff Publications

61.51 Scope.
61.52 Form, size, type, legibility, etc.
61.54 Composition of tariffs.
61.55 Contract-based tariffs.
61.58 Notice requirements.
61.59 Effective period required before changes.

    Subpart G_Specific Rules for Tariff Publications of Dominant and
                          Nondominant Carriers

61.66 Scope.
61.68 Special notations.
61.69 Rejection.
61.72 Public information requirements.
61.73 Duplication of rates or regulations.
61.74 References to other instruments.
61.83 Consecutive numbering.
61.86 Supplements.
61.87 Cancellation of tariffs.

                         Subpart H_Concurrences

61.131 Scope.

[[Page 245]]

61.132 Method of filing concurrences.
61.133 Format of concurrences.
61.134 Concurrences for through services.
61.135 Concurrences for other purposes.
61.136 Revocation of concurrences.

    Subpart I_Adoption of Tariffs and Other Documents of Predecessor
                                Carriers

61.171 Adoption notice.
61.172 Changes to be incorporated in tariffs of successor carrier.

                          Subpart J_Suspensions

61.191 Carrier to file supplement when notified of suspension.
61.192 Contents of supplement announcing suspension.
61.193 Vacation of suspension order; supplements announcing same; etc.

    Authority: Secs. 1, 4(i), 4(j), 201-205 and 403 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended; 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j),
201-205 and 403, unless otherwise noted.

    Source: 49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, unless otherwise noted.



                            Subpart A_General



Sec. 61.1  Purpose and application.

    (a) The purpose of this part is to prescribe the framework for the
initial establishment of and subsequent revisions to tariff
publications.
    (b) Tariff publications filed with the Commission must conform to
the rules in this part and with Commission rules regarding the payment
of statutory charges (see subpart G of part 1 of this title) and the use
of FCC Registration Numbers (FRNs) (see subpart W of part 1 of this
title). Failure to comply with any provisions of these rules may be
grounds for rejection of the non-complying publication, a determination
that it is unlawful or other action. Where an FRN has been omitted from
a cover letter or transmittal accompanying a tariff publication filed
under this part or the FRN included in that letter is invalid, the
submitting carrier or carrier representative shall have ten (10)
business days from the date of filing to amend the cover letter or
transmittal to include a valid FRN. If within that ten (10) business day
period, the carrier or carrier representative amends the cover letter or
transmittal to include a valid FRN, that FRN shall be deemed to have
been included in the letter as of its original filing date. If, after
the expiration of the ten (10) business day period, the cover letter or
transmittal has not been amended to include a valid FRN, the related
tariff publication may be rejected if it has not yet become effective,
declared unlawful if it has become effective, or subject to other
action.
    (c) No carrier required to file tariffs may provide any interstate
or foreign communication service until every tariff publication for such
communication service is on file with the Commission and in effect.

[49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 66 FR 47896, Sept. 14, 2001]



Sec. 61.2  General tariff requirements.

    (a) In order to remove all doubt as to their proper application, all
tariff publications must contain clear and explicit explanatory
statements regarding the rates and regulations.
    (b) Tariff publications must be delivered to the Commission free
from all charges, including claims of postage.
    (c) Tariff publications will not be returned.

[64 FR 46586, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 61.3  Definitions.

    (a) Act. The Communications Act of 1934 (48 Stat. 1004; 47 U.S.C.
chapter 5), as amended.
    (b) Actual Price Index (API). An index of the level of aggregate
rate element rates in a basket, which index is calculated pursunt to
Sec. 61.46.
    (c) Association. This term has the meaning given it in Sec.
69.2(d).
    (d) Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month. (1) Price Cap CMT
Revenue (as defined in Sec. 61.3(cc)) per month as of July 1, 2000
(adjusted to remove Universal Service Contributions assessed to local
exchange carriers pursuant to Sec. 54.702 of this chapter) using 2000
annual filing base period demand, divided by the 2000 annual filing base
period demand. In filing entities with multiple study areas, if it
becomes necessary to calculate the Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per
Line month for a specific study area, then the Average Price Cap CMT
Revenue per Line

[[Page 246]]

month for that study area is determined as follows, using base period
demand revenues (adjusted to remove Universal Service Contributions
assessed to Local Exchange Carriers pursuant to Sec. 54.702 of this
chapter), Base Factor Portion (BFP) and 2000 annual filing base period
lines:
    Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line Month in a study area = Price
Cap CMT Revenue x (BFP in the study area / (BFP in the Filing Entity) /
(Lines in the study area.
    (2) Nothing in this definition precludes a price cap local exchange
carrier from continuing to average rates across filing entities
containing multiple study areas, where permitted under existing rules.
    (3) Average Price Cap CMT Revenues per Line month may be adjusted
after July 1, 2000 to reflect exogenous costs pursuant to Sec.
61.45(d).
    (4) Average Price Cap CMT Revenues per Line month may also be
adjusted pursuant to Sec. 61.45 (b)(1)(iii).
    (e) Average Traffic Sensitive Charge. (1) The Average Traffic
Sensitive Charge (ATS charge) is the sum of the following two
components:
    (i) The Local Switching (LS) component. The LS component will be
calculated by dividing the proposed LS revenues (End Office Switch, LS
trunk ports, Information Surcharge, and signalling transfer point (STP)
port) by the base period LS minutes of use (MOUs); and
    (ii) The Transport component. The Transport component will be
calculated by dividing the proposed Transport revenues (Switched Direct
Trunk Transport, Signalling for Switched Direct Trunk Transport,
Entrance Facilities for Switched Access traffic, Tandem Switched
Transport, Signalling for Tandem Switching and residual per minute
Transport Interconnection Charge (TIC) pursuant to Sec. 69.155 of this
chapter) by price cap local exchange carrier only base period MOUs
(including meet-point billing arrangements for jointly-provided
interstate access by a price cap local exchange carrier and any other
local exchange carrier).
    (2) For the purposes of determining whether the ATS charge has
reached the Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq), the calculations
should include all the relevant revenues and minutes for services
provided under generally available price cap tariffs.
    (f) Band. A zone of pricing flexibility for a service category,
which zone is calculated pursuant to Sec. 61.47.
    (g) Base period. For carriers subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through
61.49, the 12-month period ending six months prior to the effective date
of annual price cap tariffs. Base year or base period earnings shall
exclude amounts associated with exogenous adjustments to the PCI for the
lower formula adjustment mechanism permitted by Sec. 61.45(d)(1)(vii).
    (h) Basket. Any class or category of tariffed service or charge:
    (1) Which is established by the Commission pursuant to price cap
regulation;
    (2) The rates of which are reflected in an Actual Price Index; and
    (3) The related revenues of which are reflected in a Price Cap
Index.
    (i) Change in rate structure. A restructuring or other alteration of
the rate components for an existing service.
    (j) Charges. The price for service based on tariffed rates.
    (k) Commercial contractor. The commercial firm to whom the
Commission annually awards a contract to make copies of Commission
records for sale to the public.
    (l) Commission. The Federal Communications Commission.
    (m) Concurring carrier. A carrier (other than a connecting carrier)
subject to the Act which concurs in and assents to schedules of rates
and regulations filed on its behalf by an issuing carrier or carriers.
    (n) Connecting carrier. A carrier engaged in interstate or foreign
communication solely through physical connection with the facilities of
another carrier not directly or indirectly controlling or controlled by,
or under direct or indirect common control with, such carrier.
    (o) Contract-based tariff. A tariff based on a service contract
entered into between a non-dominant carrier and a customer, or between a
customer and a price cap local exchange carrier which has obtained
permission to offer contract-based tariff services pursuant to part 69,
subpart H, of this chapter.

[[Page 247]]

    (p) Corrections. The remedy of errors in typing, spelling, or
punctuation.
    (q) Dominant carrier. A carrier found by the Commission to have
market power (i.e., power to control prices).
    (r) GDP Price Index (GDP-PI). The estimate of the Chain-Type Price
Index for Gross Domestic Product published by the United States
Department of Commerce, which the Commission designates by Order.
    (s) GNP Price Index (GNP-PI). The estimate of the ``Fixed-Weighted
Price Index for Gross National Product, 1982 Weights'' published by the
United States Department of Commerce, which the Commission designates by
Order.
    (t) Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier. ``Incumbent Local Exchange
Carrier'' or ``ILEC'' has the same meaning as that term is defined in 47
U.S.C. 251(h).
    (u) Issuing carrier. A carrier subject to the Act that publishes and
files a tariff or tariffs with the Commission.
    (v) Line month. Line demand per month multiplied by twelve.
    (w) Local exchange carrier. Any person that is engaged in the
provision of telephone exchange service or exchange access as defined in
section 3(26) of the Act.
    (x) Mid-size company. All price cap local exchange carriers other
than the Regional Bell Operating Companies and GTE.
    (y) New service offering. A tariff filing that provides for a class
or sub-class of service not previously offered by the carrier involved
and that enlarges the range of service options available to ratepayers.
    (z) Non-dominant carrier. A carrier not found to be dominant. The
nondominant status of providers of international interexchange services
for purposes of this subpart is not affected by a carrier's
classification as dominant under Sec. 63.10 of this chapter.
    (aa) Other participating carrier. A carrier subject to the Act that
publishes a tariff containing rates and regulations applicable to the
portion or through service it furnishes in conjunction with another
subject carrier.
    (bb) Price Cap Local Exchange Carrier. A local exchange carrier
subject to regulation pursuant to Sec. 61.41 through 61.49.
    (cc) Pooled Local Switching Revenue. For certain qualified companies
as set forth in Sec. 61.48 (m), is the amount of additional local
switching reductions in the July 2000 Annual filing allowed to be moved
and recovered in the CMT basket.
    (dd) Price Cap CMT Revenue. The maximum total revenue a filing
entity would be permitted to receive from End User Common Line charges
under Sec. 69.152 of this chapter, Presubscribed Interexchange Carrier
charges (PICCs) under Sec. 69.153 of this chapter, Carrier Common Line
charges under Sec. 69.154 of this chapter, and Marketing under Sec.
69.156 of this chapter, using Base Period lines. Price Cap CMT Revenue
does not include the price cap local exchange carrier universal service
contributions as of July 1, 2000. The Price Cap CMT revenue does not
include the pooled local switching revenue outlined in paragraph (bb) of
this section.
    (ee) Price Cap Index (PCI). An index of prices applying to each
basket of services of each carrier subject to price cap regulation, and
calculated pursuant to Sec. 61.45.
    (ff) Price cap regulation. A method of regulation of dominant
carriers provided in Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49.
    (gg) Price cap tariff filing. Any tariff filing involving a service
subject to price cap regulation, or that requires calculations pursuant
to Sec. Sec. 61.45, 61.46, or 61.47.
    (hh) [Reserved]
    (ii) Rate. The tariffed price per unit of service.
    (jj) Rate increase. Any change in a tariff which results in an
increased rate or charge to any of the filing carrier's customers.
    (kk) Rate level change. A tariff change that only affects the actual
rate associated with a rate element, and does not affect any tariff
regulations or any other wording of tariff language.
    (ll) Regulations. The body of carrier prescribed rules in a tariff
governing the offering of service in that tariff, including rules,
practices, classifications, and definitions.
    (mm) Restructured service. An offering which represents the
modification of a method of charging or provisioning a service; or the
introduction of a new method of charging or provisioning

[[Page 248]]

that does not result in a net increase in options available to
customers.
    (nn) Rural Company. A company that, as of December 31, 1999, was
certified to the Commission as a rural telephone company.
    (oo) Service Band Index (SBI). An index of the level of aggregate
rate element rates in a service category, which index is calculated
pursuant to Sec. 61.47.
    (pp) Service category. Any group of rate elements subject to price
cap regulation, which group is subject to a band.
    (qq) Supplement. A publication filed as part of a tariff for the
purpose of suspending or canceling that tariff, or tariff publication
and numbered independently from the tariff page series.
    (rr) Target Rate. The applicable Target Rate shall be defined as
follows:
    (1) For regional Bell Operating Companies and GTE, $0.0055 per ATS
minute of use;
    (2) For a holding company with a holding company average of less
than 19 Switched Access End User Common Line charge lines per square
mile served such company may elect to use a Target Rate of $0.0095 with
respect to all exchanges owned by that holding company on July 1, 2000,
or which that holding company is, as of April 1, 2000, under a binding
and executed contract to purchase;
    (3) For other price cap local exchange carriers, $0.0065 per ATS
minute of use.
    (ss) Tariff. Schedules of rates and regulations filed by common
carriers.
    (tt) Tariff publication, or publication. A tariff, supplement,
revised page, additional page, concurrence, notice of revocation,
adoption notice, or any other schedule of rates or regulations filed by
common carriers.
    (uu) Tariff year. The period from the day in a calendar year on
which a carrier's annual access tariff filing is scheduled to become
effective through the preceding day of the subsequent calendar year.
    (vv) Text change. A change in the text of a tariff which does not
result in a change in any rate or regulation.
    (ww) United States. The several States and Territories, the District
of Columbia, and the possessions of the United States.
    (xx) Corridor service. ``Corridor service'' refers to interLATA
services offered in the ``limited corridors'' established by the
District Court in United States v. Western Electric Co., Inc., 569 F.
Supp. 1057, 1107 (D.D.C. 1983).
    (yy) Toll dialing parity. ``Toll dialing parity'' exists when there
is dialing parity, as defined in Sec. 51.5 of this chapter, for toll
services.
    (zz) Loop-based services. Loop-based services are services that
employ Subcategory 1.3 facilities, as defined in Sec. 36.154 of this
chapter.
    (aaa) Zone Average Revenue per Line. The amount calculated as
follows:

Zone Average Revenue per Line = (25% * (Loop + Port)) + U (Uniform
revenue per line adjustment)

Where:

Loop = the price for unbundled loops in a UNE zone.
Port = the price for switch ports in that UNE zone.
U = [(Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month in a study area *
          price cap local exchange carrier Base Period Lines) - (25% *
          S] (price cap local exchange carrier Base Period Lines in a
          UNE Zone * ((Loop + Port ) for all zones)))] / price cap local
          exchange carrier Base Period Lines in a study area.
    (bbb) Access stimulation.(1) A rate-of-return local exchange carrier
or a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier engages in access stimulation
when it satisfies the following two conditions:
    (i) Has an access revenue sharing agreement, whether express,
implied, written or oral, that, over the course of the agreement, would
directly or indirectly result in a net payment to the other party
(including affiliates) to the agreement, in which payment by the rate-
of-return local exchange carrier or Competitive Local Exchange Carrier
is based on the billing or collection of access charges from
interexchange carriers or wireless carriers. When determining whether
there is a net payment under this rule, all payments, discounts,
credits, services, features, functions, and other items of value,
regardless of form, provided by the rate-of-return local exchange
carrier or Competitive Local Exchange Carrier to the other party to the
agreement shall be taken into account; and
    (ii) Has either an interstate terminating-to-originating traffic
ratio of at

[[Page 249]]

least 3:1 in a calendar month, or has had more than a 100 percent growth
in interstate originating and/or terminating switched access minutes of
use in a month compared to the same month in the preceding year.
    (2) The local exchange carrier will continue to be engaging in
access stimulation until it terminates all revenue sharing arrangements
covered in paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section. A local exchange carrier
engaging in access stimulation is subject to revised interstate switched
access charge rules under Sec. 61.38 and Sec. 69.3(e)(12) of this
chapter.

[54 FR 19840, May 8, 1989]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec. 61.3,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids
section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.



Sec. Sec. 61.11-61.12  [Reserved]



                  Subpart B_Rules for Electronic Filing

    Source: 63 FR 35540, June 30, 1998, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 61.13  Scope.

    (a) This applies to all tariff publications of issuing carriers
required to file tariff publications electronically, and any tariff
publication that a carrier chooses to file electronically.
    (b) All issuing carriers that file tariffs are required to file
tariff publications electronically.
    (c) All tariff publications shall be filed in a manner that is
compatible and consistent with the technical requirements of the
Electronic Tariff Filing System.

[63 FR 35540, June 30, 1998, as amended at 76 FR 43210, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.14  Method of filing publications.

    (a) Publications filed electronically must be addressed to
``Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC 20554.''
The Electronic Tariff Filing System will accept filings 24 hours a day,
seven days a week. The official filing date of a publication received by
the Electronic Tariff Filing System will be determined by the date and
time the transmission ends. If the transmission ends after the close of
a business day, as that term is defined in Sec. 1.4(e)(2) of this
Chapter, the filing will be date and time stamped as of the opening of
the next business day.
    (b) In addition, except for issuing carriers filing tariffing fees
electronically, for all tariff publications requiring fees as set forth
in part 1, subpart G of this chapter, issuing carriers must submit the
original of the cover letter (without attachments), FCC Form 159, and
the appropriate fee to the address set forth in Sec. 1.1105 of this
chapter.
    (c) Carriers that are required to file publications electronically
may not file those publications on paper or other media unless
specifically required to do so by the Commission.
    (d) Carriers that are required to file publications electronically
need only transmit one set of files to the Commission. No other copies
to any other party are required.
    (e) Carriers that are required to file publications electronically
must comply with the format requirements set forth in Sec. Sec. 61.52
and 61.54, with the exception of the informational tariffs filed
pursuant to 47 U.S.C. 226(h)(1)(A).

[63 FR 35540, June 30, 1998, as amended at 64 FR 46586, Aug. 26, 1999;
73 FR 9030, Feb. 19, 2008; 76 FR 43210, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.15  Letters of transmittal and cover letters.

    (a) All tariff publications filed with the Commission electronically
must be accompanied by a letter of transmittal. All letters of
transmittal filed with the Commission must be numbered consecutively by
the issuing carrier beginning with Number 1. All letters of transmittal
must also:
    (1) Concisely explain the nature and purpose of the filing;
    (2) Specify whether supporting information is required for the new
tariff or tariff revision, and specify the Commission rule or rules
governing the supporting information requirements for that filing;
    (3) Contain a statement indicating the date and method of filing of
the original of the transmittal as required by Sec. 61.14(b);
    (4) Include the FCC Registration Number (FRN) of the carrier(s) on

[[Page 250]]

whose behalf the cover letter is submitted. See subpart W of part 1 of
this title.
    (b) Local exchange carriers filing tariffs electronically pursuant
to the notice requirements of section 204(a)(3) of the Communications
Act shall display prominently, in the upper right hand corner of the
letter of transmittal, a statement that the filing is made pursuant to
that section and whether the tariff is filed on 7 or 15 days notice.
    (c) Any carrier filing a new or revised tariff made on 15 days'
notice or less shall include in the letter of transmittal the name, room
number, street address, telephone number, and facsimile number of the
individual designated by the filing carrier to receive personal or
facsimile service of petitions against the filing as required under
Sec. 1.773(a)(4) of this chapter.
    (d) International carriers must certify that they are authorized
under Section 214 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, to
provide service, and reference the FCC file number of that
authorization.
    (e) In addition to the requirements set forth in paragraph (a) of
this section, any incumbent local exchange carrier choosing to file an
Access Tariff under Sec. 61.39 must include in the transmittal:
    (1) A summary of the filing's basic rates, terms and conditions;
    (2) A statement concerning whether any prior Commission facility
authorization necessary to the implementation of the tariff has been
obtained; and
    (3) A statement that the filing is made pursuant to Sec. 61.39.
    (f) In addition to the requirements set forth in paragraph (a) of
this section, any price cap local exchange carrier filing a price cap
tariff must include in the letter of transmittal a statement that the
filing is made pursuant to Sec. 61.49.
    (g) The letter of transmittal must specifically reference by number
any special permission necessary to implement the tariff publication.
Special permission must be granted prior to the filing of the tariff
publication and may not be requested in the transmittal letter.
    (h)(1) The letter of transmittal must be substantially in the
following format:
________________________________________________________________________
(Exact name of carrier in full)
________________________________________________________________________
(Post Office Address)
________________________________________________________________________
(Date)
________________________________________________________________________
Transmittal No.

Secretary, Federal Communications Commission; Washington, DC 20554

Attention: Wireline Competition Bureau

    The accompanying tariff (or other publication) issued by --------,
and bearing FCC No. --------, effective --------, 20--, is sent to you
for filing in compliance with the requirements of the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended. (Here give the additional information required.)
________________________________________________________________________
(Name of issuing officer or agent)
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
    (Title)

    (2) A separate letter of transmittal may accompany each publication,
or the above format may be modified to provide for filing as many
publications as desired with one transmittal letter.
    (i) All submissions of documents other than a new tariff or
revisions to an existing tariff, such as Base Documents or Tariff Review
Plans, must be accompanied by a cover letter that concisely explains the
nature and purpose of the filing. Publications submitted under this
paragraph are not required to submit a tariffing fee.

[76 FR 43210, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.16  Base documents.

    (a) The Base Document is a complete tariff which incorporates all
effective revisions, as of the last day of the preceding month. The Base
Document should be submitted with a cover letter as specified in Sec.
61.15(i) and identified as the Monthly Updated Base Document.
    (b) If there have been revisions that became effective up to and
including the last day of the preceding month, a new Base Document must
be submitted within the first five business days of the current month
that will incorporate those revisions.

[76 FR 43211, July 20, 2011]

[[Page 251]]



Sec. 61.17  Applications for special permission.

    (a) All issuing carriers that file applications for special
permission, associated documents, such as transmittal letters, requests
for special permission, and supporting information, shall file those
documents electronically.
    (b) Applications for special permission must contain:
    (1) A detailed description of the tariff publication proposed to be
put into effect;
    (2) A statement citing the specific rules and the grounds on which
waiver is sought;
    (3) A showing of good cause; and
    (4) The appropriate Illustrative tariff pages the issuing carrier
wishes to either revise or add as new pages to its tariff.
    (c) An application for special permission must be addressed to
``Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC 20554.''
The Electronic Tariff Filing System will accept filings 24 hours a day,
seven days a week. The official filing date of a publication received by
the Electronic Tariff Filing System will be determined by the date and
time the transmission ends. If the transmission ends after the close of
a business day, as that term is defined in Sec. 1.4(e)(2) of this
chapter, the filing will be date and time stamped as of the opening of
the next business day.
    (d) In addition, except for issuing carriers filing tariffing fees
electronically, for special permission applications requiring fees as
set forth in part 1, subpart G of this chapter, issuing carriers must
submit the original of the application letter (without attachments), FCC
Form 159, and the appropriate fee to the address set forth in Sec.
1.1105 of this chapter.
    (e) In addition, if an issuing carrier applies for special
permission to revise joint tariffs, the application must state that it
is filed on behalf of all carriers participating in the affected
service. Applications must be numbered consecutively in a series
separate from FCC tariff numbers and Letters of Transmittal, bear the
signature of the officer or agent of the carrier, and be in the
following format:

 Application No.________________________________________________________

 (Date)_________________________________________________________________

    Secretary, Federal Communications Commission, Washington, DC 20554.

Attention: Wireline Competition Bureau (here provide the statements
required by section 61.17(b)).

 (Exact name of carrier)________________________________________________

 (Name of officer or agent)_____________________________________________

 (Title of officer or agent)____________________________________________

    (f) If approved, the issuing carrier must comply with all terms and
use all authority specified in the grant. If a carrier elects to use
less than the authority granted, it must apply to the Commission for
modification of the original grant. If a carrier elects not to use the
authority granted within sixty days of its effective date, the original
grant will be automatically cancelled by the Commission.

[76 FR 43211, July 20, 2011]



            Subpart C_General Rules for Nondominant Carriers



Sec. 61.18  Scope.

    The rules in this subpart apply to all nondominant carriers.

[64 FR 46587, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 61.19  Detariffing of international and interstate, domestic
interexchange services.

    (a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraphs (b) through (e) of
this section, or by Commission order, carriers that are nondominant in
the provision of international and interstate, domestic interexchange
services shall not file tariffs for such services.
    (b) Carriers that are nondominant in the provision of international
and domestic, interstate, interexchange services are permitted to file
tariffs for dial-around 1+ services. For the purposes of this paragraph,
dial-around 1+ calls are those calls made by accessing the interexchange
carrier through the use of that carrier's carrier access code.
    (c) Carriers that are nondominant in the provision of international
and domestic, interstate, interexchange services are permitted to file a
tariff for such services applicable to those customers who contact the
local exchange carrier to designate an interexchange

[[Page 252]]

carrier or to initiate a change with respect to their primary
interexchange carrier. Such tariff will enable the interexchange carrier
to provide service to the customer until the interexchange carrier and
the customer consummate a written agreement, but in no event shall the
interexchange carrier provide service to its customer pursuant to such
tariff for more than 45 days.
    (d) Carriers that are nondominant in the provision of international
inbound collect calls to the United States are permitted to file a
tariff for such services.
    (e) Carriers that are nondominant in the provision of ``on-demand''
Mobile Satellite Services are permitted to file a tariff for such
services applicable to those customers that have not entered into pre-
existing service contracts designating a specific provider for such
services.

[66 FR 16881, Mar. 28, 2001]



Sec. 61.20  Method of filing publications.

    (a) All issuing carriers that file tariffs shall file all tariff
publications and associated documents, such as transmittal letters,
requests for special permission, and supporting information,
electronically in accordance with the requirements set forth in
Sec. Sec. 61.13 through 61.17.
    (b) In addition, except for issuing carriers filing tariffing fees
electronically, for all tariff publications requiring fees as set forth
in part 1, subpart G of this chapter, issuing carriers must submit the
original of the cover letter (without attachments), FCC Form 159, and
the appropriate fee to the address set forth in Sec. 1.1105 of this
chapter.

[76 FR 43211, July 20,2011]



Sec. 61.25  References to other instruments.

    In addition to the cross-references permitted pursuant to Sec.
61.74, a non-dominant carrier may cross-reference in its tariff
publication only the rate provisions of another carrier's FCC tariff
publication, provided that the following conditions are met:
    (a) The tariff being cross-referenced must be on file with the
Commission and in effect;
    (b) The issuing carrier must specifically identify in its tariff the
cross-referenced tariff by Carrier Name and FCC Tariff Number;
    (c) The issuing carrier must specifically identify in its tariff the
rates being cross-referenced so as to leave no doubt as to the exact
rates that will apply, including but not limited to any applicable
credits, discounts, promotions; and
    (d) The issuing carrier must keep its cross-references current.

[64 FR 46588, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 61.26  Tariffing of competitive interstate switched exchange access
services.

    (a) Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following
definitions shall apply:
    (1) CLEC shall mean a local exchange carrier that provides some or
all of the interstate exchange access services used to send traffic to
or from an end user and does not fall within the definition of
``incumbent local exchange carrier'' in 47 U.S.C. 251(h).
    (2) Competing ILEC shall mean the incumbent local exchange carrier,
as defined in 47 U.S.C. 251(h), that would provide interstate exchange
access services, in whole or in part, to the extent those services were
not provided by the CLEC.
    (3) Switched exchange access services shall include:
    (i) The functional equivalent of the ILEC interstate exchange access
services typically associated with the following rate elements: Carrier
common line (originating); carrier common line (terminating); local end
office switching; interconnection charge; information surcharge; tandem
switched transport termination (fixed); tandem switched transport
facility (per mile); tandem switching;
    (ii) The termination of interexchange telecommunications traffic to
any end user, either directly or via contractual or other arrangements
with an affiliated or unaffiliated provider of interconnected VoIP
service, as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153(25), or a non-interconnected VoIP
service, as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153(36), that does not itself seek to
collect reciprocal compensation charges

[[Page 253]]

prescribed by this subpart for that traffic, regardless of the specific
functions provided or facilities used.
    (4) Non-rural ILEC shall mean an incumbent local exchange carrier
that is not a rural telephone company under 47 U.S.C. 153(44).
    (5) The rate for interstate switched exchange access services shall
mean the composite, per-minute rate for these services, including all
applicable fixed and traffic-sensitive charges.
    (6) Rural CLEC shall mean a CLEC that does not serve (i.e.,
terminate traffic to or originate traffic from) any end users located
within either:
    (i) Any incorporated place of 50,000 inhabitants or more, based on
the most recently available population statistics of the Census Bureau
or
    (ii) An urbanized area, as defined by the Census Bureau.
    (b) Except as provided in paragraphs (c), (e), and (g) of this
section, a CLEC shall not file a tariff for its interstate switched
exchange access services that prices those services above the higher of:
    (1) The rate charged for such services by the competing ILEC or
    (2) The lower of:
    (i) The benchmark rate described in paragraph (c) of this section or
    (ii) In the case of interstate switched exchange access service, the
lowest rate that the CLEC has tariffed for its interstate exchange
access services, within the six months preceding June 20, 2001.
    (c) The benchmark rate for a CLEC's switched exchange access
services will be the rate charged for similar services by the competing
ILEC. If an ILEC to which a CLEC benchmarks its rates, pursuant to this
section, lowers the rate to which a CLEC benchmarks, the CLEC must
revise its rates to the lower level within 15 days of the effective date
of the lowered ILEC rate.
    (d) Except as provided in paragraph (g) of this section, and
notwithstanding paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, in the event
that, after June 20, 2001, a CLEC begins serving end users in a
metropolitan statistical area (MSA) where it has not previously served
end users, the CLEC shall not file a tariff for its exchange access
services in that MSA that prices those services above the rate charged
for such services by the competing ILEC.
    (e) Rural exemption. Except as provided in paragraph (g) of this
section, and notwithstanding paragraphs (b) through (d) of this section,
a rural CLEC competing with a non-rural ILEC shall not file a tariff for
its interstate exchange access services that prices those services above
the rate prescribed in the NECA access tariff, assuming the highest rate
band for local switching. In addition to that NECA rate, the rural CLEC
may assess a presubscribed interexchange carrier charge if, and only to
the extent that, the competing ILEC assesses this charge. Beginning July
1, 2013, all CLEC reciprocal compensation rates for intrastate switched
exchange access services subject to this subpart also shall be no higher
than that NECA rate.
    (f) If a CLEC provides some portion of the switched exchange access
services used to send traffic to or from an end user not served by that
CLEC, the rate for the access services provided may not exceed the rate
charged by the competing ILEC for the same access services, except if
the CLEC is listed in the database of the Number Portability
Administration Center as providing the calling party or dialed number,
the CLEC may, to the extent permitted by Sec. 51.913(b) of this
chapter, assess a rate equal to the rate that would be charged by the
competing ILEC for all exchange access services required to deliver
interstate traffic to the called number.
    (g) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b) through (e) of this section:
    (1) A CLEC engaging in access stimulation, as that term is defined
in Sec. 61.3(bbb), shall not file a tariff for its interstate exchange
access services that prices those services above the rate prescribed in
the access tariff of the price cap LEC with the lowest switched access
rates in the state.
    (2) A CLEC engaging in access stimulation, as that term is defined
in Sec. 61.3(bbb), shall file revised interstate switched access
tariffs within forty-five (45) days of commencing access stimulation, as
that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb), or within forty-five (45) days

[[Page 254]]

of [date] if the CLEC on that date is engaged in access stimulation, as
that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb).

[76 FR 73881, Nov. 29, 2011, as amended at 77 FR 20553, Apr. 5, 2012]



   Subpart D_General Tariff Rules for International Dominant Carriers



Sec. 61.28  International dominant carrier tariff filing requirements.

    (a) Any carrier classified as dominant for the provision of
particular international communications services on a particular route
for any reason other than a foreign carrier affiliation under Sec.
63.10 of this chapter shall file tariffs for those services pursuant to
the notice and cost support requirements for tariff filings of dominant
domestic carriers, as set forth in subpart E of this part.
    (b) Other than the notice and cost support requirements set forth in
paragraph (a) of this section, all tariff filing requirements applicable
to all carriers classified as dominant for the provision of particular
international communications services on a particular route for any
reason other than a foreign carrier affiliation pursuant to Sec. 63.10
of this chapter are set forth in subpart C of this part.

[66 FR 16881, Mar. 28, 2001]



              Subpart E_General Rules for Dominant Carriers



Sec. 61.31  Scope.

    The rules in this subpart apply to all dominant carriers.

[64 FR 46588, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 61.38  Supporting information to be submitted with letters of
transmittal.

    (a) Scope. This section applies to dominant carriers whose gross
annual revenues exceed $500,000 for the most recent 12 month period of
operations or are estimated to exceed $500,000 for a representative 12
month period. Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers serving 50,000 or fewer
access lines in a given study area that are described as subset 3
carriers in Sec. 69.602 of this chapter may submit Access Tariff
filings for that study area pursuant to either this section or Sec.
61.39. However, the Commission may require any issuing carrier to submit
such information as may be necessary for a review of a tariff filing.
This section (other than the preceding sentence of this paragraph) shall
not apply to tariff filings proposing rates for services identified in
Sec. 61.42 (d), (e), and (g).
    (b) Explanation and data supporting either changes or new tariff
offerings. The material to be submitted for a tariff change which
affects rates or charges or for a tariff offering a new service, must
include an explanation of the changed or new matter, the reasons for the
filing, the basis of ratemaking employed, and economic information to
support the changed or new matter.
    (1) For a tariff change the issuing carrier must submit the
following, including complete explanations of the bases for the
estimates.
    (i) A cost of service study for all elements for the most recent 12
month period;
    (ii) A study containing a projection of costs for a representative
12 month period;
    (iii) Estimates of the effect of the changed matter on the traffic
and revenues from the service to which the changed matter applies, the
issuing carrier's other service classifications, and the carrier's
overall traffic and revenues. These estimates must include the projected
effects on the traffic and revenues for the same representative 12 month
period used in (b)(1)(ii) above.
    (2) For a tariff filing offering a new service, the issuing carrier
must submit the following, including complete explanations of the bases
for the estimates.
    (i) A study containing a projection of costs for a representative 12
month period; and
    (ii) Estimates of the effect of the new matter on the traffic and
revenues from the service to which the new matter applies, the issuing
carrier's other service classifications, and the issuing carrier's
overall traffic and revenues. These estimates must include the projected
effects on the traffic and revenues for the same representative 12

[[Page 255]]

month period used in paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section.
    (3) [Reserved]
    (4) For a tariff that introduces a system of density pricing zones,
as described in Sec. 69.123 of this chapter, the issuing carrier must,
before filing its tariff, submit a density pricing zone plan including,
inter alia, documentation sufficient to establish that the system of
zones reasonably reflects cost-related characteristics, such as the
density of total interstate traffic in central offices located in the
respective zones, and receive approval of its proposed plan.
    (c) Working papers and statistical data. (1) Concurrently with the
filing of any tariff change or tariff filing for a service not
previously offered, the issuing carrier must file the working papers
containing the information underlying the data supplied in response to
paragraph (b) of this section, and a clear explanation of how the
working papers relate to that information.
    (2) All statistical studies must be submitted and supported in the
form prescribed in Sec. 1.363 of this chapter.
    (d) Form and content of additional material to be submitted with
certain rate increases. In the circumstances set out in paragraphs
(d)(1) and (2) of this section, the issuing carrier must submit all
additional cost, marketing and other data underlying the working papers
to justify a proposed rate increase. The issuing carrier must submit
this information in suitable form to serve as the carrier's direct case
in the event the rate increase is set by the Commission for
investigation.
    (1) Rate increases affecting single services or tariffed items.
    (i) A rate increase in any service or tariffed item which results in
more than $1 million in additional annual revenues, calculated on the
basis of existing quantities in service, without regard to the
percentage increase in such revenues; or
    (ii) A single rate increase in any service or tariffed item, or
successive rate increases in the same service or tariffed item within a
12 month period, either of which results in:
    (A) At least a 10 percent increase in annual revenues from that
service or tariffed item, and
    (B) At least $100,000 in additional annual revenues, both calculated
on the basis of existing quantities in service.
    (2) Rate increases affecting more than one service or tariffed item.
    (i) A general rate increase in more than one service or tariffed
item occurring at one time, which results in more than $1 million in
additional revenues calculated on the basis of existing quantities in
service, without regard to the percentage increase in such revenues; or
    (ii) A general rate increase in more than one service or tariffed
item occurring at one time, or successive general rate increases in the
same services or tariffed items occurring within a 12 month period,
either of which results in:
    (A) At least a 10 percent increase in annual revenues from those
services or tariffed items, and
    (B) At least $100,000 in additional annual revenues, both calculated
on the basis of existing quantities in service.
    (e) Submission of explanation and data by connecting carriers. If
the changed or new matter is being filed by the issuing carrier at the
request of a connecting carrier, the connecting carrier must provide the
data required by paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section on the date the
issuing carrier files the tariff matter with the Commission.
    (f) Copies of explanation and data to customers. Concurrently with
the filing of any rate for special construction (or special assembly
equipment and arrangements) developed on the basis of estimated costs,
the issuing carrier must transmit to the customer a copy of the
explanation and data required by paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.
    (g) On each page of cost support material submitted pursuant to this
section, the issuing carrier shall indicate the transmittal number under
which that page was submitted.

[76 FR 43211, July 20, 2011]

[[Page 256]]



Sec. 61.39  Optional supporting information to be submitted with letters
of transmittal for Access Tariff filings by incumbent local exchange

carriers serving 50,000 or fewer access lines in a given study area that
are described as subset 3 carriers in Sec. 69.602.

    (a) Scope. Except as provided in paragraph (g) of this section, This
section provides for an optional method of filing for any local exchange
carrier that is described as a subset 3 carrier in Sec. 69.602 of this
chapter, which elects to issue its own Access Tariff for a period
commencing on or after April 1, 1989, and which serves 50,000 or fewer
access lines in a study area as determined under Sec. 36.611(a)(8) of
this chapter. However, the Commission may require any carrier to submit
such information as may be necessary for review of a tariff filing. This
section (other than the preceding sentence of this paragraph) shall not
apply to tariff filings of local exchange carriers subject to price cap
regulation.
    (b) Explanation and data supporting tariff changes. The material to
be submitted to either a tariff change or a new tariff which affects
rates or charges must include an explanation of the filing in the
transmittal as required by Sec. 61.15. The basis for ratemaking must
comply with the following requirements. Except as provided in paragraph
(b)(5) of this section, it is not necessary to submit this supporting
data at the time of filing. However, the incumbent local exchange
carrier should be prepared to submit the data promptly upon reasonable
request by the Commission or interested parties.
    (1) For a tariff change, the incumbent local exchange carrier that
is a cost schedule carrier must propose Traffic Sensitive rates based on
the following:
    (i) For the first period, a cost of service study for Traffic
Sensitive elements for the most recent 12-month period with related
demand for the same period.
    (ii) For subsequent filings, a cost of service study for Traffic
Sensitive elements for the total period since the incumbent local
exchange carrier's last annual filing, with related demand for the same
period.
    (2) For a tariff change, the incumbent local exchange carrier that
is an average schedule carrier must propose Traffic Sensitive rates
based on the following:
    (i) For the first period, the incumbent local exchange carrier's
most recent annual Traffic Sensitive settlement from the National
Exchange Carrier Association pool.
    (ii) For subsequent filings, an amount calculated to reflect the
Traffic Sensitive average schedule pool settlement the carrier would
have received if the carrier had continued to participate, based upon
the most recent average schedule formulas approved by the Commission.
    (3) For a tariff change, the incumbent local exchange carrier that
is a cost schedule carrier must propose Common Line rates based on the
following:
    (i) For the first biennial filing, the common line revenue
requirement shall be determined by a cost of service study for the most
recent 12-month period. Subscriber line charges shall be based on cost
and demand data for the same period. Carrier common line rates shall be
determined by the following formula:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.005

Where:

[[Page 257]]

[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.006

And where:

CCL Rev Req = carrier common line revenue requirement for the most
          recent 12-month period;
CCL MOUb = carrier common line minutes of use for the most
          recent 12-month period;
CCL MOU1 = CCL MOUb; and
CCL MOU0 = carrier common line minutes of use for the 12-
          month period preceding the most recent 12-month period.

    (ii) For subsequent biennial filings, the common line revenue
requirement shall be determined by a cost of service study for the most
recent 24-month period. Subscriber line charges shall be based on cost
and demand data for the same period. Carrier common line rates shall be
determined by the following formula:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.007

Where:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.008

And where:

CCL Rev Req = carrier common line revenue requirement for the most
          recent 24-month period;
CCL MOUb = carrier common line minutes of use for the most
          recent 24-month period;
CCL MOU1 = carrier common line minutes of use for the 12-
          month period; and
CCL MOU0 = carrier common line minutes of use for the 12-
          month period preceding the most recent 12-month period.

    (4) For a tariff change, the incumbent local exchange carrier which
is an average schedule carrier must propose common line rates based on
the following:
    (i) For the first biennial filings, the common line revenue
requirement shall be determined by the incumbent local exchange
carrier's most recent annual Common Line settlement from the National
Exchange Carrier Association. Subscriber line charges shall be based on
cost and demand data for the same period. Carrier common line rates
shall be determined by the following formula:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.009

Where:

[[Page 258]]

[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.010

And where:

CCL Rev Req = carrier common line settlement for the most recent 12-
          month period;
CCL MOUb = carrier common line minutes of use for the most
          recent 12-month period;
CCL MOU1 = CCL MOUb; and
CCL MOU0 = carrier common line minutes of use for the 12-
          month period preceding the most recent 12-month period.

    (ii) For subsequent biennial filings, the common line revenue
requirement shall be an amount calculated to reflect the average
schedule pool settlements the carrier would have received if the carrier
had continued to participate in the carrier common line pool, based upon
the average schedule Common Line formulas developed by the National
Exchange Carrier Association for the most recent 24-month period.
Subscriber line charges shall be based on cost and demand data for the
same period. Carrier common line rates shall be determined by the
following formula:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.011

Where:
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR20JY11.012

And where:

CCL Rev Req = carrier common line settlement for the most recent 24-
          month period;
CCL MOUb = carrier common line minutes of use for the most
          recent 24-month period;
CCL MOU1 = carrier common line minutes of use for the most
          recent 12-month period; and
CCL MOU0 = carrier common line minutes of use for the 12-
          month period preceding the most recent 12-month period.

    (5) For End User Common Line charges included in a tariff pursuant
to this Section, the incumbent local exchange carrier must provide
supporting information for the two-year historical period with its
letter of transmittal in accordance with Sec. 61.38.
    (c) Maximum allowable rate of return. Incumbent Local exchange
carriers filing tariffs under this section are not required to comply
with Sec. Sec. 65.700 through 65.701 of this chapter, except with
respect to periods during which tariffs were not subject to this
section. The Commission may require any carrier to submit such
information if it deems it necessary to monitor the carrier's earnings.
However, rates must be calculated based on the incumbent local exchange
carrier's prescribed rate of return applicable to the period during
which the rates are effective.
    (d) Rates for a new service that is the same as that offered by a
price cap local exchange carrier providing service in an adjacent
serving area are deemed presumptively lawful, if the proposed rates, in
the aggregate, are no greater than the rates established by the price
cap local exchange carrier. Tariff filings made pursuant to this
paragraph must include the following:

[[Page 259]]

    (1) A brief explanation of why the service is like an existing
service offered by a geographically adjacent price cap local exchange
carrier; and
    (2) Data to establish compliance with this paragraph that, in
aggregate, the proposed rates for the new service are no greater than
those in effect for the same or comparable service offered by that same
geographically adjacent price cap regulated local exchange carrier.
Compliance may be shown through submission of applicable tariff pages of
the adjacent carrier; a showing that the serving areas are adjacent; any
necessary explanations and work sheets.
    (e) Average schedule companies filing pursuant to this section shall
retain their status as average schedule companies.
    (f) On each page of cost support material submitted pursuant to this
section, the issuing carrier shall indicate the transmittal number under
which that page was submitted.
    (g) A local exchange carrier otherwise eligible to file a tariff
pursuant to this section may not do so if it is engaging in access
stimulation, as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb) of this part,
and has not terminated its access revenue sharing agreement(s). A
carrier so engaged must file interstate access tariffs in accordance
with Sec. 61.38, and Sec. 69.3(e)(12)(1) of this chapter.

[76 FR 43212, July 20, 2011, as amended at 76 FR 73882, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 61.40  Private line rate structure guidelines.

    (a) The Commission uses a variety of tools to determine whether a
dominant carrier's private line tariffs are just, reasonable, and
nondiscriminatory. The dominant carrier's burden of cost justification
can be reduced when its private line rate structures comply with the
following five guidelines.
    (1) Rate structures for the same or comparable services should be
integrated;
    (2) Rate structures for the same or comparable services should be
consistent with one another;
    (3) Rate elements should be selected to reflect market demand,
pricing convenience for the carrier and customers, and cost
characteristics; a rate element which appears separately in one rate
structure should appear separately in all other rate structures;
    (4) Rate elements should be consistently defined with respect to
underlying service functions and should be consistently employed through
all rate structures; and
    (5) Rate structures should be simple and easy to understand.
    (b) The guidelines do not preclude a carrier, in a given case when a
private line tariff does not comply with these guidelines, from
justifying its departure from the guidelines and showing that its tariff
is just, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory.

[49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 76 FR 43213, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.41  Price cap requirements generally.

    (a) Sections 61.42 through 61.49 shall apply as follows:
    (1) [Reserved]
    (2) To such price cap local exchange carriers as specified by
Commission order, and to all local exchange carriers, other than average
schedule companies, that are affiliated with such carriers; and
    (3) On an elective basis, to local exchange carriers, other than
those specified in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, that are neither
participants in any Association tariff, nor affiliated with any such
participants, except that affiliation with average schedule companies
shall not bar a carrier from electing price cap regulation provided the
carrier is otherwise eligible.
    (b) If a telephone company, or any one of a group of affiliated
telephone companies, files a price cap tariff in one study area, that
telephone company and its affiliates, except its average schedule
affiliates, must file price cap tariffs in all their study areas.
    (c) Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this section, the
following rules in this paragraph (c) apply to telephone companies
subject to price cap regulation, as that term is defined in Sec.
61.3(ee), which are involved in mergers, acquisitions, or similar
transactions.
    (1) Any telephone company subject to price cap regulation that is a
party to

[[Page 260]]

a merger, acquisition, or similar transaction shall continue to be
subject to price cap regulation notwithstanding such transaction.
    (2) Where a telephone company subject to price cap regulation
acquires, is acquired by, merges with, or otherwise becomes affiliated
with a telephone company that is not subject to price cap regulation,
the latter telephone company shall become subject to price cap
regulation no later than one year following the effective date of such
merger, acquisition, or similar transaction and shall accordingly file
price cap tariffs to be effective no later than that date in accordance
with the applicable provisions of this part 61.
    (3) Notwithstanding the provisions of Sec. 61.41(c)(2), when a
telephone company subject to price cap regulation acquires, is acquired
by, merges with, or otherwise becomes affiliated with a telephone
company that qualifies as an ``average schedule'' company, the latter
company may retain its ``average schedule'' status or become subject to
price cap regulation in accordance with Sec. 69.3(i)(3) of this chapter
and the requirements referenced in that section.
    (d) Except as provided in paragraph (e) of this section, local
exchange carriers that become subject to price cap regulation as that
term is defined in Sec. 61.3(ee) shall not be eligible to withdraw from
such regulation.
    (e) Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraphs (c) and (d) of
this section, a telephone company subject to rate-of-return regulation
may return lines acquired from a telephone company subject to price cap
regulation to rate-of-return regulation, provided that the acquired
lines will not be subject to average schedule settlements, and provided
further that the telephone company subject to rate-of-return regulation
may not for five years elect price cap regulation for itself, or by any
means cause the acquired lines to become subject to price cap
regulation.

[55 FR 42382, Oct. 19, 1990; 55 FR 50558, Dec. 7, 1990, as amended at 56
FR 55239, Oct. 25, 1991; 64 FR 46589, Aug. 26, 1999; 65 FR 38695, June
21, 2000; 65 FR 57741, Sept. 26, 2000; 69 FR 25336, May 6, 2004; 76 FR
43213, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.42  Price cap baskets and service categories.

    (a)-(c) [Reserved]
    (d) Each price cap local exchange carrier shall establish baskets of
services as follows:
    (1) A basket for the common line, marketing, and certain residual
interconnection charge interstate access elements as described in
Sec. Sec. 69.115, 69.152, 69.153, 69.154, 69.155, 69.156, and 69.157 of
this chapter. For purposes of Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49, this
basket shall be referred to as the ``CMT basket.''
    (2) A basket for traffic sensitive switched interstate access
elements. For purposes of Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this
chapter, this basket shall be referred to as the ``traffic-sensitive
basket.''
    (3) A basket for trunking services as described in Sec. Sec.
69.110, 69.111, 69.112, 69.125(b), 69.129, and 69.155 of this chapter.
For purposes of Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49, this basket shall be
referred to as the ``trunking basket.''
    (4)(i) To the extent that a price cap local exchange carrier
specified in Sec. 61.41(a)(2) or (a)(3) offers interstate interexchange
services that are not classified as access services for the purpose of
part 69 of this chapter, such exchange carrier shall establish a fourth
basket for such services. For purposes of Sec. Sec. 61.41 through
61.49, this basket shall be referred to as the ``interexchange basket.''
    (ii) If a price cap local exchange carrier has implemented interLATA
and intraLATA toll dialing parity everywhere it provides local exchange
services at the holding company level, that price cap carrier may file a
tariff revision to remove corridor and interstate intraLATA toll
services from its interexchange basket.
    (5) A basket for special access services as described in Sec.
69.114 of this chapter.
    (e)(1) The traffic sensitive switched interstate access basket shall
contain such services as the Commission shall permit or require,
including the following service categories:
    (i) Local switching as described in Sec. 69.106(f) of this chapter;
    (ii) Information, as described in Sec. 69.109 of this chapter;
    (iii) Data base access services;

[[Page 261]]

    (iv) Billing name and address, as described in Sec. 69.128 of this
chapter;
    (v) Local switching trunk ports, as described in Sec. 69.106(f)(1)
of this chapter; and
    (vi) Signalling transfer point port termination, as described in
Sec. 69.125(c) of this chapter.
    (2) The trunking basket shall contain such switched transport as the
Commission shall permit or require, including the following service
categories and subcategories:
    (i) Voice grade entrance facilities, voice grade direct-trunked
transport, voice grade dedicated signalling transport,
    (ii) High capacity flat-rated transport, including the following
service subcategories:
    (A) DS1 entrance facilities, DS1 direct-trunked transport, DS1
dedicated signalling transport, and
    (B) DS3 entrance facilities, DS3 direct-trunked transport, DS3
dedicated signalling transport.
    (iii) Tandem-switched transport, as described in Sec. 69.111 of
this chapter; and
    (iv) Signalling for tandem switching, as described in Sec. 69.129
of this chapter.
    (3) The special access basket shall contain special access services
as the Commission shall permit or require, including the following
service categories and subcategories:
    (i) Voice grade special access, WATS special access, metallic
special access, and telegraph special access services;
    (ii) Audio and video services;
    (iii) High capacity special access, and DDS services, including the
following service subcategories:
    (A) DS1 special access services; and
    (B) DS3 special access services;
    (iv) Wideband data and wideband analog services.
    (f) Each price cap local exchange carrier shall exclude from its
price cap baskets such services or portions of such services as the
Commission has designated or may hereafter designate by order.
    (g) New services, other than those within the scope of paragraph (f)
of this section, must be included in the affected basket at the first
annual price cap tariff filing following completion of the base period
in which they are introduced. To the extent that such new services are
permitted or required to be included in new or existing service
categories within the assigned basket, they shall be so included at the
first annual price cap tariff filing following completion of the base
period in which they are introduced.

[54 FR 19842, May 8, 1989]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec.
61.42, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the
Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.



Sec. 61.43  Annual price cap filings required.

    Price cap local exchange carriers shall submit annual price cap
tariff filings that propose rates for the upcoming tariff year, that
make appropriate adjustments to their PCI, API, and SBI values pursuant
to Sec. Sec. 61.45 through 61.47, and that incorporate new services
into the PCI, API, or SBI calculations pursuant to Sec. Sec. 61.45(g),
61.46(b), and 61.47(b) and (c). Price cap local exchange carriers may
propose rate, PCI, or other tariff changes more often than annually,
consistent with the requirements of Sec. 61.59.

[76 FR 43214, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.44  [Reserved]



Sec. 61.45  Adjustments to the PCI for Local Exchange Carriers.

    (a) Price cap local exchange carriers shall file adjustments to the
PCI for each basket as part of the annual price cap tariff filing, and
shall maintain updated PCIs to reflect the effect of mid-year exogenous
cost changes.
    (b)(1)(i) Adjustments to price cap local exchange carrier PCIs, in
those carriers' annual access tariff filings, the traffic sensitive
basket described in Sec. 61.42(d)(2), the trunking basket described in
Sec. 61.42(d)(3), the special access basket described in Sec.
61.42(d)(5) and the Interexchange Basket described in Sec.
61.42(d)(4)(i), shall be made pursuant to the following formula:

``PCIt = PCIt - 1[1 + w[GDP-PI - X] + Z / R].''

PCIt - 1 = PCIt -1[1 + w[GDP-PI - X] + Z / R]

    Where the terms in the equation are described:


[[Page 262]]


GDP-PI = For annual filings only, the percentage change in the GDP-PI
          between the quarter ending six months prior to the effective
          date of the new annual tariff and the corresponding quarter of
          the previous year. For all other filings, the value is zero.
X = For the CMT, traffic sensitive, and trunking baskets, for annual
          filings only, the factor is set at the level prescribed in
          paragraphs (b)(1)(ii) and (iii) of this section. For the
          interexchange basket, for annual filings only, the factor is
          set at the level prescribed in paragraph (b)(1)(v) of this
          section. For the special access basket, for annual filings
          only, the factor is set at the level prescribed in paragraph
          (b)(1)(iv) of this section. For all other filings, the value
          is zero.
g = For annual filings for the CMT basket only, the ratio of minutes of
          use per access line during the base period, to minutes of use
          per access line during the previous base period, all minus 1.
Z = The dollar effect of current regulatory changes when compared to the
          regulations in effect at the time the PCI was updated to
          PCIt-1, measured at base period level of
          operations.
Targeted Reduction = the actual possible dollar value of the (GDP-PI -
          X) reductions that will be targeted to the ATS Charge pursuant
          to Sec. 61.45(i)(3). The reductions calculated by applying
          the (GDP-PI - X) portion of the formula to the CCL element
          within the CMT basket will contain the ``g'' component, as
          defined above.
R = Base period quantities for each rate element ``I'', multiplied by
          the price for each rate element ``I'' at the time the PCI was
          updated to PCIt - 1.
w = R + Z, all divided by R (used for the traffic sensitive, trunking,
          and special access baskets).
wix = R--(access rate in effect at the time the PCI was
          updated to PCIt - 1 * base period demand) + Z, all
          divided by R.
PCIt = The new PCI value.
PCIt -1 = the immediately preceding PCI value.

    (ii) The X value applicable to the baskets specified in Sec. Sec.
61.42(d)(1), (d)(2), and (d)(3), shall be 6.5%, to the extent necessary
to reduce a tariff entity's ATS charge to its Target Rate as set forth
in Sec. 61.3(qq). Once any price cap local exchange carrier tariff
entity's ATS Charge is equal to the Target Rate as set forth in Sec.
61.3(qq) for the first time (the former NYNEX telephone companies may be
treated as a separate tariff entity), then, except as provided in
paragraph (b)(1)(iii) of this section, X is equal to GDP-PI and no
further reductions will be mandated (i.e., if applying the full X-factor
reduction for a given year would reduce the ATS charge below the Target
Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3 (qq), the amount of X-factor reduction
applied that year will be the amount necessary to reach the Target Rate
as set forth in Sec. 61.3 (qq)). A filing entity does not reach the
Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq) in any year in which it
exercises an exogenous adjustment pursuant to Sec. 61.45(d)(vii). For
companies with separate tariff entities under a single price cap, the
following rules shall apply:
    (A) Targeting amounts as defined in Sec. 61.45(i)(1)(i) shall be
identified separately, using the revenue for each of the tariff entities
under the cap.
    (B) Each tariff entity shall only be required to use the amount of
targeting necessary to get to the Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3
(qq).
    (iii)(A) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(1)(iii)(B) of this
section, once the Tariff Entity's Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3
(qq) is achieved, the X-factor for the CMT basket will equal GDP-PI as
long as GDP-PI is less than or equal to 6.5% and greater than 0%. If
GDP-PI is greater than 6.5%, and an entity has eliminated its CCL and
multi-line business PICCs charges, the X-factor for the CMT basket will
equal 6.5%, and all End User Common Line charges, rates and nominal
caps, will be increased by the difference between GDP-PI and the 6.5% X-
factor. If GDP-PI is less than 0, the X-factor for the CMT basket will
be 0.
    (B) For tariff filing entities with a Target Rate of $0.0095, or for
the portion of a filing entity consolidated pursuant to Sec. 61.48(o)
that, prior to such consolidation, had a Target Rate of $0.0095, in
which the ATS charge has achieved the Target Rate but in which the
carrier common line (CCL) charge has not been eliminated, the X-factor
for the CMT basket will be 6.5% until the earlier of June 30, 2004, or
until CCL charges are eliminated pursuant to paragraph (i)(4) of this
section. Thereafter, in any filing entity in which a CCL charge remains
after July 1, 2004, the X-factor for the CMT basket will be determined
pursuant to paragraph (b)(1)(iii)(A) of this section as if CCL charges
were eliminated.

[[Page 263]]

    (iv) For the special access basket specified in Sec. 61.42(d)(5),
the value of X shall be 3.0% for the 2000 annual filing. The value of X
shall be 6.5% for the 2001, 2002 and 2003 annual filings. Starting in
the 2004 annual filing, X shall be equal to GDP-PI for the special
access basket.
    (v) For the interexchange basket specified in Sec. 61.42(d)(4), the
value of X shall be 3.0% for all annual filings.
    (b)(2) Adjustments to price cap local exchange carrier PCIs and
average price cap CMT revenue per line, in tariff filings other than the
annual access tariff filing, for the CMT basket described in Sec.
61.42(d)(1), the traffic sensitive basket described in Sec.
61.42(d)(2), the trunking basket described in Sec. 61.42(d)(3), the
interexchange basket described in Sec. 61.42(d)(4), and the special
access basket described in Sec. 61.42(d)(5), shall be made pursuant to
the formulas set forth in paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section, except
that the ``w(GDP-PI - X)'' component of those PCI formulas shall not be
employed.
    (c) Effective July 1, 2000, the prices of the CMT basket rate
elements, excluding special access surcharges under Sec. 69.115 of this
chapter and line ports in excess of basic under Sec. 69.157 of this
chapter, shall be set based upon Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line
month.
    (d) The exogenous cost changes represented by the term ``Z'' in the
formula detailed in paragraph (b)(1)(i) of this section shall be limited
to those cost changes that the Commission shall permit or require by
rule, rule waiver, or declaratory ruling.
    (1) Subject to further order of the Commission, those exogenous
changes shall include cost changes caused by:
    (i) The completion of the amortization of depreciation reserve
deficiencies;
    (ii) Such changes in the Uniform System of Accounts, including
changes in the Uniform System of Accounts requirements made pursuant to
Sec. 32.16 of this chapter, as the Commission shall permit or require
be treated as exogenous by rule, rule waiver, or declaratory ruling;
    (iii) Changes in the Separations Manual;
    (iv) [Reserved]
    (v) The reallocation of investment from regulated to nonregulated
activities pursuant to Sec. 64.901 of this chapter;
    (vi) Such tax law changes and other extraordinary cost changes as
the Commission shall permit or require be treated as exogenous by rule,
rule waiver, or declaratory ruling;
    (vii) Retargeting the PCI to the level specified by the Commission
for carriers whose base year earnings are below the level of the lower
adjustment mark, subject to the limitation in Sec. 69.731 of this
chapter. The allocation of LFAM amounts will be allocated pursuant to
Sec. 61.45(d)(3). This section shall not be applicable to tariff
filings during the tariff year beginning July 1, 2000, but is applicable
in subsequent years;
    (viii) Inside wire amortizations;
    (ix) The completion of amortization of equal access expenses.
    (2) Price cap local exchange carriers specified in Sec. Sec.
61.41(a)(2) or (a)(3) shall, in their annual access tariff filing,
recognize all exogenous cost changes attributable to modifications
during the coming tariff year in their Subscriber Plant Factor and the
Dial Equipment Minutes factor, and completions of inside wire
amortizations and reserve deficiency amortizations.
    (3) Exogenous cost changes shall be apportioned on a cost-causative
basis between price cap services as a group, and excluded services as a
group. Total exogenous cost changes thus attributed to price cap
services shall be recovered from services other than those used to
calculate the ATS charge.
    (e) [Reserved]
    (f) The exogenous costs caused by new services subject to price cap
regulation must be included in the appropriate PCI calculations under
paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section beginning at the first annual
price cap tariff filing following completion of the base period in which
such services are introduced.
    (g) In the event that a price cap tariff becomes effective, which
tariff results in an API value (calculated pursuant to Sec. 61.46) that
exceeds the currently applicable PCI value, the PCI value shall be
adjusted upward to equal the API value.
    (h) [Reserved]

[[Page 264]]

    (i)(1)(i) Price cap local exchange carriers that are recovering
revenues through rates pursuant to Sec. Sec. 69.106, 69.108, 69.109,
69.110, 69.111, 69.112, 69.113, 69.118, 69.123, 69.124, 69.125, 69.129,
or Sec. 69.155 of this chapter shall target, to the extent necessary to
reduce the ATS Charge to the Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3 (qq)
for the first time, any PCI reductions associated with the dollar impact
of application of the (GDP-PI - X) portion of the formula in Sec.
61.45(b)(1)(i) to the traffic sensitive and trunking baskets. In order
to calculate the actual dollars to transfer to the trunking and traffic
sensitive baskets, carriers will first determine the ``Targeted Revenue
Differential'' that will be transferred to the trunking and traffic
sensitive baskets to reduce the ATS Charge to the Target Rate as set
forth in Sec. 61.3(qq). The Targeted Revenue Differential shall be
applied only to the trunking and traffic sensitive baskets to the extent
necessary to reduce the ATS charge to the Target Rate as set forth in
Sec. 61.3 (qq), and shall not be applied to reduce the PCIs in any
other basket or to reduce Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month,
except as provided in Sec. 61.45(i)(4).
    (ii) For the purposes of Sec. 61.45(i)(1)(i), Targeted Revenue
Differential will be determined by adding together the following
amounts:
    (A) R * (GDP-PI - X) for the traffic sensitive basket, trunking
basket, and the CMT basket excluding CCL revenues; and
    (B) CCL Revenues * [(GDP-PI - X - (g / 2)] / [1 + (g / 2)]
    Where ``g'' is defined in Sec. 61.45(b)(1)(i).
    (2) Until a tariff entity's ATS Charge equals the Target Rate as set
forth in Sec. 61.3 (qq) for the first time, the Targeted Revenue
Differential will be targeted to reduce the following rates for that
tariff filing entity, in order of priority:
    (i) To the residual per minute Transport Interconnection Charge,
until that rate is $0.00; then
    (ii) To the Information Surcharge, until that rate is $0.00; then
    (iii) To the other Local Switching charges and Switched Transport
charges until the tariff entity's ATS Rate equals the Target Rate as set
forth in Sec. 61.3(qq) for the first time. In making these reductions,
the reductions to Local Switching rates as a percentage of total X-
factor reductions must be greater than or equal to the percentage
proportion of Local Switching revenues to the total sum of revenues for
Local Switching, Local Switching Trunk Ports, Signalling Transfer Point
Port Termination, Switched Direct Trunked Transport, Signalling for
Switched Direct Trunked Transport, Entrance Facilities for switched
access traffic, Tandem Switched Transport, and Signalling for Tandem
Switching (i.e., Local Switching gets at least its proportionate share
of reductions).
    (3) After a price cap local exchange carrier reaches the Target Rate
as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq), the ATS Rate will be recalculated each
subsequent Annual Filing. This process will identify the new ATS Charge
for the new base period level. Due to change in base period demand and
inclusion of new services for that annual filing, the absolute level of
a tariff entity's ATS Charge may change. The resulting new ATS Charge
level will be what that tariff entity will be measured against during
that base period. For example, if a company whose target is $0.0055
reached the Target Rate during the 2000 annual filing, that level may
change to $0.0058 in the 2001 annual filing due to change in demand and
inclusion of new services. Therefore, it will be the $0.0058 average
rate that the tariff entity will be measured against for all non-annual
filings. Likewise, if that same company was at the Target Rate during
the 2000 filing, that level may change to $0.0053 average rate in the
2001 annual filing due to change in demand and inclusion of new
services. In that case, it will be at the $0.0053 average rate that the
tariff entity will be measured.
    (4) A company electing a $0.0095 Target Rate will, in the tariff
year it reaches the Target Rate, apply any Targeted Revenue Differential
remaining after reaching the Target Rate to reduce Average Price Cap CMT
Revenue per Line month until the CCL charge is eliminated. In subsequent
years, until the earlier of June 30, 2004 or when the CCL charge is
eliminated,

[[Page 265]]

tariff filing entities with a Target Rate of $0.0095, or the portion of
a filing entity consolidated pursuant to Sec. 61.48(o) that, prior to
such consolidation, had a Target Rate of $0.0095, will reduce Average
Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month according to the following method:
    (i) Filing entity calculates the maximum allowable carrier common
line revenue, as defined in Sec. 61.46(d)(1), that would be permitted
in the absence of further adjustment pursuant to this paragraph;
    (ii) Filing entity identifies maximum amount of dollars available to
reduce Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month by the following:

(CMT revenue in a $0.0095 Area -CCL revenue in a $0.0095 Area) * (GDP-PI
-X) + (CCL Revenue in a $0.0095 Area) * [(GDP-PI - X) - (g / 2)] / [1 +
(g / 2)]

    (iii) The Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month shall then be
reduced by the lesser of the amount described in paragraph (i)(4)(i) of
this section and the amount described in paragraph (i)(4)(ii) of this
section, divided by base period Switched Access End User Common Line
Charge lines.

[65 FR 38696, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57741, Sept. 26, 2000; 76 FR 43214,
July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.46  Adjustments to the API.

    (a) Except as provided in paragraphs (d) and (e) of this section, in
connection with any price cap tariff filing proposing rate changes, the
price cap local exchange carrier must calculate an API for each affected
basket pursuant to the following methodology:

APIt = APIt-1[S]i vi (Pt/
Pt-1)i]

Where:

APIt = the proposed API value,
APIt-1 = the existing API value,
Pt = the proposed price for rate element ``i,''
Pt-1 = the existing price for rate element ``i,'' and
vi = the current estimated revenue weight for rate element
          ``i,'' calculated as the ratio of the base period demand for
          the rate element ``i'' priced at the existing rate, to the
          base period demand for the entire basket of services priced at
          existing rates.

    (b) New services subject to price cap regulation must be included in
the appropriate API calculations under paragraph (a) of this section
beginning at the first annual price cap tariff filing following
completion of the base period in which they are introduced. This index
adjustment requires that the demand for the new service during the base
period must be included in determining the weights used in calculating
the API.
    (c) Any price cap tariff filing proposing rate restructuring shall
require an adjustment to the API pursuant to the general methodology
described in paragraph (a) of this section. This adjustment requires the
conversion of existing rates into rates of equivalent value under the
proposed structure, and then the comparison of the existing rates that
have been converted to reflect restructuring to the proposed
restructured rates. This calculation may require use of carrier data and
estimation techniques to assign customers of the preexisting service to
those services (including the new restructured service) that will remain
or become available after restructuring.
    (d) The maximum allowable carrier common line (CCL) revenue shall be
computed pursuant to the following methodology:

CCL = CMT-EUCL-Interstate Access Universal Service Support Mechanism Per
Line-PICC

Where:

CMT = Price Cap CMT Revenue as defined in Sec. 61.3(cc).
EUCL = Maximum allowable EUCL rates established pursuant to Sec. 69.152
          of this chapter multiplied by base period lines.
Interstate Access Universal Service Support Per Line = the amount as
          determined by the Administrator pursuant to Sec. 54.807 of
          this chapter times the number of base period lines for each
          customer class and zone receiving Interstate Access Universal
          Service support pursuant to part 54, subpart J.
PICC = Maximum allowable PICC rates established pursuant to Sec. 69.153
          of this chapter multiplied by base period lines.

    (e) In no case shall a price cap local exchange carrier include data
associated with services offered pursuant to contract tariff in the
calculations required by this section.

[65 FR 38698, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57741, 57742, Sept. 26, 2000; 76 FR
43214, July 20, 2011]

[[Page 266]]



Sec. 61.47  Adjustments to the SBI; pricing bands.

    (a) In connection with any price cap tariff filing proposing changes
in the rates of services in service categories, subcategories, or
density zones, the carrier must calculate an SBI value for each affected
service category, subcategory, or density zone pursuant to the following
methodology:

SBIt = SBIt-1[S]i
vi(Pt/Pt-1)i]

where

SBIt = the proposed SBI value,
SBIt-1 = the existing SBI value,
Pt = the proposed price for rate element ``i,''
Pt-1 = the existing price for rate element ``i,'' and
vi = the current estimated revenue weight for rate element
          ``i,'' calculated as the ratio of the base period demand for
          the rate element ``i'' priced at the existing rate, to the
          base period demand for the entire group of rate elements
          comprising the service category priced at existing rates.

    (b) New services that are added to existing service categories or
subcategories must be included in the appropriate SBI calculations under
paragraph (a) of this section beginning at the first annual price cap
tariff filing following completion of the base period in which they are
introduced. This index adjustment requires that the demand for the new
service during the base period must be included in determining the
weights used in calculating the SBI.
    (c) In the event that the introduction of a new service requires the
creation of a new service category or subcategory, a new SBI must be
established for that service category or subcategory beginning at the
first annual price cap tariff filing following completion of the base
period in which the new service is introduced. The new SBI should be
initialized at a value of 100, corresponding to the service category or
subcategory rates in effect the last day of the base period, and
thereafter should be adjusted as provided in paragraph (a) of this
section.
    (d) Any price cap tariff filing proposing rate restructuring shall
require an adjustment to the affected SBI pursuant to the general
methodology described in paragraph (a) of this section. This adjustment
requires the conversion of existing rates in the rate element group into
rates of equivalent value under the proposed structure, and then the
comparison of the existing rates that have been converted to reflect
restructuring to the proposed restructured rates. This calculation may
require use of carrier data and estimation techniques to assign
customers of the preexisting service to those services (including the
new restructured service) that will remain or become available after
restructuring.
    (e) Pricing bands shall be established each tariff year for each
service category and subcategory within a basket. Each band shall limit
the pricing flexibility of the service category, subcategory, as
reflected in the SBI, to an annual increase of a specified percent
listed in this paragraph, relative to the percentage change in the PCI
for that basket, measured from the levels in effect on the last day of
the preceding tariff year. For local exchanage carriers subject to price
cap regulation as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(ee), there shall be
no lower pricing band for any service category or subcategory.
    (1) Five percent:
    (i) Local Switching (traffic sensitive basket)
    (ii) Information (traffic sensitive basket)
    (iii) Database Access Services (traffic sensitive basket)
    (iv) 800 Database Vertical Services subservice (traffic sensitive
basket)
    (v) Billing Name and Address (traffic sensitive basket)
    (vi) Local Switching Trunk Ports (traffic sensitive basket)
    (vii) Signalling Transfer Point Port Termination (traffic sensitive
basket)
    (viii) Voice Grade (trunking and special access baskets)
    (ix) Audio/Video (special access basket)
    (x) Total High Capacity (trunking and special access baskets)
    (xi) DS1 Subservice (trunking and special access baskets)
    (xii) DS3 Subservice (trunking and special access baskets)
    (xiii) Wideband (special access basket)
    (2) Two percent:
    (i) Tandem-Switched Transport (trunking basket)

[[Page 267]]

    (ii) Signalling for Tandem Switching (trunking basket)
    (f) A price cap local exchange carrier may establish density zones
pursuant to the requirements set forth in Sec. 69.123 of this chapter,
for any service in the trunking and special access baskets, other than
the interconnection charge set forth in Sec. 69.124 of this chapter.
The pricing flexibility of each zone shall be limited to an annual
increase of 15 percent, relative to the percentage change in the PCI for
that basket, measured from the levels in effect on the last day of the
preceding tariff year. There shall be no lower pricing band for any
density zone.
    (g)-(i)(l) [Reserved]
    (2) Effective January 1, 1998, notwithstanding the requirements of
paragraph (a) of this section, if a price cap local exchange carrier is
recovering interconnection charge revenues through per-minute rates
pursuant to Sec. 69.155 of this chapter, any reductions to the PCI for
the basket designated in Sec. 61.42(d)(3) resulting from the
application of the provisions of Sec. 61.45(b)(1)(i) and from the
application of the provisions of Sec. Sec. 61.45(i)(1) and 61.45(i)(2)
shall be directed to the SBI of the service category designated in Sec.
61.42(d)(i).
    (3) [Reserved]
    (4) Effective January 1, 1998, the SBI reduction required by
paragraph (i)(2) of this section shall be determined by dividing the sum
of the dollar amount of any PCI reduction required by Sec. Sec.
61.45(i)(1) and 61.45(i)(2), by the dollar amount associated with the
SBI for the service category designated in Sec. 61.42(e)(2)(vi), and
multiplying the SBI for the service category designated in Sec.
61.42(e)(2)(vi) by one minus the resulting ratio.
    (5) Effective July 1, 2000, notwithstanding the requirements of
paragraph (a) of this section and subject to the limitations of Sec.
61.45(i), if a price cap local exchange carrier is recovering an ATS
charge greater than its Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq), any
reductions to the PCI for the traffic sensitive or trunking baskets
designated in Sec. Sec. 61.42(d)(2) and 61.42(d)(3) resulting from the
application of the provisions of Sec. 61.45(b), and the formula in
Sec. 61.45(b) and from the application of the provisions of Sec. Sec.
61.45(i)(1), and 61.45(i)(2) shall be directed to the SBIs of the
service categories designated in Sec. Sec. 61.42(e)(1) and 61.42(e)(2).
    (j) [Reserved]
    (k) In no case shall a price cap local exchange carrier include data
associated with services offered pursuant to contract tariff in the
calculations required by this section.

[54 FR 19843, May 8, 1989]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec.
61.47, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the
Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.



Sec. 61.48  Transition rules for price cap formula calculations.

    (a)-(h) [Reserved]
    (i) Transport and Special Access Density Pricing Zone Transition
Rules--(1) Definitions. The following definitions apply for purposes of
paragraph (i) of this section:
    Earlier date is the earlier of the special access zone date and the
transport zone date.
    Earlier service is special access if the special access zone date
precedes the transport zone date, and is transport if the transport zone
date precedes the special access zone date.
    Later date is the later of the special access zone date and the
transport zone date.
    Later service is transport if the special access zone date precedes
the transport zone date, and is special access if the transport zone
date precedes the special access zone date.
    Revenue weight of a given group of services included in a zone
category is the ratio of base period demand for the given service rate
elements included in the category priced at existing rates, to the base
period demand for the entire group of rate elements comprising the
category priced at existing rates.
    Special access zone date is the date on which a local exchange
carrier tariff establishing divergent special access rates in different
zones, as described in Sec. 69.123(c) of this chapter, becomes
effective.
    Transport zone date is the date on which a local exchange carrier
tariff

[[Page 268]]

establishing divergent switched transport rates in different zones, as
described in Sec. 69.123(d) of this chapter, becomes effective.
    (2) Simultaneous Introduction of Special Access and Transport Zones.
Price cap local exchange carriers that have established density pricing
zones pursuant to Sec. 69.123 of this chapter, and whose special access
zone date and transport zone date occur on the same date, shall
initially establish density pricing zone SBIs and bands pursuant to the
methodology in Sec. Sec. 61.47(e) through (f).
    (3) Sequential Introduction of Zones in the Same Tariff Year.
Notwithstanding Sec. Sec. 61.47(e) through (f), price cap local
exchange carriers that have established density pricing zones pursuant
to Sec. 69.123 of this chapter, and whose special access zone date and
transport zone date occur on different dates during the same tariff
year, shall, on the earlier date, establish density pricing zone SBIs
and pricing bands using the methodology described in Sec. Sec. 61.47(e)
through (f), but applicable to the earlier service only. On the later
date, such carriers shall recalculate the SBIs and pricing bands to
limit the pricing flexibility of the services included in each density
pricing zone category, as reflected in its SBI, as follows:
    (i) The upper pricing band shall be a weighted average of the
following:
    (A) The upper pricing band that applied to the earlier services
included in the zone category on the day preceding the later date,
weighted by the revenue weight of the earlier services included in the
zone category; and
    (B) 1.05 times the SBI value for the services included in the zone
category on the day preceding the later date, weighted by the revenue
weight of the later services included in the zone category.
    (ii) [Reserved]
    (iii) On the later date, the SBI value for the zone category shall
be equal to the SBI value for the category on the day preceding the
later date.
    (4) Introduction of Zones in Different Tariff Years. Notwithstanding
Sec. Sec. 61.47(e) through (f), those price cap local exchange carriers
that have established density pricing zones pursuant to Sec. 69.123 of
this chapter, and whose special access zone date and transport zone date
do not occur within the same tariff year, shall, on the earlier date,
establish density pricing zone SBIs and pricing bands using the
methodology described in Sec. Sec. 61.47(e) through (f), but applicable
to the earlier service only.
    (j)-(k) [Reserved]
    (l) Average Traffic Sensitive Revenues. (1) In the July 1, 2000
annual filing, price cap local exchange carriers will make an additional
reduction to rates comprising ATS charge, and to associated SBI upper
limits and PCIs. This reduction will be calculated to be the amount that
would be necessary to achieve a total $2.1 billion reduction in carrier
common line and ATS rates by all price cap local exchange carriers,
compared with those rates as they existed on June 30, 2000 using 2000
annual filing base period demand.
    (i) The net change in revenue associated with Carrier Common Line
Rate elements resulting from:
    (A) The removal from access of price cap local exchange carrier
contributions to the Federal universal service mechanisms;
    (B) Price cap local exchange carrier receipts of interstate access
universal service support pursuant to subpart J of part 54;
    (C) Changes in End User Common Line Charges and PICC rates;
    (D) Changes in Carrier Common Line charges due to GDP-PI - X
targeting for $0.0095 filing entities.
    (ii) Reductions in Average Traffic Sensitive charges resulting from:
    (A) Targeting of the application of the (GDP-PI - X) portion of the
formula in Sec. 61.45(b), and any applicable ``g'' adjustments;
    (B) The removal from access of price cap local exchange carrier
contributions to the Federal universal service mechanisms;
    (C) Additional ATS charge reductions defined in paragraph (2) of
this section.
    (2) Once the reductions in paragraph (l)(1)(i) and paragraphs
(l)(1)(ii)(A) and (l)(1)(ii)(B) of this section are identified, the
difference between those reductions and $2.1 billion is the total amount
of additional reductions that would be made to ATS rates of price cap
local exchange carriers. This amount will then be restated as the

[[Page 269]]

percentage of total price cap local exchange carrier Local Switching
revenues as of June 30, 2000 using 2000 annual filing base period demand
(``June 30 Local Switching revenues'') necessary to yield the total
amount of additional reductions and taking into account the fact that,
if participating, a price cap local exchange carrier would not reduce
ATS rates below its Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq).Each
price cap local exchange carrier then reduces ATS rate elements, and
associated SBI upper limits and PCIs, by a dollar amount equivalent to
the percentage times the June 30 Local Switching revenues for that
filing entity, provided that no price cap local exchange carrier shall
be required to reduce its ATS rates below its Target Rate as set forth
in Sec. 61.3(qq). Each price cap local exchange carrier can take its
additional reductions against any of the ATS rate elements, provided
that at least a proportional share must be taken against Local Switching
rates.
    (m) Pooled Local Switching Revenues. (1) Price cap local exchange
carriers are permitted to pool local switching revenues in their CMT
basket under one of the following conditions.
    (i) Any price cap local exchange carrier that would otherwise have
July 1, 2000 price cap reductions as a percentage of Base Period Price
Cap Revenues at the holding company level greater than the industry wide
total July 1, 2000 price cap revenue reduction as a percentage of Base
Period Price Cap Revenues may elect temporarily to pool the amount of
the additional reductions above 25% of the Local Switching element
revenues necessary to yield that carrier's proportionate share of a
total $2.1 billion reduction in switched access usage rates on July 1,
2000. The basis of the reduction calculation will be R at
PCIt-1 for the upcoming tariff year. The percentage
reductions per line amounts will be calculated as follows: (Total Price
Cap Revenue Reduction / Base Period Price Cap Revenues)
    Pooled local switching revenue for each filing entity within a
holding company that qualifies under this paragraph (i) will continue
until such pooled revenues are eliminated under this paragraph.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Sec. 61.45(b)(1), once the Average
Traffic Sensitive (ATS) rate reaches the applicable Target Rate as set
forth in Sec. 61.3(qq), the Targeted Revenue Differential as defined in
Sec. 61.45(i) shall be targeted to reducing pooled local switching
revenue until the pooled local switching revenue is eliminated.
Thereafter, the X-factor for these baskets will be determined in
accordance with Sec. 61.45(b)(1).
    (ii) Price cap local exchange carriers other than the Bell companies
and GTE with at least 20% of total holding company lines operated by
companies that as of December 31, 1999 were certified to the Commission
as rural carriers, may elect to pool up to the following amounts:
    (A) For a price cap holding company's predominantly non-rural filing
entities (i.e., filing entities within which more than 50% of all lines
are operated by telephone companies other than those that as of December
31, 1999 were certified to the Commission as rural telephone companies),
the amount of the additional reductions to Average Traffic Sensitive
Charge rates as defined in paragraph (l)(2) of this section, to the
extent such reductions exceed 25% of the Local Switching element
revenues (measured in terms of June 30, 2000 rates times 1999 base
period demand);
    (B) For a price cap holding company's predominantly rural filing
entities (i.e., filing entities with greater than 50% of lines operated
by telephone companies that as of December 31, 1999 were certified to
the Commission as rural telephone companies), the amount of the
additional reductions to Average Traffic Sensitive Charge rates as
defined in paragraph (l)(2) of this section.
    (2) Allocation of Pooled Local Switching Revenue to Certain CMT
Elements
    (i) The pooled local switching revenue for each filing entity is
shifted to the CMT basket within price caps. Pooled local switching
revenue will not be included in calculations to determine the
eligibility for interstate access universal service funding.
    (ii) Pooled local switching revenue will be capped on a revenue per
line basis.

[[Page 270]]

    (iii) Pooled local switching revenue is included in the total
revenue for the CMT basket in calculating the X-factor reduction
targeted to the traffic sensitive rate elements, and for companies
qualified under paragraph (m)(1)(i) of this section, to pooled elements
after the Average Traffic Sensitive Charge reaches the target level. For
the purpose of targeting X-factor reductions, companies that allocate
pooled local switching revenue to other filing entities pursuant to
paragraph (m)(2)(vii) of this section shall include pooled local
switching revenue in the total revenue of the CMT basket of the filing
entity from which the pooled local switching revenue originated.
    (iv) Pooled local switching revenue shall be kept separate from CMT
revenue in the CMT basket. CMT rate elements for each filing entity
shall first be set based on CMT revenue per line without regard to the
presence of pooled local switching revenue for each filing entity.
    (v) If the rates generated without regard to the presence of pooled
local switching revenue for multi-line business PICC and/or multi-line
business SLC are below the nominal caps of $4.31 and $9.20,
respectively, pooled amounts can be added to these rate elements to the
extent permitted by the nominal caps.
    (vi) Notwithstanding the provisions of Sec. 69.152(k) of this
chapter, pooled local switching revenue is first added to the multi-line
business SLC until the rate equals the nominal cap ($9.20) or the pooled
local switching revenue is fully allocated. If pooled local switching
revenue remains after applying amounts to the multi-line business SLC,
notwithstanding the provisions of Sec. 69.153 of this chapter, the
remaining pooled local switching revenue may be added to the multi-line
business PICC until the rate equals the nominal cap ($4.31) or the
pooled local switching revenue is fully allocated. Unallocated pooled
local switching revenue may still remain. For companies pooling pursuant
to paragraph (m)(1)(i) of this section, these unallocated amounts may
not be recovered from the CCL charge, the primary residential and
single-line business SLC, a non-primary residential SLC, or from CMT
elements in any other filing entity.
    (vii) For companies pooling pursuant to paragraph (m)(1)(ii) of this
section, pooled local switching revenue that can not be allocated to the
multi-line business PICC and multi-line business SLC rates within an
individual filing entity may not be recovered from the CCL charge,
primary residential and single-line business SLC or residential/single-
line business SLC charges, but may be allocated to other filing entities
within the holding company, and collected by adding these amounts to the
multi-line business PICC and multi-line business SLC rates. The
allocation of pooled local switching revenue among filing entities will
be re-calculated at each annual filing. In subsequent annual filings,
pooled local switching revenue that was allocated to another filing
entity will be reallocated to the filing entity from where it
originated, to the full extent permitted by the nominal caps of $9.20
and $4.31.
    (viii) Notwithstanding the provisions of Sec. 69.152(k) of this
chapter, these unallocated local switching revenues that cannot be
recovered fully pursuant to paragraph (m)(2)(vii) of this section are
first added to the multi-line business SLC of other filing entities
until the resulting rate equals the nominal cap ($9.20) or the pooled
local switching revenue for the holding company is fully allocated. If
the pooled local switching revenue can be fully allocated to the multi-
line business SLC, the amount is distributed to each filing entity with
a rate below the nominal cap ($9.20) based on its below-cap multi-line
business SLC revenue as a percentage of the total holding company's
below-cap multi-line business SLC revenue.
    (ix) If pooled local switching revenue remains after applying
amounts to the multi-line business SLC of all filing entities in the
holding company, pooled local switching revenue may be added to the
multi-line business PICC of other filing entities. Notwithstanding the
provisions of Sec. 69.153 of this chapter, the remaining pooled local
switching revenue is distributed to each filing entity with a rate below
the nominal cap ($4.31) based on its below-cap multi-line business PICC
revenue as a

[[Page 271]]

percentage of the total holding company's below-cap multi-line business
PICC revenue.
    (x) If pooled local switching revenue is added to the multi-line
business SLC but not to the multi-line business PICC for a filing entity
that qualified to deaverage SLCs without regard to pooled local
switching revenue, the resulting SLC rates can still be deaveraged.
Total pooled local switching revenue is added to the deaveraged zone 1
multi-line business SLC rate until the per line rate in zone 1 equals
the rate in zone 2 or until the pooled local switching revenue is fully
allocated to the deaveraged multi-line business SLC rate for zone 1. If
pooled local switching revenue remains after the rate in zone 1 equals
zone 2, the deaveraged rates of zone 1 and zone 2 are increased until
the pooled local switching revenue is fully allocated to the deaveraged
multi-line business SLC rates of zone 1 and 2 or until those rates reach
the zone 3 multi-line business SLC rate level. This process continues
until pooled local switching revenue is fully allocated to the zone
deaveraged rates.
    (n) Establishment of the special access basket, effective July 1,
2000.
    (1) On the effective date, the PCI value for the special access
basket, as defined in Sec. 61.42(d)(5) shall be equal to the PCI for
the trunking basket on the day preceding the establishment of the
special access basket.
    (2) On the effective date, the API value for the special access
basket, as defined in Sec. 61.42(d)(5) shall be equal to the API for
the trunking basket on the day preceding the establishment of the
special access basket.
    (3) Service Category, Subcategory, and Density Zone SBIs and Upper
Limits.
    (i) Interconnection, Tandem Switched Transport, and Signalling
Interconnec- tion will retain the SBIs and upper limits and remain in
the trunking basket.
    (ii) Audio/Video and Wideband will retain the SBIs and upper limits
and be moved into the special access basket.
    (iii) For Voice Grade, the SBIs and upper limits in both baskets
will be equal to the SBIs and upper limits in the existing trunking
basket on the day preceding the establishment of the special access
basket. Voice Grade density zones in the trunking basket will retain
their indices and upper limits. Voice Grade density zones will be
initialized in the special access basket when services are first offered
in them.
    (iv) For High Cap/DDS, DS1, and DS3 category and subcategories, the
SBIs and upper limits in both baskets will be equal to the SBIs and
upper limits in the existing trunking basket on the day preceding the
establishment of the special access basket. SBIs and upper limits for
services that are in both combined density zones and either DTT/EF or
special access density zones will be calculated by using weighted
averages of the indices in the affected zones.
    (v) For each DTT/EF-related zone remaining in the trunking basket,
the values will be calculated by taking the sum of the products of the
DTT/EF revenues times the DTT/EF index (or upper limit) and the DTT/EF-
related revenues in the combined zone times the combined index (or upper
limit), and dividing by the total DTT/EF-related revenues for that zone.
    (vi) For each special access-related zone in the special access
basket, the values will be calculated by taking the sum of the products
of the special access revenues times the special access index (or upper
limit) and the special access-related revenues in the combined zone
times the combined index (or upper limit), and dividing by the total
special access-related revenues for that zone.
    (o) Treatment of acquisitions of exchanges with different ATS Target
Rates as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq):
    (1) In the event that a price cap local exchange carrier acquires a
filing entity or portion thereof from a price cap local exchange carrier
after July 1, 2000, and the price cap local exchange carrier did not
have a binding and executed contract to purchase that filing entity or
portion thereof as of April 1, 2000, those properties retain their pre-
existing Target Rates as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq). If those
properties are merged into a filing entity with a different Target Rate
as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq), the Target Rate as set forth in Sec.
61.3(qq) for the merged filing entity

[[Page 272]]

will be the weighted average of the Target Rates as set forth in Sec.
61.3(qq) for the properties being combined into a single filing entity,
with the average weighted by local switching minutes. When a property
acquired as a result of a contract for purchase executed after April 1,
2000 is merged with $0.0095 Target Rate properties, the obligation to
apply price cap reductions to reduce CCL, pursuant to Sec.
61.45(b)(iii) does not apply to the properties purchased under contracts
executed after April 1, 2000, but continues to apply to the other
properties.
    (2) For sale of properties for which a holding company was, as of
April 1, 2000, under a binding and executed contract to purchase but
which close after June 30, 2000, but during tariff year 2000, and that
are subject to the $0.0095 Target Rate as set forth in Sec. 61.3(qq),
the Average Traffic Sensitive Rate charged by the purchaser for that
property will be the greater of $0.0095 or the Average Traffic Sensitive
Rate for that property.

[54 FR 19843, May 8, 1989, as amended at 55 FR 42384, Oct. 19, 1990; 56
FR 21617, May 10, 1991; 56 FR 55239, Oct. 25, 1991; 59 FR 10302, Mar. 4,
1994; 60 FR 19528, Apr. 19, 1995; 60 FR 52346, Oct. 6, 1995; 62 FR
31932, June 11, 1997; 64 FR 46590, Aug. 26, 1999; 65 FR 38699, June 21,
2000; 65 FR 57742, 57743, Sept. 26, 2000; 76 FR 43214, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.49  Supporting information to be submitted with letters of
transmittal for tariffs of carriers subject to price cap regulation.

    (a) Each price cap tariff filing must be accompanied by supporting
materials sufficient to calculate required adjustments to each PCI, API,
and SBI pursuant to the methodologies provided in Sec. Sec. 61.45,
61.46, and 61.47, as applicable.
    (b) Each price cap tariff filing that proposes rates that are within
applicable bands established pursuant to Sec. 61.47, and that results
in an API value that is equal to or less than the applicable PCI value,
must be accompanied by supporting materials sufficient to establish
compliance with the applicable bands, and to calculate the necessary
adjustment to the affected APIs and SBIs pursuant to Sec. Sec. 61.46
and 61.47, respectively.
    (c) Each price cap tariff filing that proposes rates above the
applicable band limits established in Sec. Sec. 61.47 (e) must be
accompanied by supporting materials establishing substantial cause for
the proposed rates.
    (d) Each price cap tariff filing that proposes rates that will
result in an API value that exceeds the applicable PCI value must be
accompanied by:
    (1) An explanation of the manner in which all costs have been
allocated among baskets; and
    (2) Within the affected basket, a cost assignment slowing down to
the lowest possible level of disaggregation, including a detailed
explanation of the reasons for the prices of all rate elements to which
costs are not assigned.
    (e) Each price cap tariff filing that proposes restructuring of
existing rates must be accompanied by supporting materials sufficient to
make the adjustments to each affected API and SBI required by Sec. Sec.
61.46(c) and 61.47(d), respectively.
    (f)(1) [Reserved]
    (2) Each tariff filing submitted by a price cap local exchange
carrier that introduces a new loop-based service, as defined in Sec.
61.3(pp) of this part--including a restructured unbundled basic service
element (BSE), as defined in Sec. 69.2(mm) of this chapter, that
constitutes a new loop-based service--that is or will later be included
in a basket, must be accompanied by cost data sufficient to establish
that the new loop-based service or unbundled BSE will not recover more
than a just and reasonable portion of the carrier's overhead costs.
    (3) A price cap local exchange carrier may submit without cost data
any tariff filings that introduce new services, other than loop-based
services.
    (4) A price cap local exchange carrier that has removed its corridor
or interstate ntraLATA toll services from its interexchange basket
pursuant to Sec. 61.42(d)(4)(ii), may submit its tariff filings for
corridor or interstate intraLATA toll services without cost data.
    (g) Each tariff filing submitted by a price cap local exchange
carrier that introduces a new loop-based service or a restructured
unbundled basic service element (BSE), as defined in Sec. 69.2(mm)

[[Page 273]]

of this chapter, that is or will later be included in a basket, or that
introduces or changes the rates for connection charge subelements for
expanded interconnection, as defined in Sec. 69.121 of this chapter,
must also be accompanied by:
    (1) The following, including complete explanations of the bases for
the estimates.
    (i) A study containing a projection of costs for a representative 12
month period; and
    (ii) Estimates of the effect of the new tariff on the traffic and
revenues from the service to which the new tariff applies, the carrier's
other service classifications, and the carrier's overall traffic and
revenues. These estimates must include the projected effects on the
traffic and revenues for the same representative 12 month period used in
paragraph (g)(1)(i) of this section.
    (2) Working papers and statistical data. (i) Concurrently with the
filing of any tariff change or tariff filing for a service not
previously offered, the issuing carriers must file the working papers
containing the information underlying the data supplied in response to
paragraph (h)(1) of this section, and a clear explanation of how the
working papers relate to that information.
    (ii) All statistical studies must be submitted and supported in the
form prescribed in Sec. 1.363 of the Commission's rules.
    (h) Each tariff filing submitted by a price cap local exchange
carrier that introduces or changes the rates for connection charge
subelements for expanded interconnection, as defined in Sec. 69.121 of
this chapter, must be accompanied by cost data sufficient to establish
that such charges will not recover more than a just and reasonable
portion of the carrier's overhead costs.
    (i) [Reserved]
    (j) For a tariff that introduces a system of density pricing zones,
as described in Sec. 69.123 of this chapter, the carrier must, before
filing its tariff, submit a density pricing zone plan including, inter
alia, documentation sufficient to establish that the system of zones
reasonably reflects cost-related characteristics, such as the density of
total interstate traffic in central offices located in the respective
zones, and receive approval of its proposed plan.
    (k) In accordance with Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49, price cap
local exchange carriers that elect to file their annual access tariff
pursuant to section 204(a)(3) of the Communications Act shall submit
supporting material for their interstate annual access tariffs, absent
rate information, 90 days prior to July 1 of each year.
    (l) On each page of cost support material submitted pursuant to this
section, the issuing carrier shall indicate the transmittal number under
which that page was submitted.

[54 FR 19843, May 8, 1989]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec.
61.49, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the
Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.



Sec. 61.50  [Reserved]



  Subpart F_Formatting and Notice Requirements for Tariff Publications

    Source: 76 FR 43215, July 20, 2011, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 61.51  Scope.

    The rules in this subpart apply to tariffs filed by issuing
carriers, with the exception of the informational tariffs filed pursuant
to 47 U.S.C. 226(h)(1)(A), unless otherwise noted.

[76 FR 43215, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.52  Form, size, type, legibility, etc.

    (a) Pages of tariffs must be numbered consecutively and designated
as ``Original title page,'' ``Original page 1,'' ``Original page 2,''
etc.
    (1) All such pages must show, in the upper left-hand corner the name
of the issuing carrier; in the upper right-hand corner the FCC number of
the tariff, with the page designation directly below; in the lower left-
hand corner the issued date; in the lower right-hand corner the
effective date; and at the bottom, center, the street address of the
issuing officer. The carrier must also specify the issuing officer's
title either at the bottom center of all tariff

[[Page 274]]

pages, or on the title page and check sheet only.
    (2) As an alternative, the issuing carrier may show in the upper
left-hand corner the name of the issuing carrier, the title and street
address of the issuing officer, and the issued date; and in the upper
right-hand corner the FCC number of the tariff, with the page
designation directly below, and the effective date. The carrier must
specify the issuing officer's title in the upper left-hand corner of
either all tariff pages, or on the title page and check sheet only. A
carrier electing to place the information at the top of the page should
annotate the bottom of each page to indicate the end of the material,
e.g., a line, or the term ``Printed in USA,'' or ``End''.
    (3) Only one format may be employed in a tariff publication.
    (b) All issuing carriers shall file all tariff publications and
associated documents, such as transmittal letters, requests for special
permission, and supporting information, electronically in accordance
with the requirements set forth in Sec. Sec. 61.13 through 61.17.

[49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 58 FR 44906, Aug. 25, 1993;
62 FR 5778, Feb. 7, 1997; 63 FR 35541, June 30, 1998; 76 FR 43215, July
20, 2011]



Sec. 61.54  Composition of tariffs.

    (a) Tariffs must contain in consecutive order: A title page; check
sheet; table of contents; list of concurring, connecting, and other
participating carriers; explanation of symbols and abbreviations;
application of tariff; general rules (including definitions),
regulations, exceptions and conditions; and rates. If the issuing
carrier elects to add a section assisting in the use of the tariff, it
should be placed immediately after the table of contents.
    (b) The title page of every tarif--f and supplement must show:
    (1) FCC number, indication of cancellations. In the upper right-hand
corner, the designation of the tariff or supplement as ``FCC No. ------
--,'' or ``Supplement No. -------- to FCC No. --------,'' and
immediately below, the FCC number or numbers of tariffs or supplements
cancelled thereby.
    (2) Name of carrier, class of service, geographical application,
means of transmission. The exact name of the carrier, and such other
information as may be necessary to identify the carrier issuing the
tariff publication; a brief statement showing each class of service
provided; the geographical application; and the type of facilities used
to provide service.
    (3) Expiration date. Subject to Sec. 61.59, when the entire tariff
or supplement is to expire with a fixed date, the expiration date must
be shown in connection with the effective date in the following manner.
Changes in expiration date must be made pursuant to the notice
requirements of Sec. 61.58, unless otherwise authorized by the
Commission.

    Expires at the end of ---- (date) unless sooner canceled, changed,
or extended.

    (4) Title and address of issuing officer. The title and street
address of the officer issuing the tariff or supplement in the format
specified in Sec. 61.52.
    (5) Revised title page. When a revised title page is issued, the
following notation must be shown in connection with its effective date:

Original tariff --effective -------------------- (here show the
effective date of the original tariff).

    (c)(1)(i) The page immediately following the title page must be
designated as ``Original page 1'' and captioned ``Check Sheet.'' When
the original tariff is filed, the check sheet must show the number of
pages contained in the tariff. For example, ``Page 1 to 150, inclusive,
of this tariff are effective as of the date shown.'' When new pages are
added, they must be numbered in continuing sequence, and designated as
``Original page -------- .'' For example, when the original tariff filed
has 150 pages, the first page added after page 150 is to be designated
as ``Original page 151,'' and the foregoing notation must be revised to
include the added pages.
    (ii) Alternatively, the carrier is permitted to number its tariff
pages, other than the check sheet, to reflect the section number of the
tariff as well as the page. For example, under this system, pages in
section 1 of the tariff would be numbered 1-1, 1-2, etc., and pages in
section 2 of the tariff would be numbered 2-1, 2-2, etc. Issuing
carriers

[[Page 275]]

shall utilize only one page numbering system throughout its tariff.
    (2) If pages are to be inserted between numbered pages, each such
page must be designated as an original page and must bear the number of
the immediately preceding page followed by an alpha or numeric suffix.
For example, when two new pages are to be inserted between pages 44 and
45 of the tariff, the first inserted page must be designated as Original
page 44A or 44.1 and the second inserted page as Original page 44B or
44.2. Issuing carriers may not utilize both the alpha and numeric
systems in the same publication.
    (3)(i) When pages are revised, when new pages (including pages with
letter or numeric suffix as set forth above) are added to the tariff, or
when supplements are issued, the check sheet must be revised
accordingly. Revised check sheets must indicate with an asterisk the
specific pages added or revised. In addition to the notation in (1), the
check sheet must list, under the heading ``The original and revised
pages named below (and Supplement No. --------) contain all changes from
the original tariff that are in effect on the date shown,'' all original
pages in numerical order that have been added to the tariff and the
pages which have been revised, including the revision number. For
example:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                               Number of revision except
                     Page                             as indicated
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Title........................................  1st
1............................................  *8th
3............................................  5th
5A...........................................  *Orig.
10...........................................  *8th
151..........................................  Orig.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
*New or Revised page.

    (ii) On each page, the carrier shall indicate the transmittal number
under which that page was submitted.
    (4) Changes in, and additions to tariffs must be made by reprinting
the page upon which a change or addition is made. Such changed page is
to be designated as a revised page, cancelling the page which it amends.
For example, ``First revised page 1 cancels original page 1,'' or
``Second revised page 2 cancels first revised page 2,'' etc. When a
revised page omits rates or regulations previously published on the page
which it cancels, but such rates or regulations are published on another
page, the revised page must make specific reference to the page on which
the rates or regulations will be found. This reference must be
accomplished by inserting a sentence at the bottom of the revised page
that states ``Certain rates (or regulations) previously found on this
page can now be found on page ------.'' In addition, the page on which
the omitted material now appears must bear the appropriate symbol
opposite such material, and make specific reference to the page from
which the rates or regulations were transferred. This reference must be
accomplished by inserting a sentence at the bottom of the other page
that states ``Certain rates (or regulations) on this page formerly
appeared on page --------.''
    (5) Rejected pages must be treated as indicated in Sec. 61.69.
    (d) Table of contents. The table of contents must contain a full and
complete statement showing the exact location and specifying the page or
section and page numbers, where information by subjects under general
headings will be found. If a tariff contains so small a volume of matter
that its title page or its interior arrangement plainly discloses its
contents, the table of contents may be omitted.
    (e) Tariff User's guide. At its option, a carrier may include a
section explaining how to use the tariff.
    (f) List of concurring carriers. This list must contain the exact
name or names of carriers concurring in the tariff, alphabetically
arranged, and the name of the city or town in which the principal office
of every such carrier is located. If there are no concurring carriers,
then the statement ``no concurring carriers'' must be made at the place
where the names of the concurring carriers would otherwise appear. If
the concurring carriers are numerous, their names may be stated in
alphabetical order in a separate tariff filed with the Commission by the
issuing carrier. Specific reference to such separate tariff by FCC
number must be made in the tariff at the place where such names would
otherwise appear.
    (g) List of connecting carriers. This list must contain the exact
name or names

[[Page 276]]

of connecting carriers, alphabetically arranged, for which rates or
regulations are published in the tariff, and the name of the city or
town in which the principal office of every such carrier is located. If
there are no connecting carriers, then the statement ``no connecting
carriers'' must be made at the place where their names would otherwise
appear. If connecting carriers are numerous, their names may be stated
in alphabetical order in a separate tariff filed with the Commission by
the issuing carrier. Specific reference to such separate tariff by FCC
number must be made in the tariff at the place where such names would
otherwise appear.
    (h) List of other participating carriers. This list must contain the
exact name of every other carrier subject to the Act engaging or
participating in the communication service to which the tariff or
supplement applies, together with the name of the city or town in which
the principal office of such carrier is located. If there is no such
other carrier, then the statement ``no participating carriers'' must be
made at the place where the names of such other carriers would otherwise
appear. If such other carriers are numerous, their names may be stated
in alphabetical order in a separate tariff filed with the Commission by
the issuing carrier. Specific reference must be made in the tariff at
the place where such names would otherwise appear. The names of
concurring and connecting carriers properly listed in a tariff published
by any other participating carrier need not be repeated in this list.
    (i)(1) Symbols, reference marks, abbreviations. The tariff must
contain an explanation of symbols, reference marks, and abbreviations of
technical terms used. The following symbols used in tariffs are reserved
for the purposes indicated below:

R to signify reduction.
I to signify increase.
C to signify changed regulation.
T to signify a change in text but no change in rate or regulation.
S to signify reissued matter.
M to signify matter relocated without change.
N to signify new rate or regulation.
D to signify discontinued rate or regulation.
Z to signify a correction.

    (2) The uniform symbols must be used as follows.
    (i) When a change of the same character is made in all or in
substantially all matter in a tariff, it may be indicated at the top of
the title page of the tariff or at the top of each affected page, in the
following manner: ``All rates in this tariff are increases,'' or, ``All
rates on this page are reductions, except as otherwise indicated.''
    (ii) When a change of the same character is made in all or
substantially all matters on a page or supplement, it may be indiated at
the top of the page or supplement in the following manner: All rates on
this page (or supplement) are increases,'' or, ``All rates on this page
(or supplement) are reductions except as otherwise indicated.''
    (3) Items which have not been in effect 30 days when brought forward
on revised pages must be shown as reissued, in the manner prescribed in
Sec. 61.54(i)(1). The number and original effective date of the tariff
publication in which the matter was originally published must be
associated with the reissued matter. Items which have been in effect 30
days or more and are brought forward without change on revised pages
must not be shown as reissued items.
    (j) Rates and general rules, regulations, exceptions and conditions.
The general rules (including definitions), regulations, exceptions, and
conditions which govern the tariff must be stated clearly and
definitely. All general rules, regulations, exceptions or conditions
which in any way affect the rates named in the tariff must be specified.
A special rule, regulation, exception or condition affecting a
particular item or rate must be specifically referred to in connection
with such item or rate. Rates must be expressed in United States
currency, per chargeable unit of service for all communication services,
together with a list of all points of service to and from which the
rates apply. They must be arranged in a simple and systematic manner.
Complicated or ambiguous terminology may not be used, and no rate, rule,
regulation, exception or condition shall be included

[[Page 277]]

which in any way attempts to substitute a rate, rule, regulation,
exception or condition named in any other tariff.

[49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 64 FR 46591, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 61.55  Contract-based tariffs.

    (a) This section shall apply to price cap local exchange carriers
permitted to offer contract-based tariffs under Sec. 69.727(a) of this
chapter.
    (b) Composition of contract-based tariffs shall comply with
Sec. Sec. 61.54(b) through (i).
    (c) Contract-based tariffs shall include the following:
    (1) The term of contract, including any renewal options;
    (2) A brief description of each of the services provided under the
contract;
    (3) Minimum volume commitments for each service;
    (4) The contract price for each service or services at the volume
levels committed to by the customers;
    (5) A general description of any volume discounts built into the
contract rate structure; and
    (6) A general description of other classifications, practices, and
regulations affecting the contract rate.

[64 FR 51266, Sept. 22, 1999, as amended at 76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.58  Notice requirements.

    (a) Every proposed tariff filing must bear an effective date and,
except as otherwise provided by regulation, special permission, or
Commission order, must be made on at least the number of days notice
specified in this section.
    (1) Notice is accomplished by filing the proposed tariff changes
with the Commission. Any period of notice specified in this section
begins on and includes the date the tariff is received by the
Commission, but does not include the effective date. If a tariff filing
proposes changes governed by more than one of the notice periods listed
below, the longest notice period will apply. In computing the notice
period required, all days including Sundays and holidays must be
counted.
    (2)(i) Local exchange carriers may file tariffs pursuant to the
streamlined tariff filing provisions of section 204(a)(3) of the
Communications Act. Such a tariff may be filed on 7 days' notice if it
proposes only rate decreases. Any other tariff filed pursuant to section
204(a)(3) of the Communications Act, including those that propose a rate
increase or any change in terms and conditions, shall be filed on 15
days' notice. Any tariff filing made pursuant to section 204(a)(3) of
the Communications Act must comply with the applicable cost support
requirements specified in this part.
    (ii) Local exchange carriers may elect not to file tariffs pursuant
to section 204(a)(3) of the Communications Act. For dominant carriers,
any such tariffs shall be filed on at least 16 days' notice. For
nondominant carriers, any such tariffs shall be filed on at least one
days' notice.
    (iii) Except for tariffs filed pursuant to section 204(a)(3) of the
Communications Act, the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, may require
the deferral of the effective date of any filing made on less than 120
days' notice, so as to provide for a maximum of 120 days' notice, or of
such other maximum period of notice permitted by section 203(b) of the
Communications Act, regardless of whether petitions under Sec. 1.773 of
this chapter have been filed.
    (3) Tariff filings proposing corrections or voluntarily deferring
the effective date of a pending tariff revision must be made on at least
3 days' notice, and may be filed notwithstanding the provisions of Sec.
61.59. Corrections to tariff materials not yet effective cannot take
effect before the effective date of the original material. Deferrals
must take effect on or before the current effective date of the pending
tariff revisions being deferred.
    (4) This subsection applies only to dominant carriers. If the tariff
publication would increase any rate or charge, or would effectuate and
authorized discountinuance, reduction or other impairment of service to
any customer, the offering carrier must inform the affected customers of
the content of the tariff publication. Such notification should be made
in a form appropriate to the circumstance, and may include written
notification, personal contact, or advertising in newspapers of general
circulation.

[[Page 278]]

    (b) Tariffs for new services filed by price cap local exchange
carriers shall be filed on at least one day's notice.
    (c) Contract-based tariffs filed by price cap local exchange
carriers pursuant to Sec. 69.727(a) of this chapter shall be filed on
at least one day's notice.
    (d)(1) A price cap local exchange carrier that is filing a tariff
revision to remove its corridor or interstate intraLATA toll services
from its interexchange basket pursuant to Sec. 61.42(d)(4)(ii) shall
submit such filing on at least fifteen days' notice.
    (2) A price cap local exchange carrier that has removed its corridor
and interstate intraLATA toll services from its interexchange basket
pursuant to Sec. 61.42(d)(4)(ii) shall file subsequent tariff filings
for corridor or interstate intraLATA toll services on at least one day's
notice.
    (e) Non-price cap local exchange carriers and/or services. (1)
Tariff filings in the instances specified in paragraphs (e)(1) (i),
(ii), and (iii) of this section by dominant carriers must be made on at
least 15 days' notice.
    (i) Tariffs filed in the first instance by new carriers.
    (ii) Tariffs filings involving new rates and regulations not
previously filed at, from, to or via points on new lines; at, from to or
via new radio facilities; or for new points of radio communication.
    (iii) Tariff filings involving a change in the name of a carrier, a
change in Vertical or Horizontal coordinates (or other means used to
determine airline mileages), a change in the lists of mileages, a change
in the lists of connecting, concurring or other participating carriers,
text changes, or the imposition of termination charges calculated from
effective tariff provisions. The imposition of termination charges does
not include the initial filing of termination liability provisions.
    (2) Tariff filings involving a change in rate structure, a new
offering, or a rate increase must be made on at least 45 days' notice.
    (3) Alascom, Inc. shall file its annual tariff revisions for its
Common Carrier Services (Alascom Tariff F.C.C No. 11) on at least 35
days' notice.
    (4) All tariff filings not specifically assigned a different period
of public notice in this part must be made on at least 35 days' notice.
    (f) All tariff filings of domestic and international non-dominant
carriers must be made on at least one days' notice.

[49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 54 FR 19844, May 8, 1989; 55
FR 42384, Oct. 19, 1990; 56 FR 1500, Jan. 15, 1991; 56 FR 5956, Feb. 14,
1991; 56 FR 55239, Oct. 25, 1991; 58 FR 36149, July 6, 1993; 59 FR
10304, Mar. 4, 1994; 62 FR 5778, Feb. 7, 1997; 64 FR 46591, Aug. 26,
1999; 64 FR 51266, Sept. 22, 1999; 67 FR 13228, Mar. 21, 2002; 76 FR
43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.59  Effective period required before changes.

    (a) Except as provided in Sec. 61.58(a)(3) or except as otherwise
authorized by the Commission, new rates or regulations must be effective
for at least 30 days before a dominant carrier will be permitted to make
any change.
    (b) Changes to rates and regulations for dominant carriers that have
not yet become effective, i.e., are pending, may not be made unless the
effective date of the proposed changes is at least 30 days after the
scheduled effective date of the pending revisions.
    (c) Changes to rates and regulations for dominant carriers that have
taken effect but have not been in effect for at least 30 days may not be
made unless the scheduled effective date of the proposed changes is at
least 30 days after the effective date of the existing regulations.

[64 FR 46592, Aug. 26, 1999, as amended at 76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



    Subpart G_Specific Rules for Tariff Publications of Dominant and
                          Nondominant Carriers

    Source: 49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, unless otherwise noted.
Redesignated at 76 FR 43215, July 20, 2011.



Sec. 61.66  Scope.

    The rules in this subpart apply to all issuing carriers, unless
otherwise noted.

[76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.68  Special notations.

    (a) Any tariff filing made pursuant to an Application for Special
Permission,

[[Page 279]]

Commission decision or order must contain the following statement:

    Issued under authority of (specific reference to the special
permission, Commission decision, or order) of the Commission.

    (b) When a portion of any tariff publication is issued in order to
comply with the Commission order, the following notation must be
associated with that portion of the tariff publication:

    In compliance with the order of the Federal Communications
Commission in -- (a specific citation to the applicable order should be
made).

[49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.69  Rejection.

    When a tariff publication is rejected by the Commission, its number
may not be used again. This includes, but is not limited to, such
publications as tariff numbers or specific page revision numbers. The
rejected tariff publication may not be referred to as either cancelled
or revised. Within five business days of the release date of the
Commission's Order rejecting such tariff publication, the issuing
carrier shall file tariff revisions removing the rejected material,
unless the Commission's Order establishes a different date for this
filing. The publication that is subsequently issued in lieu of the
rejected tariff publication must bear the notation:

    In lieu of ----, rejected by the Federal Communications Commission.

[64 FR 46592, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 61.72  Public information requirements.

    (a) Issuing carriers must make available accurate and timely
information pertaining to rates and regulations subject to tariff filing
requirements.
    (b) Issuing carriers must, at a minimum, provide a telephone number
for public inquiries about information contained in its tariffs. This
telephone number should be made readily available to all interested
parties.
    (c) Any issuing carrier that is an incumbent local exchange carrier,
and chooses to establish an Internet web site, must make its tariffs
available on that web site, in addition to the Commission's web site.

[64 FR 46592, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 61.73  Duplication of rates or regulations.

    A carrier concurring in schedules of another carrier must not
publish conflicting or duplicative rates or regulations.



Sec. 61.74  References to other instruments.

    (a) Except as otherwise provided in this and other sections of this
part, no tariff publication filed with the Commission may make reference
to any other tariff publication or to any other document or instrument.
    (b) Tariffs for end-on-end through services may reference the
tariffs of other carriers participating in the offering.
    (c) Tariffs may reference concurrences for the purpose of starting
where rates or regulations applicable to a service not governed by the
tariff may be found.
    (d) Tariffs may reference other FCC tariffs that are in effect and
on file with the Commission for purposes of determining mileage, or
specifying the operating centers at which a specific service is
available.
    (e) Tariffs may reference technical publications which describe the
engineering, specifications, or other technical aspects of a service
offering, provided the following conditions are satisfied:
    (1) The tariff must contain a general description of the service
offering, including basic parameters and structural elements of the
offering;
    (2) The technical publication includes no rates, regulatory terms,
or conditions which are required to be contained in the tariff, and any
revisions to the technical publication do not affect rates, regulatory
terms, or conditions included in the tariff, and do not change the basic
nature of the offering;
    (3) The tariff indicates where the technical publication can be
obtained;
    (4) The referenced technical publication is publicly available
before the tariff is scheduled to take effect; and
    (5) The issuing carrier regularly revises its tariff to refer to the
current

[[Page 280]]

edition of the referenced technical publication.

[49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984, as amended at 61 FR 59366, Nov. 22, 1996;
64 FR 46592, Aug. 26, 1999; 66 FR 16881, Mar. 28, 2001]



Sec. 61.83  Consecutive numbering.

    Issuing carriers should file tariff publications under consecutive
FCC numbers. If this cannot be done, a memorandum containing an
explanation of the missing number or numbers must be submitted.
Supplements to a tariff must be numbered consecutively in a separate
series.

[76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.86  Supplements.

    An issuing carrier may not file a supplement except to suspend or
cancel a tariff publication, or to defer the effective date of pending
tariff revisions. A carrier may file a supplement for the voluntary
deferral of a tariff publication.

[76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.87  Cancellation of tariffs.

    (a) An issuing carrier may cancel an entire tariff. Cancellation of
a tariff automatically cancels every page and supplement to that tariff
except for the canceling Title Page or first page.
    (1) If the existing service(s) will be provided under another
carrier's tariff, then
    (i) The issuing carrier whose tariff is being canceled must revise
the Title Page or the first page of its tariff indicating that the
tariff is no longer effective, or
    (ii) The issuing carrier under whose tariff the service(s) will be
provided must revise the Title Page or first page of the tariff to be
canceled, using the name and numbering shown in the heading of the
tariff to be canceled, indicating that the tariff is no longer
effective. This carrier must also file with the Commission the new
tariff provisions reflecting the service(s) being canceled. Both filings
must be effective on the same date and may be filed under the same
transmittal.
    (2) If a carrier canceling its tariff intends to cease to provide
existing service, then it must revise the Title Page or first page of
its tariff indicating that the tariff is no longer effective.
    (3) A carrier canceling its tariff, as described in this section,
must comply with Sec. Sec. 61.54(b)(1) and 61.54(b)(5), as applicable.
    (b) When a carrier cancels a tariff as described in this section,
the canceling Title Page or the first page of the canceled tariff must
show where all rates and regulations will be found except for paragraph
(c) of this section. The Title Page or first page of the new tariff must
indicate the name of the carrier and tariff number where the canceled
material had been found.
    (c) When a carrier ceases to provide service(s) without a successor,
it must cancel its tariff pursuant to the notice requirements of Sec.
61.58, as applicable, unless otherwise authorized by the Commission.

[64 FR 46591, Aug. 26, 1999, as amended at 76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



                         Subpart H_Concurrences

    Source: 49 FR 40869, Oct. 18, 1984. Redesignated at 76 FR 43215,
July 20, 2011, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 61.131  Scope.

    Sections 61.132 through 61.136 apply to a carrier which must file
concurrences reflecting rates and regulations for through service
provided in conjunction with other carriers and to a carrier which has
chosen, as an alternative to publishing its own tariff, to arrange
concurrence in an effective tariff of another carrier. Limited or
partial concurrences will not be permitted.



Sec. 61.132  Method of filing concurrences.

    A carrier proposing to concur in another carrier's effective tariff
must deliver one copy of the concurrence to the issuing carrier in whose
favor the concurrence is issued. The concurrence must be signed by an
officer or agent of the carrier executing the concurrence, and must be
numbered consecutively in a separate series from its FCC tariff numbers.
At the same time the issuing carrier revises its tariff to reflect such
a concurrence, it must file one copy of the concurrence electronically
with

[[Page 281]]

the Commission in accordance with the requirements set forth in Sec.
61.13 through Sec. 61.17. The concurrence must bear the same effective
date as the date of the tariff filing reflecting the concurrence.
Carriers shall file revisions reflecting concurrences in their tariffs
on the notice period specified in Sec. 61.58.

[76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.133  Format of concurrences.

    (a) Concurrences must be issued in the following format:

                               Concurrence

F.C.C. Concurrence No. --------
(Cancels F.C.C. Concurrence No. ----
(Name of Carrier ------------)
(Post Office Address ------------)
(Date) ---------------------- 19----.
Secretary,
Federal Communications Commission, Washington, D.C. 20554.
This is to report that (name of concurring carrier) assents to and
concurs in the tariffs described below. (Name of concurring carrier)
thus makes itself a party to these tariffs and obligates itself (and its
connecting carriers) to observe every provision in them, until a notice
of revocation is filed with the Commission and delivered to the issuing
carrier.
This concurrence applies to interstate (and foreign) communication:
    1. Between the different points on the concurring carrier's own
system;
    2. Between all points on the concurring carrier's system and the
systems of its connecting carriers; and
    3. Between all points on the system of the concurring carrier and
the systems of its connecting carriers on the one hand, and, on the
other hand, all points on the system of the carrier issuing the tariff
or tariffs listed below and the systems of its connecting carriers and
other carriers with which through routes have been established.

    (Note: Any of the above numbered paragraphs may be omitted or the
wording modified to state the points to which the concurrence applies.)

                                 Tariff

    (Here describe the tariff or tariffs concurred in by the carrier,
specifying FCC number, title, date of issuance, and date effective.
Example: A.B.C. Communications Company, Tariff FCC No. 1, Interstate
Telegraph Message Service, Issued January 1, 1983, Effective April 1,
1983).
    Cancels FCC Concurrence No.------, effective ----------------------
--, 19----.

(Name of concurring carrier)____________________________________________
By______________________________________________________________________
(Title)_________________________________________________________________

    (b) No material is to be included in a concurrence other than that
indicated in the above-prescribed form, unless specially authorized by
the Commission. A concurrence in any tariff so described will be deemed
to include all amendments and successive issues which the issuing
carrier may make and file. All such amendments and successive issues
will be binding between customers and carriers. Between carriers
themselves, however, the filing by the issuing carrier of an amendment
or successive issue with the Commission must not imply or be construed
to imply an agreement to the filing by concurring carriers. Such filings
do not affect the contractual rights or remedies of any concurring
carrier(s) which have not, by contract or otherwise, specifically
consented in advance to such amendment or successive issue.



Sec. 61.134  Concurrences for through services.

    An issuing carrier filing rates or regulations for through services
between points on its own system and points on another carrier's system
(or systems), or between points on another carrier's system (or
systems), must list all concurring, connecting or other participating
carriers as provided in Sec. 61.54 (f), (g) and (h). A concurring
carrier must tender a properly executed instrument of concurrence to the
issuing carrier. If rates and regulations of the other carriers engaging
in the through service(s) are not specified in the issuing carrier's
tariff, that tariff must state where the other carrier's rates and
regulations can be found. Such reference(s) must contain the FCC
number(s) of the referenced tariff publication(s), the exact name(s) of
the carrier(s) issuing such tariff publication(s), and must clearly
state how the rates and regulations in the separate publications apply.

[76 FR 43216, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.135  Concurrences for other purposes.

    When an issuing carrier permits another carrier to concur in its
tariff, the issuing carrier's tariff must state the

[[Page 282]]

concurring carrier's rates and points of service.



Sec. 61.136  Revocation of concurrences.

    A concurrence may be revoked by a revocation notice or cancelled by
a new concurrence. A revocation notice or a new concurrence, if less
broad in scope than the concurrence it cancels, must bear an effective
date not less than 45 days after its receipt by the Commission. A
revocation notice is not given a serial number, but must specify the
number of the concurrence to be revoked and the name of the carrier in
whose favor the concurrence was issued. It must be in the following
format:

                            Revocation Notice

(Name of carrier ------------------------)
(Post office address ----------------------------)
(Date) ----------------------, 19----.
Secretary,
Federal Communications Commission, Washington, D.C. 20554.
    Effective --------------------------, 19---- FCC Concurrence No. --
--, issued by (Name of concurring carrier) in favor of (Name of issuing
carrier) is hereby cancelled and revoked. Rates and regulations of (Name
of concurring carrier) and its connecting carriers will thereafter be
found in Tariff FCC No. ---- issued by ------------------ (If the
concurring carrier has ceased operations, the revocation notice must so
indicate.)

(Name of carrier)_______________________________________________________
By______________________________________________________________________
(Title)_________________________________________________________________



    Subpart I_Adoption of Tariffs and Other Documents of Predecessor
                                Carriers



Sec. 61.171  Adoption notice.

    When a carrier's name is changed, or its operating control
transferred from one carrier to another in whole or in part, the
successor carrier must file tariff revisions to reflect the name change.
The successor carrier may either immediately reissue the entire tariff
in its own name, or immediately file an adoption notice. Within 35 days
of filing an adoption notice, the successor must reissue the entire
tariff in its own name. The reissued tariff must be numbered in the
series of the successor carrier, and must contain all original pages
without changes in regulations or rates. The transmittal letter must
state the tariff is being filed to show a change in the carrier's name
pursuant to Sec. 61.171 of the Commission's Rules. The adoption notice,
if used, must read as follows:

    The (Exact name of successor carrier or receiver) here adopts,
ratifies and makes its own in every respect, all applicable tariffs and
amendments filed with the Federal Communications Commission by
(predecessor) prior to (date).



Sec. 61.172  Changes to be incorporated in tariffs of successor carrier.

    When only a portion of properties is transferred to a successor
carrier, that carrier must incorporate in its tariff the rates applying
locally between points on the transferred portion. Moreover, the
predecessor carrier must simultaneously cancel the corresponding rates
from its tariffs, and reference the FCC number of the successor
carrier's tariff containing the rates that will thereafter apply.



                          Subpart J_Suspensions



Sec. 61.191  Carrier to file supplement when notified of suspension.

    If an issuing carrier is notified by the Commission that its tariff
publication has been suspended, the carrier must file, within five
business days from the release date of the suspension order, a
consecutively numbered supplement without an effective date, which
specifies the schedules which have been suspended.

[76 FR 43217, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 61.192  Contents of supplement announcing suspension.

    (a) A supplement announcing a suspension by the Commission must
specify the term of suspension imposed by the Commission.
    (b) A supplement announcing a suspension of either an entire tariff
or a part of a tariff publication, must specify the applicable tariff
publication effective during the period of suspension.



Sec. 61.193  Vacation of suspension order; supplements announcing same; etc.

    If the Commission vacates a suspension order, the affected carrier
must

[[Page 283]]

issue a supplement or revised page stating the Commission's action as
well as the lawful schedules.



  PART 63_EXTENSION OF LINES, NEW LINES, AND DISCONTINUANCE, REDUCTION,
  OUTAGE AND IMPAIRMENT OF SERVICE BY COMMON CARRIERS; AND GRANTS OF

  RECOGNIZED PRIVATE OPERATING AGENCY STATUS--Table of Contents



                       Extensions and Supplements

Sec.
63.01 Authority for all domestic common carriers.
63.02 Exemptions for extensions of lines and for systems for the
          delivery of video programming.
63.03 Streamlining procedures for domestic transfer of control
          applications.
63.04 Filing procedures for domestic transfer of control applications.
63.09 Definitions applicable to international Section 214
          authorizations.
63.10 Regulatory classification of U.S. international carriers.
63.11 Notification by and prior approval for U.S. international carriers
          that are or propose to become affiliated with a foreign
          carrier.
63.12 Processing of international Section 214 applications.
63.13 Procedures for modifying regulatory classification of U.S.
          international carriers from dominant to non-dominant.
63.14 Prohibition on agreeing to accept special concessions.
63.16 Switched services over private lines.
63.17 Special provisions for U.S. international common carriers.
63.18 Contents of applications for international common carriers.
63.19 Special procedures for discontinuances of international services.
63.20 Electronic filing, copies required; fees; and filing periods for
          international service providers.
63.21 Conditions applicable to all international Section 214
          authorizations.
63.22 Facilities-based international common carriers.
63.23 Resale-based international common carriers.
63.24 Assignments and transfers of control.
63.25 Special provisions relating to temporary or emergency service by
          international carriers.

    General Provisions Relating to All Applications Under Section 214

63.50 Amendment of applications.
63.51 Additional information.
63.52 Copies required; fees; and filing periods for domestic
          authorizations.
63.53 Form.

            Discontinuance, Reduction, Outage and Impairment

63.60 Definitions.
63.61 Applicability.
63.62 Type of discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of telephone or
          telegraph service requiring formal application.
63.63 Emergency discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service.
63.65 Closure of public toll station where another toll station of
          applicant in the community will continue service.
63.66 Closure of or reduction of hours of service at telephone exchanges
          at military establishments.
63.71 Procedures for discontinuance, reduction or impairment of service
          by domestic carriers.
63.90 Publication and posting of notices.
63.100 Notification of service outage.

                   Contents of Applications; Examples

63.500 Contents of applications to dismantle or remove a trunk line.
63.501 Contents of applications to sever physical connection or to
          terminate or suspend interchange of traffic with another
          carrier.
63.504 Contents of applications to close a public toll station where no
          other such toll station of the applicant in the community will
          continue service and where telephone toll service is not
          otherwise available to the public through a telephone exchange
          connected with the toll lines of a carrier.
63.505 Contents of applications for any type of discontinuance,
          reduction, or impairment of telephone service not specifically
          provided for in this part.
63.601 Contents of applications for authority to reduce the hours of
          service of public coast stations under the conditions
          specified in Sec. 63.70.

    Request for Designation as a Recognized Private Operating Agency

63.701 Contents of application.
63.702 Form.

    Authority: Sections 1, 4(i), 4(j), 10, 11, 201-205, 214, 218, 403
and 651 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151,
154(i), 154(j), 160, 201-205, 214, 218, 403, and 571, unless otherwise
noted.

    Source: 28 FR 13229, Dec. 5, 1963, unless otherwise noted.

[[Page 284]]

                       Extensions and Supplements



Sec. 63.01  Authority for all domestic common carriers.

    (a) Any party that would be a domestic interstate communications
common carrier is authorized to provide domestic, interstate services to
any domestic point and to construct or operate any domestic transmission
line as long as it obtains all necessary authorizations from the
Commission for use of radio frequencies.
    (b) Domestic common carriers subject to this section shall not
engage in any line construction that may have a significant effect on
the environment as defined in Sec. 1.1307 of this chapter without prior
compliance with the Commission's environmental rules. See Sec. 1.1312
of this chapter.

[64 FR 39939, July 23, 1999, as amended at 67 FR 18830, Apr. 17, 2002]



Sec. 63.02  Exemptions for extensions of lines and for systems for the
delivery of video programming.

    (a) Any common carrier is exempt from the requirements of section
214 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, for the extension of
any line.
    (b) A common carrier shall not be required to obtain a certificate
under section 214 of the Communications Act of 1934 with respect to the
establishment or operation of a system for the delivery of video
programming.

[64 FR 39939, July 23, 1999]



Sec. 63.03  Streamlining procedures for domestic transfer of control
applications.

    Any domestic carrier that seeks to transfer control of lines or
authorization to operate pursuant to section 214 of the Communications
Act of 1934, as amended, shall be subject to the following procedures:
    (a) Public notice and review period. Upon determination by the
Common Carrier Bureau that the applicants have filed a complete
application and that the application is appropriate for streamlined
treatment, the Common Carrier Bureau will issue a public notice stating
that the application has been accepted for filing as a streamlined
application. Unless otherwise notified by the Commission, an applicant
is permitted to transfer control of the domestic lines or authorization
to operate on the 31st day after the date of public notice listing a
domestic section 214 transfer of control application as accepted for
filing as a streamlined application, but only in accordance with the
operations proposed in its application. Comments on streamlined
applications may be filed during the first 14 days following public
notice, and reply comments may be filed during the first 21 days
following public notice, unless the public notice specifies a different
pleading cycle. All comments on streamlined applications shall be filed
electronically, and shall satisfy such other filing requirements as may
be specified in the public notice.
    (b) Presumptive streamlined categories. (1) The streamlined
procedures provided in this rule shall be presumed to apply to all
transfer of control applications in which:
    (i) Both applicants are non-facilities-based carriers;
    (ii) The transferee is not a telecommunications provider; or
    (iii) The proposed transaction involves only the transfer of the
local exchange assets of an incumbent LEC by means other than an
acquisition of corporate control.
    (2) Where a proposed transaction would result in a transferee having
a market share in the interstate, interexchange market of less than 10
percent, and the transferee would provide competitive telephone exchange
services or exchange access services (if at all) exclusively in
geographic areas served by a dominant local exchange carrier that is not
a party to the transaction, the streamlined procedures provided in this
rule shall be presumed to apply to transfer of control applications in
which:
    (i) Neither of the applicants is dominant with respect to any
service;
    (ii) The applicants are a dominant carrier and a non-dominant
carrier that provides services exclusively outside the geographic area
where the dominant carrier is dominant; or
    (iii) The applicants are incumbent independent local exchange
carriers (as defined in Sec. 64.1902 of this chapter) that have, in
combination, fewer than two (2) percent of the nation's subscriber

[[Page 285]]

lines installed in the aggregate nationwide, and no overlapping or
adjacent service areas.
    (3) For purposes of (b)(1) and (2) of this paragraph, the terms
``applicant,'' ``carrier,'' ``party,'' and ``transferee'' (and their
plural forms) include any affiliates of such entities within the meaning
of section 3(1) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (c) Removal of application from streamlined processing. (1) At any
time after an application is filed, the Commission, acting through the
Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau, may notify an applicant that
its application is being removed from streamlined processing, or will
not be subject to streamlined processing. Examples of appropriate
circumstances for such action are:
    (i) An application is associated with a non-routine request for
waiver of the Commission's rules;
    (ii) An application would, on its face, violate a Commission rule or
the Communications Act;
    (iii) An applicant fails to respond promptly to Commission
inquiries;
    (iv) Timely-filed comments on the application raise public interest
concerns that require further Commission review; or
    (v) The Commission, acting through the Chief of the Wireline
Competition Bureau, otherwise determines that the application requires
further analysis to determine whether a proposed transfer of control
would serve the public interest.
    (2) Notification will be by public notice that states the reason for
removal or non-streamlined treatment, and indicates the expected
timeframe for Commission action on the application. Except in
extraordinary circumstances, final action on the application should be
expected no later than 180 days from public notice that the application
has been accepted for filing.
    (d) Pro forma transactions. (1) Any party that would be a domestic
common carrier under section 214 of the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended, is authorized to undertake any corporate restructuring,
reorganization or liquidation of internal business operations that does
not result in a change in ultimate ownership or control of the carrier's
lines or authorization to operate, including transfers in bankruptcy
proceedings to a trustee or to the carrier itself as a debtor-in-
possession. \1\ Under this rule, a transfer of control of a domestic
line or authorization to operate is considered pro forma when, together
with all previous internal corporate restructurings, the transaction
does not result in a change in the carrier's ultimate ownership or
control, or otherwise falls into one of the illustrative categories
found in Sec. 63.24 of this part governing transfers of control of
international carriers under section 214 of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ ``Control'' includes actual working control in whatever manner
exercised and is not limited to majority stock ownership. ``Control''
also includes direct or indirect ownership or control, such as through
intervening subsidiaries. See 47 CFR 63.09.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (2) Any party that would be a domestic common carrier under section
214 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, must notify the
Commission no later than 30 days after control of the carrier is
transferred to a trustee under Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code, a
debtor-in-possession under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code, or any
other party pursuant to any applicable chapter of the Bankruptcy Code
when that transfer does not result in a change in ultimate ownership or
control of the carrier's lines or authorization to operate. The
notification can be in the form of a letter (in duplicate to the
Secretary). The letter or other form of notification must also contain
the information listed in paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(4) in Sec.
63.04. A single letter may be filed for more than one such transfer of
control. If a carrier files a discontinuance request within 30 days of
the transfer in bankruptcy, the Commission will treat the discontinuance
request as sufficient to fulfill the pro forma post-transaction notice
requirement.
    (3) Notwithstanding any other provision in this part, any party that
would be a domestic common carrier under section 214 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, including a carrier that begins
providing service through a differently named subsidiary after an

[[Page 286]]

internal corporate restructuring, remains subject to all applicable
conditions of service after an internal restructuring, such as rules
governing slamming and tariffing.

[67 FR 18831, Apr. 17, 2002; 67 FR 21803, May 1, 2002]



Sec. 63.04  Filing procedures for domestic transfer of control
applications

    (a) Domestic services only. A carrier seeking domestic section 214
authorization for transfer of control should file an application
containing:
    (1) The name, address and telephone number of each applicant;
    (2) The government, state, or territory under the laws of which each
corporate or partnership applicant is organized;
    (3) The name, title, post office address, and telephone number of
the officer or contact point, such as legal counsel, to whom
correspondence concerning the application is to be addressed;
    (4) The name, address, citizenship and principal business of any
person or entity that directly or indirectly owns at least ten (10)
percent of the equity of the applicant, and the percentage of equity
owned by each of those entities (to the nearest one (1) percent);
    (5) Certification pursuant to Sec. Sec. 1.2001 through 1.2003 of
this chapter that no party to the application is subject to a denial of
Federal benefits pursuant to section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of
1988. See 21 U.S.C. 853.
    (6) A description of the transaction;
    (7) A description of the geographic areas in which the transferor
and transferee (and their affiliates) offer domestic telecommunications
services, and what services are provided in each area;
    (8) A statement as to how the application fits into one or more of
the presumptive streamlined categories in this section or why it is
otherwise appropriate for streamlined treatment;
    (9) Identification of all other Commission applications related to
the same transaction;
    (10) A statement of whether the applicants are requesting special
consideration because either party to the transaction is facing imminent
business failure;
    (11) Identification of any separately filed waiver requests being
sought in conjunction with the transaction; and
    (12) A statement showing how grant of the application will serve the
public interest, convenience and necessity, including any additional
information that may be necessary to show the effect of the proposed
transaction on competition in domestic markets.
    (b) Domestic/International applications for transfers of control.
Where an applicant wishes to file a joint international section 214
transfer of control application and domestic section 214 transfer of
control application, the applicant should submit information that
satisfies the requirements of Sec. 63.18, which specifies the contents
of applications for international authorizations, together with filing
fees that satisfy (and are in accordance with filing procedures
applicable to) both Sec. Sec. 1.1105 and 1.1107 of this chapter. In an
attachment to the international application, the applicant should submit
the information described in paragraphs (a)(6) through (a)(12) of this
section.

[67 FR 18832, Apr. 17, 2002]



Sec. 63.09  Definitions applicable to international Section 214
authorizations.

    The following definitions shall apply to Sec. Sec. 63.09-63.24 of
this part, unless the context indicates otherwise:
    (a) Facilities-based carrier means a carrier that holds an
ownership, indefeasible-right-of-user, or leasehold interest in bare
capacity in the U.S. end of an international facility, regardless of
whether the underlying facility is a common carrier or non-common
carrier submarine cable or a satellite system.
    (b) Control includes actual working control in whatever manner
exercised and is not limited to majority stock ownership. Control also
includes direct or indirect control, such as through intervening
subsidiaries.
    (c) Special concession is defined as in Sec. 63.14(b) of this part.
    (d) Foreign carrier is defined as any entity that is authorized
within a foreign country to engage in the provision of international
telecommunications services offered to the public in that country within
the meaning of the

[[Page 287]]

International Telecommunication Regulations, see Final Acts of the World
Administrative Telegraph and Telephone Conference, Melbourne, 1988
(WATTC-88), Art. 1, which includes entities authorized to engage in the
provision of domestic telecommunications services if such carriers have
the ability to originate or terminate telecommunications services to or
from points outside their country.
    (e) Two entities are affiliated with each other if one of them, or
an entity that controls one of them, directly or indirectly owns more
than 25 percent of the capital stock of, or controls, the other one.
    Also, a U.S. carrier is affiliated with two or more foreign carriers
if the foreign carriers, or entities that control them, together
directly or indirectly own more than 25 percent of the capital stock of,
or control, the U.S. carrier and those foreign carriers are parties to,
or the beneficiaries of, a contractual relation (e.g., a joint venture
or market alliance) affecting the provision or marketing of
international basic telecommunications services in the United States.
    (f) Market power means sufficient market power to affect competition
adversely in the U.S. market.
    (g) As used in this part, the term:
    (1) Interlocking directorates shall mean persons or entities who
perform the duties of ``officer or director'' in an authorized U.S.
international carrier or an applicant for international Section 214
authorization who also performs such duties for any foreign carrier.
    (2) Officer or director shall include the duties, or any of the
duties, ordinarily performed by a director, president, vice president,
secretary, treasurer, or other officer of a carrier.

    Note 1: The assessment of ``capital stock'' ownership will be made
under the standards developed in Commission case law for determining
such ownership. See, e.g., Fox Television Stations, Inc., 10 FCC Rcd
8452 (1995). ``Capital stock'' includes all forms of equity ownership,
including partnership interests.
    Note 2: Ownership and other interests in U.S. and foreign carriers
will be attributed to their holders and deemed cognizable pursuant to
the following criteria: Attribution of ownership interests in a carrier
that are held indirectly by any party through one or more intervening
corporations will be determined by successive multiplication of the
ownership percentages for each link in the vertical ownership chain and
application of the relevant attribution benchmark to the resulting
product, except that wherever the ownership percentage for any link in
the chain that is equal to or exceeds 50 percent or represents actual
control, it shall be treated as if it were a 100 percent interest. For
example, if A owns 30 percent of company X, which owns 60 percent of
company Y, which owns 26 percent of ``carrier,''' then X's interest in
``carrier''' would be 26 percent (the same as Y's interest because X's
interest in Y exceeds 50 percent), and A's interest in ``carrier'''
would be 7.8 percent (0.30x0.26 because A's interest in X is less than
50 percent). Under the 25 percent attribution benchmark, X's interest in
``carrier''' would be cognizable, while A's interest would not be
cognizable.

[64 FR 19062, Apr. 19, 1999, as amended at 65 FR 60116, Oct. 10, 2000;
67 FR 45390, July 9, 2002]



Sec. 63.10  Regulatory classification of U.S. international carriers.

    (a) Unless otherwise determined by the Commission, any party
authorized to provide an international communications service under this
part shall be classified as either dominant or non-dominant for the
provision of particular international communications services on
particular routes as set forth in this section. The rules set forth in
this section shall also apply to determinations of regulatory status
pursuant to Sec. Sec. 63.11 and 63.13. For purposes of paragraphs
(a)(2) and (a)(3) of this section, the relevant markets on the foreign
end of a U.S. international route include: international transport
facilities or services, including cable landing station access and
backhaul facilities; inter-city facilities or services; and local access
facilities or services on the foreign end of a particular route.
    (1) A U.S. carrier that has no affiliation with, and that itself is
not, a foreign carrier in a particular country to which it provides
service (i.e., a destination country) shall presumptively be considered
non-dominant for the provision of international communications services
on that route;
    (2) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(4) of this section, a U.S.
carrier that is, or that has or acquires an affiliation

[[Page 288]]

with a foreign carrier that is a monopoly provider of communications
services in a relevant market in a destination country shall
presumptively be classified as dominant for the provision of
international communications services on that route; and
    (3) A U.S. carrier that is, or that has or acquires an affiliation
with a foreign carrier that is not a monopoly provider of communications
services in a relevant market in a destination country and that seeks to
be regulated as non-dominant on that route bears the burden of
submitting information to the Commission sufficient to demonstrate that
its foreign affiliate lacks sufficient market power on the foreign end
of the route to affect competition adversely in the U.S. market. If the
U.S. carrier demonstrates that the foreign affiliate lacks 50 percent
market share in the international transport and the local access markets
on the foreign end of the route, the U.S. carrier shall presumptively be
classified as non-dominant.
    (4) A carrier that is authorized under this part to provide to a
particular destination an international switched service, and that
provides such service solely through the resale of an unaffiliated U.S.
facilities-based carrier's international switched services (either
directly or indirectly through the resale of another U.S. resale
carrier's international switched services), shall presumptively be
classified as non-dominant for the provision of the authorized service.
A carrier regulated as non-dominant pursuant to this subparagraph shall
notify the Commission at any time that it begins to provide such service
through the resale of an affiliated U.S. facilities-based carrier's
international switched services. The carrier will be deemed a dominant
carrier on the route absent a Commission finding that the carrier
otherwise qualifies for non-dominant regulation pursuant to this
section.
    (b) Any party that seeks to defeat the presumptions in paragraph (a)
of this section shall bear the burden of proof upon any issue it raises
as to the proper classification of the U.S. carrier.
    (c) Any carrier classified as dominant for the provision of
particular services on particular routes under this section shall comply
with the following requirements in its provision of such services on
each such route:
    (1) Provide services as an entity that is separate from its foreign
carrier affiliate, in compliance with the following requirements:
    (i) The authorized carrier shall maintain separate books of account
from its affiliated foreign carrier. These separate books of account do
not need to comply with part 32 of this chapter; and
    (ii) The authorized carrier shall not jointly own transmission or
switching facilities with its affiliated foreign carrier. Nothing in
this section prohibits the U.S. carrier from sharing personnel or other
resources or assets with its foreign affiliate;
    (2) File quarterly reports on traffic and revenue within 90 days
from the end of each calendar quarter consistent with the format set out
by the Sec. 43.62 filing manual.
    (3) File quarterly reports summarizing the provisioning and
maintenance of all basic network facilities and services procured from
its foreign carrier affiliate or from an allied foreign carrier,
including, but not limited to, those it procures on behalf of customers
of any joint venture for the provision of U.S. basic or enhanced
services in which the authorized carrier and the foreign carrier
participate, within 90 days from the end of each calendar quarter. These
reports should contain the following: the types of circuits and services
provided; the average time intervals between order and delivery; the
number of outages and intervals between fault report and service
restoration; and for circuits used to provide international switched
service, the percentage of ``peak hour'' calls that failed to complete;
    (4) In the case of an authorized facilities-based carrier, file
quarterly, within 90 days from the end of each calendar quarter, a
report of its active and idle 64 kbps or equivalent circuits by facility
(terrestrial, satellite and submarine cable).
    (5) If authorized to provide facilities-based service, comply with
paragraph (e) of this section.

[[Page 289]]

    (d) A carrier classified as dominant under this section shall file
an original and two copies of each report required by paragraphs (c)(3),
(c)(4), and (c)(5) of this section with the Chief, International Bureau.
The carrier shall also file one copy of these reports with the
Commission's copy contractor. The transmittal letter accompanying each
report shall clearly identify the report as responsive to the
appropriate paragraph of Sec. 63.10(c).
    (e) Except as otherwise ordered by the Commission, a carrier that is
classified as dominant under this section for the provision of
facilities-based services on a particular route and that is affiliated
with a carrier that collects settlement payments for terminating U.S.
international switched traffic at the foreign end of that route may not
provide switched facilities-based service on that route unless the
current rates the affiliate charges U.S. international carriers to
terminate traffic are at or below the Commission's relevant benchmark
adopted in IB Docket No. 96-261. See FCC 97-280 (rel. Aug. 18, 1997)
(available at the FCC's Reference Operations Division, Washington, D.C.
20554, and on the FCC's World Wide Web Site at http://www.fcc.gov).

[62 FR 64752, Dec. 9, 1997, as amended at 64 FR 19062, Apr. 19, 1999; 64
FR 46593, Aug. 26, 1999; 64 FR 47702, Sept. 1, 1999; 66 FR 16881, Mar.
28, 2001; 67 FR 45390, July 9, 2002; 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013, Sec. 63.10 was
amended by revising paragraphs (c)(2) and (c)(4). These paragraphs
contain information collection and recordkeeping requirements and will
not become effective until approval has been given by the Office of
Management and Budget.



Sec. 63.11  Notification by and prior approval for U.S. international
carriers that are or propose to become affiliated with a foreign

carrier.

    If a carrier is authorized by the Commission (``authorized
carrier'') to provide service between the United States and a particular
foreign destination market and it becomes, or seeks to become,
affiliated with a foreign carrier that is authorized to operate in that
market, then its authorization to provide that international service is
conditioned upon notifying the Commission of that affiliation.
    (a) Affiliations requiring prior notification. Except as provided in
paragraph (b) of this section, the authorized carrier must notify the
Commission, pursuant to this section, forty-five days before
consummation of either of the following types of transactions:
    (1) Acquisition by the authorized carrier, or by any entity that
controls the authorized carrier, or by any entity that directly or
indirectly owns more than twenty-five percent of the capital stock of
the authorized carrier, of a controlling interest in a foreign carrier
that is authorized to operate in a market that the carrier is authorized
to serve; or
    (2) Acquisition of a direct or indirect interest greater than
twenty-five percent, or of a controlling interest, in the capital stock
of the authorized carrier by a foreign carrier that is authorized to
operate in a market that the authorized carrier is authorized to serve,
or by an entity that controls such a foreign carrier.
    (b) Exceptions. (1) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this section,
the notification required by this section need not be filed before
consummation, and may instead be filed pursuant to paragraph (c) of this
section, if either of the following is true with respect to the named
foreign carrier regardless of whether that foreign carrier is authorized
to operate in a World Trade Organization (WTO) or non-WTO Member:
    (i) The Commission has previously determined in an adjudication that
the foreign carrier lacks market power in that destination market (for
example, in an international section 214 application or a declaratory
ruling proceeding); or
    (ii) The foreign carrier owns no facilities in that destination
market. For this purpose, a carrier is said to own facilities if it
holds an ownership, indefeasible-right-of-user, or leasehold interest in
bare capacity in international or domestic telecommunications facilities
(excluding switches).
    (2) In the event paragraph (b)(1) of this section cannot be
satisfied, notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this section, the
notification required by this section need not be filed before
consummation, and may instead be filed

[[Page 290]]

pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section, if the authorized carrier
certifies that the named foreign carrier is authorized to operate in a
WTO Member and provides certification to satisfy either of the
following:
    (i) The authorized carrier demonstrates that it is entitled to
retain non-dominant classification on its newly affiliated route
pursuant to Sec. 63.10; or
    (ii) The authorized carrier agrees to comply with the dominant
carrier safeguards contained in Sec. 63.10 effective upon the
acquisition of the affiliation. See Sec. 63.10.
    (c) Notification after consummation. Any authorized carrier that
becomes affiliated with a foreign carrier and has not previously
notified the Commission pursuant to this section shall notify the
Commission within thirty days after consummation of the acquisition.

    Example 1 to paragraph (c). Acquisition by an authorized carrier (or
by any entity that directly or indirectly controls, is controlled by, or
is under direct or indirect common control with the authorized carrier)
of a direct or indirect interest in a foreign carrier that is greater
than twenty-five percent but not controlling is subject to paragraph (c)
but not to paragraph (a).
    Example 2 to paragraph (c). Notification of an acquisition by an
authorized carrier of a hundred percent interest in a foreign carrier
may be made after consummation, pursuant to paragraph (c), if the
foreign carrier operates only as a resale carrier.
    Example 3 to paragraph (c). Notification of an acquisition by a
foreign carrier from a WTO Member of a greater than twenty-five percent
interest in the capital stock of an authorized carrier may be made after
consummation, pursuant to paragraph (c) of this section, if the
authorized carrier demonstrates in the post-notification that it
qualifies for non-dominant classification on the affiliated route or
agrees to comply with dominant carrier safeguards on the affiliated
route effective upon the acquisition of the affiliation.

    (d) Cross-reference: In the event a transaction requiring a foreign
carrier notification pursuant to this section also requires a transfer
of control of assignment application pursuant to Sec. 63.24, the
foreign carrier notification shall reference in the notification the
transfer of control of assignment application and the date of its
filing.
    (e) Contents of notification. The notification shall certify the
following information:
    (1) The name of the newly affiliated foreign carrier and the country
or countries in which it is authorized to provide telecommunications
services to the public;
    (2) Which, if any, of those countries is a Member of the World Trade
Organization;
    (3) What services the authorized carrier is authorized to provide to
each named country, and the FCC file numbers under which each such
authorization was granted;
    (4) Which, if any, of those countries the authorized carrier serves
solely through the resale of the international switched services of
unaffiliated U.S. facilities-based carriers;
    (5) The name, address, citizenship, and principal business of any
person or entity that directly or indirectly owns at least ten (10)
percent of the equity of the authorized carrier, and the percentage of
equity owned by each of those entities (to the nearest one percent);
    (6) A certification that the authorized carrier has not agreed to
and will not in the future agree to accept special concessions directly
or indirectly from any foreign carrier with respect to any U.S.
international route where the foreign carrier possesses market power on
the foreign end of the route; and
    (7) Interlocking directorates. The name of any interlocking
directorates, as defined in Sec. 63.09(g), with each foreign carrier
named in the notification. See Sec. 63.09(g).
    (8) With respect to each foreign carrier named in the notification,
a statement as to whether the notification is subject to paragraph (a)
or (c) of this section. In the case of a notification subject to
paragraph (a) of this section, the authorized carrier shall include the
projected date of closing. In the case of a notification subject to
paragraph (c) of this section, the authorized carrier shall include the
actual date of closing.
    (9) If an authorized carrier relies on an exception in paragraph (b)
of this section, then a certification as to which exception the foreign
carrier satisfies and a citation to any adjudication upon which the
carrier is relying.

[[Page 291]]

Authorized carriers relying upon the exceptions in paragraph (b)(2) of
this section must make the required certified demonstration in paragraph
(b)(2)(i) of this section or the certified commitment to comply with
dominant carrier safeguards in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section in
the notification required by paragraph (c) of this section.
    (f) In order to retain non-dominant status on each newly affiliated
route, the authorized carrier should demonstrate that it qualifies for
non-dominant classification pursuant to Sec. 63.10. See Sec. 63.10.
    (g) Procedure. After the Commission issues a public notice of the
submissions made under this section, interested parties may file
comments within fourteen days of the public notice.
    (1) If the Commission deems it necessary at any time before or after
the deadline for submission of public comments, the Commission may
impose dominant carrier regulation on the authorized carrier for the
affiliated routes based on the provisions of Sec. 63.10. See Sec.
63.10.
    (2) In the case of a prior notification filed pursuant to paragraph
(a) of this section, the U.S. authorized carrier must demonstrate that
it continues to serve the public interest for it to operate on the route
for which it proposes to acquire an affiliation with the foreign carrier
authorized to operate in the non-WTO Member country. Such a showing
shall include a demonstration as to whether the foreign carrier lacks
market power in the non-WTO Member country with reference to the
criteria in Sec. 63.10(a) of this chapter. If the U.S. authorized
carrier is unable to make the required showing in Sec. 63.10(a) of this
chapter, the U.S. authorized carrier shall agree to comply with the
dominant carrier safeguards contained in Sec. 63.10(c) of this chapter,
effective upon the acquisition of the affiliation. If the U.S.
authorized carrier is notified by the Commission that the affiliation
may otherwise harm the public interest pursuant to the Commission's
policies and rules, then the Commission may impose conditions necessary
to address any public interest harms or may proceed to an immediate
authorization revocation hearing.

    Note to paragraph (g)(2):
    Under Sec. 63.10(a) of this chapter, the Commission presumes,
subject to rebuttal, that a foreign carrier lacks market power in a
particular foreign country if the applicant demonstrates that the
foreign carrier lacks 50 percent market share in international transport
facilities or services, including cable landing station access and
backhaul facilities, intercity facilities or services, and local access
facilities or services on the foreign end of a particular route.

    (h) All authorized carriers are responsible for the continuing
accuracy of information provided pursuant to this section for a period
of forty-five (45) days after filing. During this period if the
information furnished is no longer accurate, the authorized carrier
shall as promptly as possible, and in any event within ten (10) days,
unless good cause is shown, file with the Commission a corrected
notification referencing the FCC file numbers under which the original
notification was provided, except that the carrier shall immediately
inform the Commission, if at any time, not limited to the forty-five
(45) days, the representations in the ``special concessions''
certification provided under paragraph (e)(6) of this section or Sec.
63.18(n) are no longer true. See Sec. 63.18(n).
    (i) A carrier that files a prior notification pursuant to paragraph
(a) of this section may request confidential treatment of its filing,
pursuant to Sec. 0.459 of this chapter, for the first twenty (20) days
after filing.
    (j) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, notifications
described in this section must be filed electronically through the
International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A list of forms that are
available for electronic filing can be found on the IBFS homepage. For
information on electronic filing requirements, see part 1, Sec. Sec.
1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the IBFS homepage at http://
www.fcc.gov/ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20 and 63.53.

[65 FR 60116, Oct. 10, 2000, as amended at 68 FR 50973, Aug. 25, 2003;
69 FR 29901, May 26, 2004; 70 FR 38798, July 6, 2005;79 FR 31877, June
3, 2014]

[[Page 292]]


    Effective Date Note: At 79 FR 31877, June 3, 2014, Sec. 63.11 was
amended by revising paragraph (g)(2). This paragraph contains
information collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not
become effective until approval has been given by the Office of
Management and Budget.



Sec. 63.12  Processing of international Section 214 applications.

    (a) Except as provided by paragraph (c) of this section, a complete
application seeking authorization under Sec. 63.18 of this part shall
be granted by the Commission 14 days after the date of public notice
listing the application as accepted for filing.
    (b) The applicant may commence operation on the 15th day after the
date of public notice listing the application as accepted for filing,
but only in accordance with the operations proposed in its application
and the rules, regulations, and policies of the Commission. The public
notice of the grant of the authorization shall represent the applicant's
Section 214 certificate.
    (c) The streamlined processing procedures provided by paragraphs (a)
and (b) of this section shall not apply where:
    (1) The applicant is affiliated with a foreign carrier in a
destination market, unless the applicant clearly demonstrates in its
application at least one of the following:
    (i) The Commission has previously determined that the affiliated
foreign carrier lacks market power in that destination market;
    (ii) The applicant qualifies for a presumption of non-dominance
under Sec. 63.10(a)(3);
    (iii) The affiliated foreign carrier owns no facilities, or only
mobile wireless facilities, in that destination market. For this
purpose, a carrier is said to own facilities if it holds an ownership,
indefeasible-right-of-user, or leasehold interest in bare capacity in
international or domestic telecommunications facilities (excluding
switches);
    (iv) The affiliated destination market is a WTO Member country and
the applicant qualifies for a presumption of non-dominance under Sec.
63.10(a)(4)of this part;
    (v) The affiliated destination market is a WTO Member country and
the applicant agrees to be classified as a dominant carrier to the
affiliated destination country under Sec. 63.10, without prejudice to
its right to petition for reclassification at a later date; or
    (vi) An entity with exactly the same ultimate ownership as the
applicant has been authorized to provide the applied-for services on the
affiliated destination route, and the applicant agrees to be subject to
all of the conditions to which the authorized carrier is subject for its
provision of service on that route; or
    (2) The applicant has an affiliation with a dominant U.S. carrier
whose international switched or private line services the applicant
seeks authority to resell (either directly or indirectly through the
resale of another reseller's services), unless the applicant agrees to
be classified as a dominant carrier to the affiliated destination
country under Sec. 63.10 (without prejudice to its right to petition
for reclassification at a later date); or
    (3) The Commission has informed the applicant in writing, within 14
days after the date of public notice listing the application as accepted
for filing, that the application is not eligible for streamlined
processing.
    (d) If an application is deemed complete but, pursuant to paragraph
(c) of this section, is deemed ineligible for the streamlined processing
procedures provided by paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, the
Commission will issue public notice indicating that the application is
ineligible for streamlined processing. Within 90 days of the public
notice, the Commission will take action upon the application or provide
public notice that, because the application raises questions of
extraordinary complexity, an additional 90-day period for review is
needed. Each successive 90-day period may be so extended. The
application shall not be deemed granted until the Commission
affirmatively acts upon the application. Operation for which such
authorization is sought may not commence except in accordance with any
terms or conditions imposed by the Commission.

[62 FR 64753, Dec. 9, 1997, as amended at 64 FR 19063, Apr. 19, 1999; 64
FR 22903, Apr. 28, 1999; 64 FR 43095, Aug. 9, 1999; 69 FR 23154, Apr.
28, 2004]

[[Page 293]]



Sec. 63.13  Procedures for modifying regulatory classification of U.S.
international carriers from dominant to non-dominant.

    Any party that desires to modify its regulatory status from dominant
to non-dominant for the provision of particular international
communications services on a particular route should provide information
in its application to demonstrate that it qualifies for non-dominant
classification pursuant to Sec. 63.10.

[62 FR 64754, Dec. 9, 1997]



Sec. 63.14  Prohibition on agreeing to accept special concessions.

    (a) Any carrier authorized to provide international communications
service under this part shall be prohibited, except as provided in
paragraph (c) of this section, from agreeing to accept special
concessions directly or indirectly from any foreign carrier with respect
to any U.S. international route where the foreign carrier possesses
sufficient market power on the foreign end of the route to affect
competition adversely in the U.S. market and from agreeing to accept
special concessions in the future.

    Note to paragraph (a):
    Carriers may rely on the Commission's list of foreign carriers that
do not qualify for the presumption that they lack market power in
particular foreign points for purposes of determining which foreign
carriers are the subject of the prohibitions contained in this section.
The Commission's list of foreign carriers that do not qualify for the
presumption that they lack market power is available from the
International Bureau's World Wide Web site at http://www.fcc.gov/ib.

    (b) A special concession is defined as an exclusive arrangement
involving services, facilities, or functions on the foreign end of a
U.S. international route that are necessary for the provision of basic
telecommunications services where the arrangement is not offered to
similarly situated U.S.-licensed carriers and involves:
    (1) Operating agreements for the provision of basic services;
    (2) Distribution arrangements or interconnection arrangements,
including pricing, technical specifications, functional capabilities, or
other quality and operational characteristics, such as provisioning and
maintenance times; or
    (3) Any information, prior to public disclosure, about a foreign
carrier's basic network services that affects either the provision of
basic or enhanced services or interconnection to the foreign country's
domestic network by U.S. carriers or their U.S. customers.
    (c) This section shall not apply to the rates, terms and conditions
in an agreement between a U.S. carrier and a foreign carrier that govern
the settlement of U.S. international traffic, including the method for
allocating return traffic.

[62 FR 64754, Dec. 9, 1997, as amended at 64 FR 19063, Apr. 19, 1999; 64
FR 34741, June 29, 1999; 66 FR 16881, Mar. 28, 2001; 69 FR 23154, Apr.
28, 2004; 78 FR 11112, Feb. 15, 2013]



Sec. 63.17  Special provisions for U.S. international common carriers.

    (a) Unless otherwise prohibited by the terms of its Section 214
certificate, a U.S. common carrier authorized under this part to provide
international private line service, whether as a reseller or facilities-
based carrier, may interconnect its authorized private lines to the
public switched network on behalf of an end user customer for the end
user customer's own use.
    (b) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(4) of this section, a U.S.
common carrier, whether a reseller or facilities-based carrier, may
engage in ``switched hubbing'' to countries provided the carrier
complies with the following conditions:
    (1) U.S.-outbound switched traffic shall be routed over the
carrier's authorized U.S. international circuits extending between the
United States and a country that is exempt from the international
settlements policy (i.e., the ``hub'' country), and then forwarded to
the third country only by taking at published rates and reselling the
international message telephone service (IMTS) of a carrier in the hub
country;
    (2) U.S.-inbound switched traffic shall be carried to a country that
is exempt from the international settlements policy (i.e., the ``hub''
country) as part of the IMTS traffic flow from a third country and then
terminated in

[[Page 294]]

the United States over the carrier's authorized U.S. international
circuits extending between the United States and the hub country.

    Note to paragraph (b):
    The Commission's list of international routes exempted from the
international settlements policy is available on the International
Bureau's World Wide Web site at http://www.fcc.gov/ib.

    (3) Authorized carriers filing tariffs pursuant to Sec. Sec. 61.19
or 61.28 of this chapter that route U.S.-billed traffic via switched
hubbing shall tariff their service on a ``through'' basis between the
United States and the ultimate point of origination or termination;
    (4) No U.S. common carrier may engage in switched hubbing to or from
a third country where it has an affiliation with a foreign carrier
unless and until it has received authority to serve that country under
Sec. 63.18(e)(1), (e)(2), or (e)(3).

[60 FR 67339, Dec. 29, 1995, as amended at 61 FR 15728, Apr. 9, 1996; 63
FR 64754, Dec. 9, 1997; 64 FR 19064, Apr. 19, 1999; 66 FR 16881, Mar.
28, 2001; 67 FR 45390, July 9, 2002; 69 FR 23154, Apr. 28, 2004; 78 FR
11112, Feb. 15, 2013]



Sec. 63.18  Contents of applications for international common carriers.

    Except as otherwise provided in this part, any party seeking
authority pursuant to Section 214 of the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended, to construct a new line, or acquire or operate any line, or
engage in transmission over or by means of such additional line for the
provision of common carrier communications services between the United
States, its territories or possessions, and a foreign point shall
request such authority by formal application. The application shall
include information demonstrating how the grant of the application will
serve the public interest, convenience, and necessity. Such
demonstration shall consist of the following information, as applicable:
    (a) The name, address, and telephone number of each applicant;
    (b) The Government, State, or Territory under the laws of which each
corporate or partnership applicant is organized;
    (c) The name, title, post office address, and telephone number of
the officer and any other contact point, such as legal counsel, to whom
correspondence concerning the application is to be addressed;
    (d) A statement as to whether the applicant has previously received
authority under Section 214 of the Act and, if so, a general description
of the categories of facilities and services authorized (i.e.,
authorized to provide international switched services on a facilities
basis);
    (e) One or more of the following statements, as pertinent:
    (1) Global facilities-based authority. If applying for authority to
become a facilities-based international common carrier subject to Sec.
63.22 of this part, the applicant shall:
    (i) State that it is requesting Section 214 authority to operate as
a facilities-based carrier pursuant to Sec. 63.18(e)(1) of this part of
the Commission's rules;
    (ii) List any countries for which the applicant does not request
authorization under this paragraph (see Sec. 63.22(a) of this part);
and
    (iii) Certify that it will comply with the terms and conditions
contained in Sec. Sec. 63.21 and 63.22 of this part.
    (2) Global Resale Authority. If applying for authority to resell the
international services of authorized common carriers subject to Sec.
63.23, the applicant shall:
    (i) State that it is requesting Section 214 authority to operate as
a resale carrier pursuant to Sec. 63.18(e)(2) of this section of the
Commission's rules;
    (ii) List any countries for which the applicant does not request
authorization under this paragraph (see Sec. 63.23(a) of this part);
and
    (iii) Certify that it will comply with the terms and conditions
contained in Sec. Sec. 63.21 and 63.23 of this part.
    (3) Other authorizations. If applying for authority to acquire
facilities or to provide services not covered by paragraphs (e)(1) and
(e)(2) of this section, the applicant shall provide a description of the
facilities and services for which it seeks authorization. The applicant
shall certify that it will comply with the terms and conditions
contained in Sec. Sec. 63.21 and 63.22 and/or 63.23, as appropriate.
Such description also

[[Page 295]]

shall include any additional information the Commission shall have
specified previously in an order, public notice or other official action
as necessary for authorization.
    (f) Applicants may apply for any or all of the authority provided
for in paragraph (e) of this section in the same application. The
applicant may want to file separate applications for those services not
subject to streamlined processing under Sec. 63.12.
    (g) Where the applicant is seeking facilities-based authority under
paragraph (e)(3) of this section, a statement whether an authorization
of the facilities is categorically excluded as defined by Sec. 1.1306
of this chapter. If answered affirmatively, an environmental assessment
as described in Sec. 1.1311 of this chapter need not be filed with the
application.
    (h) The name, address, citizenship and principal businesses of any
person or entity that directly or indirectly owns at least ten percent
of the equity of the applicant, and the percentage of equity owned by
each of those entities (to the nearest one percent). The applicant shall
also identify any interlocking directorates with a foreign carrier.

    Note to paragraph (h):
    Ownership and other interests in U.S. and foreign carriers will be
attributed to their holders and deemed cognizable pursuant to the
following criteria: Attribution of ownership interests in a carrier that
are held indirectly by any party through one or more intervening
corporations will be determined by successive multiplication of the
ownership percentages for each link in the vertical ownership chain and
application of the relevant attribution benchmark to the resulting
product, except that wherever the ownership percentage for any link in
the chain that is equal to or exceeds 50 percent or represents actual
control, it shall be treated as if it were a 100 percent interest. For
example, if A owns 30 percent of company X, which owns 60 percent of
company Y, which owns 26 percent of ``carrier,'' then X's interest in
``carrier'' would be 26 percent (the same as Y's interest because X's
interest in Y exceeds 50 percent), and A's interest in ``carrier'' would
be 7.8 percent (0.30x0.26 because A's interest in X is less than 50
percent). Under the 25 percent attribution benchmark, X's interest in
``carrier'' would be cognizable, while A's interest would not be
cognizable.

    (i) A certification as to whether or not the applicant is, or is
affiliated with, a foreign carrier. The certification shall state with
specificity each foreign country in which the applicant is, or is
affiliated with, a foreign carrier.
    (j) A certification as to whether or not the applicant seeks to
provide international telecommunications services to any destination
country for which any of the following is true. The certification shall
state with specificity the foreign carriers and destination countries:
    (1) The applicant is a foreign carrier in that country; or
    (2) The applicant controls a foreign carrier in that country; or
    (3) Any entity that owns more than 25 percent of the applicant, or
that controls the applicant, controls a foreign carrier in that country.
    (4) Two or more foreign carriers (or parties that control foreign
carriers) own, in the aggregate, more than 25 percent of the applicant
and are parties to, or the beneficiaries of, a contractual relation
(e.g., a joint venture or market alliance) affecting the provision or
marketing of international basic telecommunications services in the
United States.
    (k) For any country that the applicant has listed in response to
paragraph (j) of this section that is not a member of the World Trade
Organization, the applicant shall make a demonstration as to whether the
foreign carrier has market power, or lacks market power, with reference
to the criteria in Sec. 63.10(a) of this chapter.
    (1) The named foreign country (i.e., the destination foreign
country) is a Member of the World Trade Organization; or
    (2) The applicant's affiliated foreign carrier lacks market power in
the named foreign country; or
    (3) The named foreign country provides effective competitive
opportunities to U.S. carriers to compete in that country's market for
the service that the applicant seeks to provide (facilities-based,
resold switched, or resold non-interconnected private line services). An
effective competitive opportunities demonstration should address the
following factors:

[[Page 296]]

    (i) If the applicant seeks to provide facilities-based international
services, the legal ability of U.S. carriers to enter the foreign market
and provide facilities-based international services, in particular
international message telephone service (IMTS);
    (ii) If the applicant seeks to provide resold services, the legal
ability of U.S. carriers to enter the foreign market and provide resold
international switched services (for switched resale applications) or
non-interconnected private line services (for non-interconnected private
line resale applications);
    (iii) Whether there exist reasonable and nondiscriminatory charges,
terms and conditions for interconnection to a foreign carrier's domestic
facilities for termination and origination of international services or
the provision of the relevant resale service;
    (iv) Whether competitive safeguards exist in the foreign country to
protect against anticompetitive practices, including safeguards such as:
    (A) Existence of cost-allocation rules in the foreign country to
prevent cross-subsidization;
    (B) Timely and nondiscriminatory disclosure of technical information
needed to use, or interconnect with, carriers' facilities; and
    (C) Protection of carrier and customer proprietary information;
    (v) Whether there is an effective regulatory framework in the
foreign country to develop, implement and enforce legal requirements,
interconnection arrangements and other safeguards; and
    (vi) Any other factors the applicant deems relevant to its
demonstration.

    Note to Paragraph (k): Under Sec. 63.10(a), the Commission
presumes, subject to rebuttal, that a foreign country lacks market power
in a particular foreign country if the applicant demonstrates that the
foreign carrier lacks 50 percent market share in international transport
facilities or services, including cable landing station access and
backhaul facilities, intercity facilities or services, and local access
facilities or services on the foreign end of a particular route.
    (l) [Reserved]
    (m) With respect to regulatory classification under Sec. 63.10 of
this part, any applicant that is or is affiliated with a foreign carrier
in a country listed in response to paragraph (i) of this section and
that desires to be regulated as non-dominant for the provision of
particular international telecommunications services to that country
should provide information in its application to demonstrate that it
qualifies for non-dominant classification pursuant to Sec. 63.10 of
this part.
    (n) A certification that the applicant has not agreed to accept
special concessions directly or indirectly from any foreign carrier with
respect to any U.S. international route where the foreign carrier
possesses market power on the foreign end of the route and will not
enter into such agreements in the future.
    (o) A certification pursuant to Sec. Sec. 1.2001 through 1.2003 of
this chapter that no party to the application is subject to a denial of
Federal benefits pursuant to Section 5301 of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of
1988. See 21 U.S.C. 853a.
    (p) If the applicant desires streamlined processing pursuant to
Sec. 63.12, a statement of how the application qualifies for
streamlined processing.
    (q) Any other information that may be necessary to enable the
Commission to act on the application.
    (r) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, all
applications described in this section must be filed electronically
through the International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A list of forms
that are available for electronic filing can be found on the IBFS
homepage. For information on electronic filing requirements, see part 1,
Sec. Sec. 1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the IBFS homepage
at http://www.fcc.gov/ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20 and 63.53.

[61 FR 15729, Apr. 9, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 32965, June 17, 1997; 62
FR 45762, Aug. 29, 1997; 62 FR 64755, Dec. 9, 1997; 63 FR 24121, May 1,
1998; 64 FR 19064, Apr. 19, 1999; 65 FR 60117, Oct. 10, 2000; 67 FR
45390, July 9, 2002; 69 FR 29902, May 26, 2004; 70 FR 38798, July 6,
2005; 72 FR 54366, Sept. 25, 2007; 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013; 79 FR
31877, June 3, 2014]

    Effective Date Note: At 79 FR 31877, June 3, 2014, Sec. 63.18 was
amended by revising paragraph (k) introductory text and adding a note to
paragraph (k), these paragraphs contain information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.

[[Page 297]]



Sec. 63.19  Special procedures for discontinuances of international
services.

    (a) With the exception of those international carriers described in
paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, any international carrier that
seeks to discontinue, reduce or impair service, including the retiring
of international facilities, dismantling or removing of international
trunk lines, shall be subject to the following procedures in lieu of
those specified in Sec. Sec. 63.61 through 63.601:
    (1) The carrier shall notify all affected customers of the planned
discontinuance, reduction or impairment at least 30 days prior to its
planned action. Notice shall be in writing to each affected customer
unless the Commission authorizes in advance, for good cause shown,
another form of notice.
    (2) The carrier shall file with this Commission a copy of the
notification on the date on which notice has been given to all affected
customers. The filing may be made by letter (sending an original and
five copies to the Office of the Secretary, and a copy to the Chief,
International Bureau) and shall identify the geographic areas of the
planned discontinuance, reduction or impairment and the authorization(s)
pursuant to which the carrier provides service.
    (b) The following procedures shall apply to any international
carrier that the Commission has classified as dominant in the provision
of a particular international service because the carrier possesses
market power in the provision of that service on the U.S. end of the
route. Any such carrier that seeks to retire international facilities,
dismantle or remove international trunk lines, but does not discontinue,
reduce or impair the dominant services being provided through these
facilities, shall only be subject to the notification requirements of
paragraph (a) of this section. If such carrier discontinues, reduces or
impairs the dominant service, or retires facilities that impair or
reduce the service, the carrier shall file an application pursuant to
Sec. Sec. 63.62 and 63.500.
    (c) Commercial Mobile Radio Service (CMRS) carriers, as defined in
Sec. 20.9 of this chapter, are not subject to the provisions of this
section.
    (d) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, all filings
described in this section must be filed electronically through the
International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A list of forms that are
available for electronic filing can be found on the IBFS homepage. For
information on electronic filing requirements, see part 1, Sec. Sec.
1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the IBFS homepage at http://
www.fcc.gov/ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20 and 63.53.

[67 FR 45391, July 9, 2002, as amended at 70 FR 38798, July 6, 2005; 72
FR 54366, Sept. 25, 2007]



Sec. 63.20  Electronic filing, copies required; fees; and filing periods
for international service providers.

    (a) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, all filings
described in this section must be filed electronically through the
International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A list of forms that are
available for electronic filing can be found on the IBFS homepage. For
information on electronic filing requirements, see part 1, Sec. Sec.
1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the IBFS homepage at http://
www.fcc.gov/ibfs. Each application shall be accompanied by the fee
prescribed in subpart G of part 1 of this chapter. For applications
filed electronically it is not necessary to send the original or any
copies with the fee payment. For applications and other filings that are
not submitted electronically, an original and five (5) copies of the
submission must be filed with the Commission. Upon request by the
Commission, additional copies shall be furnished.
    (b) No application accepted for filing and subject to the provisions
of Sec. Sec. 63.18, 63.62 or 63.505 of this part shall be granted by
the Commission earlier than 28 days following issuance of public notice
by the Commission of the acceptance for filing of such application or
any major amendment unless said public notice specifies another time
period, or the application qualifies for streamlined processing pursuant
to Sec. 63.12 of this part.
    (c) No application accepted for filing and subject to the
streamlined processing provisions of Sec. 63.12 of this part

[[Page 298]]

shall be granted by the Commission earlier than 14 days following
issuance of public notice by the Commission of the acceptance for filing
of such application or any major amendment unless said public notice
specifies another time period.
    (d) Any interested party may file a petition to deny an application
within the time period specified in the public notice listing an
application as accepted for filing and ineligible for streamlined
processing. The petitioner shall serve a copy of such petition on the
applicant no later than the date of filing thereof with the Commission.
The petition shall contain specific allegations of fact sufficient to
show that the petitioner is a party in interest and that a grant of the
application would be prima facie inconsistent with the public interest,
convenience and necessity. Such allegations of fact shall, except for
those of which official notice may be taken, be supported by affidavit
of a person or persons with personal knowledge thereof. The applicant
may file an opposition to any petition to deny within 14 days after the
original pleading is filed. The petitioner may file a reply to such
opposition within seven days after the time for filing oppositions has
expired. Allegations of facts or denials thereof shall similarly be
supported by affidavit. These responsive pleadings shall be served on
the applicant or petitioner, as appropriate, and other parties to the
proceeding.

[61 FR 15732, Apr. 9, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 19065, Apr. 19, 1999; 67
FR 45391, July 9, 2002; 69 FR 29902, May 26, 2004; 70 FR 38798, July 6,
2005]



Sec. 63.21  Conditions applicable to all international Section 214
authorizations.

    International carriers authorized under Section 214 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, must follow the following
requirements and prohibitions:
    (a) Each carrier is responsible for the continuing accuracy of the
certifications made in its application. Whenever the substance of any
such certification is no longer accurate, the carrier shall as promptly
as possible and, in any event, within thirty (30) days, file with the
Commission a corrected certification referencing the FCC file number
under which the original certification was provided. The information may
be used by the Commission to determine whether a change in regulatory
status may be warranted under Sec. 63.10. See also Sec. 63.11.
    (b) Carriers must file copies of operating agreements entered into
with their foreign correspondents as specified in Sec. 43.51 of this
chapter and shall otherwise comply with the filing requirements
contained in that section.
    (c) Carriers regulated as dominant for the provision of a particular
international communications service on a particular route for any
reason other than a foreign carrier affiliation under Sec. 63.10 shall
file tariffs pursuant to Section 203 of the Communications Act, 47
U.S.C. 203, and part 61 of this chapter. Except as specified in Sec.
20.15(d) of this chapter with respect to commercial mobile radio service
providers, carriers regulated as non-dominant, as defined in Sec. 61.3
of this chapter, and providing detariffed international services
pursuant to Sec. 61.19 of this chapter must comply with all applicable
public disclosure and maintenance of information requirements in
Sec. Sec. 42.10 and 42.11 of this chapter.
    (d) Carriers must file annual international telecommunications
traffic and revenue as required by Sec. 43.62 of this chapter.
    (e) Authorized carriers may not access or make use of specific U.S.
customer proprietary network information that is derived from a foreign
network unless the carrier obtains approval from that U.S. customer. In
seeking to obtain approval, the carrier must notify the U.S. customer
that the customer may require the carrier to disclose the information to
unaffiliated third parties upon written request by the customer.
    (f) Authorized carriers may not receive from a foreign carrier any
proprietary or confidential information pertaining to a competing U.S.
carrier, obtained by the foreign carrier in the course of its normal
business dealings, unless the competing U.S. carrier provides its
permission in writing.

[[Page 299]]

    (g) The Commission reserves the right to review a carrier's
authorization, and, if warranted, impose additional requirements on U.S.
international carriers in circumstances where it appears that harm to
competition is occurring on one or more U.S. international routes.
    (h) Subject to the requirement of Sec. 63.10 that a carrier
regulated as dominant along a route must provide service as an entity
that is separate from its foreign carrier affiliate, and subject to any
other structural-separation requirement in Commission regulations, an
authorized carrier may provide service through any wholly owned direct
or indirect subsidiaries. The carrier must, within thirty (30) days
after the subsidiary begins providing service, file with the Commission
a notification referencing the authorized carrier's name and the FCC
file numbers under which the carrier's authorizations were granted and
identifying the subsidiary's name and place of legal organization. This
provision shall not be construed to authorize the provision of service
by any entity barred by statute or regulation from itself holding an
authorization or providing service.
    (i) An authorized carrier, or a subsidiary operating pursuant to
paragraph (h) of this section, that changes its name (including the name
under which it is doing business) must notify the Commission within
thirty (30) days of the name change. Such notification shall reference
the FCC file numbers under which the carrier's authorizations were
granted.
    (j) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, all
notifications and other filings described in this section must be filed
electronically through the International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A
list of forms that are available for electronic filing can be found on
the IBFS homepage. For information on electronic filing requirements,
see part 1, Sec. Sec. 1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the
IBFS homepage at http://www.fcc.gov/ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20 and
63.53.
[61 FR 15732, Apr. 9, 1996, as amended at 62 FR 45762, Aug. 29, 1997; 62
FR 64758, Dec. 9, 1997; 64 FR 19065, Apr. 19, 1999; 66 FR 16881, Mar.
28, 2001; 67 FR 45391, July 9, 2002; 67 FR 57344, Sept. 10, 2002; 70 FR
38798, July 6, 2005; 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 15623, Mar. 12, 2013, Sec. 63.21 was
amended by revising paragraph (d). This paragraph contains information
collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective
until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 63.22  Facilities-based international common carriers.

    The following conditions apply to authorized facilities-based
international carriers:
    (a) A carrier authorized under Sec. 63.18(e)(1) may provide
international facilities-based services to international points for
which it qualifies for non-dominant regulation as set forth in Sec.
63.10, except in the following circumstance: If the carrier is, or is
affiliated with, a foreign carrier in a destination market and the
Commission has not determined that the foreign carrier lacks market
power in the destination market (see Sec. 63.10(a)), the carrier shall
not provide service on that route unless it has received specific
authority to do so under Sec. 63.18(e)(3).
    (b) The carrier may provide service using half-circuits on any U.S.
common carrier and non-common carrier facilities that do not appear on
an exclusion list published by the Commission. Carriers may also use any
necessary non-U.S.-licensed facilities, including any submarine cable
systems, that do not appear on the exclusion list. Carriers may not use
U.S. earth stations to access non-U.S.-licensed satellite systems unless
the Commission has specifically approved the use of those satellites and
so indicates on the exclusion list. The exclusion list is available from
the International Bureau's World Wide Web site at http://www.fcc.gov/ib.
    (c) Specific authority under Sec. 63.18(e)(3) is required for the
carrier to provide service using any facilities listed on the exclusion
list, to provide service between the United States and any country on
the exclusion list, or to construct, acquire, or operate lines in any
new major common carrier facility project.
    (d) The carrier may provide international basic switched, private
line, data, television and business services.
    (e) The carrier shall file annual international circuit capacity
reports as required by Sec. 43.62 of this chapter.

[[Page 300]]

    (f) The terms and conditions of any operating or other agreement
relating to the exchange of services, interchange or routing of traffic
and matters concerning rates, accounting rates, division of tolls, the
allocation of return traffic, or the basis of settlement of traffic
balances, entered into by U.S. common carriers authorized pursuant to
this part to provide facilities-based switched voice service on the
U.S.-Cuba route in correspondence with a Cuban carrier that does not
qualify for the presumption that it lacks market power in Cuba, shall be
identical to the equivalent terms and conditions in the operating
agreement of another carrier providing the same or similar service
between the United States and Cuba. Carriers may seek waiver of this
requirement. See International Settlements Policy Reform, Report and
Order, IB Docket Nos. 11-80, 05-254, 09-10, RM 11322, FCC 12-145 (rel.
November 29, 2012).
    (g) A carrier or other party may request Commission intervention on
any U.S. international route for which competitive problems are alleged
by filing with the International Bureau a petition, pursuant to this
section, demonstrating anticompetitive behavior by foreign carriers that
is harmful to U.S. customers. The Commission may also act on its own
motion. Carriers and other parties filing complaints must support their
petitions with evidence, including an affidavit and relevant commercial
agreements. The International Bureau will review complaints on a case-
by-case basis and take appropriate action on delegated authority
pursuant to Sec. 0.261 of this chapter. Interested parties will have 10
days from the date of issuance of a public notice of the petition to
file comments or oppositions to such petitions and subsequently 7 days
for replies. In the event significant, immediate harm to the public
interest is likely to occur that cannot be addressed through post facto
remedies, the International Bureau may impose temporary requirements on
carriers authorized pursuant to Sec. 63.18 of this chapter without
prejudice to its findings on such petitions.
    (h) The authority granted under this part is subject to all
Commission rules and regulations and any conditions or limitations
stated in the Commission's public notice or order that serves as the
carrier's Section 214 certificate. See Sec. Sec. 63.12, 63.21 of this
part.

    Note 1 to Sec. 63.22: For purposes of this section, foreign carrier
is defined in Sec. 63.09 of this chapter.
    Note 2 to Sec. 63.22: For purposes of this section, a foreign
carrier shall be considered to possess market power if it appears on the
Commission's list of foreign carriers that do not qualify for the
presumption that they lack market power in particular foreign points.
This list is available on the International Bureau's World Wide Web site
at http://www.fcc.gov/ib. The Commission will include on the list of
foreign carriers that do not qualify for the presumption that they lack
market power in particular foreign points any foreign carrier that has
50 percent or more market share in the international transport or local
access markets of a foreign point. A party that seeks to remove such a
carrier from the Commission's list bears the burden of submitting
information to the Commission sufficient to demonstrate that the foreign
carrier lacks 50 percent market share in the international transport and
local access markets on the foreign end of the route or that it
nevertheless lacks sufficient market power on the foreign end of the
route to affect competition adversely in the U.S. market. A party that
seeks to add a carrier to the Commission's list bears the burden of
submitting information to the Commission sufficient to demonstrate that
the foreign carrier has 50 percent or more market share in the
international transport or local access markets on the foreign end of
the route or that it nevertheless has sufficient market power to affect
competition adversely in the U.S. market.

[64 FR 19065, Apr. 19, 1999, as amended at 64 FR 34741, June 29, 1999;
67 FR 45391, July 9, 2002; 69 FR 23154, Apr. 28, 2004; 78 FR 11112, Feb.
15, 2013; 78 FR 15624, Mar.12, 2013]

    Effective Date Note:  At 78 FR 15624, Mar. 12, 2013, Sec. 63.22 was
amended by revising paragraph (c). This paragraph contains information
collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective
until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 63.23  Resale-based international common carriers.

    The following conditions apply to carriers authorized to resell the
international services of other authorized carriers:
    (a) A carrier authorized under Sec. 63.18(e)(2) may provide resold
international services to international

[[Page 301]]

points for which the applicant qualifies for non-dominant regulation as
set forth in Sec. 63.10, except that the carrier may not provide either
of the following services unless it has received specific authority to
do so under Sec. 63.18(e)(3):
    (1) Resold switched services to a non-WTO Member country where the
applicant is, or is affiliated with, a foreign carrier; and
    (2) Switched or private line services over resold private lines to a
destination market where the applicant is, or is affiliated with, a
foreign carrier and the Commission has not determined that the foreign
carrier lacks market power in the destination market (see Sec.
63.10(a)).
    (b) The carrier may not resell the international services of an
affiliated carrier regulated as dominant on the route to be served
unless it has received specific authority to do so under Sec.
63.18(e)(3).
    (c) Subject to the limitations specified in paragraph (b) of this
section and in Sec. 63.17(b), the carrier may provide service by
reselling the international services of any other authorized U.S. common
carrier or foreign carrier, or by entering into a roaming or other
arrangement with a foreign carrier, for the provision of international
basic switched, private line, data, television and business services to
all international points.

    Note to paragraph (c):
    For purposes of this paragraph, a roaming arrangement with a foreign
carrier is defined as an arrangement under which the subscribers of a
U.S. commercial mobile radio service provider use the facilities of a
foreign carrier with which the subscriber has no direct pre-existing
service or financial relationship to place a call from the foreign
country to the United States.

    (d) The carrier may provide switched basic services over its
authorized resold private lines in either of the following two
circumstances:
    (1) The country at the foreign end of the private line appears on
the Commission's list of international routes exempted from the
international settlements policy set forth in Sec. 64.1002 of this
chapter; or
    (2) The carrier is exchanging switched traffic with a foreign
carrier that lacks market power in the country at the foreign end of the
private line. A foreign carrier lacks market power for purposes of this
section if it does not appear on the Commission's list of foreign
carriers that do not qualify for the presumption that they lack market
power in particular foreign points.

    Note to paragraph (d):
    The Commission's list of international routes exempted from the
international settlements policy, and the Commission's list of foreign
carriers that do not qualify for the presumption that they lack market
power in particular foreign points are available on the International
Bureau's World Wide Web site at http://www.fcc.gov/ib.

    (e) The authority granted under this part is subject to all
Commission rules and regulations and any conditions or limitations
stated in the Commission's public notice or order that serves as the
carrier's Section 214 certificate. See Sec. Sec. 63.12, 63.21 of this
part.

[64 FR 19066, Apr. 19, 1999, as amended at 64 FR 34741, June 29, 1999;
67 FR 45391, July 9, 2002; 69 FR 23154, Apr. 28, 2004; 72 FR 54366,
Sept. 25, 2007; 76 FR 42573, July 19, 2011]



Sec. 63.24  Assignments and transfers of control.

    (a) General. Except as otherwise provided in this section, an
international section 214 authorization may be assigned, or control of
such authorization may be transferred by the transfer of control of any
entity holding such authorization, to another party, whether voluntarily
or involuntarily, directly or indirectly, only upon application to and
prior approval by the Commission.
    (b) Assignments. For purposes of this section, an assignment of an
authorization is a transaction in which the authorization is assigned
from one entity to another entity. Following an assignment, the
authorization is held by an entity other than the one to which it was
originally granted.

    Note to paragraph (b):
    The sale of a customer base, or a portion of a customer base, by a
carrier to another carrier, is a sale of assets and shall be treated as
an assignment, which requires prior Commission approval under this
section.

    (c) Transfers of control. For purposes of this section, a transfer
of control is a transaction in which the authorization remains held by
the same entity,

[[Page 302]]

but there is a change in the entity or entities that control the
authorization holder. A change from less than 50 percent ownership to 50
percent or more ownership shall always be considered a transfer of
control. A change from 50 percent or more ownership to less than 50
percent ownership shall always be considered a transfer of control. In
all other situations, whether the interest being transferred is
controlling must be determined on a case-by-case basis with reference to
the factors listed in Note to paragraph (c).
    (d) Pro forma assignments and transfers of control. Transfers of
control or assignments that do not result in a change in the actual
controlling party are considered non-substantial or pro forma. Whether
there has been a change in the actual controlling party must be
determined on a case-by-case basis with reference to the factors listed
in Note 1 to this paragraph (d). The types of transactions listed in
Note 2 to this paragraph (d) shall be considered presumptively pro forma
and prior approval from the Commission need not be sought.

    Note 1 to paragraph (d):
    Because the issue of control inherently involves issues of fact, it
must be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary with the
circumstances presented by each case. The factors relevant to a
determination of control in addition to equity ownership include, but
are not limited to the following: power to constitute or appoint more
than fifty percent of the board of directors or partnership management
committee; authority to appoint, promote, demote and fire senior
executives that control the day-to-day activities of the licensee;
ability to play an integral role in major management decisions of the
licensee; authority to pay financial obligations, including expenses
arising out of operations; ability to receive monies and profits from
the facility's operations; and unfettered use of all facilities and
equipment.
    Note 2 to paragraph (d):
    If a transaction is one of the types listed further, the transaction
is presumptively pro forma and prior approval need not be sought. In all
other cases, the relevant determination shall be made on a case-by-case
basis. Assignment from an individual or individuals (including
partnerships) to a corporation owned and controlled by such individuals
or partnerships without any substantial change in their relative
interests; Assignment from a corporation to its individual stockholders
without effecting any substantial change in the disposition of their
interests; Assignment or transfer by which certain stockholders retire
and the interest transferred is not a controlling one; Corporate
reorganization that involves no substantial change in the beneficial
ownership of the corporation (including re-incorporation in a different
jurisdiction or change in form of the business entity); Assignment or
transfer from a corporation to a wholly owned direct or indirect
subsidiary thereof or vice versa, or where there is an assignment from a
corporation to a corporation owned or controlled by the assignor
stockholders without substantial change in their interests; or
Assignment of less than a controlling interest in a partnership.

    (e) Applications for substantial transactions. (1) In the case of an
assignment or transfer of control shall of an international section 214
authorization that is not pro forma, the proposed assignee or transferee
must apply to the Commission for authority prior to consummation of the
proposed assignment or transfer of control.
    (2) The application shall include the information requested in
paragraphs (a) through (d) of Sec. 63.18 for both the transferor/
assignor and the transferee/assignee. The information requested in
paragraphs (h) through (p) of Sec. 63.18 is required only for the
transferee/assignee. At the beginning of the application, the applicant
shall include a narrative of the means by which the proposed transfer or
assignment will take place.
    (3) The Commission reserves the right to request additional
information as to the particulars of the transaction to aid it in making
its public interest determination.
    (4) An assignee or transferee must notify the Commission no later
than thirty (30) days after either consummation of the proposed
assignment or transfer of control, or a decision not to consummate the
proposed assignment or transfer of control. The notification shall
identify the file numbers under which the initial authorization and the
authorization of the assignment or transfer of control were granted.
    (f) Notifications for non-substantial or pro forma transactions. (1)
In the case of a pro forma assignment or transfer of control, the
section 214 authorization holder is not required to seek prior
Commission approval.

[[Page 303]]

    (2) A pro forma assignee or a carrier that is subject to a pro forma
transfer of control must file a notification with the Commission no
later than thirty (30) days after the assignment or transfer is
completed. The notification must contain the following:
    (i) The information requested in paragraphs (a) through (d) and (h)
of Sec. 63.18 for the transferee/assignee;
    (ii) A certification that the transfer of control or assignment was
pro forma and that, together with all previous pro forma transactions,
does not result in a change in the actual controlling party.
    (3) A single notification may be filed for an assignment or transfer
of control of more than one authorization if each authorization is
identified by the file number under which it was granted.
    (4) Upon release of a public notice granting a pro forma assignment
or transfer of control, petitions for reconsideration under Sec. 1.106
of this chapter or applications for review under Sec. 1.115 of this
chapter of the Commission's rules may be filed within 30 days.
Petitioner should address why the assignment or transfer of control in
question should have been filed under paragraph (e) of this section
rather than under this paragraph (f).
    (g) Involuntary assignments or transfers of control. In the case of
an involuntary assignment or transfer of control to: a bankruptcy
trustee appointed under involuntary bankruptcy; an independent receiver
appointed by a court of competent jurisdiction in a foreclosure action;
or, in the case of death or legal disability, to a person or entity
legally qualified to succeed the deceased or disabled person under the
laws of the place having jurisdiction over the estate involved; the
applicant must make the appropriate filing no later than 30 days after
the event causing the involuntary assignment or transfer of control.
    (h) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, all
applications and notifications described in this section must be filed
electronically through the International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A
list of forms that are available for electronic filing can be found on
the IBFS homepage. For information on electronic filing requirements,
see part 1, Sec. Sec. 1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the
IBFS homepage at http://www.fcc.gov/ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20 and
63.53.

[67 FR 45391, July 9, 2002, as amended at 70 FR 38799, July 6, 2005; 72
FR 54366, Sept. 25, 2007]



Sec. 63.25  Special provisions relating to temporary or emergency
service by international carriers.

    (a) For the purpose of this section the following definitions shall
apply:
    (1) Temporary service shall mean service for a period not exceeding
6 months;
    (2) Emergency service shall mean service for which there is an
immediate need occasioned by conditions unforeseen by, and beyond the
control of, the carrier.
    (b) Applicants seeking immediate authorization to provide temporary
service or emergency service must file their request with the
Commission. Requests must set forth why such immediate authority is
required; the nature of the emergency; the type of facilities proposed
to be used; the route kilometers thereof; the terminal communities to be
served, and airline kilometers between such communities; how these
points are currently being served by the applicant or other carriers;
the need for the proposed service; the cost involved, including any
rentals, the date on which the service is to begin, and where known, the
date or approximate date on which the service to is terminate.
    (c) Without regard to the other requirements of this part, and by
application setting forth the need therefore, any carrier may request
continuing authority, subject to termination by the Commission at any
time upon ten (10) days' notice to the carrier, to provide temporary or
emergency service by the construction or installation of facilities
where the estimated construction, installation, and acquisition costs do
not exceed $35,000 or an annual rental of not more than $7,000 provided
that such project does not involve a major action under the Commission's
environmental rules. (See subpart I of part 1 of this chapter.) Any
carrier to which continuing authority has been granted under this
paragraph shall, not later

[[Page 304]]

than the 30th day following the end of each 6-month period covered by
such authority, file with the Commission a statement making reference to
this paragraph and setting forth, with respect to each project
(construction, installation, lease, including any renewals thereof),
which was commenced or, in the case of leases, entered into under such
authority, and renewal or renewals thereof which were in continuous
effect for a period of more than one week, the following information:
    (1) The type of facility constructed, installed, or leased;
    (2) The route kilometers thereof (excluding leased facilities);
    (3) The terminal communities served and the airline kilometers
between terminal communities in the proposed project;
    (4) The cost thereof, including construction, installation, or
lease;
    (5) Where appropriate, the name of the lessor company, and the dates
of commencement and termination of the lease.
    (d)(1) A request may be made by any carrier for continuing authority
to lease and operate, during any emergency when its regular facilities
become inoperative or inadequate to handle its traffic, facilities or
any other carrier between points between which applicant is authorized
to communicate by radio for the transmission of traffic which applicant
is authorized to handle.
    (2) Such request shall make reference to this paragraph and set
forth the points between which applicant desires to operate facilities
of other carriers and the nature of the traffic to be handled.
    (3) Continuing authority for the operation thereafter of such
alternate facilities during emergencies shall be deemed granted
effective as of the 21st day following the filing of the request unless
on or before that date the Commission shall notify the applicant to the
contrary: provided, however, Applicant shall, not later than the 30th
day following the end of each quarter in which it has operated
facilities of any other carrier pursuant to authority granted under this
paragraph, file with the Commission a statement in writing making
reference to this paragraph and describing each occasion during the
quarter when it has operated such facilities, giving dates, points
between which such facilities were located, hours or minutes used,
nature of traffic handled, and reasons why its own facilities could not
be used.
    (e) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, all
applications and notifications described in this section must be filed
electronically through the International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A
list of forms that are available for electronic filing can be found on
the IBFS homepage. For information on electronic filing requirements,
see part 1, Sec. Sec. 1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the
IBFS homepage at http://www.fcc.gov/ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20 and
63.53.

(Sec. 303, 48 Stat. 1082, as amended; 47 U.S.C. 303)

[28 FR 13229, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 41 FR 20662, May 20, 1976; 58
FR 44906, Aug. 25, 1993. Redesignated and amended at 64 FR 39939, July
23, 1999; 69 FR 29902, May 26, 2004; 70 FR 38799, July 6, 2005]

    General Provisions Relating to All Applications Under Section 214



Sec. 63.50  Amendment of applications.

    Any application may be amended as a matter of right prior to the
date of any final action taken by the Commission or designation for
hearing. Amendments to applications shall be signed and submitted in the
same manner, and with the same number of copies as was the original
application. If a petition to deny or other formal objections have been
filed to the application, the amendment shall be served on the parties.

(Sec. 303, 48 Stat. 1082, as amended; 47 U.S.C. 303)

[41 FR 20662, May 20, 1976]



Sec. 63.51  Additional information.

    (a) You must provide additional information if the Commission
requests you to do so after it initially reviews your application or
request.
    (b) If you do not respond to the request or other official
correspondence, the Commission may dismiss your application without
prejudice and you

[[Page 305]]

may file again with a completed application.
    (c) Any additional information which the Commission may require must
be submitted in the same manner as was the original filing. For
information on filing requirements, see part 1, Sec. Sec. 1.1000
through 1.10018 of this chapter and the IBFS homepage at http://
www.fcc.gov/ibfs, and Sec. 63.20.

[69 FR 29902, May 26, 2004, as amended at 70 FR 38799, July 6, 2005]



Sec. 63.52  Copies required; fees; and filing periods for domestic
authorizations.

    (a) Unless otherwise specified the Commission shall be furnished
with an original and 5 copies of applications filed under section 214 of
the Communications Act of 1934, as amended; Provided, however, that
where applications involve only the supplementation of existing domestic
facilities, and the issuance of a certificate is not required, an
original and 2 copies of the application shall be furnished. Upon
request by the Commission additional copies of the application shall be
furnished. Each application shall be accompanied by the fee prescribed
in subpart G of part 1 of this chapter.
    (b) No application accepted for filing and subject to part 63 of
these rules, unless provided for otherwise, shall be granted by the
Commission earlier than 30 days following issuance of public notice by
the Commission of the acceptance for filing of such application or any
major amendment unless said public notice specifies another time period.
    (c) Any interested party may file a petition to deny an application
within the 30-day or other time period specified in paragraph (b) of
this section. The petitioner shall serve a copy of such petition on the
applicant no later than the date of filing thereof with the Commission.
The petition shall contain specific allegations of fact sufficient to
show that the petitioner is a party in interest and that a grant of the
application would be prima facie inconsistent with the public interest,
convenience and necessity. Such allegations of fact shall, except for
those of which official notice may be taken, be supported by affidavit
of a person or persons with personal knowledge thereof. The applicant
may file an opposition to any petition to deny, and the petitioners may
file a reply to such opposition (see Sec. 1.45 of this chapter), and
allegations of facts or denials thereof shall similarly be supported by
affidavit. These responsive pleadings shall be served on the applicant
or petitioners, as appropriate, and other parties to the proceeding.

(Sec. 303, 48 Stat. 1082, as amended; 47 U.S.C. 303)

[41 FR 20662, May 20, 1976; 41 FR 22274, June 2, 1976, as amended at 42
FR 36459, July 15, 1977; 61 FR 10476, Mar. 14, 1996; 61 FR 59201, Nov.
21, 1996; 64 FR 39939, July 23, 1999]



Sec. 63.53  Form.

    (a)(1) Applications for international service under section 214 of
the Communications Act must be filed electronically with the Commission.
For applications filed electronically it is not necessary to send the
original or any copies with the fee payment. Subject to the availability
of electronic forms, all applications and other filings described in
this section must be filed electronically through the International
Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A list of forms that are available for
electronic filing can be found on the IBFS homepage. For information on
electronic filing requirements, see part 1, Sec. Sec. 1.1000 through
1.10018 of this chapter and the IBFS homepage at http://www.fcc.gov/
ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20.
    (2) Applications for international service under section 214 of the
Communications Act that are not filed through IBFS shall be submitted on
paper not more than 21.6 cm (8.5 in) wide and not more than 35.6 cm (14
in) long with a left-hand margin of 4 cm (1.5 in). This requirement
shall not apply to original documents, or admissible copies thereof,
offered as exhibits or to specially prepared exhibits. The impression
shall be on one side of the paper only and shall be double-spaced,
except that long quotations shall be single-spaced and indented. All
papers, except charts and maps, shall be typewritten or prepared by
mechanical processing methods, other than letter press, or printed. The
foregoing shall not apply to official publications. All copies must be
clearly legible.

[[Page 306]]

    (b) Applications for domestic authorizations under section 214 of
the Communications Act shall be submitted on paper not more than 21.6 cm
(8.5 in) wide and not more than 35.6 cm (14 in) long with a left-hand
margin of 4 cm (1.5 in). This requirement shall not apply to original
documents, or admissible copies thereof, offered as exhibits or to
specially prepared exhibits. The impression shall be on one side of the
paper only and shall be double-spaced, except that long quotations shall
be single-spaced and indented. All papers, except charts and maps, shall
be typewritten or prepared by mechanical processing methods, other than
letter press, or printed. The foregoing shall not apply to official
publications. All copies must be clearly legible.
    (c) Applications submitted under Section 214 of the Communications
Act for international services and any related pleadings that are in a
foreign language shall be accompanied by a certified translation in
English.

[61 FR 15733, Apr. 9, 1996, as amended at 67 FR 45392, July 9, 2002; 69
FR 29902, May 26, 2004; 70 FR 38799, July 6, 2005]

            Discontinuance, Reduction, Outage and Impairment



Sec. 63.60  Definitions.

    For the purposes of this part, the following definitions shall
apply:
    (a) For the purposes of Sec. Sec. 63.60 through 63.90, the term
``carrier,'' when used to refer either to all telecommunications
carriers or more specifically to non-dominant telecommunications
carriers, shall include interconnected VoIP providers.
    (b) Discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service includes,
but is not limited to the following:
    (1) The closure by a carrier of a telephone exchange rendering
interstate or foreign telephone toll service, a public toll station
serving a community or part of a community, or a public coast station as
defined in Sec. 80.5 of this chapter;
    (2) The reduction in hours of service by a carrier at a telephone
exchange rendering interstate or foreign telephone toll service, at any
public toll station (except at a toll station at which the availability
of service to the public during any specific hours is subject to the
control of the agent or other persons controlling the premises on which
such office or toll station is located and is not subject to the control
of such carrier), or at a public coast station; the term reduction in
hours of service does not include a shift in hours which does not result
in any reduction in the number of hours of service.
    (3) The conversion of an interconnected VoIP service to a service
that permits users to receive calls that originate on the public
switched telephone network but not terminate calls to the public
switched telephone network, or the converse.
    (4) The dismantling or removal from service of any trunk line by a
carrier which has the effect of impairing the adequacy or quality of
service rendered to any community or part of a community;
    (5) The severance by a carrier of physical connection with another
carrier (including connecting carriers as defined in section 3(u) of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended) or the termination or suspension
of the interchange of traffic with such other carrier;
    (c) Emergency discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service
means any discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of the service of a
carrier occasioned by conditions beyond the control of such carrier
where the original service is not restored or comparable service is not
established within a reasonable time. For the purpose of this part, a
reasonable time shall be deemed to be a period not in excess of the
following: 10 days in the case of discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment of service at telegraph offices operated directly by the
carrier; 15 days in the case of jointly-operated or agency telegraph
offices; 10 days in the case of public coast stations; and 60 days in
all other cases;
    (d) The term ``interconnected VoIP provider'' is an entity that
provides interconnected VoIP service as that term is defined in Sec.
9.3 of this chapter.
    (e) Public toll station means a public telephone station, located in
a community, through which a carrier provides

[[Page 307]]

service to the public, and which is connected directly to a toll line
operated by such carrier.
    (f) For the purposes of Sec. Sec. 63.60 through 63.90, the term
``service,'' when used to refer to a real-time, two-way voice
communications service, shall include interconnected VoIP service as
that term is defined in Sec. 9.3 of this chapter but shall not include
any interconnected VoIP service that is a ``mobile service'' as defined
in Sec. 20.3 of this chapter.
    (g) You. In this section, ``You'' refers to applicants and
licensees.

[28 FR 13229, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 45 FR 6585, Jan. 29, 1980; 51
FR 31305, Sept. 2, 1986; 69 FR 29902, May 26, 2004; 74 FR 39563, Aug. 7,
2009]



Sec. 63.61  Applicability.

    Any carrier subject to the provisions of section 214 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, proposing to discontinue, reduce
or impair interstate or foreign telephone or telegraph service to a
community, or a part of a community, shall request authority therefor by
formal application or informal request as specified in the pertinent
sections of this part:
    (a) Provided, however, that where service is expanded on an
experimental basis for a temporary period of not more than 6 months, no
application shall be required to reduce service to its status prior to
such expansion but a written notice shall be filed with the Commission
within 10 days of the reduction showing:
    (1) The date on which, places at which, and extent to which service
was expanded; and,
    (2) The date on which, places at which, and extent to which such
expansion of service was discontinued.
    (b) And provided further that a licensee of a radio station who has
filed an application for authority to discontinue service provided by
such station shall during the period that such application is pending
before the Commission, continue to file appropriate applications as may
be necessary for extension or renewal of station license in order to
provide legal authorization for such station to continue in operation
pending final action on the application for discontinuance of service.
Procedures for discontinuance, reduction or impairment of service by
dominant and non-dominant, domestic carriers are in Sec. 63.71.
Procedures for discontinuance, reduction or impairment of international
services are in Sec. 63.19.

[71 FR 65751, Nov. 9, 2006]



Sec. 63.62  Type of discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of
telephone or telegraph service requiring formal application.

    Authority for the following types of discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment of service shall be requested by formal application
containing the information required by the Commission in the appropriate
sections to this part, except as provided in paragraph (c) of this
section, or in emergency cases (as defined in Sec. 63.60(b)) as
provided in Sec. 63.63:
    (a) The dismantling or removal of a trunk line (for contents of
application see Sec. 63.500) for all domestic carriers and for dominant
international carriers except as modified in Sec. 63.19;
    (b) The severance of physical connection or the termination or
suspension of the interchange of traffic with another carrier (for
contents of application, see Sec. 63.501);
    (c) [Reserved]
    (d) The closure of a public toll station where no other such toll
station of the applicant in the community will continue service (for
contents of application, see Sec. 63.504): Provided, however, That no
application shall be required under this part with respect to the
closure of a toll station located in a community where telephone toll
service is otherwise available to the public through a telephone
exchange connected with the toll lines of a carrier;
    (e) Any other type of discontinuance, reduction or impairment of
telephone service not specifically provided for by other provisions of
this part (for contents of application, see Sec. 63.505);
    (f) An application may be filed requesting authority to make a type
of reduction in service under specified standards and conditions in lieu
of individual applications for each instance

[[Page 308]]

coming within the type of reduction in service proposed.

[28 FR 13229, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 45 FR 6585, Jan. 29, 1980; 60
FR 35509, July 10, 1995; 61 FR 15733, Apr. 9, 1996]



Sec. 63.63  Emergency discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of
service.

    (a) Application for authority for emergency discontinuance,
reduction, or impairment of service shall be made by filing an informal
request in quintuplicate as soon as practicable but not later than 15
days in the case of public coast stations; or 65 days in all other
cases, after the occurrence of the conditions which have occasioned the
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment. The request shall make
reference to this section and show the following:
    (1) The effective date of such discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment, and the identification of the service area affected;
    (2) The nature and estimated duration of the conditions causing the
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment;
    (3) The facts showing that such conditions could not reasonably have
been foreseen by the carrier in sufficient time to prevent such
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment;
    (4) A description of the service involved;
    (5) The nature of service which will be available or substituted;
    (6) The effect upon rates to any person in the community;
    (7) The efforts made and to be made by applicant to restore the
original service or establish comparable service as expeditiously as
possible.
    (b) Authority for the emergency discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment of service for a period of 60 days shall be deemed to have
been granted by the Commission effective as of the date of the filing of
the request unless, on or before the 15th day after the date of filing,
the Commission shall notify the carrier to the contrary. Renewal of such
authority may be requested by letter or telegram, filed with the
Commission not later than 10 days prior to the expiration of such 60-day
period, making reference to this section and showing that such
conditions may reasonably be expected to continue for a further period
and what efforts the applicant has made to restore the original or
establish comparable service. If the same or comparable service is
reestablished before the termination of the emergency authorization, the
carrier shall notify the Commission promptly. However, the Commission
may, upon specific request of the carrier and upon a proper showing,
contained in such informal request, authorize such discontinuance,
reduction, or impairment of service for an indefinite period or
permanently.

[28 FR 13229, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 45 FR 6585, Jan. 29, 1980]



Sec. 63.65  Closure of public toll station where another toll station
of applicant in the community will continue service.

    (a) Except in emergency cases (as defined in Sec. 63.60(b) and as
provided in Sec. 63.63), authority to close a public toll station in a
community in which another toll station of the applicant will continue
service shall be requested by an informal request, filed in
quintuplicate, making reference to this paragraph and showing the
following:
    (1) Location of toll station to be closed and distance from nearest
toll station to be retained;
    (2) Description of service area affected, including approximate
population and character of the business of the community;
    (3) Average number of toll telephone messages sent-paid and
received-collect for the preceding six months;
    (4) Average number of telegraph messages sent-paid and received-
collect for the preceding six months;
    (5) Statement of reasons for desiring to close the station.
    (b) Authority for closures requested under paragraph (a) of this
section shall be deemed to have been granted by the Commission effective
as of the 15th day following the date of filing such request unless, on
or before the 15th day, the Commission shall notify the carrier to the
contrary.

[[Page 309]]



Sec. 63.66  Closure of or reduction of hours of service at telephone
exchanges at military establishments.

    Where a carrier desires to close or reduce hours of service at a
telephone exchange located at a military establishment because of the
deactivation of such establishment, it may, in lieu of filing formal
application, file in quintuplicate an informal request. Such request
shall make reference to this section and shall set forth the class of
office, address, date of proposed closure or reduction, description of
service to remain or be substituted, statement as to any difference in
charges to the public, and the reasons for the proposed closure or
reduction. Authority for such closure or reduction shall be deemed to
have been granted by the Commission, effective as of the 15th day
following the date of filing of such request, unless, on or before the
15th day, the Commission shall notify the carrier to the contrary.

[45 FR 6585, Jan. 29, 1980]



Sec. 63.71  Procedures for discontinuance, reduction or impairment of
service by domestic carriers.

    Any domestic carrier that seeks to discontinue, reduce or impair
service shall be subject to the following procedures:
    (a) The carrier shall notify all affected customers of the planned
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service and shall notify and
submit a copy of its application to the public utility commission and to
the Governor of the State in which the discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment of service is proposed, and also to the Secretary of Defense,
Attn. Special Assistant for Telecommunications, Pentagon, Washington, DC
20301. Notice shall be in writing to each affected customer unless the
Commission authorizes in advance, for good cause shown, another form of
notice. Notice shall include the following:
    (1) Name and address of carrier;
    (2) Date of planned service discontinuance, reduction or impairment;
    (3) Points of geographic areas of service affected;
    (4) Brief description of type of service affected; and
    (5) One of the following statements:
    (i) If the carrier is non-dominant with respect to the service being
discontinued, reduced or impaired, the notice shall state: The FCC will
normally authorize this proposed discontinuance of service (or reduction
or impairment) unless it is shown that customers would be unable to
receive service or a reasonable substitute from another carrier or that
the public convenience and necessity is otherwise adversely affected. If
you wish to object, you should file your comments as soon as possible,
but no later than 15 days after the Commission releases public notice of
the proposed discontinuance. Address them to the Federal Communications
Commission, Wireline Competition Bureau, Competition Policy Division,
Washington, DC 20554, and include in your comments a reference to the
Sec. 63.71 Application of (carrier's name). Comments should include
specific information about the impact of this proposed discontinuance
(or reduction or impairment) upon you or your company, including any
inability to acquire reasonable substitute service.
    (ii) If the carrier is dominant with respect to the service being
discontinued, reduced or impaired, the notice shall state: The FCC will
normally authorize this proposed discontinuance of service (or reduction
or impairment) unless it is shown that customers would be unable to
receive service or a reasonable substitute from another carrier or that
the public convenience and necessity is otherwise adversely affected. If
you wish to object, you should file your comments as soon as possible,
but no later than 30 days after the Commission releases public notice of
the proposed discontinuance. Address them to the Federal Communications
Commission, Wireline Competition Bureau, Competition Policy Division,
Washington, DC 20554, and include in your comments a reference to the
Sec. 63.71 Application of (carrier's name). Comments should include
specific information about the impact of this proposed discontinuance
(or reduction or impairment) upon you or your company, including any
inability to acquire reasonable substitute service.
    (b) The carrier shall file with this Commission, on or after the
date on

[[Page 310]]

which notice has been given to all affected customers, an application
which shall contain the following:
    (1) Caption--``Section 63.71 Application'';
    (2) Information listed in Sec. 63.71(a) (1) through (4) above;
    (3) Brief description of the dates and methods of notice to all
affected customers;
    (4) Whether the carrier is considered dominant or non-dominant with
respect to the service to be discontinued, reduced or impaired; and
    (5) Any other information the Commission may require.
    (c) The application to discontinue, reduce or impair service, if
filed by a domestic, non-dominant carrier, shall be automatically
granted on the 31st day after its filing with the Commission without any
Commission notification to the applicant unless the Commission has
notified the applicant that the grant will not be automatically
effective. The application to discontinue, reduce or impair service, if
filed by a domestic, dominant carrier, shall be automatically granted on
the 60th day after its filing with the Commission without any Commission
notification to the applicant unless the Commission has notified the
applicant that the grant will not be automatically effective. For
purposes of this section, an application will be deemed filed on the
date the Commission releases public notice of the filing.
    (d) Procedures for discontinuance, reduction or impairment of
international services are in Sec. 63.19.

[64 FR 39939, July 23, 1999, as amended at 71 FR 65751, Nov. 9, 2006; 73
FR 56741, Sept. 30, 2008]



Sec. 63.90  Publication and posting of notices.

    (a) Immediately upon the filing of an application or informal
request (except a request under Sec. 63.71) for authority to close or
otherwise discontinue the operation, or reduce the hours of service at a
telephone exchange (except an exchange located at a military
establishment), the applicant shall post a public notice at least 51 cm
by 61 cm (20 inches by 24 inches), with letter of commensurate size, in
a conspicuous place in the exchange affected, and also in the window of
any such exchange having window space fronting on a public street at
street level. Such notice shall be posted at least 14 days and shall
contain the following information, as may be applicable:
    (1) Date of first posting of notice;
    (2) Name of applicant;
    (3) A statement that application has been made to the Federal
Communications Commission;
    (4) Date when application was filed in the Commission;
    (5) A description of the discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of
service for which authority is sought including the address or other
appropriate identification of the exchange or station involved;
    (6) If applicant proposes to reduce hours of service, a description
of present and proposed hours of service;
    (7) A complete description of the substitute service, if any, to be
provided if the application is granted.
    (8) A statement that any member of the public desiring to protest or
support the application may communicate in writing with the Federal
Communications Commission, Washington, DC 20554, on or before a
specified date which shall be 20 days from the date of first posting of
the notice.
    (b) Immediately upon the filing of an application or informal
request of the nature described in paragraph (a) of this section, the
applicant shall also cause to be published a notice of not less than 10
column centimeters (4 column inches) in size containing information
similar to that specified in paragraph (a), at least once during each of
2 consecutive weeks, in some newspaper of general circulation in the
community or part of the community affected.
    (c) Immediately upon the filing of an application or informal
request or upon the filing of a formal application to close a public
toll station (except a toll station located at a military
establishment), applicant shall post a public notice at least A3 (29.7
cm x 42.0 cm) or 11 in x 17 in (27.9 cm x 43.2 cm) in size as provided
in paragraph (a) of this section or, in lieu thereof, applicant shall
cause to be published a newspaper notice as provided in paragraph (b) of
this section.

[[Page 311]]

    (d) Immediately upon the filing of any application or informal
request for authority to discontinue, reduce, or impair service, or any
notice of resumption of service under Sec. 63.63(b), the applicant
shall give written notice of the filing together with a copy of such
application to the State Commission (as defined in section 3(t) of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended) of each State in which any
discontinuance, reduction or impairment is proposed.
    (e) When the posting, publication, and notification as required in
paragraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d) of this section have been completed,
applicant shall report such fact to the Commission, stating the name of
the newspaper in which publication was made, the name of the Commissions
notified, and the dates of posting, publication, and notification.

[45 FR 6585, Jan. 29, 1980, as amended at 45 FR 76169, Nov. 18, 1980; 58
FR 44907, Aug. 25, 1993; 60 FR 35510, July 10, 1995]



Sec. 63.100  Notification of service outage.

    The requirements for communications providers concerning
communications disruptions and the filing of outage reports are set
forth in part 4 of this chapter.

[69 FR 70342, Dec. 3, 2004]

                   Contents of Applications; Examples



Sec. 63.500  Contents of applications to dismantle or remove a trunk
line.

    The application shall contain:
    (a) The name and address of each applicant;
    (b) The name, title, and post office address of the officer to whom
correspondence concerning the application is to be addressed;
    (c) Nature of proposed discontinuance, reduction, or impairment;
    (d) Identification of community or part of community involved and
date on which applicant desires to make proposed discontinuance,
reduction, or impairment effective; if for a temporary period only,
indicate the approximate period for which authorization is desired;
    (e) Proposed new tariff listing, if any, and difference, if any,
between present charges to the public and charges for the service to be
substituted;
    (f) Description of the service area affected including population
and general character of business of the community;
    (g) Name of any other carrier or carriers providing telegraph or
telephone service to the community;
    (h) Statement of the reasons for proposed discontinuance, reduction,
or impairment;
    (i) Statement of the factors showing that neither present nor future
public convenience and necessity would be adversely affected by the
granting of the application;
    (j) Description of any previous discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment of service to the community affected by the application,
which has been made by the applicant during the 12 months preceding
filing of application, and statement of any present plans for future
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service to such community;
    (k) A map or sketch showing:
    (1) Routes of line proposed to be removed from service and of
alternate lines, if any, to be retained;
    (2) Type and ownership of structures (open wire, aerial cable,
underground cable, carrier systems, etc.);
    (3) Cities and towns along routes with approximate population of
each, and route kilometers between the principal points;
    (4) Location of important operating centers and repeater or relay
points;
    (5) State boundary lines through which the facilities extend;
    (l) A wire chart showing, for both the line proposed to be removed
and the alternate lines to be retained, the regular and normal
assignment of each wire, its method of operation, the number of channels
and normal assignment of each;
    (m) The number of wires or cables to be removed and the kind, size,
and length of each;
    (n) A complete statement showing how the traffic load on the line
proposed to be removed will be diverted to other lines and the adequacy
of such

[[Page 312]]

other lines to handle the increased load.

[28 FR 13229, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 58 FR 44907, Aug. 25, 1993]



Sec. 63.501  Contents of applications to sever physical connection or to
terminate or suspend interchange of traffic with another carrier.

    The application shall contain:
    (a) The name and address of each applicant;
    (b) The name, title, and post office address of the officer to whom
correspondence concerning the application is to be addressed;
    (c) Nature of the proposed change;
    (d) Identification of community or part of community involved and
date on which applicant desires to make proposed discontinuance,
reduction, or impairment effective; if for a temporary period only,
indicate the approximate period for which authorization is desired;
    (e) Proposed new tariff listing, if any, and differences, if any,
between present charges to the public and charges for the service to be
substituted;
    (f) Description of the service area affected including population
and general character of business of the community;
    (g) Name of any other carrier or carriers providing telegraph or
telephone service to the community;
    (h) Statement of the reasons for proposed discontinuance, reduction,
or impairment;
    (i) Statement of the factors showing that neither present nor future
public convenience and necessity would be adversely affected by the
granting of the application;
    (j) Description of any previous discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment of service to the community affected by the application,
which has been made by the applicant during the 12 months preceding
filing of application, and statement of any present plans for future
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service to such community;
    (k) Name of other carrier;
    (l) Points served through such physical connection or interchange;
    (m) Description of the service involved;
    (n) Statement as to how points served by means of such physical
connection or interchange will be served thereafter;
    (o) Amount of traffic interchanged for each month during preceding
6-month period;
    (p) Statement as to whether severance of physical connection or
termination or suspension of interchange of traffic is being made with
consent of other carrier.



Sec. 63.504  Contents of applications to close a public toll station
where no other such toll station of the applicant in the community will

continue service and where telephone toll service is not otherwise
available to the public through a telephone exchange connected with
the toll lines of a carrier.

    The application shall contain:
    (a) The name and address of each applicant;
    (b) The name, title, and post office address of the officer to whom
correspondence concerning the application is to be addressed;
    (c) Nature of proposed discontinuance, reduction, or impairment;
    (d) Identification of community or part of community involved and
date on which applicant desires to make proposed discontinuance,
reduction, or impairment effective; if for a temporary period only,
indicate the approximate period for which authorization is desired;
    (e) Proposed new tariff listing, if any, and difference, if any,
between present charges to the public and charges for the service to be
substituted, if any;
    (f) Description of the service area affected including population
and general character of business of the community;
    (g) Name of other carrier or carriers, if any, which will provide
toll station service in the community;
    (h) Statement of the reasons for proposed discontinuance, reduction,
or impairment;
    (i) Statement of the factors showing that neither present nor future
public convenience and necessity would be adversely affected by the
granting of the application;
    (j) Description of any previous discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment

[[Page 313]]

of service to the community affected by the application, which has been
made by the applicant during the 12 months preceding filing of
application, and statement of any present plans for future
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service to such community;
    (k) Description of the service involved, including a statement of
the number of toll telephone messages or telegraph messages sent-paid
and received-collect, and the revenues from such traffic, in connection
with the service proposed to be discontinued for each of the past 6
months; and, if the volume of such traffic handled in the area has
decreased during recent years, the reasons therefor.



Sec. 63.505  Contents of applications for any type of discontinuance,
reduction, or impairment of telephone service not specifically provided

for in this part.

    The application shall contain:
    (a) The name and address of each applicant;
    (b) The name, title, and post office address of the officer to whom
correspondence concerning the application is to be addressed;
    (c) Nature of proposed discontinuance, reduction, or impairment;
    (d) Identification of community or part of community involved and
date on which applicant desires to make proposed discontinuance,
reduction or impairment effective, if for a temporary period only,
indicate the approximate period for which authorization is desired;
    (e) Proposed new tariff listing, if any, and difference, if any,
between present charges to the public and charges for the service to be
substituted;
    (f) Description of the service area affected including population
and general character of business of the community;
    (g) Name of any other carrier or carriers providing telephone
service to the community;
    (h) Statement of the reasons for proposed discontinuance, reduction,
or impairment;
    (i) Statement of the factors showing that neither present nor future
public convenience and necessity would be adversely affected by the
granting of the application;
    (j) Description of any previous discontinuance, reduction, or
impairment of service to the community affected by the application,
which has been made by the applicant during the 12 months preceding
filing of application, and statement of any present plans for future
discontinuance, reduction, or impairment of service to such community;
    (k) Description of the service involved, including:
    (1) Existing telephone service by the applicant available to the
community or part thereof involved;
    (2) Telephone service (available from applicant or others) which
would remain in the community or part thereof involved in the event the
application is granted;
    (l) A statement of the number of toll messages sent-paid and
received-collect and the revenues from such traffic in connection with
the service proposed to be discontinued, reduced, or impaired for each
of the past 6 months; and, if the volume of such traffic handled in the
area has decreased during recent years, the reasons therefor.

[45 FR 6586, Jan. 29, 1980]



Sec. 63.601  Contents of applications for authority to reduce the hours of
service of public coast stations under the conditions specified in

Sec. 63.70.

                       F.C.C. File No. T--D------

                                            Month -------- Year --------
________________________________________________________________________
                                                     (Name of applicant)
________________________________________________________________________
                                                  (Address of applicant)

    In the matter of Proposed Reduction in Hours of Service of a Public
Coast Station Pursuant to Sec. 63.70 of the Commission's rules.

Data regarding public coast station_____________________________________

                                                      (Call and address)
Present hours:
 Monday through Friday__________________________________________________
 Saturday_______________________________________________________________
 Sunday_________________________________________________________________
Proposed hours:
 Monday through Friday__________________________________________________
 Saturday_______________________________________________________________
 Sunday_________________________________________________________________
Proposed effective time and date of change


[[Page 314]]


Average number of messages handled for month of ----------------, 19----

 during total hours to be deleted_______________________________________

 during maximum hour to be deleted______________________________________

    Data regarding substitute service to be provided by other public
coast stations available and capable of providing service to the
community affected, or in the marine area served by the public coast
station involved:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                    Hours of service
                                              --------------------------
     Station call and location       Operated   Monday
                                        by       thru   Saturday  Sunday
                                                Friday
------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Request for Designation as a Recognized Private Operating Agency



Sec. 63.701  Contents of application.

    Except as otherwise provided in this part, any party requesting
designation as a recognized operating agency within the meaning of the
International Telecommunication Convention shall file a request for such
designation with the Commission. A request for designation as a
recognized operating agency within the meaning of the International
Telecommunication Convention shall include a statement of the nature of
the services to be provided and a statement that the party is aware that
it is obligated under Article 6 of the ITU Constitution to obey the
mandatory provisions thereof, and all regulations promulgated
thereunder, and a pledge that it will engage in no conduct or operations
that contravene such mandatory provisions and that it will otherwise
obey the Convention and regulations in all respects. The party must also
include a statement that it is aware that failure to comply will result
in an order from the Federal Communications Commission to cease and
desist from future violations of an ITU regulation and may result in
revocation of its recognized operating agency status by the United
States Department of State. Such statement must include the following
information where applicable:
    (a) The name and address of each applicant;
    (b) The Government, State, or Territory under the laws of which each
corporate applicant is organized;
    (c) The name, title and post office address of the officer of a
corporate applicant, or representative of a non-corporate applicant, to
whom correspondence concerning the application is to be addressed;
    (d) A statement of the ownership of a non-corporate applicant, or
the ownership of the stock of a corporate applicant, including an
indication whether the applicant or its stock is owned directly or
indirectly by an alien;
    (e) A copy of each corporate applicant's articant's articles of
incorporation (or its equivalent) and of its corporate bylaws;
    (f) A statement whether the applicant is a carrier subject to
section 214 of the Communications Act, an operator of broadcast or other
radio facilities, licensed under title III of the Act, capable of
causing harmful interference with the radio transmissions of other
countries, or a non-carrier provider of services classed as ``enhanced''
under Sec. 64.702(a);
    (g) A statement that the services for which designated as a
recognized private operating agency is sought will be extended to a
point outside the United States or are capable of causing harmful
interference of other radio transmission and a statement of the nature
of the services to be provided;
    (h) A statement setting forth the points between which the services
are to be provided; and
    (i) A statement as to whether covered services are provided by
facilities owned by the applicant, by facilities leased from another
entity, or other arrangement and a description of the arrangement.
    (j) Subject to the availability of electronic forms, all filings
described in this section must be filed electronically through the
International Bureau Filing System (IBFS). A list of forms that are
available for electronic filing can be found on the IBFS homepage. For
information on electronic filing requirements, see part 1, Sec. Sec.
1.1000 through 1.10018 of this chapter and the IBFS

[[Page 315]]

homepage at http://www.fcc.gov/ibfs. See also Sec. Sec. 63.20 and
63.53.

[51 FR 18448, May 20, 1986, as amended at 69 FR 29902, May 26, 2004; 70
FR 38800, July 6, 2005]



Sec. 63.702  Form.

    Application under Sec. 63.701 shall be submitted in the form
specified in Sec. 63.53 for applications under section 214 of the
Communications Act.

[51 FR 18448, May 20, 1986]



PART 64_MISCELLANEOUS RULES RELATING TO COMMON CARRIERS--Table of
Contents



                     Subpart A_Traffic Damage Claims

Sec.
64.1 Traffic damage claims.

      Subpart B_Restrictions on Indecent Telephone Message Services

64.201 Restrictions on indecent telephone message services.

     Subpart C_Furnishing of Facilities to Foreign Governments for
                      International Communications

64.301 Furnishing of facilities to foreign governments for international
          communications.

   Subpart D_Procedures for Handling Priority Services in Emergencies

64.401 Policies and procedures for provisioning and restoring certain
          telecommunications services in emergencies.
64.402 Policies and procedures for the provision of priority access
          service by commercial mobile radio service providers.

        Subpart E_Use of Recording Devices by Telephone Companies

64.501 Recording of telephone conversations with telephone companies.

    Subpart F_Telecommunications Relay Services and Related Customer
            Premises Equipment for Persons With Disabilities

64.601 Definitions and provisions of general applicability.
64.602 Jurisdiction.
64.603 Provision of services.
64.604 Mandatory minimum standards.
64.605 Emergency calling requirements.
64.606 Internet-based TRS provider and TRS program certification.
64.607 Furnishing related customer premises equipment.
64.608 Provision of hearing aid compatible telephones by exchange
          carriers.
64.609 Enforcement of related customer premises equipment rules.
64.610 Establishment of a National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution
          Program.
64.611 Internet-based TRS registration.
64.613 Numbering directory for Internet-based TRS users.
64.615 TRS User Registration Database and administrator.
64.617 Neutral Video Communication Service Platform.
64.619 VRS Access Technology Reference Platform and administrator.
64.621 Interoperability and portability.
64.623 Administrator requirements.
64.630 Applicability of change of default TRS provider rules.
64.631 Verification of orders for change of default TRS providers.
64.632 Letter of authorization form and content.
64.633 Procedures for resolution of unauthorized changes in default
          provider.
64.634 Procedures where the Fund has not yet reimbursed the provider.
64.635 Procedures where the Fund has already reimbursed the provider.
64.636 Prohibition of default provider freezes.

    Subpart G_Furnishing of Enhanced Services and Customer-Premises
Equipment by Communications Common Carriers; Telephone Operator Services

64.702 Furnishing of enhanced services and customer-premises equipment.
64.703 Consumer information.
64.704 Call blocking prohibited.
64.705 Restrictions on charges related to the provision of operator
          services.
64.706 Minimum standards for the routing and handling of emergency
          telephone calls.
64.707 Public dissemination of information by providers of operator
          services.
64.708 Definitions.
64.709 Informational tariffs.
64.710 Operator services for prison inmate phones.

   Subpart H_Extension of Unsecured Credit for Interstate and Foreign
        Communications Services to Candidates for Federal Office

64.801 Purpose.
64.802 Applicability.
64.803 Definitions.
64.804 Rules governing the extension of unsecured credit to candidates
          or persons on behalf of such candidates for Federal

[[Page 316]]

          office for interstate and foreign common carrier communication
          services.

                      Subpart I_Allocation of Costs

64.901 Allocation of costs.
64.902 Transactions with affiliates.
64.903 Cost allocation manuals.
64.904 Independent audits.
64.905 Annual certification.

Subpart J [Reserved]

   Subpart K_Changes in Preferred Telecommunications Service Providers

64.1100 Definitions.
64.1110 State notification of election to administer FCC rules.
64.1120 Verification of orders for telecommunications service.
64.1130 Letter of agency form and content.
64.1140 Carrier liability for slamming.
64.1150 Procedures for resolution of unauthorized changes in preferred
          carrier.
64.1160 Absolution procedures where the subscriber has not paid charges.
64.1170 Reimbursement procedures where the subscriber has paid charges.
64.1190 Preferred carrier freezes.
64.1195 Registration requirement.

  Subpart L_Restrictions on Telemarketing, Telephone Solicitation, and
                          Facsimile Advertising

64.1200 Delivery restrictions.
64.1201 Restrictions on billing name and address disclosure.
64.1202 Public safety answering point do-not-call registry.

                 Subpart M_Provision of Payphone Service

64.1300 Payphone compensation obligation.
64.1301 Per-payphone compensation.
64.1310 Payphone compensation procedures.
64.1320 Payphone compensation verification and reports.
64.1330 State review of payphone entry and exit regulations and public
          interest payphones.
64.1340 Right to negotiate.

                   Subpart N_Expanded Interconnection

64.1401 Expanded interconnection.
64.1402 Rights and responsibilities of interconnectors.

    Subpart O_Interstate Pay-Per-Call and Other Information Services

64.1501 Definitions.
64.1502 Limitations on the provision of pay-per-call services.
64.1503 Termination of pay-per-call and other information programs.
64.1504 Restrictions on the use of toll-free numbers.
64.1505 Restrictions on collect telephone calls.
64.1506 Number designation.
64.1507 Prohibition on disconnection or interruption of service for
          failure to remit pay-per-call and similar service charges.
64.1508 Blocking access to 900 service.
64.1509 Disclosure and dissemination of pay-per-call information.
64.1510 Billing and collection of pay-per-call and similar service
          charges.
64.1511 Forgiveness of charges and refunds.
64.1512 Involuntary blocking of pay-per-call services.
64.1513 Verification of charitable status.
64.1514 Generation of signalling tones.
64.1515 Recovery of costs.

            Subpart P_Calling Party Telephone Number; Privacy

64.1600 Definitions.
64.1601 Delivery requirements and privacy restrictions.
64.1602 Restrictions on use and sale of telephone subscriber information
          provided pursuant to automatic number identification or charge
          number services.
64.1603 Customer notification.
64.1604 Prohibition on transmission of inaccurate or misleading caller
          identification information.
64.1605 Effective date.

Subpart Q_Implementation of Section 273(d)(5) of the Communications Act:
            Dispute Resolution Regarding Equipment Standards

64.1700 Purpose and scope.
64.1701 Definitions.
64.1702 Procedures.
64.1703 Dispute resolution default process.
64.1704 Frivolous disputes/penalties.

        Subpart R_Geographic Rate Averaging and Rate Integration

64.1801 Geographic rate averaging and rate integration.

  Subpart S_Nondominant Interexchange Carrier Certifications Regarding
       Geographic Rate Averaging and Rate Integration Requirements

64.1900 Nondominant interexchange carrier certifications regarding
          geographic rate

[[Page 317]]

          averaging and rate integration requirements.

  Subpart T_Separate Affiliate Requirements for Incumbent Independent
  Local Exchange Carriers That Provide In-Region, Interstate Domestic
Interexchange Services or In-Region International Interexchange Services

64.1901 Basis and purpose.
64.1902 Terms and definitions.
64.1903 Obligations of all incumbent independent local exchange
          carriers.

           Subpart U_Customer Proprietary Network Information

64.2001 Basis and purpose.
64.2003 Definitions.
64.2005 Use of customer proprietary network information without customer
          approval.
64.2007 Approval required for use of customer proprietary network
          information.
64.2008 Notice required for use of customer proprietary network
          information.
64.2009 Safeguards required for use of customer proprietary network
          information.
64.2010 Safeguards on the disclosure of customer proprietary network
          information.
64.2011 Notification of customer proprietary network information
          security breaches.

 Subpart V_Recording, Retention and Reporting of Data on Long-Distance
 Telephone Calls to Rural Areas and Reporting of Data on Long-Distance
                    Telephone Calls to Nonrural Areas

64.2101 Definitions.
64.2103 Retention of call attempt records.
64.2105 Reporting requirements.
64.2107 Reduced retention and reporting requirements for qualifying
          providers under the Safe Harbor.
64.2109 Disclosure of data.

                   Subpart W_Ring Signaling Integrity

64.2201 Ringing indication requirements.

                  Subpart X_Subscriber List Information

64.2301 Basis and purpose.
64.2305 Definitions.
64.2309 Provision of subscriber list information.
64.2313 Timely basis.
64.2317 Unbundled basis.
64.2321 Nondiscriminatory rates, terms, and conditions.
64.2325 Reasonable rates, terms, and conditions.
64.2329 Format.
64.2333 Burden of proof.
64.2337 Directory publishing purposes.
64.2341 Record keeping.
64.2345 Primary advertising classification.

Subpart Y_Truth-in-Billing Requirements for Common Carriers; Billing for
                          Unauthorized Charges

64.2400 Purpose.
64.2401 Scope.

     Subpart Z_Prohibition on Exclusive Telecommunications Contracts

64.2500 Prohibited agreements.
64.2501 Scope of limitation.
64.2502 Effect of state law or regulation.

             Subpart AA_Universal Emergency Telephone Number

64.3000 Definitions.
64.3001 Obligation to transmit 911 calls.
64.3002 Transition to 911 as the universal emergency telephone number.
64.3003 Obligation for providing a permissive dialing period.
64.3004 Obligation for providing an intercept message.

 Subpart BB_Restrictions on Unwanted Mobile Service Commercial Messages

64.3100 Restrictions on mobile service commercial messages.

        Subpart CC_Customer Account Record Exchange Requirements

64.4000 Basis and purpose.
64.4001 Definitions.
64.4002 Notification obligations of LECs.
64.4003 Notification obligations of IXCs.
64.4004 Timeliness of required notifications.
64.4005 Unreasonable terms or conditions on the provision of customer
          account information.
64.4006 Limitations on use of customer account information.

                Subpart DD_Prepaid Calling Card Providers

64.5000 Definitions.
64.5001 Reporting and certification requirements.

        Subpart EE_TRS Customer Proprietary Network Information.

64.5101 Basis and purpose.
64.5103 Definitions.
64.5105 Use of customer proprietary network information without customer
          approval.
64.5107 Approval required for use of customer proprietary network
          information.
64.5108 Notice required for use of customer proprietary network
          information.

[[Page 318]]

64.5109 Safeguards required for use of customer proprietary network
          information.
64.5110 Safeguards on the disclosure of customer proprietary network
          information.
64. 5111 Notification of customer proprietary network information
          security breaches.

                   Subpart FF_Inmate Calling Services

64.6000 Definitions.
64.6010 Cost-based rates for inmate calling services.
64.6020 Interim safe harbor.
64.6030 Inmate calling services interim rate cap.
64.6040 Rates for Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) calling.
64.6050 Billing-related call blocking.
64.6060 Annual reporting and certification requirement.

Appendix A to Part 64--Telecommunications Service Priority (TSP) System
          for National Security Emergency Preparedness (NSEP)
Appendix B to Part 64--Priority Access Service (PAS) for National
          Security and Emergency Preparedness (NSEP)

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 254(k); 403(b)(2)(B), (c), Pub. L. 104-
104, 110 Stat. 56. Interpret or apply 47 U.S.C. 201, 218, 222, 225, 226,
227, 228, 254(k), 616, 620, and the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job
Creation Act of 2012, Pub. L. 112-96, unless otherwise noted.

    Source: 28 FR 13239, Dec. 5, 1963, unless otherwise noted.



                     Subpart A_Traffic Damage Claims



Sec. 64.1  Traffic damage claims.

    (a) Each carrier engaged in furnishing radio-telegraph, wire-
telegraph, or ocean-cable service shall maintain separate files for each
damage claim of a traffic nature filed with the carrier, showing the
name, address, and nature of business of the claimant, the basis for the
claim, disposition made, and all correspondence, reports, and records
pertaining thereto. Such files shall be preserved in accordance with
existing rules of the Commission (part 42 of this chapter) and at points
(one or more) to be specifically designated by each carrier.
    (b) The aforementioned carriers shall make no payment as a result of
any traffic damage claim if the amount of the payment would be in excess
of the total amount collected by the carrier on the message or messages
from which the claim arose unless such claim be presented to the carrier
in writing signed by the claimant and setting forth the reason for the
claim.



      Subpart B_Restrictions on Indecent Telephone Message Services



Sec. 64.201  Restrictions on indecent telephone message services.

    (a) It is a defense to prosecution for the provision of indecent
communications under section 223(b)(2) of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended (the Act), 47 U.S.C. 223(b)(2), that the defendant has
taken the action set forth in paragraph (a)(1) of this section and, in
addition, has complied with the following: Taken one of the actions set
forth in paragraphs (a)(2), (3), or (4) of this section to restrict
access to prohibited communications to persons eighteen years of age or
older, and has additionally complied with paragraph (a)(5) of this
section, where applicable:
    (1) Has notified the common carrier identified in section 223(c)(1)
of the Act, in writing, that he or she is providing the kind of service
described in section 223(b)(2) of the Act.
    (2) Requires payment by credit card before transmission of the
message; or
    (3) Requires an authorized access or identification code before
transmission of the message, and where the defendant has:
    (i) Issued the code by mailing it to the applicant after reasonably
ascertaining through receipt of a written application that the applicant
is not under eighteen years of age; and
    (ii) Established a procedure to cancel immediately the code of any
person upon written, telephonic or other notice to the defendant's
business office that such code has been lost, stolen, or used by a
person or persons under the age of eighteen, or that such code is no
longer desired; or
    (4) Scrambles the message using any technique that renders the audio
unintelligible and incomprehensible to the calling party unless that
party uses a descrambler; and,
    (5) Where the defendant is a message sponsor subscriber to mass
announcement services tariffed at this Commission and such defendant
prior to the

[[Page 319]]

transmission of the message has requested in writing to the carrier
providing the public announcement service that calls to this message
service be subject to billing notification as an adult telephone message
service.
    (b) A common carrier within the District of Columbia or within any
State, or in interstate or foreign commerce, shall not, to the extent
technically feasible, provide access to a communication described in
section 223(b) of the Act from the telephone of any subscriber who has
not previously requested in writing the carrier to provide access to
such communication if the carrier collects from subscribers an
identifiable charge for such communication that the carrier remits, in
whole or in part, to the provider of such communication.

[52 FR 17761, May 12, 1987, as amended at 55 FR 28916, July 16, 1990]



     Subpart C_Furnishing of Facilities to Foreign Governments for
                      International Communications



Sec. 64.301  Furnishing of facilities to foreign governments for
international communications.

    Common carriers by wire and radio shall, in accordance with section
201 of the Communications Act, furnish services and facilities for
communications to any foreign government upon reasonable demand
therefor: Provided, however, That, if a foreign government fails or
refuses, upon reasonable demand, to furnish particular services and
facilities to the United States Government for communications between
the territory of that government and the United States or any other
point, such carriers shall, to the extent specifically ordered by the
Commission, deny equivalent services or facilities in the United States
to such foreign government for communications between the United States
and the territory of that foreign government or any other point.

(Secs. 201, 214, 303, 308, 48 Stat. 1075, 1082, 1085; 47 U.S.C. 201,
214, 303, 308)

[28 FR 13242, Dec. 5, 1963]



   Subpart D_Procedures for Handling Priority Services in Emergencies



Sec. 64.401  Policies and procedures for provisioning and restoring
certain telecommunications services in emergencies.

    The communications common carrier shall maintain and provision and,
if disrupted, restore facilities and services in accordance with
policies and procedures set forth in Appendix A to this part.

[65 FR 48396, Aug. 8, 2000]



Sec. 64.402  Policies and procedures for the provision of priority
access service by commercial mobile radio service providers.

    Commercial mobile radio service providers that elect to provide
priority access service to National Security and Emergency Preparedness
personnel shall provide priority access service in accordance with the
policies and procedures set forth in Appendix B to this part.

[65 FR 48396, Aug. 8, 2000]



        Subpart E_Use of Recording Devices by Telephone Companies



Sec. 64.501  Recording of telephone conversations with telephone
companies.

    No telephone common carrier, subject in whole or in part to the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, may use any recording device in
connection with any interstate or foreign telephone conversation between
any member of the public, on the one hand, and any officer, agent or
other person acting for or employed by any such telephone common
carrier, on the other hand, except under the following conditions:
    (a) Where such use shall be preceded by verbal or written consent of
all parties to the telephone conversation, or
    (b) Where such use shall be preceded by verbal notification which is
recorded at the beginning, and as part of the call, by the recording
party, or
    (c) Where such use shall be accompanied by an automatic tone warning
device, which will automatically

[[Page 320]]

produce a distinct signal that is repeated at regular intervals during
the course of the telephone conversation when the recording device is in
use. Provided That:
    (1) The characteristics of the warning tone shall be the same as
those specified in the Orders of this Commission adopted by it in ``Use
of Recording Devices in Connection With Telephone Service,'' Docket
6787, 11 FCC 1033 (1947); 12 FCC 1005 (November 26, 1947); 12 FCC 1008
(May 20, 1948).
    (d) That the characteristics of the warning tone shall be the same
as those specified in the Orders of this Commission adopted by it in
``Use of Recording Devices in Connection With Telephone Service,''
Docket 6787; 11 F.C.C. 1033 (1947); 12 F.C.C. 1005 (November 26, 1947);
12 F.C.C. 1008 (May 20, 1948);
    (e) That no recording device shall be used unless it can be
physically connected to and disconnected from the telephone line or
switched on and off.

(Secs. 2, 3, 4, 5, 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, 315, 317; 48 Stat., as
amended, 1064, 1065, 1066, 1068, 1081, 1082, 1083, 1084, 1085, 1089; 47
U.S.C. 152, 153, 154, 155, 301, 303, 307, 308, 309, 315, 317)

[32 FR 11275, Aug. 3, 1967, as amended at 46 FR 29480, June 2, 1981; 52
FR 3654, Feb. 5, 1987]



    Subpart F_Telecommunications Relay Services and Related Customer
            Premises Equipment for Persons With Disabilities

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151-154; 225, 255, 303(r), 616, and 620.

    Source: 56 FR 36731, Aug. 1, 1991, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.601  Definitions and provisions of general applicability.

    (a) For purposes of this subpart, the terms Public Safety Answering
Point (PSAP), statewide default answering point, and appropriate local
emergency authority are defined in 47 CFR 64.3000; the terms pseudo-ANI
and Wireline E911 Network are defined in 47 CFR 9.3; the term affiliate
is defined in 47 CFR 52.12(a)(1)(i), and the terms majority and debt are
defined in 47 CFR 52.12(a)(1)(ii).
    (1) 711. The abbreviated dialing code for accessing relay services
anywhere in the United States.
    (2) ACD platform. The hardware and/or software that comprise the
essential call center function of call distribution, and that are a
necessary core component of Internet-based TRS.
    (3) American Sign Language (ASL). A visual language based on hand
shape, position, movement, and orientation of the hands in relation to
each other and the body.
    (4) ANI. For 911 systems, the Automatic Number Identification (ANI)
identifies the calling party and may be used as the callback number.
    (5) ASCII. An acronym for American Standard Code for Information
Interexchange which employs an eight bit code and can operate at any
standard transmission baud rate including 300, 1200, 2400, and higher.
    (6) Authorized provider. An iTRS provider that becomes the iTRS
user's new default provider, having obtained the user's authorization
verified in accordance with the procedures specified in this part.
    (7) Baudot. A seven bit code, only five of which are information
bits. Baudot is used by some text telephones to communicate with each
other at a 45.5 baud rate.
    (8) Call release. A TRS feature that allows the CA to sign-off or be
``released'' from the telephone line after the CA has set up a telephone
call between the originating TTY caller and a called TTY party, such as
when a TTY user must go through a TRS facility to contact another TTY
user because the called TTY party can only be reached through a voice-
only interface, such as a switchboard.
    (9) Common carrier or carrier. Any common carrier engaged in
interstate Communication by wire or radio as defined in section 3(h) of
the Communications Act of 1934, as amended (the Act), and any common
carrier engaged in intrastate communication by wire or radio,
notwithstanding sections 2(b) and 221(b) of the Act.
    (10) Communications assistant (CA). A person who transliterates or
interprets conversation between two or more end users of TRS. CA
supersedes the term ``TDD operator.''
    (11) Default provider. The iTRS provider that registers and assigns
a ten-

[[Page 321]]

digit telephone number to an iTRS user pursuant to Sec. 64.611.
    (12) Default provider change order. A request by an iTRS user to an
iTRS provider to change the user's default provider.
    (13) Hearing carry over (HCO). A form of TRS where the person with
the speech disability is able to listen to the other end user and, in
reply, the CA speaks the text as typed by the person with the speech
disability. The CA does not type any conversation. Two-line HCO is an
HCO service that allows TRS users to use one telephone line for hearing
and the other for sending TTY messages. HCO-to-TTY allows a relay
conversation to take place between an HCO user and a TTY user. HCO-to-
HCO allows a relay conversation to take place between two HCO users.
    (14) Interconnected VoIP service. The term ``interconnected VoIP
service'' has the meaning given such term under Sec. 9.3 of this
chapter, as such section may be amended from time to time.
    (15) Internet-based TRS (iTRS). A telecommunications relay service
(TRS) in which an individual with a hearing or a speech disability
connects to a TRS communications assistant using an Internet Protocol-
enabled device via the Internet, rather than the public switched
telephone network. Internet-based TRS does not include the use of a text
telephone (TTY) over an interconnected voice over Internet Protocol
service.
    (16) Internet Protocol Captioned Telephone Service (IP CTS). A
telecommunications relay service that permits an individual who can
speak but who has difficulty hearing over the telephone to use a
telephone and an Internet Protocol-enabled device via the Internet to
simultaneously listen to the other party and read captions of what the
other party is saying. With IP CTS, the connection carrying the captions
between the relay service provider and the relay service user is via the
Internet, rather than the public switched telephone network.
    (17) Internet Protocol Relay Service (IP Relay). A
telecommunications relay service that permits an individual with a
hearing or a speech disability to communicate in text using an Internet
Protocol-enabled device via the Internet, rather than using a text
telephone (TTY) and the public switched telephone network.
    (18) IP Relay access technology. Any equipment, software, or other
technology issued, leased, or provided by an Internet-based TRS provider
that can be used to make and receive an IP Relay call.
    (19) iTRS access technology. Any equipment, software, or other
technology issued, leased, or provided by an Internet-based TRS provider
that can be used to make and receive an Internet-based TRS call.
    (20) Neutral Video Communication Service Platform. The service
platform that allows a registered Internet-based VRS user to use VRS
access technology to make and receive VRS and point-to-point calls
through a VRS CA service provider. The functions provided by the Neutral
Video Communication Service Platform include the provision of a video
link, user registration and validation, authentication, authorization,
ACD platform functions, routing (including emergency call routing), call
setup, mapping, call features (such as call forwarding and video mail),
and such other features and functions not provided by the VRS CA service
provider.
    (21) New default provider. An iTRS provider that, either directly or
through its numbering partner, initiates or implements the process to
become the iTRS user's default provider by replacing the iTRS user's
original default provider.
    (22) Non-English language relay service. A telecommunications relay
service that allows persons with hearing or speech disabilities who use
languages other than English to communicate with voice telephone users
in a shared language other than English, through a CA who is fluent in
that language.
    (23) Non-interconnected VoIP service. The term ``non-interconnected
VoIP service''--
    (i) Means a service that--
    (A) Enables real-time voice communications that originate from or
terminate to the user's location using Internet protocol or any
successor protocol; and

[[Page 322]]

    (B) Requires Internet protocol compatible customer premises
equipment; and
    (ii) Does not include any service that is an interconnected VoIP
service.
    (24) Numbering partner. Any entity with which an Internet-based TRS
provider has entered into a commercial arrangement to obtain North
American Numbering Plan telephone numbers.
    (25) Original default provider. An iTRS provider that is the iTRS
user's default provider immediately before that iTRS user's default
provider is changed.
    (26) Qualified interpreter. An interpreter who is able to interpret
effectively, accurately, and impartially, both receptively and
expressively, using any necessary specialized vocabulary.
    (27) Registered Internet-based TRS user. An individual that has
registered with a VRS or IP Relay provider as described in Sec. 64.611.
    (28) Registered Location. The most recent information obtained by a
VRS or IP Relay provider that identifies the physical location of an end
user.
    (29) Sign language. A language which uses manual communication and
body language to convey meaning, including but not limited to American
Sign Language.
    (30) Speech-to-speech relay service (STS). A telecommunications
relay service that allows individuals with speech disabilities to
communicate with voice telephone users through the use of specially
trained CAs who understand the speech patterns of persons with speech
disabilities and can repeat the words spoken by that person.
    (31) Speed dialing. A TRS feature that allows a TRS user to place a
call using a stored number maintained by the TRS facility. In the
context of TRS, speed dialing allows a TRS user to give the CA a short-
hand'' name or number for the user's most frequently called telephone
numbers.
    (32) Telecommunications relay services (TRS). Telephone transmission
services that provide the ability for an individual who has a hearing or
speech disability to engage in communication by wire or radio with a
hearing individual in a manner that is functionally equivalent to the
ability of an individual who does not have a hearing or speech
disability to communicate using voice communication services by wire or
radio. Such term includes services that enable two-way communication
between an individual who uses a text telephone or other nonvoice
terminal device and an individual who does not use such a device,
speech-to-speech services, video relay services and non-English relay
services. TRS supersedes the terms ``dual party relay system,''
``message relay services,'' and ``TDD Relay.''
    (33) Text telephone (TTY). A machine that employs graphic
communication in the transmission of coded signals through a wire or
radio communication system. TTY supersedes the term ``TDD'' or
``telecommunications device for the deaf,'' and TT.
    (34) Three-way calling feature. A TRS feature that allows more than
two parties to be on the telephone line at the same time with the CA.
    (35) TRS Numbering Administrator. The neutral administrator of the
TRS Numbering Directory selected based on a competitive bidding process.
    (36) TRS Numbering Directory. The database administered by the TRS
Numbering Administrator, the purpose of which is to map each registered
Internet-based TRS user's NANP telephone number to his or her end
device.
    (37) TRS User Registration Database. A system of records containing
TRS user identification data capable of:
    (i) Receiving and processing subscriber information sufficient to
identify unique TRS users and to ensure that each has a single default
provider;
    (ii) Assigning each VRS user a unique identifier;
    (iii) Allowing VRS providers and other authorized entities to query
the TRS User Registration Database to determine if a prospective user
already has a default provider;
    (iv) Allowing VRS providers to indicate that a VRS user has used the
service; and
    (v) Maintaining the confidentiality of proprietary data housed in
the database by protecting it from theft, loss or disclosure to
unauthorized persons. The purpose of this database is to ensure accurate
registration and verification of VRS users and improve the efficiency of
the TRS program.

[[Page 323]]

    (38) Unauthorized provider. An iTRS provider that becomes the iTRS
user's new default provider without having obtained the user's
authorization verified in accordance with the procedures specified in
this part.
    (39) Unauthorized change. A change in an iTRS user's selection of a
default provider that was made without authorization verified in
accordance with the verification procedures specified in this part.
    (40) Video relay service (VRS). A telecommunications relay service
that allows people with hearing or speech disabilities who use sign
language to communicate with voice telephone users through video
equipment. The video link allows the CA to view and interpret the
party's signed conversation and relay the conversation back and forth
with a voice caller.
    (41) Visual privacy screen. A screen or any other feature that is
designed to prevent one party or both parties on the video leg of a VRS
call from viewing the other party during a call.
    (42) Voice carry over (VCO). A form of TRS where the person with the
hearing disability is able to speak directly to the other end user. The
CA types the response back to the person with the hearing disability.
The CA does not voice the conversation. Two-line VCO is a VCO service
that allows TRS users to use one telephone line for voicing and the
other for receiving TTY messages. A VCO-to-TTY TRS call allows a relay
conversation to take place between a VCO user and a TTY user. VCO-to-VCO
allows a relay conversation to take place between two VCO users.
    (43) VRS access technology. Any equipment, software, or other
technology issued, leased, or provided by an Internet-based TRS provider
that can be used to make and receive a VRS call.
    (44) VRS Access Technology Reference Platform. A software product
procured by or on behalf of the Commission that provides VRS
functionality, including the ability to make and receive VRS and point-
to-point calls, dial-around functionality, and the ability to update
user registration location, and against which providers may test their
own VRS access technology and platforms for compliance with the
Commission's interoperability and portability rules.
    (45) VRS CA service provider. A VRS provider that uses the Neutral
Video Communication Service Platform for the video communication service
components of VRS.
    (b) For purposes of this subpart, all regulations and requirements
applicable to common carriers shall also be applicable to providers of
interconnected VoIP service.

[68 FR 50976, Aug. 25, 2003, as amended at 69 FR 53351, Sept. 1, 2004;
72 FR 43559, Aug. 6, 2007; 73 FR 41294, July 18, 2008; 76 FR 24400, May
2, 2011; 76 FR 65969, Oct. 25, 2011; 78 FR 40605, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.602  Jurisdiction.

    Any violation of this subpart F by any common carrier engaged in
intrastate communication shall be subject to the same remedies,
penalties, and procedures as are applicable to a violation of the Act by
a common carrier engaged in interstate communication.

[65 FR 38436, June 21, 2000]



Sec. 64.603  Provision of services.

    Each common carrier providing telephone voice transmission services
shall provide, not later than July 26, 1993, in compliance with the
regulations prescribed herein, throughout the area in which it offers
services, telecommunications relay services, individually, through
designees, through a competitively selected vendor, or in concert with
other carriers. Speech-to-speech relay service and interstate Spanish
language relay service shall be provided by March 1, 2001. In addition,
each common carrier providing telephone voice transmission services
shall provide, not later than October 1, 2001, access via the 711
dialing code to all relay services as a toll free call. A common carrier
shall be considered to be in compliance with these regulations:
    (a) With respect to intrastate telecommunications relay services in
any state that does not have a certified program under Sec. 64.606 and
with respect to interstate telecommunications relay services, if such
common carrier (or other entity through which the carrier is providing
such relay services) is in compliance with Sec. 64.604; or

[[Page 324]]

    (b) With respect to intrastate telecommunications relay services in
any state that has a certified program under Sec. 64.606 for such
state, if such common carrier (or other entity through which the carrier
is providing such relay services) is in compliance with the program
certified under Sec. 64.606 for such state.

[65 FR 38436, June 21, 2000, as amended at 66 FR 67114, Dec. 28, 2001;
73 FR 21258, Apr. 21, 2008]



Sec. 64.604  Mandatory minimum standards.

    The standards in this section are applicable December 18, 2000,
except as stated in paragraphs (c)(2) and (c)(7) of this section.
    (a) Operational standards--(1) Communications assistant (CA). (i)
TRS providers are responsible for requiring that all CAs be sufficiently
trained to effectively meet the specialized communications needs of
individuals with hearing and speech disabilities.
    (ii) CAs must have competent skills in typing, grammar, spelling,
interpretation of typewritten ASL, and familiarity with hearing and
speech disability cultures, languages and etiquette. CAs must possess
clear and articulate voice communications.
    (iii) CAs must provide a typing speed of a minimum of 60 words per
minute. Technological aids may be used to reach the required typing
speed. Providers must give oral-to-type tests of CA speed.
    (iv) TRS providers are responsible for requiring that VRS CAs are
qualified interpreters. A ``qualified interpreter'' is able to interpret
effectively, accurately, and impartially, both receptively and
expressively, using any necessary specialized vocabulary.
    (v) CAs answering and placing a TTY-based TRS or VRS call shall stay
with the call for a minimum of ten minutes. CAs answering and placing an
STS call shall stay with the call for a minimum of twenty minutes. The
minimum time period shall begin to run when the CA reaches the called
party. The obligation of the CA to stay with the call shall terminate
upon the earlier of:
    (A) The termination of the call by one of the parties to the call;
or
    (B) The completion of the minimum time period.
    (vi) TRS providers must make best efforts to accommodate a TRS
user's requested CA gender when a call is initiated and, if a transfer
occurs, at the time the call is transferred to another CA.
    (vii) TRS shall transmit conversations between TTY and voice callers
in real time.
    (viii) STS providers shall offer STS users the option to have their
voices muted so that the other party to the call will hear only the CA
and will not hear the STS user's voice.
    (2) Confidentiality and conversation content. (i) Except as
authorized by section 705 of the Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. 605, CAs
are prohibited from disclosing the content of any relayed conversation
regardless of content, and with a limited exception for STS CAs, from
keeping records of the content of any conversation beyond the duration
of a call, even if to do so would be inconsistent with state or local
law. STS CAs may retain information from a particular call in order to
facilitate the completion of consecutive calls, at the request of the
user. The caller may request the STS CA to retain such information, or
the CA may ask the caller if he wants the CA to repeat the same
information during subsequent calls. The CA may retain the information
only for as long as it takes to complete the subsequent calls.
    (ii) CAs are prohibited from intentionally altering a relayed
conversation and, to the extent that it is not inconsistent with
federal, state or local law regarding use of telephone company
facilities for illegal purposes, must relay all conversation verbatim
unless the relay user specifically requests summarization, or if the
user requests interpretation of an ASL call. An STS CA may facilitate
the call of an STS user with a speech disability so long as the CA does
not interfere with the independence of the user, the user maintains
control of the conversation, and the user does not object. Appropriate
measures must be taken by relay providers to ensure that confidentiality
of VRS users is maintained.

[[Page 325]]

    (3) Types of calls. (i) Consistent with the obligations of
telecommunications carrier operators, CAs are prohibited from refusing
single or sequential calls or limiting the length of calls utilizing
relay services.
    (ii) Relay services shall be capable of handling any type of call
normally provided by telecommunications carriers unless the Commission
determines that it is not technologically feasible to do so. Relay
service providers have the burden of proving the infeasibility of
handling any type of call.
    (iii) Relay service providers are permitted to decline to complete a
call because credit authorization is denied.
    (iv) Relay services shall be capable of handling pay-per-call calls.
    (v) TRS providers are required to provide the following types of TRS
calls: (1) Text-to-voice and voice-to-text; (2) VCO, two-line VCO, VCO-
to-TTY, and VCO-to-VCO; (3) HCO, two-line HCO, HCO-to-TTY, HCO-to-HCO.
    (vi) TRS providers are required to provide the following features:
(1) Call releasefunctionality; (2) speed dialing functionality; and (3)
three-way calling functionality.
    (vii) Voice mail and interactive menus. CAs must alert the TRS user
to the presence of a recorded message and interactive menu through a hot
key on the CA's terminal. The hot key will send text from the CA to the
consumer's TTY indicating that a recording or interactive menu has been
encountered. Relay providers shall electronically capture recorded
messages and retain them for the length of the call. Relay providers may
not impose any charges for additional calls, which must be made by the
relay user in order to complete calls involving recorded or interactive
messages.
    (viii) TRS providers shall provide, as TRS features, answering
machine and voice mail retrieval.
    (4) Emergency call handling requirements for TTY-based TRS
providers. TTY-based TRS providers must use a system for incoming
emergency calls that, at a minimum, automatically and immediately
transfers the caller to an appropriate Public Safety Answering Point
(PSAP). An appropriate PSAP is either a PSAP that the caller would have
reached if he had dialed 911 directly, or a PSAP that is capable of
enabling the dispatch of emergency services to the caller in an
expeditious manner.
    (5) STS called numbers. Relay providers must offer STS users the
option to maintain at the relay center a list of names and telephone
numbers which the STS user calls. When the STS user requests one of
these names, the CA must repeat the name and state the telephone number
to the STS user. This information must be transferred to any new STS
provider.
    (6) Visual privacy screens/idle calls. A VRS CA may not enable a
visual privacy screen or similar feature during a VRS call. A VRS CA
must disconnect a VRS call if the caller or the called party to a VRS
call enables a privacy screen or similar feature for more than five
minutes or is otherwise unresponsive or unengaged for more than five
minutes, unless the call is a 9-1-1 emergency call or the caller or
called party is legitimately placed on hold and is present and waiting
for active communications to commence. Prior to disconnecting the call,
the CA must announce to both parties the intent to terminate the call
and may reverse the decision to disconnect if one of the parties
indicates continued engagement with the call.
    (7) International calls. VRS calls that originate from an
international IP address will not be compensated, with the exception of
calls made by a U.S. resident who has pre-registered with his or her
default provider prior to leaving the country, during specified periods
of time while on travel and from specified regions of travel, for which
there is an accurate means of verifying the identity and location of
such callers. For purposes of this section, an international IP address
is defined as one that indicates that the individual initiating the call
is located outside the United States.
    (b) Technical standards--(1) ASCII and Baudot. TRS shall be capable
of communicating with ASCII and Baudot format, at any speed generally in
use.
    (2) Speed of answer. (i) TRS providers shall ensure adequate TRS
facility staffing to provide callers with efficient access under
projected calling volumes, so that the probability of a

[[Page 326]]

busy response due to CA unavailability shall be functionally equivalent
to what a voice caller would experience in attempting to reach a party
through the voice telephone network.
    (ii) TRS facilities shall, except during network failure, answer 85%
of all calls within 10 seconds by any method which results in the
caller's call immediately being placed, not put in a queue or on hold.
The ten seconds begins at the time the call is delivered to the TRS
facility's network. A TRS facility shall ensure that adequate network
facilities shall be used in conjunction with TRS so that under projected
calling volume the probability of a busy response due to loop trunk
congestion shall be functionally equivalent to what a voice caller would
experience in attempting to reach a party through the voice telephone
network.
    (A) The call is considered delivered when the TRS facility's
equipment accepts the call from the local exchange carrier (LEC) and the
public switched network actually delivers the call to the TRS facility.
    (B) Abandoned calls shall be included in the speed-of-answer
calculation.
    (C) A TRS provider's compliance with this rule shall be measured on
a daily basis.
    (D) The system shall be designed to a P.01 standard.
    (E) A LEC shall provide the call attempt rates and the rates of
calls blocked between the LEC and the TRS facility to relay
administrators and TRS providers upon request.
    (iii) Speed of answer requirements for VRS providers. (A) Speed of
answer requirements for VRS providers are phased-in as follows:
    (1) By January 1, 2007, VRS providers must answer 80% of all VRS
calls within 120 seconds, measured on a monthly basis;
    (2) By January 1, 2014, VRS providers must answer 85% of all VRS
calls within 60 seconds, measured on a daily basis; and
    (3) By July 1, 2014, VRS providers must answer 85% of all VRS calls
within 30 seconds, measured on a daily basis. Abandoned calls shall be
included in the VRS speed of answer calculation.
    (B) VRS CA service providers must meet the speed of answer
requirements for VRS providers as measured from the time a VRS call
reaches facilities operated by the VRS CA service provider.
    (3) Equal access to interexchange carriers. TRS users shall have
access to their chosen interexchange carrier through the TRS, and to all
other operator services, to the same extent that such access is provided
to voice users.
    (4) TRS facilities. (i) TRS shall operate every day, 24 hours a day.
Relay services that are not mandated by this Commission need not be
provided every day, 24 hours a day, except VRS.
    (ii) TRS shall have redundancy features functionally equivalent to
the equipment in normal central offices, including uninterruptible power
for emergency use.
    (iii) A VRS CA may not relay calls from a location primarily used as
his or her home.
    (iv) A VRS provider leasing or licensing an automatic call
distribution (ACD) platform must have a written lease or license
agreement. Such lease or license agreement may not include any revenue
sharing agreement or compensation based upon minutes of use. In
addition, if any such lease is between two eligible VRS providers, the
lessee or licensee must locate the ACD platform on its own premises and
must utilize its own employees to manage the ACD platform. VRS CA
service providers are not required to have a written lease or licensing
agreement for an ACD if they obtain that function from the Neutral Video
Communication Service Platform.
    (5) Technology. No regulation set forth in this subpart is intended
to discourage or impair the development of improved technology that
fosters the availability of telecommunications to person with
disabilities. TRS facilities are permitted to use SS7 technology or any
other type of similar technology to enhance the functional equivalency
and quality of TRS. TRS facilities that utilize SS7 technology shall be
subject to the Calling Party Telephone Number rules set forth at 47 CFR
64.1600 et seq.
    (6) Caller ID. When a TRS facility is able to transmit any calling
party identifying information to the public

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network, the TRS facility must pass through, to the called party, at
least one of the following: the number of the TRS facility, 711, or the
10-digit number of the calling party.
    (7) STS 711 Calls. An STS provider shall, at a minimum, employ the
same means of enabling an STS user to connect to a CA when dialing 711
that the provider uses for all other forms of TRS. When a CA directly
answers an incoming 711 call, the CA shall transfer the STS user to an
STS CA without requiring the STS user to take any additional steps. When
an interactive voice response (IVR) system answers an incoming 711 call,
the IVR system shall allow for an STS user to connect directly to an STS
CA using the same level of prompts as the IVR system uses for all other
forms of TRS.
    (c) Functional standards--(1) Consumer complaint logs. (i) States
and interstate providers must maintain a log of consumer complaints
including all complaints about TRS in the state, whether filed with the
TRS provider or the State, and must retain the log until the next
application for certification is granted. The log shall include, at a
minimum, the date the complaint was filed, the nature of the complaint,
the date of resolution, and an explanation of the resolution.
    (ii) Beginning July 1, 2002, states and TRS providers shall submit
summaries of logs indicating the number of complaints received for the
12-month period ending May 31 to the Commission by July 1 of each year.
Summaries of logs submitted to the Commission on July 1, 2001 shall
indicate the number of complaints received from the date of OMB approval
through May 31, 2001.
    (2) Contact persons. Beginning on June 30, 2000, State TRS Programs,
interstate TRS providers, and TRS providers that have state contracts
must submit to the Commission a contact person and/or office for TRS
consumer information and complaints about a certified State TRS
Program's provision of intrastate TRS, or, as appropriate, about the TRS
provider's service. This submission must include, at a minimum, the
following:
    (i) The name and address of the office that receives complaints,
grievances, inquiries, and suggestions;
    (ii) Voice and TTY telephone numbers, fax number, e-mail address,
and web address; and
    (iii) The physical address to which correspondence should be sent.
    (3) Public access to information. Carriers, through publication in
their directories, periodic billing inserts, placement of TRS
instructions in telephone directories, through directory assistance
services, and incorporation of TTY numbers in telephone directories,
shall assure that callers in their service areas are aware of the
availability and use of all forms of TRS. Efforts to educate the public
about TRS should extend to all segments of the public, including
individuals who are hard of hearing, speech disabled, and senior
citizens as well as members of the general population. In addition, each
common carrier providing telephone voice transmission services shall
conduct, not later than October 1, 2001, ongoing education and outreach
programs that publicize the availability of 711 access to TRS in a
manner reasonably designed to reach the largest number of consumers
possible.
    (4) Rates. TRS users shall pay rates no greater than the rates paid
for functionally equivalent voice communication services with respect to
such factors as the duration of the call, the time of day, and the
distance from the point of origination to the point of termination.
    (5) Jurisdictional separation of costs--(i) General. Where
appropriate, costs of providing TRS shall be separated in accordance
with the jurisdictional separation procedures and standards set forth in
the Commission's regulations adopted pursuant to section 410 of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (ii) Cost recovery. Costs caused by interstate TRS shall be
recovered from all subscribers for every interstate service, utilizing a
shared-funding cost recovery mechanism. Except as noted in this
paragraph, with respect to VRS, costs caused by intrastate TRS shall be
recovered from the intrastate jurisdiction. In a state that has a
certified program under Sec. 64.606, the state agency providing TRS
shall, through the state's regulatory agency, permit a

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common carrier to recover costs incurred in providing TRS by a method
consistent with the requirements of this section. Costs caused by the
provision of interstate and intrastate VRS shall be recovered from all
subscribers for every interstate service, utilizing a shared-funding
cost recovery mechanism.
    (iii) Telecommunications Relay Services Fund. Effective July 26,
1993, an Interstate Cost Recovery Plan, hereinafter referred to as the
TRS Fund, shall be administered by an entity selected by the Commission
(administrator). The initial administrator, for an interim period, will
be the National Exchange Carrier Association, Inc.
    (A) Contributions. Every carrier providing interstate
telecommunications services (including interconnected VoIP service
providers pursuant to Sec. 64.601(b)) and every provider of non-
interconnected VoIP service shall contribute to the TRS Fund on the
basis of interstate end-user revenues as described herein. Contributions
shall be made by all carriers who provide interstate services,
including, but not limited to, cellular telephone and paging, mobile
radio, operator services, personal communications service (PCS), access
(including subscriber line charges), alternative access and special
access, packet-switched, WATS, 800, 900, message telephone service
(MTS), private line, telex, telegraph, video, satellite, intraLATA,
international and resale services.
    (B) Contribution computations. Contributors' contributions to the
TRS fund shall be the product of their subject revenues for the prior
calendar year and a contribution factor determined annually by the
Commission. The contribution factor shall be based on the ratio between
expected TRS Fund expenses to the contributors' revenues subject to
contribution. In the event that contributions exceed TRS payments and
administrative costs, the contribution factor for the following year
will be adjusted by an appropriate amount, taking into consideration
projected cost and usage changes. In the event that contributions are
inadequate, the fund administrator may request authority from the
Commission to borrow funds commercially, with such debt secured by
future years' contributions. Each subject contributor that has revenues
subject to contribution must contribute at least $25 per year.
Contributors whose annual contributions total less than $1,200 must pay
the entire contribution at the beginning of the contribution period.
Contributors whose contributions total $1,200 or more may divide their
contributions into equal monthly payments. Contributors shall complete
and submit, and contributions shall be based on, a ``Telecommunications
Reporting Worksheet'' (as published by the Commission in the Federal
Register). The worksheet shall be certified to by an officer of the
contributor, and subject to verification by the Commission or the
administrator at the discretion of the Commission. Contributors'
statements in the worksheet shall be subject to the provisions of
section 220 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended. The fund
administrator may bill contributors a separate assessment for reasonable
administrative expenses and interest resulting from improper filing or
overdue contributions. The Chief of the Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau may waive, reduce, modify or eliminate contributor
reporting requirements that prove unnecessary and require additional
reporting requirements that the Bureau deems necessary to the sound and
efficient administration of the TRS Fund.
    (C) Registration Requirements for Providers of Non-Interconnected
VoIP Service--(1)Applicability. A non-interconnected VoIP service
provider that will provide interstate service that generates interstate
end-user revenue that is subject to contribution to the
Telecommunications Relay Service Fund shall file the registration
information described in paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C)(2) of this section in
accordance with the procedures described in paragraphs (c)(5)(iii)(C)(3)
and (c)(5)(iii)(C)(4) of this section. Any non-interconnected VoIP
service provider already providing interstate service that generates
interstate end-user revenue that is subject to contribution to the
Telecommunications Relay Service Fund on the effective date of these
rules shall submit the relevant portion of its FCC Form 499-A in
accordance

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with paragraphs (c)(5)(iii)(C)(2) and (3) of this section.
    (2) Information required for purposes of TRS Fund contributions. A
non-interconnected VoIP service provider that is subject to the
registration requirement pursuant to paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C)(1) of this
section shall provide the following information:
    (i) The provider's business name(s) and primary address;
    (ii) The names and business addresses of the provider's chief
executive officer, chairman, and president, or, in the event that a
provider does not have such executives, three similarly senior-level
officials of the provider;
    (iii) The provider's regulatory contact and/or designated agent;
    (iv) All names that the provider has used in the past; and
    (v) The state(s) in which the provider provides such service.
    (3) Submission of registration. A provider that is subject to the
registration requirement pursuant to paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C)(1) of this
section shall submit the information described in paragraph
(c)(5)(iii)(C)(2) of this section in accordance with the Instructions to
FCC Form 499-A. FCC Form 499-A must be submitted under oath and penalty
of perjury.
    (4) Changes in information. A provider must notify the Commission of
any changes to the information provided pursuant to paragraph
(c)(5)(iii)(C)(2) of this section within no more than one week of the
change. Providers may satisfy this requirement by filing the relevant
portion of FCC Form 499-A in accordance with the Instructions to such
form.
    (D) Data collection and audits. (1) TRS providers seeking
compensation from the TRS Fund shall provide the administrator with true
and adequate data, and other historical, projected and state rate
related information reasonably requested to determine the TRS Fund
revenue requirements and payments. TRS providers shall provide the
administrator with the following: total TRS minutes of use, total
interstate TRS minutes of use, total TRS investment in general in
accordance with part 32 of this chapter, and other historical or
projected information reasonably requested by the administrator for
purposes of computing payments and revenue requirements.
    (2) Call data required from all TRS providers. In addition to the
data requested by paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C)(1) of this section, TRS
providers seeking compensation from the TRS Fund shall submit the
following specific data associated with each TRS call for which
compensation is sought:
    (i) The call record ID sequence;
    (ii) CA ID number;
    (iii) Session start and end times noted at a minimum to the nearest
second;
    (iv) Conversation start and end times noted at a minimum to the
nearest second;
    (v) Incoming telephone number and IP address (if call originates
with an IP-based device) at the time of the call;
    (vi) Outbound telephone number (if call terminates to a telephone)
and IP address (if call terminates to an IP-based device) at the time of
call;
    (vii) Total conversation minutes;
    (viii) Total session minutes;
    (ix) The call center (by assigned center ID number) that handled the
call; and
    (x) The URL address through which the call is initiated.
    (3) Additional call data required from Internet-based Relay
Providers. In addition to the data required by paragraph
(c)(5)(iii)(C)(2) of this section, Internet-based Relay Providers
seeking compensation from the Fund shall submit speed of answer
compliance data.
    (4) Providers submitting call record and speed of answer data in
compliance with paragraphs (c)(5)(iii)(C)(2) and (c)(5)(iii)(C)(3) of
this section shall:
    (i) Employ an automated record keeping system to capture such data
required pursuant to paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C)(2) of this section for
each TRS call for which minutes are submitted to the fund administrator
for compensation; and
    (ii) Submit such data electronically, in a standardized format. For
purposes of this subparagraph, an automated record keeping system is a
system that captures data in a computerized and electronic format that
does not allow human intervention during the call session for either
conversation or session time.

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    (5) Certification. The chief executive officer (CEO), chief
financial officer (CFO), or other senior executive of a TRS provider
with first hand knowledge of the accuracy and completeness of the
information provided, when submitting a request for compensation from
the TRS Fund must, with each such request, certify as follows:

    I swear under penalty of perjury that:
    (i) I am ------------ (name and title)------------, an officer of
the above-named reporting entity and that I have examined the foregoing
reports and that all requested information has been provided and all
statements of fact, as well as all cost and demand data contained in
this Relay Services Data Request, are true and accurate; and
    (ii) The TRS calls for which compensation is sought were handled in
compliance with Section 225 of the Communications Act and the
Commission's rules and orders, and are not the result of impermissible
financial incentives or payments to generate calls.

    (6) Audits. The fund administrator and the Commission, including the
Office of Inspector General, shall have the authority to examine and
verify TRS provider data as necessary to assure the accuracy and
integrity of TRS Fund payments. TRS providers must submit to audits
annually or at times determined appropriate by the Commission, the fund
administrator, or by an entity approved by the Commission for such
purpose. A TRS provider that fails to submit to a requested audit, or
fails to provide documentation necessary for verification upon
reasonable request, will be subject to an automatic suspension of
payment until it submits to the requested audit or provides sufficient
documentation.
    (7) Call data record retention. Internet-based TRS providers shall
retain the data required to be submitted by this section, and all other
call detail records, other records that support their claims for payment
from the TRS Fund, and records used to substantiate the costs and
expense data submitted in the annual relay service data request form, in
an electronic format that is easily retrievable, for a minimum of five
years.
    (E) Payments to TRS providers. (1) TRS Fund payments shall be
distributed to TRS providers based on formulas approved or modified by
the Commission. The administrator shall file schedules of payment
formulas with the Commission. Such formulas shall be designed to
compensate TRS providers for reasonable costs of providing interstate
TRS, and shall be subject to Commission approval. Such formulas shall be
based on total monthly interstate TRS minutes of use. The formulas
should appropriately compensate interstate providers for the provision
of TRS, whether intrastate or interstate.
    (2) TRS minutes of use for purposes of interstate cost recovery
under the TRS Fund are defined as the minutes of use for completed
interstate TRS calls placed through the TRS center beginning after call
set-up and concluding after the last message call unit.
    (3) In addition to the data required under paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(C)
of this section, all TRS providers, including providers who are not
interexchange carriers, local exchange carriers, or certified state
relay providers, must submit reports of interstate TRS minutes of use to
the administrator in order to receive payments.
    (4) The administrator shall establish procedures to verify payment
claims, and may suspend or delay payments to a TRS provider if the TRS
provider fails to provide adequate verification of payment upon
reasonable request, or if directed by the Commission to do so. The TRS
Fund administrator shall make payments only to eligible TRS providers
operating pursuant to the mandatory minimum standards as required in
this section, and after disbursements to the administrator for
reasonable expenses incurred by it in connection with TRS Fund
administration. TRS providers receiving payments shall file a form
prescribed by the administrator. The administrator shall fashion a form
that is consistent with 47 CFR parts 32 and 36 procedures reasonably
tailored to meet the needs of TRS providers.
    (5) The Commission shall have authority to audit providers and have
access to all data, including carrier specific data, collected by the
fund administrator. The fund administrator shall have authority to audit
TRS providers reporting data to the administrator.

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    (6) The administrator shall not be obligated to pay any request for
compensation until it has been established as compensable. A request
shall be established as compensable only after the administrator, in
consultation with the Commission, or the Commission determines that the
provider has met its burden to demonstrate that the claim is compensable
under applicable Commission rules and the procedures established by the
administrator. Any request for compensation for which payment has been
suspended or withheld in accordance with paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(L) of
this section shall not be established as compensable until the
administrator, in consultation with the Commission, or the Commission
determines that the request is compensable in accordance with paragraph
(c)(5)(iii)(L)(4) of this section.
    (F) Eligibility for payment from the TRS Fund. (1) TRS providers,
except Internet-based TRS providers, eligible for receiving payments
from the TRS Fund must be:
    (i) TRS facilities operated under contract with and/or by certified
state TRS programs pursuant to Sec. 64.606; or
    (ii) TRS facilities owned or operated under contract with a common
carrier providing interstate services operated pursuant to this section;
or
    (iii) Interstate common carriers offering TRS pursuant to this
section.
    (2) Internet-based TRS providers eligible for receiving payments
from the TRS fund must be certified by the Commission pursuant to Sec.
64.606.
    (G) Any eligible TRS provider as defined in paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(F)
of this section shall notify the administrator of its intent to
participate in the TRS Fund thirty (30) days prior to submitting reports
of TRS interstate minutes of use in order to receive payment settlements
for interstate TRS, and failure to file may exclude the TRS provider
from eligibility for the year.
    (H) Administrator reporting, monitoring, and filing requirements.
The administrator shall perform all filing and reporting functions
required in paragraphs (c)(5)(iii)(A) through (c)(5)(iii)(J) of this
section. TRS payment formulas and revenue requirements shall be filed
with the Commission on May 1 of each year, to be effective the following
July 1. The administrator shall report annually to the Commission an
itemization of monthly administrative costs which shall consist of all
expenses, receipts, and payments associated with the administration of
the TRS Fund. The administrator is required to keep the TRS Fund
separate from all other funds administered by the administrator, shall
file a cost allocation manual (CAM) and shall provide the Commission
full access to all data collected pursuant to the administration of the
TRS Fund. The administrator shall account for the financial transactions
of the TRS Fund in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles for federal agencies and maintain the accounts of the TRS
Fund in accordance with the United States Government Standard General
Ledger. When the administrator, or any independent auditor hired by the
administrator, conducts audits of providers of services under the TRS
program or contributors to the TRS Fund, such audits shall be conducted
in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. In
administering the TRS Fund, the administrator shall also comply with all
relevant and applicable federal financial management and reporting
statutes. The administrator shall establish a non-paid voluntary
advisory committee of persons from the hearing and speech disability
community, TRS users (voice and text telephone), interstate service
providers, state representatives, and TRS providers, which will meet at
reasonable intervals (at least semi-annually) in order to monitor TRS
cost recovery matters. Each group shall select its own representative to
the committee. The administrator's annual report shall include a
discussion of the advisory committee deliberations.
    (I) Information filed with the administrator. The Chief Executive
Officer (CEO), Chief Financial Officer (CFO), or other senior executive
of a provider submitting minutes to the Fund for compensation must, in
each instance, certify, under penalty of perjury, that the minutes were
handled in compliance with section 225 and the Commission's rules and
orders, and are not the

[[Page 332]]

result of impermissible financial incentives or payments to generate
calls. The CEO, CFO, or other senior executive of a provider submitting
cost and demand data to the TRS Fund administrator shall certify under
penalty of perjury that such information is true and correct. The
administrator shall keep all data obtained from contributors and TRS
providers confidential and shall not disclose such data in company-
specific form unless directed to do so by the Commission. Subject to any
restrictions imposed by the Chief of the Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau, the TRS Fund administrator may share data obtained from
carriers with the administrators of the universal support mechanisms
(see Sec. 54.701 of this chapter), the North American Numbering Plan
administration cost recovery (see Sec. 52.16 of this chapter), and the
long-term local number portability cost recovery (see Sec. 52.32 of
this chapter). The TRS Fund administrator shall keep confidential all
data obtained from other administrators. The administrator shall not use
such data except for purposes of administering the TRS Fund, calculating
the regulatory fees of interstate common carriers, and aggregating such
fee payments for submission to the Commission. The Commission shall have
access to all data reported to the administrator, and authority to audit
TRS providers. Contributors may make requests for Commission
nondisclosure of company-specific revenue information under Sec. 0.459
of this chapter by so indicating on the Telecommunications Reporting
Worksheet at the time that the subject data are submitted. The
Commission shall make all decisions regarding nondisclosure of company-
specific information.
    (J) [Reserved]
    (K) All parties providing services or contributions or receiving
payments under this section are subject to the enforcement provisions
specified in the Communications Act, the Americans with Disabilities
Act, and the Commission's rules.
    (L) Procedures for the suspension/withholding of payment. (1) The
Fund administrator will continue the current practice of reviewing
monthly requests for compensation of TRS minutes of use within two
months after they are filed with the Fund administrator.
    (2) If the Fund administrator in consultation with the Commission,
or the Commission on its own accord, determines that payments for
certain minutes should be withheld, a TRS provider will be notified
within two months from the date for the request for compensation was
filed, as to why its claim for compensation has been withheld in whole
or in part. TRS providers then will be given two additional months from
the date of notification to provide additional justification for payment
of such minutes of use. Such justification should be sufficiently
detailed to provide the Fund administrator and the Commission the
information needed to evaluate whether the minutes of use in dispute are
compensable. If a TRS provider does not respond, or does not respond
with sufficiently detailed information within two months after
notification that payment for minutes of use is being withheld, payment
for the minutes of use in dispute will be denied permanently.
    (3) If, the TRS provider submits additional justification for
payment of the minutes of use in dispute within two months after being
notified that its initial justification was insufficient, the Fund
administrator or the Commission will review such additional
justification documentation, and may ask further questions or conduct
further investigation to evaluate whether to pay the TRS provider for
the minutes of use in dispute, within eight months after submission of
such additional justification.
    (4) If the provider meets its burden to establish that the minutes
in question are compensable under the Commission's rules, the Fund
administrator will compensate the provider for such minutes of use. Any
payment by the Commission will not preclude any future action by either
the Commission or the U.S. Department of Justice to recover past
payments (regardless of whether the payment was the subject of
withholding) if it is determined at any time that such payment was for
minutes billed to the Commission in violation of the Commission's rules
or any other civil or criminal law.

[[Page 333]]

    (5) If the Commission determines that the provider has not met its
burden to demonstrate that the minutes of use in dispute are compensable
under the Commission's rules, payment will be permanently denied. The
Fund administrator or the Commission will notify the provider of this
decision within one year of the initial request for payment.
    (M) Whistleblower protections. Providers shall not take any reprisal
in the form of a personnel action against any current or former employee
or contractor who discloses to a designated manager of the provider, the
Commission, the TRS Fund administrator or to any Federal or state law
enforcement entity, any information that the reporting person reasonably
believes evidences known or suspected violations of the Communications
Act or TRS regulations, or any other activity that the reporting person
reasonably believes constitutes waste, fraud, or abuse, or that
otherwise could result in the improper billing of minutes of use to the
TRS Fund and discloses that information to a designated manager of the
provider, the Commission, the TRS Fund administrator or to any Federal
or state law enforcement entity. Providers shall provide an accurate and
complete description of these TRS whistleblower protections, including
the right to notify the FCC's Office of Inspector General or its
Enforcement Bureau, to all employees and contractors, in writing.
Providers that already disseminate their internal business policies to
its employees in writing (e.g. in employee handbooks, policies and
procedures manuals, or bulletin board postings--either online or in hard
copy) must include an accurate and complete description of these TRS
whistleblower protections in those written materials.
    (N) In addition to the provisions set forth above, VRS providers
shall be subject to the following provisions:
    (1) Eligibility for reimbursement from the TRS Fund. (i) Only an
eligible VRS provider, as defined in paragraph (c)(5)(iii)(F) of this
section, may hold itself out to the general public as providing VRS.
    (ii) VRS service must be offered under the name by which the
eligible VRS provider offering such service became certified and in a
manner that clearly identifies that provider of the service. Where a TRS
provider also utilizes sub-brands to identify its VRS, each sub-brand
must clearly identify the eligible VRS provider. Providers must route
all VRS calls through a single URL address used for each name or sub-
brand used.
    (iii) An eligible VRS provider may not contract with or otherwise
authorize any third party to provide interpretation services or call
center functions (including call distribution, call routing, call setup,
mapping, call features, billing, and registration) on its behalf, unless
that authorized third party also is an eligible provider, or the
eligible VRS provider is a VRS CA service provider and the authorized
third party is the provider of the Neutral Video Communication Service
Platform, except that a VRS CA service provider may not contract with or
otherwise authorize the provider of the Neutral Video Communication
Service Platform to perform billing on its behalf.
    (iv) To the extent that an eligible VRS provider contracts with or
otherwise authorizes a third party to provide any other services or
functions related to the provision of VRS other than interpretation
services or call center functions, that third party must not hold itself
out as a provider of VRS, and must clearly identify the eligible VRS
provider to the public. To the extent an eligible VRS provider contracts
with or authorizes a third party to provide any services or functions
related to marketing or outreach, and such services utilize VRS, those
VRS minutes are not compensable on a per minute basis from the TRS fund.
    (v) All third-party contracts or agreements entered into by an
eligible provider must be in writing. Copies of such agreements shall be
made available to the Commission and to the TRS Fund administrator upon
request.
    (2) Call center reports. VRS providers shall file a written report
with the Commission and the TRS Fund administrator, on April 1st and
October 1st of each year for each call center that handles VRS calls
that the provider owns or controls, including centers located

[[Page 334]]

outside of the United States, that includes:
    (i) The complete street address of the center;
    (ii) The number of individual CAs and CA managers; and
    (iii) The name and contact information (phone number and e-mail
address) of the manager(s) at the center. VRS providers shall also file
written notification with the Commission and the TRS Fund administrator
of any change in a center's location, including the opening, closing, or
relocation of any center, at least 30 days prior to any such change.
    (3) Compensation of CAs. VRS providers may not compensate, give a
preferential work schedule or otherwise benefit a CA in any manner that
is based upon the number of VRS minutes or calls that the CA relays,
either individually or as part of a group.
    (4) Remote training session calls. VRS calls to a remote training
session or a comparable activity will not be compensable from the TRS
Fund when the provider submitting minutes for such a call has been
involved, in any manner, with such a training session. Such prohibited
involvement includes training programs or comparable activities in which
the provider or any affiliate or related party thereto, including but
not limited to its subcontractors, partners, employees or sponsoring
organizations or entities, has any role in arranging, scheduling,
sponsoring, hosting, conducting or promoting such programs or
activities.
    (6) Complaints--(i) Referral of complaint. If a complaint to the
Commission alleges a violation of this subpart with respect to
intrastate TRS within a state and certification of the program of such
state under Sec. 64.606 is in effect, the Commission shall refer such
complaint to such state expeditiously.
    (ii) Intrastate complaints shall be resolved by the state within 180
days after the complaint is first filed with a state entity, regardless
of whether it is filed with the state relay administrator, a state PUC,
the relay provider, or with any other state entity.
    (iii) Jurisdiction of Commission. After referring a complaint to a
state entity under paragraph (c)(6)(i) of this section, or if a
complaint is filed directly with a state entity, the Commission shall
exercise jurisdiction over such complaint only if:
    (A) Final action under such state program has not been taken within:
    (1) 180 days after the complaint is filed with such state entity; or
    (2) A shorter period as prescribed by the regulations of such state;
or
    (B) The Commission determines that such state program is no longer
qualified for certification under Sec. 64.606.
    (iv) The Commission shall resolve within 180 days after the
complaint is filed with the Commission any interstate TRS complaint
alleging a violation of section 225 of the Act or any complaint
involving intrastate relay services in states without a certified
program. The Commission shall resolve intrastate complaints over which
it exercises jurisdiction under paragraph (c)(6)(iii) of this section
within 180 days.
    (v) Complaint procedures. Complaints against TRS providers for
alleged violations of this subpart may be either informal or formal.
    (A) Informal complaints--(1) Form. An informal complaint may be
transmitted to the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau by any
reasonable means, such as letter, facsimile transmission, telephone
(voice/TRS/TTY), Internet e-mail, or some other method that would best
accommodate a complainant's hearing or speech disability.
    (2) Content. An informal complaint shall include the name and
address of the complainant; the name and address of the TRS provider
against whom the complaint is made; a statement of facts supporting the
complainant's allegation that the TRS provided it has violated or is
violating section 225 of the Act and/or requirements under the
Commission's rules; the specific relief or satisfaction sought by the
complainant; and the complainant's preferred format or method of
response to the complaint by the Commission and the defendant TRS
provider (such as letter, facsimile transmission, telephone (voice/TRS/
TTY), Internet e-mail, or some other method that would best accommodate
the complainant's hearing or speech disability).

[[Page 335]]

    (3) Service; designation of agents. The Commission shall promptly
forward any complaint meeting the requirements of this subsection to the
TRS provider named in the complaint. Such TRS provider shall be called
upon to satisfy or answer the complaint within the time specified by the
Commission. Every TRS provider shall file with the Commission a
statement designating an agent or agents whose principal responsibility
will be to receive all complaints, inquiries, orders, decisions, and
notices and other pronouncements forwarded by the Commission. Such
designation shall include a name or department designation, business
address, telephone number (voice and TTY), facsimile number and, if
available, internet e-mail address.
    (B) Review and disposition of informal complaints. (1) Where it
appears from the TRS provider's answer, or from other communications
with the parties, that an informal complaint has been satisfied, the
Commission may, in its discretion, consider the matter closed without
response to the complainant or defendant. In all other cases, the
Commission shall inform the parties of its review and disposition of a
complaint filed under this subpart. Where practicable, this information
shall be transmitted to the complainant and defendant in the manner
requested by the complainant (e.g., letter, facsmile transmission,
telephone (voice/TRS/TTY) or Internet e-mail.
    (2) A complainant unsatisfied with the defendant's response to the
informal complaint and the staff's decision to terminate action on the
informal complaint may file a formal complaint with the Commission
pursuant to paragraph (c)(6)(v)(C) of this section.
    (C) Formal complaints. A formal complaint shall be in writing,
addressed to the Federal Communications Commission, Enforcement Bureau,
Telecommunications Consumer Division, Washington, DC 20554 and shall
contain:
    (1) The name and address of the complainant,
    (2) The name and address of the defendant against whom the complaint
is made,
    (3) A complete statement of the facts, including supporting data,
where available, showing that such defendant did or omitted to do
anything in contravention of this subpart, and
    (4) The relief sought.
    (D) Amended complaints. An amended complaint setting forth
transactions, occurrences or events which have happened since the filing
of the original complaint and which relate to the original cause of
action may be filed with the Commission.
    (E) Number of copies. An original and two copies of all pleadings
shall be filed.
    (F) Service. (1) Except where a complaint is referred to a state
pursuant to Sec. 64.604(c)(6)(i), or where a complaint is filed
directly with a state entity, the Commission will serve on the named
party a copy of any complaint or amended complaint filed with it,
together with a notice of the filing of the complaint. Such notice shall
call upon the defendant to satisfy or answer the complaint in writing
within the time specified in said notice of complaint.
    (2) All subsequent pleadings and briefs shall be served by the
filing party on all other parties to the proceeding in accordance with
the requirements of Sec. 1.47 of this chapter. Proof of such service
shall also be made in accordance with the requirements of said section.
    (G) Answers to complaints and amended complaints. Any party upon
whom a copy of a complaint or amended complaint is served under this
subpart shall serve an answer within the time specified by the
Commission in its notice of complaint. The answer shall advise the
parties and the Commission fully and completely of the nature of the
defense and shall respond specifically to all material allegations of
the complaint. In cases involving allegations of harm, the answer shall
indicate what action has been taken or is proposed to be taken to stop
the occurrence of such harm. Collateral or immaterial issues shall be
avoided in answers and every effort should be made to narrow the issues.
Matters alleged as affirmative defenses shall be separately stated and
numbered. Any defendant failing to file and serve an answer within the
time and in the manner prescribed may be deemed in default.

[[Page 336]]

    (H) Replies to answers or amended answers. Within 10 days after
service of an answer or an amended answer, a complainant may file and
serve a reply which shall be responsive to matters contained in such
answer or amended answer and shall not contain new matter. Failure to
reply will not be deemed an admission of any allegation contained in
such answer or amended answer.
    (I) Defective pleadings. Any pleading filed in a complaint
proceeding that is not in substantial conformity with the requirements
of the applicable rules in this subpart may be dismissed.
    (7) Treatment of TRS customer information. Beginning on July 21,
2000, all future contracts between the TRS administrator and the TRS
vendor shall provide for the transfer of TRS customer profile data from
the outgoing TRS vendor to the incoming TRS vendor. Such data must be
disclosed in usable form at least 60 days prior to the provider's last
day of service provision. Such data may not be used for any purpose
other than to connect the TRS user with the called parties desired by
that TRS user. Such information shall not be sold, distributed, shared
or revealed in any other way by the relay center or its employees,
unless compelled to do so by lawful order.
    (8) Incentives for use of IP CTS. (i) An IP CTS provider shall not
offer or provide to any person or entity that registers to use IP CTS
any form of direct or indirect incentives, financial or otherwise, to
register for or use IP CTS.
    (ii) An IP CTS provider shall not offer or provide to a hearing
health professional any direct or indirect incentives, financial or
otherwise, that are tied to a consumer's decision to register for or use
IP CTS. Where an IP CTS provider offers or provides IP CTS equipment,
directly or indirectly, to a hearing health professional, and such
professional makes or has the opportunity to make a profit on the sale
of the equipment to consumers, such IP CTS provider shall be deemed to
be offering or providing a form of incentive tied to a consumer's
decision to register for or use IP CTS.
    (iii) Joint marketing arrangements between IP CTS providers and
hearing health professionals shall be prohibited.
    (iv) For the purpose of this paragraph (c)(8), a hearing health
professional is any medical or non-medical professional who advises
consumers with regard to hearing disabilities.
    (v) Any IP CTS provider that does not comply with this paragraph
(c)(8) shall be ineligible for compensation for such IP CTS from the TRS
Fund.
    (9) IP CTS registration and certification requirements. (i) IP CTS
providers must first obtain the following registration information from
each consumer prior to requesting compensation from the TRS Fund for
service provided to the consumer. The consumer's full name, date of
birth, last four digits of the consumer's social security number,
address and telephone number.
    (ii) Self-certification prior to August 28, 2014. IP CTS providers,
in order to be eligible to receive compensation from the TRS Fund for
providing IP CTS, also must first obtain a written certification from
the consumer, and if obtained prior to August 28, 2014, such written
certification shall attest that the consumer needs IP CTS to communicate
in a manner that is functionally equivalent to the ability of a hearing
individual to communicate using voice communication services. The
certification must include the consumer's certification that:
    (A) The consumer has a hearing loss that necessitates IP CTS to
communicate in a manner that is functionally equivalent to communication
by conventional voice telephone users;
    (B) The consumer understands that the captioning service is provided
by a live communications assistant; and
    (C) The consumer understands that the cost of IP CTS is funded by
the TRS Fund.
    (iii) Self-certification on or after August 28, 2014. IP CTS
providers must also first obtain from each consumer prior to requesting
compensation from the TRS Fund for the consumer, a written certification
from the consumer, and if obtained on or after August 28, 2014, such
certification shall state that:
    (A) The consumer has a hearing loss that necessitates use of
captioned telephone service;

[[Page 337]]

    (B) The consumer understands that the captioning on captioned
telephone service is provided by a live communications assistant who
listens to the other party on the line and provides the text on the
captioned phone;
    (C) The consumer understands that the cost of captioning each
Internet protocol captioned telephone call is funded through a federal
program; and
    (D) The consumer will not permit, to the best of the consumer's
ability, persons who have not registered to use Internet protocol
captioned telephone service to make captioned telephone calls on the
consumer's registered IP captioned telephone service or device.
    (iv) The certification required by paragraphs (c)(9)(ii) and (iii)
of this section must be made on a form separate from any other agreement
or form, and must include a separate consumer signature specific to the
certification. Beginning on August 28, 2014, such certification shall be
made under penalty of perjury. For purposes of this rule, an electronic
signature, defined by the Electronic Signatures in Global and National
Commerce Act, 15 U.S.C. 7001 et seq., as an electronic sound, symbol, or
process, attached to or logically associated with a contract or other
record and executed or adopted by a person with the intent to sign the
record, has the same legal effect as a written signature.
    (v) Third-party certification prior to August 28, 2014. Where IP CTS
equipment is or has been obtained by a consumer from an IP CTS provider,
directly or indirectly, at no charge or for less than $75 and the
consumer was registered in accordance with the requirements of paragraph
(c)(9) of this section prior to August 28, 2014, the IP CTS provider
must also obtain from each consumer prior to requesting compensation
from the TRS Fund for the consumer, written certification provided and
signed by an independent third-party professional, except as provided in
paragraph (c)(9)(xi) of this section.
    (vi) To comply with paragraph (c)(9)(v) of this section, the
independent professional providing certification must:
    (A) Be qualified to evaluate an individual's hearing loss in
accordance with applicable professional standards, and may include, but
are not limited to, community-based social service providers, hearing
related professionals, vocational rehabilitation counselors,
occupational therapists, social workers, educators, audiologists, speech
pathologists, hearing instrument specialists, and doctors, nurses and
other medical or health professionals;
    (B) Provide his or her name, title, and contact information,
including address, telephone number, and email address; and
    (C) Certify in writing that the IP CTS user is an individual with
hearing loss who needs IP CTS to communicate in a manner that is
functionally equivalent to telephone service experienced by individuals
without hearing disabilities.
    (vii) Third-party certification on or after August 28, 2014. Where
IP CTS equipment is or has been obtained by a consumer from an IP CTS
provider, directly or indirectly, at no charge or for less than $75, the
consumer (in cases where the equipment was obtained directly from the IP
CTS provider) has not subsequently paid $75 to the IP CTS provider for
the equipment prior to the date the consumer is registered to use IP
CTS, and the consumer is registered in accordance with the requirements
of paragraph (c)(9) of this section on or after August 28, 2014, the IP
CTS provider must also, prior to requesting compensation from the TRS
Fund for service to the consumer, obtain from each consumer written
certification provided and signed by an independent third-party
professional, except as provided in paragraph (c)(9)(xi) of this
section.
    (viii) To comply with paragraph (c)(9)(vii) of this section, the
independent third-party professional providing certification must:
    (A) Be qualified to evaluate an individual's hearing loss in
accordance with applicable professional standards, and must be either a
physician, audiologist, or other hearing related professional. Such
professional shall not have been referred to the IP CTS user, either
directly or indirectly, by any provider of TRS or any officer, director,
partner, employee, agent, subcontractor, or

[[Page 338]]

sponsoring organization or entity (collectively ``affiliate'') of any
TRS provider. Nor shall the third party professional making such
certification have any business, family or social relationship with the
TRS provider or any affiliate of the TRS provider from which the
consumer is receiving or will receive service.
    (B) Provide his or her name, title, and contact information,
including address, telephone number, and email address.
    (C) Certify in writing, under penalty of perjury, that the IP CTS
user is an individual with hearing loss that necessitates use of
captioned telephone service and that the third party professional
understands that the captioning on captioned telephone service is
provided by a live communications assistant and is funded through a
federal program.
    (ix) In instances where the consumer has obtained IP CTS equipment
from a local, state, or federal governmental program, the consumer may
present documentation to the IP CTS provider demonstrating that the
equipment was obtained through one of these programs, in lieu of
providing an independent, third-party certification under paragraphs
(c)(9)(v) and (vii) of this section.
    (x) Each IP CTS provider shall maintain records of any registration
and certification information for a period of at least five years after
the consumer ceases to obtain service from the provider and shall
maintain the confidentiality of such registration and certification
information, and may not disclose such registration and certification
information or the content of such registration and certification
information except as required by law or regulation.
    (xi) IP CTS providers must obtain registration information and
certification of hearing loss from all IP CTS users who began receiving
service prior to March 7, 2013, within 180 days following August 28,
2014. Notwithstanding any other provision of paragraph (c)(9) of this
section, IP CTS providers shall be compensated for compensable minutes
of use generated prior to February 24, 2015 by any such users, but shall
not receive compensation for minutes of IP CTS use generated on or after
February 24, 2015 by any IP CTS user who has not been registered.
    (10) IP CTS settings. Each IP CTS provider shall ensure that each IP
CTS telephone they distribute, directly or indirectly, shall include a
button, icon, or other comparable feature that is easily operable and
requires only one step for the consumer to turn on captioning.
    (11) (i) [Reserved]
    (ii) No person shall use IP CTS equipment or software with the
captioning on, unless:
    (A) Such person is registered to use IP CTS pursuant to paragraph
(c)(9) of this section; or
    (B) Such person was an existing IP CTS user as of March 7, 2013, and
either paragraph (c)(9)(xi) of this section is not yet in effect or the
registration deadline in paragraph (c)(9)(xi) of this section has not
yet passed.
    (iii) IP CTS providers shall ensure that any newly distributed IP
CTS equipment has a label on its face in a conspicuous location with the
following language in a clearly legible font: ``FEDERAL LAW PROHIBITS
ANYONE BUT REGISTERED USERS WITH HEARING LOSS FROM USING THIS DEVICE
WITH THE CAPTIONS ON.'' For IP CTS equipment already distributed to
consumers by any IP CTS provider as of July 11, 2014, such provider
shall, no later than August 11, 2014, distribute to consumers equipment
labels with the same language as mandated by this paragraph for newly
distributed equipment, along with clear and specific instructions
directing the consumer to attach such labels to the face of their IP CTS
equipment in a conspicuous location. For software applications on mobile
phones, laptops, tablets, computers or other similar devices, IP CTS
providers shall ensure that, each time the consumer logs into the
application, the notification language required by this paragraph
appears in a conspicuous location on the device screen immediately after
log-in.
    (iv) IP CTS providers shall maintain, with each consumer's
registration records, records describing any IP CTS equipment provided,
directly or indirectly, to such consumer, stating the

[[Page 339]]

amount paid for such equipment, and stating whether the label required
by paragraph (c)(11)(iii) of this section was affixed to such equipment
prior to its provision to the consumer. For consumers to whom IP CTS
equipment was provided directly or indirectly prior to the effective
date of this paragraph (c)(11), such records shall state whether and
when the label required by paragraph (c)(11)(iii) of this section was
distributed to such consumer. Such records shall be maintained for a
minimum period of five years after the consumer ceases to obtain service
from the provider.
    (12) Discrimination and preferences. A VRS provider shall not:
    (i) Directly or indirectly, by any means or device, engage in any
unjust or unreasonable discrimination related to practices, facilities,
or services for or in connection with like relay service,
    (ii) Engage in or give any undue or unreasonable preference or
advantage to any particular person, class of persons, or locality, or
    (ii) Subject any particular person, class of persons, or locality to
any undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage.
    (13) Unauthorized and unnecessary use of VRS. A VRS provider shall
not engage in any practice that causes or encourages, or that the
provider knows or has reason to know will cause or encourage:
    (i) False or unverified claims for TRS Fund compensation,
    (ii) Unauthorized use of VRS,
    (iii) The making of VRS calls that would not otherwise be made, or
    (iv) The use of VRS by persons who do not need the service in order
to communicate in a functionally equivalent manner. A VRS provider shall
not seek payment from the TRS Fund for any minutes of service it knows
or has reason to know are resulting from such practices. Any VRS
provider that becomes aware of such practices being or having been
committed by any person shall as soon as practicable report such
practices to the Commission or the TRS Fund administrator.
    (d) Other standards. The applicable requirements of Sec. Sec.
64.605, 64.611, 64.615, 64.617, 64.621, 64.631, 64.632, 64.5105,
64.5107, 64.5108, 64.5109, and 64.5110 of this part are to be considered
mandatory minimum standards.

[65 FR 38436, June 21, 2000]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec.
64.604, see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the
Finding Aids section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40607, July 5 2013, Sec. 64.604 was
amended by adding paragraph (c)(13). This paragraph contains information
collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective
until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.605  Emergency calling requirements.

    (a) Additional emergency calling requirements applicable to
internet-based TRS providers. (1) As of December 31, 2008, the
requirements of paragraphs (a)(2)(i) and (a)(2)(iv) of this section
shall not apply to providers of VRS and IP Relay to which Sec.
64.605(b) applies.
    (2) Each provider of Internet-based TRS shall:
    (i) Accept and handle emergency calls and access, either directly or
via a third party, a commercially available database that will allow the
provider to determine an appropriate PSAP, designated statewide default
answering point, or appropriate local emergency authority that
corresponds to the caller's location, and to relay the call to that
entity;
    (ii) Implement a system that ensures that the provider answers an
incoming emergency call before other non-emergency calls (i.e.,
prioritize emergency calls and move them to the top of the queue);
    (iii) Request, at the beginning of each emergency call, the caller's
name and location information, unless the Internet-based TRS provider
already has, or has access to, a Registered Location for the caller;
    (iv) Deliver to the PSAP, designated statewide default answering
point, or appropriate local emergency authority, at the outset of the
outbound leg of an emergency call, at a minimum, the name of the relay
user and location of the emergency, as well as the name of the relay
provider, the CA's callback number, and the CA's identification

[[Page 340]]

number, thereby enabling the PSAP, designated statewide default
answering point, or appropriate local emergency authority to re-
establish contact with the CA in the event the call is disconnected;
    (v) In the event one or both legs of an emergency call are
disconnected (i.e., either the call between the TRS user and the CA, or
the outbound voice telephone call between the CA and the PSAP,
designated statewide default answering point, or appropriate local
emergency authority), immediately re-establish contact with the TRS user
and/or the appropriate PSAP, designated statewide default answering
point, or appropriate local emergency authority and resume handling the
call; and
    (vi) Ensure that information obtained as a result of this section is
limited to that needed to facilitate 911 services, is made available
only to emergency call handlers and emergency response or law
enforcement personnel, and is used for the sole purpose of ascertaining
a user's location in an emergency situation or for other emergency or
law enforcement purposes.
    (b) E911 Service for VRS and IP Relay--(1) Scope. The following
requirements are only applicable to providers of VRS or IP Relay.
Further, the following requirements apply only to 911 calls placed by
registered users whose Registered Location is in a geographic area
served by a Wireline E911 Network and is available to the provider
handling the call.
    (2) E911 Service. As of December 31, 2008:
    (i) VRS or IP Relay providers must, as a condition of providing
service to a user, provide that user with E911 service as described in
this section;
    (ii) VRS or IP Relay providers must transmit all 911 calls, as well
as ANI, the caller's Registered Location, the name of the VRS or IP
Relay provider, and the CA's identification number for each call, to the
PSAP, designated statewide default answering point, or appropriate local
emergency authority that serves the caller's Registered Location and
that has been designated for telecommunications carriers pursuant to
Sec. 64.3001 of this chapter, provided that ``all 911 calls'' is
defined as ``any communication initiated by an VRS or IP Relay user
dialing 911'';
    (iii) All 911 calls must be routed through the use of ANI and, if
necessary, pseudo-ANI, via the dedicated Wireline E911 Network; and
    (iv) The Registered Location, the name of the VRS or IP Relay
provider, and the CA's identification number must be available to the
appropriate PSAP, designated statewide default answering point, or
appropriate local emergency authority from or through the appropriate
automatic location information (ALI) database.
    (3) Service level obligation. Notwithstanding the provisions in
paragraph (b)(2) of this section, if a PSAP, designated statewide
default answering point, or appropriate local emergency authority is not
capable of receiving and processing either ANI or location information,
a VRS or IP Relay provider need not provide such ANI or location
information; however, nothing in this paragraph affects the obligation
under paragraph (c) of this section of a VRS or IP Relay provider to
transmit via the Wireline E911 Network all 911 calls to the PSAP,
designated statewide default answering point, or appropriate local
emergency authority that serves the caller's Registered Location and
that has been designated for telecommunications carriers pursuant to
Sec. 64.3001 of this chapter.
    (4) Registered location requirement. As of December 31, 2008, VRS
and IP Relay providers must:
    (i) Obtain from each Registered Internet-based TRS User, prior to
the initiation of service, the physical location at which the service
will first be utilized; and
    (ii) If the VRS or IP Relay is capable of being used from more than
one location, provide their registered Internet-based TRS users one or
more methods of updating their Registered Location, including at least
one option that requires use only of the iTRS access technology
necessary to access the VRS or IP Relay. Any method utilized must allow
a registered Internet-based TRS user to update the Registered Location
at will and in a timely manner.

[73 FR 41294, July 18, 2008, as amended at 73 FR 79696, Dec. 30, 2008;
78 FR 40608, July 5, 2013]

[[Page 341]]



Sec. 64.606  Internet-based TRS provider and TRS program certification.

    (a) Documentation--(1) Certified state program. Any state, through
its office of the governor or other delegated executive office empowered
to provide TRS, desiring to establish a state program under this section
shall submit, not later than October 1, 1992, documentation to the
Commission addressed to the Federal Communications Commission, Chief,
Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, TRS Certification Program,
Washington, DC 20554, and captioned ``TRS State Certification
Application.'' All documentation shall be submitted in narrative form,
shall clearly describe the state program for implementing intrastate
TRS, and the procedures and remedies for enforcing any requirements
imposed by the state program. The Commission shall give public notice of
states filing for certification including notification in the Federal
Register.
    (2) Internet-based TRS provider. Any entity desiring to provide
Internet-based TRS and to receive compensation from the Interstate TRS
Fund, shall submit documentation to the Commission addressed to the
Federal Communications Commission, Chief, Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau, TRS Certification Program, Washington, DC 20554, and
captioned ``Internet-based TRS Certification Application.'' The
documentation shall include, in narrative form:
    (i) A description of the forms of Internet-based TRS to be provided
(i.e., VRS, IP Relay, and/or IP captioned telephone relay service);
    (ii) A detailed description of how the applicant will meet all non-
waived mandatory minimum standards applicable to each form of TRS
offered, including documentary and other evidence, and in the case of
VRS, such documentary and other evidence shall demonstrate that the
applicant leases, licenses or has acquired its own facilities and
operates such facilities associated with TRS call centers and employs
communications assistants, on a full or part-time basis, to staff such
call centers at the date of the application. Such evidence shall
include, but not be limited to:
    (A) In the case of VRS applicants or providers,
    (1) Operating five or fewer call centers within the United States, a
copy of each deed or lease for each call center operated by the
applicant within the United States;
    (2) Operating more than five call centers within the United States,
a copy of each deed or lease for a representative sampling (taking into
account size (by number of communications assistants) and location) of
five call centers operated by the applicant within the United States,
together with a list of all other call centers that they operate that
includes the information required under Sec. 64.604(c)(5)(iii)(N)(2);
    (3) Operating call centers outside of the United States, a copy of
each deed or lease for each call center operated by the applicant
outside of the United States;
    (4) A description of the technology and equipment used to support
their call center functions--including, but not limited to, automatic
call distribution, routing, call setup, mapping, call features, billing
for compensation from the TRS Fund, and registration--and for each core
function of each call center for which the applicant must provide a copy
of technology and equipment proofs of purchase, leases or license
agreements in accordance with paragraphs (a)(2)(ii)(A)(5) through (7) of
this section, a statement whether such technology and equipment is
owned, leased or licensed (and from whom if leased or licensed);
    (5) Operating five or fewer call centers within the United States, a
copy of each proof of purchase, lease or license agreement for all
technology and equipment used to support their call center functions for
each call center operated by the applicant within the United States;
    (6) Operating more than five call centers within the United States,
a copy of each proof of purchase, lease or license agreement for
technology and equipment used to support their call center functions for
a representative sampling (taking into account size (by number of
communications assistants) and location) of five call centers operated
by the applicant within the United States; a copy of each proof of
purchase, lease

[[Page 342]]

or license agreement for technology and equipment used to support their
call center functions for all call centers operated by the applicant
within the United States must be retained by the applicant for three
years from the date of the application, and submitted to the Commission
upon request;
    (7) Operating call centers outside of the United States, a copy of
each proof of purchase, lease or license agreement for all technology
and equipment used to support their call center functions for each call
center operated by the applicant outside of the United States; and
    (8) A complete copy of each lease or license agreement for automatic
call distribution.
    (B) For all applicants, a list of individuals or entities that hold
at least a 10 percent equity interest in the applicant, have the power
to vote 10 percent or more of the securities of the applicant, or
exercise de jure or de facto control over the applicant, a description
of the applicant's organizational structure, and the names of its
executives, officers, members of its board of directors, general
partners (in the case of a partnership), and managing members (in the
case of a limited liability company);
    (C) For all applicants, a list of the number of applicant's full-
time and part-time employees involved in TRS operations, including and
divided by the following positions: executives and officers; video phone
installers (in the case of VRS), communications assistants, and persons
involved in marketing and sponsorship activities;
    (D) For all applicants, copies of employment agreements for all of
the provider's employees directly involved in TRS operations,
executives, and communications assistants, and a list of names of
employees directly involved in TRS operations, need not be submitted
with the application, but must be retained by the applicant for five
years from the date of application, and submitted to the Commission upon
request; and
    (E) For all applicants, a list of all sponsorship arrangements
relating to Internet-based TRS, including on that list a description of
any associated written agreements; copies of all such arrangements and
agreements must be retained by the applicant for three years from the
date of the application, and submitted to the Commission upon request;
    (F) In the case of applicants to provide IP CTS or IP CTS providers,
a description of measures taken by such applicants or providers to
ensure that they do not and will not request or collect payment from the
TRS Fund for service to consumers who do not satisfy the registration
and certification requirements in Sec. 64.604(c)(9), and an explanation
of how these measures provide such assurance.
    (iii) A description of the provider's complaint procedures; and
    (iv) A statement that the provider will file annual compliance
reports demonstrating continued compliance with these rules.
    (v) The chief executive officer (CEO), chief financial officer
(CFO), or other senior executive of an applicant for Internet-based TRS
certification under this section with first hand knowledge of the
accuracy and completeness of the information provided, when submitting
an application for certification under paragraph (a)(2) of this section,
must certify as follows: I swear under penalty of perjury that I am ----
------------(name and title), ----------------an officer of the above-
named applicant, and that I have examined the foregoing submissions, and
that all information required under the Commission's rules and orders
has been provided and all statements of fact, as well as all
documentation contained in this submission, are true, accurate, and
complete.
    (3) Assessment of internet-based TRS provider certification
application. In order to assess the merits of a certification
application submitted by an Internet-based TRS provider, the Commission
may conduct one or more on-site visits of the applicant's premises, to
which the applicant must consent.
    (4) For the purposes of paragraphs (a)(2)(ii)(A)(4) and
(a)(2)(ii)(A)(6) of this section, VRS CA Service Providers shall, in
their description of the technology and equipment used to support their
call center functions, describe:

[[Page 343]]

    (i) How they provide connectivity to the Neutral Video Communication
Service Platform; and
    (ii) How they internally route calls to CAs and then back to the
Neutral Video Communication Service Platform. VRS CA service providers
need not describe ACD platform functionality if it is not used for these
purposes.
    (b)(1) Requirements for state certification. After review of state
documentation, the Commission shall certify, by letter, or order, the
state program if the Commission determines that the state certification
documentation:
    (i) Establishes that the state program meets or exceeds all
operational, technical, and functional minimum standards contained in
Sec. 64.604;
    (ii) Establishes that the state program makes available adequate
procedures and remedies for enforcing the requirements of the state
program, including that it makes available to TRS users informational
materials on state and Commission complaint procedures sufficient for
users to know the proper procedures for filing complaints; and
    (iii) Where a state program exceeds the mandatory minimum standards
contained in Sec. 64.604, the state establishes that its program in no
way conflicts with federal law.
    (2) Requirements for Internet-based TRS Provider FCC certification.
After review of certification documentation, the Commission shall
certify, by Public Notice, that the Internet-based TRS provider is
eligible for compensation from the Interstate TRS Fund if the Commission
determines that the certification documentation:
    (i) Establishes that the provision of Internet-based TRS will meet
or exceed all non-waived operational, technical, and functional minimum
standards contained in Sec. 64.604;
    (ii) Establishes that the Internet-based TRS provider makes
available adequate procedures and remedies for ensuring compliance with
the requirements of this section and the mandatory minimum standards
contained in Sec. 64.604, including that it makes available for TRS
users informational materials on complaint procedures sufficient for
users to know the proper procedures for filing complaints.
    (c)(1) State certification period. State certification shall remain
in effect for five years. One year prior to expiration of certification,
a state may apply for renewal of its certification by filing
documentation as prescribed by paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section.
    (2) Internet-based TRS Provider FCC certification period.
Certification granted under this section shall remain in effect for five
years. An Internet-based TRS provider applying for renewal of its
certification must file documentation with the Commission containing the
information described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section at least 90
days prior to expiration of its certification.
    (d) Method of funding. Except as provided in Sec. 64.604, the
Commission shall not refuse to certify a state program based solely on
the method such state will implement for funding intrastate TRS, but
funding mechanisms, if labeled, shall be labeled in a manner that
promote national understanding of TRS and do not offend the public.
    (e)(1) Suspension or revocation of state certification. The
Commission may suspend or revoke such certification if, after notice and
opportunity for hearing, the Commission determines that such
certification is no longer warranted. In a state whose program has been
suspended or revoked, the Commission shall take such steps as may be
necessary, consistent with this subpart, to ensure continuity of TRS.
The Commission may, on its own motion, require a certified state program
to submit documentation demonstrating ongoing compliance with the
Commission's minimum standards if, for example, the Commission receives
evidence that a state program may not be in compliance with the minimum
standards.
    (2) Suspension or revocation of Internet-based TRS Provider FCC
certification. The Commission may suspend or revoke the certification of
an Internet-based TRS provider if, after notice and opportunity for
hearing, the Commission determines that such certification is no longer
warranted. The Commission may, on its own motion, require a certified
Internet-based TRS provider

[[Page 344]]

to submit documentation demonstrating ongoing compliance with the
Commission's minimum standards if, for example, the Commission receives
evidence that a certified Internet-based TRS provider may not be in
compliance with the minimum standards.
    (f) Notification of substantive change. (1) States must notify the
Commission of substantive changes in their TRS programs within 60 days
of when they occur, and must certify that the state TRS program
continues to meet federal minimum standards after implementing the
substantive change.
    (2) VRS and IP Relay providers certified under this section must
notify the Commission of substantive changes in their TRS programs,
services, and features within 60 days of when such changes occur, and
must certify that the interstate TRS provider continues to meet Federal
minimum standards after implementing the substantive change. Substantive
changes shall include, but not be limited to:
    (i) The use of new equipment or technologies to facilitate the
manner in which relay services are provided;
    (ii) Providing services from a new facility not previously
identified to the Commission or the Fund administrator; and
    (iii) Discontinuation of service from any facility.
    (g) Internet-based TRS providers certified under this section shall
file with the Commission, on an annual basis, a report demonstrating
that they are in compliance with Sec. 64.604.
    (1) Such reports must update the information required in paragraph
(a)(2) of this section and include updated documentation and a summary
of the updates, or certify that there are no changes to the information
and documentation submitted with the application for certification,
application for renewal of certification, or the most recent annual
report, as applicable.
    (2) The chief executive officer (CEO), chief financial officer
(CFO), or other senior executive of an Internet-based TRS provider under
this section with first hand knowledge of the accuracy and completeness
of the information provided, when submitting an annual report under
paragraph (g) of this section, must, with each such submission, certify
as follows:

    I swear under penalty of perjury that I am ------------------------
------------ (name and title), an officer of the above-named reporting
entity, and that I have examined the foregoing submissions, and that all
information required under the Commission's rules and orders has been
provided and all statements of fact, as well as all documentation
contained in this submission, are true, accurate, and complete.

    (3) Each VRS provider shall include within its annual report a
compliance plan describing the provider's policies, procedures, and
practices for complying with the requirements of Sec. 64.604(c)(13) of
this subpart. Such compliance plan shall include, at a minimum:
    (i) Identification of any officer(s) or managerial employee(s)
responsible for ensuring compliance with Sec. 64.604(c)(13) of this
subpart;
    (ii) A description of any compliance training provided to the
provider's officers, employees, and contractors;
    (iii) Identification of any telephone numbers, Web site addresses,
or other mechanisms available to employees for reporting abuses;
    (iv) A description of any internal audit processes used to ensure
the accuracy and completeness of minutes submitted to the TRS Fund
administrator; and
    (v) A description of all policies and practices that the provider is
following to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of the TRS Fund. A provider
that fails to file a compliance plan shall not be entitled to
compensation for the provision of VRS during the period of
noncompliance.
    (4) If, at any time, the Commission determines that a VRS provider's
compliance plan currently on file is inadequate to prevent waste, fraud,
and abuse of the TRS Fund, the Commission shall so notify the provider,
shall explain the reasons the plan is inadequate, and shall direct the
provider to correct the identified defects and submit an amended
compliance plan reflecting such correction within a specified time
period not to exceed 60 days. A provider that fails to comply with such
directive shall not be entitled to compensation for the provision of VRS

[[Page 345]]

during the period of noncompliance. A submitted compliance plan shall
not be prima facie evidence of the plan's adequacy; nor shall it be
evidence that the provider has fulfilled its obligations under Sec.
64.604(c)(13) of this subpart.
    (h) Unauthorized service interruptions. (1) Each certified VRS
provider must provide Internet-based TRS without unauthorized voluntary
service interruptions.
    (2) A VRS provider seeking to voluntarily interrupt service for a
period of 30 minutes or more in duration must first obtain Commission
authorization by submitting a written request to the Commission's
Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB) at least 60 days prior to
any planned service interruption, with detailed information of:
    (i) Its justification for such interruption;
    (ii) Its plan to notify customers about the impending interruption;
and
    (iii) Its plans for resuming service, so as to minimize the impact
of such disruption on consumers through a smooth transition of temporary
service to another provider, and restoration of its service at the
completion of such interruption. CGB will grant or deny such a request
and provide a response to the provider at least 35 days prior to the
proposed interruption, in order to afford an adequate period of
notification to consumers. In evaluating such a request, CGB will
consider such factors as the length of time of the proposed
interruption, the reason for such interruption, the frequency with which
such requests have been made by the provider in the past, the potential
impact of the interruption on consumers, and the provider's plans for a
smooth service restoration.
    (3) In the event of an unforeseen service interruption due to
circumstances beyond an Internet-based TRS service provider's control,
or in the event of a VRS provider's voluntary service interruption of
less than 30 minutes in duration, the provider must submit a written
notification to CGB within two business days of the commencement of the
service interruption, with an explanation of when and how the provider
has restored service or the provider's plan to do so imminently. In the
event the provider has not restored service at the time such report is
filed, the provider must submit a second report within two business days
of the restoration of service with an explanation of when and how the
provider has restored service. The provider also must provide
notification of service outages covered by this paragraph to consumers
on an accessible Web site, and that notification of service status must
be updated in a timely manner.
    (4) A VRS provider that fails to obtain prior Commission
authorization for a voluntary service interruption or fails to provide
written notification after a voluntary service interruption of less than
30 minutes in duration, or an Internet-based TRS provider that fails to
provide written notification after the commencement of an unforeseen
service interruption due to circumstances beyond the provider's control
in accordance with this subsection, may be subject to revocation of
certification, suspension of payment from the TRS Fund, or other
enforcement action by the Commission, as appropriate.

[70 FR 76215, Dec. 23, 2005. Redesignated at 73 FR 21259, Apr. 21, 2008;
76 FR 24402, May 2, 2011; 76 FR 47474, 47477, Aug. 5, 2011; 76 FR 67073,
Oct. 31, 2011;77 FR 33662, June 7, 2012; 78 FR 40608, July 5, 2013; 78
FR 53694, Aug. 30, 2013]

    Effective Date Notes: At 78 FR 40608, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.606 was
amended by adding paragraphs (a)(4), (g)(3), and (g)(4). These
paragraphs contain information collection and recordkeeping requirements
and will not become effective until approval has been given by the
Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.607  Furnishing related customer premises equipment.

    (a) Any communications common carrier may provide, under tariff,
customer premises equipment (other than hearing aid compatible
telephones as defined in part 68 of this chapter, needed by persons with
hearing, speech, vision or mobility disabilities. Such equipment may be
provided to persons with those disabilities or to associations or
institutions who require such equipment regularly to communicate with
persons with disabilities. Examples of such equipment include, but are
not limited to, artificial larynxes, bone conductor receivers and TTs.

[[Page 346]]

    (b) Any carrier which provides telecommunications devices for
persons with hearing and/or speech disabilities, whether or not pursuant
to tariff, shall respond to any inquiry concerning:
    (1) The availability (including general price levels) of TTs using
ASCII, Baudot, or both formats; and
    (2) The compatibility of any TT with other such devices and
computers.

[56 FR 36731, Aug. 1, 1991, as amended at 72 FR 43560, Aug. 6, 2007; 73
FR 21252, Apr. 21, 2008. Redesignated at 73 FR 21259, Apr. 21, 2008]



Sec. 64.608  Provision of hearing aid compatible telephones by exchange
carriers.

    In the absence of alternative suppliers in an exchange area, an
exchange carrier must provide a hearing aid compatible telephone, as
defined in Sec. 68.316 of this chapter, and provide related
installation and maintenance services for such telephones on a
detariffed basis to any customer with a hearing disability who requests
such equipment or services.

[61 FR 42185, Aug. 14, 1996. Redesignated at 73 FR 21259, Apr. 21, 2008]



Sec. 64.609  Enforcement of related customer premises equipment rules.

    Enforcement of Sec. Sec. 64.607 and 64.608 is delegated to those
state public utility or public service commissions which adopt those
sections and provide for their enforcement. Subpart G--Furnishing of
Enhanced Services and Customer-Premises Equipment by Communications
Common Carriers

[56 FR 36731, Aug. 1, 1991. Redesignated and amended at 73 FR 21259,
Apr. 21, 2008]



Sec. 64.610  Establishment of a National Deaf-Blind Equipment
Distribution Program.

    (a) The National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program (NDBEDP)
is established as a pilot program to distribute specialized customer
premises equipment (CPE) used for telecommunications service, Internet
access service, and advanced communications, including interexchange
services and advanced telecommunications and information services, to
low-income individuals who are deaf-blind. The duration of this pilot
program will be two years, with a Commission option to extend such
program for an additional year.
    (b) Certification to receive funding. For each state, the Commission
will certify a single program as the sole authorized entity to
participate in the NDBEDP and receive reimbursement for its program's
activities from the Interstate Telecommunications Relay Service Fund
(TRS Fund). Such entity will have full oversight and responsibility for
distributing equipment and providing related services in that state,
either directly or through collaboration, partnership, or contract with
other individuals or entities in-state or out-of-state, including other
NDBEDP certified programs.
    (1) Any state with an equipment distribution program (EDP) may have
its EDP apply to the Commission for certification as the sole authorized
entity for the state to participate in the NDBEDP and receive
reimbursement for its activities from the TRS Fund.
    (2) Other public programs, including, but not limited to, vocational
rehabilitation programs, assistive technology programs, or schools for
the deaf, blind or deaf-blind; or private entities, including but not
limited to, organizational affiliates, independent living centers, or
private educational facilities, may apply to the Commission for
certification as the sole authorized entity for the state to participate
in the NDBEDP and receive reimbursement for its activities from the TRS
Fund.
    (3) The Commission shall review applications and determine whether
to grant certification based on the ability of a program to meet the
following qualifications, either directly or in coordination with other
programs or entities, as evidenced in the application and any
supplemental materials, including letters of recommendation:
    (i) Expertise in the field of deaf-blindness, including familiarity
with the culture and etiquette of people who are deaf-blind, to ensure
that equipment distribution and the provision of related services occurs
in a manner that is relevant and useful to consumers who are deaf-blind;
    (ii) The ability to communicate effectively with people who are
deaf-blind (for training and other purposes), by

[[Page 347]]

among other things, using sign language, providing materials in Braille,
ensuring that information made available online is accessible, and using
other assistive technologies and methods to achieve effective
communication;
    (iii) Staffing and facilities sufficient to administer the program,
including the ability to distribute equipment and provide related
services to eligible individuals throughout the state, including those
in remote areas;
    (iv) Experience with the distribution of specialized CPE, especially
to people who are deaf-blind;
    (v) Experience in how to train users on how to use the equipment and
how to set up the equipment for its effective use; and
    (vi) Familiarity with the telecommunications, Internet access, and
advanced communications services that will be used with the distributed
equipment.
    (c) Definitions. For purposes of this section, the following
definitions shall apply:
    (1) Equipment. Hardware, software, and applications, whether
separate or in combination, mainstream or specialized, needed by an
individual who is deaf-blind to achieve access to telecommunications
service, Internet access service, and advanced communications, including
interexchange services and advanced telecommunications and information
services, as these services have been defined by the Communications Act.
    (2) Individual who is deaf-blind. (i) Any person:
    (A) Who has a central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better
eye with corrective lenses, or a field defect such that the peripheral
diameter of visual field subtends an angular distance no greater than 20
degrees, or a progressive visual loss having a prognosis leading to one
or both these conditions;
    (B) Who has a chronic hearing impairment so severe that most speech
cannot be understood with optimum amplification, or a progressive
hearing loss having a prognosis leading to this condition; and
    (C) For whom the combination of impairments described in clauses
(c)(2)(i)(A) and (B) of this section cause extreme difficulty in
attaining independence in daily life activities, achieving psychosocial
adjustment, or obtaining a vocation.
    (ii) The definition in this paragraph also includes any individual
who, despite the inability to be measured accurately for hearing and
vision loss due to cognitive or behavioral constraints, or both, can be
determined through functional and performance assessment to have severe
hearing and visual disabilities that cause extreme difficulty in
attaining independence in daily life activities, achieving psychosocial
adjustment, or obtaining vocational objectives. An applicant's
functional abilities with respect to using telecommunications, Internet
access, and advanced communications services in various environments
shall be considered when determining whether the individual is deaf-
blind under clauses (c)(2)(i)(B) and (C) of this section.
    (d) Eligibility criteria (1) Verification of disability. Individuals
claiming eligibility under the NDBEDP must provide verification of
disability from a professional with direct knowledge of the individual's
disability.
    (i) Such professionals may include, but are not limited to,
community-based service providers, vision or hearing related
professionals, vocational rehabilitation counselors, educators,
audiologists, speech pathologists, hearing instrument specialists, and
medical or health professionals.
    (ii) Such professionals must attest, either to the best of their
knowledge or under penalty of perjury, that the applicant is an
individual who is deaf-blind (as defined in 47 CFR 64.610(b)). Such
professionals may also include, in the attestation, information about
the individual's functional abilities to use telecommunications,
Internet access, and advanced communications services in various
settings.
    (iii) Existing documentation that a person is deaf-blind, such as an
individualized education program (IEP) or a statement from a public or
private agency, such as a Social Security determination letter, may
serve as verification of disability.

[[Page 348]]

    (iv) The verification of disability must include the attesting
professional's name, title, and contact information, including address,
phone number, and e-mail address.
    (2) Verification of low income status. An individual claiming
eligibility under the NDBEDP must provide verification that he or she
has an income that does not exceed 400 percent of the Federal Poverty
Guidelines as defined at 42 U.S.C. 9902(2) or that he or she is enrolled
in a federal program with a lesser income eligibility requirement, such
as the Federal Public Housing Assistance or Section 8; Supplemental
Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as Food Stamps; Low Income
Home Energy Assistance Program; Medicaid; National School Lunch
Program's free lunch program; Supplemental Security Income; or Temporary
Assistance for Needy Families. The NDBEDP Administrator may identify
state or other federal programs with income eligibility thresholds that
do not exceed 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for
determining income eligibility for participation in the NDBEDP. Where an
applicant is not already enrolled in a qualifying low-income program,
low-income eligibility may be verified by the certified program using
appropriate and reasonable means.
    (3) Prohibition against requiring employment. No program certified
under the NDBEDP may impose a requirement for eligibility in this
program that an applicant be employed or actively seeking employment.
    (4) Access to communications services. A program certified under the
NDBEDP may impose, as a program eligibility criterion, a requirement
that telecommunications, Internet access, or advanced communications
services are available for use by the applicant.
    (e) Equipment distribution and related services. (1) Each program
certified under the NDBEDP must:
    (i) Distribute specialized CPE and provide related services needed
to make telecommunications service, Internet access service, and
advanced communications, including interexchange services or advanced
telecommunications and information services, accessible to individuals
who are deaf-blind;
    (ii) Obtain verification that NDBEDP applicants meet the definition
of an individual who is deaf-blind contained in 47 CFR 64.610(c)(1) and
the income eligibility requirements contained in 47 CFR 64.610(d)(2);
    (iii) When a recipient relocates to another state, permit transfer
of the recipient's account and any control of the distributed equipment
to the new state's certified program; (iv) Permit transfer of equipment
from a prior state, by that state's NDBEDP certified program;
    [Reserved]
    (v) Prohibit recipients from transferring equipment received under
the NDBEDP to another person through sale or otherwise;
    (vi) Conduct outreach, in accessible formats, to inform their state
residents about the NDBEDP, which may include the development and
maintenance of a program Web site;
    (vii) Engage an independent auditor to perform annual audits
designed to detect and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse, and submit, as
necessary, to audits arranged by the Commission, the Consumer and
Governmental Affairs Bureau, the NDBEDP Administrator, or the TRS Fund
Administrator for such purpose;
    (viii) Retain all records associated with the distribution of
equipment and provision of related services under the NDBEDP for two
years following the termination of the pilot program; and
    (ix) Comply with the reporting requirements contained in 47 CFR
64.610(g).
    (2) Each program certified under the NDBEDP may not:
    (i) Impose restrictions on specific brands, models or types of
communications technology that recipients may receive to access the
communications services covered in this section;
    (ii) Disable or otherwise intentionally make it difficult for
recipients to use certain capabilities, functions, or features on
distributed equipment that are needed to access the communications
services covered in this section, or direct manufacturers or vendors of
specialized CPE to disable or make it difficult for recipients to use

[[Page 349]]

certain capabilities, functions, or features on distributed equipment
that are needed to access the communications services covered in this
section; or
    (iii) Accept any type of financial arrangement from equipment
vendors that could incentivize the purchase of particular equipment.
    (f) Payments to NDBEDP certified programs. (1) Programs certified
under the NDBEDP shall be reimbursed for the cost of equipment that has
been distributed to eligible individuals and authorized related
services, up to the state's funding allotment under this program as
determined by the Commission or any entity authorized to act for the
Commission on delegated authority.
    (2) Within 30 days after the end of each six-month period of the
Fund Year, each program certified under the NDBEDP pilot must submit
documentation that supports its claim for reimbursement of the
reasonable costs of the following:
    (i) Equipment and related expenses, including maintenance, repairs,
warranties, returns, refurbishing, upgrading, and replacing equipment
distributed to consumers;
    (ii) Individual needs assessments;
    (iii) Installation of equipment and individualized consumer
training;
    (iv) Maintenance of an inventory of equipment that can be loaned to
the consumer during periods of equipment repair;
    (v) Outreach efforts to inform state residents about the NDBEDP; and
    (vi) Administration of the program, but not to exceed 15 percent of
the total reimbursable costs for the distribution of equipment and
related services permitted under the NDBEDP.
    (3) With each request for payment, the chief executive officer,
chief financial officer, or other senior executive of the certified
program, such as a manager or director, with first-hand knowledge of the
accuracy and completeness of the claim in the request, must certify as
follows:

    I swear under penalty of perjury that I am (name and title), an
officer of the above-named reporting entity and that I have examined all
cost data associated with equipment and related services for the claims
submitted herein, and that all such data are true and an accurate
statement of the affairs of the above-named certified program.

    (g) Reporting requirements. (1) Each program certified under the
NDBEDP must submit the following data electronically to the Commission,
as instructed by the NDBEDP Administrator, every six months, commencing
with the start of the pilot program:
    (i) For each piece of equipment distributed, the identity of and
contact information, including street and e-mail addresses, and phone
number, for the individual receiving that equipment;
    (ii) For each piece of equipment distributed, the identity of and
contact information, including street and e-mail addresses, and phone
number, for the individual attesting to the disability of the individual
who is deaf-blind;
    (iii) For each piece of equipment distributed, its name, serial
number, brand, function, and cost, the type of communications service
with which it is used, and the type of relay service it can access;
    (iv) For each piece of equipment distributed, the amount of time,
following any assessment conducted, that the requesting individual
waited to receive that equipment;
    (v) The cost, time and any other resources allocated to assessing an
individual's equipment needs;
    (vi) The cost, time and any other resources allocated to installing
equipment and training deaf-blind individuals on using equipment;
    (vii) The cost, time and any other resources allocated to maintain,
repair, cover under warranty, and refurbish equipment;
    (viii) The cost, time and any other resources allocated to outreach
activities related to the NDBEDP, and the type of outreach efforts
undertaken;
    (ix) The cost, time and any other resources allocated to upgrading
the distributed equipment, along with the nature of such upgrades;
    (x) To the extent that the program has denied equipment requests
made by their deaf-blind residents, a summary of the number and types of
equipment requests denied and reasons for such denials;

[[Page 350]]

    (xi) To the extent that the program has received complaints related
to the program, a summary of the number and types of such complaints and
their resolution; and
    (xii) The number of qualified applicants on waiting lists to receive
equipment.
    (2) With each report, the chief executive officer, chief financial
officer, or other senior executive of the certified program, such as a
director or manager, with first-hand knowledge of the accuracy and
completeness of the information provided in the report, must certify as
follows:

    I swear under penalty of perjury that I am (name and title), an
officer of the above-named reporting entity and that I have examined the
foregoing reports and that all requested information has been provided
and all statements of fact are true and an accurate statement of the
affairs of the above-named certified program.

    (h) Administration of the program. The Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau shall designate a Commission official as the NDBEDP
Administrator.
    (1) The NDBEDP Administrator will work in collaboration with the TRS
Fund Administrator, and be responsible for:
    (i) Reviewing program applications received from state EDPs and
alternate entities and certifying those that qualify to participate in
the program;
    (ii) Allocating NDBEDP funding as appropriate and in consultation
with the TRS Fund Administrator;
    (iii) Reviewing certified program submissions for reimbursement of
costs under the NDBEDP, in consultation with the TRS Fund Administrator;
    (iv) Working with Commission staff to establish and maintain an
NDBEDP Web site, accessible to individuals with disabilities, that
includes contact information for certified programs by state and links
to their respective Web sites, if any, and overseeing other outreach
efforts that may be undertaken by the Commission;
    (v) Obtaining, reviewing, and evaluating reported data for the
purpose of assessing the pilot program and determining best practices;
    (vi) Conferring with stakeholders, jointly or separately, during the
course of the pilot program to obtain input and feedback on, among other
things, the effectiveness of the pilot program, new technologies,
equipment and services that are needed, and suggestions for the
permanent program;
    (vii) Working with Commission staff to adopt permanent rules for the
NDBEDP; and
    (viii) Serving as the Commission point of contact for the NDBEDP,
including responding to inquiries from certified programs and consumer
complaints filed directly with the Commission.
    (2) The TRS Fund Administrator, as directed by the NDBEDP
Administrator, shall have responsibility for:
    (i) Reviewing cost submissions and releasing funds for equipment
that has been distributed and authorized related services, including
outreach efforts;
    (ii) Releasing funds for other authorized purposes, as requested by
the Commission or the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau; and
    (iii) Collecting data as needed for delivery to the Commission and
the NDBEDP Administrator.
    (i) Whistleblower protections. (1) NDBEDP certified programs shall
permit, without reprisal in the form of an adverse personnel action,
purchase or contract cancellation or discontinuance, eligibility
disqualification, or otherwise, any current or former employee, agent,
contractor, manufacturer, vendor, applicant, or recipient, to disclose
to a designated official of the certified program, the NDBEDP
Administrator, the TRS Fund Administrator, the Commission's Office of
Inspector General, or to any federal or state law enforcement entity,
any known or suspected violations of the Act or Commission rules, or any
other activity that the reporting person reasonably believes to be
unlawful, wasteful, fraudulent, or abusive, or that otherwise could
result in the improper distribution of equipment, provision of services,
or billing to the TRS Fund.
    (2) NDBEDP certified programs shall include these whistleblower
protections with the information they provide about the program in any
employee handbooks or manuals, on their Web sites, and in other
appropriate publications.

[[Page 351]]

    (j) Suspension or revocation of certification. (1) The Commission
may suspend or revoke NDBEDP certification if, after notice and
opportunity for hearing, the Commission determines that such
certification is no longer warranted.
    (2) In the event of suspension or revocation, the Commission shall
take such steps as may be necessary, consistent with this subpart, to
ensure continuity of the NDBEDP for the state whose program has been
suspended or revoked.
    (3) The Commission may, at its discretion and on its own motion,
require a certified program to submit documentation demonstrating
ongoing compliance with the Commission's rules if, for example, the
Commission receives evidence that a state program may not be in
compliance with those rules.
    (k) Expiration of rules. These rules will expire at the termination
of the NDBEDP pilot program.

[76 FR 26647, May 9, 2011; 76 FR 31261, May 31, 2011]



Sec. 64.611  Internet-based TRS registration.

    (a) Default provider registration. Every provider of VRS or IP Relay
must, no later than December 31, 2008, provide users with the capability
to register with that VRS or IP Relay provider as a ``default
provider.'' Upon a user's registration, the VRS or IP Relay provider
shall:
    (1) Either:
    (i) Facilitate the user's valid number portability request as set
forth in 47 CFR 52.34; or, if the user does not wish to port a number,
    (ii) Assign that user a geographically appropriate North American
Numbering Plan telephone number; and
    (2) Route and deliver all of that user's inbound and outbound calls
unless the user chooses to place a call with, or receives a call from,
an alternate provider.
    (3) Certification of eligibility of VRS users. (i) A VRS provider
seeking compensation from the TRS Fund for providing VRS to a particular
user registered with that provider must first obtain a written
certification from the user, attesting that the user is eligible to use
VRS.
    (ii) The certification required by paragraph (a)(3)(i) of this
section must include the user's attestation that:
    (A) The user has a hearing or speech disability; and
    (B) The user understands that the cost of VRS calls is paid for by
contributions from other telecommunications users to the TRS Fund.
    (iii) The certification required by paragraph (a)(3)(i) of this
section must be made on a form separate from any other agreement or
form, and must include a separate user signature specific to the
certification. For the purposes of this rule, an electronic signature,
defined by the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce
Act, as an electronic sound, symbol, or process, attached to or
logically associated with a contract or other record and executed or
adopted by a person with the intent to sign the record, has the same
legal effect as a written signature. For the purposes of this rule, an
electronic record, defined by the Electronic Signatures in Global and
National Commerce Act as a contract or other record created, generated,
sent, communicated, received, or stored by electronic means, constitutes
a record.
    (iv) Each VRS provider shall maintain the confidentiality of any
registration and certification information obtained by the provider, and
may not disclose such registration and certification information or the
content of such registration and certification information except as
required by law or regulation.
    (v) VRS providers must, for existing registered Internet-based TRS
users, submit the certification required by paragraph (a)(3)(i) of this
section to the TRS User Registration Database within 60 days of notice
from the Managing Director that the TRS User Registration Database is
ready to accept such information.
    (vi) When registering a user that is transferring service from
another VRS provider, VRS providers shall obtain and submit a properly
executed certification if a query of the TRS User Registration Database
shows a properly executed certification has not been filed.

[[Page 352]]

    (vii) VRS providers shall require their CAs to terminate any call
which does not involve an individual eligible to use VRS due to a
hearing or speech disability or, pursuant to the provider's policies,
the call does not appear to be a legitimate VRS call, and VRS providers
may not seek compensation for such calls from the TRS Fund.
    (4) TRS User Registration Database information. Each VRS provider
shall collect and transmit to the TRS User Registration Database, in a
format prescribed by the administrator of the TRS User Registration
Database, the following information for each of its new and existing
registered Internet-based TRS users: full name; full residential
address; ten-digit telephone number assigned in the TRS numbering
directory; last four digits of the social security number or Tribal
Identification number, if the registered Internet-based TRS user is a
member of a Tribal nation and does not have a social security number;
date of birth; Registered Location; VRS provider name and dates of
service initiation and termination; a digital copy of the user's self-
certification of eligibility for VRS and the date obtained by the
provider; the date on which the user's identification was verified; and
(for existing users only) the date on which the registered Internet-
based TRS user last placed a point-to-point or relay call.
    (i) Each VRS provider must obtain, from each new and existing
registered Internet-based TRS user, consent to transmit the registered
Internet-based TRS user's information to the TRS User Registration
Database. Prior to obtaining consent, the VRS provider must describe to
the registered Internet-based TRS user, using clear, easily understood
language, the specific information being transmitted, that the
information is being transmitted to the TRS User Registration Database
to ensure proper administration of the TRS program, and that failure to
provide consent will result in the registered Internet-based TRS user
being denied service. VRS providers must obtain and keep a record of
affirmative acknowledgment by every registered Internet-based TRS user
of such consent.
    (ii) VRS providers must, for existing registered Internet-based TRS
users, submit the information in paragraph (a)(3) of this section to the
TRS User Registration Database within 60 days of notice from the
Commission that the TRS User Registration Database is ready to accept
such information. Calls from or to existing registered Internet-based
TRS users that have not had their information populated in the TRS User
Registration Database within 60 days of notice from the Commission that
the TRS User Registration Database is ready to accept such information
shall not be compensable.
    (iii) VRS providers must submit the information in paragraph (a)(4)
of this section upon initiation of service for users registered after 60
days of notice from the Commission that the TRS User Registration
Database is ready to accept such information.
    (b) Mandatory registration of new users. As of December 31, 2008,
VRS and IP Relay providers must, prior to the initiation of service for
an individual that has not previously utilized VRS or IP Relay, register
that new user as described in paragraph (a) of this section.
    (c) Obligations of default providers and former default providers.
(1) Default providers must:
    (i) Obtain current routing information, including IP addresses or
domain names and user names, from their Registered Internet-based TRS
Users;
    (ii) Provision such information to the TRS Numbering Directory; and
    (iii) Maintain such information in their internal databases and in
the TRS Numbering Directory.
    (2) Internet-based TRS providers (and, to the extent necessary,
their Numbering Partners) must:
    (i) Take such steps as are necessary to cease acquiring routing
information from any VRS or IP Relay user that ports his or her number
to another VRS or IP Relay provider or otherwise selects a new default
provider;
    (ii) Communicate among themselves as necessary to ensure that:
    (A) Only the default provider provisions routing information to the
central database; and
    (B) VRS and IP Relay providers other than the default provider are
aware

[[Page 353]]

that they must query the TRS Numbering Directory in order to obtain
accurate routing information for a particular user of VRS or IP Relay.
    (d) Proxy numbers. After December 31, 2008, a VRS or IP Relay
provider:
    (1) May not assign or issue a proxy or alias for a NANP telephone
number to any user; and
    (2) Must cease to use any proxy or alias for a NANP telephone number
assigned or issued to any Registered Internet-based TRS User.
    (e) Toll free numbers. A VRS or IP Relay provider:
    (1) May not assign or issue a toll free number to any VRS or IP
Relay user.
    (2) That has already assigned or provided a toll free number to a
VRS or IP Relay user must, at the VRS or IP Relay user's request,
facilitate the transfer of the toll free number to a toll free
subscription with a toll free service provider that is under the direct
control of the user.
    (3) Must within one year after the effective date of this Order
remove from the Internet-based TRS Numbering Directory any toll free
number that has not been transferred to a subscription with a toll free
service provider and for which the user is the subscriber of record.
    (f) iTRS access technology. (1) Every VRS or IP Relay provider must
ensure that all iTRS access technology they have issued, leased, or
otherwise provided to VRS or IP Relay users delivers routing information
or other information only to the user's default provider, except as is
necessary to complete or receive ``dial around'' calls on a case-by-case
basis.
    (2) All iTRS access technology issued, leased, or otherwise provided
to VRS or IP Relay users by Internet-based TRS providers must be capable
of facilitating the requirements of this section.
    (g) User notification. Every VRS or IP Relay provider must include
an advisory on its website and in any promotional materials addressing
numbering or E911 services for VRS or IP Relay.
    (1) At a minimum, the advisory must address the following issues:
    (i) The process by which VRS or IP Relay users may obtain ten-digit
telephone numbers, including a brief summary of the numbering assignment
and administration processes adopted herein;
    (ii) The portability of ten-digit telephone numbers assigned to VRS
or IP Relay users;
    (iii) The process by which persons using VRS or IP Relay may submit,
update, and confirm receipt by the provider of their Registered Location
information;
    (iv) An explanation emphasizing the importance of maintaining
accurate, up-to-date Registered Location information with the user's
default provider in the event that the individual places an emergency
call via an Internet-based relay service;
    (v) The process by which a VRS or IP Relay user may acquire a toll
free number, or transfer control of a toll free number from a VRS or IP
Relay provider to the user; and
    (vi) The process by which persons holding a toll free number request
that the toll free number be linked to their ten-digit telephone number
in the TRS Numbering Directory.
    (2) VRS and IP Relay providers must obtain and keep a record of
affirmative acknowledgment by every Registered Internet-based TRS User
of having received and understood the advisory described in this
subsection.
    (h) A VRS CA service provider shall fulfill its obligations under
paragraphs (a), (c), (d), and (e) of this section using the Neutral
Video Communication Service Platform.

[73 FR 41295, July 18, 2008, as amended at 76 FR 59557, Sept. 27, 2011;
78 FR 40608, July 5, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40608, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.611 was
amended by adding paragraphs (a)(3) and (a)(4). These paragraphs
contains information collection and recordkeeping requirements and will
not become effective until approval has been given by the Office of
Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.613  Numbering directory for Internet-based TRS users.

    (a) TRS Numbering Directory. (1) The TRS Numbering Directory shall
contain records mapping the geographically appropriate NANP telephone
number of each Registered Internet-

[[Page 354]]

based TRS User to a unique Uniform Resource Identifier (URI).
    (2) For each record associated with a VRS user's geographically
appropriate NANP telephone number, the URI shall contain the IP address
of the user's device. For each record associated with an IP Relay user's
geographically appropriate NANP telephone number, the URI shall contain
the user's user name and domain name that can be subsequently resolved
to reach the user.
    (3) Within one year after the effective date of this Order,
Internet-based TRS providers must ensure that a user's toll free number
that is associated with a geographically appropriate NANP number will be
associated with the same URI as that geographically appropriate NANP
telephone number.
    (4) Only the TRS Numbering Administrator and Internet-based TRS
providers may access the TRS Numbering Directory.
    (b) Administration--(1) Neutrality. (i) The TRS Numbering
Administrator shall be a non-governmental entity that is impartial and
not an affiliate of any Internet-based TRS provider.
    (ii) Neither the TRS Numbering Administrator nor any affiliate may
issue a majority of its debt to, nor derive a majority of its revenues
from, any Internet-based TRS provider.
    (iii) Nor may the TRS Numbering Administrator nor any affiliate be
unduly influenced, as determined by the North American Numbering
Council, by parties with a vested interest in the outcome of TRS-related
numbering administration and activities.
    (iv) Any subcontractor that performs any function of the TRS
Numbering Administrator must also meet these neutrality criteria.
    (2) Terms of Administration. The TRS Numbering Administrator shall
administer the TRS Numbering Directory pursuant to the terms of its
contract.
    (3) Compensation. The TRS Fund, as defined by 47 CFR
64.604(a)(5)(iii), may compensate the TRS Numbering Administrator for
the reasonable costs of administration pursuant to the terms of its
contract.

[73 FR 41296, July 18, 2008, as amended at 76 FR 59577, Sept. 27, 2011]



Sec. 64.615  TRS User Registration Database and administrator.

    (a) TRS User Registration Database. (1) VRS providers shall validate
the eligibility of the party on the video side of each call by querying
the TRS User Registration Database on a per-call basis. Emergency 911
calls are excepted from this requirement.
    (i) Validation shall occur during the call setup process, prior to
the placement of the call.
    (ii) If the eligibility of at least one party to the call is not
validated using the TRS User Registration Database, the call shall not
be completed, and the VRS provider shall either terminate the call or,
if appropriate, offer to register the user if they are able to
demonstrate eligibility.
    (iii) Calls that VRS providers are prohibited from completing
because the user's eligibility cannot be validated shall not be included
in speed of answer calculations and shall not be eligible for
compensation from the TRS Fund.
    (2) The administrator of the TRS User Registration Database shall
assign a unique identifier to each user in the TRS User Registration
Database.
    (3) Data integrity. (i) Each VRS provider shall request that the
administrator of the TRS User Registration Database remove from the TRS
User Registration Database user information for any registered user:
    (A) Who informs its default provider that it no longer wants use of
a ten-digit number for TRS services; or;
    (B) For whom the provider obtains information that the user is not
eligible to use the service.
    (ii) The administrator of the TRS User Registration Database shall
remove the data of:
    (A) Any user that has neither placed nor received a VRS or point to
point call in a one year period; and
    (B) Any user for which a VRS provider makes a request under
paragraph (a)(3)(i) of this section.
    (4) VRS providers may query the TRS User Registration Database only
for the purposes provided in this subpart, and to determine whether
information with respect to its registered users already in the database
is correct and complete.

[[Page 355]]

    (5) User verification. (i) The TRS User Registration Database shall
have the capability of performing an identification verification check
when a VRS provider or other party submits a query to the database about
an existing or potential user.
    (ii) VRS providers shall not register individuals that do not pass
the identification verification check conducted through the TRS User
Registration Database.
    (iii) VRS providers shall not seek compensation for calls placed by
individuals that do not pass the identification verification check
conducted through the TRS User Registration Database.
    (b) Administration--(1) Terms of administration. The administrator
of the TRS User Registration Database shall administer the TRS User
Registration Database pursuant to the terms of its contract.
    (2) Compensation. The TRS Fund, as defined by Sec.
64.604(a)(5)(iii) of this subpart, may be used to compensate the
administrator of the TRS User Registration Database for the reasonable
costs of administration pursuant to the terms of its contract.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.615 was
added. Paragraph (a) contains information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.617  Neutral Video Communication Service Platform.

    (a) VRS CA service providers certified by the Commission are
required to utilize the Neutral Video Communication Service Platform to
process VRS calls. Each VRS CA service provider shall be responsible for
providing sign language interpretation services and for ensuring that
the Neutral Video Communication Service Platform has the information it
needs to provide video communication service on the VRS CA service
provider's behalf.
    (b) Administration--(1) Terms of administration. The provider of the
Neutral Video Communication Service Platform shall administer the
Neutral Video Communication Service Platform pursuant to the terms of
its contract.
    (2) Compensation. The TRS Fund, as defined by Sec.
64.604(a)(5)(iii) of this subpart, may be used to compensate the
provider of the Neutral Video Communication Service Platform for the
reasonable costs of administration pursuant to the terms of its
contract.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.619  VRS Access Technology Reference Platform and administrator.

    (a) VRS Access Technology Reference Platform. (1) The VRS Access
Technology Reference Platform shall be a software product that performs
consistently with the rules in this subpart, including any standards
adopted in Sec. 64.621 of this subpart.
    (2) The VRS Access Technology Reference Platform shall be available
for use by the public and by developers.
    (b) Administration--(1) Terms of administration. The administrator
of the VRS Access Technology Reference Platform shall administer the VRS
Access Technology Reference Platform pursuant to the terms of its
contract.
    (2) Compensation. The TRS Fund, as defined by Sec.
64.604(a)(5)(iii) of this subpart, may be used to compensate the
administrator of the VRS Access Technology Reference Platform for the
reasonable costs of administration pursuant to the terms of its
contract.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.621  Interoperability and portability.

    (a) General obligations of VRS providers. (1) All VRS users must be
able to place a VRS call through any of the VRS providers' services, and
all VRS providers must be able to receive calls from, and make calls to,
any VRS user.
    (2) A VRS provider may not take steps that restrict a user's
unfettered access to another provider's service, such as providing
degraded service quality to VRS users using VRS equipment or service
with another provider's service.
    (3) All VRS providers must ensure that their VRS access technologies
and their video communication service platforms are interoperable with
the VRS Access Technology Reference

[[Page 356]]

Platform, including for point-to-point calls. No VRS provider shall be
compensated for minutes of use involving their VRS access technologies
or video communication service platforms that are not interoperable with
the VRS Access Technology Reference Platform.
    (4) All VRS providers must ensure that their VRS access technologies
and their video communication service platforms are interoperable with
the Neutral Video Communication Service Platform, including for point-
to-point calls. No VRS provider shall be compensated for minutes of use
involving their VRS access technologies or video communication service
platforms that are not interoperable with the Neutral Video
Communication Service Platform.
    (b) [Reserved]

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.623  Administrator requirements.

    (a) For the purposes of this section, the term ``Administrator''
shall refer to each of the TRS Numbering administrator, the
administrator of the TRS User Registration Database, the administrator
of the VRS Access Technology Reference Platform, and the provider of the
Neutral Video Communication Service Platform. A single entity may serve
in one or more of these capacities.
    (b) Neutrality. (1) The Administrator shall be a non-governmental
entity that is impartial and not an affiliate of any Internet-based TRS
provider.
    (2) Neither the Administrator nor any affiliate thereof shall issue
a majority of its debt to, nor derive a majority of its revenues from,
any Internet-based TRS provider.
    (3) Neither the TRS Numbering administrator nor any affiliate
thereof shall be unduly influenced, as determined by the North American
Numbering Council, by parties with a vested interest in the outcome of
TRS-related numbering administration and activities.
    (4) None of the administrator of the TRS User Registration Database,
the administrator of the VRS Access Technology Reference Platform, or
the provider of the Neutral Video Communication Service Platform, nor
any affiliates thereof, shall be unduly influenced, as determined by the
Commission, by parties with a vested interest in the outcome of TRS-
related activities.
    (5) Any subcontractor that performs any function of any
Administrator shall also meet the neutrality criteria applicable to such
Administrator.
    (c) Terms of administration. The Administrator shall administer
pursuant to the terms of its contract.
    (d) Compensation. The TRS Fund, as defined by Sec.
64.604(a)(5)(iii) of this subpart, may be used to compensate the
Administrator for the reasonable costs of administration pursuant to the
terms of its contract.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.630  Applicability of change of default TRS provider rules.

    Sections 64.630 through 64.636 of this part governing changes in
default TRS providers shall apply to any provider of IP Relay or VRS
eligible to receive payments from the TRS Fund.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.631  Verification of orders for change of default TRS providers.

    (a) No iTRS provider, either directly or through its numbering
partner, shall initiate or implement the process to change an iTRS
user's selection of a default provider prior to obtaining:
    (1) Authorization from the iTRS user, and
    (2) Verification of that authorization in accordance with the
procedures prescribed in this section. The new default provider shall
maintain and preserve without alteration or modification all records of
verification of the iTRS user's authorization for a minimum period of
five years after obtaining such verification and shall make such records
available to the Commission upon request. In any case where the iTRS
provider is unable, unwilling or otherwise fails to make such records
available to the Commission upon request, it shall be presumed that the
iTRS provider has failed to comply with its verification obligations
under the rules.
    (b) Where an iTRS provider is offering more than one type of TRS,
that

[[Page 357]]

provider must obtain separate authorization from the iTRS user for each
service, although the authorizations may be obtained within the same
transaction. Each authorization must be verified separately from any
other authorizations obtained in the same transaction. Each
authorization must be verified in accordance with the verification
procedures prescribed in this part.
    (c) A new iTRS provider shall not, either directly or through its
numbering partner, initiate or implement the process to change a default
provider unless and until the order has been verified in accordance with
one of the following procedures:
    (1) The iTRS provider has obtained the iTRS user's written or
electronically signed authorization in a form that meets the
requirements of Sec. 64.632 of this part; or
    (2) An independent third party meeting the qualifications in this
subsection has obtained, in accordance with the procedures set forth in
paragraphs (c)(2)(i) through (iv) of this section, the iTRS user's
authorization to implement the default provider change order that
confirms and includes appropriate verification of registration data with
the TRS User Registration Database as defined in Sec. 64.601(a) of this
part. The independent third party must not be owned, managed,
controlled, or directed by the iTRS provider or the iTRS provider's
marketing agent; must not have any financial incentive to confirm
default provider change orders for the iTRS provider or the iTRS
provider's marketing agent; and must operate in a location physically
separate from the iTRS provider or the iTRS provider's marketing agent.
    (i) Methods of third party verification. Third party verification
systems and three-way conference calls may be used for verification
purposes so long as the requirements of paragraphs (c)(3)(ii) through
(iv) of this section are satisfied. It shall be a per se violation of
these rules if at any time the iTRS provider, an iTRS provider's
marketing representative, or any other person misleads the iTRS user
with respect to the authorization that the iTRS user is giving, the
purpose of that authorization, the purpose of the verification, the
verification process, or the identity of the person who is placing the
call as well as on whose behalf the call is being placed, if applicable.
    (ii) Provider initiation of third party verification. An iTRS
provider or an iTRS provider's marketing representative initiating a
three-way conference call must drop off the call once the three-way
connection has been established.
    (iii) Requirements for content and format of third party
verification. Any description of the default provider change transaction
by a third party verifier must not be misleading. At the start of the
third party verification process, the third party verifier shall
identify the new default provider to the iTRS user and shall confirm
that the iTRS user understands that the iTRS user is changing default
providers and will no longer receive service from the iTRS user's
current iTRS provider. In addition, all third party verification methods
shall elicit, at a minimum: The date of the verification; the identity
of the iTRS user; confirmation that the person on the call is the iTRS
user; confirmation that the iTRS user wants to make the default provider
change; confirmation that the iTRS user understands that a default
provider change, not an upgrade to existing service, or any other
misleading description of the transaction, is being authorized;
confirmation that the iTRS user understands what the change in default
provider means, including that the iTRS user may need to return any
video equipment belonging to the original default provider; the name of
the new default provider affected by the change; the telephone number of
record to be transferred to the new default provider; and the type of
TRS used with the telephone number being transferred. If the iTRS user
has additional questions for the iTRS provider's marketing
representative during the verification process, the verifier shall
instruct the iTRS user that they are terminating the verification
process, that the iTRS user may contact the marketing representative
with additional questions, and that the iTRS user's default provider
will not be changed. The marketing representative

[[Page 358]]

may again initiate the verification process following the procedures set
out in this section after the iTRS user contacts the marketing
representative with any additional questions. Third party verifiers may
not market the iTRS provider's services by providing additional
information.
    (iv) Other requirements for third party verification. All third
party verifications shall be conducted in the same language and format
that were used in the underlying marketing transaction and shall be
recorded in their entirety. In the case of VRS, this means that if the
marketing process was conducted in American Sign Language (ASL), then
the third party verification shall be conducted in ASL. In the event
that the underlying marketing transaction was conducted via text over IP
Relay, such text format shall be used for the third party verification.
The third party verifier shall inform both the iTRS user and, where
applicable, the communications assistant relaying the call, that the
call is being recorded. The third party verifier shall provide the new
default provider an audio, video, or IP Relay transcript of the
verification of the iTRS user authorization. New default providers shall
maintain and preserve audio and video records of verification of iTRS
user authorization in accordance with the procedures set forth in
paragraph (a)(2) of this section.
    (d) A new default provider shall implement an iTRS user's default
provider change order within 60 days of obtaining either:
    (1) A written or electronically signed letter of agency in
accordance with Sec. 64.632 of this part or
    (2) Third party verification of the iTRS user's default provider
change order in accordance with paragraph (c)(2) of this section. If not
implemented within 60 days as required herein, such default provider
change order shall be deemed void.
    (e) At any time during the process of changing an iTRS user's
default provider, and until such process is completed, which is when the
new default provider assumes the role of default provider, the original
default provider shall not:
    (1) Reduce the level or quality of iTRS service provided to such
iTRS user, or
    (2) Reduce the functionality of any VRS access technology provided
by the iTRS provider to such iTRS user.
    (f) An iTRS provider that is certified pursuant to Sec.
64.606(a)(2) of this part may acquire, through a sale or transfer,
either part or all of another iTRS provider's iTRS user base without
obtaining each iTRS user's authorization and verification in accordance
with paragraph (c) of this section, provided that the acquiring iTRS
provider complies with the following streamlined procedures. An iTRS
provider shall not use these streamlined procedures for any fraudulent
purpose, including any attempt to avoid liability for violations under
part 64 of the Commission rules.
    (1) Not later than 30 days before the transfer of the affected iTRS
users from the selling or transferring iTRS provider to the acquiring
iTRS provider, the acquiring iTRS provider shall provide notice to each
affected iTRS user of the information specified herein. The acquiring
iTRS provider is required to fulfill the obligations set forth in the
advance iTRS user notice. In the case of VRS, the notice shall be
provided as a pre-recorded video message in American Sign Language sent
to all affected iTRS users. In the case of IP Relay, the notice shall be
provided as a pre-recorded text message sent to all affected iTRS users.
The advance iTRS user notice shall be provided in a manner consistent
with 47 U.S.C. 255, 617, 619 and the Commission's rules regarding
accessibility to blind and visually-impaired consumers, Sec. Sec. 6.3,
6.5, 14.20, and 14.21 of this chapter. The following information must be
included in the advance iTRS user notice:
    (i) The date on which the acquiring iTRS provider will become the
iTRS user's new default provider;
    (ii) The iTRS user's right to select a different default provider
for the iTRS at issue, if an alternative iTRS provider is available;
    (iii) Whether the acquiring iTRS provider will be responsible for
handling any complaints filed, or otherwise raised, prior to or during
the transfer

[[Page 359]]

against the selling or transferring iTRS provider, and
    (iv) The toll-free customer service telephone number of the
acquiring iTRS provider.
    (2) All iTRS users receiving the notice will be transferred to the
acquiring iTRS provider, unless they have selected a different default
provider before the transfer date.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.631 was
added. Paragraphs (a) through (d) and (f) contain information collection
and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until
approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.632  Letter of authorization form and content.

    (a) An iTRS provider may use a written or electronically signed
letter of authorization to obtain authorization of an iTRS user's
request to change his or her default provider. A letter of authorization
that does not conform with this section is invalid for purposes of this
subpart.
    (b) The letter of authorization shall be a separate document or
located on a separate screen or Web page. The letter of authorization
shall contain the following title ``Letter of Authorization to Change my
Default Provider'' at the top of the page, screen, or Web page, as
applicable, in clear and legible type.
    (c) The letter of authorization shall contain only the authorizing
language described in paragraph (d) of this section and be strictly
limited to authorizing the new default provider to implement a default
provider change order. The letter of authorization shall be signed and
dated by the iTRS user requesting the default provider change.
    (d) At a minimum, the letter of authorization must be printed with a
type of sufficient size and readable type to be clearly legible and must
contain clear and unambiguous language that confirms:
    (1) The iTRS user's registered name and address and each telephone
number to be covered by the default provider change order;
    (2) The decision to change the default provider from the original
default provider to the new default provider;
    (3) That the iTRS user designates [insert the name of the new
default provider] to act as the iTRS user's agent and authorizing the
new default provider to implement the default provider change; and
    (4) That the iTRS user understands that only one iTRS provider may
be designated as the TRS user's default provider for any one telephone
number.
    (e) If any portion of a letter of authorization is translated into
another language then all portions of the letter of authorization must
be translated into that language. Every letter of authorization must be
translated into the same language as any promotional materials,
descriptions or instructions provided with the letter of authorization.
    (f) Letters of authorization submitted with an electronically signed
authorization must include the consumer disclosures required by Section
101(c) of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.633  Procedures for resolution of unauthorized changes in
default provider.

    (a) Notification of alleged unauthorized provider change. Original
default providers who are informed of an unauthorized default provider
change by an iTRS user shall immediately notify the allegedly
unauthorized provider and the Commission's Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau of the incident.
    (b) Referral of complaint. Any iTRS provider that is informed by an
iTRS user or original default provider of an unauthorized default
provider change shall:
    (1) Notify the Commission's Consumer and Governmental Affairs
Bureau, and
    (2) Shall inform that iTRS user of the iTRS user's right to file a
complaint with the Commission's Consumer and Governmental Affairs
Bureau. iTRS providers shall also inform the iTRS user that the iTRS
user may contact and file a complaint with the alleged unauthorized
default provider. An original default provider shall have the

[[Page 360]]

right to file a complaint with the Commission in the event that one of
its respective iTRS users is the subject of an alleged unauthorized
default provider change.
    (c) Notification of receipt of complaint. Upon receipt of an
unauthorized default provider change complaint or notification filed
pursuant to this section, the Commission will notify the allegedly
unauthorized provider and the Fund administrator of the complaint or
notification and order that the unauthorized provider identify to the
Fund administrator all minutes attributable to the iTRS user after the
alleged unauthorized change of default provider is alleged to have
occurred. The Fund administrator shall withhold reimbursement for such
minutes pending Commission determination of whether an unauthorized
change, as defined by Sec. 64.601(a) of this part, has occurred, if it
has not already done so.
    (d) Proof of verification. Not more than 30 days after notification
of the complaint or other notification, the alleged unauthorized default
provider shall provide to the Commission's Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau a copy of any valid proof of verification of the default
provider change. This proof of verification must clearly demonstrate a
valid authorized default provider change, as that term is defined in
Sec. Sec. 64.631 through 64.632 of this part. The Commission will
determine whether an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec. 64.601(a)
of this part, has occurred using such proof and any evidence supplied by
the iTRS user or other iTRS providers. Failure by the allegedly
unauthorized provider to respond or provide proof of verification will
be presumed to be sufficient evidence of a violation.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.634  Procedures where the Fund has not yet reimbursed the
provider.

    (a) This section shall only apply after an iTRS user or iTRS
provider has complained to or notified the Commission that an allegedly
unauthorized change, as defined by Sec. 64.601(a) of this part, has
occurred, and the TRS Fund (Fund), as defined in Sec. 64.604(c)(5)(iii)
of this part, has not reimbursed the allegedly unauthorized default
provider for service attributable to the iTRS user after the allegedly
unauthorized change occurred.
    (b) An allegedly unauthorized provider shall identify to the Fund
administrator all minutes submitted by the allegedly unauthorized
provider to the Fund for reimbursement that are attributable to the iTRS
user after the allegedly unauthorized change of default provider, as
defined by Sec. 64.601(a) of this part, is alleged to have occurred.
    (c) If the Commission determines that an unauthorized change, as
defined by Sec. 64.601(a) of this part, has occurred, the Commission
shall direct the Fund administrator to not reimburse for any minutes
attributable to the iTRS user after the unauthorized change occurred,
and neither the authorized nor the unauthorized default provider may
seek reimbursement from the fund for those charges. The remedies
provided in this section are in addition to any other remedies available
by law.
    (d) If the Commission determines that the default provider change
was authorized, the default provider may seek reimbursement from the
Fund for minutes of service provided to the iTRS user.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.634 was
added. Paragraph (b) contains information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.635  Procedures where the Fund has already reimbursed the provider.

    (a) The procedures in this section shall only apply after an iTRS
user or iTRS provider has complained to or notified the Commission that
an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec. 64.601(a) of this part, has
occurred, and the Fund has reimbursed the allegedly unauthorized default
provider for minutes of service provided to the iTRS user.
    (b) If the Commission determines that an unauthorized change, as
defined by Sec. 64.601(a) of this part, has occurred, it shall direct
the unauthorized

[[Page 361]]

default provider to remit to the Fund an amount equal to 100% of all
payments the unauthorized default provider received from the Fund for
minutes attributable to the iTRS user after the unauthorized change
occurred. The remedies provided in this section are in addition to any
other remedies available by law.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



Sec. 64.636  Prohibition of default provider freezes.

    (a) A default provider freeze prevents a change in an iTRS user's
default provider selection unless the iTRS user gives the provider from
whom the freeze was requested his or her express consent.
    (b) Default provider freezes shall be prohibited.

[78 FR 40609, July 5, 2013]



    Subpart G_Furnishing of Enhanced Services and Customer-Premises
   Equipment by Bell Operating Companies; Telephone Operator Services



Sec. 64.702  Furnishing of enhanced services and customer-premises
equipment.

    (a) For the purpose of this subpart, the term enhanced service shall
refer to services, offered over common carrier transmission facilities
used in interstate communications, which employ computer processing
applications that act on the format, content, code, protocol or similar
aspects of the subscriber's transmitted information; provide the
subscriber additional, different, or restructured information; or
involve subscriber interaction with stored information. Enhanced
services are not regulated under title II of the Act.
    (b) Bell Operating Companies common carriers subject, in whole or in
part, to the Communications Act may directly provide enhanced services
and customer-premises equipment; provided, however, that the Commission
may prohibit any such common carrier from engaging directly or
indirectly in furnishing enhanced services or customer-premises
equipment to others except as provided for in paragraph (c) of this
section, or as otherwise authorized by the Commission.
    (c) A Bell Operating Company common carrier prohibited by the
Commission pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section from engaging in
the furnishing of enhanced services or customer-premises equipment may,
subject to other provisions of law, have a controlling or lesser
interest in, or be under common control with, a separate corporate
entity that furnishes enhanced services or customer-premises equipment
to others provided the following conditions are met:
    (1) Each such separate corporation shall obtain all transmission
facilities necessary for the provision of enhanced services pursuant to
tariff, and may not own any network or local distribution transmission
facilities or equipment.
    (2) Each such separate corporation shall operate independently in
the furnishing of enhanced services and customer-premises equipment. It
shall maintain its own books of account, have separate officers, utilize
separate operating, marketing, installation, and maintenance personnel,
and utilize separate computer facilities in the provision of enhanced
services.
    (3) Each such separate corporation which provides customer-premises
equipment or enhanced services shall deal with any affiliated
manufacturing entity only on an arm's length basis.
    (4) Any research or development performed on a joint or separate
basis for the subsidiary must be done on a compensatory basis. Except
for generic software within equipment, manufactured by an affiliate,
that is sold ``off the shelf'' to any interested purchaser, the separate
corporation must develop its own software, or contract with non-
affiliated vendors.
    (5) All transactions between the separate corporation and the
carrier or its affiliates which involve the transfer, either direct or
by accounting or other record entries, of money, personnel, resources,
other assets or anything of value, shall be reduced to writing. A copy
of any contract, agreement, or other arrangement entered into between
such entities shall be filed with the Commission within 30 days after

[[Page 362]]

the contract, agreement, or other arrangement is made. This provision
shall not apply to any transaction governed by the provision of an
effective state or federal tariff.
    (d) A carrier subject to the proscription set forth in paragraph (c)
of this section:
    (1) Shall not engage in the sale or promotion of enhanced services
or customer-premises equipment, on behalf of the separate corporation,
or sell, lease or otherwise make available to the separate corporation
any capacity or computer system component on its computer system or
systems which are used in any way for the provision of its common
carrier communications services. (This does not apply to communications
services offered the separate subsidiary pursuant to tariff);
    (2) Shall disclose to the public all information relating to network
design and technical standards and information affecting changes to the
telecommunications network which would affect either intercarrier
interconnection or the manner in which customer-premises equipment is
attached to the interstate network prior to implementation and with
reasonable advance notification. Such information shall be disclosed in
compliance with the procedures set forth in 47 CFR 51.325 through
51.335.
    (3) [Reserved]
    (4) Must obtain Commission approval as to the manner in which the
separate corporation is to be capitalized, prior to obtaining any
interest in the separate corporation or transferring any assets, and
must obtain Commission approval of any modification to a Commission
approved capitalization plan.
    (e) Except as otherwise ordered by the Commission, the carrier
provision of customer premises equipment used in conjunction with the
interstate telecommunications network may be offered in combination with
the provision of common carrier communications services, except that the
customer premises equipment shall not be offered on a tariffed basis.

[45 FR 31364, May 13, 1980, as amended at 46 FR 6008, Jan. 21, 1981; 63
FR 20338, Apr. 24, 1998; 64 FR 14148, Mar. 24, 1999; 66 FR 19402, Apr.
16, 2001]



Sec. 64.703  Consumer information.

    (a) Each provider of operator services shall:
    (1) Identify itself, audibly and distinctly, to the consumer at the
beginning of each telephone call and before the consumer incurs any
charge for the call;
    (2) Permit the consumer to terminate the telephone call at no charge
before the call is connected;
    (3) Disclose immediately to the consumer, upon request and at no
charge to the consumer--
    (i) A quotation of its rates or charges for the call;
    (ii) The methods by which such rates or charges will be collected;
and
    (iii) The methods by which complaints concerning such rates,
charges, or collection practices will be resolved; and
    (4) Disclose, audibly and distinctly to the consumer, at no charge
and before connecting any interstate non-access code operator service
call, how to obtain the total cost of the call, including any aggregator
surcharge, or the maximum possible total cost of the call, including any
aggregator surcharge, before providing further oral advice to the
consumer on how to proceed to make the call. The oral disclosure
required in this subsection shall instruct consumers that they may
obtain applicable rate and surcharge quotations either, at the option of
the provider of operator services, by dialing no more than two digits or
by remaining on the line. The phrase ``total cost of the call'' as used
in this paragraph means both the variable (duration-based) charges for
the call and the total per-call charges, exclusive of taxes, that the
carrier, or its billing agent, may collect from the consumer for the
call. It does not include additional charges that may be assessed and
collected without the involvement of the carrier, such as a hotel
surcharge billed by a hotel. Such charges are addressed in paragraph (b)
of this section.
    (b) Each aggregator shall post on or near the telephone instrument,
in plain view of consumers:
    (1) The name, address, and toll-free telephone number of the
provider of operator services;

[[Page 363]]

    (2) Except for CMRS aggregators, a written disclosure that the rates
for all operator-assisted calls are available on request, and that
consumers have a right to obtain access to the interstate common carrier
of their choice and may contact their preferred interstate common
carriers for information on accessing that carrier's service using that
telephone;
    (3) In the case of a pay telephone, the local coin rate for the pay
telephone location; and
    (4) The name and address of the Consumer Information Bureau of the
Commission (Federal Communications Commission, Consumer Information
Bureau, Consumer Complaints--Telephone, Washington, D.C. 20554), to
which the consumer may direct complaints regarding operator services. An
existing posting that displays the address that was required prior to
the amendment of this rules (i.e., the address of the Common Carrier
Bureau's Enforcement Division, which no longer exists) may remain until
such time as the posting is replaced for any other purpose. Any posting
made after the effective date of this amendment must display the updated
address (i.e., the address of the Consumer Information Bureau).
    (c) Updating of postings. The posting required by this section shall
be updated as soon as practicable following any change of the carrier
presubscribed to provide interstate service at an aggregator location,
but no later than 30 days following such change. This requirement may be
satisfied by applying to a payphone a temporary sticker displaying the
required posting information, provided that any such temporary sticker
shall be replaced with permanent signage during the next regularly
scheduled maintenance visit.
    (d) Effect of state law or regulation. The requirements of paragraph
(b) of this section shall not apply to an aggregator in any case in
which State law or State regulation requires the aggregator to take
actions that are substantially the same as those required in paragraph
(b) of this section.
    (e) Each provider of operator services shall ensure, by contract or
tariff, that each aggregator for which such provider is the
presubscribed provider of operator services is in compliance with the
requirements of paragraph (b) of this section.

[56 FR 18523, Apr. 23, 1991, as amended at 61 FR 14981, Apr. 4, 1996; 61
FR 52323, Oct. 7, 1996; 63 FR 11617, Mar. 10, 1998; 63 FR 43041, Aug.
11, 1998; 64 FR 47119, Aug. 30, 1999; 67 FR 2819, Jan. 22, 2002]



Sec. 64.704  Call blocking prohibited.

    (a) Each aggregator shall ensure that each of its telephones
presubscribed to a provider of operator services allows the consumer to
use ``800'' and ``950'' access code numbers to obtain access to the
provider of operator services desired by the consumer.
    (b) Each provider of operator services shall:
    (1) Ensure, by contract or tariff, that each aggregator for which
such provider is the presubscribed provider of operator services is in
compliance with the requirements of paragraphs (a) and (c) of this
section; and
    (2) Withhold payment (on a location-by-location basis) of any
compensation, including commissions, to aggregators if such provider
reasonably believes that the aggregator is blocking access to interstate
common carriers in violation of paragraphs (a) or (c) of this section.
    (c) Each aggregator shall, by the earliest applicable date set forth
in this paragraph, ensure that any of its equipment presubscribed to a
provider of operator services allows the consumer to use equal access
codes to obtain access to the consumer's desired provider of operator
services.
    (1) Each pay telephone shall, within six (6) months of the effective
date of this paragraph, allow the consumer to use equal access codes to
obtain access to the consumer's desired provider of operator services.
    (2) All equipment that is technologically capable of identifying the
dialing of an equal access code followed by any sequence of numbers that
will result in billing to the originating telephone and that is
technologically capable of blocking access through such dialing
sequences without blocking access through other dialing sequences
involving equal access codes, shall, within six (6) months of the
effective

[[Page 364]]

date of this paragraph or upon installation, whichever is sooner, allow
the consumer to use equal access codes to obtain access to the
consumer's desired provider of operator services.
    (3) All equipment or software that is manufactured or imported on or
after April 17, 1992, and installed by any aggregator shall, immediately
upon installation by the aggregator, allow the consumer to use equal
access codes to obtain access to the consumer's desired provider of
operator services.
    (4) All equipment that can be modified at a cost of no more than
$15.00 per line to be technologically capable of identifying the dialing
of an equal access code followed by any sequence of numbers that will
result in billing to the originating telephone and to be technologically
capable of blocking access through such dialing sequences without
blocking access through other dialing sequences involving equal access
codes, shall, within eighteen (18) months of the effective date of this
paragraph, allow the consumer to use equal access codes to obtain access
to the consumer's desired provider of operator services.
    (5) All equipment not included in paragraphs (c)(1), (c)(2), (c)(3),
or (c)(4) of this section shall, no later than April 17, 1997, allow the
consumer to use equal access codes to obtain access to the consumer's
desired provider of operator services.
    (6) This paragraph does not apply to the use by consumers of equal
access code dialing sequences that result in billing to the originating
telephone.
    (d) All providers of operator services, except those employing a
store-and-forward device that serves only consumers at the location of
the device, shall establish an ``800'' or ``950'' access code number
within six (6) months of the effective date of this paragraph.
    (e) The requirements of this section shall not apply to CMRS
aggregators and providers of CMRS operator services.

[56 FR 18523, Apr. 23, 1991, as amended at 56 FR 40799, Aug. 16, 1991;
57 FR 34260, Aug. 4, 1992; 63 FR 43041, Aug. 11, 1998]



Sec. 64.705  Restrictions on charges related to the provision of
operator services.

    (a) A provider of operator services shall:
    (1) Not bill for unanswered telephone calls in areas where equal
access is available;
    (2) Not knowingly bill for unanswered telephone calls where equal
access is not available;
    (3) Not engage in call splashing, unless the consumer requests to be
transferred to another provider of operator services, the consumer is
informed prior to incurring any charges that the rates for the call may
not reflect the rates from the actual originating location of the call,
and the consumer then consents to be transferred;
    (4) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(3) of this section, not bill
for a call that does not reflect the location of the origination of the
call; and
    (5) Ensure, by contract or tariff, that each aggregator for which
such provider is the presubscribed provider of operator services is in
compliance with the requirements of paragraph (b) of this section.
    (b) An aggregator shall ensure that no charge by the aggregator to
the consumer for using an ``800'' or ``950'' access code number, or any
other access code number, is greater than the amount the aggregator
charges for calls placed using the presubscribed provider of operator
services.
    (c) The requirements of paragraphs (a)(5) and (b) of this section
shall not apply to CMRS aggregators and providers of CMRS operator
services.

[56 FR 18523, Apr. 23, 1991, as amended at 63 FR 43041, Aug. 11, 1998]



Sec. 64.706  Minimum standards for the routing and handling of emergency
telephone calls.

    Upon receipt of any emergency telephone call, providers of operator
services and aggregators shall ensure immediate connection of the call
to the appropriate emergency service of the reported location of the
emergency, if known, and, if not known, of the originating location of
the call.

[61 FR 14981, Apr. 4, 1996]

[[Page 365]]



Sec. 64.707  Public dissemination of information by providers of
operator services.

    Providers of operator services shall regularly publish and make
available at no cost to inquiring consumers written materials that
describe any recent changes in operator services and in the choices
available to consumers in that market.

[56 FR 18524, Apr. 23, 1991]



Sec. 64.708  Definitions.

    As used in Sec. Sec. 64.703 through 64.707 of this part and Sec.
68.318 of this chapter (47 CFR 64.703-64.707, 68.318):
    (a) Access code means a sequence of numbers that, when dialed,
connect the caller to the provider of operator services associated with
that sequence;
    (b) Aggregator means any person that, in the ordinary course of its
operations, makes telephones available to the public or to transient
users of its premises, for interstate telephone calls using a provider
of operator services;
    (c) Call splashing means the transfer of a telephone call from one
provider of operator services to another such provider in such a manner
that the subsequent provider is unable or unwilling to determine the
location of the origination of the call and, because of such inability
or unwillingness, is prevented from billing the call on the basis of
such location;
    (d) CMRS aggregator means an aggregator that, in the ordinary course
of its operations, makes telephones available to the public or to
transient users of its premises for interstate telephone calls using a
provider of CMRS operator services;
    (e) CMRS operator services means operator services provided by means
of a commercial mobile radio service as defined in section 20.3 of this
chapter.
    (f) Consumer means a person initiating any interstate telephone call
using operator services. In collect calling arrangements handled by a
provider of operator services, the term consumer also includes the party
on the terminating end of the call. For bill-to-third-party calling
arrangements handled by a provider of operator services, the term
consumer also includes the party to be billed for the call if the latter
is contacted by the operator service provider to secure billing
approval.
    (g) Equal access has the meaning given that term in Appendix B of
the Modification of Final Judgment entered by the United States District
Court on August 24, 1982, in United States v. Western Electric, Civil
Action No. 82-0192 (D.D.C. 1982), as amended by the Court in its orders
issued prior to October 17, 1990;
    (h) Equal access code means an access code that allows the public to
obtain an equal access connection to the carrier associated with that
code;
    (i) Operator services means any interstate telecommunications
service initiated from an aggregator location that includes, as a
component, any automatic or live assistance to a consumer to arrange for
billing or completion, or both, of an interstate telephone call through
a method other than:
    (1) Automatic completion with billing to the telephone from which
the call originated; or
    (2) Completion through an access code used by the consumer, with
billing to an account previously established with the carrier by the
consumer;
    (j) Presubscribed provider of operator services means the interstate
provider of operator services to which the consumer is connected when
the consumer places a call using a provider of operator services without
dialing an access code;
    (k) Provider of CMRS operator services means a provider of operator
services that provides CMRS operator services;
    (l) Provider of operator services means any common carrier that
provides operator services or any other person determined by the
Commission to be providing operator services.

[56 FR 18524, Apr. 23, 1991; 56 FR 25721, June 5, 1991, as amended at 61
FR 14981, Apr. 4, 1996; 63 FR 43041, Aug. 11, 1998; 67 FR 2820, Jan. 22,
2002]



Sec. 64.709  Informational tariffs.

    (a) Informational tariffs filed pursuant to 47 U.S.C. 226(h)(1)(A)
shall contain specific rates expressed in dollars and cents for each
interstate operator service of the carrier and shall also contain
applicable per call aggregator surcharges or other per-call fees, if

[[Page 366]]

any, collected from consumers by, or on behalf of, the carrier.
    (b) Per call fees, if any, billed on behalf of aggregators or
others, shall be specified in informational tariffs in dollars and
cents.
    (c) In order to remove all doubt as to their proper application, all
informational tariffs must contain clear and explicit explanatory
statements regarding the rates, i.e., the tariffed price per unit of
service, and the regulations governing the offering of service in that
tariff.
    (d) Informational tariffs shall be accompanied by a cover letter,
addressed to the Secretary of the Commission, explaining the purpose of
the filing.
    (1) The original of the cover letter shall be submitted to the
Secretary without attachments, along with FCC Form 159, and the
appropriate fee to the address set forth in Sec. 1.1105 of this
chapter.
    (2) Carriers should file informational tariffs and associated
documents, such as cover letters and attachments, electronically in
accordance with Sec. Sec. 61.13 and 61.14 of this chapter.
    (e) Any changes to the tariff shall be submitted under a new cover
letter with a complete copy of the tariff, including changes.
    (1) Changes to a tariff shall be explained in the cover letter but
need not be symbolized on the tariff pages.
    (2) Revised tariffs shall be filled pursuant to the procedures
specified in this section.

[63 FR 11617, Mar. 10, 1998; 63 FR 15316, Mar. 31, 1998, as amended at
67 FR 2820, Jan. 22, 2002; 73 FR 9031, Feb. 19, 2008; 76 FR 43217, July
20, 2011]



Sec. 64.710  Operator services for prison inmate phones.

    (a) Each provider of inmate operator services shall:
    (1) Identify itself and disclose, audibly and distinctly to the
consumer, at no charge and before connecting any interstate, non-access
code operator service call, how to obtain the total cost of the call,
including any surcharge or premises-imposed-fee. The oral disclosure
required in this paragraph shall instruct consumers that they may obtain
applicable rate and surcharge quotations either, at the option of the
provider of inmate operator services, by dialing no more than two digits
or by remaining on the line. The phrase ``total cost of the call,'' as
used in this paragraph, means both the variable (duration-based) charges
for the call and the total per-call charges, exclusive of taxes, that
the carrier, or its billing agent, may collect from the consumer for the
call. Such phrase shall include any per-call surcharge imposed by the
correctional institution, unless it is subject to regulation itself as a
common carrier for imposing such surcharges, if the contract between the
carrier and the correctional institution prohibits both resale and the
use of pre-paid calling card arrangements.
    (2) Permit the consumer to terminate the telephone call at no charge
before the call is connected; and
    (3) Disclose immediately to the consumer, upon request and at no
charge to the consumer--
    (i) The methods by which its rates or charges for the call will be
collected; and
    (ii) The methods by which complaints concerning such rates, charges
or collection practices will be resolved.
    (b) As used in this subpart:
    (1) Consumer means the party to be billed for any interstate call
from an inmate telephone;
    (2) Inmate telephone means a telephone instrument set aside by
authorities of a prison or other correctional institution for use by
inmates.
    (3) Inmate operator services means any interstate telecommunications
service initiated from an inmate telephone that includes, as a
component, any automatic or live assistance to a consumer to arrange for
billing or completion, or both, of an interstate telephone call through
a method other than:
    (i) Automatic completion with billing to the telephone from which
the call originated; or
    (ii) Completion through an access code used by the consumer, with
billing to an account previously established with the carrier by the
consumer;

[[Page 367]]

    (4) Provider of inmate operator services means any common carrier
that provides outbound interstate operator services from inmate
telephones.

[63 FR 11617, Mar. 10, 1998, as amended at 67 FR 2820, Jan. 22, 2002]



   Subpart H_Extension of Unsecured Credit for Interstate and Foreign
        Communications Services to Candidates for Federal Office

    Authority: Secs. 4, 201, 202, 203, 218, 219, 48 Stat. 1066, 1070,
1077; 47 U.S.C. 154, 201, 202, 203, 218, 219; sec. 401, 86 Stat. 19; 2
U.S.C. 451.

    Source: 37 FR 9393, May 10, 1972, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.801  Purpose.

    Pursuant to section 401 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of
1971, Public Law 92-225, these rules prescribe the general terms and
conditions for the extension of unsecured credit by a communication
common carrier to a candidate or person on behalf of such candidate for
Federal office.



Sec. 64.802  Applicability.

    These rules shall apply to each communication common carrier subject
to the whole or part of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.



Sec. 64.803  Definitions.

    For the purposes of this subpart:
    (a) Candidate means an individual who seeks nomination for election,
or election, to Federal office, whether or not such individual is
elected, and an individual shall be deemed to seek nomination for
election, or election, if he has (1) taken the action necessary under
the law of a State to qualify himself for nomination for election, or
election, to Federal office, or (2) received contributions or made
expenditures, or has given his consent for any other person to receive
contributions or make expenditures, with a view to bringing about his
nomination for election, or election, to such office.
    (b) Election means (1) a general, special, primary, or runoff
election, (2) a convention or caucus of a political party held to
nominate a candidate, (3) a primary election held for the selection of
delegates to a national nominating convention of a political party, and
(4) a primary election held for the expression of a preference for the
nomination of persons for election to the office of President.
    (c) Federal office means the office of President or Vice President
of the United States: or of Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or
Resident Commissioner to, the Congress of the United States.
    (d) Person means an individual, partnership, committee, association,
corporation, labor organization, and any other organization or group of
persons.
    (e) Unsecured credit means the furnishing of service without
maintaining on a continuing basis advance payment, deposit, or other
security, that is designed to assure payment of the estimated amount of
service for each future 2 months period, with revised estimates to be
made on at least a monthly basis.



Sec. 64.804  Rules governing the extension of unsecured credit to
candidates or persons on behalf of such candidates for Federal office

for interstate and foreign common carrier communication services.

    (a) There is no obligation upon a carrier to extend unsecured credit
for interstate and foreign communication services to a candidate or
person on behalf of such candidate for Federal office. However, if the
carrier chooses to extend such unsecured credit, it shall comply with
the requirements set forth in paragraphs (b) through (g) of this
section.
    (b) If a carrier decides to extend unsecured credit to any candidate
for Federal office or any person on behalf of such candidate, then
unsecured credit shall be extended on substantially equal terms and
conditions to all candidates and all persons on behalf of all candidates
for the same office, with due regard for differences in the estimated
quantity of service to be furnished each such candidate or person.
    (c) Before extending unsecured credit, a carrier shall obtain a
signed written application for service which shall identify the
applicant and the candidate and state whether or not the candidate
assumes responsibility for

[[Page 368]]

the charges, and which shall also expressly state as follows:
    (1) That service is being requested by the applicant or applicants
and that the person or persons making the application will be
individually, jointly and severally liable for the payment of all
charges; and
    (2) That the applicant(s) understands that the carrier will (under
the provisions of paragraph (d) of this section) discontinue service
upon written notice if any amount due is not paid upon demand.
    (d) If charges for services rendered are not paid to the carrier
within 15 days from rendition of a bill therefor, the carrier shall
forthwith at the end of the 15-day period serve written notice on the
applicant of intent to discontinue service within 7 days of date of such
notice for nonpayment and shall discontinue service at the end of the 7-
day period unless all such sums due are paid in full within such 7-day
period.
    (e) Each carrier shall take appropriate action at law to collect any
unpaid balance on an account for interstate and foreign communication
services rendered to a candidate or person on behalf of such candidate
prior to the expiration of the statute of limitations under section
415(a) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (f) The records of each account, involving the extension by a
carrier of unsecured credit to a candidate or person on behalf of such
candidate for common carrier communications services shall be maintained
by the carrier so as to show separately, for interstate and foreign
communication services all charges, credits, adjustments, and security,
if any, and balance receivable.
    (g) On or before January 31, 1973, and on corresponding dates of
each year thereafter, each carrier which had operating revenues in the
preceding year in excess of $1 million shall file with the Commission a
report by account of any amount due and unpaid, as of the end of the
month prior to the reporting date, for interstate and foreign
communications services to a candidate or person on behalf of such
candidate when such amount results from the extension of unsecured
credit. Each report shall include the following information:
    (1) Name of candidate.
    (2) Name and address of person or persons applying for service.
    (3) Balance due carrier.
    (4) Reason for nonpayment.
    (5) Payment arrangements, if any.
    (6) Date service discontinued.
    (7) Date, nature and status of any action taken at law in compliance
with paragraph (e) of this section.

[37 FR 9393, May 10, 1972, as amended at 62 FR 5166, Feb. 4, 1997]



                      Subpart I_Allocation of Costs



Sec. 64.901  Allocation of costs.

    (a) Carriers required to separate their regulated costs from
nonregulated costs shall use the attributable cost method of cost
allocation for such purpose.
    (b) In assigning or allocating costs to regulated and nonregulated
activities, carriers shall follow the principles described herein.
    (1) Tariffed services provided to a nonregulated activity will be
charged to the nonregulated activity at the tariffed rates and credited
to the regulated revenue account for that service. Nontariffed services,
offered pursuant to a section 252(e) agreement, provided to a
nonregulated activity will be charged to the nonregulated activity at
the amount set forth in the applicable interconnection agreement
approved by a state commission pursuant to section 252(e) and credited
to the regulated revenue account for that service.
    (2) Costs shall be directly assigned to either regulated or
nonregulated activities whenever possible.
    (3) Costs which cannot be directly assigned to either regulated or
nonregulated activities will be described as common costs. Common costs
shall be grouped into homogeneous cost categories designed to facilitate
the proper allocation of costs between a carrier's regulated and
nonregulated activities. Each cost category shall be allocated between
regulated and nonregulated activities in accordance with the following
hierarchy:
    (i) Whenever possible, common cost categories are to be allocated
based

[[Page 369]]

upon direct analysis of the origin of the cost themselves.
    (ii) When direct analysis is not possible, common cost categories
shall be allocated based upon an indirect, cost-causative linkage to
another cost category (or group of cost categories) for which a direct
assignment or allocation is available.
    (iii) When neither direct nor indirect measures of cost allocation
can be found, the cost category shall be allocated based upon a general
allocator computed by using the ratio of all expenses directly assigned
or attributed to regulated and nonregulated activities.
    (4) The allocation of central office equipment and outside plant
investment costs between regulated and nonregulated activities shall be
based upon the relative regulated and nonregulated usage of the
investment during the calendar year when nonregulated usage is greatest
in comparison to regulated usage during the three calendar years
beginning with the calendar year during which the investment usage
forecast is filed.
    (c) A telecommunications carrier may not use services that are not
competitive to subsidize services subject to competition. Services
included in the definition of universal service shall bear no more than
a reasonable share of the joint and common costs of facilities used to
provide those services.

[52 FR 6560, Mar. 4, 1987, as amended at 52 FR 39534, Oct. 22, 1987; 54
FR 49762, Dec. 1, 1989; 62 FR 45588, Aug. 28, 1997; 67 FR 5702, Feb. 6,
2002]



Sec. 64.902  Transactions with affiliates.

    Except for carriers which employ average schedules in lieu of
determining their costs, all carriers subject to Sec. 64.901 are also
subject to the provisions of Sec. 32.27 of this chapter concerning
transactions with affiliates.

[55 FR 30461, July 26, 1990]



Sec. 64.903  Cost allocation manuals.

    (a) Each incumbent local exchange carrier having annual revenues
from regulated telecommunications operations that are equal to or above
the indexed revenue threshold (as defined in Sec. 32.9000 of this
chapter) except mid-sized incumbent local exchange carriers is required
to file a cost allocation manual describing how it separates regulated
from nonregulated costs. The manual shall contain the following
information regarding the carrier's allocation of costs between
regulated and nonregulated activities:
    (1) A description of each of the carrier's nonregulated activities;
    (2) A list of all the activities to which the carrier now accords
incidental accounting treatment and the justification therefor;
    (3) A chart showing all of the carrier's corporate affiliates;
    (4) A statement identifying each affiliate that engages in or will
engage in transactions with the carrier and describing the nature, terms
and frequency of each transaction;
    (5) A cost apportionment table showing, for each account containing
costs incurred in providing regulated services, the cost pools with that
account, the procedures used to place costs into each cost pool, and the
method used to apportion the costs within each cost pool between
regulated and nonregulated activities; and
    (6) A description of the time reporting procedures that the carrier
uses, including the methods or studies designed to measure and allocate
non-productive time.
    (b) Each carrier shall ensure that the information contained in its
cost allocation manual is accurate. Carriers must update their cost
allocation manuals at least annually, except that changes to the cost
apportionment table and to the description of time reporting procedures
must be filed at the time of implementation. Annual cost allocation
manual updates shall be filed on or before the last working day of each
calendar year. Proposed changes in the description of time reporting
procedures, the statement concerning affiliate transactions, and the
cost apportionment table must be accompanied by a statement quantifying
the impact of each change on regulated operations. Changes in the
description of time reporting procedures and the statement concerning
affiliate transactions must be quantified in $100,000 increments at the
account level. Changes in cost apportionment tables

[[Page 370]]

must be quantified in $100,000 increments at the cost pool level. The
Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau may suspend any such changes for a
period not to exceed 180 days, and may thereafter allow the change to
become effective or prescribe a different procedure.
    (c) The Commission may by order require any other communications
common carrier to file and maintain a cost allocation manual as provided
in this section.

[57 FR 4375, Feb. 5, 1992, as amended at 59 FR 46358, Sept. 8, 1994; 61
FR 50246, Sept. 25, 1996; 62 FR 39779, July 24, 1997; 65 FR 16335, Mar.
28, 2000; 67 FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002; 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 64.904  Independent audits.

    (a) Each carrier required to file a cost allocation manual shall
elect to either have an attest engagement performed by an independent
auditor every two years, covering the prior two year period, or have a
financial audit performed by an independent auditor every two years,
covering the prior two year period. In either case, the initial
engagement shall be performed in the calendar year after the carrier is
first required to file a cost allocation manual.
    (b) The attest engagement shall be an examination engagement and
shall provide a written communication that expresses an opinion that the
systems, processes, and procedures applied by the carrier to generate
the results reported pursuant to Sec. 43.21(e)(2) of this chapter
comply with the Commission's Joint Cost Orders issued in conjunction
with CC Docket No. 86-111, the Commission's Accounting Safeguards
proceeding in CC Docket No. 96-150, and the Commission's rules and
regulations including Sec. Sec. 32.23 and 32.27 of this chapter, and
Sec. Sec. 64.901, and 64.903 in force as of the date of the auditor's
report. At least 30 days prior to beginning the attestation engagement,
the independent auditors shall provide the Commission with the audit
program. The attest engagement shall be conducted in accordance with the
attestation standards established by the American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants, except as otherwise directed by the Chief,
Enforcement Bureau.
    (c) The biennial financial audit shall provide a positive opinion on
whether the applicable date shown in the carrier's annual report
required by Sec. 43.21(e)(2) of this chapter present fairly, in all
material respects, the information of the Commission's Joint Cost Orders
issued in conjunction with CC Docket No. 86-111, the Commission's
Accounting Safeguards proceeding in CC Docket No. 96-150, and the
Commission's rules and regulations including Sec. Sec. 32.23 and 32.27
of this chapter, and Sec. Sec. 64.901, and 64.903 in force as of the
date of the auditor's report. The audit shall be conducted in accordance
with generally accepted auditing standards, except as otherwise directed
by the Chief, Enforcement Bureau. The report of the independent auditor
shall be filed at the time that the carrier files the annual reports
required by Sec. 43.21(e)(2) of this chapter.

[67 FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002, as amended at 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 64.905  Annual certification.

    A mid-sized incumbent local exchange carrier, as defined in Sec.
32.9000 of this chapter, shall file a certification with the Commission
stating that it is complying with Sec. 64.901. The certification must
be signed, under oath, by an officer of the mid-sized incumbent LEC, and
filed with the Commission on an annual basis at the time that the mid-
sized incumbent LEC files the annual reports required by Sec.
43.21(e)(2) of this chapter.

[67 FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002]

Subpart J [Reserved]



   Subpart K_Changes in Preferred Telecommunications Service Providers



Sec. 64.1100  Definitions.

    (a) The term submitting carrier is generally any telecommunications
carrier that requests on the behalf of a subscriber that the
subscriber's telecommunications carrier be changed, and seeks to provide
retail services to the end user subscriber. A carrier may be treated as
a submitting carrier, however, if it is responsible for any unreasonable
delays in the submission of

[[Page 371]]

carrier change requests or for the submission of unauthorized carrier
change requests, including fraudulent authorizations.
    (b) The term executing carrier is generally any telecommunications
carrier that effects a request that a subscriber's telecommunications
carrier be changed. A carrier may be treated as an executing carrier,
however, if it is responsible for any unreasonable delays in the
execution of carrier changes or for the execution of unauthorized
carrier changes, including fraudulent authorizations.
    (c) The term authorized carrier is generally any telecommunications
carrier that submits a change, on behalf of a subscriber, in the
subscriber's selection of a provider of telecommunications service with
the subscriber's authorization verified in accordance with the
procedures specified in this part.
    (d) The term unauthorized carrier is generally any
telecommunications carrier that submits a change, on behalf of a
subscriber, in the subscriber's selection of a provider of
telecommunications service but fails to obtain the subscriber's
authorization verified in accordance with the procedures specified in
this part.
    (e) The term unauthorized change is a change in a subscriber's
selection of a provider of telecommunications service that was made
without authorization verified in accordance with the verification
procedures specified in this part.
    (f) The term state commission shall include any state entity with
the state-designated authority to resolve the complaints of such state's
residents arising out of an allegation that an unauthorized change of a
telecommunication service provider has occurred that has elected, in
accordance with the requirements of Sec. 64.1110(a), to administer the
Federal Communications Commission's slamming rules and remedies, as
enumerated in Sec. Sec. 64.1100 through 64.1190.
    (g) The term relevant governmental agency shall be the state
commission if the complainant files a complaint with the state
commission or if the complaint is forwarded to the state commission by
the Federal Communications Commission, and the Federal Communications
Commission if the complainant files a complaint with the Federal
Communications Commission, and the complaint is not forwarded to a state
commission.
    (h) The term subscriber is any one of the following:
    (1) The party identified in the account records of a common carrier
as responsible for payment of the telephone bill;
    (2) Any adult person authorized by such party to change
telecommunications services or to charge services to the account; or
    (3) Any person contractually or otherwise lawfully authorized to
represent such party.

[65 FR 47690, Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at 66 FR 12892, Mar. 1, 2001]



Sec. 64.1110  State notification of election to administer FCC rules.

    (a) Initial Notification. State notification of an intention to
administer the Federal Communications Commission's unauthorized carrier
change rules and remedies, as enumerated in Sec. Sec. 64.1100 through
64.1190, shall be filed with the Commission Secretary in CC Docket No.
94-129 with a copy of such notification provided to the Consumer &
Governmental Affairs Bureau Chief. Such notification shall contain, at a
minimum, information on where consumers should file complaints, the type
of documentation, if any, that must accompany a complaint, and the
procedures the state will use to adjudicate complaints.
    (b) Withdrawal of Notification. State notification of an intention
to discontinue administering the Federal Communications Commission's
unauthorized carrier change rules and remedies, as enumerated in
Sec. Sec. 64.1100 through 64.1190, shall be filed with the Commission
Secretary in CC Docket No. 94-129 with a copy of such amended
notification provided to the Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau
Chief. Such discontinuance shall become effective 60 days after the
Commission's receipt of the state's letter.

[65 FR 47691, Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at 73 FR 13149, Mar. 12, 2008]

[[Page 372]]



Sec. 64.1120  Verification of orders for telecommunications service.

    (a) No telecommunications carrier shall submit or execute a change
on the behalf of a subscriber in the subscriber's selection of a
provider of telecommunications service except in accordance with the
procedures prescribed in this subpart. Nothing in this section shall
preclude any State commission from enforcing these procedures with
respect to intrastate services.
    (1) No submitting carrier shall submit a change on the behalf of a
subscriber in the subscriber's selection of a provider of
telecommunications service prior to obtaining:
    (i) Authorization from the subscriber, and
    (ii) Verification of that authorization in accordance with the
procedures prescribed in this section. The submitting carrier shall
maintain and preserve records of verification of subscriber
authorization for a minimum period of two years after obtaining such
verification.
    (2) An executing carrier shall not verify the submission of a change
in a subscriber's selection of a provider of telecommunications service
received from a submitting carrier. For an executing carrier, compliance
with the procedures described in this part shall be defined as prompt
execution, without any unreasonable delay, of changes that have been
verified by a submitting carrier.
    (3) Commercial mobile radio services (CMRS) providers shall be
excluded from the verification requirements of this part as long as they
are not required to provide equal access to common carriers for the
provision of telephone toll services, in accordance with 47 U.S.C.
332(c)(8).
    (b) Where a telecommunications carrier is selling more than one type
of telecommunications service (e.g., local exchange, intraLATA toll, and
interLATA toll), that carrier must obtain separate authorization from
the subscriber for each service sold, although the authorizations may be
obtained within the same solicitation. Each authorization must be
verified separately from any other authorizations obtained in the same
solicitation. Each authorization must be verified in accordance with the
verification procedures prescribed in this part.
    (c) No telecommunications carrier shall submit a preferred carrier
change order unless and until the order has been confirmed in accordance
with one of the following procedures:
    (1) The telecommunications carrier has obtained the subscriber's
written or electronically signed authorization in a form that meets the
requirements of Sec. 64.1130; or
    (2) The telecommunications carrier has obtained the subscriber's
electronic authorization to submit the preferred carrier change order.
Such authorization must be placed from the telephone number(s) on which
the preferred carrier is to be changed and must confirm the information
in paragraph (a)(1) of this section. Telecommunications carriers
electing to confirm sales electronically shall establish one or more
toll-free telephone numbers exclusively for that purpose. Calls to the
number(s) will connect a subscriber to a voice response unit, or similar
mechanism, that records the required information regarding the preferred
carrier change, including automatically recording the originating
automatic number identification; or
    (3) An appropriately qualified independent third party has obtained,
in accordance with the procedures set forth in paragraphs (c)(3)(i)
through (c)(3)(iv) of this section, the subscriber's oral authorization
to submit the preferred carrier change order that confirms and includes
appropriate verification data (e.g., the subscriber's date of birth or
social security number). The independent third party must not be owned,
managed, controlled, or directed by the carrier or the carrier's
marketing agent; must not have any financial incentive to confirm
preferred carrier change orders for the carrier or the carrier's
marketing agent; and must operate in a location physically separate from
the carrier or the carrier's marketing agent.
    (i) Methods of third party verification. Automated third party
verification systems and three-way conference calls may be used for
verification purposes

[[Page 373]]

so long as the requirements of paragraphs (c)(3)(ii) through (c)(3)(iv)
of this section are satisfied.
    (ii) Carrier initiation of third party verification. A carrier or a
carrier's sales representative initiating a three-way conference call or
a call through an automated verification system must drop off the call
once the three-way connection has been established.
    (iii) Requirements for content and format of third party
verification. Any description of the carrier change transaction by a
third party verifier must not be misleading, and all third party
verification methods shall elicit, at a minimum: The date of the
verification; the identity of the subscriber; confirmation that the
person on the call is authorized to make the carrier change;
confirmation that the person on the call wants to make the carrier
change; confirmation that the person on the call understands that a
carrier change, not an upgrade to existing service, bill consolidation,
or any other misleading description of the transaction, is being
authorized; the names of the carriers affected by the change (not
including the name of the displaced carrier); the telephone numbers to
be switched; and the types of service involved (including a brief
description of a service about which the subscriber demonstrates
confusion regarding the nature of that service). Except in Hawaii, any
description of interLATA or long distance service shall convey that it
encompasses both international and state-to-state calls, as well as some
intrastate calls where applicable. If the subscriber has additional
questions for the carrier's sales representative during the
verification, the verifier shall indicate to the subscriber that, upon
completion of the verification process, the subscriber will have
authorized a carrier change. Third party verifiers may not market the
carrier's services by providing additional information, including
information regarding preferred carrier freeze procedures.
    (iv) Other requirements for third party verification. All third
party verifications shall be conducted in the same language that was
used in the underlying sales transaction and shall be recorded in their
entirety. In accordance with the procedures set forth in
64.1120(a)(1)(ii), submitting carriers shall maintain and preserve audio
records of verification of subscriber authorization for a minimum period
of two years after obtaining such verification. Automated systems must
provide consumers with an option to speak with a live person at any time
during the call.
    (4) Any State-enacted verification procedures applicable to
intrastate preferred carrier change orders only.
    (d) Telecommunications carriers must provide subscribers the option
of using one of the authorization and verification procedures specified
in Sec. 64.1120(c) in addition to an electronically signed
authorization and verification procedure under 64.1120(c)(1).
    (e) A telecommunications carrier may acquire, through a sale or
transfer, either part or all of another telecommunica- tions carrier's
subscriber base without obtaining each subscriber's authorization and
verification in accordance with Sec. 64.1120(c), provided that the
acquiring carrier complies with the following streamlined procedures. A
telecommunications carrier may not use these streamlined procedures for
any fraudulent purpose, including any attempt to avoid liability for
violations under part 64, subpart K of the Commission rules.
    (1) No later than 30 days before the planned transfer of the
affected subscribers from the selling or transferring carrier to the
acquiring carrier, the acquiring carrier shall file with the
Commission's Office of the Secretary a letter notification in CC Docket
No. 00-257 providing the names of the parties to the transaction, the
types of telecommunications services to be provided to the affected
subscribers, and the date of the transfer of the subscriber base to the
acquiring carrier. In the letter notification, the acquiring carrier
also shall certify compliance with the requirement to provide advance
subscriber notice in accordance with Sec. 64.1120(e)(3), with the
obligations specified in that notice, and with other statutory and
Commission requirements that apply to this streamlined

[[Page 374]]

process. In addition, the acquiring carrier shall attach a copy of the
notice sent to the affected subscribers.
    (2) If, subsequent to the filing of the letter notification with the
Commission required by Sec. 64.1120(e)(1), any material changes to the
required information should develop, the acquiring carrier shall file
written notification of these changes with the Commission no more than
10 days after the transfer date announced in the prior notification. The
Commission reserves the right to require the acquiring carrier to send
an additional notice to the affected subscribers regarding such material
changes.
    (3) Not later than 30 days before the transfer of the affected
subscribers from the selling or transferring carrier to the acquiring
carrier, the acquiring carrier shall provide written notice to each
affected subscriber of the information specified. The acquiring carrier
is required to fulfill the obligations set forth in the advance
subscriber notice. The advance subscriber notice shall be provided in a
manner consistent with 47 U.S.C. 255 and the Commission's rules
regarding accessibility to blind and visually-impaired consumers, 47 CFR
6.3, 6.5 of this chapter. The following information must be included in
the advance subscriber notice:
    (i) The date on which the acquiring carrier will become the
subscriber's new provider of telecommunications service,
    (ii) The rates, terms, and conditions of the service(s) to be
provided by the acquiring carrier upon the subscriber's transfer to the
acquiring carrier, and the means by which the acquiring carrier will
notify the subscriber of any change(s) to these rates, terms, and
conditions.
    (iii) The acquiring carrier will be responsible for any carrier
change charges associated with the transfer, except where the carrier is
acquiring customers by default, other than through bankruptcy, and state
law requires the exiting carrier to pay these costs;
    (iv) The subscriber's right to select a different preferred carrier
for the telecommunications service(s) at issue, if an alternative
carrier is available,
    (v) All subscribers receiving the notice, even those who have
arranged preferred carrier freezes through their local service providers
on the service(s) involved in the transfer, will be transferred to the
acquiring carrier, unless they have selected a different carrier before
the transfer date; existing preferred carrier freezes on the service(s)
involved in the transfer will be lifted; and the subscribers must
contact their local service providers to arrange a new freeze.
    (vi) Whether the acquiring carrier will be responsible for handling
any complaints filed, or otherwise raised, prior to or during the
transfer against the selling or transferring carrier, and
    (vii) The toll-free customer service telephone number of the
acquiring carrier.

[65 FR 47691, Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at 66 FR 12892, Mar. 1, 2001; 66
FR 28124, May 22, 2001; 68 FR 19159, Apr. 18, 2003; 70 FR 12611, Mar.
15, 2005; 73 FR 13149, Mar. 12, 2008]



Sec. 64.1130  Letter of agency form and content.

    (a) A telecommunications carrier may use a written or electronically
signed letter of agency to obtain authorization and/or verification of a
subscriber's request to change his or her preferred carrier selection. A
letter of agency that does not conform with this section is invalid for
purposes of this part.
    (b) The letter of agency shall be a separate document (or an easily
separable document) or located on a separate screen or webpage
containing only the authorizing language described in paragraph (e) of
this section having the sole purpose of authorizing a telecommunications
carrier to initiate a preferred carrier change. The letter of agency
must be signed and dated by the subscriber to the telephone line(s)
requesting the preferred carrier change.
    (c) The letter of agency shall not be combined on the same document,
screen, or webpage with inducements of any kind.
    (d) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, the
letter of agency may be combined with checks that contain only the
required letter of

[[Page 375]]

agency language as prescribed in paragraph (e) of this section and the
necessary information to make the check a negotiable instrument. The
letter of agency check shall not contain any promotional language or
material. The letter of agency check shall contain in easily readable,
bold-face type on the front of the check, a notice that the subscriber
is authorizing a preferred carrier change by signing the check. The
letter of agency language shall be placed near the signature line on the
back of the check.
    (e) At a minimum, the letter of agency must be printed with a type
of sufficient size and readable type to be clearly legible and must
contain clear and unambiguous language that confirms:
    (1) The subscriber's billing name and address and each telephone
number to be covered by the preferred carrier change order;
    (2) The decision to change the preferred carrier from the current
telecommunications carrier to the soliciting telecommunications carrier;
    (3) That the subscriber designates [insert the name of the
submitting carrier] to act as the subscriber's agent for the preferred
carrier change;
    (4) That the subscriber understands that only one telecommunications
carrier may be designated as the subscriber's interstate or interLATA
preferred interexchange carrier for any one telephone number. To the
extent that a jurisdiction allows the selection of additional preferred
carriers (e.g., local exchange, intraLATA toll, interLATA toll, or
international interexchange), the letter of agency must contain separate
statements regarding those choices, although a separate letter of agency
for each choice is not necessary; and
    (5) That the subscriber may consult with the carrier as to whether a
fee will apply to the change in the subscriber's preferred carrier.
    (f) Any carrier designated in a letter of agency as a preferred
carrier must be the carrier directly setting the rates for the
subscriber.
    (g) Letters of agency shall not suggest or require that a subscriber
take some action in order to retain the subscriber's current
telecommunications carrier.
    (h) If any portion of a letter of agency is translated into another
language then all portions of the letter of agency must be translated
into that language. Every letter of agency must be translated into the
same language as any promotional materials, oral descriptions or
instructions provided with the letter of agency.
    (i) Letters of agency submitted with an electronically signed
authorization must include the consumer disclosures required by Section
101(c) of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act.
    (j) A telecommunications carrier shall submit a preferred carrier
change order on behalf of a subscriber within no more than 60 days of
obtaining a written or electronically signed letter of agency. However,
letters of agency for multi-line and/or multi-location business
customers that have entered into negotiated agreements with carriers to
add presubscribed lines to their business locations during the course of
a term agreement shall be valid for the period specified in the term
agreement.

[64 FR 7760, Feb. 16, 1999. Redesignated at 65 FR 47692, Aug. 3, 2000,
as amended at 66 FR 12893, Mar. 1, 2001; 66 FR 16151, Mar. 23, 2001; 68
FR 19159, Apr. 18, 2003; 73 FR 13149, Mar. 12, 2008]



Sec. 64.1140  Carrier liability for slamming.

    (a) Carrier Liability for Charges. Any submitting telecommunications
carrier that fails to comply with the procedures prescribed in this part
shall be liable to the subscriber's properly authorized carrier in an
amount equal to 150% of all charges paid to the submitting
telecommunications carrier by such subscriber after such violation, as
well as for additional amounts as prescribed in Sec. 64.1170. The
remedies provided in this part are in addition to any other remedies
available by law.
    (b) Subscriber Liability for Charges. Any subscriber whose selection
of telecommunications services provider is changed without authorization
verified in accordance with the procedures set for in this part is
liable for charges as follows:

[[Page 376]]

    (1) If the subscriber has not already paid charges to the
unauthorized carrier, the subscriber is absolved of liability for
charges imposed by the unauthorized carrier for service provided during
the first 30 days after the unauthorized change. Upon being informed by
a subscriber that an unauthorized change has occurred, the authorized
carrier, the unauthorized carrier, or the executing carrier shall inform
the subscriber of this 30-day absolution period. Any charges imposed by
the unauthorized carrier on the subscriber for service provided after
this 30-day period shall be paid by the subscriber to the authorized
carrier at the rates the subscriber was paying to the authorized carrier
at the time of the unauthorized change in accordance with the provisions
of Sec. 64.1160(e).
    (2) If the subscriber has already paid charges to the unauthorized
carrier, and the authorized carrier receives payment from the
unauthorized carrier as provided for in paragraph (a) of this section,
the authorized carrier shall refund or credit to the subscriber any
amounts determined in accordance with the provisions of Sec.
64.1170(c).
    (3) If the subscriber has been absolved of liability as prescribed
by this section, the unauthorized carrier shall also be liable to the
subscriber for any charge required to return the subscriber to his or
her properly authorized carrier, if applicable.

[65 FR 47691, Aug. 3, 2000]



Sec. 64.1150  Procedures for resolution of unauthorized changes in
preferred carrier.

    (a) Notification of alleged unauthorized carrier change. Executing
carriers who are informed of an unauthorized carrier change by a
subscriber must immediately notify both the authorized and allegedly
unauthorized carrier of the incident. This notification must include the
identity of both carriers.
    (b) Referral of complaint. Any carrier, executing, authorized, or
allegedly unauthorized, that is informed by a subscriber or an executing
carrier of an unauthorized carrier change shall direct that subscriber
either to the state commission or, where the state commission has not
opted to administer these rules, to the Federal Communications
Commission's Consumer & Governmental Affairs Bureau, for resolution of
the complaint. Carriers shall also inform the subscriber that he or she
may contact and seek resolution from the alleged unauthorized carrier
and, in addition, may contact the authorized carrier.
    (c) Notification of receipt of complaint. Upon receipt of an
unauthorized carrier change complaint, the relevant governmental agency
will notify the allegedly unauthorized carrier of the complaint and
order that the carrier remove all unpaid charges for the first 30 days
after the slam from the subscriber's bill pending a determination of
whether an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec. 64.1100(e), has
occurred, if it has not already done so.
    (d) Proof of verification. Not more than 30 days after notification
of the complaint, or such lesser time as is required by the state
commission if a matter is brought before a state commission, the alleged
unauthorized carrier shall provide to the relevant government agency a
copy of any valid proof of verification of the carrier change. This
proof of verification must contain clear and convincing evidence of a
valid authorized carrier change, as that term is defined in Sec. Sec.
64.1120 through 64.1130. The relevant governmental agency will determine
whether an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec. 64.1100(e), has
occurred using such proof and any evidence supplied by the subscriber.
Failure by the carrier to respond or provide proof of verification will
be presumed to be clear and convincing evidence of a violation.
    (e) Election of forum. The Federal Communications Commission will
not adjudicate a complaint filed pursuant to Sec. 1.719 or Sec. Sec.
1.720 through 1.736 of this chapter, involving an alleged unauthorized
change, as defined by Sec. 64.1100(e), while a complaint based on the
same set of facts is pending with a state commission.

[65 FR 47692, Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at 68 FR 19159, Apr. 18, 2003; 73
FR 13149, Mar. 12, 2008]

[[Page 377]]



Sec. 64.1160  Absolution procedures where the subscriber has not paid
charges.

    (a) This section shall only apply after a subscriber has determined
that an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec. 64.1100(e), has
occurred and the subscriber has not paid charges to the allegedly
unauthorized carrier for service provided for 30 days, or a portion
thereof, after the unauthorized change occurred.
    (b) An allegedly unauthorized carrier shall remove all charges
incurred for service provided during the first 30 days after the alleged
unauthorized change occurred, as defined by Sec. 64.1100(e), from a
subscriber's bill upon notification that such unauthorized change is
alleged to have occurred.
    (c) An allegedly unauthorized carrier may challenge a subscriber's
allegation that an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec. 64.1100(e),
occurred. An allegedly unauthorized carrier choosing to challenge such
allegation shall immediately notify the complaining subscriber that: The
complaining subscriber must file a complaint with a State commission
that has opted to administer the FCC's rules, pursuant to Sec. 64.1110,
or the FCC within 30 days of either the date of removal of charges from
the complaining subscriber's bill in accordance with paragraph (b) of
this section, or the date the allegedly unauthorized carrier notifies
the complaining subscriber of the requirements of this paragraph,
whichever is later; and a failure to file such a complaint within this
30-day time period will result in the charges removed pursuant to
paragraph (b) of this section being reinstated on the subscriber's bill
and, consequently, the complaining subscriber will only be entitled to
remedies for the alleged unauthorized change other than those provided
for in Sec. 64.1140(b)(1). No allegedly unauthorized carrier shall
reinstate charges to a subscriber's bill pursuant to the provisions of
this paragraph without first providing such subscriber with a reasonable
opportunity to demonstrate that the requisite complaint was timely filed
within the 30-day period described in this paragraph.
    (d) If the relevant governmental agency determines after reasonable
investigation that an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec.
64.1100(e), has occurred, an order shall be issued providing that the
subscriber is entitled to absolution from the charges incurred during
the first 30 days after the unauthorized carrier change occurred, and
neither the authorized or unauthorized carrier may pursue any collection
against the subscriber for those charges.
    (e) If the subscriber has incurred charges for more than 30 days
after the unauthorized carrier change, the unauthorized carrier must
forward the billing information for such services to the authorized
carrier, which may bill the subscriber for such services using either of
the following means:
    (1) The amount of the charge may be determined by a re-rating of the
services provided based on what the authorized carrier would have
charged the subscriber for the same services had an unauthorized change,
as described in Sec. 64.1100(e), not occurred; or
    (2) The amount of the charge may be determined using a 50% Proxy
Rate as follows: Upon receipt of billing information from the
unauthorized carrier, the authorized carrier may bill the subscriber for
50% of the rate the unauthorized carrier would have charged the
subscriber for the services provided. However, the subscriber shall have
the right to reject use of this 50% proxy method and require that the
authorized carrier perform a re-rating of the services provided, as
described in paragraph (e)(1) of this section.
    (f) If the unauthorized carrier received payment from the subscriber
for services provided after the first 30 days after the unauthorized
change occurred, the obligations for payments and refunds provided for
in Sec. 64.1170 shall apply to those payments. If the relevant
governmental agency determines after reasonable investigation that the
carrier change was authorized, the carrier may re-bill the subscriber
for charges incurred.
    (g) When a LEC has assigned a subscriber to a carrier without
authorization, and where the subscriber has not paid the unauthorized
charges, the LEC

[[Page 378]]

shall switch the subscriber to the desired carrier at no cost to the
subscriber, and shall also secure the removal of the unauthorized
charges from the subscriber's bill in accordance with the procedures
specified in paragraphs (a) through (f) of this section.

[65 FR 47692, Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at 68 FR 19159, Apr. 18, 2003; 73
FR 13149, Mar. 12, 2008]



Sec. 64.1170  Reimbursement procedures where the subscriber has paid
charges.

    (a) The procedures in this section shall only apply after a
subscriber has determined that an unauthorized change, as defined by
Sec. 64.1100(e), has occurred and the subscriber has paid charges to an
allegedly unauthorized carrier.
    (b) If the relevant governmental agency determines after reasonable
investigation that an unauthorized change, as defined by Sec.
64.1100(e), has occurred, it shall issue an order directing the
unauthorized carrier to forward to the authorized carrier the following,
in addition to any appropriate state remedies:
    (1) An amount equal to 150% of all charges paid by the subscriber to
the unauthorized carrier; and
    (2) Copies of any telephone bills issued from the unauthorized
carrier to the subscriber. This order shall be sent to the subscriber,
the unauthorized carrier, and the authorized carrier.
    (c) Within ten days of receipt of the amount provided for in
paragraph (b)(1) of this section, the authorized carrier shall provide a
refund or credit to the subscriber in the amount of 50% of all charges
paid by the subscriber to the unauthorized carrier. The subscriber has
the option of asking the authorized carrier to re-rate the unauthorized
carrier's charges based on the rates of the authorized carrier and, on
behalf of the subscriber, seek an additional refund from the
unauthorized carrier, to the extent that the re-rated amount exceeds the
50% of all charges paid by the subscriber to the unauthorized carrier.
The authorized carrier shall also send notice to the relevant
governmental agency that it has given a refund or credit to the
subscriber.
    (d) If an authorized carrier incurs billing and collection expenses
in collecting charges from the unauthorized carrier, the unauthorized
carrier shall reimburse the authorized carrier for reasonable expenses.
    (e) If the authorized carrier has not received payment from the
unauthorized carrier as required by paragraph (c) of this section, the
authorized carrier is not required to provide any refund or credit to
the subscriber. The authorized carrier must, within 45 days of receiving
an order as described in paragraph (b) of this section, inform the
subscriber and the relevant governmental agency that issued the order if
the unauthorized carrier has failed to forward to it the appropriate
charges, and also inform the subscriber of his or her right to pursue a
claim against the unauthorized carrier for a refund of all charges paid
to the unauthorized carrier.
    (f) Where possible, the properly authorized carrier must reinstate
the subscriber in any premium program in which that subscriber was
enrolled prior to the unauthorized change, if the subscriber's
participation in that program was terminated because of the unauthorized
change. If the subscriber has paid charges to the unauthorized carrier,
the properly authorized carrier shall also provide or restore to the
subscriber any premiums to which the subscriber would have been entitled
had the unauthorized change not occurred. The authorized carrier must
comply with the requirements of this section regardless of whether it is
able to recover from the unauthorized carrier any charges that were paid
by the subscriber.
    (g) When a LEC has assigned a subscriber to a non-affiliated carrier
without authorization, and when a subscriber has paid the non-affiliated
carrier the charges for the billed service, the LEC shall reimburse the
subscriber for all charges paid by the subscriber to the unauthorized
carrier and shall switch the subscriber to the desired carrier at no
cost to the subscriber. When a LEC makes an unauthorized carrier change
to an affiliated carrier, and when the customer has paid the charges,
the LEC must pay to the authorized carrier 150% of the amounts

[[Page 379]]

collected from the subscriber in accordance with paragraphs (a) through
(f) of this section.

[65 FR 47693, Aug. 3, 2000, as amended at 68 FR 19159, Apr. 18, 2003]



Sec. 64.1190  Preferred carrier freezes.

    (a) A preferred carrier freeze (or freeze) prevents a change in a
subscriber's preferred carrier selection unless the subscriber gives the
carrier from whom the freeze was requested his or her express consent.
All local exchange carriers who offer preferred carrier freezes must
comply with the provisions of this section.
    (b) All local exchange carriers who offer preferred carrier freezes
shall offer freezes on a nondiscriminatory basis to all subscribers,
regardless of the subscriber's carrier selections.
    (c) Preferred carrier freeze procedures, including any solicitation,
must clearly distinguish among telecommunications services (e.g., local
exchange, intraLATA toll, and interLATA toll) subject to a preferred
carrier freeze. The carrier offering the freeze must obtain separate
authorization for each service for which a preferred carrier freeze is
requested.
    (d) Solicitation and imposition of preferred carrier freezes. (1)
All carrier-provided solicitation and other materials regarding
preferred carrier freezes must include:
    (i) An explanation, in clear and neutral language, of what a
preferred carrier freeze is and what services may be subject to a
freeze;
    (ii) A description of the specific procedures necessary to lift a
preferred carrier freeze; an explanation that these steps are in
addition to the Commission's verification rules in Sec. Sec. 64.1120
and 64.1130 for changing a subscriber's preferred carrier selections;
and an explanation that the subscriber will be unable to make a change
in carrier selection unless he or she lifts the freeze.
    (iii) An explanation of any charges associated with the preferred
carrier freeze.
    (2) No local exchange carrier shall implement a preferred carrier
freeze unless the subscriber's request to impose a freeze has first been
confirmed in accordance with one of the following procedures:
    (i) The local exchange carrier has obtained the subscriber's written
or electronically signed authorization in a form that meets the
requirements of Sec. 64.1190(d)(3); or
    (ii) The local exchange carrier has obtained the subscriber's
electronic authorization, placed from the telephone number(s) on which
the preferred carrier freeze is to be imposed, to impose a preferred
carrier freeze. The electronic authorization should confirm appropriate
verification data (e.g., the subscriber's date of birth or social
security number) and the information required in Sec. Sec.
64.1190(d)(3)(ii)(A) through (D). Telecommunications carriers electing
to confirm preferred carrier freeze orders electronically shall
establish one or more toll-free telephone numbers exclusively for that
purpose. Calls to the number(s) will connect a subscriber to a voice
response unit, or similar mechanism that records the required
information regarding the preferred carrier freeze request, including
automatically recording the originating automatic numbering
identification; or
    (iii) An appropriately qualified independent third party has
obtained the subscriber's oral authorization to submit the preferred
carrier freeze and confirmed the appropriate verification data (e.g.,
the subscriber's date of birth or social security number) and the
information required in Sec. 64.1190(d)(3)(ii)(A) through (D). The
independent third party must not be owned, managed, or directly
controlled by the carrier or the carrier's marketing agent; must not
have any financial incentive to confirm preferred carrier freeze
requests for the carrier or the carrier's marketing agent; and must
operate in a location physically separate from the carrier or the
carrier's marketing agent. The content of the verification must include
clear and conspicuous confirmation that the subscriber has authorized a
preferred carrier freeze.
    (3) Written authorization to impose a preferred carrier freeze. A
local exchange carrier may accept a subscriber's written and signed
authorization to impose a freeze on his or her preferred carrier
selection. Written authorization that does not conform with this section
is

[[Page 380]]

invalid and may not be used to impose a preferred carrier freeze.
    (i) The written authorization shall comply with Sec. Sec.
64.1130(b), (c), and (h) of the Commission's rules concerning the form
and content for letters of agency.
    (ii) At a minimum, the written authorization must be printed with a
readable type of sufficient size to be clearly legible and must contain
clear and unambiguous language that confirms:
    (A) The subscriber's billing name and address and the telephone
number(s) to be covered by the preferred carrier freeze;
    (B) The decision to place a preferred carrier freeze on the
telephone number(s) and particular service(s). To the extent that a
jurisdiction allows the imposition of preferred carrier freezes on
additional preferred carrier selections (e.g., for local exchange,
intraLATA toll, and interLATA toll), the authorization must contain
separate statements regarding the particular selections to be frozen;
    (C) That the subscriber understands that she or he will be unable to
make a change in carrier selection unless she or he lifts the preferred
carrier freeze; and
    (D) That the subscriber understands that any preferred carrier
freeze may involve a charge to the subscriber.
    (e) Procedures for lifting preferred carrier freezes. All local
exchange carriers who offer preferred carrier freezes must, at a
minimum, offer subscribers the following procedures for lifting a
preferred carrier freeze:
    (1) A local exchange carrier administering a preferred carrier
freeze must accept a subscriber's written or electronically signed
authorization stating his or her intent to lift a preferred carrier
freeze; and
    (2) A local exchange carrier administering a preferred carrier
freeze must accept a subscriber's oral authorization stating her or his
intent to lift a preferred carrier freeze and must offer a mechanism
that allows a submitting carrier to conduct a three-way conference call
with the carrier administering the freeze and the subscriber in order to
lift a freeze. When engaged in oral authorization to lift a preferred
carrier freeze, the carrier administering the freeze shall confirm
appropriate verification data (e.g., the subscriber's date of birth or
social security number) and the subscriber's intent to lift the
particular freeze.

[64 FR 7762, Feb. 16, 1999, as amended at 66 FR 12893, Mar. 1, 2001; 73
FR 13150, Mar. 12, 2008]



Sec. 64.1195  Registration requirement.

    (a) Applicability. A telecommunications carrier that will provide
interstate telecommunications service shall file the registration
information described in paragraph (b) of this section in accordance
with the procedures described in paragraphs (c) and (g) of this section.
Any telecommunications carrier already providing interstate
telecommunications service on the effective date of these rules shall
submit the relevant portion of its FCC Form 499-A in accordance with
paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.
    (b) Information required for purposes of part 64. A
telecommunications carrier that is subject to the registration
requirement pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section shall provide the
following information:
    (1) The carrier's business name(s) and primary address;
    (2) The names and business addresses of the carrier's chief
executive officer, chairman, and president, or, in the event that a
company does not have such executives, three similarly senior-level
officials of the company;
    (3) The carrier's regulatory contact and/or designated agent;
    (4) All names that the carrier has used in the past; and
    (5) The state(s) in which the carrier provides telecommunications
service.
    (c) Submission of registration. A carrier that is subject to the
registration requirement pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section shall
submit the information described in paragraph (b) of this section in
accordance with the Instructions to FCC Form 499-A. FCC Form 499-A must
be submitted under oath and penalty of perjury.
    (d) Rejection of registration. The Commission may reject or suspend
a carrier's registration for any of the reasons identified in paragraphs
(e) or (f) of this section.

[[Page 381]]

    (e) Revocation or suspension of operating authority. After notice
and opportunity to respond, the Commission may revoke or suspend the
authorization of a carrier to provide service if the carrier provides
materially false or incomplete information in its FCC Form 499-A or
otherwise fails to comply with paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this
section.
    (f) Imposition of fine. After notice and opportunity to respond, the
Commission may impose a fine on a carrier that is subject to the
registration requirement pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section if
that carrier fails to submit an FCC Form 499-A in accordance with
paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) of this section.
    (g) Changes in information. A carrier must notify the Commission of
any changes to the information provided pursuant to paragraph (b) of
this section within no more than one week of the change. Carriers may
satisfy this requirement by filing the relevant portion of FCC Form 499-
A in accordance with the Instructions to such form.
    (h) Duty to confirm registration of other carriers. The Commission
shall make available to the public a comprehensive listing of
registrants and the information that they have provided pursuant to
paragraph (b) of this section. A telecommunications carrier providing
telecommunications service for resale shall have an affirmative duty to
ascertain whether a potential carrier-customer (i.e., reseller) that is
subject to the registration requirement pursuant to paragraph (a) of
this section has filed an FCC Form 499-A with the Commission prior to
offering service to that carrier-customer. After notice and opportunity
to respond, the Commission may impose a fine on a carrier for failure to
confirm the registration status of a potential carrier-customer before
providing that carrier-customer with service.

[66 FR 12894, Mar. 1, 2001]



  Subpart L_Restrictions on Telemarketing, Telephone Solicitation, and
                          Facsimile Advertising



Sec. 64.1200  Delivery restrictions.

    (a) No person or entity may:
    (1) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, initiate
any telephone call (other than a call made for emergency purposes or is
made with the prior express consent of the called party) using an
automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded
voice;
    (i) To any emergency telephone line, including any 911 line and any
emergency line of a hospital, medical physician or service office,
health care facility, poison control center, or fire protection or law
enforcement agency;
    (ii) To the telephone line of any guest room or patient room of a
hospital, health care facility, elderly home, or similar establishment;
or
    (iii) To any telephone number assigned to a paging service, cellular
telephone service, specialized mobile radio service, or other radio
common carrier service, or any service for which the called party is
charged for the call.
    (iv) A person will not be liable for violating the prohibition in
paragraph (a)(1)(iii) of this section when the call is placed to a
wireless number that has been ported from wireline service and such call
is a voice call; not knowingly made to a wireless number; and made
within 15 days of the porting of the number from wireline to wireless
service, provided the number is not already on the national do-not-call
registry or caller's company-specific do-not-call list.
    (2) Initiate, or cause to be initiated, any telephone call that
includes or introduces an advertisement or constitutes telemarketing,
using an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or
prerecorded voice, to any of the lines or telephone numbers described in
paragraphs (a)(1)(i) through (iii) of this section, other than a call
made with the prior express written consent of the called party or the
prior express consent of the called party when the call is made by or on
behalf of a tax-exempt nonprofit organization,

[[Page 382]]

or a call that delivers a ``health care'' message made by, or on behalf
of, a ``covered entity'' or its ``business associate,'' as those terms
are defined in the HIPAA Privacy Rule, 45 CFR 160.103.
    (3) Initiate any telephone call to any residential line using an
artificial or prerecorded voice to deliver a message without the prior
express written consent of the called party, unless the call;
    (i) Is made for emergency purposes;
    (ii) Is not made for a commercial purpose;
    (iii) Is made for a commercial purpose but does not include or
introduce an advertisement or constitute telemarketing;
    (iv) Is made by or on behalf of a tax-exempt nonprofit organization;
or
    (v) Delivers a ``health care'' message made by, or on behalf of, a
``covered entity'' or its ``business associate,'' as those terms are
defined in the HIPAA Privacy Rule, 45 CFR 160.103.
    (4) Use a telephone facsimile machine, computer, or other device to
send an unsolicited advertisement to a telephone facsimile machine,
unless--
    (i) The unsolicited advertisement is from a sender with an
established business relationship, as defined in paragraph (f)(6) of
this section, with the recipient; and
    (ii) The sender obtained the number of the telephone facsimile
machine through--
    (A) The voluntary communication of such number by the recipient
directly to the sender, within the context of such established business
relationship; or
    (B) A directory, advertisement, or site on the Internet to which the
recipient voluntarily agreed to make available its facsimile number for
public distribution. If a sender obtains the facsimile number from the
recipient's own directory, advertisement, or Internet site, it will be
presumed that the number was voluntarily made available for public
distribution, unless such materials explicitly note that unsolicited
advertisements are not accepted at the specified facsimile number. If a
sender obtains the facsimile number from other sources, the sender must
take reasonable steps to verify that the recipient agreed to make the
number available for public distribution.
    (C) This clause shall not apply in the case of an unsolicited
advertisement that is sent based on an established business relationship
with the recipient that was in existence before July 9, 2005 if the
sender also possessed the facsimile machine number of the recipient
before July 9, 2005. There shall be a rebuttable presumption that if a
valid established business relationship was formed prior to July 9,
2005, the sender possessed the facsimile number prior to such date as
well; and
    (iii) The advertisement contains a notice that informs the recipient
of the ability and means to avoid future unsolicited advertisements. A
notice contained in an advertisement complies with the requirements
under this paragraph only if--
    (A) The notice is clear and conspicuous and on the first page of the
advertisement;
    (B) The notice states that the recipient may make a request to the
sender of the advertisement not to send any future advertisements to a
telephone facsimile machine or machines and that failure to comply,
within 30 days, with such a request meeting the requirements under
paragraph (a)(4)(v) of this section is unlawful;
    (C) The notice sets forth the requirements for an opt-out request
under paragraph (a)(4)(v) of this section;
    (D) The notice includes--
    (1) A domestic contact telephone number and facsimile machine number
for the recipient to transmit such a request to the sender; and
    (2) If neither the required telephone number nor facsimile machine
number is a toll-free number, a separate cost-free mechanism including a
Web site address or email address, for a recipient to transmit a request
pursuant to such notice to the sender of the advertisement. A local
telephone number also shall constitute a cost-free mechanism so long as
recipients are local and will not incur any long distance or other
separate charges for calls made to such number; and

[[Page 383]]

    (E) The telephone and facsimile numbers and cost-free mechanism
identified in the notice must permit an individual or business to make
an opt-out request 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
    (iv) A facsimile advertisement that is sent to a recipient that has
provided prior express invitation or permission to the sender must
include an opt-out notice that complies with the requirements in
paragraph (a)(4)(iii) of this section.
    (v) A request not to send future unsolicited advertisements to a
telephone facsimile machine complies with the requirements under this
subparagraph only if--
    (A) The request identifies the telephone number or numbers of the
telephone facsimile machine or machines to which the request relates;
    (B) The request is made to the telephone number, facsimile number,
Web site address or email address identified in the sender's facsimile
advertisement; and
    (C) The person making the request has not, subsequent to such
request, provided express invitation or permission to the sender, in
writing or otherwise, to send such advertisements to such person at such
telephone facsimile machine.
    (vi) A sender that receives a request not to send future unsolicited
advertisements that complies with paragraph (a)(4)(v) of this section
must honor that request within the shortest reasonable time from the
date of such request, not to exceed 30 days, and is prohibited from
sending unsolicited advertisements to the recipient unless the recipient
subsequently provides prior express invitation or permission to the
sender. The recipient's opt-out request terminates the established
business relationship exemption for purposes of sending future
unsolicited advertisements. If such requests are recorded or maintained
by a party other than the sender on whose behalf the unsolicited
advertisement is sent, the sender will be liable for any failures to
honor the opt-out request.
    (vii) A facsimile broadcaster will be liable for violations of
paragraph (a)(4) of this section, including the inclusion of opt-out
notices on unsolicited advertisements, if it demonstrates a high degree
of involvement in, or actual notice of, the unlawful activity and fails
to take steps to prevent such facsimile transmissions.
    (5) Use an automatic telephone dialing system in such a way that two
or more telephone lines of a multi-line business are engaged
simultaneously.
    (6) Disconnect an unanswered telemarketing call prior to at least 15
seconds or four (4) rings.
    (7) Abandon more than three percent of all telemarketing calls that
are answered live by a person, as measured over a 30-day period for a
single calling campaign. If a single calling campaign exceeds a 30-day
period, the abandonment rate shall be calculated separately for each
successive 30-day period or portion thereof that such calling campaign
continues. A call is ``abandoned'' if it is not connected to a live
sales representative within two (2) seconds of the called person's
completed greeting.
    (i) Whenever a live sales representative is not available to speak
with the person answering the call, within two (2) seconds after the
called person's completed greeting, the telemarketer or the seller must
provide:
    (A) A prerecorded identification and opt-out message that is limited
to disclosing that the call was for ``telemarketing purposes'' and
states the name of the business, entity, or individual on whose behalf
the call was placed, and a telephone number for such business, entity,
or individual that permits the called person to make a do-not-call
request during regular business hours for the duration of the
telemarketing campaign; provided, that, such telephone number may not be
a 900 number or any other number for which charges exceed local or long
distance transmission charges, and
    (B) An automated, interactive voice- and/or key press-activated opt-
out mechanism that enables the called person to make a do-not-call
request prior to terminating the call, including brief explanatory
instructions on how to use such mechanism. When the called person elects
to opt-out using such mechanism, the mechanism must automatically record
the called person's number to the seller's do-not-call list and
immediately terminate the call.

[[Page 384]]

    (ii) A call for telemarketing purposes that delivers an artificial
or prerecorded voice message to a residential telephone line or to any
of the lines or telephone numbers described in paragraphs (a)(1)(i)
through (iii) of this section after the subscriber to such line has
granted prior express written consent for the call to be made shall not
be considered an abandoned call if the message begins within two (2)
seconds of the called person's completed greeting.
    (iii) The seller or telemarketer must maintain records establishing
compliance with paragraph (a)(7) of this section.
    (iv) Calls made by or on behalf of tax-exempt nonprofit
organizations are not covered by this paragraph (a)(7).
    (8) Use any technology to dial any telephone number for the purpose
of determining whether the line is a facsimile or voice line.
    (b) All artificial or prerecorded voice telephone messages shall:
    (1) At the beginning of the message, state clearly the identity of
the business, individual, or other entity that is responsible for
initiating the call. If a business is responsible for initiating the
call, the name under which the entity is registered to conduct business
with the State Corporation Commission (or comparable regulatory
authority) must be stated;
    (2) During or after the message, state clearly the telephone number
(other than that of the autodialer or prerecorded message player that
placed the call) of such business, other entity, or individual. The
telephone number provided may not be a 900 number or any other number
for which charges exceed local or long distance transmission charges.
For telemarketing messages to residential telephone subscribers, such
telephone number must permit any individual to make a do-not-call
request during regular business hours for the duration of the
telemarketing campaign; and
    (3) In every case where the artificial or prerecorded voice
telephone message includes or introduces an advertisement or constitutes
telemarketing and is delivered to a residential telephone line or any of
the lines or telephone numbers described in paragraphs (a)(1)(i) through
(iii), provide an automated, interactive voice- and/or key press-
activated opt-out mechanism for the called person to make a do-not-call
request, including brief explanatory instructions on how to use such
mechanism, within two (2) seconds of providing the identification
information required in paragraph (b)(1) of this section. When the
called person elects to opt out using such mechanism, the mechanism,
must automatically record the called person's number to the seller's do-
not-call list and immediately terminate the call. When the artificial or
prerecorded voice telephone message is left on an answering machine or a
voice mail service, such message must also provide a toll free number
that enables the called person to call back at a later time and connect
directly to the automated, interactive voice- and/or key press-activated
opt-out mechanism and automatically record the called person's number to
the seller's do-not-call list.
    (c) No person or entity shall initiate any telephone solicitation
to:
    (1) Any residential telephone subscriber before the hour of 8 a.m.
or after 9 p.m. (local time at the called party's location), or
    (2) A residential telephone subscriber who has registered his or her
telephone number on the national do-not-call registry of persons who do
not wish to receive telephone solicitations that is maintained by the
Federal Government. Such do-not-call registrations must be honored
indefinitely, or until the registration is cancelled by the consumer or
the telephone number is removed by the database administrator. Any
person or entity making telephone solicitations (or on whose behalf
telephone solicitations are made) will not be liable for violating this
requirement if:
    (i) It can demonstrate that the violation is the result of error and
that as part of its routine business practice, it meets the following
standards:
    (A) Written procedures. It has established and implemented written
procedures to comply with the national do-not-call rules;
    (B) Training of personnel. It has trained its personnel, and any
entity

[[Page 385]]

assisting in its compliance, in procedures established pursuant to the
national do-not-call rules;
    (C) Recording. It has maintained and recorded a list of telephone
numbers that the seller may not contact;
    (D) Accessing the national do-not-call database. It uses a process
to prevent telephone solicitations to any telephone number on any list
established pursuant to the do-not-call rules, employing a version of
the national do-not-call registry obtained from the administrator of the
registry no more than 31 days prior to the date any call is made, and
maintains records documenting this process.

    Note to paragraph (c)(2)(i)(D):
    The requirement in paragraph 64.1200(c)(2)(i)(D) for persons or
entities to employ a version of the national do-not-call registry
obtained from the administrator no more than 31 days prior to the date
any call is made is effective January 1, 2005. Until January 1, 2005,
persons or entities must continue to employ a version of the registry
obtained from the administrator of the registry no more than three
months prior to the date any call is made.

    (E) Purchasing the national do-not-call database. It uses a process
to ensure that it does not sell, rent, lease, purchase or use the
national do-not-call database, or any part thereof, for any purpose
except compliance with this section and any such state or federal law to
prevent telephone solicitations to telephone numbers registered on the
national database. It purchases access to the relevant do-not-call data
from the administrator of the national database and does not participate
in any arrangement to share the cost of accessing the national database,
including any arrangement with telemarketers who may not divide the
costs to access the national database among various client sellers; or
    (ii) It has obtained the subscriber's prior express invitation or
permission. Such permission must be evidenced by a signed, written
agreement between the consumer and seller which states that the consumer
agrees to be contacted by this seller and includes the telephone number
to which the calls may be placed; or
    (iii) The telemarketer making the call has a personal relationship
with the recipient of the call.
    (d) No person or entity shall initiate any call for telemarketing
purposes to a residential telephone subscriber unless such person or
entity has instituted procedures for maintaining a list of persons who
request not to receive telemarketing calls made by or on behalf of that
person or entity. The procedures instituted must meet the following
minimum standards:
    (1) Written policy. Persons or entities making calls for
telemarketing purposes must have a written policy, available upon
demand, for maintaining a do-not-call list.
    (2) Training of personnel engaged in telemarketing. Personnel
engaged in any aspect of telemarketing must be informed and trained in
the existence and use of the do-not-call list.
    (3) Recording, disclosure of do-not-call requests. If a person or
entity making a call for telemarketing purposes (or on whose behalf such
a call is made) receives a request from a residential telephone
subscriber not to receive calls from that person or entity, the person
or entity must record the request and place the subscriber's name, if
provided, and telephone number on the do-not-call list at the time the
request is made. Persons or entities making calls for telemarketing
purposes (or on whose behalf such calls are made) must honor a
residential subscriber's do-not-call request within a reasonable time
from the date such request is made. This period may not exceed thirty
days from the date of such request. If such requests are recorded or
maintained by a party other than the person or entity on whose behalf
the telemarketing call is made, the person or entity on whose behalf the
telemarketing call is made will be liable for any failures to honor the
do-not-call request. A person or entity making a call for telemarketing
purposes must obtain a consumer's prior express permission to share or
forward the consumer's request not to be called to a party other than
the person or entity on whose behalf a telemarketing call is made or an
affiliated entity.
    (4) Identification of sellers and telemarketers. A person or entity
making a call for telemarketing purposes must provide the called party
with the name of the individual caller, the name of

[[Page 386]]

the person or entity on whose behalf the call is being made, and a
telephone number or address at which the person or entity may be
contacted. The telephone number provided may not be a 900 number or any
other number for which charges exceed local or long distance
transmission charges.
    (5) Affiliated persons or entities. In the absence of a specific
request by the subscriber to the contrary, a residential subscriber's
do-not-call request shall apply to the particular business entity making
the call (or on whose behalf a call is made), and will not apply to
affiliated entities unless the consumer reasonably would expect them to
be included given the identification of the caller and the product being
advertised.
    (6) Maintenance of do-not-call lists. A person or entity making
calls for telemarketing purposes must maintain a record of a consumer's
request not to receive further telemarketing calls. A do-not-call
request must be honored for 5 years from the time the request is made.
    (7) Tax-exempt nonprofit organizations are not required to comply
with 64.1200(d).
    (e) The rules set forth in paragraph (c) and (d) of this section are
applicable to any person or entity making telephone solicitations or
telemarketing calls to wireless telephone numbers to the extent
described in the Commission's Report and Order, CG Docket No. 02-278,
FCC 03-153, ``Rules and Regulations Implementing the Telephone Consumer
Protection Act of 1991.''
    (f) As used in this section:
    (1) The term advertisement means any material advertising the
commercial availability or quality of any property, goods, or services.
    (2) The terms automatic telephone dialing system and autodialer mean
equipment which has the capacity to store or produce telephone numbers
to be called using a random or sequential number generator and to dial
such numbers.
    (3) The term clear and conspicuous means a notice that would be
apparent to the reasonable consumer, separate and distinguishable from
the advertising copy or other disclosures. With respect to facsimiles
and for purposes of paragraph (a)(4)(iii)(A) of this section, the notice
must be placed at either the top or bottom of the facsimile.
    (4) The term emergency purposes means calls made necessary in any
situation affecting the health and safety of consumers.
    (5) The term established business relationship for purposes of
telephone solicitations means a prior or existing relationship formed by
a voluntary two-way communication between a person or entity and a
residential subscriber with or without an exchange of consideration, on
the basis of the subscriber's purchase or transaction with the entity
within the eighteen (18) months immediately preceding the date of the
telephone call or on the basis of the subscriber's inquiry or
application regarding products or services offered by the entity within
the three months immediately preceding the date of the call, which
relationship has not been previously terminated by either party.
    (i) The subscriber's seller-specific do-not-call request, as set
forth in paragraph (d)(3) of this section, terminates an established
business relationship for purposes of telemarketing and telephone
solicitation even if the subscriber continues to do business with the
seller.
    (ii) The subscriber's established business relationship with a
particular business entity does not extend to affiliated entities unless
the subscriber would reasonably expect them to be included given the
nature and type of goods or services offered by the affiliate and the
identity of the affiliate.
    (6) The term established business relationship for purposes of
paragraph (a)(4) of this section on the sending of facsimile
advertisements means a prior or existing relationship formed by a
voluntary two-way communication between a person or entity and a
business or residential subscriber with or without an exchange of
consideration, on the basis of an inquiry, application, purchase or
transaction by the business or residential subscriber regarding products
or services offered by such person or entity, which relationship has not
been previously terminated by either party.

[[Page 387]]

    (7) The term facsimile broadcaster means a person or entity that
transmits messages to telephone facsimile machines on behalf of another
person or entity for a fee.
    (8) The term prior express written consent means an agreement, in
writing, bearing the signature of the person called that clearly
authorizes the seller to deliver or cause to be delivered to the person
called advertisements or telemarketing messages using an automatic
telephone dialing system or an artificial or prerecorded voice, and the
telephone number to which the signatory authorizes such advertisements
or telemarketing messages to be delivered.
    (i) The written agreement shall include a clear and conspicuous
disclosure informing the person signing that:
    (A) By executing the agreement, such person authorizes the seller to
deliver or cause to be delivered to the signatory telemarketing calls
using an automatic telephone dialing system or an artificial or
prerecorded voice; and
    (B) The person is not required to sign the agreement (directly or
indirectly), or agree to enter into such an agreement as a condition of
purchasing any property, goods, or services.
    (ii) The term ``signature'' shall include an electronic or digital
form of signature, to the extent that such form of signature is
recognized as a valid signature under applicable federal law or state
contract law.
    (9) The term seller means the person or entity on whose behalf a
telephone call or message is initiated for the purpose of encouraging
the purchase or rental of, or investment in, property, goods, or
services, which is transmitted to any person.
    (10) The term sender for purposes of paragraph (a)(4) of this
section means the person or entity on whose behalf a facsimile
unsolicited advertisement is sent or whose goods or services are
advertised or promoted in the unsolicited advertisement.
    (11) The term telemarketer means the person or entity that initiates
a telephone call or message for the purpose of encouraging the purchase
or rental of, or investment in, property, goods, or services, which is
transmitted to any person.
    (12) The term telemarketing means the initiation of a telephone call
or message for the purpose of encouraging the purchase or rental of, or
investment in, property, goods, or services, which is transmitted to any
person.
    (13) The term telephone facsimile machine means equipment which has
the capacity to transcribe text or images, or both, from paper into an
electronic signal and to transmit that signal over a regular telephone
line, or to transcribe text or images (or both) from an electronic
signal received over a regular telephone line onto paper.
    (14) The term telephone solicitation means the initiation of a
telephone call or message for the purpose of encouraging the purchase or
rental of, or investment in, property, goods, or services, which is
transmitted to any person, but such term does not include a call or
message:
    (i) To any person with that person's prior express invitation or
permission;
    (ii) To any person with whom the caller has an established business
relationship; or
    (iii) By or on behalf of a tax-exempt nonprofit organization.
    (15) The term unsolicited advertisement means any material
advertising the commercial availability or quality of any property,
goods, or services which is transmitted to any person without that
person's prior express invitation or permission, in writing or
otherwise.
    (16) The term personal relationship means any family member, friend,
or acquaintance of the telemarketer making the call.
    (g) Beginning January 1, 2004, common carriers shall:
    (1) When providing local exchange service, provide an annual notice,
via an insert in the subscriber's bill, of the right to give or revoke a
notification of an objection to receiving telephone solicitations
pursuant to the national do-not-call database maintained by the federal
government and the methods by which such rights may be exercised by the
subscriber. The notice must be clear and conspicuous and include, at a
minimum, the Internet address and toll-free number that residential
telephone subscribers may use to register on the national database.

[[Page 388]]

    (2) When providing service to any person or entity for the purpose
of making telephone solicitations, make a one-time notification to such
person or entity of the national do-not-call requirements, including, at
a minimum, citation to 47 CFR 64.1200 and 16 CFR 310. Failure to receive
such notification will not serve as a defense to any person or entity
making telephone solicitations from violations of this section.
    (h) The administrator of the national do-not-call registry that is
maintained by the federal government shall make the telephone numbers in
the database available to the States so that a State may use the
telephone numbers that relate to such State as part of any database,
list or listing system maintained by such State for the regulation of
telephone solicitations.

[68 FR 44177, July 25, 2003, as amended at 68 FR 59131, Oct. 14, 2003;
69 FR 60316, Oct. 8, 2004; 70 FR 19337, Apr. 13, 2005; 71 FR 25977, May
3, 2006; 71 FR 56893, Sept. 28, 2006; 71 FR 75122, Dec. 14, 2006; 73 FR
40185, July 14, 2008; 77 FR 34246, June 11, 2012]



Sec. 64.1201  Restrictions on billing name and address disclosure.

    (a) As used in this section:
    (1) The term billing name and address means the name and address
provided to a local exchange company by each of its local exchange
customers to which the local exchange company directs bills for its
services.
    (2) The term ``telecommunications service provider'' means
interexchange carriers, operator service providers, enhanced service
providers, and any other provider of interstate telecommunications
services.
    (3) The term authorized billing agent means a third party hired by a
telecommunications service provider to perform billing and collection
services for the telecommunications service provider.
    (4) The term bulk basis means billing name and address information
for all the local exchange service subscribers of a local exchange
carrier.
    (5) The term LEC joint use card means a calling card bearing an
account number assigned by a local exchange carrier, used for the
services of the local exchange carrier and a designated interexchange
carrier, and validated by access to data maintained by the local
exchange carrier.
    (b) No local exchange carrier providing billing name and address
shall disclose billing name and address information to any party other
than a telecommunications service provider or an authorized billing and
collection agent of a telecommunications service provider.
    (c)(1) No telecommunications service provider or authorized billing
and collection agent of a telecommunications service provider shall use
billing name and address information for any purpose other than the
following:
    (i) Billing customers for using telecommunications services of that
service provider and collecting amounts due;
    (ii) Any purpose associated with the ``equal access'' requirement of
United States v. AT&T 552 F.Supp. 131 (D.D.C. 1982); and
    (iii) Verification of service orders of new customers,
identification of customers who have moved to a new address, fraud
prevention, and similar nonmarketing purposes.
    (2) In no case shall any telecommunications service provider or
authorized billing and collection agent of a telecommunications service
provider disclose the billing name and address information of any
subscriber to any third party, except that a telecommunications service
provider may disclose billing name and address information to its
authorized billing and collection agent.
    (d) [Reserved]
    (e)(1) All local exchange carriers providing billing name and
address information shall notify their subscribers that:
    (i) The subscriber's billing name and address will be disclosed,
pursuant to Policies and Rules Concerning Local Exchange Carrier
Validation and Billing Information for Joint Use Calling Cards, CC
Docket No. 91-115, FCC 93-254, adopted May 13, 1993, whenever the
subscriber uses a LEC joint use card to pay for services obtained from
the telecommunications service provider, and
    (ii) The subscriber's billing name and address will be disclosed,
pursuant to Policies and Rules Concerning Local

[[Page 389]]

Exchange Carrier Validation and Billing Information for Joint Use
Calling Cards, CC Docket No. 91-115, FCC 93-254, adopted May 13, 1993,
whenever the subscriber accepts a third party or collect call to a
telephone station provided by the LEC to the subscriber.
    (2) In addition to the notification specified in paragraph (e)(1) of
this section, all local exchange carriers providing billing name and
address information shall notify their subscribers with unlisted or
nonpublished telephone numbers that:
    (i) Customers have a right to request that their BNA not be
disclosed, and that customers may prevent BNA disclosure for third party
and collect calls as well as calling card calls;
    (ii) LECs will presume that unlisted and nonpublished end users
consent to disclosure and use of their BNA if customers do not
affirmatively request that their BNA not be disclosed; and
    (iii) The presumption in favor of consent for disclosure will begin
30 days after customers receive notice.
    (3) No local exchange carrier shall disclose the billing name and
address information associated with any calling card call made by any
subscriber who has affirmatively withheld consent for disclosure of BNA
information, or for any third party or collect call charged to any
subscriber who has affirmatively withheld consent for disclosure of BNA
information.

[53 FR 36145, July 6, 1993, as amended at 58 FR 65671, Dec. 16, 1993; 61
FR 8880, Mar. 6, 1996]



Sec. 64.1202  Public safety answering point do-not-call registry.

    (a) As used in this section, the following terms are defined as:
    (1) Operators of automatic dialing or robocall equipment. Any person
or entity who uses an automatic telephone dialing system, as defined in
section 227(a)(1) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, to make
telephone calls with such equipment.
    (2) Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). A facility that has been
designated to receive emergency calls and route them to emergency
service personnel pursuant to section 222(h)(4) of the Communications
Act of 1934, as amended. As used in this section, this term includes
both primary and secondary PSAPs.
    (3) Emergency purpose. A call made necessary in any situation
affecting the health and safety of any person.
    (b) PSAP numbers and registration. Each PSAP may designate a
representative who shall be required to file a certification with the
administrator of the PSAP registry, under penalty of law, that they are
authorized and eligible to place numbers onto the PSAP Do-Not-Call
registry on behalf of that PSAP. The designated PSAP representative
shall provide contact information, including the PSAP represented,
contact name, title, address, telephone number, and email address.
Verified PSAPs shall be permitted to upload to the registry any PSAP
telephone numbers associated with the provision of emergency services or
communications with other public safety agencies. On an annual basis
designated PSAP representatives shall access the registry, review their
numbers placed on the registry to ensure that they remain eligible for
inclusion on the registry, and remove ineligible numbers.
    (c) Prohibiting the use of autodialers to contact registered PSAP
numbers. An operator of automatic dialing or robocall equipment is
prohibited from using such equipment to contact any telephone number
registered on the PSAP Do-Not-Call registry other than for an emergency
purpose. This prohibition encompasses both voice and text calls.
    (d) Granting and tracking access to the PSAP registry. An operator
of automatic dialing or robocall equipment may not obtain access or use
the PSAP Do-Not-Call registry until it provides to the designated
registry administrator contact information that includes the operator's
name and all alternative names under which the registrant operates, a
business address, a contact person, the contact person's telephone
number, the operator's email address, and all outbound telephone numbers
used to place autodialed calls, including both actual originating
numbers and numbers that are displayed on caller identification
services, and thereafter obtains a unique identification number or
password from the designated registry administrator. All such contact
information provided to

[[Page 390]]

the designated registry administrator must be updated within 30 days of
any change to such information. In addition, an operator of automatic
dialing equipment must certify when it accesses the registry, under
penalty of law, that it is accessing the registry solely to prevent
autodialed calls to numbers on the registry.
    (e) Accessing the registry. An operator of automatic dialing
equipment or robocall equipment shall, to prevent such calls to any
telephone number on the registry, access and employ a version of the
PSAP Do-Not-Call registry obtained from the registry administrator no
more than 31 days prior to the date any call is made, and shall maintain
records documenting this process. It shall not be a violation of
paragraph (c) of this section to contact a number added to the registry
subsequent to the last required access to the registry by operators of
automatic dialing or robocall equipment.
    (f) Restrictions on disclosing or dissemination of the PSAP
registry. No person or entity, including an operator of automatic
dialing equipment or robocall equipment, may sell, rent, lease,
purchase, share, or use the PSAP Do-Not-Call registry, or any part
thereof, for any purpose except to comply with this section and any such
state or Federal law enacted to prevent autodialed calls to telephone
numbers in the PSAP registry.

[77 FR 71137, Nov. 29, 2012]



                 Subpart M_Provision of Payphone Service



Sec. 64.1300  Payphone compensation obligation.

    (a) For purposes of this subpart, a Completing Carrier is a long
distance carrier or switch-based long distance reseller that completes a
coinless access code or subscriber toll-free payphone call or a local
exchange carrier that completes a local, coinless access code or
subscriber toll-free payphone call.
    (b) Except as provided herein, a Completing Carrier that completes a
coinless access code or subscriber toll-free payphone call from a switch
that the Completing Carrier either owns or leases shall compensate the
payphone service provider for that call at a rate agreed upon by the
parties by contract.
    (c) The compensation obligation set forth herein shall not apply to
calls to emergency numbers, calls by hearing disabled persons to a
telecommunications relay service or local calls for which the caller has
made the required coin deposit.
    (d) In the absence of an agreement as required by paragraph (b) of
this section, the carrier is obligated to compensate the payphone
service provider at a per-call rate of $.494.

[71 FR 3014, Jan. 19, 2006]



Sec. 64.1301  Per-payphone compensation.

    (a) Interim access code and subscriber 800 calls. In the absence of
a negotiated agreement to pay a different amount, each entity listed in
Appendix A of the Fifth Order on Reconsideration and Order on Remand in
CC Docket No. 96-128, FCC 02-292, must pay default compensation to
payphone service providers for payphone access code calls and payphone
subscriber 800 calls for the period beginning November 7, 1996, and
ending October 6, 1997, in the amount listed in Appendix A per payphone
per month. A complete copy of Appendix A is available at www.fcc.gov.
    (b) Interim payphone compensation for inmate calls. In the absence
of a negotiated agreement to pay a different amount, if a payphone
service provider providing inmate service was not compensated for calls
originating at an inmate telephone during the period starting on
November 7, 1996, and ending on October 6, 1997, an interexchange
carrier to which the inmate telephone was presubscribed during this same
time period must compensate the payphone service provider providing
inmate service at the default rate of $0.238 per inmate call originating
during the same time period, except that a payphone service provider
that is affiliated with a local exchange carrier is not eligible to
receive payphone compensation prior to April 16, 1997, or, in the
alternative, the first day following both the termination of subsidies
and payphone reclassification and transfer, whichever date is latest.

[[Page 391]]

    (c) Interim compensation for 0+ payphone calls. In the absence of a
negotiated agreement to pay a different amount, if a payphone service
provider was not compensated for 0+ calls originating during the period
starting on November 7, 1996, and ending on October 6, 1997, an
interexchange carrier to which the payphone was presubscribed during
this same time period must compensate the payphone service provider in
the default amount of $4.2747 per payphone per month during the same
time period, except that a payphone service provider that is affiliated
with a local exchange carrier is not eligible to receive payphone
compensation prior to April 16, 1997, or, in the alternative, the first
day following both the termination of subsidies and payphone
reclassification and transfer, whichever date is latest.
    (d) Intermediate access code and subscriber 800 calls. In the
absence of a negotiated agreement to pay a different amount, each entity
listed in Appendix B of the Fifth Order on Reconsideration and Order on
Remand in CC Docket No. 96-128, FCC 02-292, must pay default
compensation to payphone service providers for access code calls and
payphone subscriber 800 calls for the period beginning October 7, 1997,
and ending April 20, 1999, in the amount listed in Appendix B for any
payphone for any month during which per-call compensation for that
payphone for that month was not paid by the listed entity. A complete
copy of Appendix B is available at www.fcc.gov.
    (e) Post-intermediate access code and subscriber 800 calls. In the
absence of a negotiated agreement to pay a different amount, each entity
listed in Appendix C of the Fifth Order on Reconsideration and Order on
Remand in CC Docket No. 96-128, FCC 02-292, must pay default
compensation to payphone service providers for access code calls and
payphone subscriber 800 calls for the period beginning April 21, 1999,
in the amount listed in Appendix C for any payphone for any month during
which per-call compensation for that payphone for that month was or is
not paid by the listed entity. A complete copy of Appendix C is
available at www.fcc.gov.

[67 FR 71890, Dec. 3, 2002]



Sec. 64.1310  Payphone compensation procedures.

    (a) Unless the payphone service provider consents to an alternative
compensation arrangement, each Completing Carrier identified in Sec.
64.1300(a) shall compensate the payphone service provider in accordance
with paragraphs (a)(1) through (a)(4) of this section. A payphone
service provider may not unreasonably withhold its consent to an
alternative compensation arrangement.
    (1) Each Completing Carrier shall establish a call tracking system
that accurately tracks coinless access code or subscriber toll-free
payphone calls to completion.
    (2) Each Completing Carrier shall pay compensation to payphone
service providers on a quarterly basis for each completed payphone call
identified in the Completing Carrier's quarterly report required by
paragraph (a)(4) of this section.
    (3) When payphone compensation is tendered for a quarter, the chief
financial officer of the Completing Carrier shall submit to each
payphone service provider to which compensation is tendered a sworn
statement that the payment amount for that quarter is accurate and is
based on 100% of all completed calls that originated from that payphone
service provider's payphones. Instead of transmitting individualized
statements to each payphone service provider, a Completing Carrier may
provide a single, blanket sworn statement addressed to all payphone
service providers to which compensation is tendered for that quarter and
may notify the payphone service providers of the sworn statement through
any electronic method, including transmitting the sworn statement with
the Sec. 64.1310(a)(4) quarterly report, or posting the sworn statement
on the Completing Carrier or clearinghouse website. If a Completing
Carrier chooses to post the sworn statement on its website, the
Completing Carrier shall state in its Sec. 64.1310(a)(4) quarterly
report the web address of the sworn statement.
    (4) At the conclusion of each quarter, the Completing Carrier shall
submit to

[[Page 392]]

the payphone service provider, in computer readable format, a report on
that quarter that includes:
    (i) A list of the toll-free and access numbers dialed and completed
by the Completing Carrier from each of that payphone service provider's
payphones and the ANI for each payphone;
    (ii) The volume of calls for each number identified in paragraph
(a)(4)(i) of this section that were completed by the Completing Carrier;
    (iii) The name, address, and phone number of the person or persons
responsible for handling the Completing Carrier's payphone compensation;
and
    (iv) The carrier identification code (``CIC'') of all facilities-
based long distance carriers that routed calls to the Completing
Carrier, categorized according to the list of toll-free and access code
numbers identified in paragraph (a)(4)(i) of this section.
    (b) For purposes of this subpart, an Intermediate Carrier is a
facilities-based long distance carrier that switches payphone calls to
other facilities-based long distance carriers.
    (c) Unless the payphone service provider agrees to other reporting
arrangements, each Intermediate Carrier shall provide the payphone
service provider with quarterly reports, in computer readable format,
that include:
    (1) A list of all the facilities-based long distance carriers to
which the Intermediate Carrier switched toll-free and access code calls
dialed from each of that payphone service provider's payphones;
    (2) For each facilities-based long distance carrier identified in
paragraph (c)(1) of this section, a list of the toll-free and access
code numbers dialed from each of that payphone service provider's
payphones that all local exchange carriers have delivered to the
Intermediate Carrier and that the Intermediate Carrier switched to the
identified facilities-based long distance carrier;
    (3) The volume of calls for each number identified in paragraph
(c)(2) of this section that the Intermediate Carrier has received from
each of that payphone service provider's payphones, identified by their
ANIs, and switched to each facilities-based long distance carrier
identified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section; and
    (4) The name, address and telephone number and other identifying
information of the person or persons for each facilities-based long
distance carrier identified in paragraph (c)(1) of this section who
serves as the Intermediate Carrier's contact at each identified
facilities-based long distance carrier.
    (d) Local Exchange Carriers must provide to carriers required to pay
compensation pursuant to Sec. 64.1300(a) a list of payphone numbers in
their service areas. The list must be provided on a quarterly basis.
Local Exchange Carriers must verify disputed numbers in a timely manner,
and must maintain verification data for 18 months after close of the
compensation period.
    (e) Local Exchange Carriers must respond to all carrier requests for
payphone number verification in connection with the compensation
requirements herein, even if such verification is a negative response.
    (f) A payphone service provider that seeks compensation for
payphones that are not included on the Local Exchange Carrier's list
satisfies its obligation to provide alternative reasonable verification
to a payor carrier if it provides to that carrier:
    (1) A notarized affidavit attesting that each of the payphones for
which the payphone service provider seeks compensation is a payphone
that was in working order as of the last day of the compensation period;
and
    (2) Corroborating evidence that each such payphone is owned by the
payphone service provider seeking compensation and was in working order
on the last day of the compensation period. Corroborating evidence shall
include, at a minimum, the telephone bill for the last month of the
billing quarter indicating use of a line screening service.
    (g) Each Completing Carrier and each Intermediate Carrier must
maintain verification data to support the quarterly reports submitted
pursuant to paragraphs (a)(4) and (c) of this section for 27 months
after the close of that quarter. This data must include the time and
date that each call identified

[[Page 393]]

in paragraphs (a)(4) and (c) of this section was made. This data must be
provided to the payphone service provider upon request.

[68 FR 62755, Nov. 6, 2003, as amended at 70 FR 722, Jan. 5, 2005]



Sec. 64.1320  Payphone call tracking system audits.

    (a) Unless it has entered into an alternative compensation
arrangement pursuant to Sec. 64.1310(a) that relieves it of its Sec.
64.1310(a)(1) tracking system obligation, each Completing Carrier must
undergo an audit of its Sec. 64.1310(a)(1) tracking system by an
independent third party auditor whose responsibility shall be, using
audit methods approved by the American Institute for Certified Public
Accountants, to determine whether the call tracking system accurately
tracks payphone calls to completion.
    (b) By the effective date of these rules, each Completing Carrier in
paragraph (a) of this section must file an audit report from the auditor
(the ``System Audit Report'') regarding the Completing Carrier's
compliance with Sec. 64.1310(a)(1) as of the date of the audit:
    (1) With the Commission's Secretary in CC Docket No. 96-128;
    (2) With each payphone service provider for which it completes calls
and a Completing Carrier may comply with this paragraph's requirement to
file copies of the System Audit Report with each payphone service
provider by posting the System Audit Report on its website or a
clearinghouse website; and
    (3) With each facilities-based long distance carrier from which it
receives payphone calls.
    (c) The Completing Carrier must comply with, and the third-party
auditor must verify, the Completing Carrier's compliance with the
following factors in establishing a call tracking system pursuant to
Sec. 64.1310(a)(1):
    (1) Whether the Completing Carrier's procedures accurately track
calls to completion;
    (2) Whether the Completing Carrier has a person or persons
responsible for tracking, compensating, and resolving disputes
concerning payphone completed calls;
    (3) Whether the Completing Carrier has effective data monitoring
procedures;
    (4) Whether the Completing Carrier adheres to established protocols
to ensure that any software, personnel or any other network changes do
not adversely affect its payphone call tracking ability;
    (5) Whether the Completing Carrier has created a compensable
payphone call file by matching call detail records against payphone
identifiers;
    (6) Whether the Completing Carrier has procedures to incorporate
call data into required reports;
    (7) Whether the Completing Carrier has implemented procedures and
controls needed to resolve payphone compensation disputes;
    (8) Whether the independent third-party auditor can test all
critical controls and procedures to verify that errors are
insubstantial; and
    (9) Whether the Completing Carriers has in place adequate and
effective business rules for implementing and paying payphone
compensation, including rules used to:
    (i) Identify calls originated from payphones;
    (ii) Identify compensable payphone calls;
    (iii) Identify incomplete or otherwise noncompensable calls; and
    (iv) Determine the identities of the payphone service providers to
which the Completing Carrier owes compensation.
    (d) Consistent with standards established by the American Institute
of Certified Public Accountants for attestation engagements, the System
Audit Report shall consist of:
    (1) The Completing Carrier's representation concerning its
compliance; and
    (2) The independent auditor's opinion concerning the Completing
Carrier's representation of compliance. The Completing Carrier's
representation must disclose
    (i) Its criteria for identifying calls originating from payphones;
    (ii) Its criteria for identifying compensable payphone calls;
    (iii) Its criteria for identifying incomplete or otherwise
noncompensable calls;

[[Page 394]]

    (iv) Its criteria used to determine the identities of the payphone
service providers to which the completing carrier owes compensation;
    (v) The identity of any clearinghouses the Completing Carrier uses;
and
    (vi) The types of information that the Completing Carrier needs from
the payphone service providers in order to compensate them.
    (e) At the time of filing of a System Audit Report with the
Commission, the Completing Carrier shall file with the Commission's
Secretary, the payphone service providers and the facilities-based long
distance carriers identified in paragraph (b) of this section, a
statement that includes the name of the Completing Carrier, and the
name, address and phone number for the person or persons responsible for
handling the Completing Carrier's payphone compensation and for
resolving disputes with payphone service providers over compensation,
and this statement shall be updated within 60 days of any changes of
such persons. If a Completing Carrier chooses to notify payphone service
providers of this statement and its System Audit Report by posting these
two documents on its website or a clearinghouse website, then this
statement shall include the web address for these two documents.
    (f) One year after the filing of the System Audit Report, and
annually thereafter, the Completing Carrier shall engage an independent
third-party auditor to:
    (1) Verify that no material changes have occurred concerning the
Completing Carrier's compliance with the criteria of the prior year's
System Audit Report; or
    (2) If a material change has occurred concerning the Completing
Carrier's compliance with the prior year's System Audit Report, verify
that the material changes do not affect compliance with the audit
criteria set forth in paragraph (c) of this section. The Completing
Carrier must fully disclose any material changes concerning its call
tracking system in its representation to the auditor. The Completing
Carrier shall file and provide copies of all System Audit Reports
pursuant to the procedures set forth in paragraph (b) of this section.
    (g) Subject to protections safeguarding the auditor's and the
Completing Carrier's confidential and proprietary information, the
Completing Carrier shall provide, upon request, to the payphone service
provider for inspection any documents, including working papers,
underlying the System Audit Report.

[68 FR 62756, Nov. 6, 2003, as amended at 70 FR 723, Jan. 5, 2005]



Sec. 64.1330  State review of payphone entry and exit regulations and
public interest payphones.

    (a) Each state must review and remove any of its regulations
applicable to payphones and payphone service providers that impose
market entry or exit requirements.
    (b) Each state must ensure that access to dialtone, emergency calls,
and telecommunications relay service calls for the hearing disabled is
available from all payphones at no charge to the caller.
    (c) Each state must review its rules and policies to determine
whether it has provided for public interest payphones consistent with
applicable Commission guidelines, evaluate whether it needs to take
measures to ensure that such payphones will continue to exist in light
of the Commission's implementation of Section 276 of the Communications
Act, and administer and fund such programs so that such payphones are
supported fairly and equitably.

[61 FR 52323, Oct. 7, 1996, as amended at 71 FR 65751, Nov. 9, 2006]



Sec. 64.1340  Right to negotiate.

    Unless prohibited by Commission order, payphone service providers
have the right to negotiate with the location provider on the location
provider's selecting and contracting with, and, subject to the terms of
any agreement with the location provider, to select and contract with,
the carriers that carry interLATA and intraLATA calls from their
payphones.

[61 FR 52323, Oct. 7, 1996]

[[Page 395]]



                   Subpart N_Expanded Interconnection



Sec. 64.1401  Expanded interconnection.

    (a) Every local exchange carrier that is classified as a Class A
company under Sec. 32.11 of this chapter and that is not a National
Exchange Carrier Association interstate tariff participant, as provided
in part 69, subpart G of this chapter, shall offer expanded
interconnection for interstate special access services at their central
offices that are classified as end offices or serving wire centers, and
at other rating points used for interstate special access.
    (b) The local exchange carriers specified in paragraph (a) of this
section shall offer expanded interconnection for interstate switched
transport services:
    (1) In their central offices that are classified as end offices or
serving wire centers, as well as at all tandem offices housed in
buildings containing such carriers' end offices or serving wire centers
for which interstate switched transport expanded interconnection has
been tariffed;
    (2) Upon bona fide request, in tandem offices housed in buildings
not containing such carriers' end offices or serving wire centers, or in
buildings containing the carriers' end offices or serving wire centers
for which interstate switched transport expanded interconnection has not
been tariffed; and
    (3) Upon bona fide request, at remote nodes/switches that serve as
rating points for interstate switched transport and that are capable of
routing outgoing interexchange access traffic to interconnectors and in
which interconnectors can route terminating traffic to such carriers. No
such carrier is required to enhance remote nodes/switches or to build
additional space to accommodate interstate switched transport expanded
interconnection at these locations.
    (c) The local exchange carriers specified in paragraph (a) of this
section shall offer expanded interconnection for interstate special
access and switched transport services through virtual collocation,
except that they may offer physical collocation, instead of virtual
collocation, in specific central offices, as a service subject to non-
streamlined communications common carrier regulation under Title II of
the Communications Act (47 U.S.C. 201-228).
    (d) For the purposes of this subpart, physical collocation means an
offering that enables interconnectors:
    (1) To place their own equipment needed to terminate basic
transmission facilities, including optical terminating equipment and
multiplexers, within or upon the local exchange carrier's central office
buildings;
    (2) To use such equipment to connect interconnectors' fiber optic
systems or microwave radio transmission facilities (where reasonably
feasible) with the local exchange carrier's equipment and facilities
used to provide interstate special access services;
    (3) To enter the local exchange carrier's central office buildings,
subject to reasonable terms and conditions, to install, maintain, and
repair the equipment described in paragraph (d)(1) of this section; and
    (4) To obtain reasonable amounts of space in central offices for the
equipment described in paragraph (d)(1) of this section, allocated on a
first-come, first-served basis.
    (e) For purposes of this subpart, virtual collocation means an
offering that enables interconnectors:
    (1) To designate or specify equipment needed to terminate basic
transmission facilities, including optical terminating equipment and
multiplexers, to be located within or upon the local exchange carrier's
buildings, and dedicated to such interconnectors' use,
    (2) To use such equipment to connect interconnectors' fiber optic
systems or microwave radio transmission facilities (where reasonably
feasible) with the local exchange carrier's equipment and facilities
used to provide interstate special and switched access services, and
    (3) To monitor and control their communications channels terminating
in such equipment.
    (f) Under both physical collocation offering and virtual collocation
offerings for expanded interconnection of fiber optic facilities, local
exchange carriers shall provide:

[[Page 396]]

    (1) An interconnection point or points at which the fiber optic
cable carrying an interconnectors' circuits can enter each local
exchange carrier location, provided that the local exchange carrier
shall designate interconnection points as close as reasonably possible
to each location; and
    (2) At least two such interconnection points at any local exchange
carrier location at which there are at least two entry points for the
local exchange carrier's cable facilities, and space is available for
new facilities in at least two of those entry points.
    (g) The local exchange carriers specified in paragraph (a) of this
section shall offer signalling for tandem switching, as defined in Sec.
69.2(vv) of this chapter, at central offices that are classified as
equal office end offices or serving wire centers, or at signal transfer
points if such information is offered via common channel signalling.

[57 FR 54331, Nov. 18, 1992, as amended at 58 FR 48762, Sept. 17, 1993;
59 FR 32930, June 27, 1994; 59 FR 38930, Aug. 1, 1994]



Sec. 64.1402  Rights and responsibilities of interconnectors.

    (a) For the purposes of this subpart, an interconnector means a
party taking expanded interconnection offerings. Any party shall be
eligible to be an interconnector.
    (b) Interconnectors shall have the right, under expanded
interconnection, to interconnect their fiber optic systems and, where
reasonably feasible, their microwave transmission facilities.
    (c) Interconnectors shall not be allowed to use interstate special
access expanded interconnection offerings to connect their transmission
facilities with the local exchange carrier's interstate switched
services until that local exchange carrier's tariffs implementing
expanded interconnection for switched transport have become effective.

[57 FR 54331, Nov. 18, 1992, as amended at 61 FR 43160, Aug. 21, 1996]



    Subpart O_Interstate Pay-Per-Call and Other Information Services

    Source: 58 FR 44773, Aug. 25, 1993, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.1501  Definitions.

    For purposes of this subpart, the following definitions shall apply:
    (a) Pay-per-call service means any service:
    (1) In which any person provides or purports to provide:
    (i) Audio information or audio entertainment produced or packaged by
such person;
    (ii) Access to simultaneous voice conversation services; or
    (iii) Any service, including the provision of a product, the charges
for which are assessed on the basis of the completion of the call;
    (2) For which the caller pays a per-call or per-time-interval charge
that is greater than, or in addition to, the charge for transmission of
the call; and
    (3) Which is accessed through use of a 900 number;
    (4) Provided, however, such term does not include directory services
provided by a common carrier or its affiliate or by a local exchange
carrier or its affiliate, or any service for which users are assessed
charges only after entering into a presubscription or comparable
arrangement with the provider of such service.
    (b) Presubscription or comparable arrangement means a contractual
agreement in which:
    (1) The service provider clearly and conspicuously discloses to the
consumer all material terms and conditions associated with the use of
the service, including the service provider's name and address, a
business telephone number which the consumer may use to obtain
additional information or to register a complaint, and the rates for the
service;
    (2) The service provider agrees to notify the consumer of any future
rate changes;
    (3) The consumer agrees to use the service on the terms and
conditions disclosed by the service provider; and
    (4) The service provider requires the use of an identification
number or

[[Page 397]]

other means to prevent unauthorized access to the service by
nonsubscribers;
    (5) Provided, however, that disclosure of a credit, prepaid account,
debit, charge, or calling card number, along with authorization to bill
that number, made during the course of a call to an information service
shall constitute a presubscription or comparable arrangement if an
introductory message containing the information specified in Sec.
64.1504(c)(2) is provided prior to, and independent of, assessment of
any charges. No other action taken by a consumer during the course of a
call to an information service, for which charges are assessed, can
create a presubscription or comparable arrangement.
    (6) Provided, that a presubscription arrangement to obtain
information services provided by means of a toll-free number shall
conform to the requirements of Sec. 64.1504(c).
    (c) Calling card means an identifying number or code unique to the
individual, that is issued to the individual by a common carrier and
enables the individual to be charged by means of a phone bill for
charges incurred independent of where the call originates.

[61 FR 39087, July 26, 1996]



Sec. 64.1502  Limitations on the provision of pay-per-call services.

    Any common carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call service shall require, by contract or tariff,
that such provider comply with the provisions of this subpart and of
titles II and III of the Telephone Disclosure and Dispute Resolution Act
(Pub. L. No. 102-556) (TDDRA) and the regulations prescribed by the
Federal Trade Commission pursuant to those titles.



Sec. 64.1503  Termination of pay-per-call and other information programs.

    (a) Any common carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call service shall specify by contract or tariff that
pay-per-call programs not in compliance with Sec. 64.1502 shall be
terminated following written notice to the information provider. The
information provider shall be afforded a period of no less than seven
and no more than 14 days during which a program may be brought into
compliance. Programs not in compliance at the expiration of such period
shall be terminated immediately.
    (b) Any common carrier providing transmission or billing and
collection services to a provider of interstate information service
through any 800 telephone number, or other telephone number advertised
or widely understood to be toll-free, shall promptly investigate any
complaint that such service is not provided in accordance with Sec.
64.1504 or Sec. 64.1510(c), and, if the carrier reasonably determines
that the complaint is valid, may terminate the provision of service to
an information provider unless the provider supplies evidence of a
written agreement that meets the requirements of this Sec.
64.1504(c)(1).

[61 FR 39087, July 26, 1996]



Sec. 64.1504  Restrictions on the use of toll-free numbers.

    A common carrier shall prohibit by tariff or contract the use of any
800 telephone number, or other telephone number advertised or widely
understood to be toll-free, in a manner that would result in:
    (a) The calling party or the subscriber to the originating line
being assessed, by virtue of completing the call, a charge for a call;
    (b) The calling party being connected to a pay-per-call service;
    (c) The calling party being charged for information conveyed during
the call unless:
    (1) The calling party has a written agreement (including an
agreement transmitted through electronic medium) that specifies the
material terms and conditions under which the information is offered and
includes:
    (i) The rate at which charges are assessed for the information;
    (ii) The information provider's name;
    (iii) The information provider's business address;
    (iv) The information provider's regular business telephone number;
    (v) The information provider's agreement to notify the subscriber at
least one billing cycle in advance of all future changes in the rates
charged for the information;

[[Page 398]]

    (vi) The subscriber's choice of payment method, which may be by
direct remit, debit, prepaid account, phone bill, or credit or calling
card and, if a subscriber elects to pay by means of phone bill, a clear
explanation that the subscriber will be assessed for calls made to the
information service from the subscriber's phone line;
    (vii) A unique personal identification number or other subscriber-
specific identifier that must be used to obtain access to the
information service and instructions on its use, and, in addition,
assures that any charges for services accessed by use of the
subscriber's personal identification number or subscriber-specific
identifier be assessed to subscriber's source of payment elected
pursuant to paragraph (c)(1)(vi) of this section; or
    (2) The calling party is charged for the information by means of a
credit, prepaid, debit, charge, or calling card and the information
service provider includes in response to each call an introductory
message that:
    (i) Clearly states that there is a charge for the call;
    (ii) Clearly states the service's total cost per minute and any
other fees for the service or for any service to which the caller may be
transferred;
    (iii) Explains that the charges must be billed on either a credit,
prepaid, debit, charge, or calling card;
    (iv) Asks the caller for the card number;
    (v) Clearly states that charges for the call begin at the end of the
introductory message; and
    (vi) Clearly states that the caller can hang up at or before the end
of the introductory message without incurring any charge whatsoever.
    (d) The calling party being called back collect for the provision of
audio or data information services, simultaneous voice conversation
services, or products; and
    (e) The calling party being assessed by virtue of the caller being
asked to connect or otherwise transfer to a pay-per-call service, a
charge for the call.
    (f) Provided, however, that:
    (1) Notwithstanding paragraph (c)(1) of this section, a written
agreement that meets the requirements of that paragraph is not required
for:
    (i) Calls utilizing telecommunications devices for the deaf;
    (ii) Directory services provided by a common carrier or its
affiliate or by a local exchange carrier or its affiliate; or
    (iii) Any purchase of goods or of services that are not information
services.
    (2) The requirements of paragraph (c)(2) of this section shall not
apply to calls from repeat callers using a bypass mechanism to avoid
listening to the introductory message: Provided, That information
providers shall disable such a bypass mechanism after the institution of
any price increase for a period of time determined to be sufficient by
the Federal Trade Commission to give callers adequate and sufficient
notice of a price increase.

[61 FR 39087, July 26, 1996, as amended at 69 FR 61154, Oct. 15, 2004]



Sec. 64.1505  Restrictions on collect telephone calls.

    (a) No common carrier shall provide interstate transmission or
billing and collection services to an entity offering any service within
the scope of Sec. 64.1501(a)(1) that is billed to a subscriber on a
collect basis at a per-call or per-time-interval charge that is greater
than, or in addition to, the charge for transmission of the call.
    (b) No common carrier shall provide interstate transmission services
for any collect information services billed to a subscriber at a
tariffed rate unless the called party has taken affirmative action
clearly indicating that it accepts the charges for the collect service.



Sec. 64.1506  Number designation.

    Any interstate service described in Sec. 64.1501(a)(1)-(2), and not
subject to the exclusions contained in Sec. 64.1501(a)(4), shall be
offered only through telephone numbers beginning with a 900 service
access code.

[59 FR 46770, Sept. 12, 1994]



Sec. 64.1507  Prohibition on disconnection or interruption of service
for failure to remit pay-per-call and similar service charges.

    No common carrier shall disconnect or interrupt in any manner, or
order the disconnection or interruption of, a

[[Page 399]]

telephone subscriber's local exchange or long distance telephone service
as a result of that subscriber's failure to pay:
    (a) Charges for interstate pay-per-call service;
    (b) Charges for interstate information services provided pursuant to
a presubscription or comparable arrangement; or
    (c) Charges for interstate information services provided on a
collect basis which have been disputed by the subscriber.

[58 FR 44773, Aug. 25, 1993, as amended at 59 FR 46770, Sept. 12, 1994]



Sec. 64.1508  Blocking access to 900 service.

    (a) Local exchange carriers must offer to their subscribers, where
technically feasible, an option to block access to services offered on
the 900 service access code. Blocking is to be offered at no charge, on
a one-time basis, to:
    (1) All telephone subscribers during the period from November 1,
1993 through December 31, 1993; and
    (2) Any subscriber who subscribes to a new telephone number for a
period of 60 days after the new number is effective.
    (b) For blocking requests not within the one-time option or outside
the time frames specified in paragraph (a) of this section, and for
unblocking requests, local exchange carriers may charge a reasonable
one-time fee. Requests by subscribers to remove 900 services blocking
must be in writing.
    (c) The terms and conditions under which subscribers may obtain 900
services blocking are to be included in tariffs filed with this
Commission.



Sec. 64.1509  Disclosure and dissemination of pay-per-call information.

    (a) Any common carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call services shall make readily available, at no
charge, to Federal and State agencies and all other interested persons:
    (1) A list of the telephone numbers for each of the pay-per-call
services it carries;
    (2) A short description of each such service;
    (3) A statement of the total cost or the cost per minute and any
other fees for each such service; and
    (4) A statement of the pay-per-call service provider's name,
business address, and business telephone number.
    (b) Any common carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call services and offering billing and collection
services to such provider shall:
    (1) Establish a local or toll-free telephone number to answer
questions and provide information on subscribers' rights and obligations
with regard to their use of pay-per-call services and to provide to
callers the name and mailing address of any provider of pay-per-call
services offered by that carrier; and
    (2) Provide to all its telephone subscribers, either directly or
through contract with any local exchange carrier providing billing and
collection services to that carrier, a disclosure statement setting
forth all rights and obligations of the subscriber and the carrier with
respect to the use and payment of pay-per-call services. Such statement
must include the prohibition against disconnection of basic
communications services for failure to pay pay-per-call charges
established by Sec. 64.1507, the right of a subscriber to obtain
blocking in accordance with Sec. 64.1508, the right of a subscriber not
to be billed for pay-per-call services not offered in compliance with
federal laws and regulations established by Sec. 64.1510(a)(1), and the
possibility that a subscriber's access to 900 services may be
involuntarily blocked pursuant to Sec. 64.1512 for failure to pay
legitimate pay-per-call charges. Disclosure statements must be forwarded
to:
    (i) All telephone subscribers no later than 60 days after these
regulations take effect;
    (ii) All new telephone subscribers no later than 60 days after
service is established;
    (iii) All telephone subscribers requesting service at a new location
no later than 60 days after service is established; and

[[Page 400]]

    (iv) Thereafter, to all subscribers at least once per calendar year,
at intervals of not less than 6 months nor more than 18 months.

[58 FR 44773, Aug. 25, 1993, as amended at 61 FR 55582, Oct. 28, 1996]



Sec. 64.1510  Billing and collection of pay-per-call and similar service
charges.

    (a) Any common carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call services and offering billing and collection
services to such provider shall:
    (1) Ensure that a subscriber is not billed for interstate pay-per-
call services that such carrier knows or reasonably should know were
provided in violation of the regulations set forth in this subpart or
prescribed by the Federal Trade Commission pursuant to titles II or III
of the TDDRA or any other federal law;
    (2) In any billing to telephone subscribers that includes charges
for any interstate pay-per-call service:
    (i) Include a statement indicating that:
    (A) Such charges are for non-communications services;
    (B) Neither local nor long distances services can be disconnected
for non-payment although an information provider may employ private
entities to seek to collect such charges;
    (C) 900 number blocking is available upon request; and
    (D) Access to pay-per-call services may be involuntarily blocked for
failure to pay legitimate charges;
    (ii) Display any charges for pay-per-call services in a part of the
bill that is identified as not being related to local and long distance
telephone charges;
    (iii) Specify, for each pay-per-call charge made, the type of
service, the amount of the charge, and the date, time, and, for calls
billed on a time-sensitive basis, the duration of the call; and
    (iv) Identify the local or toll-free number established in
accordance with Sec. 64.1509(b)(1).
    (b) Any common carrier offering billing and collection services to
an entity providing interstate information services on a collect basis
shall, to the extent possible, display the billing information in the
manner described in paragraphs (a)(2)(i), (A), (B), (D) and (a)(2)(ii)
of this section.
    (c) If a subscriber elects, pursuant to Sec. 64.1504(c)(1)(vi), to
pay by means of a phone bill for any information service provided by
through any 800 telephone number, or other telephone number advertised
or widely understood to be toll-free, the phone bill shall:
    (1) Include, in prominent type, the following disclaimer: ``Common
carriers may not disconnect local or long distance telephone service for
failure to pay disputed charges for information services;'' and
    (2) Clearly list the 800 or other toll-free number dialed.

[58 FR 44773, Aug. 25, 1993, as amended at 59 FR 46771, Sept. 12, 1994;
61 FR 39088, July 26, 1996]



Sec. 64.1511  Forgiveness of charges and refunds.

    (a) Any carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call services or providing transmission for
interstate information services provided pursuant to a presubscription
or comparable arrangement or on a collect basis, and providing billing
and collection for such services, shall establish procedures for the
handling of subscriber complaints regarding charges for those services.
A billing carrier is afforded discretion to set standards for
determining when a subscriber's complaint warrants forgiveness, refund
or credit of interstate pay-per-call or information services charges
provided that such charges must be forgiven, refunded, or credited when
a subscriber has complained about such charges and either this
Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, or a court of competent
jurisdiction has found or the carrier has determined, upon
investigation, that the service has been offered in violation of federal
law or the regulations that are either set forth in this subpart or
prescribed by the Federal Trade Commission pursuant to titles II or III
of the TDDRA. Carriers shall observe the record retention requirements
set forth in Sec. 42.6 of this chapter except that relevant records
shall be retained by carriers beyond the requirements of part 42 of this
chapter when a complaint is

[[Page 401]]

pending at the time the specified retention period expires.
    (b) Any carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call services but not providing billing and
collection services for such services, shall, by tariff or contract,
require that the provider and/or its billing and collection agents have
in place procedures whereby, upon complaint, pay-per-call charges may be
forgiven, refunded, or credited, provided that such charges must be
forgiven, refunded, or credited when a subscriber has complained about
such charges and either this Commission, the Federal Trade Commission,
or a court of competent jurisdiction has found or the carrier has
determined, upon investigation, that the service has been offered in
violation of federal law or the regulations that are either set forth in
this subpart or prescribed by the Federal Trade Commission pursuant to
titles II or III of the TDDRA.

[58 FR 44773, Aug. 25, 1993, as amended at 59 FR 46771, Sept. 12, 1994]



Sec. 64.1512  Involuntary blocking of pay-per-call services.

    Nothing in this subpart shall preclude a common carrier or
information provider from blocking or ordering the blocking of its
interstate pay-per-call programs from numbers assigned to subscribers
who have incurred, but not paid, legitimate pay-per-call charges, except
that a subscriber who has filed a complaint regarding a particular pay-
per-call program pursuant to procedures established by the Federal Trade
Commission under title III of the TDDRA shall not be involuntarily
blocked from access to that program while such a complaint is pending.
This restriction is not intended to preclude involuntary blocking when a
carrier or IP has decided in one instance to sustain charges against a
subscriber but that subscriber files additional separate complaints.



Sec. 64.1513  Verification of charitable status.

    Any common carrier assigning a telephone number to a provider of
interstate pay-per-call services that the carrier knows or reasonably
should know is engaged in soliciting charitable contributions shall
obtain verification that the entity or individual for whom contributions
are solicited has been granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue
Service.



Sec. 64.1514  Generation of signalling tones.

    No common carrier shall assign a telephone number for any pay-per-
call service that employs broadcast advertising which generates the
audible tones necessary to complete a call to a pay-per-call service.



Sec. 64.1515  Recovery of costs.

    No common carrier shall recover its cost of complying with the
provisions of this subpart from local or long distance ratepayers.



            Subpart P_Calling Party Telephone Number; Privacy

    Source: 59 FR 18319, Apr. 18, 1994, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.1600  Definitions.

    (a) Aggregate information. The term ``aggregate information'' means
collective data that relate to a group or category of services or
customers, from which individual customer identities or characteristics
have been removed.
    (b) ANI. The term ``ANI'' (automatic number identification) refers
to the delivery of the calling party's billing number by a local
exchange carrier to any interconnecting carrier for billing or routing
purposes, and to the subsequent delivery of such number to end users.
    (c) Caller identification information. The term ``caller
identification information'' means information provided by a caller
identification service regarding the telephone number of, or other
information regarding the origination of, a call made using a
telecommunications service or interconnected VoIP service.
    (d) Caller identification service. The term ``caller identification
service'' means any service or device designed to provide the user of
the service or device with the telephone number of, or

[[Page 402]]

other information regarding the origination of, a call made using a
telecommunications service or interconnected VoIP service.
    (e) Calling party number. The term ``Calling Party Number'' refers
to the subscriber line number or the directory number contained in the
calling party number parameter of the call set-up message associated
with an interstate call on a Signaling System 7 network.
    (f) Intermediate Provider. The term Intermediate Provider means any
entity that carries or processes traffic that traverses or will traverse
the PSTN at any point insofar as that entity neither originates nor
terminates that traffic.
    (g) Charge number. The term ``charge number'' refers to the delivery
of the calling party's billing number in a Signaling System 7
environment by a local exchange carrier to any interconnecting carrier
for billing or routing purposes, and to the subsequent delivery of such
number to end users.
    (h) Information regarding the origination. The term ``information
regarding the origination'' means any:
    (1) Telephone number;
    (2) Portion of a telephone number, such as an area code;
    (3) Name;
    (4) Location information;
    (5) Billing number information, including charge number, ANI, or
pseudo-ANI; or
    (6) Other information regarding the source or apparent source of a
telephone call.
    (i) Interconnected VoIP service. The term ``interconnected VoIP
service'' has the same meaning given the term ``interconnected VoIP
service'' in 47 CFR 9.3 as it currently exists or may hereafter be
amended.
    (j) Privacy indicator. The term ``Privacy Indicator'' refers to
information, contained in the calling party number parameter of the call
set-up message associated with an interstate call on an Signaling System
7 network, that indicates whether the calling party authorizes
presentation of the calling party number to the called party.
    (k) Signaling System 7. The term ``Signaling System 7'' (SS7) refers
to a carrier to carrier out-of-band signaling network used for call
routing, billing and management.

[60 FR 29490, June 5, 1995, as amended at 76 FR 43205, July 20, 2011; 76
FR 73882, Nov. 29, 2011]



Sec. 64.1601  Delivery requirements and privacy restrictions.

    (a) Delivery. Except as provided in paragraphs (d) and (e) of this
section:
    (1) Telecommunications carriers and providers of interconnected
Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) services, in originating interstate
or intrastate traffic on the public switched telephone network (PSTN) or
originating interstate or intrastate traffic that is destined for the
PSTN (collectively ``PSTN Traffic''), are required to transmit for all
PSTN Traffic the telephone number received from or assigned to or
otherwise associated with the calling party to the next provider in the
path from the originating provider to the terminating provider. This
provision applies regardless of the voice call signaling and
transmission technology used by the carrier or VoIP provider. Entities
subject to this provision that use Signaling System 7 (SS7) are required
to transmit the calling party number (CPN) associated with all PSTN
Traffic in the SS7 ISUP (ISDN User Part) CPN field to interconnecting
providers, and are required to transmit the calling party's charge
number (CN) in the SS7 ISUP CN field to interconnecting providers for
any PSTN Traffic where CN differs from CPN. Entities subject to this
provision who use multi-frequency (MF) signaling are required to
transmit CPN, or CN if it differs from CPN, associated with all PSTN
Traffic in the MF signaling automatic numbering information (ANI) field.
    (2) Intermediate providers within an interstate or intrastate call
path that originates and/or terminates on the PSTN must pass unaltered
to subsequent providers in the call path signaling information
identifying the telephone number, or billing number, if different, of
the calling party that is received with a call. This requirement applies
to SS7 information including but not limited to CPN and CN, and

[[Page 403]]

also applies to MF signaling information or other signaling information
intermediate providers receive with a call. This requirement also
applies to VoIP signaling messages, such as calling party and charge
information identifiers contained in Session Initiation Protocol (SIP)
header fields, and to equivalent identifying information as used in
other VoIP signaling technologies, regardless of the voice call
signaling and transmission technology used by the carrier or VoIP
provider.
    (b) Privacy. Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section,
originating carriers using Signaling System 7 and offering or
subscribing to any service based on Signaling System 7 functionality
will recognize *67 dialed as the first three digits of a call (or 1167
for rotary or pulse dialing phones) as a caller's request that the CPN
not be passed on an interstate call. Such carriers providing line
blocking services will recognize *82 as a caller's request that the CPN
be passed on an interstate call. No common carrier subscribing to or
offering any service that delivers CPN may override the privacy
indicator associated with an interstate call. Carriers must arrange
their CPN-based services, and billing practices, in such a manner that
when a caller requests that the CPN not be passed, a carrier may not
reveal that caller's number or name, nor may the carrier use the number
or name to allow the called party to contact the calling party. The
terminating carrier must act in accordance with the privacy indicator
unless the call is made to a called party that subscribes to an ANI or
charge number based service and the call is paid for by the called
party.
    (c) Charges. No common carrier subscribing to or offering any
service that delivers calling party number may
    (1) Impose on the calling party charges associated with per call
blocking of the calling party's telephone number, or
    (2) Impose charges upon connecting carriers for the delivery of the
calling party number parameter or its associated privacy indicator.
    (d) Exemptions. Section 64.1601(a) and (b) shall not apply when:
    (1) A call originates from a payphone.
    (2) A local exchange carrier with Signaling System 7 capability does
not have the software to provide *67 or *82 functionalities. Such
carriers are prohibited from passing CPN.
    (3) A Private Branch Exchange or Centrex system does not pass end
user CPN. Centrex systems that rely on *6 or *8 for a function other
than CPN blocking or unblocking, respectively, are also exempt if they
employ alternative means of blocking or unblocking.
    (4) CPN delivery--
    (i) Is used solely in connection with calls within the same limited
system, including (but not limited to) a Centrex system, virtual private
network, or Private Branch Exchange;
    (ii) Is used on a public agency's emergency telephone line or in
conjunction with 911 emergency services, or on any entity's emergency
assistance poison control telephone line; or
    (iii) Is provided in connection with legally authorized call tracing
or trapping procedures specifically requested by a law enforcement
agency.
    (e) Any person or entity that engages in telemarketing, as defined
in section 64.1200(f)(10) must transmit caller identification
information.
    (1) For purposes of this paragraph, caller identification
information must include either CPN or ANI, and, when available by the
telemarketer's carrier, the name of the telemarketer. It shall not be a
violation of this paragraph to substitute (for the name and phone number
used in, or billed for, making the call) the name of the seller on
behalf of which the telemarketing call is placed and the seller's
customer service telephone number. The telephone number so provided must
permit any individual to make a do-not-call request during regular
business hours.
    (2) Any person or entity that engages in telemarketing is prohibited
from blocking the transmission of caller identification information.
    (3) Tax-exempt nonprofit organizations are not required to comply
with this paragraph.

[60 FR 29490, June 5, 1995; 60 FR 54449, Oct. 24, 1995, as amended at 62
FR 34015, June 24, 1997; 68 FR 44179, July 25, 2003; 71 FR 75122, Dec.
14, 2006; 76 FR 73882, Nov. 29, 2011]

[[Page 404]]



Sec. 64.1602  Restrictions on use and sale of telephone subscriber
information provided pursuant to automatic number identification or

charge number services.

    (a) Any common carrier providing Automatic Number Identification or
charge number services on interstate calls to any person shall provide
such services under a contract or tariff containing telephone subscriber
information requirements that comply with this subpart. Such
requirements shall:
    (1) Permit such person to use the telephone number and billing
information for billing and collection, routing, screening, and
completion of the originating telephone subscriber's call or
transaction, or for services directly related to the originating
telephone subscriber's call or transaction;
    (2) Prohibit such person from reusing or selling the telephone
number or billing information without first
    (i) Notifying the originating telephone subscriber and,
    (ii) Obtaining the affirmative consent of such subscriber for such
reuse or sale; and,
    (3) Prohibit such person from disclosing, except as permitted by
paragraphs (a) (1) and (2) of this section, any information derived from
the automatic number identification or charge number service for any
purpose other than
    (i) Performing the services or transactions that are the subject of
the originating telephone subscriber's call,
    (ii) Ensuring network performance security, and the effectiveness of
call delivery,
    (iii) Compiling, using, and disclosing aggregate information, and
    (iv) Complying with applicable law or legal process.
    (b) The requirements imposed under paragraph (a) of the section
shall not prevent a person to whom automatic number identification or
charge number services are provided from using
    (1) The telephone number and billing information provided pursuant
to such service, and
    (2) Any information derived from the automatic number identification
or charge number service, or from the analysis of the characteristics of
a telecommunications transmission, to offer a product or service that is
directly related to the products or services previously acquired by that
customer from such person. Use of such information is subject to the
requirements of 47 CFR 64.1200 and 64.1504(c).

[60 FR 29490, June 5, 1995]



Sec. 64.1603  Customer notification.

    Any common carrier participating in the offering of services
providing calling party number, ANI, or charge number on interstate
calls must notify its subscribers, individually or in conjunction with
other carriers, that their telephone numbers may be identified to a
called party. Such notification must be made not later than December 1,
1995, and at such times thereafter as to ensure notice to subscribers.
The notification must be effective in informing subscribers how to
maintain privacy by dialing *67 (or 1167 for rotary or pulse-dialing
phones) on interstate calls. The notice shall inform subscribers whether
dialing *82 (or 1182 for rotary or pulse-dialing phones) on interstate
calls is necessary to present calling party number to called parties.
For ANI or charge number services for which such privacy is not
provided, the notification shall inform subscribers of the restrictions
on the reuse or sale of subscriber information.

[60 FR 29491, June 5, 1995; 60 FR 54449, Oct. 24, 1995]



Sec. 64.1604  Prohibition on transmission of inaccurate or misleading
caller identification information.

    (a) No person or entity in the United States shall, with the intent
to defraud, cause harm, or wrongfully obtain anything of value,
knowingly cause, directly or indirectly, any caller identification
service to transmit or display misleading or inaccurate caller
identification information.
    (b) Exemptions. Paragraph (a) of this section shall not apply to:
    (1) Lawfully authorized investigative, protective, or intelligence
activity of a law enforcement agency of the United States, a State, or a
political subdivision of a State, or of an intelligence agency of the
United States; or
    (2) Activity engaged in pursuant to a court order that specifically
authorizes

[[Page 405]]

the use of caller identification manipulation.
    (c) A person or entity that blocks or seeks to block a caller
identification service from transmitting or displaying that person or
entity's own caller identification information pursuant to Sec.
64.1601(b) of this part shall not be liable for violating the
prohibition in paragraph (a) of this section. This paragraph (c) does
not relieve any person or entity that engages in telemarketing, as
defined in Sec. 64.1200(f)(10) of this part, of the obligation to
transmit caller identification information under Sec. 64.1601(e).

[76 FR 43205, July 20, 2011]



Sec. 64.1605  Effective date.

    The provisions of Sec. Sec. 64.1600 and 64.1602 are effective April
12, 1995. The provisions of Sec. Sec. 64.1601 and 64.1603 are effective
December 1, 1995, except Sec. Sec. 64.1601 and 64.1603 do not apply to
public payphones and partylines until January 1, 1997.

[60 FR 29491, June 5, 1995; 60 FR 54449, Oct. 24, 1995. Redesignated at
76 FR 43205, July 20, 2011]



Subpart Q_Implementation of Section 273(d)(5) of the Communications Act:
            Dispute Resolution Regarding Equipment Standards

    Source: 61 FR 24903, May 17, 1996, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.1700  Purpose and scope.

    The purpose of this subpart is to implement the Telecommunications
Act of 1996 which amended the Communications Act by creating section
273(d)(5), 47 U.S.C. 273(d)(5). Section 273(d) sets forth procedures to
be followed by non-accredited standards development organizations when
these organizations set industry-wide standards and generic requirements
for telecommunications equipment or customer premises equipment. The
statutory procedures allow outside parties to fund and participate in
setting the organization's standards and require the organization and
the parties to develop a process for resolving any technical disputes.
In cases where all parties cannot agree to a mutually satisfactory
dispute resolution process, section 273(d)(5) requires the Commission to
prescribe a dispute resolution process.



Sec. 64.1701  Definitions.

    For purposes of this subpart, the terms accredited standards
development organization, funding party, generic requirement, and
industry-wide have the same meaning as found in 47 U.S.C. 273.



Sec. 64.1702  Procedures.

    If a non-accredited standards development organization (NASDO) and
the funding parties are unable to agree unanimously on a dispute
resolution process prior to publishing a text for comment pursuant to 47
U.S.C. 273(d)(4)(A)(v), a funding party may use the default dispute
resolution process set forth in section 64.1703.



Sec. 64.1703  Dispute resolution default process.

    (a) Tri-Partite Panel. Technical disputes governed by this section
shall be resolved in accordance with the recommendation of a three-
person panel, subject to a vote of the funding parties in accordance
with paragraph (b) of this section. Persons who participated in the
generic requirements or standards development process are eligible to
serve on the panel. The panel shall be selected and operate as follows:
    (1) Within two (2) days of the filing of a dispute with the NASDO
invoking the dispute resolution default process, both the funding party
seeking dispute resolution and the NASDO shall select a representative
to sit on the panel;
    (2) Within four (4) days of their selection, the two panelists shall
select a neutral third panel member to create a tri-partite panel;
    (3) The tri-partite panel shall, at a minimum, review the proposed
text of the NASDO and any explanatory material provided to the funding
parties by the NASDO, the comments and any alternative text provided by
the funding party seeking dispute resolution, any relevant standards
which have been established or which are under development by an
accredited-standards development organization, and any comments
submitted by other funding parties;

[[Page 406]]

    (4) Any party in interest submitting information to the panel for
consideration (including the NASDO, the party seeking dispute resolution
and the other funding parties) shall be asked by the panel whether there
is knowledge of patents, the use of which may be essential to the
standard or generic requirement being considered. The fact that the
question was asked along with any affirmative responses shall be
recorded, and considered, in the panel's recommendation; and
    (5) The tri-partite panel shall, within fifteen (15) days after
being established, decide by a majority vote, the issue or issues raised
by the party seeking dispute resolution and produce a report of their
decision to the funding parties. The tri-partite panel must adopt one of
the five options listed below:
    (i) The NASDO's proposal on the issue under consideration;
    (ii) The position of the party seeking dispute resolution on the
issue under consideration;
    (iii) A standard developed by an accredited standards development
organization that addresses the issue under consideration;
    (iv) A finding that the issue is not ripe for decision due to
insufficient technical evidence to support the soundness of any one
proposal over any other proposal; or
    (v) Any other resolution that is consistent with the standard
described in section 64.1703(a)(6).
    (6) The tri-partite panel must choose, from the five options
outlined above, the option that they believe provides the most
technically sound solution and base its recommendation upon the
substantive evidence presented to the panel. The panel is not precluded
from taking into account complexity of implementation and other
practical considerations in deciding which option is most technically
sound. Neither of the disputants (i.e., the NASDO and the funding party
which invokes the dispute resolution process) will be permitted to
participate in any decision to reject the mediation panel's
recommendation.
    (b) The tri-partite panel's recommendation(s) must be included in
the final industry-wide standard or industry-wide generic requirement,
unless three-fourths of the funding parties who vote decide within
thirty (30) days of the filing of the dispute to reject the
recommendation and accept one of the options specified in paragraphs
(a)(5) (i) through (v) of this section. Each funding party shall have
one vote.
    (c) All costs sustained by the tri-partite panel will be
incorporated into the cost of producing the industry-wide standard or
industry-wide generic requirement.



Sec. 64.1704  Frivolous disputes/penalties.

    (a) No person shall willfully refer a dispute to the dispute
resolution process under this subpart unless to the best of his
knowledge, information and belief there is good ground to support the
dispute and the dispute is not interposed for delay.
    (b) Any person who fails to comply with the requirements in
paragraph (a) of this section, may be subject to forfeiture pursuant to
section 503(b) of the Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. 503(b).



        Subpart R_Geographic Rate Averaging and Rate Integration

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 151, 154(i), 201-205, 214(e), 215
and 254(g).



Sec. 64.1801  Geographic rate averaging and rate integration.

    (a) The rates charged by providers of interexchange
telecommunications services to subscribers in rural and high-cost areas
shall be no higher than the rates charged by each such provider to its
subscribers in urban areas.
    (b) A provider of interstate interexchange telecommunications
services shall provide such services to its subscribers in each U.S.
state at rates no higher than the rates charged to its subscribers in
any other state.

[61 FR 42564, Aug. 16, 1996]

[[Page 407]]



  Subpart S_Nondominant Interexchange Carrier Certifications Regarding
       Geographic Rate Averaging and Rate Integration Requirements



Sec. 64.1900  Nondominant interexchange carrier certifications regarding
geographic rate averaging and rate integration requirements.

    (a) A nondominant provider of interexchange telecommunications
services, which provides detariffed interstate, domestic, interexchange
services, shall file with the Commission, on an annual basis, a
certification that it is providing such services in compliance with its
geographic rate averaging and rate integration obligations pursuant to
section 254(g) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (b) The certification filed pursuant to paragraph (a) of this
section shall be signed by an officer of the company under oath.

[61 FR 59366, Nov. 22, 1996]



  Subpart T_Separate Affiliate Requirements for Incumbent Independent
  Local Exchange Carriers That Provide In-Region, Interstate Domestic
Interexchange Services or In-Region International Interexchange Services

    Source: 62 FR 36017, July 3, 1997, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.1901  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. These rules are issued pursuant to the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of these rules is to regulate the provision
of in-region, interstate, domestic, interexchange services and in-region
international interexchange services by incumbent independent local
exchange carriers.



Sec. 64.1902  Terms and definitions.

    Terms used in this part have the following meanings:
    Books of account. Books of account refer to the financial accounting
system a company uses to record, in monetary terms, the basic
transactions of a company. These books of account reflect the company's
assets, liabilities, and equity, and the revenues and expenses from
operations. Each company has its own separate books of account.
    Incumbent Independent Local Exchange Carrier (Incumbent Independent
LEC). The term incumbent independent local exchange carrier means, with
respect to an area, the independent local exchange carrier that:
    (1) On February 8, 1996, provided telephone exchange service in such
area; and
    (2)(i) On February 8, 1996, was deemed to be a member of the
exchange carrier association pursuant to Sec. 69.601(b) of this title;
or
    (ii) Is a person or entity that, on or after February 8, 1996,
became a successor or assign of a member described in paragraph (2)(i)
of this section. The Commission may also, by rule, treat an independent
local exchange carrier as an incumbent independent local exchange
carrier pursuant to section 251(h)(2) of the Communications Act of 1934,
as amended.
    Independent Local Exchange Carrier (Independent LEC). Independent
local exchange carriers are local exchange carriers, including GTE,
other than the BOCs.
    Independent Local Exchange Carrier Affiliate (Independent LEC
Affiliate). An independent local exchange carrier affiliate is a carrier
that is owned (in whole or in part) or controlled by, or under common
ownership (in whole or in part) or control with, an independent local
exchange carrier.
    In-region service. In-region service means telecommunications
service originating in an independent local exchange carrier's local
service areas or 800 service, private line service, or their equivalents
that:
    (1) Terminate in the independent LEC's local exchange areas; and
    (2) Allow the called party to determine the interexchange carrier,
even if the service originates outside the independent LEC's local
exchange areas.
    Local Exchange Carrier. The term local exchange carrier means any
person that is engaged in the provision of

[[Page 408]]

telephone exchange service or exchange access. Such term does not
include a person insofar as such person is engaged in the provision of a
commercial mobile service under section 332(c), except to the extent
that the Commission finds that such service should be included in the
definition of that term.

[64 FR 44425, Aug. 16, 1999]



Sec. 64.1903  Obligations of all incumbent independent local exchange
carriers.

    (a) An incumbent independent LEC providing in-region, interstate,
interexchange services or in-region international interexchange services
shall provide such services through an affiliate that satisfies the
following requirements:
    (1) The affiliate shall maintain separate books of account from its
affiliated exchange companies. Nothing in this section requires the
affiliate to maintain separate books of account that comply with part 32
of this title;
    (2) The affiliate shall not jointly own transmission or switching
facilities with its affiliated exchange companies. Nothing in this
section prohibits an affiliate from sharing personnel or other resources
or assets with an affiliated exchange company; and
    (3) The affiliate shall acquire any services from its affiliated
exchange companies for which the affiliated exchange companies are
required to file a tariff at tariffed rates, terms, and conditions.
Nothing in this section shall prohibit the affiliate from acquiring any
unbundled network elements or exchange services for the provision of a
telecommunications service from its affiliated exchange companies,
subject to the same terms and conditions as provided in an agreement
approved under section 252 of the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended.
    (b) Except as provided in paragraph (b)(1) of this section, the
affiliate required in paragraph (a) of this section shall be a separate
legal entity from its affiliated exchange companies. The affiliate may
be staffed by personnel of its affiliated exchange companies, housed in
existing offices of its affiliated exchange companies, and use its
affiliated exchange companies' marketing and other services, subject to
paragraph (a)(3) of this section.
    (1) For an incumbent independent LEC that provides in-region,
interstate domestic interexchange services or in-region international
interexchange services using no interexchange switching or transmission
facilities or capability of the LEC's own (i.e., ``independent LEC
reseller,'') the affiliate required in paragraph (a) of this section may
be a separate corporate division of such incumbent independent LEC. All
other provisions of this Subpart applicable to an independent LEC
affiliate shall continue to apply, as applicable, to such separate
corporate division.
    (2) [Reserved]

[64 FR 44425, Aug. 16, 1999, as amended at 71 FR 65751, Nov. 9, 2006]



           Subpart U_Customer Proprietary Network Information

    Source: 63 FR 20338, Apr. 24, 1998, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.2001  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. The rules in this subpart are issued pursuant to the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of the rules in this subpart is to
implement section 222 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47
U.S.C. 222.



Sec. 64.2003  Definitions.

    (a) Account information. ``Account information'' is information that
is specifically connected to the customer's service relationship with
the carrier, including such things as an account number or any component
thereof, the telephone number associated with the account, or the bill's
amount.
    (b) Address of record. An ``address of record,'' whether postal or
electronic, is an address that the carrier has associated with the
customer's account for at least 30 days.
    (c) Affiliate. The term ``affiliate'' has the same meaning given
such term in section 3(1) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended,
47 U.S.C. 153(1).
    (d) Call detail information. Any information that pertains to the
transmission of specific telephone calls, including, for outbound calls,
the number

[[Page 409]]

called, and the time, location, or duration of any call and, for inbound
calls, the number from which the call was placed, and the time,
location, or duration of any call.
    (e) Communications-related services. The term ``communications-
related services'' means telecommunications services, information
services typically provided by telecommunications carriers, and services
related to the provision or maintenance of customer premises equipment.
    (f) Customer. A customer of a telecommunications carrier is a person
or entity to which the telecommunications carrier is currently providing
service.
    (g) Customer proprietary network information (CPNI). The term
``customer proprietary network information (CPNI)'' has the same meaning
given to such term in section 222(h)(1) of the Communications Act of
1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 222(h)(1).
    (h) Customer premises equipment (CPE). The term ``customer premises
equipment (CPE)'' has the same meaning given to such term in section
3(14) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153(14).
    (i) Information services typically provided by telecommunications
carriers. The phrase ``information services typically provided by
telecommunications carriers'' means only those information services (as
defined in section 3(20) of the Communication Act of 1934, as amended,
47 U.S.C. 153(20)) that are typically provided by telecommunications
carriers, such as Internet access or voice mail services. Such phrase
``information services typically provided by telecommunications
carriers,'' as used in this subpart, shall not include retail consumer
services provided using Internet Web sites (such as travel reservation
services or mortgage lending services), whether or not such services may
otherwise be considered to be information services.
    (j) Local exchange carrier (LEC). The term ``local exchange carrier
(LEC)'' has the same meaning given to such term in section 3(26) of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153(26).
    (k) Opt-in approval. The term ``opt-in approval'' refers to a method
for obtaining customer consent to use, disclose, or permit access to the
customer's CPNI. This approval method requires that the carrier obtain
from the customer affirmative, express consent allowing the requested
CPNI usage, disclosure, or access after the customer is provided
appropriate notification of the carrier's request consistent with the
requirements set forth in this subpart.
    (l) Opt-out approval. The term ``opt-out approval'' refers to a
method for obtaining customer consent to use, disclose, or permit access
to the customer's CPNI. Under this approval method, a customer is deemed
to have consented to the use, disclosure, or access to the customer's
CPNI if the customer has failed to object thereto within the waiting
period described in Sec. 64.2008(d)(1) after the customer is provided
appropriate notification of the carrier's request for consent consistent
with the rules in this subpart.
    (m) Readily available biographical information. ``Readily available
biographical information'' is information drawn from the customer's life
history and includes such things as the customer's social security
number, or the last four digits of that number; mother's maiden name;
home address; or date of birth.
    (n) Subscriber list information (SLI). The term ``subscriber list
information (SLI)'' has the same meaning given to such term in section
222(h)(3) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.
222(h)(3).
    (o) Telecommunications carrier or carrier. The terms
``telecommunications carrier'' or ``carrier'' shall have the same
meaning as set forth in section 3(44) of the Communications Act of 1934,
as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153(44). For the purposes of this subpart, the
term ``telecommunications carrier'' or ``carrier'' shall include an
entity that provides interconnected VoIP service, as that term is
defined in section 9.3 of these rules.
    (p) Telecommunications service. The term ``telecommunications
service'' has the same meaning given to such term in section 3(46) of
the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153(46).

[[Page 410]]

    (q) Telephone number of record. The telephone number associated with
the underlying service, not the telephone number supplied as a
customer's ``contact information.''
    (r) Valid photo ID. A ``valid photo ID'' is a government-issued
means of personal identification with a photograph such as a driver's
license, passport, or comparable ID that is not expired.

[72 FR 31961, June 8, 2007]



Sec. 64.2005  Use of customer proprietary network information without
customer approval.

    (a) Any telecommunications carrier may use, disclose, or permit
access to CPNI for the purpose of providing or marketing service
offerings among the categories of service (i.e., local, interexchange,
and CMRS) to which the customer already subscribes from the same
carrier, without customer approval.
    (1) If a telecommunications carrier provides different categories of
service, and a customer subscribes to more than one category of service
offered by the carrier, the carrier is permitted to share CPNI among the
carrier's affiliated entities that provide a service offering to the
customer.
    (2) If a telecommunications carrier provides different categories of
service, but a customer does not subscribe to more than one offering by
the carrier, the carrier is not permitted to share CPNI with its
affiliates, except as provided in Sec. 64.2007(b).
    (b) A telecommunications carrier may not use, disclose, or permit
access to CPNI to market to a customer service offerings that are within
a category of service to which the subscriber does not already subscribe
from that carrier, unless that carrier has customer approval to do so,
except as described in paragraph (c) of this section.
    (1) A wireless provider may use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI
derived from its provision of CMRS, without customer approval, for the
provision of CPE and information service(s). A wireline carrier may use,
disclose or permit access to CPNI derived from its provision of local
exchange service or interexchange service, without customer approval,
for the provision of CPE and call answering, voice mail or messaging,
voice storage and retrieval services, fax store and forward, and
protocol conversion.
    (2) A telecommunications carrier may not use, disclose or permit
access to CPNI to identify or track customers that call competing
service providers. For example, a local exchange carrier may not use
local service CPNI to track all customers that call local service
competitors.
    (c) A telecommunications carrier may use, disclose, or permit access
to CPNI, without customer approval, as described in this paragraph (c).
    (1) A telecommunications carrier may use, disclose, or permit access
to CPNI, without customer approval, in its provision of inside wiring
installation, maintenance, and repair services.
    (2) CMRS providers may use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI for
the purpose of conducting research on the health effects of CMRS.
    (3) LECs, CMRS providers, and entities that provide interconnected
VoIP service as that term is defined in Sec. 9.3 of this chapter, may
use CPNI, without customer approval, to market services formerly known
as adjunct-to-basic services, such as, but not limited to, speed
dialing, computer-provided directory assistance, call monitoring, call
tracing, call blocking, call return, repeat dialing, call tracking, call
waiting, caller I.D., call forwarding, and certain centrex features.
    (d) A telecommunications carrier may use, disclose, or permit access
to CPNI to protect the rights or property of the carrier, or to protect
users of those services and other carriers from fraudulent, abusive, or
unlawful use of, or subscription to, such services.

[63 FR 20338, Apr. 24, 1998, as amended at 64 FR 53264, Oct. 1, 1999; 67
FR 59211, Sept. 20, 2002; 72 FR 31962, June 8, 2007]



Sec. 64.2007  Approval required for use of customer proprietary network
information.

    (a) A telecommunications carrier may obtain approval through
written, oral or electronic methods.
    (1) A telecommunications carrier relying on oral approval shall bear
the burden of demonstrating that such approval has been given in
compliance

[[Page 411]]

with the Commission's rules in this part.
    (2) Approval or disapproval to use, disclose, or permit access to a
customer's CPNI obtained by a telecommunications carrier must remain in
effect until the customer revokes or limits such approval or
disapproval.
    (3) A telecommunications carrier must maintain records of approval,
whether oral, written or electronic, for at least one year.
    (b) Use of Opt-Out and Opt-In Approval Processes. A
telecommunications carrier may, subject to opt-out approval or opt-in
approval, use its customer's individually identifiable CPNI for the
purpose of marketing communications-related services to that customer. A
telecommunications carrier may, subject to opt-out approval or opt-in
approval, disclose its customer's individually identifiable CPNI, for
the purpose of marketing communications-related services to that
customer, to its agents and its affiliates that provide communications-
related services. A telecommunications carrier may also permit such
persons or entities to obtain access to such CPNI for such purposes.
Except for use and disclosure of CPNI that is permitted without customer
approval under section Sec. 64.2005, or that is described in this
paragraph, or as otherwise provided in section 222 of the Communications
Act of 1934, as amended, a telecommunications carrier may only use,
disclose, or permit access to its customer's individually identifiable
CPNI subject to opt-in approval.

[67 FR 59212, Sept. 20, 2002, as amended at 72 FR 31962, June 8, 2007]



Sec. 64.2008  Notice required for use of customer proprietary network
information.

    (a) Notification, Generally. (1) Prior to any solicitation for
customer approval, a telecommunications carrier must provide
notification to the customer of the customer's right to restrict use of,
disclosure of, and access to that customer's CPNI.
    (2) A telecommunications carrier must maintain records of
notification, whether oral, written or electronic, for at least one
year.
    (b) Individual notice to customers must be provided when soliciting
approval to use, disclose, or permit access to customers' CPNI.
    (c) Content of Notice. Customer notification must provide sufficient
information to enable the customer to make an informed decision as to
whether to permit a carrier to use, disclose, or permit access to, the
customer's CPNI.
    (1) The notification must state that the customer has a right, and
the carrier has a duty, under federal law, to protect the
confidentiality of CPNI.
    (2) The notification must specify the types of information that
constitute CPNI and the specific entities that will receive the CPNI,
describe the purposes for which CPNI will be used, and inform the
customer of his or her right to disapprove those uses, and deny or
withdraw access to CPNI at any time.
    (3) The notification must advise the customer of the precise steps
the customer must take in order to grant or deny access to CPNI, and
must clearly state that a denial of approval will not affect the
provision of any services to which the customer subscribes. However,
carriers may provide a brief statement, in clear and neutral language,
describing consequences directly resulting from the lack of access to
CPNI.
    (4) The notification must be comprehensible and must not be
misleading.
    (5) If written notification is provided, the notice must be clearly
legible, use sufficiently large type, and be placed in an area so as to
be readily apparent to a customer.
    (6) If any portion of a notification is translated into another
language, then all portions of the notification must be translated into
that language.
    (7) A carrier may state in the notification that the customer's
approval to use CPNI may enhance the carrier's ability to offer products
and services tailored to the customer's needs. A carrier also may state
in the notification that it may be compelled to disclose CPNI to any
person upon affirmative written request by the customer.
    (8) A carrier may not include in the notification any statement
attempting to encourage a customer to freeze third-party access to CPNI.

[[Page 412]]

    (9) The notification must state that any approval, or denial of
approval for the use of CPNI outside of the service to which the
customer already subscribes from that carrier is valid until the
customer affirmatively revokes or limits such approval or denial.
    (10) A telecommunications carrier's solicitation for approval must
be proximate to the notification of a customer's CPNI rights.
    (d) Notice Requirements Specific to Opt-Out. A telecommunications
carrier must provide notification to obtain opt-out approval through
electronic or written methods, but not by oral communication (except as
provided in paragraph (f) of this section). The contents of any such
notification must comply with the requirements of paragraph (c) of this
section.
    (1) Carriers must wait a 30-day minimum period of time after giving
customers notice and an opportunity to opt-out before assuming customer
approval to use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI. A carrier may, in
its discretion, provide for a longer period. Carriers must notify
customers as to the applicable waiting period for a response before
approval is assumed.
    (i) In the case of an electronic form of notification, the waiting
period shall begin to run from the date on which the notification was
sent; and
    (ii) In the case of notification by mail, the waiting period shall
begin to run on the third day following the date that the notification
was mailed.
    (2) Carriers using the opt-out mechanism must provide notices to
their customers every two years.
    (3) Telecommunications carriers that use e-mail to provide opt-out
notices must comply with the following requirements in addition to the
requirements generally applicable to notification:
    (i) Carriers must obtain express, verifiable, prior approval from
consumers to send notices via e-mail regarding their service in general,
or CPNI in particular;
    (ii) Carriers must allow customers to reply directly to e-mails
containing CPNI notices in order to opt-out;
    (iii) Opt-out e-mail notices that are returned to the carrier as
undeliverable must be sent to the customer in another form before
carriers may consider the customer to have received notice;
    (iv) Carriers that use e-mail to send CPNI notices must ensure that
the subject line of the message clearly and accurately identifies the
subject matter of the e-mail; and
    (v) Telecommunications carriers must make available to every
customer a method to opt-out that is of no additional cost to the
customer and that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Carriers may satisfy this requirement through a combination of methods,
so long as all customers have the ability to opt-out at no cost and are
able to effectuate that choice whenever they choose.
    (e) Notice Requirements Specific to Opt-In. A telecommunications
carrier may provide notification to obtain opt-in approval through oral,
written, or electronic methods. The contents of any such notification
must comply with the requirements of paragraph (c) of this section.
    (f) Notice Requirements Specific to One-Time Use of CPNI. (1)
Carriers may use oral notice to obtain limited, one-time use of CPNI for
inbound and outbound customer telephone contacts for the duration of the
call, regardless of whether carriers use opt-out or opt-in approval
based on the nature of the contact.
    (2) The contents of any such notification must comply with the
requirements of paragraph (c) of this section, except that
telecommunications carriers may omit any of the following notice
provisions if not relevant to the limited use for which the carrier
seeks CPNI:
    (i) Carriers need not advise customers that if they have opted-out
previously, no action is needed to maintain the opt-out election;
    (ii) Carriers need not advise customers that they may share CPNI
with their affiliates or third parties and need not name those entities,
if the limited CPNI usage will not result in use by, or disclosure to,
an affiliate or third party;
    (iii) Carriers need not disclose the means by which a customer can
deny or withdraw future access to CPNI, so long as carriers explain to
customers

[[Page 413]]

that the scope of the approval the carrier seeks is limited to one-time
use; and
    (iv) Carriers may omit disclosure of the precise steps a customer
must take in order to grant or deny access to CPNI, as long as the
carrier clearly communicates that the customer can deny access to his
CPNI for the call.

[67 FR 59212, Sept. 20, 2002]



Sec. 64.2009  Safeguards required for use of customer proprietary
network information.

    (a) Telecommunications carriers must implement a system by which the
status of a customer's CPNI approval can be clearly established prior to
the use of CPNI.
    (b) Telecommunications carriers must train their personnel as to
when they are and are not authorized to use CPNI, and carriers must have
an express disciplinary process in place.
    (c) All carriers shall maintain a record, electronically or in some
other manner, of their own and their affiliates' sales and marketing
campaigns that use their customers' CPNI. All carriers shall maintain a
record of all instances where CPNI was disclosed or provided to third
parties, or where third parties were allowed access to CPNI. The record
must include a description of each campaign, the specific CPNI that was
used in the campaign, and what products and services were offered as a
part of the campaign. Carriers shall retain the record for a minimum of
one year.
    (d) Telecommunications carriers must establish a supervisory review
process regarding carrier compliance with the rules in this subpart for
outbound marketing situations and maintain records of carrier compliance
for a minimum period of one year. Specifically, sales personnel must
obtain supervisory approval of any proposed outbound marketing request
for customer approval.
    (e) A telecommunications carrier must have an officer, as an agent
of the carrier, sign and file with the Commission a compliance
certificate on an annual basis. The officer must state in the
certification that he or she has personal knowledge that the company has
established operating procedures that are adequate to ensure compliance
with the rules in this subpart. The carrier must provide a statement
accompanying the certificate explaining how its operating procedures
ensure that it is or is not in compliance with the rules in this
subpart. In addition, the carrier must include an explanation of any
actions taken against data brokers and a summary of all customer
complaints received in the past year concerning the unauthorized release
of CPNI. This filing must be made annually with the Enforcement Bureau
on or before March 1 in EB Docket No. 06-36, for data pertaining to the
previous calendar year.
    (f) Carriers must provide written notice within five business days
to the Commission of any instance where the opt-out mechanisms do not
work properly, to such a degree that consumers' inability to opt-out is
more than an anomaly.
    (1) The notice shall be in the form of a letter, and shall include
the carrier's name, a description of the opt-out mechanism(s) used, the
problem(s) experienced, the remedy proposed and when it will be/was
implemented, whether the relevant state commission(s) has been notified
and whether it has taken any action, a copy of the notice provided to
customers, and contact information.
    (2) Such notice must be submitted even if the carrier offers other
methods by which consumers may opt-out.

[63 FR 20338, Apr. 24, 1998, as amended at 64 FR 53264, Oct. 1, 1999; 67
FR 59213, Sept. 20, 2002; 72 FR 31962, June 8, 2007]



Sec. 64.2010  Safeguards on the disclosure of customer proprietary
network information.

    (a) Safeguarding CPNI. Telecommunications carriers must take
reasonable measures to discover and protect against attempts to gain
unauthorized access to CPNI. Telecommunications carriers must properly
authenticate a customer prior to disclosing CPNI based on customer-
initiated telephone contact, online account access, or an in-store
visit.
    (b) Telephone access to CPNI. Telecommunications carriers may only
disclose call detail information over the telephone, based on customer-
initiated

[[Page 414]]

telephone contact, if the customer first provides the carrier with a
password, as described in paragraph (e) of this section, that is not
prompted by the carrier asking for readily available biographical
information, or account information. If the customer does not provide a
password, the telecommunications carrier may only disclose call detail
information by sending it to the customer's address of record, or by
calling the customer at the telephone number of record. If the customer
is able to provide call detail information to the telecommunications
carrier during a customer-initiated call without the telecommunications
carrier's assistance, then the telecommunications carrier is permitted
to discuss the call detail information provided by the customer.
    (c) Online access to CPNI. A telecommunications carrier must
authenticate a customer without the use of readily available
biographical information, or account information, prior to allowing the
customer online access to CPNI related to a telecommunications service
account. Once authenticated, the customer may only obtain online access
to CPNI related to a telecommunications service account through a
password, as described in paragraph (e) of this section, that is not
prompted by the carrier asking for readily available biographical
information, or account information.
    (d) In-store access to CPNI. A telecommunications carrier may
disclose CPNI to a customer who, at a carrier's retail location, first
presents to the telecommunications carrier or its agent a valid photo ID
matching the customer's account information.
    (e) Establishment of a Password and Back-up Authentication Methods
for Lost or Forgotten Passwords. To establish a password, a
telecommunications carrier must authenticate the customer without the
use of readily available biographical information, or account
information. Telecommunications carriers may create a back-up customer
authentication method in the event of a lost or forgotten password, but
such back-up customer authentication method may not prompt the customer
for readily available biographical information, or account information.
If a customer cannot provide the correct password or the correct
response for the back-up customer authentication method, the customer
must establish a new password as described in this paragraph.
    (f) Notification of account changes. Telecommunications carriers
must notify customers immediately whenever a password, customer response
to a back-up means of authentication for lost or forgotten passwords,
online account, or address of record is created or changed. This
notification is not required when the customer initiates service,
including the selection of a password at service initiation. This
notification may be through a carrier-originated voicemail or text
message to the telephone number of record, or by mail to the address of
record, and must not reveal the changed information or be sent to the
new account information.
    (g) Business customer exemption. Telecommunications carriers may
bind themselves contractually to authentication regimes other than those
described in this section for services they provide to their business
customers that have both a dedicated account representative and a
contract that specifically addresses the carriers' protection of CPNI.

[72 FR 31962, June 8, 2007]



Sec. 64.2011  Notification of customer proprietary network information
security breaches.

    (a) A telecommunications carrier shall notify law enforcement of a
breach of its customers' CPNI as provided in this section. The carrier
shall not notify its customers or disclose the breach publicly, whether
voluntarily or under state or local law or these rules, until it has
completed the process of notifying law enforcement pursuant to paragraph
(b) of this section.
    (b) As soon as practicable, and in no event later than seven (7)
business days, after reasonable determination of the breach, the
telecommunications carrier shall electronically notify the United States
Secret Service (USSS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
through a central reporting facility. The Commission will maintain

[[Page 415]]

a link to the reporting facility at http://www.fcc.gov/eb/cpni.
    (1) Notwithstanding any state law to the contrary, the carrier shall
not notify customers or disclose the breach to the public until 7 full
business days have passed after notification to the USSS and the FBI
except as provided in paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(3) of this section.
    (2) If the carrier believes that there is an extraordinarily urgent
need to notify any class of affected customers sooner than otherwise
allowed under paragraph (b)(1) of this section, in order to avoid
immediate and irreparable harm, it shall so indicate in its notification
and may proceed to immediately notify its affected customers only after
consultation with the relevant investigating agency. The carrier shall
cooperate with the relevant investigating agency's request to minimize
any adverse effects of such customer notification.
    (3) If the relevant investigating agency determines that public
disclosure or notice to customers would impede or compromise an ongoing
or potential criminal investigation or national security, such agency
may direct the carrier not to so disclose or notify for an initial
period of up to 30 days. Such period may be extended by the agency as
reasonably necessary in the judgment of the agency. If such direction is
given, the agency shall notify the carrier when it appears that public
disclosure or notice to affected customers will no longer impede or
compromise a criminal investigation or national security. The agency
shall provide in writing its initial direction to the carrier, any
subsequent extension, and any notification that notice will no longer
impede or compromise a criminal investigation or national security and
such writings shall be contemporaneously logged on the same reporting
facility that contains records of notifications filed by carriers.
    (c) Customer notification. After a telecommunications carrier has
completed the process of notifying law enforcement pursuant to paragraph
(b) of this section, it shall notify its customers of a breach of those
customers' CPNI.
    (d) Recordkeeping. All carriers shall maintain a record,
electronically or in some other manner, of any breaches discovered,
notifications made to the USSS and the FBI pursuant to paragraph (b) of
this section, and notifications made to customers. The record must
include, if available, dates of discovery and notification, a detailed
description of the CPNI that was the subject of the breach, and the
circumstances of the breach. Carriers shall retain the record for a
minimum of 2 years.
    (e) Definitions. As used in this section, a ``breach'' has occurred
when a person, without authorization or exceeding authorization, has
intentionally gained access to, used, or disclosed CPNI.
    (f) This section does not supersede any statute, regulation, order,
or interpretation in any State, except to the extent that such statute,
regulation, order, or interpretation is inconsistent with the provisions
of this section, and then only to the extent of the inconsistency.

[72 FR 31963, June 8, 2007]



 Subpart V_Recording, Retention and Reporting of Data on Long-Distance
 Telephone Calls to Rural Areas and Reporting of Data on Long-Distance
                    Telephone Calls to Nonrural Areas

    Source: 78 FR 76239, Dec. 17, 2013, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.2101  Definitions.

    For purposes of this subpart, the following definitions will apply:
    Affiliate. The term ``affiliate'' has the same meaning as in 47
U.S.C. 153(2).
    Call attempt. The term ``call attempt'' means a call that results in
transmission by the covered provider toward an incumbent local exchange
carrier (LEC) of the initial call setup message, regardless of the voice
call signaling and transmission technology used.
    Covered provider. The term ``covered provider'' means a provider of
long-distance voice service that makes the initial long-distance call
path choice for more than 100,000 domestic retail subscriber lines,
counting the total of all

[[Page 416]]

business and residential fixed subscriber lines and mobile phones and
aggregated over all of the providers' affiliates. A covered provider may
be a local exchange carrier as defined in Sec. 64.4001(e), an
interexchange carrier as defined in Sec. 64.4001(d), a provider of
commercial mobile radio service as defined in Sec. 20.3 of this
chapter, a provider of interconnected voice over Internet Protocol
(VoIP) service as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153(25), or a provider of non-
interconnected VoIP service as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153(36) to the
extent such a provider offers the capability to place calls to the
public switched telephone network.
    Initial long-distance call path choice. The term ``initial long-
distance call path choice'' means the static or dynamic selection of the
path for a long-distance call based on the called number of the
individual call.
    Intermediate provider. The term ``intermediate provider'' has the
same meaning as in Sec. 64.1600(f).
    Long-distance voice service. The term ``long-distance voice
service'' includes interstate interLATA, intrastate interLATA,
interstate interexchange, intrastate interexchange, inter-MTA interstate
and inter-MTA intrastate voice services.
    Operating company number (OCN). The term ``operating company
number'' means a four-place alphanumeric code that uniquely identifies a
local exchange carrier.
    Rural OCN. The term ``rural OCN'' means an operating company number
that uniquely identifies an incumbent LEC (as defined in Sec. 51.5 of
this chapter) that is a rural telephone company (as defined in Sec.
51.5 of this chapter). The term ``nonrural OCN'' means an operating
company number that uniquely identifies an incumbent LEC (as defined in
Sec. 51.5 of this chapter) that is not a rural telephone company (as
defined in Sec. 51.5 of this chapter). We direct NECA to update the
lists of rural and nonrural OCNs annually and provide them to the
Wireline Competition Bureau in time for the Bureau to publish the lists
no later than November 15. These lists will be the definitive lists of
rural OCNs and nonrural OCNs for purposes of this subpart for the
following calendar year.



Sec. 64.2103  Retention of call attempt records.

    (a) Except as described in Sec. 64.2107, each covered provider
shall record and retain information about each call attempt to a rural
OCN from subscriber lines for which the covered provider makes the
initial long-distance call path choice in a readily retrievable form for
a period that includes the six most recent complete calendar months.
    (b) Affiliated covered providers may record and retain the
information required by this rule individually or in the aggregate.
    (c) A call attempt that is returned by an intermediate provider to
the covered provider and reassigned shall count as a single call
attempt.
    (d) Call attempts to toll-free numbers, as defined in Sec.
52.101(f) of this chapter, are excluded from these requirements.
    (e) The information contained in each record shall include:
    (1) The calling party number;
    (2) The called party number;
    (3) The date;
    (4) The time;
    (5) An indication whether the call attempt was handed off to an
intermediate provider or not and, if so, which intermediate provider;
    (6) The rural OCN associated with the called party number;
    (7) An indication whether the call attempt was interstate or
intrastate;
    (8) An indication whether the call attempt was answered, which may
take the form of an SS7 signaling cause code or SIP signaling message
code associated with each call attempt; and
    (9) An indication whether the call attempt was completed to the
incumbent local exchange carrier but signaled as busy, ring no answer,
or unassigned number. This indication may take the form of an SS7
signaling cause code or SIP signaling message code associated with each
call attempt.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 76239, Dec. 17, 2013, Sec. 64.2103
was added. This section contains information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.

[[Page 417]]



Sec. 64.2105  Reporting requirements.

    (a) Except as described in Sec. 64.2107, each covered provider
shall submit a certified report to the Commission in electronic form on
the following quarterly schedule: February 1 (reflecting monthly data
from October through December), May 1 (reflecting monthly data from
January through March), August 1 (reflecting monthly data from April
through June), and November 1 (reflecting monthly data from July through
September). An officer or director of each covered provider must certify
to the accuracy of each report.
    (b) The information contained in the certified report shall include
the following information about subscriber lines for which the covered
provider makes the initial long-distance call path choice, reported
separately for each month in that quarter:
    (1) For each rural OCN:
    (i) The OCN;
    (ii) The State;
    (iii) The number of interstate call attempts;
    (iv) The number of interstate call attempts that were answered;
    (v) The number of interstate call attempts that were not answered,
reported separately for call attempts signaled as busy, ring no answer,
or unassigned number;
    (vi) The number of intrastate call attempts;
    (vii) The number of intrastate call attempts that were answered; and
    (viii) The number of intrastate call attempts that were not
answered, reported separately for call attempts signaled as busy, ring
no answer, or unassigned number.
    (2) For nonrural OCNs in the aggregate:
    (i) The number of interstate call attempts;
    (ii) The number of interstate call attempts that were answered;
    (iii) The number of interstate call attempts that were not answered,
reported separately for call attempts signaled as busy, ring no answer,
or unassigned number;
    (iv) The number of intrastate call attempts;
    (v) The number of intrastate call attempts that were answered; and
    (vi) The number of intrastate call attempts that were not answered,
reported separately for call attempts signaled as busy, ring no answer,
or unassigned number.
    (c) In reporting the information described in paragraph (b) of this
section, a covered provider may disaggregate calls originated by
automatic telephone dialing systems (as defined in Sec. 64.1200(f)) if
it includes an explanation of the method used to identify those calls.
    (d) Affiliated covered providers may report this information
individually or in the aggregate.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 76239, Dec. 17, 2013, Sec. 64.2105
was added. This section contains information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.2107  Reduced retention and reporting requirements for
qualifying providers under the Safe Harbor.

    (a)(1) A covered provider may reduce its retention and reporting
obligations under this subpart if it files one of the following
certifications, signed by an officer or director of the covered provider
regarding the accuracy and completeness of the information provided, in
WC Docket No. 13-39 on any of the four quarterly filing dates
established in Sec. 64.2105 and annually thereafter.
    I ------ (name), ------ (title), an officer of ------ (entity),
certify that------ (entity) uses no intermediate providers;
    or
    I ------ (name), ------ (title), an officer of ------ (entity),
certify that------ (entity) restricts by contract any intermediate
provider to which a call is directed by ------ (entity) from permitting
more than one additional intermediate provider in the call path before
the call reaches the terminating provider or terminating tandem. I
certify that any nondisclosure agreement with an intermediate provider
permits ------ (entity) to reveal the identity of the intermediate
provider and any additional intermediate provider to the Commission and
to the rural incumbent local exchange carrier(s) whose incoming long-
distance calls are affected by the intermediate provider's

[[Page 418]]

performance. I certify that ------ (entity) has a process in place to
monitor the performance of its intermediate providers.
    (2) Covered providers that file the second certification must
describe the process they have in place to monitor the performance of
their intermediate providers.
    (b) A covered provider that meets the requirements described in
paragraph (a) of this section must comply with the data retention
requirements in Sec. 64.2103 for a period that includes only the three
most recent complete calendar months, so long as it continues to meet
the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section. A covered provider
that ceases to meet the requirements described in paragraph (a) of this
must immediately begin retaining data for six months, as required by
Sec. 64.2103.
    (c) A covered provider that meets the requirements described in
paragraph (a) of this section must comply with the reporting
requirements in Sec. 64.2105 for a period of one year commencing when
it first filed the certification described in paragraph (a) of this
section, so long as it continues to meet those paragraph (a) of this
section requirements. A covered provider that ceases to meet the
requirements described in paragraph (a) of this section must begin
filing the reports required by Sec. 64.2105 on the next filing
deadline.
    (d) Affiliated covered providers may meet the requirements of
paragraph (a) of this section individually or in the aggregate.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 76239, Dec. 17, 2013, Sec. 64.2107
was added. This section contains information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.2109  Disclosure of data.

    (a) Providers subject to the reporting requirements in Sec. 64.2105
of this chapter may make requests for Commission nondisclosure of the
data submitted under Sec. 0.459 of this chapter by so indicating on the
report at the time that the data are submitted.
    (b) The Chief of the Wireline Competition Bureau will release
information to states upon request, if the states are able to maintain
the confidentiality of this information.



                   Subpart W_Ring Signaling Integrity

    Source: 78 FR 76241, Dec. 17, 2013, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.2201  Ringing indication requirements.

    (a) A long-distance voice service provider shall not convey a
ringing indication to the calling party until the terminating provider
has signaled that the called party is being alerted to an incoming call,
such as by ringing.
    (1) If the terminating provider signals that the called party is
being alerted and provides an audio tone or announcement, originating
providers must cease any locally generated audible tone or announcement
and convey the terminating provider's tone or announcement to the
calling party.
    (2) The requirements in this paragraph apply to all voice call
signaling and transmission technologies and to all long-distance voice
service providers, including local exchange carriers as defined in Sec.
64.4001(e), interexchange carriers as defined in Sec. 64.4001(d),
providers of commercial mobile radio service as defined in Sec. 20.3 of
this chapter, providers of interconnected voice over Internet Protocol
(VoIP) service as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153(25), and providers of non-
interconnected VoIP service as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153(36) to the
extent such providers offer the capability to place calls to or receive
calls from the public switched telephone network.
    (b) Intermediate providers must return unaltered to providers in the
call path any signaling information that indicates that the terminating
provider is alerting the called party, such as by ringing.
    (1) An intermediate provider may not generate signaling information
that indicates the terminating provider is alerting the called party. An
intermediate provider must pass the signaling information indicating
that the called party is being alerted unaltered to subsequent providers
in the call path.

[[Page 419]]

    (2) Intermediate providers must also return unaltered any audio tone
or announcement provided by the terminating provider.
    (3) In this section, the term ``intermediate provider'' has the same
meaning as in Sec. 64.1600(f).
    (4) The requirements in this section apply to all voice call
signaling and transmission technologies.
    (c) The requirements in paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section apply
to both interstate and intrastate calls, as well as to both originating
and terminating international calls while they are within the United
States.



                  Subpart X_Subscriber List Information

    Source: 64 FR 53947, Oct. 5, 2000, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.2301  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. These rules are issued pursuant to the Communications Act
of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of these rules is to implement section
222(e) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 222.
Section 222(e) requires that ``a telecommunications carrier that
provides telephone exchange service shall provide subscriber list
information gathered in its capacity as a provider of such service on a
timely and unbundled basis, under nondiscriminatory and reasonable
rates, terms, and conditions, to any person upon request for the purpose
of publishing directories in any format.''



Sec. 64.2305  Definitions.

    Terms used in this subpart have the following meanings:
    (a) Base file subscriber list information. A directory publisher
requests base file subscriber list information when the publisher
requests, as of a given date, all of a carrier's subscriber list
information that the publisher wishes to include in one or more
directories.
    (b) Business subscriber. Business subscriber refers to a subscriber
to telephone exchange service for businesses.
    (c) Primary advertising classification. A primary advertising
classification is the principal business heading under which a
subscriber to telephone exchange service for businesses chooses to be
listed in the yellow pages, if the carrier either assigns that heading
or is obligated to provide yellow pages listings as part of telephone
exchange service to businesses. In other circumstances, a primary
advertising classification is the classification of a subscriber to
telephone exchange service as a business subscriber.
    (d) Residential subscriber. Residential subscriber refers to a
subscriber to telephone exchange service that is not a business
subscriber.
    (e) Subscriber list information. Subscriber list information is any
information:
    (1) Identifying the listed names of subscribers of a carrier and
such subscribers' telephone numbers, addresses, or primary advertising
classifications (as such classifications are assigned at the time of the
establishment of such service), or any combination of such listed names,
numbers, addresses, or classifications; and
    (2) That the carrier or an affiliate has published, caused to be
published, or accepted for publication in any directory format.
    (f) Telecommunications carrier. A telecommunications carrier is any
provider of telecommunications services, except that such term does not
include aggregators of telecommunications services (as defined in 47
U.S.C. 226(a)(2)).
    (g) Telephone exchange service. Telephone exchange service means:
    (1) Service within a telephone exchange, or within a connected
system of telephone exchanges within the same exchange area operated to
furnish to subscribers intercommunicating service of the character
ordinarily furnished by a single exchange, and which is covered by the
exchange service charge, or
    (B) Comparable service provided through a system of switches,
transmission equipment, or other facilities (or combination thereof) by
which a subscriber can originate and terminate a telecommunications
service.
    (h) Updated subscriber list information. A directory publisher
requests updated subscriber list information when the publisher requests
changes to all or any part of a carrier's subscriber list

[[Page 420]]

information occurring between specified dates.



Sec. 64.2309  Provision of subscriber list information.

    (a) A telecommunications carrier that provides telephone exchange
service shall provide subscriber list information gathered in its
capacity as a provider of such service on a timely and unbundled basis,
under nondiscriminatory and reasonable rates, terms, and conditions, to
any person upon request for the purpose of publishing directories in any
format.
    (b) The obligation under paragraph (a) to provide a particular
telephone subscriber's subscriber list information extends only to the
carrier that provides that subscriber with telephone exchange service.



Sec. 64.2313  Timely basis.

    (a) For purposes of Sec. 64.2309, a telecommunications carrier
provides subscriber list information on a timely basis only if the
carrier provides the requested information to the requesting directory
publisher either:
    (1) At the time at which, or according to the schedule under which,
the directory publisher requests that the subscriber list information be
provided;
    (2) When the carrier does not receive at least thirty days advance
notice of the time the directory publisher requests that subscriber list
information be provided, on the first business day that is at least
thirty days from date the carrier receives that request; or
    (3) At a time determined in accordance with paragraph (b) of this
section.
    (b) If a carrier's internal systems do not permit the carrier to
provide subscriber list information within either of the time frames
specified in paragraph (a)(1) of this section, the carrier shall:
    (1) Within thirty days of receiving the publisher's request, inform
the directory publisher that the requested schedule cannot be
accommodated and tell the directory publisher which schedules can be
accommodated; and
    (2) Adhere to the schedule the directory publisher chooses from
among the available schedules.



Sec. 64.2317  Unbundled basis.

    (a) A directory publisher may request that a carrier unbundle
subscriber list information on any basis for the purpose of publishing
one or more directories.
    (b) For purposes of Sec. 64.2309, a telecommunications carrier
provides subscriber list information on an unbundled basis only if the
carrier provides:
    (1) The listings the directory publisher requests and no other
listings, products, or services; or
    (2) Subscriber list information on a basis determined in accordance
with paragraph (c) of this section.
    (c) If the carrier's internal systems do not permit it unbundle
subscriber list information on the basis a directory publisher requests,
the carrier must:
    (1) Within thirty days of receiving the publisher's request, inform
the directory publisher that it cannot unbundle subscriber list
information on the requested basis and tell the directory publisher the
bases on which the carrier can unbundle subscriber list information; and
    (2) In accordance with paragraph (d) of this section, provide
subscriber list information to the directory publisher unbundled on the
basis the directory publisher chooses from among the available bases.
    (d) If a carrier provides a directory publisher listings in addition
to those the directory publisher requests, the carrier may impose
charges for, and the directory publisher may publish, only the requested
listings.
    (e) A carrier must not require directory publishers to purchase any
product or service other than subscriber list information as a condition
of obtaining subscriber list information.



Sec. 64.2321  Nondiscriminatory rates, terms, and conditions.

    For purposes of Sec. 64.2309, a telecommunications carrier provides
subscriber list information under nondiscriminatory rates, terms, and
conditions only if the carrier provides subscriber list information
gathered in its capacity as a provider of telephone exchange service to
a requesting directory publisher at the same rates,

[[Page 421]]

terms, and conditions that the carrier provides the information to its
own directory publishing operation, its directory publishing affiliate,
or other directory publishers.



Sec. 64.2325  Reasonable rates, terms, and conditions.

    (a) For purposes of Sec. 64.2309, a telecommunications carrier will
be presumed to provide subscriber list information under reasonable
rates if its rates are no more than $0.04 a listing for base file
subscriber list information and no more than $0.06 a listing for updated
subscriber list information.
    (b) For purposes of Sec. 64.2309, a telecommunications carrier
provides subscriber list information under reasonable terms and
conditions only if the carrier does not restrict a directory publisher's
choice of directory format.



Sec. 64.2329  Format.

    (a) A carrier shall provide subscriber list information obtained in
its capacity as a provider of telephone exchange service to a requesting
directory publisher in the format the publisher specifies, if the
carrier's internal systems can accommodate that format.
    (b) If a carrier's internal systems do not permit the carrier to
provide subscriber list information in the format the directory
publisher specifies, the carrier shall:
    (1) Within thirty days of receiving the publisher's request, inform
the directory publisher that the requested format cannot be accommodated
and tell the directory publisher which formats can be accommodated; and
    (2) Provide the requested subscriber list information in the format
the directory publisher chooses from among the available formats.



Sec. 64.2333  Burden of proof.

    (a) In any future proceeding arising under section 222(e) of the
Communications Act or Sec. 64.2309, the burden of proof will be on the
carrier to the extent it claims its internal subscriber list information
systems cannot accommodate the delivery time, delivery schedule,
unbundling level, or format requested by a directory publisher.
    (b) In any future proceeding arising under section 222(e) of the
Communications Act or Sec. 64.2309, the burden of proof will be on the
carrier to the extent it seeks a rate exceeding $0.04 per listing for
base file subscriber list information or $0.06 per listing for updated
subscriber list information.



Sec. 64.2337  Directory publishing purposes.

    (a) Except to the extent the carrier and directory publisher
otherwise agree, a directory publisher shall use subscriber list
information obtained pursuant to section 222(e) of the Communications
Act or Sec. 64.2309 only for the purpose of publishing directories.
    (b) A directory publisher uses subscriber list information ``for the
purpose of publishing directories'' if the publisher includes that
information in a directory, or uses that information to determine what
information should be included in a directory, solicit advertisers for a
directory, or deliver directories.
    (c) A telecommunications carrier may require any person requesting
subscriber list information pursuant to section 222(e) of the
Communications Act or Sec. 64.2309 to certify that the publisher will
use the information only for purposes of publishing a directory.
    (d) A carrier must provide subscriber list information to a
requesting directory publisher even if the carrier believes that the
directory publisher will use that information for purposes other than or
in addition to directory publishing.



Sec. 64.2341  Record keeping.

    (a) A telecommunications carrier must retain, for at least one year
after its expiration, each written contract that it has executed for the
provision of subscriber list information for directory publishing
purposes to itself, an affiliate, or an entity that publishes
directories on the carrier's behalf.
    (b) A telecommunications carrier must maintain, for at least one
year after the carrier provides subscriber list information for
directory publishing purposes to itself, an affiliate, or an entity that
publishes directories on the carrier's behalf, records of any of its
rates, terms, and conditions for

[[Page 422]]

providing that subscriber list information which are not set forth in a
written contract.
    (c) Except to the extent specified in paragraph (d), a carrier shall
make the contracts and records described in paragraphs (a) and (b)
available, upon request, to the Commission and to any directory
publisher that requests those contracts and records for the purpose of
publishing a directory.
    (d) A carrier need not disclose to a directory publisher pursuant to
paragraph (c) portions of requested contracts that are wholly unrelated
to the rates, terms, or conditions under which the carrier provides
subscriber list information to itself, an affiliate, or an entity that
publishes directories on the carrier's behalf.
    (e) A carrier may subject its disclosure of subscriber list
information contracts or records to a directory publisher pursuant to
paragraph (c) to a confidentiality agreement that limits access to and
use of the information to the purpose of determining the rates, terms,
and conditions under which the carrier provides subscriber list
information to itself, an affiliate, or an entity that publishes
directories on the carrier's behalf.

[28 FR 13239, Dec. 5, 1963, as amended at 69 FR 62816, Oct. 28, 2004]



Sec. 64.2345  Primary advertising classification.

    A primary advertising classification is assigned at the time of the
establishment of telephone exchange service if the carrier that provides
telephone exchange service assigns the classification or if a tariff or
State requirement obligates the carrier to provide yellow pages listings
as part of telephone exchange service to businesses.



Subpart Y_Truth-in-Billing Requirements for Common Carriers; Billing for
                          Unauthorized Charges

    Source: 64 FR 34497, June 25, 1999, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.2400  Purpose and scope.

    (a) The purpose of these rules is to reduce slamming and other
telecommunications fraud by setting standards for bills for
telecommunications service. These rules are also intended to aid
customers in understanding their telecommunications bills, and to
provide them with the tools they need to make informed choices in the
market for telecommunications service.
    (b) These rules shall apply to all telecommunications common
carriers and to all bills containing charges for intrastate or
interstate services, except as follows:
    (1) Sections 64.2401(a)(2), 64.2401(a)(3), 64.2401(c), and
64.2401(f) shall not apply to providers of Commercial Mobile Radio
Service as defined in Sec. 20.9 of this chapter, or to other providers
of mobile service as defined in Sec. 20.7 of this chapter, unless the
Commission determines otherwise in a further rulemaking.
    (2) Sections 64.2401(a)(3) and 64.2401(f) shall not apply to bills
containing charges only for intrastate services.
    (c) Preemptive effect of rules. The requirements contained in this
subpart are not intended to preempt the adoption or enforcement of
consistent truth-in-billing requirements by the states.

[64 FR 34497, June 25, 1999; 64 FR 56177, Oct. 18, 1999; 65 FR 36637,
June 9, 2000, as amended at 65 FR 43258, July 13, 2000; 69 FR 34950,
June 23, 2004; 70 FR 29983, May 25, 2005; 77 FR 30919, May 24, 2012]



Sec. 64.2401  Truth-in-Billing Requirements.

    (a) Bill organization. Telephone bills shall be clearly organized,
and must comply with the following requirements:
    (1) The name of the service provider associated with each charge
must be clearly and conspicuously identified on the telephone bill.
    (2) Where charges for two or more carriers appear on the same
telephone bill, the charges must be separated by service provider.
    (3) Carriers that place on their telephone bills charges from third
parties for non-telecommunications services must place those charges in
a distinct section of the bill separate from all

[[Page 423]]

carrier charges. Charges in each distinct section of the bill must be
separately subtotaled. These separate subtotals for carrier and non-
carrier charges also must be clearly and conspicuously displayed along
with the bill total on the payment page of a paper bill or equivalent
location on an electronic bill. For purposes of this subparagraph
``equivalent location on an electronic bill'' shall mean any location on
an electronic bill where the bill total is displayed and any location
where the bill total is displayed before the bill recipient accesses the
complete electronic bill, such as in an electronic mail message
notifying the bill recipient of the bill and an electronic link or
notice on a Web site or electronic payment portal.
    (4) The telephone bill must clearly and conspicuously identify any
change in service provider, including identification of charges from any
new service provider. For purpose of this subparagraph ``new service
provider'' means a service provider that did not bill the subscriber for
service during the service provider's last billing cycle. This
definition shall include only providers that have continuing
relationships with the subscriber that will result in periodic charges
on the subscriber's bill, unless the service is subsequently canceled.
    (b) Descriptions of billed charges. Charges contained on telephone
bills must be accompanied by a brief, clear, non-misleading, plain
language description of the service or services rendered. The
description must be sufficiently clear in presentation and specific
enough in content so that customers can accurately assess that the
services for which they are billed correspond to those that they have
requested and received, and that the costs assessed for those services
conform to their understanding of the price charged.
    (c) ``Deniable'' and ``Non-Deniable'' Charges. Where a bill contains
charges for basic local service, in addition to other charges, the bill
must distinguish between charges for which non-payment will result in
disconnection of basic, local service, and charges for which non-payment
will not result in such disconnection. The carrier must explain this
distinction to the customer, and must clearly and conspicuously identify
on the bill those charges for which non-payment will not result in
disconnection of basic, local service. Carriers may also elect to devise
other methods of informing consumers on the bill that they may contest
charges prior to payment.
    (d) Clear and conspicuous disclosure of inquiry contacts. Telephone
bills must contain clear and conspicuous disclosure of any information
that the subscriber may need to make inquiries about, or contest,
charges on the bill. Common carriers must prominently display on each
bill a toll-free number or numbers by which subscribers may inquire or
dispute any charges on the bill. A carrier may list a toll-free number
for a billing agent, clearinghouse, or other third party, provided such
party possesses sufficient information to answer questions concerning
the subscriber's account and is fully authorized to resolve the
consumer's complaints on the carrier's behalf. Where the subscriber does
not receive a paper copy of his or her telephone bill, but instead
accesses that bill only by e-mail or internet, the carrier may comply
with this requirement by providing on the bill an e-mail or web site
address. Each carrier must make a business address available upon
request from a consumer.
    (e) Definition of clear and conspicuous. For purposes of this
section, ``clear and conspicuous'' means notice that would be apparent
to the reasonable consumer.
    (f) Blocking of third-party charges. (1) Carriers that offer
subscribers the option to block third-party charges from appearing on
telephone bills must clearly and conspicuously notify subscribers of
this option at the point of sale and on each carrier's Web site.
    (2) Carriers that offer subscribers the option to block third-party
charges from appearing on telephone bills must clearly and conspicuously
notify subscribers of this option on each telephone bill.


[64 FR 34497, June 25, 1999, as amended at 65 FR 43258, July 13, 2000;
76 FR 63563, Oct. 13, 2011; 77 FR 30919, May 24, 2012; 77 FR 71354, Nov.
30, 2012]

[[Page 424]]



     Subpart Z_Prohibition on Exclusive Telecommunications Contracts

    Source: 66 FR 2334, Jan. 11, 2001, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.2500  Prohibited agreements.

    (a) No common carrier shall enter into any contract, written or
oral, that would in any way restrict the right of any commercial
multiunit premises owner, or any agent or representative thereof, to
permit any other common carrier to access and serve commercial tenants
on that premises.
    (b) No common carrier shall enter into or enforce any contract,
written or oral, that would in any way restrict the right of any
residential multiunit premises owner, or any agent or representative
thereof, to permit any other common carrier to access and serve
residential tenants on that premises.

[73 FR 28057, May 15, 2008]



Sec. 64.2501  Scope of limitation.

    For the purposes of this subpart, a multiunit premises is any
contiguous area under common ownership or control that contains two or
more distinct units. A commercial multiunit premises is any multiunit
premises that is predominantly used for non-residential purposes,
including for-profit, non-profit, and governmental uses. A residential
multiunit premises is any multiunit premises that is predominantly used
for residential purposes.

73 FR 28057, May 15, 2008]



Sec. 64.2502  Effect of state law or regulation.

    This subpart shall not preempt any state law or state regulation
that requires a governmental entity to enter into a contract or
understanding with a common carrier which would restrict such
governmental entity's right to obtain telecommunications service from
another common carrier.



             Subpart AA_Universal Emergency Telephone Number

    Source: 67 FR 1649, Jan. 14, 2002, unless otherwise noted.

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j), 157, 160, 210, 202, 208,
214, 251(e), 301, 303, 308, 309(j), and 310.



Sec. 64.3000  Definitions.

    (a) 911 calls. Any call initiated by an end user by dialing 911 for
the purpose of accessing an emergency service provider. For wireless
carriers, all 911 calls include those they are required to transmit
pursuant to Sec. 20.18 of the Commission's rules.
    (b) Appropriate local emergency authority. An emergency answering
point that has not been officially designated as a Public Safety
Answering Point (PSAP), but has the capability of receiving 911 calls
and either dispatching emergency services personnel or, if necessary,
relaying the call to another emergency service provider. An appropriate
local emergency authority may include, but is not limited to, an
existing local law enforcement authority, such as the police, county
sheriff, local emergency medical services provider, or fire department.
    (c) Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). A facility that has been
designated to receive 911 calls and route them to emergency services
personnel.
    (d) Statewide default answering point. An emergency answering point
designated by the State to receive 911 calls for either the entire State
or those portions of the State not otherwise served by a local PSAP.



Sec. 64.3001  Obligation to transmit 911 calls.

    All telecommunications carriers shall transmit all 911 calls to a
PSAP, to a designated statewide default answering point, or to an
appropriate local emergency authority as set forth in Sec. 64.3002.



Sec. 64.3002  Transition to 911 as the universal emergency telephone
number.

    As of December 11, 2001, except where 911 is already established as
the exclusive emergency number to reach a

[[Page 425]]

PSAP within a given jurisdiction, telecommunications carriers shall
comply with the following transition periods:
    (a) Where a PSAP has been designated, telecommunications carriers
shall complete all translation and routing necessary to deliver 911
calls to a PSAP no later than September 11, 2002.
    (b) Where no PSAP has been designated, telecommunications carriers
shall complete all translation and routing necessary to deliver 911
calls to the statewide default answering point no later than September
11, 2002.
    (c) Where neither a PSAP nor a statewide default answering point has
been designated, telecommunications carriers shall complete the
translation and routing necessary to deliver 911 calls to an appropriate
local emergency authority, within nine months of a request by the State
or locality.
    (d) Where no PSAP nor statewide default answering point has been
designated, and no appropriate local emergency authority has been
selected by an authorized state or local entity, telecommunications
carriers shall identify an appropriate local emergency authority, based
on the exercise of reasonable judgment, and complete all translation and
routing necessary to deliver 911 calls to such appropriate local
emergency authority no later than September 11, 2002.
    (e) Once a PSAP is designated for an area where none had existed as
of December 11, 2001, telecommunications carriers shall complete the
translation and routing necessary to deliver 911 calls to that PSAP
within nine months of that designation.



Sec. 64.3003  Obligation for providing a permissive dialing period.

    Upon completion of translation and routing of 911 calls to a PSAP, a
statewide default answering point, to an appropriate local emergency
authority, or, where no PSAP nor statewide default answering point has
been designated and no appropriate local emergency authority has been
selected by an authorized state or local entity, to an appropriate local
emergency authority, identified by a telecommunications carrier based on
the exercise of reasonable judgment, the telecommunications carrier
shall provide permissive dialing between 911 and any other seven-or ten-
digit emergency number or an abbreviated dialing code other than 911
that the public has previously used to reach emergency service providers
until the appropriate State or local jurisdiction determines to phase
out the use of such seven-or ten-digit number entirely and use 911
exclusively.



Sec. 64.3004  Obligation for providing an intercept message.

    Upon termination of permissive dialing, as provided under Sec.
64.3003, telecommunications carriers shall provide a standard intercept
message announcement that interrupts calls placed to the emergency
service provider using either a seven-or ten-digit emergency number or
an abbreviated dialing code other than 911 and informs the caller of the
dialing code change.



 Subpart BB_Restrictions on Unwanted Mobile Service Commercial Messages

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 7701-7713, Public Law 108-187, 117 Stat. 2699.



Sec. 64.3100  Restrictions on mobile service commercial messages.

    (a) No person or entity may initiate any mobile service commercial
message, as those terms are defined in paragraph (c)(7) of this section,
unless:
    (1) That person or entity has the express prior authorization of the
addressee;
    (2) That person or entity is forwarding that message to its own
address;
    (3) That person or entity is forwarding to an address provided that
    (i) The original sender has not provided any payment, consideration
or other inducement to that person or entity; and
    (ii) That message does not advertise or promote a product, service,
or Internet website of the person or entity forwarding the message; or
    (4) The address to which that message is sent or directed does not
include a reference to a domain name that has been posted on the FCC's
wireless domain names list for a period of at least 30 days before that
message

[[Page 426]]

was initiated, provided that the person or entity does not knowingly
initiate a mobile service commercial message.
    (b) Any person or entity initiating any mobile service commercial
message must:
    (1) Cease sending further messages within ten (10) days after
receiving such a request by a subscriber;
    (2) Include a functioning return electronic mail address or other
Internet-based mechanism that is clearly and conspicuously displayed for
the purpose of receiving requests to cease the initiating of mobile
service commercial messages and/or commercial electronic mail messages,
and that does not require the subscriber to view or hear further
commercial content other than institutional identification;
    (3) Provide to a recipient who electronically grants express prior
authorization to send commercial electronic mail messages with a
functioning option and clear and conspicuous instructions to reject
further messages by the same electronic means that was used to obtain
authorization;
    (4) Ensure that the use of at least one option provided in
paragraphs (b)(2) and (b)(3) of this section does not result in
additional charges to the subscriber;
    (5) Identify themselves in the message in a form that will allow a
subscriber to reasonably determine that the sender is the authorized
entity; and
    (6) For no less than 30 days after the transmission of any mobile
service commercial message, remain capable of receiving messages or
communications made to the electronic mail address, other Internet-based
mechanism or, if applicable, other electronic means provided by the
sender as described in paragraph (b)(2) and (b)(3) of this section.
    (c) Definitions. For the purpose of this subpart:
    (1) Commercial Mobile Radio Service Provider means any provider that
offers the services defined in 47 CFR Section 20.9.
    (2) Commercial electronic mail message means the term as defined in
the CAN-SPAM Act, 15 U.S.C 7702 and as further defined under 16 CFR
316.3. The term is defined as ``an electronic message for which the
primary purpose is commercial advertisement or promotion of a commercial
product or service (including content on an Internet Web site operated
for a commercial purpose).'' The term ``commercial electronic mail
message'' does not include a transactional or relationship message.
    (3) Domain name means any alphanumeric designation which is
registered with or assigned by any domain name registrar, domain name
registry, or other domain name registration authority as part of an
electronic address on the Internet.
    (4) Electronic mail address means a destination, commonly expressed
as a string of characters, consisting of a unique user name or mailbox
and a reference to an Internet domain, whether or not displayed, to
which an electronic mail message can be sent or delivered.
    (5) Electronic mail message means a message sent to a unique
electronic mail address.
    (6) Initiate, with respect to a commercial electronic mail message,
means to originate or transmit such messages or to procure the
origination or transmission of such message, but shall not include
actions that constitute routine conveyance of such message. For purposes
of this paragraph, more than one person may be considered to have
initiated a message. ``Routine conveyance'' means the transmission,
routing, relaying, handling, or storing, through an automatic technical
process, or an electronic mail message for which another person has
identified the recipients or provided the recipient addresses.
    (7) Mobile Service Commercial Message means a commercial electronic
mail message that is transmitted directly to a wireless device that is
utilized by a subscriber of a commercial mobile service (as such term is
defined in section 332(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.
332(d)) in connection with such service. A commercial message is
presumed to be a mobile service commercial message if it is sent or
directed to any address containing a reference, whether or not
displayed, to an Internet domain listed on the FCC's wireless domain
names list. The FCC's wireless domain names list will be available on
the FCC's website and at

[[Page 427]]

the Commission headquarters, 445 12th St., SW., Washington, DC 20554.
    (8) Transactional or relationship message means the following and is
further defined under 16 CFR 316.3 as any electronic mail message the
primary purpose of which is:
    (i) To facilitate, complete, or confirm a commercial transaction
that the recipient has previously agreed to enter into with the sender;
    (ii) To provide warranty information, product recall information, or
safety or security information with respect to a commercial product or
service used or purchased by the recipient;
    (iii) To provide:
    (A) Notification concerning a change in the terms or features of;
    (B) Notification of a change in the recipient's standing or status
with respect to; or
    (C) At regular periodic intervals, account balance information or
other type of account statement with respect to a subscription,
membership, account, loan, or comparable ongoing commercial relationship
involving the ongoing purchase or use by the recipient of products or
services offered by the sender;
    (D) To provide information directly related to an employment
relationship or related benefit plan in which the recipient is currently
involved, participating, or enrolled; or
    (E) To deliver goods or services, including product updates or
upgrades, that the recipient is entitled to receive under the terms of a
transaction that the recipient has previously agreed to enter into with
the sender.
    (d) Express Prior Authorization may be obtained by oral or written
means, including electronic methods.
    (1) Written authorization must contain the subscriber's signature,
including an electronic signature as defined by 15 U.S.C. 7001 (E-Sign
Act).
    (2) All authorizations must include the electronic mail address to
which mobile service commercial messages can be sent or directed. If the
authorization is made through a website, the website must allow the
subscriber to input the specific electronic mail address to which
commercial messages may be sent.
    (3) Express Prior Authorization must be obtained by the party
initiating the mobile service commercial message. In the absence of a
specific request by the subscriber to the contrary, express prior
authorization shall apply only to the particular person or entity
seeking the authorization and not to any affiliated entities unless the
subscriber expressly agrees to their being included in the express prior
authorization.
    (4) Express Prior Authorization may be revoked by a request from the
subscriber, as noted in paragraph (b)(2) and (b)(3) of this section.
    (5) All requests for express prior authorization must include the
following disclosures:
    (i) That the subscriber is agreeing to receive mobile service
commercial messages sent to his/her wireless device from a particular
sender. The disclosure must state clearly the identity of the business,
individual, or other entity that will be sending the messages;
    (ii) That the subscriber may be charged by his/her wireless service
provider in connection with receipt of such messages; and
    (iii) That the subscriber may revoke his/her authorization to
receive MSCMs at any time.
    (6) All notices containing the required disclosures must be clearly
legible, use sufficiently large type or, if audio, be of sufficiently
loud volume, and be placed so as to be readily apparent to a wireless
subscriber. Any such disclosures must be presented separately from any
other authorizations in the document or oral presentation. If any
portion of the notice is translated into another language, then all
portions of the notice must be translated into the same language.
    (e) All CMRS providers must identify all electronic mail domain
names used to offer subscribers messaging specifically for wireless
devices in connection with commercial mobile service in the manner and
time-frame described in a public notice to be issued by the Consumer &
Governmental Affairs Bureau.
    (f) Each CMRS provider is responsible for the continuing accuracy
and completeness of information furnished for the FCC's wireless domain
names list. CMRS providers must:

[[Page 428]]

    (1) File any future updates to listings with the Commission not less
than 30 days before issuing subscribers any new or modified domain name;
    (2) Remove any domain name that has not been issued to subscribers
or is no longer in use within 6 months of placing it on the list or last
date of use; and
    (3) Certify that any domain name placed on the FCC's wireless domain
names list is used for mobile service messaging.

[69 FR 55779, Sept. 16, 2004, as amended at 70 FR 34666, June 15, 2005]



        Subpart CC_Customer Account Record Exchange Requirements

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 201, 202, 222, 258 unless otherwise noted.

    Source: 70 FR 32263, June 2, 2005, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.4000  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. The rules in this subpart are issued pursuant to the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of these rules is to facilitate the timely
and accurate establishment, termination, and billing of customer
telephone service accounts.



Sec. 64.4001  Definitions.

    Terms in this subpart have the following meanings:
    (a) Automatic number identification (ANI). The term automatic number
identification refers to the delivery of the calling party's billing
telephone number by a local exchange carrier to any interconnecting
carrier for billing or routing purposes.
    (b) Billing name and address (BNA). The term billing name and
address means the name and address provided to a [LEC] by each of its
local exchange customers to which the [LEC] directs bills for its
services.
    (c) Customer. The term customer means the end user to whom a local
exchange carrier or interexchange carrier is providing local exchange or
telephone toll service.
    (d) Interexchange carrier (IXC). The term interexchange carrier
means a telephone company that provides telephone toll service. An
interexchange carrier does not include commercial mobile radio service
providers as defined by federal law.
    (e) Local exchange carrier (LEC). The term local exchange carrier
means any person that is engaged in the provision of telephone exchange
service or exchange access. Such term does not include a person insofar
as such person is engaged in the provision of a commercial mobile
service under Sec. 332(c), except to the extent that the Commission
finds that such service should be included in the definition of that
term.
    (f) Preferred interexchange carrier (PIC). The term preferred
interexchange carrier means the carrier to which a customer chooses to
be presubscribed for purposes of receiving intraLATA and/or interLATA
and/or international toll services.



Sec. 64.4002  Notification obligations of LECs.

    To the extent that the information is reasonably available to a LEC,
the LEC shall provide to an IXC the customer account information
described in this section consistent with Sec. 64.4004. Nothing in this
section shall prevent a LEC from providing additional customer account
information to an IXC to the extent that such additional information is
necessary for billing purposes or to properly execute a customer's PIC
order.
    (a) Customer-submitted PIC order. Upon receiving and processing a
PIC selection submitted by a customer and placing the customer on the
network of the customer's preferred interexchange carrier at the LEC's
local switch, the LEC must notify the IXC of this event. The
notification provided by the LEC to the IXC must contain all of the
customer account information necessary to allow for proper billing of
the customer by the IXC including but not limited to:
    (1) The customer's billing telephone number, working telephone
number, and billing name and address;
    (2) The effective date of the PIC change;
    (3) A statement describing the customer type (i.e., business or
residential);

[[Page 429]]

    (4) A statement indicating, to the extent appropriate, that the
customer's telephone service listing is not printed in a directory and
is not available from directory assistance or is not printed in a
directory but is available from directory assistance;
    (5) The jurisdictional scope of the PIC installation (i.e.,
intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international);
    (6) The carrier identification code of the IXC; and
    (7) If relevant, a statement indicating that the customer's account
is subject to a PIC freeze. The notification also must contain
information, if relevant and to the extent that it is available,
reflecting the fact that a customer's PIC selection was the result of:
    (i) A move (an end user customer has moved from one location to
another within a LEC's service territory);
    (ii) A change in responsible billing party; or
    (iii) The resolution of a PIC dispute.
    (b) Confirmation of IXC-submitted PIC order. When a LEC has placed a
customer on an IXC's network at the local switch in response to an IXC-
submitted PIC order, the LEC must send a confirmation to the submitting
IXC. The confirmation provided by the LEC to the IXC must include:
    (1) The customer's billing telephone number, working telephone
number, and billing name and address;
    (2) The effective date of the PIC change;
    (3) A statement describing the customer type (i.e., business or
residential);
    (4) A statement indicating, to the extent appropriate, if the
customer's telephone service listing is not printed in a directory and
is not available from directory assistance, or is not printed in a
directory but is available from directory assistance;
    (5) The jurisdictional scope of the PIC installation (i.e.,
intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international); and
    (6) The carrier identification code of the IXC. If the PIC order at
issue originally was submitted by an underlying IXC on behalf of a toll
reseller, the confirmation provided by the LEC to the IXC must indicate,
to the extent that this information is known, a statement indicating
that the customer's PIC is a toll reseller.
    (c) Rejection of IXC-submitted PIC order. When a LEC rejects or
otherwise does not act upon a PIC order submitted to it by an IXC, the
LEC must notify the IXC and provide the reason(s) why the PIC order
could not be processed. The notification provided by the LEC to the IXC
must state that it has rejected the IXC-submitted PIC order and specify
the reason(s) for the rejection (e.g., due to a lack of information,
incorrect information, or a PIC freeze on the customer's account). The
notification must contain the identical data elements that were provided
to the LEC in the original IXC-submitted PIC order (i.e., mirror image
of the original order), unless otherwise specified by this paragraph. If
a LEC rejects an IXC-submitted PIC order for a multi-line account (i.e.,
the customer has selected the IXC as his PIC for two or more lines or
terminals associated with his billing telephone number), the
notification provided by the LEC rejecting that order must explain the
effect of the rejection with respect to each line (working telephone
number or terminal) associated with the customer's billing telephone
number. A LEC is not required to generate a line-specific or terminal-
specific response, however, and may communicate the rejection at the
billing telephone level, when the LEC is unable to process an entire
order, including all working telephone numbers and terminals associated
with a particular billing telephone number. In addition, the
notification must indicate the jurisdictional scope of the PIC order
rejection (i.e., intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international). If a
LEC rejects a PIC order because:
    (1) The customer's telephone number has been ported to another LEC;
or
    (2) The customer has otherwise changed local service providers, the
LEC must include in its notification, to the extent that it is
available, the identity of the customer's new LEC.
    (d) Customer contacts LEC or new IXC to change PIC(s) or customer
contacts LEC or current IXC to change PIC to No-PIC. When a LEC has
removed at its local switch a presubscribed customer from an IXC's
network in response to a

[[Page 430]]

customer order, upon receipt of a properly verified PIC order submitted
by another IXC, or in response to a notification from the customer's
current IXC relating to the customer's request to change his or her PIC
to No-PIC, the LEC must notify the customer's former IXC of this event.
The LEC must provide to the IXC the customer account information that is
necessary to allow for proper final billing of the customer by the IXC
including but not limited to:
    (1) The customer's billing telephone number, working telephone
number, and billing name and address;
    (2) The effective date of the PIC change;
    (3) A description of the customer type (i.e., business or
residential);
    (4) The jurisdictional scope of the lines or terminals affected
(i.e., intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international); and
    (5) The carrier identification code of the IXC. If a customer
changes PICs but retains the same LEC, the LEC is responsible for
notifying both the old PIC and new PIC of the PIC change. The
notification also must contain information, if relevant and to the
extent that it is available, reflecting the fact that a customer's PIC
removal was the result of:
    (i) The customer moving from one location to another within the
LEC's service territory, but where there is no change in local service
provider;
    (ii) A change of responsible party on an account; or
    (iii) A disputed PIC selection.
    (e) Particular changes to customer's local service account. When,
according to a LEC's records, certain account or line information
changes occur on a presubscribed customer's account, the LEC must
communicate this information to the customer's PIC. For purposes of this
paragraph, the LEC must provide to the appropriate IXC account change
information that is necessary for the IXC to issue timely and accurate
bills to its customers including but not limited to:
    (1) The customer's billing telephone number, working telephone
number, and billing name and address;
    (2) The customer code assigned to that customer by the LEC;
    (3) The type of customer account (i.e., business or residential);
    (4) The status of the customer's telephone service listing, to the
extent appropriate, as not printed in a directory and not available from
directory assistance, or not printed in a directory but available from
directory assistance; and
    (5) The jurisdictional scope of the PIC installation (i.e.,
intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international);
    (6) The effective date of any change to a customer's local service
account; and
    (7) The carrier identification code of the IXC. If there are changes
to the customer's billing or working telephone number, customer code, or
customer type, the LEC must supply both the old and new information for
each of these categories.
    (f) Local service disconnection. Upon receipt of an end user
customer's request to terminate his entire local service account or
disconnect one or more lines (but not all lines) of a multi-line
account, the LEC must notify the PIC(s) for the billing telephone number
or working telephone number on the account of the account termination or
lines disconnected. In conjunction with this notification requirement,
the LEC must provide to a customer's PIC(s) all account termination or
single/multi-line disconnection change information necessary for the
PIC(s) to maintain accurate billing and PIC records, including but not
limited to:
    (1) The effective date of the termination/disconnection; and
    (2) The customer's working and billing telephone numbers and billing
name and address;
    (3) The type of customer account (i.e., business or residential);
    (4) The jurisdictional scope of the PIC installation (i.e.,
intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international); and
    (5) The carrier identification code of the IXC.
    (g) Change of local service provider. When a customer changes LECs,
the customer's former LEC must notify the customer's PIC(s) of the
customer's change in LEC and, if known, the identity of the customer's
new LEC. If the

[[Page 431]]

customer also makes a PIC change, the customer's former LEC must also
notify the customer's former PIC(s) of the change. When a customer only
changes LECs, the new LEC must notify the customer's current PIC(s) that
the customer's PIC selection has not changed. If the customer also makes
a PIC change, the new LEC must notify the customer's new PIC of the
customer's PIC selection. If the customer's former LEC is unable to
identify the customer's new LEC, the former LEC must notify the
customer's PIC(s) of a local service disconnection as described in
paragraph (f).
    (1) The required notifications also must contain information, if
relevant and to the extent that it is available, reflecting the fact
that an account change was the result of:
    (i) The customer porting his number to a new LEC;
    (ii) A local resale arrangement (customer has transferred to local
reseller); or
    (iii) The discontinuation of a local resale arrangement;
    (2) The notification provided by the LEC to the IXC must include:
    (i) The customer's billing telephone number, working telephone
number, and, billing name and address;
    (ii) The effective date of the change of local service providers or
PIC change;
    (iii) A description of the customer type (i.e., business or
residential);
    (iv) The jurisdictional scope of the lines or terminals affected
(i.e., intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international); and
    (v) The carrier identification code of the IXC.
    (h) IXC requests for customer BNA information. Upon the request of
an IXC, a LEC must provide the billing name and address information
necessary to facilitate a customer's receipt of a timely, accurate bill
for services rendered and/or to prevent fraud, regardless of the type of
service the end user receives/has received from the requesting carrier
(i.e., presubscribed, dial-around, casual). In response to an IXC's BNA
request for ANI, a LEC must provide the BNA for the submitted ANI along
with:
    (1) The working telephone number for the ANI;
    (2) The date of the BNA response;
    (3) The carrier identification code of the submitting IXC; and
    (4) A statement indicating, to the extent appropriate, if the
customer's telephone service listing is not printed in a directory and
is not available from directory assistance, or is not printed in a
directory but is available from directory assistance. A LEC that is
unable to provide the BNA requested must provide the submitting carrier
with the identical information contained in the original BNA request
(i.e., the mirror image of the original request), along with the
specific reason(s) why the requested information could not be provided.
If the BNA is not available because the customer has changed local
service providers or ported his telephone number, the LEC must include
the identity of the new provider when this information is available.

[71 FR 74821, Dec. 13, 2006]



Sec. 64.4003  Notification obligations of IXCs.

    To the extent that the information is reasonably available to an
IXC, the IXC shall provide to a LEC the customer account information
described in this section consistent with Sec. 64.4004. Nothing in this
section shall prevent an IXC from providing additional customer account
information to a LEC to the extent that such additional information is
necessary for billing purposes or to properly execute a customer's PIC
Order.
    (a) IXC-submitted PIC Order. When a customer contacts an IXC to
establish interexchange service on a presubscribed basis, the IXC
selected must submit the customer's properly verified PIC Order (see 47
CFR 64.1120(a)) to the customer's LEC, instructing the LEC to install or
change the PIC for the customer's line(s) to that IXC. The notification
provided by the IXC to the LEC must contain all of the information
necessary to properly execute the Order including but not limited to:
    (1) The customer's billing telephone number or working telephone
number

[[Page 432]]

associated with the lines or terminals that are to be presubscribed to
the IXC;
    (2) The date of the IXC-submitted PIC Order;
    (3) The jurisdictional scope of the PIC Order (i.e, intraLATA and/or
interLATA and/or international); and
    (4) The carrier identification code of the submitting IXC.
    (b) Customer contacts IXC to cancel PIC and to select no-PIC status.
When an end user customer contacts an IXC to discontinue interexchange
service on a presubscribed basis, the IXC must confirm that it is the
customer's desire to have no PIC and, if that is the case, the IXC must
notify the customer's LEC. The IXC also is encouraged to instruct the
customer to notify his LEC. An IXC may satisfy this requirement by
establishing a three-way call with the customer and the customer's LEC
to confirm that it is the customer's desire to have no PIC and, where
appropriate, to provide the customer the opportunity to withdraw any PIC
freeze that may be in place. The notification provided by the IXC to the
LEC must contain the customer account information necessary to properly
execute the cancellation Order including but not limited to:
    (1) The customer's billing telephone number or working telephone
number associated with the lines or terminals that are affected;
    (2) The date of the IXC-submitted PIC removal Order;
    (3) The jurisdictional scope of the PIC removal Order (i.e.,
intraLATA and/or interLATA and/or international); and
    (4) The carrier identification code of the submitting IXC.

[70 FR 32263, June 2, 2005; 70 FR 54301, Sept. 14, 2005]



Sec. 64.4004  Timeliness of required notifications.

    Carriers subject to the requirements of this section shall provide
the required notifications promptly and without unreasonable delay.



Sec. 64.4005  Unreasonable terms or conditions on the provision of
customer account information.

    To the extent that a carrier incurs costs associated with providing
the notifications required by this section, the carrier may recover such
costs, consistent with federal and state laws, through the filing of
tariffs, via negotiated agreements, or by other appropriate mechanisms.
Any cost recovery method must be reasonable and must recover only costs
that are associated with providing the particular information. The
imposition of unreasonable terms or conditions on the provision of
information required by this section may be considered an unreasonable
carrier practice under section 201(b) of the Communications Act of 1934,
as amended, and may subject the carrier to appropriate enforcement
action.



Sec. 64.4006  Limitations on use of customer account information.

    A carrier that receives customer account information under this
section shall use such information to ensure timely and accurate billing
of a customer's account and to ensure timely and accurate execution of a
customer's preferred interexchange carrier instructions. Such
information shall not be used for marketing purposes without the express
consent of the customer.



                Subpart DD_Prepaid Calling Card Providers

    Source: 71 FR 43673, Aug. 2, 2006, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.5000  Definitions.

    (a) Prepaid calling card. The term ``prepaid calling card'' means a
card or similar device that allows users to pay in advance for a
specified amount of calling, without regard to additional features,
functions, or capabilities available in conjunction with the calling
service.
    (b) Prepaid calling card provider. The term ``prepaid calling card
provider'' means any entity that provides telecommunications service to
consumers through the use of a prepaid calling card.



Sec. 64.5001  Reporting and certification requirements.

    (a) All prepaid calling card providers must report prepaid calling
card percentage of interstate use (PIU) factors,

[[Page 433]]

and call volumes from which these factors were calculated, based on not
less than a one-day representative sample, to those carriers from which
they purchase transport services. Such reports must be provided no later
than the 45th day of each calendar quarter for the previous quarter.
    (b) If a prepaid calling card provider fails to provide the
appropriate PIU information to a transport provider in the time allowed,
the transport provider may apply a 50 percent default PIU factor to the
prepaid calling card provider's traffic.
    (c) On a quarterly basis, every prepaid calling card provider must
submit to the Commission a certification, signed by an officer of the
company under penalty of perjury, providing the following information
with respect to the prior quarter:
    (1) The percentage of intrastate, interstate, and international
calling card minutes for that reporting period;
    (2) The percentage of total prepaid calling card service revenue
(excluding revenue from prepaid calling cards sold by, to, or pursuant
to contract with the Department of Defense (DoD) or a DoD entity)
attributable to interstate and international calls for that reporting
period;
    (3) A statement that it is making the required Universal Service
Fund contribution based on the reported information; and
    (4) A statement that it has complied with the reporting requirements
described in paragraph (a) of this section.



        Subpart EE_TRS Customer Proprietary Network Information.

    Source: 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.5101  Basis and purpose.

    (a) Basis. The rules in this subpart are issued pursuant to the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended.
    (b) Purpose. The purpose of the rules in this subpart is to
implement customer proprietary network information protections for users
of telecommunications relay services pursuant to sections 4, 222, and
225 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 4, 222, and
225.



Sec. 64.5103  Definitions.

    (a) Address of record. An ``address of record,'' whether postal or
electronic, is an address that the TRS provider has associated with the
customer for at least 30 days.
    (b) Affiliate. The term ``affiliate'' shall have the same meaning
given such term in section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934, as
amended, 47 U.S.C. 153.
    (c) Call data information. The term ``call data information'' means
any information that pertains to the handling of specific TRS calls,
including the call record identification sequence, the communications
assistant identification number, the session start and end times, the
conversation start and end times, incoming and outbound telephone
numbers, incoming and outbound internet protocol (IP) addresses, total
conversation minutes, total session minutes, and the electronic serial
number of the consumer device.
    (d) Communications assistant (CA). The term ``communications
assistant'' or ``CA'' shall have the same meaning given to the term in
Sec. 64.601(a) of this part.
    (e) Customer. The term ``customer'' means a person:
    (1) To whom the TRS provider provides TRS or point-to-point service,
or
    (2) Who is registered with the TRS provider as a default provider.
    (f) Customer proprietary network information (CPNI). The term
``customer proprietary network information'' or ``CPNI'' means
information that relates to the quantity, technical configuration, type,
destination, location, and amount of use of a telecommunications service
used by any customer of a TRS provider; and information regarding a
customer's use of TRS contained in the documentation submitted by a TRS
provider to the TRS Fund administrator in connection with a request for
compensation for the provision of TRS.
    (g) Customer premises equipment (CPE). The term ``customer premises
equipment'' or ``CPE'' shall have the same meaning given to such term in
section 3 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 153.
    (h) Default provider. The term ``default provider'' shall have the
same

[[Page 434]]

meaning given such term in Sec. 64.601(a) of this part.
    (i) Internet-based TRS (iTRS). The term ``Internet-based TRS'' or
``iTRS shall have the same meaning given to the term in Sec. 64.601(a)
of this part.
    (j) iTRS access technology. The term ``iTRS access technology''
shall have the same meaning given to the term in Sec. 64.601(a) of this
part.
    (k) Opt-in approval. The term ``opt-in approval'' shall have the
same meaning given such term in Sec. 64.5107(b)(1) of this subpart.
    (l) Opt-out approval. The term ``opt-out approval'' shall have the
same meaning given such term in Sec. 64.5107(b)(2) of this subpart.
    (m) Point-to-point service. The term ``point-to-point service''
means a service that enables a VRS customer to place and receive non-
relay calls without the assistance of a CA over the VRS provider
facilities using VRS access technology. Such calls are made by means of
ten-digit NANP numbers assigned to customers by VRS providers. The term
``point-to-point call'' shall refer to a call placed via a point-to-
point service.
    (n) Readily available biographical information. The term ``readily
available biographical information'' means information drawn from the
customer's life history and includes such things as the customer's
social security number, or the last four digits of that number; mother's
maiden name; home address; or date of birth.
    (o) Sign language. The term ``sign language'' shall have the same
meaning given to the term in Sec. 64.601(a) of this part.
    (p) Telecommunications relay services (TRS). The term
``telecommunications relay services'' or ``TRS'' shall have the same
meaning given to such term in Sec. 64.601(a) of this part.
    (q) Telephone number of record. The term ``telephone number of
record'' means the telephone number associated with the provision of
TRS, which may or may not be the telephone number supplied as part of a
customer's ``contact information.''
    (r) TRS Fund. The term ``TRS Fund'' shall have the same meaning
given to the term in Sec. 64.604(c)(5)(iii) of this part.
    (s) TRS provider. The term ``TRS provider'' means an entity that
provides TRS and shall include an entity that provides point-to-point
service.
    (t) TRS-related services. The term ``TRS-related services'' means,
in the case of traditional TRS, services related to the provision or
maintenance of customer premises equipment, and in the case of iTRS,
services related to the provision or maintenance of iTRS access
technology, including features and functions typically provided by TRS
providers in association with iTRS access technology.
    (u) Valid photo ID. The term ``valid photo ID'' means a government-
issued means of personal identification with a photograph such as a
driver's license, passport, or comparable ID that has not expired.
    (v) Video relay service. The term ``video relay service'' or VRS
shall have the same meaning given to the term in Sec. 64.601(a) of this
part.
    (w) VRS access technology. The term ``VRS access technology'' shall
have the same meaning given to the term in Sec. 64.601(a) of this part.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.5104 was
added. Paragraphs (c)(4) and (c)(5) contain information collection and
recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective until approval
has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.5105  Use of customer proprietary network information without
customer approval.

    (a) A TRS provider may use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI for
the purpose of providing or lawfully marketing service offerings among
the categories of service (i.e., type of TRS) for which the TRS provider
is currently the default provider for that customer, without customer
approval.
    (1) If a TRS provider provides different categories of TRS, and the
TRS provider is currently the default provider for that customer for
more than one category of TRS offered by the TRS provider, the TRS
provider may share CPNI among the TRS provider's affiliated entities
that provide a TRS offering to the customer.
    (2) If a TRS provider provides different categories of TRS, but the
TRS provider is currently not the default

[[Page 435]]

provider for that customer for more than one offering by the TRS
provider, the TRS provider shall not share CPNI with its affiliates,
except as provided in Sec. 64.5107(b) of this subpart.
    (b) A TRS provider shall not use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI
as described in this paragraph (b).
    (1) A TRS provider shall not use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI
to market to a customer TRS offerings that are within a category of TRS
for which the TRS provider is not currently the default provider for
that customer, unless that TRS provider has customer approval to do so.
    (2) A TRS provider shall not identify or track CPNI of customers
that call competing TRS providers and, notwithstanding any other
provision of this subpart, a TRS provider shall not use, disclose or
permit access to CPNI related to a customer call to a competing TRS
provider.
    (c) A TRS provider may use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI,
without customer approval, as described in this paragraph (c).
    (1) A TRS provider may use, disclose or permit access to CPNI
derived from its provision of TRS without customer approval, for the
provision of CPE or iTRS access technology, and call answering, voice or
video mail or messaging, voice or video storage and retrieval services.
    (2) A TRS provider may use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI,
without customer approval, in its provision of inside wiring
installation, maintenance, and repair services.
    (3) A TRS provider may use CPNI, without customer approval, to
market services formerly known as adjunct-to-basic services, such as,
but not limited to, speed dialing, call waiting, caller I.D., and call
forwarding, only to those customers that are currently registered with
that TRS provider as their default provider.
    (4) A TRS provider shall use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI to
the extent necessary to:
    (i) Accept and handle 911/E911 calls;
    (ii) Access, either directly or via a third party, a commercially
available database that will allow the TRS provider to determine an
appropriate Public Safety Answering Point, designated statewide default
answering point, or appropriate local emergency authority that
corresponds to the caller's location;
    (iii) Relay the 911/E911 call to that entity; and
    (iv) Facilitate the dispatch and response of emergency service or
law enforcement personnel to the caller's location, in the event that
the 911/E911 call is disconnected or the caller becomes incapacitated.
    (5) A TRS provider shall use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI
upon request by the administrator of the TRS Fund, as that term is
defined in Sec. 64.604(c)(5)(iii) of this part, or by the Commission
for the purpose of administration and oversight of the TRS Fund,
including the investigation and prevention of fraud, abuse, and misuse
of TRS and seeking repayment to the TRS Fund for non-compensable
minutes.
    (6) A TRS provider may use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI to
protect the rights or property of the TRS provider, or to protect users
of those services, other TRS providers, and the TRS Fund from
fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful use of such services.

    Effective Date Notes: At 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.5105
was added, however, paragraphs (c)(4) and (c)(5) contain information
collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective
until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.5107  Approval required for use of customer proprietary network
information.

    (a) A TRS provider may obtain approval through written, oral,
electronic, or sign language methods.
    (1) A TRS provider relying on oral or sign language approval shall
bear the burden of demonstrating that such approval has been given in
compliance with the Commission's rules in this part.
    (2) Approval or disapproval to use, disclose, or permit access to a
customer's CPNI obtained by a TRS provider must remain in effect until
the customer revokes or limits such approval or disapproval. A TRS
provider shall accept any such customer revocation, whether in written,
oral, electronic, or sign language methods.

[[Page 436]]

    (3) A TRS provider must maintain records of approval, whether oral,
written, electronic, or sign language, during the time period that the
approval or disapproval is in effect and for at least one year
thereafter.
    (b) Use of opt-in and opt-out approval processes. (1) Opt-in
approval requires that the TRS provider obtain from the customer
affirmative, express consent allowing the requested CPNI usage,
disclosure, or access after the customer is provided appropriate
notification of the TRS provider's request consistent with the
requirements set forth in this subpart.
    (2) With opt-out approval, a customer is deemed to have consented to
the use, disclosure, or access to the customer's CPNI if the customer
has failed to object thereto within the waiting period described in
Sec. 64.5108(d)(1) of this subpart after the TRS provider has provided
to the customer appropriate notification of the TRS provider's request
for consent consistent with the rules in this subpart.
    (3) A TRS provider may only use, disclose, or permit access to the
customer's individually identifiable CPNI with the customer's opt-in
approval, except as follows:
    (i) Where a TRS provider is permitted to use, disclose, or permit
access to CPNI without customer approval under Sec. 64.5105 of this
subpart.
    (ii) Where a TRS provider is permitted to use, disclose, or permit
access to CPNI by making use of customer opt-in or opt-out approval
under paragraph (?)(4) of this section.
    (4) A TRS provider may make use of customer opt-in or opt-out
approval to take the following actions with respect to CPNI:
    (i) Use its customer's individually identifiable CPNI for the
purpose of lawfully marketing TRS-related services to that customer.
    (ii) Disclose its customer's individually identifiable CPNI to its
agents and its affiliates that provide TRS-related services for the
purpose of lawfully marketing TRS-related services to that customer. A
TRS provider may also permit such persons or entities to obtain access
to such CPNI for such purposes.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.5107 was
added. This section contain information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.5108  Notice required for use of customer proprietary network
information.

    (a) Notification, generally. (1) Prior to any solicitation for
customer approval to use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI, a TRS
provider shall provide notification to the customer of the customer's
right to deny or restrict use of, disclosure of, and access to that
customer's CPNI.
    (2) A TRS provider shall maintain records of notification, whether
oral, written, electronic, or sign language, during the time period that
the approval is in effect and for at least one year thereafter.
    (b) Individual notice. A TRS provider shall provide individual
notice to customers when soliciting approval to use, disclose, or permit
access to customers' CPNI.
    (c) Content of notice. Customer notification shall provide
sufficient information in clear and unambiguous language to enable the
customer to make an informed decision as to whether to permit a TRS
provider to use, disclose, or permit access to, the customer's CPNI.
    (1) The notification shall state that the customer has a right to
deny any TRS provider the right to use, disclose or permit access to the
customer's CPNI, and the TRS provider has a duty, under federal law, to
honor the customer's right and to protect the confidentiality of CPNI.
    (2) The notification shall specify the types of information that
constitute CPNI and the specific entities that will use, receive or have
access to the CPNI, describe the purposes for which CPNI will be used,
and inform the customer of his or her right to disapprove those uses,
and deny or withdraw the customer's consent to use, disclose, or permit
access to access to CPNI at any time.
    (3) The notification shall advise the customer of the precise steps
the customer must take in order to grant or deny use, disclosure, or
access to CPNI,

[[Page 437]]

and must clearly state that customer denial of approval will not affect
the TRS provider's provision of any services to the customer. However,
TRS providers may provide a brief statement, in clear and neutral
language, describing consequences directly resulting from the lack of
access to CPNI.
    (4) TRS providers shall provide the notification in a manner that is
accessible to the customer, comprehensible, and not misleading.
    (5) If the TRS provider provides written notification to the
customer, the notice shall be clearly legible, use sufficiently large
type, and be placed in an area so as to be readily apparent to a
customer.
    (6) If any portion of a notification is translated into another
language, then all portions of the notification must be translated into
that language.
    (7) A TRS provider may state in the notification that the customer's
approval to use CPNI may enhance the TRS provider's ability to offer
products and services tailored to the customer's needs. A TRS provider
also may state in the notification that it may be compelled to disclose
CPNI to any person upon affirmative written request by the customer.
    (8) The notification shall state that any approval or denial of
approval for the use of CPNI outside of the service for which the TRS
provider is the default provider for the customer is valid until the
customer affirmatively revokes or limits such approval or denial.
    (9) A TRS provider's solicitation for approval to use, disclose, or
have access to the customer's CPNI must be proximate to the notification
of a customer's CPNI rights to non-disclosure.
    (d) Notice requirements specific to opt-out. A TRS provider shall
provide notification to obtain opt-out approval through electronic or
written methods, but not by oral or sign language communication (except
as provided in paragraph (f) of this section). The contents of any such
notification shall comply with the requirements of paragraph (c) of this
section.
    (1) TRS providers shall wait a 30-day minimum period of time after
giving customers notice and an opportunity to opt-out before assuming
customer approval to use, disclose, or permit access to CPNI. A TRS
provider may, in its discretion, provide for a longer period. TRS
providers shall notify customers as to the applicable waiting period for
a response before approval is assumed.
    (i) In the case of an electronic form of notification, the waiting
period shall begin to run from the date on which the notification was
sent; and
    (ii) In the case of notification by mail, the waiting period shall
begin to run on the third day following the date that the notification
was mailed.
    (2) TRS providers using the opt-out mechanism shall provide notices
to their customers every two years.
    (3) TRS providers that use email to provide opt-out notices shall
comply with the following requirements in addition to the requirements
generally applicable to notification:
    (i) TRS providers shall obtain express, verifiable, prior approval
from consumers to send notices via email regarding their service in
general, or CPNI in particular;
    (ii) TRS providers shall either:
    (A) Allow customers to reply directly to the email containing the
CPNI notice in order to opt-out; or
    (B) Include within the email containing the CPNI notice a
conspicuous link to a Web page that provides to the customer a readily
usable opt-out mechanism;
    (iii) Opt-out email notices that are returned to the TRS provider as
undeliverable shall be sent to the customer in another form before the
TRS provider may consider the customer to have received notice;
    (iv) TRS providers that use email to send CPNI notices shall ensure
that the subject line of the message clearly and accurately identifies
the subject matter of the email; and
    (v) TRS providers shall make available to every customer a method to
opt-out that is of no additional cost to the customer and that is
available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. TRS providers may satisfy
this requirement through a combination of methods, so long as all
customers have the ability to opt-out at no cost and are able to
effectuate that choice whenever they choose.

[[Page 438]]

    (e) Notice requirements specific to opt-in. A TRS provider may
provide notification to obtain opt-in approval through oral, sign
language, written, or electronic methods. The contents of any such
notification shall comply with the requirements of paragraph (c) of this
section.
    (f) Notice requirements specific to one-time use of CPNI. (1) TRS
providers may use oral, text, or sign language notice to obtain limited,
one-time use of CPNI for inbound and outbound customer telephone, TRS,
or point-to-point contacts for the duration of the call, regardless of
whether TRS providers use opt-out or opt-in approval based on the nature
of the contact.
    (2) The contents of any such notification shall comply with the
requirements of paragraph (c) of this section, except that TRS providers
may omit any of the following notice provisions if not relevant to the
limited use for which the TRS provider seeks CPNI:
    (i) TRS providers need not advise customers that if they have opted-
out previously, no action is needed to maintain the opt-out election;
    (ii) TRS providers need not advise customers that the TRS provider
may share CPNI with the TRS provider's affiliates or third parties and
need not name those entities, if the limited CPNI usage will not result
in use by, or disclosure to, an affiliate or third party;
    (iii) TRS providers need not disclose the means by which a customer
can deny or withdraw future access to CPNI, so long as the TRS provider
explains to customers that the scope of the approval the TRS provider
seeks is limited to one-time use; and
    (iv) TRS providers may omit disclosure of the precise steps a
customer must take in order to grant or deny access to CPNI, as long as
the TRS provider clearly communicates that the customer can deny access
to his or her CPNI for the call.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.5108 was
added. This section contain information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.5109  Safeguards required for use of customer proprietary network
information.

    (a) TRS providers shall implement a system by which the status of a
customer's CPNI approval can be clearly established prior to the use of
CPNI. Except as provided for in Sec. Sec. 64.5105 and 64.5108(f) of
this subpart, TRS providers shall provide access to and shall require
all personnel, including any agents, contractors, and subcontractors,
who have contact with customers to verify the status of a customer's
CPNI approval before using, disclosing, or permitting access to the
customer's CPNI.
    (b) TRS providers shall train their personnel, including any agents,
contractors, and subcontractors, as to when they are and are not
authorized to use CPNI, including procedures for verification of the
status of a customer's CPNI approval. TRS providers shall have an
express disciplinary process in place, including in the case of agents,
contractors, and subcontractors, a right to cancel the applicable
contract(s) or otherwise take disciplinary action.
    (c) TRS providers shall maintain a record, electronically or in some
other manner, of their own and their affiliates' sales and marketing
campaigns that use their customers' CPNI. All TRS providers shall
maintain a record of all instances where CPNI was disclosed or provided
to third parties, or where third parties were allowed access to CPNI.
The record shall include a description of each campaign, the specific
CPNI that was used in the campaign, including the customer's name, and
what products and services were offered as a part of the campaign. TRS
providers shall retain the record for a minimum of three years.
    (d) TRS providers shall establish a supervisory review process
regarding TRS provider compliance with the rules in this subpart for
outbound marketing situations and maintain records of TRS provider
compliance for a minimum period of three years. Sales personnel must
obtain supervisory approval of any proposed outbound marketing request
for customer approval.
    (e) A TRS provider shall have an officer, as an agent of the TRS
provider,

[[Page 439]]

sign and file with the Commission a compliance certification on an
annual basis. The officer shall state in the certification that he or
she has personal knowledge that the company has established operating
procedures that are adequate to ensure compliance with the rules in this
subpart. The TRS provider must provide a statement accompanying the
certification explaining how its operating procedures ensure that it is
or is not in compliance with the rules in this subpart. In addition, the
TRS provider must include an explanation of any actions taken against
data brokers, a summary of all customer complaints received in the past
year concerning the unauthorized release of CPNI, and a report detailing
all instances where the TRS provider, or its agents, contractors, or
subcontractors, used, disclosed, or permitted access to CPNI without
complying with the procedures specified in this subpart. In the case of
iTRS providers, this filing shall be included in the annual report filed
with the Commission pursuant to Sec. 64.606(g) of this part for data
pertaining to the previous year. In the case of all other TRS providers,
this filing shall be made annually with the Disability Rights Office of
the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau on or before March 1 in CG
Docket No. 03-123 for data pertaining to the previous calendar year.
    (f) TRS providers shall provide written notice within five business
days to the Disability Rights Office of the Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau of the Commission of any instance where the opt-out
mechanisms do not work properly, to such a degree that consumers'
inability to opt-out is more than an anomaly.
    (1) The notice shall be in the form of a letter, and shall include
the TRS provider's name, a description of the opt-out mechanism(s) used,
the problem(s) experienced, the remedy proposed and when it will be/was
implemented, whether the relevant state commission(s) has been notified,
if applicable, and whether the state commission(s) has taken any action,
a copy of the notice provided to customers, and contact information.
    (2) Such notice shall be submitted even if the TRS provider offers
other methods by which consumers may opt-out.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.5109 was
added. This section contain information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.5110  Safeguards on the disclosure of customer proprietary
network information.

    (a) Safeguarding CPNI. TRS providers shall take all reasonable
measures to discover and protect against attempts to gain unauthorized
access to CPNI. TRS providers shall authenticate a customer prior to
disclosing CPNI based on a customer-initiated telephone contact, TRS
call, point-to-point call, online account access, or an in-store visit.
    (b) Telephone, TRS, and point-to-point access to CPNI. A TRS
provider shall authenticate a customer without the use of readily
available biographical information, or account information, prior to
allowing the customer telephonic, TRS, or point-to-point access to CPNI
related to his or her TRS account. Alternatively, the customer may
obtain telephonic, TRS, or point-to-point access to CPNI related to his
or her TRS account through a password, as described in paragraph (e) of
this section.
    (c) Online access to CPNI. A TRS provider shall authenticate a
customer without the use of readily available biographical information,
or account information, prior to allowing the customer online access to
CPNI related to his or her TRS account. Once authenticated, the customer
may only obtain online access to CPNI related to his or her TRS account
through a password, as described in paragraph (e) of this section.
    (d) In-store access to CPNI. A TRS provider may disclose CPNI to a
customer who, at a TRS provider's retail location, first presents to the
TRS provider or its agent a valid photo ID matching the customer's
account information.
    (e) Establishment of a password and back-up authentication methods
for lost or forgotten passwords. To establish a password, a TRS provider
shall authenticate the customer without the use of

[[Page 440]]

readily available biographical information, or account information. TRS
providers may create a back-up customer authentication method in the
event of a lost or forgotten password, but such back-up customer
authentication method may not prompt the customer for readily available
biographical information, or account information. If a customer cannot
provide the correct password or the correct response for the back-up
customer authentication method, the customer shall establish a new
password as described in this paragraph.
    (f) Notification of account changes. TRS providers shall notify
customers immediately whenever a password, customer response to a back-
up means of authentication for lost or forgotten passwords, online
account, or address of record is created or changed. This notification
is not required when the customer initiates service, including the
selection of a password at service initiation. This notification may be
through a TRS provider-originated voicemail, text message, or video mail
to the telephone number of record, by mail to the physical address of
record, or by email to the email address of record, and shall not reveal
the changed information or be sent to the new account information.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.5110 was
added. This section contain information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



Sec. 64.5111  Notification of customer proprietary network information
security breaches.

    (a) A TRS provider shall notify law enforcement of a breach of its
customers' CPNI as provided in this section. The TRS provider shall not
notify its customers or disclose the breach publicly, whether
voluntarily or under state or local law or these rules, until it has
completed the process of notifying law enforcement pursuant to paragraph
(b) of this section. The TRS provider shall file a copy of the
notification with the Disability Rights Office of the Consumer and
Governmental Affairs Bureau at the same time as when the TRS provider
notifies the customers.
    (b) As soon as practicable, and in no event later than seven (7)
business days, after reasonable determination of the breach, the TRS
provider shall electronically notify the United States Secret Service
(USSS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) through a central
reporting facility. The Commission will maintain a link to the reporting
facility at http://www.fcc.gov/eb/cpni.
    (1) Notwithstanding any state law to the contrary, the TRS provider
shall not notify customers or disclose the breach to the public until 7
full business days have passed after notification to the USSS and the
FBI except as provided in paragraphs (b)(2) and (3) of this section.
    (2) If the TRS provider believes that there is an extraordinarily
urgent need to notify any class of affected customers sooner than
otherwise allowed under paragraph (b)(1) of this section, in order to
avoid immediate and irreparable harm, it shall so indicate in its
notification and may proceed to immediately notify its affected
customers only after consultation with the relevant investigating
agency. The TRS provider shall cooperate with the relevant investigating
agency's request to minimize any adverse effects of such customer
notification.
    (3) If the relevant investigating agency determines that public
disclosure or notice to customers would impede or compromise an ongoing
or potential criminal investigation or national security, such agency
may direct the TRS provider not to so disclose or notify for an initial
period of up to 30 days. Such period may be extended by the agency as
reasonably necessary in the judgment of the agency. If such direction is
given, the agency shall notify the TRS provider when it appears that
public disclosure or notice to affected customers will no longer impede
or compromise a criminal investigation or national security. The agency
shall provide in writing its initial direction to the TRS provider, any
subsequent extension, and any notification that notice will no longer
impede or compromise a criminal investigation or national security and
such writings

[[Page 441]]

shall be contemporaneously logged on the same reporting facility that
contains records of notifications filed by TRS providers.
    (c) Customer notification. After a TRS provider has completed the
process of notifying law enforcement pursuant to paragraph (b) of this
section, and consistent with the waiting requirements specified in
paragraph (b) of this section, the TRS provider shall notify its
customers of a breach of those customers' CPNI.
    (d) Recordkeeping. All TRS providers shall maintain a record,
electronically or in some other manner, of any breaches discovered,
notifications made to the USSS and the FBI pursuant to paragraph (b) of
this section, and notifications made to customers. The record must
include, if available, dates of discovery and notification, a detailed
description of the CPNI that was the subject of the breach, and the
circumstances of the breach. TRS providers shall retain the record for a
minimum of 2 years.
    (e) Definition. As used in this section, a ``breach'' has occurred
when a person, without authorization or exceeding authorization, has
intentionally gained access to, used, or disclosed CPNI.
    (f) This section does not supersede any statute, regulation, order,
or interpretation in any State, except to the extent that such statute,
regulation, order, or interpretation is inconsistent with the provisions
of this section, and then only to the extent of the inconsistency.

    Effective Date Note: At 78 FR 40613, July 5, 2013, Sec. 64.5111 was
added. This section contain information collection and recordkeeping
requirements and will not become effective until approval has been given
by the Office of Management and Budget.



                   Subpart FF_Inmate Calling Services

    Source: 78 FR 67975, Nov. 13, 2013, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 64.6000  Definitions.

    As used in this subpart:
    Ancillary charges mean any charges to Consumers not included in the
charges assessed for individual calls and that Consumers may be assessed
for the use of Inmate Calling Services. Ancillary Charges include, but
are not limited to, fees to create, maintain, or close an account with a
Provider; fees in connection with account balances, including fees to
add money to an account; and fees for obtaining refunds of outstanding
funds in an account;
    Collect calling means a calling arrangement whereby the called party
agrees to pay for charges associated with an Inmate Calling Services
call originating from an Inmate Telephone;
    Consumer means the party paying a Provider of Inmate Calling
Services;
    Debit calling means a calling arrangement that allows a Consumer to
pay for Inmate Calling Services from an existing or established account;
    Inmate means a person detained at a correctional institution,
regardless of the duration of the detention;
    Inmate calling services means the offering of interstate calling
capabilities from an Inmate Telephone;
    Inmate telephone means a telephone instrument or other device
capable of initiating telephone calls set aside by authorities of a
correctional institution for use by Inmates;
    Prepaid calling means a calling arrangement that allows Consumers to
pay in advance for a specified amount of Inmate Calling Services;
    Prepaid collect calling means a calling arrangement that allows an
Inmate to initiate an Inmate Calling Services call without having a pre-
established billing arrangement and also provides a means, within that
call, for the called party to establish an arrangement to be billed
directly by the Provider of Inmate Calling Services for future calls
from the same Inmate;
    Provider of Inmate Calling Services, or Provider, means any
communications service provider that provides Inmate Calling Services,
regardless of the technology used.



Sec. 64.6010  Cost-based rates for inmate calling services.

    All rates charged for Inmate Calling Services and all Ancillary
Charges must be based only on costs that are reasonably and directly
related to the provision of ICS.

[[Page 442]]



Sec. 64.6020  Interim safe harbor.

    (a) A Provider's rates are presumptively in compliance with Sec.
64.6010 (subject to rebuttal) if:
    (1) None of the Provider's rates for Collect Calling exceed $0.14
per minute at any correctional institution, and
    (2) None of the Provider's rates for Debit Calling, Prepaid Calling,
or Prepaid Collect Calling exceed $0.12 per minute at any correctional
institution.
    (b) A Provider's rates shall be considered consistent with paragraph
(a) of this section if the total charge for a 15-minute call, including
any per-call or per-connection charges, does not exceed the appropriate
rate in paragraph (a)(1) or (2) of this section for a 15-minute call.
    (c) A Provider's rates that are consistent with paragraph (a) of
this section will be treated as lawful unless and until the Commission
or the Wireline Competition Bureau, acting under delegated authority,
issues a decision finding otherwise.



Sec. 64.6030  Inmate calling services interim rate cap.

    No provider shall charge a rate for Collect Calling in excess of
$0.25 per minute, or a rate for Debit Calling, Prepaid Calling, or
Prepaid Collect Calling in excess of $0.21 per minute. A Provider's
rates shall be considered consistent with this section if the total
charge for a 15-minute call, including any per-call or per-connection
charges, does not exceed $3.75 for a 15-minute call using Collect
Calling, or $3.15 for a 15-minute call using Debit Calling, Prepaid
Calling, or Prepaid Collect Calling.



Sec. 64.6040  Rates for Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS) calling.

    No Provider shall levy or collect any charge in addition to or in
excess of the rates for Inmate Calling Services or charges for Ancillary
Charges for any form of TRS call.



Sec. 64.6050  Billing-related call blocking.

    No Provider shall prohibit or prevent completion of a Collect
Calling call or decline to establish or otherwise degrade Collect
Calling solely for the reason that it lacks a billing relationship with
the called party's communications service provider unless the Provider
offers Debit Calling, Prepaid Calling, or Prepaid Collect Calling.



Sec. 64.6060  Annual reporting and certification requirement.

    (a) All Providers must submit a report to the Commission, by April
1st of each year, regarding their interstate and intrastate Inmate
Calling Services for the prior calendar year. The report shall contain:
    (1) The following information broken out by correctional
institution; by jurisdictional nature to the extent that there are
differences among interstate, intrastate, and local calls; and by the
nature of the billing arrangement to the extent there are differences
among Collect Calling, Debit Calling, Prepaid Calling, Prepaid Collect
Calling, or any other type of billing arrangement:
    (i) Rates for Inmate Calling Services, reporting separately per-
minute rates and per-call or per-connection charges;
    (ii) Ancillary charges;
    (iii) Minutes of use;
    (iv) The average duration of calls;
    (v) The percentage of calls disconnected by the Provider for reasons
other than expiration of time;
    (vi) The number of calls disconnected by the Provider for reasons
other than expiration of time;
    (2) A certification that the Provider was in compliance during the
entire prior calendar year with the rates for Telecommunications Relay
Service as required by Sec. 64.6040;
    (3) A certification that the Provider was in compliance during the
entire prior calendar year with the requirement that all rates and
charges be cost-based as required by Sec. 64.6010, including Ancillary
Charges.
    (b) An officer or director from each Provider must certify that the
reported information and data are accurate and complete to the best of
his or her knowledge, information, and belief.



 Sec. Appendix A to Part 64--Telecommunications Service Priority (TSP)
       System for National Security Emergency Preparedness (NSEP)

                        1. Purpose and Authority

    a. This appendix establishes policies and procedures and assigns
responsibilities for

[[Page 443]]

the National Security Emergency Preparedness (NSEP) Telecommunications
Service Priority (TSP) System. The NSEP TSP System authorizes priority
treatment to certain domestic telecommunications services (including
portions of U.S. international telecommunication services provided by
U.S. service vendors) for which provisioning or restoration priority
(RP) levels are requested, assigned, and approved in accordance with
this appendix.
    b. This appendix is issued pursuant to sections 1, 4(i), 201 through
205 and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.
151, 154(i), 201 through 205 and 303(r). These sections grant to the
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) the authority over the
assignment and approval of priorities for provisioning and restoration
of common carrier-provided telecommunications services. Under section
706 of the Communications Act, this authority may be superseded, and
expanded to include non-common carrier telecommunication services, by
the war emergency powers of the President of the United States. This
appendix provides the Commission's Order to telecommunication service
vendors and users to comply with policies and procedures establishing
the NSEP TSP System, until such policies and procedures are superseded
by the President's war emergency powers. This appendix is intended to be
read in conjunction with regulations and procedures that the Executive
Office of the President issues (1) to implement responsibilities
assigned in section 6(b) of this appendix, or (2) for use in the event
this appendix is superseded by the President's war emergency powers.
    c. Together, this appendix and the regulations and procedures issued
by the Executive Office of the President establish one uniform system of
priorities for provisioning and restoration of NSEP telecommunication
services both before and after invocation of the President's war
emergency powers. In order that government and industry resources may be
used effectively under all conditions, a single set of rules,
regulations, and procedures is necessary, and they must be applied on a
day-to-day basis to all NSEP services so that the priorities they
establish can be implemented at once when the need arises.
    * In sections 2(a)(2) and 2(b)(2) of Executive Order No. 12472,
``Assignment of National Security and Emergency Preparedness
Telecommunications Functions'' April 3, 1984 (49 FR 13471 (1984)), the
President assigned to the Director, Office of Science and Technology
Policy, certain NSEP telecommunication resource management
responsibilities. The term ``Executive Office of the President'' as used
in this appendix refers to the official or organization designated by
the President to act on his behalf.

                     2. Applicability and Revocation

    a. This appendix applies to NSEP telecommunications services:
    (1) For which initial or revised priority level assignments are
requested pursuant to section 8 of this appendix.
    (2) Which were assigned restoration priorities under the provision
of FCC Order 80-581; 81 FCC 2d 441 (1980); 47 CFR part 64, appendix A,
``Priority System for the Restoration of Common Carrier Provided
Intercity Private Line Services''; and are being resubmitted for
priority level assignments pursuant to section 10 of this appendix.
(Such services will retain assigned restoration priorities until a
resubmission for a TSP assignment is completed or until the existing RP
rules are terminated.)
    b. FCC Order 80-581 will continue to apply to all other intercity,
private line circuits assigned restoration priorities thereunder until
the fully operating capability date of this appendix, 30 months after
the initial operating capability date referred to in subsection d of
this section.
    c. In addition, FCC Order, ``Precedence System for Public
Correspondence Services Provided by the Communications Common Carriers''
(34 FR 17292 (1969)); (47 CFR part 64, appendix B), is revoked as of the
effective date of this appendix.
    d. The initial operating capability (IOC) date for NSEP TSP will be
nine months after release in the Federal Register of the FCC's order
following review of procedures submitted by the Executive Office of the
President. On this IOC date requests for priority assignments generally
will be accepted only by the Executive Office of the President.

                             3. Definitions

    As used in this part:
    a. Assignment means the designation of priority level(s) for a
defined NSEP telecommunications service for a specified time period.
    b. Audit means a quality assurance review in response to identified
problems.
    c. Government refers to the Federal government or any foreign,
state, county, municipal or other local government agency or
organization. Specific qualifications will be supplied whenever
reference to a particular level of government is intended (e.g.,
``Federal government'', ``state government''). ``Foreign government''
means any sovereign empire, kingdom, state, or independent political
community, including foreign diplomatic and consular establishments and
coalitions or associations of governments (e.g., North Atlantic Treaty
Organization (NATO), Southeast Asian Treaty Organization (SEATO),
Organization of American States

[[Page 444]]

(OAS), and government agencies or organization (e.g., Pan American
Union, International Postal Union, and International Monetary Fund)).
    d. National Communications System (NCS) refers to that organization
established by the President in Executive Order No. 12472, ``Assignment
of National Security and Emergency Preparedness Telecommunications
Functions,'' April 3, 1984, 49 FR 13471 (1984).
    e. National Coordinating Center (NCC) refers to the joint
telecommunications industry-Federal government operation established by
the National Communications System to assist in the initiation,
coordination, restoration, and reconstitution of NSEP telecommunication
services or facilities.
    f. National Security Emergency Preparedness (NSEP)
telecommunications services, or ``NSEP services,'' means
telecommunication services which are used to maintain a state of
readiness or to respond to and manage any event or crisis (local,
national, or international), which causes or could cause injury or harm
to the population, damage to or loss of property, or degrades or
threatens the NSEP posture of the United States. These services fall
into two specific categories, Emergency NSEP and Essential NSEP, and are
assigned priority levels pursuant to section 9 of this appendix.
    g. NSEP treatment refers to the provisioning of a telecommunication
service before others based on the provisioning priority level assigned
by the Executive Office of the President.
    h. Priority action means assignment, revision, revocation, or
revalidation by the Executive Office of the President of a priority
level associated with an NSEP telecommunications service.
    i. Priority level means the level that may be assigned to an NSEP
telecommunications service specifying the order in which provisioning or
restoration of the service is to occur relative to other NSEP and/or
non-NSEP telecommunication services. Priority levels authorized by this
appendix are designated (highest to lowest) ``E,'' ``1,'' ``2,'' ``3,''
``4,'' and ``5,'' for provisioning and ``1,'' ``2,'' ``3,'' ``4,'' and
``5,'' for restoration.
    j. Priority level assignment means the priority level(s) designated
for the provisioning and/or restoration of a particular NSEP
telecommunications service under section 9 of this appendix.
    k. Private NSEP telecommunications services include non-common
carrier telecommunications services including private line, virtual
private line, and private switched network services.
    l. Provisioning means the act of supplying telecommunications
service to a user, including all associated transmission, wiring and
equipment. As used herein, ``provisioning'' and ``initiation'' are
synonymous and include altering the state of an existing priority
service or capability.
    m. Public switched NSEP telecommunications services include those
NSEP telecommunications services utilizing public switched networks.
Such services may include both interexchange and intraexchange network
facilities (e.g., switching systems, interoffice trunks and subscriber
loops).
    n. Reconciliation means the comparison of NSEP service information
and the resolution of identified discrepancies.
    o. Restoration means the repair or returning to service of one or
more telecommunication services that have experienced a service outage
or are unusable for any reason, including a damaged or impaired
telecommunications facility. Such repair or returning to service may be
done by patching, rerouting, substitution of component parts or
pathways, and other means, as determined necessary by a service vendor.
    p. Revalidation means the rejustification by a service user of a
priority level assignment. This may result in extension by the Executive
Office of the President of the expiration date associated with the
priority level assignment.
    q. Revision means the change of priority level assignment for an
NSEP telecommunications service. This includes any extension of an
existing priority level assignment to an expanded NSEP service.
    r. Revocation means the elimination of a priority level assignment
when it is no longer valid. All priority level assignments for an NSEP
service are revoked upon service termination.
    s. Service identification refers to the information uniquely
identifying an NSEP telecommunications service to the service vendor
and/or service user.
    t. Service user refers to any individual or organization (including
a service vendor) supported by a telecommunications service for which a
priority level has been requested or assigned pursuant to section 8 or 9
of this appendix.
    u. Service vendor refers to any person, association, partnership,
corporation, organization, or other entity (including common carriers
and government organizations) that offers to supply any
telecommunications equipment, facilities, or services (including
customer premises equipment and wiring) or combination thereof. The term
includes resale carriers, prime contractors, subcontractors, and
interconnecting carriers.
    v. Spare circuits or services refers to those not being used or
contracted for by any customer.
    w. Telecommunication services means the transmission, emission, or
reception of signals, signs, writing, images, sounds, or intelligence of
any nature, by wire, cable, satellite, fiber optics, laser, radio,
visual or other electronic, electric, electromagnetic,

[[Page 445]]

or acoustically coupled means, or any combination thereof. The term can
include necessary telecommunication facilities.
    x. Telecommunications Service Priority (TSP) system user refers to
any individual, organization, or activity that interacts with the NSEP
TSP System.

                                4. Scope

    a. Domestic NSEP services. The NSEP TSP System and procedures
established by this appendix authorize priority treatment to the
following domestic telecommunication services (including portions of
U.S. international telecommunication services provided by U.S. vendors)
for which provisioning or restoration priority levels are requested,
assigned, and approved in accordance with this appendix:
    (1) Common carrier services which are:
    (a) Interstate or foreign telecommunications services,
    (b) Intrastate telecommunication services inseparable from
interstate or foreign telecommunications services, and intrastate
telecommunication services to which priority levels are assigned
pursuant to section 9 of this appendix.

    Note: Initially, the NSEP TSP System's applicability to public
switched services is limited to (a) provisioning of such services (e.g.,
business, centrex, cellular, foreign exchange, Wide Area Telephone
Service (WATS) and other services that the selected vendor is able to
provision) and (b) restoration of services that the selected vendor is
able to restore.

    (2) Services which are provided by government and/or non-common
carriers and are interconnected to common carrier services assigned a
priority level pursuant to section 9 of this appendix.
    b. Control services and orderwires. The NSEP TSP System and
procedures established by this appendix are not applicable to authorize
priority treatment to control services or orderwires owned by a service
vendor and needed for provisioning, restoration, or maintenance of other
services owned by that service vendor. Such control services and
orderwires shall have priority provisioning and restoration over all
other telecommunication services (including NSEP services) and shall be
exempt from preemption. However, the NSEP TSP System and procedures
established by this appendix are applicable to control services or
orderwires leased by a service vendor.
    c. Other services. The NSEP TSP System may apply, at the discretion
of and upon special arrangements by the NSEP TSP System users involved,
to authorize priority treatment to the following telecommunication
services:
    (1) Government or non-common carrier services which are not
connected to common carrier provided services assigned a priority level
pursuant to section 9 of this appendix.
    (2) Portions of U.S. international services which are provided by
foreign correspondents. (U.S. telecommunication service vendors are
encouraged to ensure that relevant operating arrangements are consistent
to the maximum extent practicable with the NSEP TSP System. If such
arrangements do not exist, U.S. telecommunication service vendors should
handle service provisioning and/or restoration in accordance with any
system acceptable to their foreign correspondents which comes closest to
meeting the procedures established in this appendix.)

                                5. Policy

    The NSEP TSP System is the regulatory, administrative, and
operational system authorizing and providing for priority treatment,
i.e., provisioning and restoration, of NSEP telecommunication services.
As such, it establishes the framework for telecommunication service
vendors to provision, restore, or otherwise act on a priority basis to
ensure effective NSEP telecommunication services. The NSEP TSP System
allows the assignment of priority levels to any NSEP service across
three time periods, or stress conditions: Peacetime/Crisis/
Mobilizations, Attack/War, and Post-Attack/Recovery. Although priority
levels normally will be assigned by the Executive Office of the
President and retained by service vendors only for the current time
period, they may be preassigned for the other two time periods at the
request of service users who are able to identify and justify in
advance, their wartime or post-attack NSEP telecommunication
requirements. Absent such preassigned priority levels for the Attack/War
and Post-Attack/Recovery periods, priority level assignments for the
Peacetime/Crisis/Mobilization period will remain in effect. At all
times, priority level assignments will be subject to revision by the FCC
or (on an interim basis) the Executive Office of the President, based
upon changing NSEP needs. No other system of telecommunication service
priorities which conflicts with the NSEP TSP System is authorized.

                           6. Responsibilities

    a. The FCC will:
    (1) Provide regulatory oversight of implementation of the NSEP TSP
System.
    (2) Enforce NSEP TSP System rules and regulations, which are
contained in this appendix.
    (3) Act as final authority for approval, revision, or disapproval of
priority actions by the Executive Office of the President and adjudicate
disputes regarding either priority actions or denials of requests for
priority actions by the Executive Office of the President, until
superseded by the President's war

[[Page 446]]

emergency powers under section 706 of the Communications Act.
    (4) Function (on a discretionary basis) as a sponsoring Federal
organization. (See section 6(c) below.)
    b. The Executive Office of the President will:
    (1) During exercise of the President's war emergency powers under
section 706 of the Communications Act, act as the final approval
authority for priority actions or denials of requests for priority
actions, adjudicating any disputes.
    (2) Until the exercise of the President's war emergency powers,
administer the NSEP TSP System which includes:
    (a) Receiving, processing, and evaluating requests for priority
actions from service users, or sponsoring Federal government
organizations on behalf of service users (e.g., Department of State or
Defense on behalf of foreign governments, Federal Emergency Management
Agency on behalf of state and local governments, and any Federal
organization on behalf of private industry entities). Action on such
requests will be completed within 30 days of receipt.
    (b) Assigning, revising, revalidating, or revoking priority levels
as necessary or upon request of service users concerned, and denying
requests for priority actions as necessary, using the categories and
criteria specified in section 12 of this appendix. Action on such
requests will be completed within 30 days of receipt.
    (c) Maintaining data on priority level assignments.
    (d) Periodically forwarding to the FCC lists of priority actions by
the Executive Office of the President for review and approval.
    (e) Periodically initiating reconciliation.
    (f) Testing and evaluating the NSEP TSP System for effectiveness.
    (g) Conducting audits as necessary. Any Telecommunications Service
Priority (TSP) System user may request the Executive Office of the
President to conduct an audit.
    (h) Issuing, subject to review by the FCC, regulations and
procedures supplemental to and consistent with this appendix regarding
operation and use of the NSEP TSP System.
    (i) Serving as a centralized point-of-contact for collecting and
disseminating to all interested parties (consistent with requirements
for treatment of classified and proprietary material) information
concerning use and abuse of the NSEP TSP System.
    (j) Establishing and assisting a TSP System Oversight Committee to
identify and review any problems developing in the system and recommend
actions to correct them or prevent recurrence. In addition to
representatives of the Executive Office of the President,
representatives from private industry (including telecommunication
service vendors), state and local governments, the FCC, and other
organizations may be appointed to that Committee.
    (k) Reporting at least quarterly to the FCC and TSP System Oversight
Committee, together with any recommendations for action, the operational
status of and trends in the NSEP TSP System, including:
    (i) Numbers of requests processed for the various priority actions,
and the priority levels assigned.
    (ii) Relative percentages of services assigned to each priority
level under each NSEP category and subcategory.
    (iii) Any apparent serious misassignment or abuse of priority level
assignments.
    (iv) Any existing or developing problem.
    (l) Submitting semi-annually to the FCC and TSP System Oversight
Committee a summary report identifying the time and event associated
with each invocation of NSEP treatment under section 9(c) of this
appendix, whether the NSEP service requirement was adequately handled,
and whether any additional charges were incurred. These reports will be
due by April 30th for the preceding July through December and by October
31 for the preceding January through June time periods.
    (m) All reports submitted to the FCC should be directed to Chief,
Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, Washington, DC 20554.
    (3) Function (on a discretionary basis) as a sponsoring Federal
organization. (See section 6(c) below.)
    c. Sponsoring Federal organizations will:
    (1) Review and decide whether to sponsor foreign, state, and local
government and private industry (including telecommunication service
vendors) requests for priority actions. Federal organizations will
forward sponsored requests with recommendations for disposition to the
Executive Office of the President. Recommendations will be based on the
categories and criteria in section 12 of this appendix.
    (2) Forward notification of priority actions or denials of requests
for priority actions from the Executive Office of the President to the
requesting foreign, state, and local government and private industry
entities.
    (3) Cooperate with the Executive Office of the President during
reconciliation, revalidation, and audits.
    (4) Comply with any regulations and procedures supplemental to and
consistent with this appendix which are issued by the Executive Office
of the President.
    d. Service users will:
    (1) Identify services requiring priority level assignments and
request and justify priority level assignments in accordance with this
appendix and any supplemental regulations and procedures issued by the
Executive Office of the President that are consistent with this
appendix.

[[Page 447]]

    (2) Request and justify revalidation of all priority level
assignments at least every three years.
    (3) For services assigned priority levels, ensure (through
contractual means or otherwise) availability of customer premises
equipment and wiring necessary for end-to-end service operation by the
service due date, and continued operation; and, for such services in the
Emergency NSEP category, by the time that vendors are prepared to
provide the services. Additionally, designate the organization
responsible for the service on an end-to-end basis.
    (4) Be prepared to accept services assigned priority levels by the
service due dates or, for services in the Emergency NSEP category, when
they are available.
    (5) Pay vendors any authorized costs associated with services that
are assigned priority levels.
    (6) Report to vendors any failed or unusable services that are
assigned priority levels.
    (7) Designate a 24-hour point-of-contact for matters concerning each
request for priority action and apprise the Executive Office of the
President thereof.
    (8) Upon termination of services that are assigned priority levels,
or circumstances warranting revisions in priority level assignment
(e.g., expansion of service), request and justify revocation or
revision.
    (9) When NSEP treatment is invoked under section 9(c) of this
appendix, within 90 days following provisioning of the service involved,
forward to the National Coordinating Center (see section 3(e) of this
appendix) complete information identifying the time and event associated
with the invocation and regarding whether the NSEP service requirement
was adequately handled and whether any additional charges were incurred.
    (10) Cooperate with the Executive Office of the President during
reconciliation, revalidation, and audits.
    (11) Comply with any regulations and procedures supplemental to and
consistent with this appendix that are issued by the Executive Office of
the President.
    e. Non-federal service users, in addition to responsibilities
prescribed above in section 6(d), will obtain a sponsoring Federal
organization for all requests for priority actions. If unable to find a
sponsoring Federal organization, a non-federal service user may submit
its request, which must include documentation of attempts made to obtain
a sponsor and reasons given by the sponsor for its refusal, directly to
the Executive Office of the President.
    f. Service vendors will:
    (1) When NSEP treatment is invoked by service users, provision NSEP
telecommunication services before non-NSEP services, based on priority
level assignments made by the Executive Office of the President.
Provisioning will require service vendors to:
    (a) Allocate resources to ensure best efforts to provide NSEP
services by the time required. When limited resources constrain response
capability, vendors will address conflicts for resources by:
    (i) Providing NSEP services in order of provisioning priority level
assignment (i.e., ``E'', ``1'', ``2'', ``3'', ``4'', or ``5'');
    (ii) Providing Emergency NSEP services (i.e., those assigned
provisioning priority level ``E'') in order of receipt of the service
requests;
    (iii) Providing Essential NSEP services (i.e., those assigned
priority levels ``1'', ``2'', ``3'', ``4'', or ``5'') that have the same
provisioning priority level in order of service due dates; and
    (iv) Referring any conflicts which cannot be resolved (to the mutual
satisfaction of servicer vendors and users) to the Executive Office of
the President for resolution.
    (b) Comply with NSEP service requests by:
    (i) Allocating resources necessary to provide Emergency NSEP
services as soon as possible, dispatching outside normal business hours
when necessary;
    (ii) Ensuring best efforts to meet requested service dates for
Essential NSEP services, negotiating a mutually (customer and vendor)
acceptable service due date when the requested service due date cannot
be met; and
    (iii) Seeking National Coordinating Center (NCC) assistance as
authorized under the NCC Charter (see section 1.3, NCC Charter, dated
October 9, 1985).
    (2) Restore NSEP telecommunications services which suffer outage, or
are reported as unusable or otherwise in need of restoration, before
non-NSEP services, based on restoration priority level assignments.
(Note: For broadband or multiple service facilities, restoration is
permitted even though it might result in restoration of services
assigned no or lower priority levels along with, or sometimes ahead of,
some higher priority level services.) Restoration will require service
vendors to restore NSEP services in order of restoration priority level
assignment (i.e., ``1'', ``2'', ``3'', ``4'', or ``5'') by:
    (a) Allocating available resources to restore NSEP services as
quickly as practicable, dispatching outside normal business hours to
restore services assigned priority levels ``1'', ``2'', and ``3'' when
necessary, and services assigned priority level ``4'' and ``5'' when the
next business day is more than 24 hours away;
    (b) Restoring NSEP services assigned the same restoration priority
level based upon which can be first restored. (However, restoration
actions in progress should not normally be interrupted to restore
another NSEP service assigned the same restoration priority level);

[[Page 448]]

    (c) Patching and/or rerouting NSEP services assigned restoration
priority levels from ``1'' through ``5,'' when use of patching and/or
rerouting will hasten restoration;
    (d) Seeking National Coordinating Center (NCC) assistance authorized
under the NCC Charter; and
    (e) Referring any conflicts which cannot be resolved (to the mutual
satisfaction of service vendors and users) to the Executive Office of
the President for resolution.
    (3) Respond to provisioning requests of customers and/or other
service vendors, and to restoration priority level assignments when an
NSEP service suffers an outage or is reported as unusable, by:
    (a) Ensuring that vendor personnel understand their responsibilities
to handle NSEP provisioning requests and to restore NSEP service; and
    (b) Providing a 24-hour point-of-contact for receiving provisioning
requests for Emergency NSEP services and reports of NSEP service outages
or unusability.
    (c) Seek verification from an authorized entity if legitimacy of a
priority level assignment or provisioning request for an NSEP service is
in doubt. However, processing of Emergency NSEP service requests will
not be delayed for verification purposes.
    (4) Cooperate with other service vendors involved in provisioning or
restoring a portion of an NSEP service by honoring provisioning or
restoration priority level assignments, or requests for assistance to
provision or restore NSEP services, as detailed in sections 6(f)(1),
(2), and (3) above.
    (5) All service vendors, including resale carriers, are required to
ensure that service vendors supplying underlying facilities are provided
information necessary to implement priority treatment of facilities that
support NSEP services.
    (6) Preempt, when necessary, existing services to provide an NSEP
service as authorized in section 7 of this appendix.
    (7) Assist in ensuring that priority level assignments of NSEP
services are accurately identified ``end-to-end'' by:
    (a) Seeking verification from an authorized Federal government
entity if the legitimacy of the restoration priority level assignment is
in doubt;
    (b) Providing to subcontractors and/or interconnecting carriers the
restoration priority level assigned to a service;
    (c) Supplying, to the Executive Office of the President, when acting
as a prime contractor to a service user, confirmation information
regarding NSEP service completion for that portion of the service they
have contracted to supply;
    (d) Supplying, to the Executive Office of the President, NSEP
service information for the purpose of reconciliation.
    (e) Cooperating with the Executive Office of the President during
reconciliation.
    (f) Periodically initiating reconciliation with their subcontractors
and arranging for subsequent subcontractors to cooperate in the
reconciliation process.
    (8) Receive compensation for costs authorized through tariffs or
contracts by:
    (a) Provisions contained in properly filed state or Federal tariffs;
or
    (b) Provisions of properly negotiated contracts where the carrier is
not required to file tariffs.
    (9) Provision or restore only the portions of services for which
they have agreed to be responsible (i.e., have contracted to supply),
unless the President's war emergency powers under section 706 of the
Communications Act are in effect.
    (10) Cooperate with the Executive Office of the President during
audits.
    (11) Comply with any regulations or procedures supplemental to and
consistent with this appendix that are issued by the Executive Office of
the President and reviewed by the FCC.
    (12) Insure that at all times a reasonable number of public switched
network services are made available for public use.
    (13) Not disclose information concerning NSEP services they provide
to those not having a need-to-know or might use the information for
competitive advantage.

                   7. Preemption of Existing Services

    When necessary to provision or restore NSEP services, service
vendors may preempt services they provide as specified below. ``User''
as used in this Section means any user of a telecommunications service,
including both NSEP and non-NSEP services. Prior consent by a preempted
user is not required.
    a. The sequence in which existing services may be preempted to
provision NSEP services assigned a provisioning priority level ``E'' or
restore NSEP services assigned a restoration priority level from ``1''
through ``5'':
    (1) Non-NSEP services: If suitable spare services are not available,
then, based on the considerations in this appendix and the service
vendor's best judgment, non-NSEP services will be preempted. After
ensuring a sufficient number of public switched services are available
for public use, based on the service vendor's best judgment, such
services may be used to satisfy a requirement for provisioning or
restoring NSEP services.
    (2) NSEP services: If no suitable spare or non-NSEP services are
available, then existing NSEP services may be preempted to provision or
restore NSEP services with higher priority level assignments. When this
is necessary, NSEP services will be selected for preemption in the
inverse order of priority level assignment.
    (3) Service vendors who are preempting services will ensure their
best effort to notify the service user of the preempted service

[[Page 449]]

and state the reason for and estimated duration of the preemption.
    b. Service vendors may, based on their best judgment, determine the
sequence in which existing services may be preempted to provision NSEP
services assigned a provisioning priority of ``1'' through ``5''.
Preemption is not subject to the consent of the user whose service will
be preempted.

                  8. Requests for Priority Assignments.

    All service users are required to submit requests for priority
actions through the Executive Office of the President in the format and
following the procedures prescribed by that Office.

     9. Assignment, Approval, Use, and Invocation of Priority Levels

    a. Assignment and approval of priority levels. Priority level
assignments will be based upon the categories and criteria specified in
section 12 of this appendix. A priority level assignment made by the
Executive Office of the President will serve as that Office's
recommendation to the FCC. Until the President's war emergency powers
are invoked, priority level assignments must be approved by the FCC.
However, service vendors are ordered to implement any priority level
assignments that are pending FCC approval.
    After invocation of the President's war emergency powers, these
requirements may be superseded by other procedures issued by the
Executive Office of the President.
    b. Use of Priority Level Assignments.
    (1) All provisioning and restoration priority level assignments for
services in the Emergency NSEP category will be included in initial
service orders to vendors. Provisioning priority level assignments for
Essential NSEP services, however, will not usually be included in
initial service orders to vendors. NSEP treatment for Essential NSEP
services will be invoked and provisioning priority level assignments
will be conveyed to service vendors only if the vendors cannot meet
needed service dates through the normal provisioning process.
    (2) Any revision or revocation of either provisioning or restoration
priority level assignments will also be transmitted to vendors.
    (3) Service vendors shall accept priority levels and/or revisions
only after assignment by the Executive Office of the President.

    Note: Service vendors acting as prime contractors will accept
assigned NSEP priority levels only when they are accompanied by the
Executive Office of the President designated service identification,
i.e., TSP Authorization Code. However, service vendors are authorized to
accept priority levels and/or revisions from users and contracting
activities before assignment by the Executive Office of the President
when service vendor, user, and contracting activities are unable to
communicate with either the Executive Office of the President or the
FCC. Processing of Emergency NSEP service requests will not be delayed
for verification purposes.

    c. Invocation of NSEP treatment. To invoke NSEP treatment for the
priority provisioning of an NSEP telecommunications service, an
authorized Federal official either within, or acting on behalf of, the
service user's organization must make a written or oral declaration to
concerned service vendor(s) and the Executive Office of the President
that NSEP treatment is being invoked. Authorized Federal officials
include the head or director of a Federal agency, commander of a
unified/specified military command, chief of a military service, or
commander of a major military command; the delegates of any of the
foregoing; or any other officials as specified in supplemental
regulations or procedures issued by the Executive Office of the
President. The authority to invoke NSEP treatment may be delegated only
to a general or flag officer of a military service, civilian employee of
equivalent grade (e.g., Senior Executive Service member), Federal
Coordinating Officer or Federal Emergency Communications Coordinator/
Manager, or any other such officials specified in supplemental
regulations or procedures issued by the Executive Office of the
President. Delegates must be designated as such in writing, and written
or oral invocations must be accomplished, in accordance with
supplemental regulations or procedures issued by the Executive Office of
the President.

 10. Resubmission of Circuits Presently Assigned Restoration Priorities

    All circuits assigned restoration priorities must be reviewed for
eligibility for initial restoration priority level assignment under the
provisions of this appendix. Circuits currently assigned restoration
priorities, and for which restoration priority level assignments are
requested under section 8 of this appendix, will be resubmitted to the
Executive Office of the President. To resubmit such circuits, service
users will comply with applicable provisions of section 6(d) of this
appendix.

                               11. Appeal

    Service users or sponsoring Federal organizations may appeal any
priority level assignment, denial, revision, revocation, approval, or
disapproval to the Executive Office of the President within 30 days of
notification to the service user. The appellant must use the form or
format required by the Executive Office of the President and must serve
the FCC with a copy of its appeal. The Executive Office of the President
will act on the appeal within 90 days of receipt. Service users and
sponsoring Federal organizations may only

[[Page 450]]

then appeal directly to the FCC. Such FCC appeal must be filed within 30
days of notification of the Executive Office of the President's decision
on appeal. Additionally, the Executive Office of the President may
appeal any FCC revisions, approvals, or disapprovals to the FCC. All
appeals to the FCC must be submitted using the form or format required.
The party filing its appeal with the FCC must include factual details
supporting its claim and must serve a copy on the Executive Office of
the President and any other party directly involved. Such party may file
a response within 20 days, and replies may be filed within 10 days
thereafter. The Commission will not issue public notices of such
submissions. The Commission will provide notice of its decision to the
parties of record. Any appeals to the Executive Office of the President
that include a claim of new information that has not been presented
before for consideration may be submitted at any time.

      12. NSEP TSP System Categories, Criteria, and Priority Levels

    a. General. NSEP TSP System categories and criteria, and permissible
priority level assignments, are defined and explained below.
    (1) The Essential NSEP category has four subcategories: National
Security Leadership; National Security Posture and U.S. Population
Attack Warning; Public Health, Safety, and Maintenance of Law and Order;
and Public Welfare and Maintenance of National Economic Posture. Each
subcategory has its own criteria. Criteria are also shown for the
Emergency NSEP category, which has no sub-categories.
    (2) Priority levels of ``1,'' ``2,'' ``3,'' ``4,'' and ``5'' may be
assigned for provisioning and/or restoration of Essential NSEP
telecommunication services. However, for Emergency NSEP
telecommunications services, a priority level ``E'' is assigned for
provisioning. A restoration priority level from ``1'' through ``5'' may
be assigned if an Emergency NSEP service also qualifies for such a
restoration priority level under the Essential NSEP category.
    (3) The NSEP TSP System allows the assignment of priority levels to
any NSEP telecommunications service across three time periods, or stress
conditions: Peacetime/Crisis/Mobilization, Attack/War, and Post-Attack/
Recovery. Priority levels will normally be assigned only for the first
time period. These assigned priority levels will apply through the onset
of any attack, but it is expected that they would later be revised by
surviving authorized telecommunication resource managers within the
Executive Office of the President based upon specific facts and
circumstances arising during the Attack/War and Post-Attack/Recovery
time periods.
    (4) Service users may, for their own internal use, assign
subpriorities to their services assigned priority levels. Receipt of and
response to any such subpriorities is optional for service vendors.
    (5) The following paragraphs provide a detailed explanation of the
categories, subcategories, criteria, and priority level assignments,
beginning with the Emergency NSEP category.
    b. Emergency NSEP. Telecommunications services in the Emergency NSEP
category are those new services so critical as to be required to be
provisioned at the earliest possible time, without regard to the costs
of obtaining them.
    (1) Criteria. To qualify under the Emergency NSEP category, the
service must meet criteria directly supporting or resulting from at
least one of the following NSEP functions:
    (a) Federal government activity responding to a Presidentially
declared disaster or emergency as defined in the Disaster Relief Act (42
U.S.C. 5122).
    (b) State or local government activity responding to a
Presidentially declared disaster or emergency.
    (c) Response to a state of crisis declared by the National Command
Authorities (e.g., exercise of Presidential war emergency powers under
section 706 of the Communications Act.)
    (d) Efforts to protect endangered U.S. personnel or property.
    (e) Response to an enemy or terrorist action, civil disturbance,
natural disaster, or any other unpredictable occurrence that has damaged
facilities whose uninterrupted operation is critical to NSEP or the
management of other ongoing crises.
    (f) Certification by the head or director of a Federal agency,
commander of a unified/specified command, chief of a military service,
or commander of a major military command, that the telecommunications
service is so critical to protection of life and property or to NSEP
that it must be provided immediately.
    (g) A request from an official authorized pursuant to the Foreign
Intelligence Surveillance Act (50 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. and 18 U.S.C.
2511, 2518, 2519).
    (2) Priority Level Assignment.
    (a) Services qualifying under the Emergency NSEP category are
assigned priority level ``E'' for provisioning.
    (b) After 30 days, assignments of provisioning priority level ``E''
for Emergency NSEP services are automatically revoked unless extended
for another 30-day period. A notice of any such revocation will be sent
to service vendors.
    (c) For restoration, Emergency NSEP services may be assigned
priority levels under the provisions applicable to Essential NSEP
services (see section 12(c)). Emergency NSEP

[[Page 451]]

services not otherwise qualifying for restoration priority level
assignment as Essential NSEP may be assigned a restoration priority
level ``5'' for a 30-day period. Such 30-day restoration priority level
assignments will be revoked automatically unless extended for another
30-day period. A notice of any such revocation will be sent to service
vendors.
    c. Essential NSEP. Telecommunication services in the Essential NSEP
category are those required to be provisioned by due dates specified by
service users, or restored promptly, normally without regard to
associated overtime or expediting costs. They may be assigned priority
level of ``1,'' ``2,'' ``3,'' ``4,'' or ``5'' for both provisioning and
restoration, depending upon the nature and urgency of the supported
function, the impact of lack of service or of service interruption upon
the supported function, and, for priority access to public switched
services, the user's level of responsibility. Priority level assignments
will be valid for no more than three years unless revalidated. To be
categorized as Essential NSEP, a telecommunications service must qualify
under one of the four following subcategories: National Security
Leadership; National Security Posture and U.S. Population Attack
Warning; Public Health, Safety and Maintenance of Law and Order; or
Public Welfare and Maintenance of National Economic Posture. (Note Under
emergency circumstances, Essential NSEP telecommunication services may
be recategorized as Emergency NSEP and assigned a priority level ``E''
for provisioning.)
    (1) National security leadership. This subcategory will be strictly
limited to only those telecommunication services essential to national
survival if nuclear attack threatens or occurs, and critical orderwire
and control services necessary to ensure the rapid and efficient
provisioning or restoration of other NSEP telecommunication services.
Services in this subcategory are those for which a service interruption
of even a few minutes would have serious adverse impact upon the
supported NSEP function.
    (a) Criteria. To qualify under this subcategory, a service must be
at least one of the following:
    (i) Critical orderwire, or control service, supporting other NSEP
functions.
    (ii) Presidential communications service critical to continuity of
government and national leadership during crisis situations.
    (iii) National Command Authority communications service for military
command and control critical to national survival.
    (iv) Intelligence communications service critical to warning of
potentially catastrophic attack.
    (v) Communications service supporting the conduct of diplomatic
negotiations critical to arresting or limiting hostilities.
    (b) Priority level assignment. Services under this subcategory will
normally be assigned priority level ``1'' for provisioning and
restoration during the Peace/Crisis/Mobilization time period.
    (2) National security posture and U.S. population attack warning.
This subcategory covers those minimum additional telecommunication
services essential to maintaining an optimum defense, diplomatic, or
continuity-of-government postures before, during, and after crises
situations. Such situations are those ranging from national emergencies
to international crises, including nuclear attack. Services in this
subcategory are those for which a service interruption ranging from a
few minutes to one day would have serious adverse impact upon the
supported NSEP function.
    (a) Criteria. To qualify under this subcategory, a service must
support at least one of the following NSEP functions:
    (i) Threat assessment and attack warning.
    (ii) Conduct of diplomacy.
    (iii) Collection, processing, and dissemination of intelligence.
    (iv) Command and control of military forces.
    (v) Military mobilization.
    (vi) Continuity of Federal government before, during, and after
crises situations.
    (vii) Continuity of state and local government functions supporting
the Federal government during and after national emergencies.
    (viii) Recovery of critical national functions after crises
situations.
    (ix) National space operations.
    (b) Priority level assignment. Services under this subcategory will
normally be assigned priority level ``2,'' ``3,'' ``4,'' or ``5'' for
provisioning and restoration during Peacetime/Crisis/Mobilization.
    (3) Public health, safety, and maintenance of law and order. This
subcategory covers the minimum number of telecommunication services
necessary for giving civil alert to the U.S. population and maintaining
law and order and the health and safety of the U.S. population in times
of any national, regional, or serious local emergency. These services
are those for which a service interruption ranging from a few minutes to
one day would have serious adverse impact upon the supported NSEP
functions.
    (a) Criteria. To qualify under this subcategory, a service must
support at least one of the following NSEP functions:
    (i) Population warning (other than attack warning).
    (ii) Law enforcement.
    (iii) Continuity of critical state and local government functions
(other than support of the Federal government during and after national
emergencies).
    (iv) Hospitals and distributions of medical supplies.

[[Page 452]]

    (v) Critical logistic functions and public utility services.
    (vi) Civil air traffic control.
    (vii) Military assistance to civil authorities.
    (viii) Defense and protection of critical industrial facilities.
    (ix) Critical weather services.
    (x) Transportation to accomplish the foregoing NSEP functions.
    (b) Priority level assignment. Service under this subcategory will
normally be assigned priority levels ``3,'' ``4,'' or ``5'' for
provisioning and restoration during Peacetime/Crisis/Mobilization.
    (4) Public welfare and maintenance of national economic posture.
This subcategory covers the minimum number of telecommunications
services necessary for maintaining the public welfare and national
economic posture during any national or regional emergency. These
services are those for which a service interruption ranging from a few
minutes to one day would have serious adverse impact upon the supported
NSEP function.
    (a) Criteria. To qualify under this subcategory, a service must
support at least one of the following NSEP functions:
    (i) Distribution of food and other essential supplies.
    (ii) Maintenance of national monetary, credit, and financial
systems.
    (iii) Maintenance of price, wage, rent, and salary stabilization,
and consumer rationing programs.
    (iv) Control of production and distribution of strategic materials
and energy supplies.
    (v) Prevention and control of environmental hazards or damage.
    (vi) Transportation to accomplish the foregoing NSEP functions.
    (b) Priority level assignment. Services under this subcategory will
normally be assigned priority levels ``4'' or ``5'' for provisioning and
restoration during Peacetime/Crisis/Mobilization.
    d. Limitations. Priority levels will be assigned only to the minimum
number of telecommunication services required to support an NSEP
function. Priority levels will not normally be assigned to backup
services on a continuing basis, absent additional justification, e.g., a
service user specifies a requirement for physically diverse routing or
contracts for additional continuity-of-service features. The Executive
Office of the President may also establish limitations upon the relative
numbers of services which may be assigned any restoration priority
level. These limitations will not take precedence over laws or executive
orders. Such limitations shall not be exceeded absent waiver by the
Executive Office of the President.
    e. Non-NSEP services. Telecommunication services in the non-NSEP
category will be those which do not meet the criteria for either
Emergency NSEP or Essential NSEP.

[53 FR 47536, Nov. 23, 1988; 54 FR 152, Jan. 4, 1989; 54 FR 1471, Jan.
13, 1989, as amended at 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002; 71 FR 69038, Nov.
29, 2006]



 Sec. Appendix B to Part 64--Priority Access Service (PAS) for National
               Security and Emergency Preparedness (NSEP)

                              1. Authority

    This appendix is issued pursuant to sections 1, 4(i), 201 through
205 and 303(r) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended. Under
these sections, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may permit
the assignment and approval of priorities for access to commercial
mobile radio service (CMRS) networks. Under section 706 of the
Communications Act, this authority may be superseded by the war
emergency powers of the President of the United States. This appendix
provides the Commission's Order to CMRS providers and users to comply
with policies and procedures establishing the Priority Access Service
(PAS). This appendix is intended to be read in conjunction with
regulations and procedures that the Executive Office of the President
issues:
    (1) To implement responsibilities assigned in section 3 of this
appendix, or
    (2) For use in the event this appendix is superseded by the
President's emergency war powers. Together, this appendix and the
regulations and procedures issued by the Executive Office of the
President establish one uniform system of priority access service both
before and after invocation of the President's emergency war powers.

                              2. Background

    a. Purpose. This appendix establishes regulatory authorization for
PAS to support the needs of NSEP CMRS users.
    b. Applicability. This appendix applies to the provision of PAS by
CMRS licensees to users who qualify under the provisions of section 5 of
this appendix.
    c. Description. PAS provides the means for NSEP telecommunications
users to obtain priority access to available radio channels when
necessary to initiate emergency calls. It does not preempt calls in
progress and is to be used during situations when CMRS network
congestion is blocking NSEP call attempts. PAS is to be available to
authorized NSEP users at all times in equipped CMRS markets where the
service provider has voluntarily decided to provide such service.
Authorized users would activate the feature on a per call basis by
dialing a feature code such as *XX. PAS priorities 1 through 5 are
reserved for qualified and authorized NSEP

[[Page 453]]

users, and those users are provided access to CMRS channels before any
other CMRS callers.
    d. Definitions. As used in this appendix:
    1. Authorizing agent refers to a Federal or State entity that
authenticates, evaluates and makes recommendations to the Executive
Office of the President regarding the assignment of priority access
service levels.
    2. Service provider means an FCC-licensed CMRS provider. The term
does not include agents of the licensed CMRS provider or resellers of
CMRS service.
    3. Service user means an individual or organization (including a
service provider) to whom or which a priority access assignment has been
made.
    4. The following terms have the same meaning as in Appendix A to
Part 64:
    (a) Assignment;
    (b) Government;
    (c) National Communications System;
    (d) National Coordinating Center;
    (e) National Security Emergency Preparedness (NSEP)
Telecommunications Services (excluding the last sentence);
    (f) Reconciliation;
    (g) Revalidation;
    (h) Revision;
    (i) Revocation.
    e. Administration. The Executive Office of the President will
administer PAS.

                           3. Responsibilities

    a. The Federal Communications Commission will provide regulatory
oversight of the implementation of PAS, enforce PAS rules and
regulations, and act as final authority for approval, revision, or
disapproval of priority assignments by the Executive Office of the
President by adjudicating disputes regarding either priority assignments
or the denial thereof by the Executive Office of the President until
superseded by the President's war emergency powers under Section 706 of
the Communications Act.
    b. The Executive Office of the President (EOP) will administer the
PAS system. It will:
    1. Act as the final approval or denial authority for the assignment
of priorities and the adjudicator of disputes during the exercise of the
President's war emergency powers under section 706 of the Communications
Act.
    2. Receive, process, and evaluate requests for priority actions from
authorizing agents on behalf of service users or directly from service
users. Assign priorities or deny requests for priority using the
priorities and criteria specified in section 5 of this appendix. Actions
on such requests should be completed within 30 days of receipt.
    3. Convey priority assignments to the service provider and the
authorizing agent.
    4. Revise, revalidate, reconcile, and revoke priority level
assignments with service users and service providers as necessary to
maintain the viability of the PAS system.
    5. Maintain a database for PAS related information.
    6. Issue new or revised regulations, procedures, and instructional
material supplemental to and consistent with this appendix regarding the
operation, administration, and use of PAS.
    7. Provide training on PAS to affected entities and individuals.
    8. Enlarge the role of the Telecommunications Service Priority
System Oversight Committee to include oversight of the PAS system.
    9. Report periodically to the FCC on the status of PAS.
    10. Disclose content of the NSEP PAS database only as may be
required by law.
    c. An Authorizing agent shall:
    1. Identify itself as an authorizing agent and its community of
interest (State, Federal Agency) to the EOP. State Authorizing Agents
will provide a central point of contact to receive priority requests
from users within their state. Federal Authorizing Agents will provide a
central point of contact to receive priority requests from federal users
or federally sponsored entities.
    2. Authenticate, evaluate, and make recommendations to the EOP to
approve priority level assignment requests using the priorities and
criteria specified in section 5 of this appendix. As a guide, PAS
authorizing agents should request the lowest priority level that is
applicable and the minimum number of CMRS services required to support
an NSEP function. When appropriate, the authorizing agent will recommend
approval or deny requests for PAS.
    3. Ensure that documentation is complete and accurate before
forwarding it to the EOP.
    4. Serve as a conduit for forwarding PAS information from the EOP to
the service user and vice versa. Information will include PAS requests
and assignments, reconciliation and revalidation notifications, and
other information.
    5. Participate in reconciliation and revalidation of PAS information
at the request of the EOP.
    6. Comply with any regulations and procedures supplemental to and
consistent with this appendix that are issued by the EOP.
    7. Disclose content of the NSEP PAS database only to those having a
need-to-know.
    d. Service users will:
    1. Determine the need for and request PAS assignments in a planned
process, not waiting until an emergency has occurred.
    2. Request PAS assignments for the lowest applicable priority level
and minimum number of CMRS services necessary to provide NSEP
telecommunications management and response functions during emergency/
disaster situations.

[[Page 454]]

    3. Initiate PAS requests through the appropriate authorizing agent.
The EOP will make final approval or denial of PAS requests and may
direct service providers to remove PAS if appropriate. (Note: State and
local government or private users will apply for PAS through their
designated State government authorizing agent. Federal users will apply
for PAS through their employing agency. State and local users in states
where there has been no designation will be sponsored by the Federal
agency concerned with the emergency function as set forth in Executive
Order 12656. If no authorizing agent is determined using these criteria,
the EOP will serve as the authorizing agent.)
    4. Submit all correspondence regarding PAS to the authorizing agent.
    5. Invoke PAS only when CMRS congestion blocks network access and
the user must establish communications to fulfill an NSEP mission. Calls
should be as brief as possible so as to afford CMRS service to other
NSEP users.
    6. Participate in reconciliation and revalidation of PAS information
at the request of the authorizing agent or the EOP.
    7. Request discontinuance of PAS when the NSEP qualifying criteria
used to obtain PAS is no longer applicable.
    8. Pay service providers as billed for PAS.
    9. Comply with regulations and procedures that are issued by the EOP
which are supplemental to and consistent with this appendix.
    e. Service providers who offer any form of priority access service
for NSEP purposes shall provide that service in accordance with this
appendix. As currently described in the Priority Access and Channel
Assignment Standard (IS-53-A), service providers will:
    1. Provide PAS levels 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 only upon receipt of an
authorization from the EOP and remove PAS for specific users at the
direction of the EOP.
    2. Ensure that PAS system priorities supersede any other NSEP
priority which may be provided.
    3. Designate a point of contact to coordinate with the EOP regarding
PAS.
    4. Participate in reconciliation and revalidation of PAS information
at the request of the EOP.
    5. As technically and economically feasible, provide roaming service
users the same grade of PAS provided to local service users.
    6. Disclose content of the NSEP PAS database only to those having a
need-to-know or who will not use the information for economic advantage.
    7. Comply with regulations and procedures supplemental to and
consistent with this appendix that are issued by the EOP.
    8. Insure that at all times a reasonable amount of CMRS spectrum is
made available for public use.
    9. Notify the EOP and the service user if PAS is to be discontinued
as a service.
    f. The Telecommunications Service Priority Oversight Committee will
identify and review any systemic problems associated with the PAS system
and recommend actions to correct them or prevent their recurrence.

                                4. Appeal

    Service users and authorizing agents may appeal any priority level
assignment, denial, revision or revocation to the EOP within 30 days of
notification to the service user. The EOP will act on the appeal within
90 days of receipt. If a dispute still exists, an appeal may then be
made to the FCC within 30 days of notification of the EOP's decision.
The party filing the appeal must include factual details supporting its
claim and must provide a copy of the appeal to the EOP and any other
party directly involved. Involved parties may file a response to the
appeal made to the FCC within 20 days, and the initial filing party may
file a reply within 10 days thereafter. The FCC will provide notice of
its decision to the parties of record. Until a decision is made, the
service will remain status quo.

             5. PAS Priority Levels and Qualifying Criteria

    The following PAS priority levels and qualifying criteria apply
equally to all users and will be used as a basis for all PAS
assignments. There are five levels of NSEP priorities, priority one
being the highest. The five priority levels are:
    1. Executive Leadership and Policy Makers
    2. Disaster Response/Military Command and Control
    3. Public Health, Safety and Law Enforcement Command
    4. Public Services/Utilities and Public Welfare
    5. Disaster Recovery
    These priority levels were selected to meet the needs of the
emergency response community and provide priority access for the command
and control functions critical to management of and response to national
security and emergency situations, particularly during the first 24 to
72 hours following an event. Priority assignments should only be
requested for key personnel and those individuals in national security
and emergency response leadership positions. PAS is not intended for use
by all emergency service personnel.

         A. Priority 1: Executive Leadership and Policy Makers.

    Users who qualify for the Executive Leadership and Policy Makers
priority will be assigned priority one. A limited number of CMRS
technicians who are essential to restoring the CMRS networks shall also
receive this highest priority treatment. Examples of those eligible
include:

[[Page 455]]

    (i) The President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense,
selected military leaders, and the minimum number of senior staff
necessary to support these officials;
    (ii) State governors, lieutenant governors, cabinet-level officials
responsible for public safety and health, and the minimum number of
senior staff necessary to support these officials; and
    (iii) Mayors, county commissioners, and the minimum number of senior
staff to support these officials.

      B. Priority 2: Disaster Response/Military Command and Control

    Users who qualify for the Disaster Response/Military Command and
Control priority will be assigned priority two. Individuals eligible for
this priority include personnel key to managing the initial response to
an emergency at the local, state, regional and federal levels. Personnel
selected for this priority should be responsible for ensuring the
viability or reconstruction of the basic infrastructure in an emergency
area. In addition, personnel essential to continuity of government and
national security functions (such as the conduct of international
affairs and intelligence activities) are also included in this priority.
Examples of those eligible include:
    (i) Federal emergency operations center coordinators, e.g., Manager,
National Coordinating Center for Telecommunications, National
Interagency Fire Center, Federal Coordinating Officer, Federal Emergency
Communications Coordinator, Director of Military Support;
    (ii) State emergency Services director, National Guard Leadership,
State and Federal Damage Assessment Team Leaders;
    (iii) Federal, state and local personnel with continuity of
government responsibilities;
    (iv) Incident Command Center Managers, local emergency managers,
other state and local elected public safety officials; and
    (v) Federal personnel with intelligence and diplomatic
responsibilities.

    C. Priority 3: Public Health, Safety, and Law Enforcement Command

    Users who qualify for the Public Health, Safety, and Law Enforcement
Command priority will be assigned priority three. Eligible for this
priority are individuals who direct operations critical to life,
property, and maintenance of law and order immediately following an
event. Examples of those eligible include:
    (i) Federal law enforcement command;
    (ii) State police leadership;
    (iii) Local fire and law enforcement command;
    (iv) Emergency medical service leaders;
    (v) Search and rescue team leaders; and
    (vi) Emergency communications coordinators.

       D. Priority 4: Public Services/Utilities and Public Welfare

    Users who qualify for the Public Services/Utilities and Public
Welfare priority will be assigned priority four. Eligible for this
priority are those users whose responsibilities include managing public
works and utility infrastructure damage assessment and restoration
efforts and transportation to accomplish emergency response activities.
Examples of those eligible include:
    (i) Army Corps of Engineers leadership;
    (ii) Power, water and sewage and telecommunications utilities; and
    (iii) Transportation leadership.

                    E. Priority 5: Disaster Recovery

    Users who qualify for the Disaster Recovery priority will be
assigned priority five. Eligible for this priority are those individuals
responsible for managing a variety of recovery operations after the
initial response has been accomplished. These functions may include
managing medical resources such as supplies, personnel, or patients in
medical facilities. Other activities such as coordination to establish
and stock shelters, to obtain detailed damage assessments, or to support
key disaster field office personnel may be included. Examples of those
eligible include:
    (i) Medical recovery operations leadership;
    (ii) Detailed damage assessment leadership;
    (iii) Disaster shelter coordination and management; and
    (iv) Critical Disaster Field Office support personnel.

                             6. Limitations

    PAS will be assigned only to the minimum number of CMRS services
required to support an NSEP function. The Executive Office of the
President may also establish limitations upon the relative numbers of
services that may be assigned PAS or the total number of PAS users in a
serving area. These limitations will not take precedence over laws or
executive orders. Limitations established shall not be exceeded.

[65 FR 48396, Aug. 8, 2000]



PART 65_INTERSTATE RATE OF RETURN PRESCRIPTION PROCEDURES AND
METHODOLOGIES--Table of Contents



                            Subpart A_General

Sec.
65.1 Application of part 65.

[[Page 456]]

                          Subpart B_Procedures

65.100 Participation and acceptance of service designation.
65.101 Initiation of unitary rate of return prescription proceedings.
65.102 Petitions for exclusion from unitary treatment and for individual
          treatment in determining authorized return for interstate
          exchange access service.
65.103 Procedures for filing rate of return submissions.
65.104 Page limitations for rate of return submissions.
65.105 Discovery.

                       Subpart C_Exchange Carriers

65.300 Calculations of the components and weights of the cost of
          capital.
65.301 Cost of equity.
65.302 Cost of debt.
65.303 Cost of preferred stock.
65.304 Capital structure.
65.305 Calculation of the weighted average cost of capital.
65.306 Calculation accuracy.
65.450 Net income.

                    Subpart D_Interexchange Carriers

65.500 Net income.

                    Subpart E_Rate of Return Reports

65.600 Rate of return reports.

               Subpart F_Maximum Allowable Rates of Return

65.700 Determining the maximum allowable rate of return.
65.701 Period of review.
65.702 Measurement of interstate service earnings.

                           Subpart G_Rate Base

65.800 Rate base.
65.810 Definitions.
65.820 Included items.
65.830 Deducted items.

    Authority: Secs. 4, 201, 202, 203, 205, 218, 403, 48 Stat., 1066,
1072, 1077, 1094, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154, 201, 202, 203, 204,
205, 218, 219, 220, 403.



                            Subpart A_General



Sec. 65.1  Application of part 65.

    (a) This part establishes procedures and methodologies for
Commission prescription of an authorized unitary interstate exchange
access rate of return and individual rates of return for the interstate
exchange access rates of certain carriers pursuant to Sec. 65.102. This
part shall apply to those interstate services of local exchange carriers
as the Commission shall designate by rule or order, except that all
local exchange carriers shall provide to the Commission that information
which the Commission requests for purposes of conducting prescription
proceedings pursuant to this part.
    (b) Local exchange carriers subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through
61.49 of this chapter are exempt from the requirements of this part with
the following exceptions:
    (1) Except as otherwise required by Commission order, carriers
subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter shall employ
the rate of return value calculated for interstate access services in
complying with any applicable rules under parts 36 and 69 that require a
return component;
    (2) Carriers subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this
chapter shall be subject to Sec. 65.600(d);
    (3) Carriers subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this
chapter shall continue to comply with the prescribed rate of return when
offering any services specified in Sec. 61.42(f) of this chapter unless
the Commission otherwise directs; and
    (4) Carriers subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this
chapter shall comply with Commission information requests made pursuant
to Sec. 65.1(a).

[60 FR 28543, June 1, 1995]



                          Subpart B_Procedures



Sec. 65.100  Participation and acceptance of service designation.

    (a) All interstate exchange access carriers, their customers, and
any member of the public may participate in rate of return proceedings
to determine the authorized unitary interstate exchange access or
individual interstate exchange access rates of return authorized
pursuant to Sec. 65.102.
    (b) Participants shall state in their initial pleading in a
prescription proceeding whether they wish to receive service of
documents and other material filed in the proceeding. Participants that
wish to receive service by hand on the filing dates when so required by
this part 65 shall specify in their initial pleading in a prescription
proceeding, as specified in Sec. 65.103 (b)

[[Page 457]]

and (c), an agent for acceptance of service by hand in the District of
Columbia. The participant may elect in its pleading to receive service
by mail or upon an agent at another location. When such an election is
made, other participants need not complete service on the filing date,
and requests for extension of time due to delays in completion of
service will not be entertained.

[60 FR 28544, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.101  Initiation of unitary rate of return prescription proceedings.

    (a) Whenever the Commission determines that the monthly average
yields on ten (10) year United States Treasury securities remain, for a
consecutive six (6) month period, at least 150 basis points above or
below the average of the monthly average yields in effect for the
consecutive six (6) month period immediately prior to the effective date
of the current prescription, the Commission shall issue a notice
inquiring whether a rate of return prescription according to this part
should commence. This notice shall state:
    (1) The deadlines for filing initial and reply comments regarding
the notice;
    (2) The cost of debt, cost of preferred stock, and capital structure
computed in accordance with Sec. Sec. 65.302, 65.303, and 65.304; and
    (3) Such other information as the Commission may deem proper.
    (b) Based on the information submitted in response to the notice
described in Sec. 65.101(a), and on any other information specifically
identified, the Commission may issue a notice initiating a prescription
proceeding pursuant to this part.
    (c) The Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, may issue the notice
described in Sec. 65.101(a).

[60 FR 28544, June 1, 1995, as amended at 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 65.102  Petitions for exclusion from unitary treatment and for
individual treatment in determining authorized return for interstate

exchange access service.

    (a) Exclusion from unitary treatment will be granted for a period of
two years if the cost of capital for interstate exchange service is so
low as to be confiscatory because it is outside the zone of
reasonableness for the individual carrier's required rate of return for
interstate exchange access services.
    (b) A petition for exclusion from unitary treatment and for
individual treatment must plead with particularity the exceptional facts
and circumstances that justify individual treatment. The showing shall
include a demonstration that the exceptional facts and circumstances are
not of transitory effect, such that exclusion for a period of a least
two years is justified.
    (c) A petition for exclusion from unitary treatment and for
individual treatment may be filed at any time. When a petition is filed
at a time other than that specified in Sec. 65.103(b)(2), the
petitioner must provide compelling evidence that its need for individual
treatment is not simply the result of short-term fluctuations in the
cost of capital or similar events.

[60 FR 28544, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.103  Procedures for filing rate of return submissions.

    (a) Rate of return submissions listed in Sec. 65.103 (b)(1) and (c)
may include any relevant information, subject to the page limitations of
Sec. 65.104. The Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, may require from
carriers providing interstate services, and from other participants
submitting rate of return submissions, data, studies or other
information that are reasonably calculated to lead to a full and fair
record.
    (b) In proceedings to prescribe an authorized unitary rate of return
on interstate access services, interested parties may file direct case
submissions, responses, and rebuttals. Direct case submissions shall be
filed within sixty (60) calendar days following the effective date of a
Commission notice initiating a rate of return proceeding pursuant to
Sec. 65.101(b). Rate of return submissions responsive to the direct
case submissions shall be filed within sixty (60) calendar days after
the deadline for filing direct case submissions. Rebuttal submissions
shall be field within twenty-one (21) calendar days after the deadline
for filing responsive submissions.

[[Page 458]]

    (c) Petitions for exclusion from unitary treatment and for
individual treatment may be filed on the same date as the deadline for
filing responsive rate of return submissions. Oppositions shall be filed
within 35 calendar days thereafter. Rebuttal submissions shall be filed
within 21 calendar days after the deadline for filing responsive
submissions.
    (d) An original and 4 copies of all rate of return submissions shall
be filed with the Secretary.
    (e) The filing party shall serve a copy of each rate of return
submission, other than an initial submission, on all participants who
have filed a designation of service notice pursuant to Sec. 65.100(b).

[60 FR 28544, June 1, 1995, as amended at 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 65.104  Page limitations for rate of return submissions.

    Rate of return submissions, including all argument, attachments,
appendices, supplements, and supporting materials, such as testimony,
data and documents, but excluding tables of contents and summaries of
argument, shall be subject to the following double spaced typewritten
page limits:
    (a) The direct case submission of any participant shall not exceed
70 pages in length.
    (b) The responsive submission of any participant shall not exceed 70
pages in length.
    (c) The rebuttal submission of any participant shall not exceed 50
pages in length.
    (d) Petitions for exclusion from unitary treatment shall not exceed
70 pages in length. Oppositions to petitions for exclusion shall not
exceed 50 pages in length. Rebuttals shall not exceed 35 pages in
length.

[60 FR 28544, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.105  Discovery.

    (a) Participants shall file with each rate of return submission
copies of all information, including studies, financial analysts'
reports, and any other documents relied upon by participants or their
experts in the preparation of their submission. Information filed
pursuant to this paragraph for which protection from disclosure is
sought shall be filed subject to protective orders which shall be duly
granted by the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau, for good cause shown.
    (b) Participants may file written interrogatories and requests for
documents directed to any rate of return submission and not otherwise
filed pursuant to Sec. 65.105(a). The permissible scope of examination
is that participants may be examined upon any matter, not privileged,
that will demonstrably lead to the production of material, relevant,
decisionally significant evidence.
    (c) Discovery requests pursuant to Sec. 65.105(b), including
written interrogatories, shall be filed within 14 calendar days after
the filing of the rate of return submission to which the request is
directed. Discovery requests that are not opposed shall be complied with
within 14 calendar days of the request date.
    (d) Oppositions to discovery requests made pursuant to Sec.
65.105(b), including written interrogatories, shall be filed within 7
calendar days after requests are filed. The Chief, Wireline Competition
Bureau, shall rule upon any such opposition. Except as stayed by the
Commission or a Court, any required response to a discovery request that
is opposed shall be provided within 14 calendar days after release of
the ruling of the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau.
    (e) An original and 4 copies of all information described in Sec.
65.105(a) and all requests, oppositions, and responses made pursuant to
Sec. 65.105 (a), (b) and (d) shall be filed with the Secretary.
    (f) Service of requests, oppositions, and responses made pursuant to
Sec. 65.105 (b) and (d) shall be made upon all participants who have
filed a designation of service notice pursuant to Sec. 65.100(b).
Service of requests upon participants who have filed designation of
service notices pursuant to Sec. 65.100(b) shall be made by hand on the
filing dates thereof.

[60 FR 28544, June 1, 1995, as amended at 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002]

[[Page 459]]



                       Subpart C_Exchange Carriers



Sec. 65.300  Calculations of the components and weights of the cost of
capital.

    (a) Sections 65.301 through 65.303 specify the calculations that are
to be performed in computing cost of debt, cost of preferred stock, and
financial structure weights for prescription proceedings. The
calculations shall determine, where applicable, a composite cost of
debt, a composite cost of preferred stock, and a composite financial
structure for all local exchange carriers with annual revenues equal to
or above the indexed revenue threshold as defined in Sec. 32.9000. The
calculations shall be based on data reported to the Commission in FCC
Report 43-02. (See 47 CFR 43.21). The results of the calculations shall
be used in the represcription proceeding to which they relate unless the
record in that proceeding shows that their use would be unreasonable.
    (b) Excluded from cost of capital calculations made pursuant to
Sec. 65.300 shall be those sources of financing that are not investor
supplied, or that are otherwise subtracted from a carrier's rate base
pursuant to Commission orders governing the calculation of net rate base
amounts in tariff filings that are made pursuant to section 203 of the
Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. 203, or that were treated as
``zero cost'' sources of financing in section 450 and subpart G of this
part 65. Specifically excluded are: accounts payable, accrued taxes,
accrued interest, dividends payable, deferred credits and operating
reserves, deferred taxes and deferred tax credits.

[60 FR 28545, June 1, 1995, as amended at 67 FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002]



Sec. 65.301  Cost of equity.

    The cost of equity shall be determined in represcription proceedings
after giving full consideration to the evidence in the record, including
such evidence as the Commission may officially notice.

[60 FR 28545, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.302  Cost of debt.

    The formula for determining the cost of debt is equal to:
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR01JN95.000

Where:

``Total Annual Interest Expense'' is the total interest expense for the
          most recent two years for all local exchange carriers with
          annual revenues equal to or above the indexed revenue
          threshold as defined in Sec. 32.9000.
``Average Outstanding Debt'' is the average of the total debt for the
          most recent two years for all local exchange carriers with
          annual revenues equal to or above the indexed revenue
          threshold as defined in Sec. 32.9000.

[60 FR 28545, June 1, 1995, as amended at 67 FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002]



Sec. 65.303  Cost of preferred stock.

    The formula for determining the cost of preferred stock is:
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR01JN95.001

Where:

``Total Annual Preferred Dividends'' is the total dividends on preferred
          stock for the most recent two years for all local exchange
          carriers with annual revenues equal to or above the indexed
          revenue threshold as defined in Sec. 32.9000. ``Proceeds from
          the Issuance of Preferred Stock'' is the average of the total
          net proceeds from the issuance of preferred

[[Page 460]]

          stock for the most recent two years for all local exchange
          carriers with annual revenues equal to or above the indexed
          revenue threshold as defined in Sec. 32.9000.

[60 FR 28545, June 1, 1995, as amended at 67 FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002]



Sec. 65.304  Capital structure.

    The proportion of each cost of capital component in the capital
structure is equal to:
    Proportion in the capital structure =
    [GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TR01JN95.002

Where:

``Book Value of particular component'' is the total of the book values
          of that component for all local exchange carriers with annual
          revenues equal to or above the indexed revenue threshold as
          defined in Sec. 32.9000.
    ``Book Value of Debt+Book Value of Preferred Stock+Book Value of
Equity'' is the total of the book values of all the components for all
local exchange carriers with annual revenues equal to or above the
indexed revenue threshold as defined in Sec. 32.9000.

The total of all proportions shall equal 1.00.

[60 FR 28545, June 1, 1995, as amended at 67 FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002]



Sec. 65.305  Calculation of the weighted average cost of capital.

    (a) The composite weighted average cost of capital is the sum of the
cost of debt, the cost of preferred stock, and the cost of equity, each
weighted by its proportion in the capital structure of the telephone
companies.
    (b) Unless the Commission determines to the contrary in a
prescription proceeding, the composite weighted average cost of debt and
cost of preferred stock is the composite weight computed in accordance
with Sec. 65.304 multiplied by the composite cost of the component
computed in accordance with Sec. 65.301 or Sec. 65.302, as applicable.
The composite weighted average cost of equity will be determined in each
prescription proceeding.

[60 FR 28546, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.306  Calculation accuracy.

    In a prescription proceeding, the final determinations of the cost
of equity, cost of debt, cost of preferred stock and their capital
structure weights shall be accurate to two decimal places.

[60 FR 28546, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.450  Net income.

    (a) Net income shall consist of all revenues derived from the
provision of interstate telecommunications services regulated by this
Commission less expenses recognized by the Commission as necessary to
the provision of these services. The calculation of expenses entering
into the determination of net income shall include the interstate
portion of plant specific operations (Accounts 6110-6441), plant
nonspecific operations (Accounts 6510-6565), customer operations
(Accounts 6610-6623), corporate operations (Accounts 6720-6790), other
operating income and expense (Account 7100), and operating taxes
(Accounts 7200-7250), except to the extent this Commission specifically
provides to the contrary.
    (b) Gains and losses related to the disposition of plant in service
items, shall be handled as follows:
    (1) Gains related to property sold to others and leased back under
capital leases for use in telecommunications services shall be recorded
in Account 4300, Other long-term liabilities and deferred credits, and
credited to Account 6563, Amortization expense--tangible, over the
amortization period established for the capital lease;
    (2) Gains or losses related to the disposition of land and other
nondepreciable items recorded in Account 7100 (Other operating income
and expense) shall be included in net income for ratemaking purposes,
but adjusted to reflect the relative amount of time

[[Page 461]]

such property was used in regulated operations and included in the rate
base; and
    (3) Proceeds related to the disposition of property depreciated on a
group basis and used jointly in regulated and nonregulated activities,
including sale-leaseback arrangements for property depreciated on a
group basis, shall be credited to the related reserves and attributed to
regulated and nonregulated in proportion to the accumulated regulated
and nonregulated depreciation for that group.
    (c) Gains or losses related to the disposition of property that was
never included in the rate base shall not be considered for ratemaking
purposes.
    (d) Except for the allowance for funds used during construction,
reasonable charitable deductions and interest related to customer
deposits, the amounts recorded as nonoperating income and expenses and
taxes (Accounts 7300 and 7400) and interest and related items (Account
7500) and extraordinary items (Account 7600) shall not be included
unless this Commission specifically determines that particular items
recorded in those accounts shall be included.

[53 FR 1029, Jan. 15, 1988, as amended at 60 FR 12139, Mar. 6, 1995; 67
FR 5702, Feb. 6, 2002; 69 FR 53652, Sept. 2, 2004]



                    Subpart D_Interexchange Carriers



Sec. 65.500  Net income.

    The net income methodology specified in Sec. 65.450 shall be
utilized by all interexchange carriers that are so designated by
Commission order.

[60 FR 28546, June 1, 1995]



                    Subpart E_Rate of Return Reports



Sec. 65.600  Rate of return reports.

    (a) Subpart E shall apply to those interstate communications common
carriers and exchange carriers that are so designated by Commission
order.
    (b) Each local exchange carrier or group of affiliated carriers
which is not subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter
and which has filed individual access tariffs during the preceding
enforcement period shall file with the Commission within three (3)
months after the end of each calendar year, an annual rate of return
monitoring report which shall be the enforcement period report. Reports
shall be filed on the appropriate report form prescribed by the
Commission (see Sec. 1.795 of this chapter) and shall provide full and
specific answers to all questions propounded and information requested
in the currently effective report form. The number of copies to be filed
shall be specified in the applicable report form. At least one copy of
the report shall be signed on the signature page by the responsible
officer. A copy of each report shall be retained in the principal office
of the respondent and shall be filed in such a manner as to be readily
available for reference and inspection. Final adjustments to the
enforcement period report shall be made by September 30 of the year
following the enforcement period to ensure that any refunds can be
properly reflected in an annual access filing.
    (c) Each interexchange carrier subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through
61.49 shall file with the Commission, within three (3) months after the
end of each calendar year, the total interstate rate of return for that
year for all interstate services subject to regulation by the
Commission. Each such filing shall include a report of the total
revenues, total expenses and taxes, operating income, and the rate base.
A copy of the filing shall be retained in the principal office of the
respondent and shall be filed in such manner as to be readily available
for reference and inspection.
    (d)(1) Each local exchange carrier or group of affiliated carriers
subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter shall file
with the Commission within three (3) months after the end of each
calendar year a report of its total interstate rate of return for that
year. Such filings shall include a report of the total revenues, total
expenses and taxes, operating income, and the rate base. Reports shall
be filed on the appropriate form prescribed by the Commission (see Sec.
1.795 of this chapter) and shall provide full and specific answers to
all questions propounded and information requested in the currently
effective form. The number of copies to

[[Page 462]]

be filed shall be specified in the applicable report form. At least one
copy of the report shall be retained in the principal office of the
respondent and shall be filed in such manner as to be readily available
for reference and inspection.
    (2) Each local exchange carrier or group of affiliated carriers
subject to Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter shall file
with the Commission within fifteen (15) months after the end of each
calendar year a report reflecting any corrections or modifications to
the report filed pursuant to paragraph (d)(1) of this section. Reports
shall be filed on the appropriate form prescribed by the Commission (see
Sec. 1.795 of this chapter) and shall provide full and specific answers
to all questions propounded and information requested in the currently
effective form. The number of copies to be filed shall be specified in
the applicable report form. At least one copy of the report shall be
retained in the principal office of the respondent and shall be filed in
such manner as to be readily available for reference and inspection.

[52 FR 274, Jan. 5, 1987, as amended at 54 FR 19844, May 8, 1989; 55 FR
42385, Oct. 19, 1990; 56 FR 21617, May 10, 1991; 62 FR 5166, Feb. 4,
1997]



               Subpart F_Maximum Allowable Rates of Return



Sec. 65.700  Determining the maximum allowable rate of return.

    (a) The maximum allowable rate of return for any exchange carrier's
earnings on any access service category shall be determined by adding a
fixed increment of four-tenths of one percent of the exchange carrier
prescribed rate of return.
    (b) The maximum allowable rate of return for any exchange carrier's
overall interstate earnings for all access service categories shall be
determined by adding a fixed increment of one-quarter of one percent to
the exchange carrier prescribed rate of return.
    (c) The maximum allowable rate of return for rates filed by local
exchange carrier subject to Sec. 61.50 of this chapter, shall be
determined by adding a fixed increment of one and one-half percent to
the carriers prescribed rate of return.

[51 FR 11034, Apr. 1, 1986, as amended at 58 FR 36149, July 6, 1993; 60
FR 28546, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.701  Period of review.

    For both exchange and interexchange carriers subject to this part,
interstate earnings shall be measured over a two year period to
determine compliance with the maximum allowable rate of return. The
review periods shall commence on January 1 in odd-numbered years and
shall end on December 31 in even-numbered years.

[60 FR 28546, June 1, 1995]



Sec. 65.702  Measurement of interstate service earnings.

    (a) For exchange carriers, earnings shall be measured separately for
each access service category for purposes of determining compliance with
the maximum allowable rate of return. The access service categories
shall be: an aggregated category consisting of Special Access, Sec.
69.113, and Contribution Charges for Special Access Expanded
Interconnection, Sec. 69.122; Connection Charges for Expanded
Interconnection, Sec. 69.121; Common Line, Sec. Sec. 69.104-69.105;
and an aggregated category consisting of Line Termination, Sec. 69.106,
Intercept, Sec. 69.108, Local Switching, Sec. 69.107, Transport,
Sec. Sec. 69.110-69.112, 69.124, 69.125, and Information, Sec. 69.109.
The Billing and Collection access element shall not be included in any
access service category for purposes of this part. The Commission will
also separately review exchange carrier overall interstate earnings
subject to this part for determining compliance with the maximum
allowable rate of return determined by Sec. 65.700(b).
    (b) For exchange carriers, earnings shall be measured for purposes
of determining compliance with the maximum allowable rates of return
separately for each study area; provided, however, that if the carrier
has filed or concurred in access tariffs aggregating costs and rates for
two or more study areas, the earnings will be determined for the
aggregated study areas rather than for each study area separately. If an
exchange carrier has not utilized

[[Page 463]]

the same level of study area aggregation during the entire two-year
earnings review period, then the carrier's earnings will be measured for
the entire two-year period on the basis of the tariffs in effect at the
end of the second year of the two-year review period; provided, however,
that if tariffs representing a higher level of study area aggregation
were not in effect for at least eight months in the second year, then
the carrier's earnings will be measured on the basis of the study area
level of aggregation in effect for the majority of the two-year period;
provided further, that any carrier that was not a member of the National
Exchange Carrier Association or other voluntary pools for both years of
the two-year review period will have its earnings reviewed individually
for the full two-year period.

[51 FR 11034, Apr. 1, 1986, as amended at 57 FR 54719, Nov. 20, 1992; 58
FR 48763, Sept. 17, 1993; 60 FR 28546, June 1, 1995]



                           Subpart G_Rate Base

    Source: 53 FR 1029, Jan. 15, 1988, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 65.800  Rate base.

    The rate base shall consist of the interstate portion of the
accounts listed in Sec. 65.820 that has been invested in plant used and
useful in the efficient provision of interstate telecommunications
services regulated by this Commission, minus any deducted items computed
in accordance with Sec. 65.830.



Sec. 65.810  Definitions.

    As used in this subpart ``account xxxx'' means the account of that
number kept in accordance with the Uniform System of Accounts for Class
A and Class B Telecommunications Companies in 47 CFR part 32.



Sec. 65.820  Included items.

    (a) Telecommunications plant. The interstate portion of all assets
summarized in Account 2001 (Telecommunications Plant in Service) and
Account 2002 (Property Held for Future Use), net of accumulated
depreciation and amortization, and Account 2003 (Telecommunications
Plant Under Construction), and, to the extent such inclusions are
allowed by this Commission, Account 2005 (Telecommunications Plant
Adjustment). Any interest cost for funds used during construction
capitalized on assets recorded in these accounts shall be computed in
accordance with the procedures in Sec. 32.2000(c)(2)(x) of this chapter.
    (b) Material and supplies. The interstate portion of assets
summarized in Account 1220.1 (Material and Supplies).
    (c) Noncurrent assets. The interstate portion of Class B Rural
Telephone Bank stock contained in Account 1410 and the interstate
portion of assets summarized in Account 1410 (Other Noncurrent Assets)
and Account 1438 (Deferred Maintenance, Retirements and Deferred
Charges), only to the extent that they have been specifically approved
by this Commission for inclusion (Note: The interstate portion of assets
summarized in Account 1410 should not include any amounts related to
investments, sinking funds or unamortized debt issuance expense). Except
as noted above, no amounts from accounts 1406 through 1500 shall be
included.
    (d) Cash working capital. The average amount of investor-supplied
capital needed to provide funds for a carrier's day-to-day interstate
operations. Class A carriers may calculate a cash working capital
allowance either by performing a lead-lag study of interstate revenue
and expense items or by using the formula set forth in paragraph (e) of
this section. Class B carriers, in lieu of performing a lead-lag study
or using the formula in paragraph (e) of this section, may calculate the
cash working capital allowance using a standard allowance which will be
established annually by the Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau. When
either the lead-lag study or formula method is used to calculate cash
working capital, the amount calculated under the study or formula may be
increased by minimum bank balances and working cash advances to
determine the cash working capital allowance. Once a carrier has
selected a method of determining its cash working capital allowance, it
shall not change to an optional method from one year to the next without
Commission approval.

[[Page 464]]

    (e) In lieu of a full lead-lag study, carriers may calculate the
cash working capital allowance using the following formula.
    (1) Compute the weighted average revenue lag days as follows:
    (i) Multiply the average revenue lag days for interstate revenues
billed in arrears by the percentage of interstate revenues billed in
arrears.
    (ii) Multiply the average revenue lag days for interstate revenues
billed in advance by the percentage of interstate revenues billed in
advance. (Note: a revenue lead should be shown as a negative lag.)
    (iii) Add the results of paragraphs (e)(1) (i) and (ii) of this
section to determine the weighted average revenue lag days.
    (2) Compute the weighted average expense lag days as follows:
    (i) Multiply the average lag days for interstate expenses (i.e.,
cash operating expenses plus interest) paid in arrears by the percentage
of interstate expenses paid in arrears.
    (ii) Multiply the average lag days for interstate expenses paid in
advance by the percentage of interstate expenses paid in advance. (Note:
an expense lead should be shown as a negative lag.)
    (iii) Add the results of paragraphs (e)(2) (i) and (ii) of this
section to determine the weighted average expense lag days.
    (3) Compute the weighted net lag days by deducting the weighted
average expense lag days from the weighted average revenue lag days.
    (4) Compute the percentage of a year represented by the weighted net
lag days by dividing the days computed in paragraph (e)(3) of this
section by 365 days.
    (5) Compute the cash working capital allowance by multiplying the
interstate cash operating expenses (i.e., operating expenses minus
depreciation and amortization) plus interest by the percentage computed
in paragraph (e)(4) of this section.

[54 FR 9048, Mar. 3, 1989, as amended at 60 FR 12139, Mar. 6, 1995; 67
FR 5703, Feb. 6, 2002; 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 65.830  Deducted items.

    (a) The following items shall be deducted from the interstate rate
base.
    (1) The interstate portion of deferred taxes (Accounts 4100 and
4340).
    (2) The interstate portion of customer deposits (Account 4040).
    (3) The interstate portion of other long-term liabilities in
(Account 4300 Other long-term liabilities and deferred credits) that
were derived from the expenses specified in Sec. 65.450(a).
    (4) The interstate portion of other deferred credits in (Account
4300 Other long-term liabilities and deferred credits) to the extent
they arise from the provision of regulated telecommunications services.
This shall include deferred gains related to sale-leaseback
arrangements.
    (b) The interstate portion of deferred taxes, customer deposits and
other deferred credits shall be determined as prescribed by 47 CFR part
36.
    (c) The interstate portion of other long-term liabilities included
in (Account 4300 Other long-term liabilities and deferred credits) shall
bear the same proportionate relationships as the interstate/intrastate
expenses which gave rise to the liability.

[54 FR 9049, Mar. 3, 1989, as amended at 62 FR 15118, Mar. 31, 1997; 67
FR 5703, Feb. 6, 2002]



PART 68_CONNECTION OF TERMINAL EQUIPMENT TO THE TELEPHONE NETWORK--Table
of Contents



                            Subpart A_General

Sec.
68.1 Purpose.
68.2 Scope.
68.3 Definitions.
68.4 Hearing aid-compatible telephones.
68.5 Waivers.
68.6 Telephones with volume control.
68.7 Technical criteria for terminal equipment.

            Subpart B_Conditions on Use of Terminal Equipment

68.100 General.
68.102 Terminal equipment approval requirement.
68.105 Minimum point of entry (MPOE) and demarcation point.
68.106 Notification to provider of wireline telecommunications.
68.108 Incidence of harm.
68.110 Compatibility of the public switched telephone network and
          terminal equipment.
68.112 Hearing aid-compatibility.

[[Page 465]]

68.160 Designation of Telecommunication Certification Bodies (TCBs).
68.162 Requirements for Telecommunication Certification Bodies.

            Subpart C_Terminal Equipment Approval Procedures

68.201 Connection to the public switched telephone network.
68.211 Terminal equipment approval revocation procedures.
68.213 Installation of other than ``fully protected'' non-system simple
          customer premises wiring.
68.214 Changes in other than ``fully protected'' premises wiring that
          serves fewer than four subscriber access lines.
68.215 Installation of other than ``fully-protected'' system premises
          wiring that serves more than four subscriber access lines.
68.218 Responsibility of the party acquiring equipment authorization.
68.224 Notice of non-hearing aid compatibility.

          Subpart D_Conditions for Terminal Equipment Approval

68.300 Labeling requirements.
68.316 Hearing aid compatibility: Technical requirements.
68.317 Hearing aid compatibility volume control: technical standards.
68.318 Additional limitations.
68.320 Supplier's Declaration of Conformity.
68.321 Location of responsible party.
68.322 Changes in name, address, ownership or control of responsible
          party.
68.324 Supplier's Declaration of Conformity requirements.
68.326 Retention of records.
68.346 Description of testing facilities.
68.348 Changes in equipment and circuitry subject to a Supplier's
          Declaration of Conformity.
68.350 Revocation of Supplier's Declaration of Conformity.
68.354 Numbering and labeling requirements for terminal equipment.

                     Subpart E_Complaint Procedures

68.400-68.412 [Reserved]
68.414 Hearing aid-compatibility: Enforcement.
68.415 Hearing aid-compatibility and volume control informal complaints.
68.417 Informal complaints; form and content.
68.418 Procedure; designation of agents for service.
68.419 Answers to informal complaints.
68.420 Review and disposition of informal complaints.
68.423 Actions by the Commission on its own motion.

Subpart F [Reserved]

        Subpart G_Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments

68.602 Sponsor of the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
68.604 Requirements for submitting technical criteria.
68.608 Publication of technical criteria.
68.610 Database of terminal equipment.
68.612 Labels on terminal equipment.
68.614 Oppositions and appeals.

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 303.



                            Subpart A_General

    Authority: Secs. 4, 5, 303, 48 Stat., as amended, 1066, 1068, 1082;
(47 U.S.C. 154, 155, 303).

    Source: 45 FR 20841, Mar. 31, 1980, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 68.1  Purpose.

    The purpose of the rules and regulations in this part is to provide
for uniform standards for the protection of the telephone network from
harms caused by the connection of terminal equipment and associated
wiring thereto, and for the compatibility of hearing aids and telephones
so as to ensure that persons with hearing aids have reasonable access to
the telephone network.

(47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i), 154(j), 201-205, 218, 220, 313, 403, 412, and 5
U.S.C. 553)

[49 FR 21733, May 23, 1984]



Sec. 68.2  Scope.

    (a) Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section,
the rules and regulations apply to direct connection of all terminal
equipment to the public switched telephone network for use in
conjunction with all services other than party line services.
    (b) National defense and security. Where the Secretary of Defense or
authorized agent or the head of any other governmental department,
agency, or administration (approved in writing by the Commission to act
pursuant to this rule) or authorized representative, certifies in
writing to the appropriate common carrier that compliance with the
provisions of part 68 could result in the disclosure of communications

[[Page 466]]

equipment or security devices, locations, uses, personnel, or activity
which would adversely affect the national defense and security, such
equipment or security devices may be connected to the telephone company
provided communications network without compliance with this part,
provided that each written certification states that:
    (1) The connection is required in the interest of national defense
and security;
    (2) The equipment or device to be connected either complies with the
technical criteria pertaining thereto or will not cause harm to the
nationwide telephone network or to employees of any provider of wireline
telecommunications; and
    (3) The installation is performed by well-trained, qualified
employees under the responsible supervision and control of a person who
is a licensed professional engineer in the jurisdiction in which the
installation is performed.
    (c) Governmental departments, agencies, or administrations that wish
to qualify for interconnection of equipment or security devices pursuant
to this section shall file a request with the Secretary of this
Commission stating the reasons why the exemption is requested. A list of
these departments, agencies, or administrations that have filed requests
shall be published in the Federal Register. The Commission may take
action with respect to those requests 30 days after publication. The
Commission action shall be published in the Federal Register. However,
the Commission may grant, on less than the normal notice period or
without notice, special temporary authority, not to exceed 90 days, for
governmental departments, agencies, or administrations that wish to
qualify for interconnection of equipment or security devices pursuant to
this section. Requests for such authority shall state the particular
fact and circumstances why authority should be granted on less than the
normal notice period or without notice. In such cases, the Commission
shall endeavor to publish its disposition as promptly as possible in the
Federal Register.

[66 FR 7580, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.3  Definitions.

    As used in this part:
    Demarcation point (also point of interconnection). As used in this
part, the point of demarcation and/or interconnection between the
communications facilities of a provider of wireline telecommunications,
and terminal equipment, protective apparatus or wiring at a subscriber's
premises.
    Essential telephones. Only coin-operated telephones, telephones
provided for emergency use, and other telephones frequently needed for
use by persons using such hearing aids.
    Harm. Electrical hazards to the personnel of providers of wireline
telecommunications, damage to the equipment of providers of wireline
telecommunications, malfunction of the billing equipment of providers of
wireline telecommunications, and degradation of service to persons other
than the user of the subject terminal equipment, his calling or called
party.
    Hearing aid compatible. Except as used at Sec. Sec. 68.4(a)(3) and
68.414, the terms hearing aid compatible or hearing aid compatibility
are used as defined in Sec. 68.316, unless it is specifically stated
that hearing aid compatibility volume control, as defined in Sec.
68.317, is intended or is included in the definition.
    Inside wiring or premises wiring. Customer-owned or controlled wire
on the subscriber's side of the demarcation point.
    Premises. As used herein, generally a dwelling unit, other building
or a legal unit of real property such as a lot on which a dwelling unit
is located, as determined by the provider of telecommunications
service's reasonable and nondiscriminatory standard operating practices.
    Private radio services. Private land mobile radio services and other
communications services characterized by the Commission in its rules as
private radio services.
    Public mobile services. Air-to-ground radiotelephone services,
cellular radio telecommunications services, offshore radio, rural radio
service, public land mobile telephone service, and other common carrier
radio communications services covered by part 22 of Title 47 of the Code
of Federal Regulations.

[[Page 467]]

    Responsible party. The party or parties responsible for the
compliance of terminal equipment or protective circuitry intended for
connection directly to the public switched telephone network with the
applicable rules and regulations in this part and with the technical
criteria published by the Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments. If a Telecommunications Certification Body certifies the
terminal equipment, the responsible party is the holder of the
certificate for that equipment. If the terminal equipment is the subject
of a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity, the responsible party shall
be: the manufacturer of the terminal equipment, or the manufacturer of
protective circuitry that is marketed for use with terminal equipment
that is not to be connected directly to the network, or if the equipment
is imported, the importer, or if the terminal equipment is assembled
from individual component parts, the assembler. If the equipment is
modified by any party not working under the authority of the responsible
party, the party performing the modifications, if located within the
U.S., or the importer, if the equipment is imported subsequent to the
modifications, becomes the new responsible party. Retailers or original
equipment manufacturers may enter into an agreement with the assembler
or importer to assume the responsibilities to ensure compliance of the
terminal equipment and to become the responsible party.
    Secure telephones. Telephones that are approved by the United States
Government for the transmission of classified or sensitive voice
communications.
    Terminal equipment. As used in this part, communications equipment
located on customer premises at the end of a communications link, used
to permit the stations involved to accomplish the provision of
telecommunications or information services.

[66 FR 7581, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.4  Hearing aid-compatible telephones.

    (a)(1) Except for telephones used with public mobile services,
telephones used with private radio services, and cordless and secure
telephones, every telephone manufactured in the United States (other
than for export) or imported for use in the United States after August
16, 1989, must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316.
Every cordless telephone manufactured in the United States (other than
for export) or imported into the United States after August 16, 1991,
must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316.
    (2) Unless otherwise stated and except for telephones used with
public mobile services, telephones used with private radio services and
secure telephones, every telephone listed in Sec. 68.112 must be
hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316.
    (3) A telephone is hearing aid-compatible if it provides internal
means for effective use with hearing aids that are designed to be
compatible with telephones which meet established technical standards
for hearing aid compatibility.
    (4) The Commission shall revoke or otherwise limit the exemptions of
paragraph (a)((1) of this section for telephones used with public mobile
services or telephones used with private radio services if it determines
that (i) such revocation or limitation is in the public interest; (ii)
continuation of the exemption without such revocation or limitation
would have an adverse effect on hearing-impaired individuals; (iii)
compliance with the requirements of Sec. 68.4(a)(1) is technologically
feasible for the telephones to which the exemption applies; and (iv)
compliance with the requirements of Sec. 68.4(a)(1) would not increase
costs to such an extent that the telephones to which the exemption
applies could not be successfully marketed.

[54 FR 21430, May 18, 1989, as amended at 55 FR 28763, July 13, 1990; 57
FR 27183, June 18, 1992; 61 FR 42186, Aug. 14, 1996]



Sec. 68.5  Waivers.

    The Commission may, upon the application of any interested person,
initiate a proceeding to waive the requirements of Sec. 68.4(a)(1) with
respect to new telephones, or telephones associated with a new
technology or service. The Commission shall not grant such a waiver
unless it determines, on the basis of evidence in the record of such
proceeding, that such telephones, or

[[Page 468]]

such technology or service, are in the public interest, and that (a)
compliance with the requirements of Sec. 68.4(a)(1) is technologically
infeasible, or (b) compliance with such requirements would increase the
costs of the telephones, or of the technology or service, to such an
extent that such telephones, technology, or service could not be
successfully marketed. In any proceeding under this section to grant a
waiver from the requirements of Sec. 68.4(a)(1), the Commission shall
consider the effect on hearing-impaired individuals of granting the
waiver. The Commission shall periodically review and determine the
continuing need for any waiver granted pursuant to this section.

[54 FR 21430, May 18, 1989]



Sec. 68.6  Telephones with volume control.

    As of January 1, 2000, all telephones, including cordless
telephones, as defined in Sec. 15.3(j) of this chapter, manufactured in
the United States (other than for export) or imported for use in the
United States, must have volume control in accordance with Sec. 68.317.
Secure telephones, as defined by Sec. 68.3 are exempt from this
section, as are telephones used with public mobile services or private
radio services.

[62 FR 43484, Aug. 14, 1997]



Sec. 68.7  Technical criteria for terminal equipment.

    (a) Terminal equipment shall not cause harm, as defined in Sec.
68.3, to the public switched telephone network.
    (b) Technical criteria published by the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments are the presumptively valid technical criteria for
the protection of the public switched telephone network from harms
caused by the connection of terminal equipment, subject to the appeal
procedures in Sec. 68.614 of this part.

[66 FR 7581, Jan. 24, 2001]



            Subpart B_Conditions on Use of Terminal Equipment



Sec. 68.100  General.

    In accordance with the rules and regulations in this part, terminal
equipment may be directly connected to the public switched telephone
network, including private line services provided over wireline
facilities that are owned by providers of wireline telecommunications.

[66 FR 7581, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.102  Terminal equipment approval requirement.

    Terminal equipment must be approved in accordance with the rules and
regulations in subpart C of this part, or connected through protective
circuitry that is approved in accordance with the rules and regulations
in subpart C.

[66 FR 7582, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.105  Minimum point of entry (MPOE) and demarcation point.

    (a) Facilities at the demarcation point. Carrier-installed
facilities at, or constituting, the demarcation point shall consist of
wire or a jack conforming to the technical criteria published by the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (b) Minimum point of entry. The ``minimum point of entry'' (MPOE) as
used herein shall be either the closest practicable point to where the
wiring crosses a property line or the closest practicable point to where
the wiring enters a multiunit building or buildings. The reasonable and
nondiscriminatory standard operating practices of the provider of
wireline telecommunications services shall determine which shall apply.
The provider of wireline telecommunications services is not precluded
from establishing reasonable classifications of multiunit premises for
purposes of determining which shall apply. Multiunit premises include,
but are not limited to, residential, commercial, shopping center and
campus situations.
    (c) Single unit installations. For single unit installations
existing as of August 13, 1990, and installations installed after that
date the demarcation point shall be a point within 30 cm (12 in) of the
protector or, where there is no protector, within 30 cm (12 in) of where
the telephone wire enters the customer's premises, or as close thereto
as practicable.

[[Page 469]]

    (d) Multiunit installations. (1) In multiunit premises existing as
of August 13, 1990, the demarcation point shall be determined in
accordance with the local carrier's reasonable and non-discriminatory
standard operating practices. Provided, however, that where there are
multiple demarcation points within the multiunit premises, a demarcation
point for a customer shall not be further inside the customer's premises
than a point twelve inches from where the wiring enters the customer's
premises, or as close thereto as practicable.
    (2) In multiunit premises in which wiring is installed, including
major additions or rearrangements of wiring existing prior to that date,
the provider of wireline telecommunications may place the demarcation
point at the minimum point of entry (MPOE). If the provider of wireline
telecommunications services does not elect to establish a practice of
placing the demarcation point at the minimum point of entry, the
multiunit premises owner shall determine the location of the demarcation
point or points. The multiunit premises owner shall determine whether
there shall be a single demarcation point location for all customers or
separate such locations for each customer. Provided, however, that where
there are multiple demarcation points within the multiunit premises, a
demarcation point for a customer shall not be further inside the
customer's premises than a point 30 cm (12 in) from where the wiring
enters the customer's premises, or as close thereto as practicable. At
the time of installation, the provider of wireline telecommunications
services shall fully inform the premises owner of its options and rights
regarding the placement of the demarcation point or points and shall not
attempt to unduly influence that decision for the purpose of obstructing
competitive entry.
    (3) In any multiunit premises where the demarcation point is not
already at the MPOE, the provider of wireline telecommunications
services must comply with a request from the premises owner to relocate
the demarcation point to the MPOE. The provider of wireline
telecommunications services must negotiate terms in good faith and
complete the negotiations within forty-five days from said request.
Premises owners may file complaints with the Commission for resolution
of allegations of bad faith bargaining by provider of wireline
telecommunications services. See 47 U.S.C. 208; 47 CFR 1.720 through
1.736 (1999).
    (4) The provider of wireline telecommunications services shall make
available information on the location of the demarcation point within
ten business days of a request from the premises owner. If the provider
of wireline telecommunications services does not provide the information
within that time, the premises owner may presume the demarcation point
to be at the MPOE. Notwithstanding the provisions of Sec. 68.110(c) of
this part, provider of wireline telecommunications services must make
this information freely available to the requesting premises owner.
    (5) In multiunit premises with more than one customer, the premises
owner may adopt a policy restricting a customer's access to wiring on
the premises to only that wiring located in the customer's individual
unit that serves only that particular customer.

[66 FR 7582, Jan. 24, 2001; 67 FR 60167, Sept. 25, 2002]



Sec. 68.106  Notification to provider of wireline telecommunications.

    (a) General. Customers connecting terminal equipment or protective
circuitry to the public switched telephone network shall, upon request
of the provider of wireline telecommunications, inform the provider of
wireline telecommunications of the particular line(s) to which such
connection is made, and any other information required to be placed on
the terminal equipment pursuant to Sec. 68.354 of this part by the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (b) Systems assembled of combinations of individually-approved
terminal equipment and protective circuitry. Customers connecting such
assemblages to the public switched telephone network shall, upon the
request of the provider of wireline telecommunications, provide to the
provider of wireline telecommunications the following information:

[[Page 470]]

    For each line:
    (1) Information required for compatible operation of the equipment
with the communications facilities of the provider of wireline
telecommunications;
    (2) The identifying information required to be placed on terminal
equipment pursuant to Sec. 68.354 for all equipment dedicated to that
line; and
    (3) Any other information regarding equipment dedicated to that line
required to be placed on the terminal equipment by the Administrative
Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (4) A list of identifying numbers required to be placed on terminal
equipment, if any, by the Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments, pursuant to Sec. 68.354 of this part, for equipment to be
used in the system.
    (c) Systems using other than ``fully protected'' premises wiring.
Customers who intend to connect premises wiring other than ``fully
protected'' premises wiring to the public switched telephone network
shall, in addition to the foregoing, give notice to the provider of
wireline telecommunications in accordance with Sec. 68.215(e).

[66 FR 7582, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.108  Incidence of harm.

    Should terminal equipment, inside wiring, plugs and jacks, or
protective circuitry cause harm to the public switched telephone
network, or should the provider of wireline telecommunications
reasonably determine that such harm is imminent, the provider of
wireline telecommunications shall, where practicable, notify the
customer that temporary discontinuance of service may be required;
however, wherever prior notice is not practicable, the provider of
wireline telecommunications may temporarily discontinue service
forthwith, if such action is reasonable under the circumstances. In case
of such temporary discontinuance, the provider of wireline
telecommunications shall:
    (a) Promptly notify the customer of such temporary discontinuance;
    (b) Afford the customer the opportunity to correct the situation
which gave rise to the temporary discontinuance; and
    (c) Inform the customer of his right to bring a complaint to the
Commission pursuant to the procedures set forth in subpart E of this
part.

[55 FR 28630, July 12, 1990, as amended at 66 FR 7583, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.110  Compatibility of the public switched telephone network and
terminal equipment.

    (a) Availability of interface information. Technical information
concerning interface parameters not specified by the technical criteria
published by the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments, that
are needed to permit terminal equipment to operate in a manner
compatible with the communications facilities of a provider of wireline
telecommunications, shall be provided by the provider of wireline
telecommunications upon request.
    (b) Changes in the facilities, equipment, operations, or procedures
of a provider of wireline telecommunications. A provider of wireline
telecommunications may make changes in its communications facilities,
equipment, operations or procedures, where such action is reasonably
required in the operation of its business and is not inconsistent with
the rules and regulations in this part. If such changes can be
reasonably expected to render any customer's terminal equipment
incompatible with the communications facilities of the provider of
wireline telecommunications, or require modification or alteration of
such terminal equipment, or otherwise materially affect its use or
performance, the customer shall be given adequate notice in writing, to
allow the customer an opportunity to maintain uninterrupted service.
    (c) Availability of inside wiring information. Any available
technical information concerning wiring on the customer side of the
demarcation point, including copies of existing schematic diagrams and
service records, shall be provided by the provider of wireline
telecommunications upon request of the building owner or agent thereof.
The provider of wireline telecommunications may charge the building
owner a reasonable fee for this service, which shall not exceed the cost
involved in locating and copying the documents. In the alternative, the
provider of

[[Page 471]]

wireline telecommunications may make these documents available for
review and copying by the building owner. In this case, the provider of
wireline telecommunications may charge a reasonable fee, which shall not
exceed the cost involved in making the documents available, and may also
require the building owner to pay a deposit to guarantee the documents'
return.

[66 FR 7583, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.112  Hearing aid-compatibility.

    (a) Coin telephones. All new and existing coin-operated telephones,
whether located on public property or in a semi-public location (e.g.,
drugstore, gas station, private club).
    (b) Emergency use telephones. Telephones ``provided for emergency
use'' include the following:
    (1) Telephones, except headsets, in places where a person with a
hearing disability might be isolated in an emergency, including, but not
limited to, elevators, highways, and tunnels for automobile, railway or
subway, and workplace common areas.

    Note to paragraph (b)(1):
    Examples of workplace common areas include libraries, reception
areas and similar locations where employees are reasonably expected to
congregate.

    (2) Telephones specifically installed to alert emergency
authorities, including, but not limited to, police or fire departments
or medical assistance personnel.
    (3) Telephones, except headsets, in workplace non-common areas.
Note: Examples of workplace non-common areas include private enclosed
offices, open area individual work stations and mail rooms. Such non-
common area telephones are required to be hearing aid compatible, as
defined in Sec. 68.316, by January 1, 2000, except for those telephones
located in establishments with fewer than fifteen employees; and those
telephones purchased between January 1, 1985 through December 31, 1989,
which are not required to be hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec.
68.316, until January 1, 2005.
    (i) Telephones, including headsets, made available to an employee
with a hearing disability for use by that employee in his or her
employment duty, shall, however, be hearing aid compatible, as defined
in Sec. 68.316.
    (ii) As of January 1, 2000 or January 1, 2005, whichever date is
applicable, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that all telephones
located in the workplace are hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec.
68.316. Any person who identifies a telephone as non-hearing aid-
compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, may rebut this presumption. Such
telephone must be replaced within fifteen working days with a hearing
aid compatible telephone, as defined in Sec. 68.316, including, on or
after January 1, 2000, with volume control, as defined in Sec. 68.317.
    (iii) Telephones, not including headsets, except those headsets
furnished under paragraph (b)(3)(i) of this section, that are purchased,
or replaced with newly acquired telephones, must be:
    (A) Hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, after
October 23, 1996; and
    (B) Include volume control, as defined in Sec. 68.317, on or after
January 1, 2000.
    (iv) When a telephone under paragraph (b)(3)(iii) of this section is
replaced with a telephone from inventory existing before October 23,
1996, any person may make a bona fide request that such telephone be
hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316. If the replacement
occurs on or after January 1, 2000, the telephone must have volume
control, as defined in Sec. 68.317. The telephone shall be provided
within fifteen working days.
    (v) During the period from October 23, 1996, until the applicable
date of January 1, 2000 or January 1, 2005, workplaces of fifteen or
more employees also must provide and designate telephones for emergency
use by employees with hearing disabilities through one or more of the
following means:
    (A) By having at least one coin-operated telephone, one common area
telephone or one other designated hearing aid compatible telephone
within a reasonable and accessible distance for an individual searching
for a telephone from any point in the workplace; or

[[Page 472]]

    (B) By providing wireless telephones that meet the definition for
hearing aid compatible for wireline telephones, as defined in Sec.
68.316, for use by employees in their employment duty outside common
areas and outside the offices of employees with hearing disabilities.
    (4) All credit card operated telephones, whether located on public
property or in a semipublic location (e.g., drugstore, gas station,
private club), unless a hearing aid compatible (as defined in Sec.
68.316) coin-operated telephone providing similar services is nearby and
readily available. However, regardless of coin-operated telephone
availability, all credit card operated telephones must be made hearing
aid-compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, when replaced, or by May 1,
1991, which ever comes sooner.
    (5) Telephones needed to signal life threatening or emergency
situations in confined settings, including but not limited to, rooms in
hospitals, residential health care facilities for senior citizens, and
convalescent homes:
    (i) A telephone that is hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec.
68.316, is not required until:
    (A) November 1, 1997, for establishments with fifty or more beds,
unless replaced before that time; and
    (B) November 1, 1998, for all other establishments with fewer than
fifty beds, unless replaced before that time.
    (ii) Telephones that are purchased, or replaced with newly acquired
telephones, must be:
    (A) Hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.116, after
October 23, 1996; and
    (B) Include volume control, as defined in Sec. 68.317, on or after
January 1, 2000.
    (iii) Unless a telephone in a confined setting is replaced pursuant
to paragraph (b)(5)(ii) of this section, a hearing aid compatible
telephone shall not be required if:
    (A) A telephone is both purchased and maintained by a resident for
use in that resident's room in the establishment; or
    (B) The confined setting has an alternative means of signalling
life-threatening or emergency situations that is available, working and
monitored.
    (6) Telephones in hotel and motel guest rooms, and in any other
establishment open to the general public for the purpose of overnight
accommodation for a fee. Such telephones are required to be hearing aid
compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, except that, for establishments
with eighty or more guest rooms, the telephones are not required to be
hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, until November 1,
1998; and for establishments with fewer than eighty guest rooms, the
telephones are not required to be hearing aid compatible, as defined in
Sec. 68.316, until November 1, 1999.
    (i) Anytime after October 23, 1996, if a hotel or motel room is
renovated or newly constructed, or the telephone in a hotel or motel
room is replaced or substantially, internally repaired, the telephone in
that room must be:
    (A) Hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, after
October 23, 1996; and
    (B) Include volume control, as defined in Sec. 68.317, on or after
January 1, 2000.
    (ii) The telephones in at least twenty percent of the guest rooms in
a hotel or motel must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec.
68.316, as of April 1, 1997.
    (iii) Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraph (b)(6) of this
section, hotels and motels which use telephones purchased during the
period January 1, 1985 through December 31, 1989 may provide telephones
that are hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, in guest
rooms according to the following schedule:
    (A) The telephones in at least twenty percent of the guest rooms in
a hotel or motel must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec.
68.316, as of April 1, 1997;
    (B) The telephones in at least twenty-five percent of the guest
rooms in a hotel or motel must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in
Sec. 68.316, by November 1, 1999; and
    (C) The telephones in one-hundred percent of the guest rooms in a
hotel or motel must be hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec.
68.316, by January 1, 2001 for establishments with eighty or more guest
rooms, and by January 1, 2004 for establishments with fewer than eighty
guest rooms.

[[Page 473]]

    (c) Telephones frequently needed by the hearing impaired. Closed
circuit telephones, i.e., telephones which cannot directly access the
public switched network, such as telephones located in lobbies of hotels
or apartment buildings; telephones in stores which are used by patrons
to order merchandise; telephones in public transportation terminals
which are used to call taxis or to reserve rental automobiles, need not
be hearing aid compatible, as defined in Sec. 68.316, until replaced.

[49 FR 1362, Jan. 11, 1984, as amended at 55 FR 28763, July 13, 1990; 57
FR 27183, June 18, 1992; 61 FR 42186, Aug. 14, 1996; 61 FR 42392, Aug.
15, 1996; 62 FR 43484, Aug. 14, 1997; 62 FR 51064, Sep. 30, 1997]



Sec. 68.160  Designation of Telecommunication Certification Bodies
(TCBs).

    (a) The Commission may designate Telecommunication Certification
Bodies (TCBs) to approve equipment as required under this part.
Certification of equipment by a TCB shall be based on an application
with all the information specified in this part. The TCB shall process
the application to determine whether the product meets the Commission's
requirements and shall issue a written grant of equipment authorization.
The grant shall identify the TCB and the source of authority for issuing
it.
    (b) The Federal Communications Commission shall designate TCBs in
the United States to approve equipment subject to certification under
the Commission's rules. TCBs shall be accredited by the National
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) under its National
Voluntary Conformity Assessment Evaluation (NVCASE) program or other
recognized programs based on ISO/IEC Guide 65, to comply with the
Commission's qualification criteria for TCBs. NIST may, in accordance
with its procedures, allow other appropriately qualified accrediting
bodies to accredit TCBs and testing laboratories. TCBs shall comply with
the requirements in Sec. 68.162 of this part.
    (c) In accordance with the terms of an effective bilateral or
multilateral mutual recognition agreement or arrangement (MRA) to which
the United States is a party, bodies outside the United States shall be
permitted to authorize equipment in lieu of the Commission. A body in an
MRA partner economy may authorize equipment to U.S. requirements only if
that economy permits bodies in the United States to authorize equipment
to its requirements. The authority designating these telecommunication
certification bodies shall meet the following criteria.
    (1) The organization accrediting the prospective telecommunication
certification body shall be capable of meeting the requirements and
conditions of ISO/IEC Guide 61.
    (2) The organization assessing the telecommunication certification
body shall appoint a team of qualified experts to perform the assessment
covering all of the elements within the scope of accreditation. For
assessment of telecommunications equipment, the areas of expertise to be
used during the assessment shall include, but not be limited to,
electromagnetic compatibility and telecommunications equipment (wired
and wireless).

[64 FR 4997, Feb. 2, 1999]



Sec. 68.162  Requirements for Telecommunication Certification Bodies.

    (a) Telecommunication certification bodies (TCBs) designated by the
Commission, or designated by another authority pursuant to an effective
mutual recognition agreement or arrangement to which the United States
is a party, shall comply with the following requirements.
    (b) Certification methodology. (1) The certification system shall be
based on type testing as identified in sub-clause 1.2(a) of ISO/IEC
Guide 65.
    (2) Certification shall normally be based on testing no more than
one unmodified representative sample of each product type for which
certification is sought. Additional samples may be requested if clearly
warranted, such as when certain tests are likely to render a sample
inoperative.
    (c) Criteria for designation. (1) To be designated as a TCB under
this section, an entity shall, by means of accreditation, meet all the
appropriate specifications in ISO/IEC Guide 65 for the scope of
equipment it will certify. The

[[Page 474]]

accreditation shall specify the group of equipment to be certified and
the applicable regulations for product evaluation.
    (2) The TCB shall demonstrate expert knowledge of the regulations
for each product with respect to which the body seeks designation. Such
expertise shall include familiarity with all applicable technical
regulations, administrative provisions or requirements, as well as the
policies and procedures used in the application thereof.
    (3) The TCB shall have the technical expertise and capability to
test the equipment it will certify and shall also be accredited in
accordance with ISO/IEC Guide 25 to demonstrate it is competent to
perform such tests.
    (4) The TCB shall demonstrate an ability to recognize situations
where interpretations of the regulations or test procedures may be
necessary. The appropriate key certification and laboratory personnel
shall demonstrate a knowledge of how to obtain current and correct
technical regulation interpretations. The competence of the
telecommunication certification body shall be demonstrated by
assessment. The general competence, efficiency, experience, familiarity
with technical regulations and products included in those technical
regulations, as well as compliance with applicable parts of the ISO/IEC
Guides 25 and 65, shall be taken into consideration.
    (5) A TCB shall participate in any consultative activities,
identified by the Commission or NIST, to facilitate a common
understanding and interpretation of applicable regulations.
    (6) The Commission will provide public notice of specific elements
of these qualification criteria that will be used to accredit TCBs.
    (d) Sub-contractors. (1) In accordance with the provisions of sub-
clause 4.4 of ISO/IEC Guide 65, the testing of a product, or a portion
thereof, may be performed by a sub-contractor of a designated TCB,
provided the laboratory has been assessed by the TCB as competent and in
compliance with the applicable provisions of ISO/IEC Guide 65 and other
relevant standards and guides.
    (2) When a subcontractor is used, the TCB shall be responsible for
the test results and shall maintain appropriate oversight of the
subcontractor to ensure reliability of the test results. Such oversight
shall include periodic audits of products that have been tested.
    (e) Designation of TCBs. (1) The Commission will designate as a TCB
any organization that meets the qualification criteria and is accredited
by NIST or its recognized accreditor.
    (2) The Commission will withdraw the designation of a TCB if the
TCB's accreditation by NIST or its recognized accreditor is withdrawn,
if the Commission determines there is just cause for withdrawing the
designation, or if the TCB requests that it no longer hold the
designation. The Commission will provide a TCB with 30 days notice of
its intention to withdraw the designation and provide the TCB with an
opportunity to respond.
    (3) A list of designated TCBs will be published by the Commission.
    (f) Scope of responsibility. (1) TCBs shall certify equipment in
accordance with the Commission's rules and policies.
    (2) A TCB shall accept test data from any source, subject to the
requirements in ISO/IEC Guide 65, and shall not unnecessarily repeat
tests.
    (3) TCBs may establish and assess fees for processing certification
applications and other tasks as required by the Commission.
    (4) A TCB may rescind a grant of certification within 30 days of
grant for administrative errors. After that time, a grant can only be
revoked by the Commission. A TCB shall notify both the applicant and the
Commission when a grant is rescinded.
    (5) A TCB may not:
    (i) Grant a waiver of Commission rules or technical criteria
published by the Administrative Council, or certify equipment for which
Commission rules or requirements, or technical criteria do not exist, or
for which the application of the rules or requirements, or technical
criteria is unclear.
    (ii) Take enforcement actions.
    (6) All TCB actions are subject to Commission review.
    (g) Post-certification requirements. (1) A Telecommunications
Certification

[[Page 475]]

Body shall supply a copy of each approved application form and grant of
certification to the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (2) In accordance with ISO/IEC Guide 65, a TCB is required to
conduct appropriate surveillance activities. These activities shall be
based on type testing a few samples of the total number of product types
which the certification body has certified. Other types of surveillance
activities of a product that has been certified are permitted, provided
they are no more onerous than testing type. The Commission may at any
time request a list of products certified by the certification body and
may request and receive copies of product evaluation reports. The
Commission may also request that a TCB perform post-market surveillance,
under Commission guidelines, of a specific product it has certified.
    (3) If during post market surveillance of a certified product, a
certification body determines that a product fails to comply with the
applicable technical regulations, the certification body shall
immediately notify the grantee and the Commission. A follow-up report
shall also be provided within thirty days of the action taken by the
grantee to correct the situation.
    (4) Where concerns arise, the TCB shall provide a copy of the
application file to the Commission within 30 calendar days of a request
for the file made by the Commission to the TCB and the manufacturer.
Where appropriate, the file should be accompanied by a request for
confidentiality for any material that may qualify for confidential
treatment under the Commission's Rules. If the application file is not
provided within 30 calendar days, a statement shall be provided to the
Commission as to why it cannot be provided.
    (h) In case of a dispute with respect to designation or recognition
of a TCB and the testing or certification of products by a TCB, the
Commission will be the final arbiter. Manufacturers and designated TCBs
will be afforded at least 30 days to comment before a decision is
reached. In the case of a TCB designated or recognized, or a product
certified pursuant to an effective bilateral or multilateral mutual
recognition agreement or arrangement (MRA) to which the United States is
a party, the Commission may limit or withdraw its recognition of a TCB
designated by an MRA party and revoke the certification of products
using testing or certification provided by such a TCB. The Commission
shall consult with the Office of the United States Trade Representative
(USTR), as necessary, concerning any disputes arising under an MRA for
compliance with under the Telecommunications Trade Act of 1988 (Section
1371-1382 of the Omnibus Trade and Competitiveness Act of 1988).

[64 FR 4998, Feb. 2, 1999, as amended at 66 FR 27601, May 18, 2001; 67
FR 57182, Sept. 9, 2002]



            Subpart C_Terminal Equipment Approval Procedures



Sec. 68.201  Connection to the public switched telephone network.

    Terminal equipment may not be connected to the public switched
telephone network unless it has either been certified by a
Telecommunications Certification Body or the responsible party has
followed all the procedures in this subpart for Supplier's Declaration
of Conformity.

[66 FR 7583, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.211  Terminal equipment approval revocation procedures.

    (a) Causes for revocation. The Commission may revoke the
interconnection authorization of terminal equipment, whether that
authorization was acquired through certification by a Telecommunications
Certification Body or through the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity
process in Sec. Sec. 68.320 through 68.350 of this part, where:
    (1) The equipment approval is shown to have been obtained by
misrepresentation;
    (2) The approved equipment is shown to cause harms to the public
switched telephone network, as defined in Sec. 68.3;
    (3) The responsible party willfully or repeatedly fails to comply
with the terms and conditions of its equipment approval; or
    (4) The responsible party willfully or repeatedly fails to comply
with any rule, regulation or order issued by the

[[Page 476]]

Commission under the Communications Act of 1934 relating to terminal
equipment.
    (b) Notice of intent to revoke interconnection authority. Before
revoking interconnection authority under the provisions of this section,
the Commission, or the Enforcement Bureau under delegated authority,
will issue a written Notice of Intent to Revoke Part 68 Interconnection
Authority, or a Joint Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture and
Notice of Intent to Revoke Part 68 Interconnection Authority pursuant to
Sec. Sec. 1.80 and 1.89 of this chapter.
    (c) Delivery. The notice will be sent via certified mail to the
responsible party for the terminal equipment at issue at the address
provided to the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (d) Reauthorization. A product that has had its approval revoked may
not be authorized for connection to the public switched telephone
network for a period of six months from the date of revocation of the
approval.
    (e) Reconsideration or appeal. A responsible party of terminal
equipment that has had its authorization revoked and/or that has been
assessed a forfeiture may request reconsideration or make administrative
appeal of the decision pursuant to part 1 of the Commission's rules:
Practice and Procedure, part 1 of this chapter.

[66 FR 7583, Jan. 24, 2001, as amended at 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002; 68
FR 13850, Mar. 21, 2003]



Sec. 68.213  Installation of other than ``fully protected'' non-system
simple customer premises wiring.

    (a) Scope of this rule. Provisions of this rule apply only to
``unprotected'' premises wiring used with simple installations of wiring
for up to four line residential and business telephone service. More
complex installations of wiring for multiple line services, for use with
systems such as PBX and key telephone systems, are controlled by Sec.
68.215 of these rules.
    (b) Wiring authorized. Unprotected premises wiring may be used to
connect units of terminal equipment or protective circuitry to one
another, and to carrier-installed facilities if installed in accordance
with these rules. The provider of wireline telecommunications is not
responsible, except pursuant to agreement between it and the customer or
undertakings by it, otherwise consistent with Commission requirements,
for installation and maintenance of wiring on the subscriber's side of
the demarcation point, including any wire or jacks that may have been
installed by the carrier. The subscriber and/or premises owner may
install wiring on the subscriber's side of the demarcation point, and
may remove, reconfigure, and rearrange wiring on that side of the
demarcation point including wiring and wiring that may have been
installed by the carrier. The customer or premises owner may not access
carrier wiring and facilities on the carrier's side of the demarcation
point. Customers may not access the protector installed by the provider
of wireline telecommunications. All plugs and jacks used in connection
with inside wiring shall conform to the published technical criteria of
the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments. In multiunit
premises with more than one customer, the premises owner may adopt a
policy restricting a customer's access to wiring on the premises to only
that wiring located in the customer's individual unit wiring that serves
only that particular customer. See Sec. 68.105 in this part. The
customer or premises owner may not access carrier wiring and facilities
on the carrier's side of the demarcation point. Customers may not access
the protector installed by the provider of wireline telecommunications.
All plugs and jacks used in connection with inside wiring shall conform
to the published technical criteria of the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments.
    (c) Material requirements. (1) For new installations and
modifications to existing installations, copper conductors shall be, at
a minimum, solid, 24 gauge or larger, twisted pairs that comply with the
electrical specifications for Category 3, as defined in the ANSI EIA/TIA
Building Wiring Standards.
    (2) Conductors shall have insulation with a 1500 Volt rms minimum
breakdown rating. This rating shall be established by covering the
jacket or sheath

[[Page 477]]

with at least 15 cm (6 inches) (measured linearly on the cable) of
conductive foil, and establishing a potential difference between the
foil and all of the individual conductors connected together, such
potential difference gradually increased over a 30 second time period to
1500 Volts rms, 60 Hertz, then applied continuously for one minute. At
no time during this 90 second time interval shall the current between
these points exceed 10 milliamperes peak.
    (3) All wire and connectors meeting the requirements set forth in
paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(2) shall be marked, in a manner visible to the
consumer, with the symbol ``CAT 3'' or a symbol consisting of a ``C''
with a ``3'' contained within the ``C'' character, at intervals not to
exceed one foot (12 inches) along the length of the wire.
    (d) Attestation. Manufacturers (or distributors or retailers,
whichever name appears on the packaging) of non-system telephone
premises wire shall attest in a letter to the Commission that the wire
conforms with part 68, FCC Rules.

[49 FR 21734, May 23, 1984, as amended at 50 FR 29392, July 19, 1985; 50
FR 47548, Nov. 19, 1985; 51 FR 944, Jan. 9, 1986; 55 FR 28630, July 12,
1990; 58 FR 44907, Aug. 25, 1993; 62 FR 36464, July 8, 1997; 65 FR 4140,
Jan. 26, 2000; 66 FR 7583, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.214  Changes in other than ``fully protected'' premises wiring
that serves fewer than four subscriber access lines.

    Operations associated with the installation, connection,
reconfiguration and removal (other than final removal) of premises
wiring that serves fewer than four subscriber access lines must be
performed as provided in Sec. 68.215(c) if the premises wiring is not
``fully protected.'' For this purpose, the supervisor and installer may
be the same person.

[66 FR 7584, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.215  Installation of other than ``fully protected'' system
premises wiring that serves more than four subscriber access lines.

    (a) Types of wiring authorized--(1) Between equipment entities.
Unprotected premises wiring, and protected premises wiring requiring
acceptance testing for imbalance, may be used to connect separately-
housed equipment entities to one another.
    (2) Between an equipment entity and the public switched telephone
network interface(s). Fully-protected premises wiring shall be used to
connect equipment entities to the public switched telephone network
interface unless the provider of wireline telecommunications is
unwilling or unable to locate the interface within 7.6 meters (25 feet)
of the equipment entity on reasonable request. In any such case, other
than fully-protected premises wiring may be used if otherwise in
accordance with these rules.
    (3) Hardware protection as part of the facilities of the provider of
wireline telecommunications. In any case where the carrier chooses to
provide (and the customer chooses to accept, except as authorized under
paragraph (g) of this section), hardware protection on the network side
of the interface(s), the presence of such hardware protection will
affect the classification of premises wiring for the purposes of Sec.
68.215, as appropriate.
    (b) Installation personnel. Operations associated with the
installation, connection, reconfiguration and removal (other than final
removal of the entire premises communications system) of other than
fully-protected premises wiring shall be performed under the supervision
and control of a supervisor, as defined in paragraph (c) of this
section. The supervisor and installer may be the same person.
    (c) Supervision. Operations by installation personnel shall be
performed under the responsible supervision and control of a person who:
    (1) Has had at least six months of on-the-job experience in the
installation of telephone terminal equipment or of wiring used with such
equipment;
    (2) Has been trained by the registrant of the equipment to which the
wiring is to be connected in the proper performance of any operations by
installation personnel which could affect that equipment's continued
compliance with these rules;
    (3) Has received written authority from the registrant to assure
that the operations by installation personnel

[[Page 478]]

will be performed in such a manner as to comply with these rules.
    (4) Or, in lieu of paragraphs (c) (1) through (3) of this section,
is a licensed professional engineer in the jurisdiction in which the
installation is performed.
    (d) Workmanship and material requirements--(1) General. Wiring shall
be installed so as to assure that there is adequate insulation of
telephone wiring from commercial power wiring and grounded surfaces.
Wiring is required to be sheathed in an insulating jacket in addition to
the insulation enclosing individual conductors (see below) unless
located in an equipment enclosure or in an equipment room with
restricted access; it shall be assured that this physical and electrical
protection is not damaged or abraded during placement of the wiring. Any
intentional removal of wiring insulation (or a sheath) for connections
or splices shall be accomplished by removing the minimum amount of
insulation necessary to make the connection or splice, and insulation
equivalent to that provided by the wire and its sheath shall be suitably
restored, either by placement of the splices or connections in an
appropriate enclosure, or equipment rooms with restricted access, or by
using adequately-insulated connectors or splicing means.
    (2) Wire. Insulated conductors shall have a jacket or sheath with a
1500 volt rms minimum breakdown rating, except when located in an
equipment enclosure or an equipment room with restricted access. This
rating shall be established by covering the jacket or sheath with at
least 15 cm (6 in) (measured linearly on the cable) of conductive foil,
and establishing a potential difference between the foil and all of the
individual conductors connected together, such potential difference
gradually increased over a 30 second time period to 1500 volts rms, 60
Hertz, then applied continuously for one minute. At no time during this
90 second time interval shall the current between these points exceed 10
milliamperes peak.
    (3) Places where the jacket or sheath has been removed. Any point
where the jacket or sheath has been removed (or is not required) shall
be accessible for inspection. If such points are concealed, they shall
be accessible without disturbing permanent building finish (e.g., by
removing a cover).
    (4) Building and electrical codes. All building and electrical codes
applicable in the jurisdiction to telephone wiring shall be complied
with. If there are no such codes applicable to telephone wiring, Article
800 of the 1978 National Electrical Code, entitled Communications
Systems, and other sections of that Code incorporated therein by
reference shall be complied with.
    (5) Limitations on electrical signals. Only signal sources that
emanate from the provider of wireline telecommunications central office,
or that are generated in equipment at the customer's premises and are
``non-hazardous voltage sources'' as defined in the technical criteria
published by the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments, may be
routed in premises telephone wiring, except for voltages for network
control signaling and supervision that are consistent with standards
employed by the provider of wireline telecommunications. Current on
individual wiring conductors shall be limited to values which do not
cause an excessive temperature rise, with due regard to insulation
materials and ambient temperatures. The following table assumes a 45
[deg]C temperature rise for wire sizes 22 AWG or larger, and a 40 [deg]C
rise for wire sizes smaller than 22 AWG, for poly-vinyl chloride
insulating materials, and should be regarded as establishing maximum
values to be derated accordingly in specific installations where ambient
temperatures are in excess of 25 [deg]C:

    Maximum Continuous Current Capacity of PVC Insulated Copper Wire,
                                Confined
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                               Maximum
                Wire size, AWG                    Circular     current,
                                                    mils       amperes
------------------------------------------------------------------------
32............................................         63.2         0.32
30............................................        100.5         0.52
28............................................        159.8         0.83
26............................................        254.1          1.3
24............................................        404.0          2.1
22............................................        642.4          5.0
20............................................         1022          7.5
18............................................         1624           10
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Note: The total current in all conductors of multiple conductor cables
  may not exceed 20% of the sum of the individual ratings of all such
  conductors.


[[Page 479]]

    (6) Physical protection. In addition to the general requirements
that wiring insulation be adequate and not damaged during placement of
the wiring, wiring shall be protected from adverse effects of weather
and the environment in which it is used. Where wiring is attached to
building finish surfaces (surface wiring), it shall be suitably
supported by means which do not affect the integrity of the wiring
insulation.
    (e) Documentation requirements. A notarized affidavit and one copy
thereof shall be prepared by the installation supervisor in advance of
each operation associated with the installation, connection,
reconfiguration and removal of other than fully-protected premises
wiring (except when accomplished functionally using a cross-connect
panel), except when involved with removal of the entire premises
communications system using such wiring. This affidavit and its copy
shall contain the following information:
    (1) The responsible supervisor's full name, business address and
business telephone number.
    (2) The name of the registrant(s) (or manufacturer(s), if
grandfathered equipment is involved) of any equipment to be used
electrically between the wiring and the telephone network interface,
which does not contain inherent protection against hazardous voltages
and longitudinal imbalance.
    (3) A statement as to whether the supervisor complies with Sec.
68.215(c). Training and authority under Sec. 68.215(c)(2)-(3) is
required from the registrant (or manufacturer, if grandfathered
equipment is involved) of the first piece of equipment electrically
connected to the telephone network interface, other than passive
equipments such as extensions, cross-connect panels, or adapters. In
general, this would be the registrant (or manufacturer) of a system's
common equipment.
    (4) The date(s) when placement and connection of the wiring will
take place.
    (5) The business affiliation of the installation personnel.
    (6) Identification of specific national and local codes which will
be adhered to.
    (7) The manufacturer(s); a brief description of the wire which will
be used (model number or type); its conformance with recognized
standards for wire if any (e.g., Underwriters Laboratories listing,
Rural Electrification Administration listing, ``KS-'' specification,
etc.); and a general description of the attachment of the wiring to the
structure (e.g., run in conduit or ducts exclusively devoted to
telephone wiring, ``fished'' through walls, surface attachment, etc.).
    (8) The date when acceptance testing for imbalance will take place.
    (9) The supervisor's signature. The notarized original shall be
submitted to the provider of wireline telecommunications at least ten
calendar days in advance of the placement and connection of the wiring.
This time period may be changed by agreement of the provider of wireline
telecommunications and the supervisor. The copy shall be maintained at
the premises, available for inspection, so long as the wiring is used
for telephone service.
    (f) Acceptance testing for imbalance. Each telephone network
interface that is connected directly or indirectly to other than fully-
protected premises wiring shall be subjected to the acceptance test
procedures specified in this section whenever an operation associated
with the installation, connection, reconfiguration or removal of this
wiring (other than final removal) has been performed.
    (1) Test procedure for two-way or outgoing lines or loops. A
telephone instrument may be associated directly or indirectly with the
line or loop to perform this test if one is not ordinarily available to
it:
    (i) Lift the handset of the telephone instrument to create the off-
hook state on the line or loop under test.
    (ii) Listen for noise. Confirm that there is neither audible hum nor
excessive noise.
    (iii) Listen for dial tone. Confirm that dial tone is present.
    (iv) Break dial tone by dialing a digit. Confirm that dial tone is
broken as a result of dialing.
    (v) With dial tone broken, listen for audible hum or excessive
noise. Confirm that there is neither audible hum nor excessive noise.

[[Page 480]]

    (2) Test procedure for incoming-only (non-originating) lines or
loops. A telephone instrument may be associated directly or indirectly
with the line or loop to perform this test if one is not ordinarily
available to it:
    (i) Terminate the line or loop under test in a telephone instrument
in the on-hook state.
    (ii) Dial the number of the line or loop under test from another
station, blocking as necessary other lines or loops to cause the line or
loop under test to be reached.
    (iii) On receipt of ringing on the line or loop under test, lift the
handset of the telephone instrument to create the off-hook state on that
line or loop.
    (iv) Listen for audible hum or excessive noise. Confirm that there
is neither audible hum nor excessive noise.
    (3) Failure of acceptance test procedures. Absence of dial tone
before dialing, inability to break dial tone, or presence of audible hum
or excessive noise (or any combination of these conditions) during test
of two-way or outgoing lines or loops indicates failure. Inability to
receive ringing, inability to break ringing by going off-hook, or
presence of audible hum or excessive noise (or any combination of these
conditions) during test of incoming-only lines or loops indicates
failure. Upon any such failure, the failing equipment or portion of the
premises communications system shall be disconnected from the network
interface, and may not be reconnected until the cause of the failure has
been isolated or removed. Any previously tested lines or loops shall be
retested if they were in any way involved in the isolation and removal
of the cause of the failure.
    (4) Monitoring or participation in acceptance testing by the
provider of wireline telecommunications. The provider of wireline
telecommunications may monitor or participate in the acceptance testing
required under this section, in accordance with Sec. 68.215(g) of this
part, from its central office test desk or otherwise.
    (g) Extraordinary procedures. The provider of wireline
communications is hereby authorized to limit the subscriber's right of
connecting approved terminal equipment or protective circuitry with
other than fully-protected premises wiring, but solely in accordance
with this paragraph and Sec. 68.108 of these rules.
    (1)(i) Conditions that may invoke these procedures. The
extraordinary procedures authorized herein may only be invoked where one
or more of the following conditions is present:
    (A) Information provided in the supervisor's affidavit gives reason
to believe that a violation of part 68 of the FCC's rules is likely.
    (B) A failure has occurred during acceptance testing for imbalance.
    (C) Harm has occurred, and there is reason to believe that this harm
was a result of wiring operations performed under this section.
    (ii) The extraordinary procedures authorized in the following
subsections shall not be used so as to discriminate between
installations by provider of wireline telecommunications personnel and
installations by others. In general, this requires that any charges for
these procedures be levied in accordance with, or analogous to, the
``maintenance of service'' tariff provisions: If the installation proves
satisfactory, no charge should be levied.
    (2) Monitoring or participation in acceptance testing for imbalance.
Notwithstanding the previous sub-section, the provider of wireline
telecommunications may monitor or participate in acceptance testing for
imbalance at the time of the initial installation of wiring in the
absence of the conditions listed therein; at any other time, on or more
of the listed conditions shall be present. Such monitoring or
participation in acceptance testing should be performed from the central
office test desk where possible to minimize costs.
    (3) Inspection. Subject to paragraph (g)(1) of this section, the
provider of wireline telecommunications may inspect wiring installed
pursuant to this section, and all of the splicing and connection points
required to be accessible by Sec. 68.215(d)(3) to determine compliance
with this section. The user or installation supervisor shall either
authorize the provider of wireline telecommunications to render the
splicing and inspection points visible (e.g., by

[[Page 481]]

removing covers), or perform this action prior to the inspection. To
minimize disruption of the premises communications system, the right of
inspecting is limited as follows:
    (i) During initial installation of wiring:
    (A) The provider of wireline telecommunications may require
withdrawal of up to 5 percent (measured linearly) of wiring run
concealed in ducts, conduit or wall spaces, to determine conformance of
the wiring to the information furnished in the affidavit.
    (B) In the course of any such inspection, the provider of wireline
telecommunications shall have the right to inspect documentation
required to be maintained at the premises under Sec. 68.215(e).
    (ii) After failure of acceptance testing or after harm has resulted
from installed wiring: The provider of wireline telecommunications may
require withdrawal of all wiring run concealed in ducts, conduit or wall
spaces which reasonably could have caused the failure or harm, to
determine conformance of the wiring to the information furnished in the
affidavit.
    (iii) In the course of any such inspection, the provider of wireline
telecommunications shall have the right to inspect documentation
required to be maintained at the premises under Sec. 68.215(e).
    (4) Requiring the use of protective apparatus. In the event that any
of the conditions listed in paragraph (g)(1) of this section, arises,
and is not permanently remedied within a reasonable time period, the
provider of wireline telecommunications may require the use of
protective apparatus that either protects solely against hazardous
voltages, or that protects both against hazardous voltages and
imbalance. Such apparatus may be furnished either by the provider of
wireline telecommunications or by the customer. This right is in
addition to the rights of the provider of wireline telecommunications
under Sec. 68.108.
    (5) Notice of the right to bring a complaint. In any case where the
provider of wireline telecommunications invokes the extraordinary
procedures of Sec. 68.215(g), it shall afford the customer the
opportunity to correct the situation that gave rise to invoking these
procedures, and inform the customer of the right to bring a complaint to
the Commission pursuant to the procedures set forth in subpart E of this
part. On complaint, the Commission reserves the right to perform any of
the inspections authorized under this section, and to require the
performance of acceptance tests.
    (h) Limitations on the foregoing if protected wiring requiring
acceptance testing is used. If protected wiring is used which required
acceptance testing, the requirements in the foregoing paragraphs of
Sec. 68.215 are hereby limited, as follows:
    (1) Supervision. Section 68.215(c)(2)-(3) are hereby waived. The
supervisor is only required to have had at least six months of on-the-
job experience in the installation of telephone terminal equipment or of
wiring used with such equipment.
    (2) Extraordinary procedures. Section 68.215(g)(3) is hereby limited
to allow for inspection of exposed wiring and connection and splicing
points, but not for requiring the withdrawal of wiring from wiring run
concealed in ducts, conduit or wall spaces unless actual harm has
occurred, or a failure of acceptance testing has not been corrected
within a reasonable time. In addition, Sec. 68.215(g)(4) is hereby
waived.

[43 FR 16499, Apr. 19, 1978, as amended at 44 FR 7958, Feb. 8, 1979; 47
FR 37896, Aug. 27, 1982; 49 FR 21735, May 23, 1984; 58 FR 44907, Aug.
25, 1993; 66 FR 7584, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.218  Responsibility of the party acquiring equipment
authorization.

    (a) In acquiring approval for terminal equipment to be connected to
the public switched telephone network, the responsible party warrants
that each unit of equipment marketed under such authorization will
comply with all applicable rules and regulations of this part and with
the applicable technical criteria of the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments.
    (b) The responsible party or its agent shall provide the user of the
approved terminal equipment the following:
    (1) Consumer instructions required to be included with approved
terminal equipment by the Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments;

[[Page 482]]

    (2) For a telephone that is not hearing aid-compatible, as defined
in Sec. 68.316 of these rules:
    (i) Notice that FCC rules prohibit the use of that handset in
certain locations; and
    (ii) A list of such locations (see Sec. 68.112).
    (c) When approval is revoked for any item of equipment, the
responsible party must take all reasonable steps to ensure that
purchasers and users of such equipment are notified to discontinue use
of such equipment.

[66 FR 7585, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.224  Notice of non-hearing aid compatibility.

    Every non-hearing aid compatible telephone offered for sale to the
public on or after August 17, 1989, whether previously-registered, newly
registered or refurbished shall:
    (a) Contain in a conspicuous location on the surface of its
packaging a statement that the telephone is not hearing aid compatible,
as is defined in Sec. Sec. 68.4(a)(3) and 68.316, or if offered for
sale without a surrounding package, shall be affixed with a written
statement that the telephone is not hearing aid-compatible, as defined
in Sec. Sec. 68.4(a)(3) and 68.316; and
    (b) Be accompanied by instructions in accordance with Sec.
68.218(b)(5) of the rules.

[54 FR 21431, May 18, 1989, as amended at 61 FR 42187, Aug. 14, 1996]



          Subpart D_Conditions for Terminal Equipment Approval

    Authority: Secs. 4, 5, 303, 48 Stat., as amended, 1066, 1068, 1082
(47 U.S.C. 154, 155, 303).

    Source: 45 FR 20853, Mar. 31, 1980, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 68.300  Labeling requirements.

    (a) Terminal equipment approved as set out in this part must be
labeled in accordance with the requirements published by the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments and with requirements of
this part for hearing aid compatibility and volume control.
    (b) As of April 1, 1997, all registered telephones, including
cordless telephones, as defined in Sec. 15.3(j) of this chapter,
manufactured in the United States (other than for export) or imported
for use in the United States, that are hearing aid compatible, as
defined in Sec. 68.316, shall have the letters ``HAC'' permanently
affixed thereto. ``Permanently affixed'' shall be defined as in
paragraph (b)(5) of this section. Telephones used with public mobile
services or private radio services, and secure telephones, as defined by
Sec. 68.3, are exempt from this requirement.

[62 FR 61664, Nov. 19, 1997, as amended at 64 FR 3048, Jan. 20, 1999; 66
FR 7585, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.316  Hearing aid compatibility: Technical requirements.

    A telephone handset is hearing aid compatible for the purposes of
this section if it complies with the following standard, published by
the Telecommunications Industry Association, copyright 1983, and
reproduced by permission of the Telecommunications Industry Association:

 Electronic Industries Association Recommended Standard RS-504 Magnetic
 Field Intensity Criteria for Telephone Compatibility With Hearing Aids

[Prepared by EIA Engineering Committee TR-41 and the Hearing Industries
            Association's Standards and Technical Committee]

                            Table of Contents

                          List of Illustrations

1 INTRODUCTION
2 SCOPE
3 DEFINITIONS
4 TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS
4.1 General
4.2 Axial Field Intensity
4.3 Radial Field Intensity
4.4 Induced Voltage Frequency Response

Appendix A--Bibliography

                          List of Illustrations

                              Figure Number

1 Reference and Measurement Planes and Axes
2 Measurement Block Diagram
3 Probe Coil Parameters
4A Induced Voltage Frequency Response for receivers with an axial field
          that exceeds -19 dB
4B Induced Voltage Frequency Response for receivers with an axial field
          that exceeds -22 dB but is less than -19 dB

[[Page 483]]

   Magnetic Field Intensity Criteria for Telephone Compatibility With
                              Hearing Aids

    (From EIA Standards Proposal No. 1652, formulated under the
cognizance of EIA TR-41 Committee on Voice Telephone Terminals and the
Hearing Industries Association's Standards and Technical Committee.)

                             1 Introduction

    Hearing-aid users have used magnetic coupling to enable them to
participate in telephone communications since the 1940's. Magnetic pick-
ups in hearing-aids have provided for coupling to many, but not all,
types of telephone handsets. A major reason for incompatibility has been
the lack of handset magnetic field intensity requirements. Typically,
whatever field existed had been provided fortuitously rather than by
design. More recently, special handset designs, e.g., blue grommet
handsets associated with public telephones, have been introduced to
provide hearing-aid coupling and trials were conducted to demonstrate
the acceptability of such designs. It is anticipated that there will be
an increase in the number of new handset designs in the future. A
standard definition of the magnetic field intensity emanating from
telephone handsets intended to provide hearing-aid coupling is needed so
that hearing-aid manufacturers can design their product to use this
field, which will be guaranteed in handsets which comply with this
standard.
    1.1 This standard is one of a series of technical standards on voice
telephone terminal equipment prepared by EIA Engineering Committee TR-
41. This document, with its companion standards on Private Branch
Exchanges (PBX), Key Telephone Systems (KTS), Telephones and
Environmental and Safety Considerations (Refs: A1, A2, A3 and A4) fills
a recognized need in the telephone industry brought about by the
increasing use in the public telephone network of equipment supplied by
numerous manufacturers. It will be useful to anyone engaged in the
manufacture of telephone terminal equipment and hearing-aids and to
those purchasing, operating or using such equipment or devices.
    1.2 This standard is intended to be a living document, subject to
revision and updating as warranted by advances in network and terminal
equipment technology and changes in the FCC Rules and Regulations.

                                 2 Scope

    2.1 The purpose of this document is to establish formal criteria
defining the magnetic field intensity presented by a telephone to which
hearing aids can couple. The requirements are based on present
telecommunications plant characteristics at the telephone interface. The
telephone will also be subject to the applicable requirements of EIA RS-
470, Telephone Instruments with Loop Signaling for Voiceband
Applications (Ref: A3) and the environmental requirements specified in
EIA Standards Project PN-1361, Environmental and Safety Considerations
for Voice Telephone Terminals, when published (Ref: A4).
    Telephones which meet these requirements should ensure satisfactory
service to users of magnetically coupled hearing-aids in a high
percentage of installations, both initially and over some period of
time, as the network grows and changes occur in telephone serving
equipment. However, due to the wide range of customer apparatus and loop
plant and dependent on the environment in which the telephone and
hearing aid are used, conformance with this standard does not guarantee
acceptable performance or interface compatibility under all possible
operating conditions.
    2.2 A telephone complies with this standard if it meets the
requirements in this standard when manufactured and can be expected to
continue to meet these requirements when properly used and maintained.
For satisfactory service a telephone needs to be capable, through the
proper selection of equipment options, of satisfying the requirements
applicable to its marketing area.
    2.3 The standard is intended to be in conformance with part 68 of
the FCC Rules and Regulations, but it is not limited to the scope of
those rules (Ref: A5).
    2.4 The signal level and method of measurement in this standard have
been chosen to ensure reproducible results and permit comparison of
evaluations. The measured magnetic field intensity will be approximately
15 dB above the average level encountered in the field and the measured
high-end frequency response will be greater than that encountered in the
field.
    2.5 The basic accuracy and reproducibility of measurements made in
accordance with this standard will depend primarily upon the accuracy of
the test equipment used, the care with which the measurements are
conducted, and the inherent stability of the devices under test.

                              3 Definitions

    This section contains definitions of terms needed for proper
understanding and application of this standard which are not believed to
be adequately treated elsewhere. A glossary of telephone terminology,
which will be published as a companion volume to the series of technical
standards on Telephone Terminals For Voiceband Applications, is
recommended as a general reference and for definitions not covered in
this section.
    3.1 A telephone is a terminal instrument which permits two-way,
real-time voice communication with a distant party over a network or
customer premises connection. It converts real-time voice and voiceband

[[Page 484]]

acoustic signals into electrical signals suitable for transmission over
the telephone network and converts received electrical signals into
acoustic signals. A telephone which meets the requirements of this
standard also generates a magnetic field to which hearing-aids may
couple.
    3.2 The telephone boundaries are the electrical interface with the
network, PBX or KTS and the acoustic, magnetic and mechanical interfaces
with the user. The telephone may also have an electrical interface with
commercial power.
    3.3 A hearing aid is a personal electronic amplifying device,
intended to increase the loudness of sound and worn to compensate for
impaired hearing. When equipped with an optional inductive pick-up coil
(commonly called a telecoil), a hearing aid can be used to amplify
magnetic fields such as those from telephone receivers or induction-loop
systems.
    3.4 The reference plane is the planar area containing points of the
receiver-end of the handset which, in normal handset use, rest against
the ear (see Fig 1).
    3.5 The measurement plane is parallel to, and 10 mm in front of, the
reference plane (see Fig 1).
    3.6 The reference axis is normal to the reference plane and passes
through the center of the receiver cap (or the center of the hole array,
for handset types that do not have receiver caps).
    3.7 The measurement axis is parallel to the reference axis but may
be displaced from that axis, by a maximum of 10 mm (see Fig 1). Within
this constraint, the measurement axis may be located where the axial and
radial field intensity measurements, are optimum with regard to the
requirements. In a handset with a centered receiver and a circularly
symmetrical magnetic field, the measurement axis and the reference axis
would coincide.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TC02JN91.027

                        4 Technical Requirements

    4.1 General.
    These criteria apply to handsets when tested as a constituent part
of a telephone.
    4.1.1 Three parameters descriptive of the magnetic field at points
in the measurement plane shall be used to ascertain adequacy for
magnetic coupling. These three parameters are intensity, direction and
frequency response, associated with the field vector.
    4.1.2 The procedures for determining the parameter values are
defined in the IEEE Standard Method For Measuring The Magnetic Field
Intensity Around A Telephone Receiver (Ref: A6), with the exception that
this EIA Recommended Standard does not require that the measurements be
made using an equivalent loop of 2.75 km of No. 26 AWG cable, but uses a
1250-ohm resistor in series with the battery feed instead (see Fig 2).
    4.1.3 When testing other than general purpose analog telephones,
e.g., proprietary or digital telephones, an appropriate feed circuit and
termination shall be used that produces equivalent test conditions.
    4.2 Axial Field Intensity.
    When measured as specified in 4.1.2, the axial component of the
magnetic field directed along the measurement axis and located at the
measurement plane, shall be greater than -22 dB relative to 1 A/m, for
an input of -10 dBV at 1000 Hz (see Fig 2).

    Note: If the magnitude of the axial component exceeds -19 dB
relative to 1 A/m, some

[[Page 485]]

relaxation in the frequency response is permitted (See 4.4.1).

    4.3 Radial Field Intensity.
    When measured as specified in 4.1.2, radial components of the
magnetic field as measured at four points 90[deg] apart, and at a
distance =16 mm from the measurement axis (as selected in
4.2), shall be greater than -27 dB relative to 1 A/m, for an input of -
10 dBV at 1000 Hz (see Fig 2).
    4.4 Induced Voltage Frequency Response.
    The frequency response of the voltage induced in the probe coil by
the axial component of the magnetic field as measured in 4.2, shall fall
within the acceptable region of Fig 4A or Fig 4B (see 4.4.1 and 4.4.2),
over the frequency range 300-to-3300 Hz.
    4.4.1 For receivers with an axial component which exceeds -19 dB
relative to 1 A/m, when measured as specified in 4.1.2, the frequency
response shall fall within the acceptable region of Fig 4A.
    4.4.2 For receivers with an axial component which is less than -19
dB but greater than -22 dB relative to 1 A/m, when measured as specified
in 4.1.2, the frequency response shall fall within the acceptable region
of Fig 4B.
[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TC02JN91.028


[[Page 486]]


[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TC02JN91.029


[[Page 487]]


[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TC02JN91.030


[[Page 488]]


[GRAPHIC] [TIFF OMITTED] TC02JN91.031

Appendix A--Bibliography
    (A1) EIA Standard RS-464, Private Branch Exchange (PBX) Switching
Equipment for Voiceband Applications.
    (A2) EIA Standard RS-478, Multi-Line Key Telephone Systems (KTS) for
Voiceband Applications.

[[Page 489]]

    (A3) EIA Standard RS-470, Telephone Instruments with Loop Signaling
for Voiceband Applications.
    (A4) EIA Project Number PN-1361, Environmental and Safety
Considerations for Voice Telephone Terminals.
    (A5) Federal Communications Commission Rules and Regulations, part
68, Connection of Terminal Equipment to the Telephone Network.
    (A6) IEEE Standard, Method for Measuring the Magnetic Field arould a
Telephone Receiver. (to be published)

[49 FR 1363, Jan. 11, 1984, as amended at 61 FR 42187, Aug. 14, 1996]



Sec. 68.317  Hearing aid compatibility volume control: technical
standards.

    (a) An analog telephone complies with the Commission's volume
control requirements if the telephone is equipped with a receive volume
control that provides, through the receiver in the handset or headset of
the telephone, 12 dB of gain minimum and up to 18 dB of gain maximum,
when measured in terms of Receive Objective Loudness Rating (ROLR), as
defined in paragraph 4.1.2 of ANSI/EIA-470-A-1987 (Telephone Instruments
With Loop Signaling) . The 12 dB of gain minimum must be achieved
without significant clipping of the test signal. The telephone also
shall comply with the upper and lower limits for ROLR given in table 4.4
of ANSI/EIA-470-A-1987 when the receive volume control is set to its
normal unamplified level.

    Note to paragraph (a):
    Paragraph 4.1.2 of ANSI/EIA-470-A-1987 identifies several
characteristics related to the receive response of a telephone. It is
only the normal unamplified ROLR level and the change in ROLR as a
function of the volume control setting that are relevant to the
specification of volume control as required by this section.

    (b) The ROLR of an analog telephone shall be determined over the
frequency range from 300 to 3300 HZ for short, average, and long loop
conditions represented by 0, 2.7, and 4.6 km of 26 AWG nonloaded cable,
respectively. The specified length of cable will be simulated by a
complex impedance. (See Figure A.) The input level to the cable
simulator shall be -10 dB with respect to 1 V open circuit from a 900
ohm source.
    (c) A digital telephone complies with the Commission's volume
control requirements if the telephone is equipped with a receive volume
control that provides, through the receiver of the handset or headset of
the telephone, 12 dB of gain minimum and up to 18 dB of gain maximum,
when measured in terms of Receive Objective Loudness Rating (ROLR), as
defined in paragraph 4.3.2 of ANSI/EIA/TIA-579-1991 (Acoustic-To-Digital
and Digital-To-Acoustic Transmission Requirements for ISDN Terminals).
The 12 dB of gain minimum must be achieved without significant clipping
of the test signal. The telephone also shall comply with the limits on
the range for ROLR given in paragraph 4.3.2.2 of ANSI/EIA/TIA-579-1991
when the receive volume control is set to its normal unamplified level.
    (d) The ROLR of a digital telephone shall be determined over the
frequency range from 300 to 3300 Hz using the method described in
paragraph 4.3.2.1 of ANSI/EIA/TIA-579-1991. No variation in loop
conditions is required for this measurement since the receive level of a
digital telephone is independent of loop length.
    (e) The ROLR for either an analog or digital telephone shall first
be determined with the receive volume control at its normal unamplified
level. The minimum volume control setting shall be used for this
measurement unless the manufacturer identifies a different setting for
the nominal volume level. The ROLR shall then be determined with the
receive volume control at its maximum volume setting. Since ROLR is a
loudness rating value expressed in dB of loss, more positive values of
ROLR represent lower receive levels. Therefore, the ROLR value
determined for the maximum volume control setting should be subtracted
from that determined for the nominal volume control setting to determine
compliance with the gain requirement.
    (f) The 18 dB of receive gain may be exceeded provided that the
amplified receive capability automatically resets to nominal gain when
the telephone is caused to pass through a proper on-hook transition in
order to minimize the likelihood of damage to individuals with normal
hearing.

[[Page 490]]

    (g) These incorporations by reference of paragraph 4.1.2 (including
table 4.4) of American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Standard
ANSI/EIA-470-A-1987 and paragraph 4.3.2 of ANSI/EIA/TIA-579-1991 were
approved by the Director of the Federal Register in accordance with 5
U.S.C. 552(a) and 1 CFR part 51. Copies of these publications may be
purchased from the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Sales
Department, 11 West 42nd Street, 13th Floor, New York, NY 10036, (212)
642-4900. Copies also may be inspected during normal business hours at
the following locations: Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau,
Reference Information Center, Federal Communications Commission, 445
12th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20554; and the National Archives and
Records Administration (NARA). For information on the availability of
this material at NARA, call 202-741-6030, or go to: http://
www.archives.gov/federal--register/code--of--federal--regulations/ibr--
locations.html.

[61 FR 42187, Aug. 14, 1996, as amended at 64 FR 60726, Nov. 8, 1999; 67
FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002; 69 FR 18803, Apr. 9, 2004]



Sec. 68.318  Additional limitations.

    (a) General. Registered terminal equipment for connection to those
services discussed below must incorporate the specified features.
    (b) Registered terminal equipment with automatic dialing capability.
(1) Automatic dialing to any individual number is limited to two
successive attempts. Automatic dialing equipment which employ means for
detecting both busy and reorder signals shall be permitted an additional
13 attempts if a busy or reorder signal is encountered on each attempt.
The dialer shall be unable to re-attempt a call to the same number for
at least 60 minutes following either the second or fifteenth successive
attempt, whichever applies, unless the dialer is reactivated by either
manual or external means. This rule does not apply to manually activated
dialers that dial a number once following each activation.

    Note to paragraph (b)(1):
    Emergency alarm dialers and dialers under external computer control
are exempt from these requirements.

    (2) If means are employed for detecting both busy and reorder
signals, the automatic dialing equipment shall return to its on-hook
state within 15 seconds after detection of a busy or reorder signal.
    (3) If the called party does not answer, the automatic dialer shall
return to the on-hook state within 60 seconds of completion of dialing.
    (4) If the called party answers, and the calling equipment does not
detect a compatible terminal equipment at the called end, then the
automatic dialing equipment shall be limited to one additional call
which is answered. The automatic dialing equipment shall comply with
paragraphs (b)(1), (b)(2), and (b)(3) of this section for additional
call attempts that are not answered.
    (5) Sequential dialers shall dial only once to any individual number
before proceeding to dial another number.
    (6) Network addressing signals shall be transmitted no earlier than:
    (i) 70 ms after receipt of dial tone at the network demarcation
point; or
    (ii) 600 ms after automatically going off-hook (for single line
equipment that does not use dial tone detectors); or
    (iii) 70 ms after receipt of CO ground start at the network
demarcation point.
    (c) Line seizure by automatic telephone dialing systems. Automatic
telephone dialing systems which deliver a recorded message to the called
party must release the called party's telephone line within 5 seconds of
the time notification is transmitted to the system that the called party
has hung up, to allow the called party's line to be used to make or
receive other calls.
    (d) Telephone facsimile machines; Identification of the sender of
the message. It shall be unlawful for any person within the United
States to use a computer or other electronic device to send any message
via a telephone facsimile machine unless such person clearly marks, in a
margin at the top or bottom of each transmitted page of the message or
on the first page of the transmission, the date and time it is sent and
an identification of the business, other entity, or individual sending
the message and the telephone number of the sending machine or of

[[Page 491]]

such business, other entity, or individual. If a facsimile broadcaster
demonstrates a high degree of involvement in the sender's facsimile
messages, such as supplying the numbers to which a message is sent, that
broadcaster's name, under which it is registered to conduct business
with the State Corporation Commission (or comparable regulatory
authority), must be identified on the facsimile, along with the sender's
name. Telephone facsimile machines manufactured on and after December
20, 1992, must clearly mark such identifying information on each
transmitted page.
    (e) Requirement that registered equipment allow access to common
carriers. Any equipment or software manufactured or imported on or after
April 17, 1992, and installed by any aggregator shall be technologically
capable of providing consumers with access to interstate providers of
operator services through the use of equal access codes. The terms used
in this paragraph shall have meanings defined in Sec. 64.708 of this
chapter (47 CFR 64.708).

[62 FR 61691, Nov. 19, 1997, as amended at 68 FR 44179, July 25, 2003]



Sec. 68.320  Supplier's Declaration of Conformity.

    (a) Supplier's Declaration of Conformity is a procedure where the
responsible party, as defined in Sec. 68.3, makes measurements or takes
other necessary steps to ensure that the terminal equipment complies
with the appropriate technical standards.
    (b) The Supplier's Declaration of Conformity attaches to all items
subsequently marketed by the responsible party which are identical,
within the variation that can be expected to arise as a result of
quantity production techniques, to the sample tested and found
acceptable by the responsible party.
    (c) The Supplier's Declaration of Conformity signifies that the
responsible party has determined that the equipment has been shown to
comply with the applicable technical criteria if no unauthorized change
is made in the equipment and if the equipment is properly maintained and
operated.
    (d) The responsible party, if different from the manufacturer, may
upon receiving a written statement from the manufacturer that the
equipment complies with the appropriate technical criteria, rely on the
manufacturer or independent testing agency to determine compliance. Any
records that the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments
requires the responsible party to maintain shall be in the English
language and shall be made available to the Commission upon a request.
    (e) No person shall use or make reference to a Supplier's
Declaration of Conformity in a deceptive or misleading manner or to
convey the impression that such a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity
reflects more than a determination by the responsible party that the
device or product has been shown to be capable of complying with the
applicable technical criteria published by the Administrative Council of
Terminal Attachments.

[66 FR 7585, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.321  Location of responsible party.

    The responsible party for a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity
must designate an agent for service of process that is physically
located within the United States.

[67 FR 57182, Sept. 9, 2002]



Sec. 68.322  Changes in name, address, ownership or control of
responsible party.

    (a) The responsible party for a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity
may license or otherwise authorize a second party to manufacture the
equipment covered by the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity provided
that the responsible party shall continue to be responsible to the
Commission for ensuring that the equipment produced pursuant to such an
agreement remains compliant with the appropriate standards.
    (b) In the case of transactions affecting the responsible party of a
Supplier's Declaration of Conformity, such as a transfer of control or
sale to another company, mergers, or transfer of manufacturing rights,
the successor entity shall become the responsible party.

[66 FR 7586, Jan. 24, 2001]

[[Page 492]]



Sec. 68.324  Supplier's Declaration of Conformity requirements.

    (a) Each responsible party shall include in the Supplier's
Declaration of Conformity, the following information:
    (1) The identification and a description of the responsible party
for the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity and the product, including
the model number of the product,
    (2) A statement that the terminal equipment conforms with applicable
technical requirements, and a reference to the technical requirements,
    (3) The date and place of issue of the declaration,
    (4) The signature, name and function of person making declaration,
    (5) A statement that the handset, if any, complies with Sec. 68.316
of these rules (defining hearing aid compatibility), or that it does not
comply with that section. A telephone handset which complies with Sec.
68.316 shall be deemed a ``hearing aid-compatible telephone'' for
purposes of Sec. 68.4.
    (6) Any other information required to be included in the Supplier's
Declaration of Conformity by the Administrative Council of Terminal
Attachments.
    (b) If the device that is subject to a Supplier's Declaration of
Conformity is designed to operate in conjunction with other equipment,
the characteristics of which can affect compliance of such device with
part 68 rules and/or with technical criteria published by the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments, then the Model
Number(s) of such other equipment must be supplied, and such other
equipment must also include a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity or a
certification from a Telecommunications Certification Body.
    (c) The Supplier's Declaration of Conformity shall be included in
the user's manual or as a separate document enclosed with the terminal
equipment.
    (d) If terminal equipment is not subject to a Supplier's Declaration
of Conformity, but instead contains protective circuitry that is subject
to a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity, then the responsible party
for the protective circuitry shall include with each module of such
circuitry, a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity containing the
information required under Sec. 68.340(a), and the responsible party of
such terminal equipment shall include such statement with each unit of
the product.
    (e) (1) The responsible party for the terminal equipment subject to
a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity also shall provide to the
purchaser of such terminal equipment, instructions as required by the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (2) A copy of the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity shall be
provided to the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments along
with any other information the Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments requires; this information shall be made available to the
public.
    (3) The responsible party shall make a copy of the Supplier's
Declaration of Conformity freely available to the general public on its
company website. The information shall be accessible to the disabled
community from the website. If the responsible party does not have a
functional and reliable website, then the responsible party shall inform
the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments of such
circumstances, and the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments
shall make a copy available on its website.
    (f) For a telephone that is not hearing aid-compatible, as defined
in Sec. 68.316 of this part, the responsible party also shall provide
the following in the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity:
    (1) Notice that FCC rules prohibit the use of that handset in
certain locations; and
    (2) A list of such locations (see Sec. 68.112).

[66 FR 7586, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.326  Retention of records.

    (a) The responsible party for a Supplier's Declaration of Conformity
shall maintain records containing the following information:
    (1) A copy of the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity;
    (2) The identity of the testing facility, including the name,
address, phone number and other contact information.

[[Page 493]]

    (3) A detailed explanation of the testing procedure utilized to
determine whether terminal equipment conforms to the appropriate
technical criteria.
    (4) A copy of the test results for terminal equipment compliance
with the appropriate technical criteria.
    (b) For each device subject to the Supplier's Declaration of
Conformity requirement, the responsible party shall maintain all records
required under Sec. 68.326(a) for at least ten years after the
manufacture of said equipment has been permanently discontinued, or
until the conclusion of an investigation or a proceeding, if the
responsible party is officially notified prior to the expiration of such
ten year period that an investigation or any other administrative
proceeding involving its equipment has been instituted, whichever is
later.

[66 FR 7586, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.346  Description of testing facilities.

    (a) Each responsible party for equipment that is subject to a
Supplier's Declaration of Conformity under this part, shall compile a
description of the measurement facilities employed for testing the
equipment. The responsible party for the Supplier's Declaration of
Conformity shall retain a description of the measurement facilities.
    (b) The description shall contain the information required to be
included by the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.

[66 FR 7586, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.348  Changes in equipment and circuitry subject to a Supplier's
Declaration of Conformity.

    (a) No change shall be made in terminal equipment or protective
circuitry that would result in any material change in the information
contained in the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity Statement
furnished to users.
    (b) Any other changes in terminal equipment or protective circuitry
which is subject to an effective Supplier's Declaration of Conformity
shall be made only by the responsible party or an authorized agent
thereof, and the responsible party will remain responsible for the
performance of such changes.

[66 FR 7586, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.350  Revocation of Supplier's Declaration of Conformity.

    (a) The Commission may revoke any Supplier's Declaration of
Conformity for cause in accordance with the provisions of this section
or in the event changes in technical standards published by the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments require the revocation
of any outstanding Supplier's Declaration of Conformity in order to
achieve the objectives of part 68.
    (b) Cause for revocation. In addition to the provisions in Sec.
68.211, the Commission may revoke a Supplier's Declaration of
Conformity:
    (1) For false statements or representations made in materials or
responses submitted to the Commission and/or the Administrative Council
for Terminal Attachments, or in records required to be kept by Sec.
68.324 and the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (2) If upon subsequent inspection or operation it is determined that
the equipment does not conform to the pertinent technical requirements.
    (3) If it is determined that changes have been made in the equipment
other that those authorized by this part or otherwise expressly
authorized by the Commission.

[66 FR 7587, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.354  Numbering and labeling requirements for terminal equipment.

    (a) Terminal equipment and protective circuitry that is subject to a
Supplier's Declaration of Conformity or that is certified by a
Telecommunications Certification Body shall have labels in a place and
manner required by the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (b) Terminal equipment labels shall include an identification
numbering system in a manner required by the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments.

[[Page 494]]

    (c) If the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments chooses
to continue the practice of utilizing a designated ``FCC'' number, it
shall include in its labeling requirements a warning that the Commission
no longer directly approves or registers terminal equipment.
    (d) Labeling developed for terminal equipment by the Administrative
Council on Terminal Attachments shall contain sufficient information for
providers of wireline telecommunications, the Federal Communications
Commission, and the U.S. Customs Service to carry out their functions,
and for consumers to easily identify the responsible party of their
terminal equipment. The numbering and labeling scheme shall be
nondiscriminatory, creating no competitive advantage for any entity or
segment of the industry.
    (e) FCC numbering and labeling requirements existing prior to the
effective date of these rules shall remain unchanged until the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments publishes its numbering
and labeling requirements.

[66 FR 7587, Jan. 24, 2001, as amended at 67 FR 57182, Sept. 9, 2002]



                     Subpart E_Complaint Procedures



Sec. Sec. 68.400-68.412  [Reserved]



Sec. 68.414  Hearing aid-compatibility: Enforcement.

    Enforcement of Sec. Sec. 68.4 and 68.112 is hereby delegated to
those states which adopt those sections and provide for their
enforcement. The procedures followed by a state to enforce those
sections shall provide a 30-day period after a complaint is filed,
during which time state personnel shall attempt to resolve a dispute on
an informal basis. If a state has not adopted or incorporated Sec. Sec.
68.4 and 68.112, or failed to act within 6 months from the filing of a
complaint with the state public utility commission, the Commission will
accept such complaints. A written notification to the complainant that
the state believes action is unwarranted is not a failure to act.

[49 FR 1368, Jan. 11, 1984]



Sec. 68.415  Hearing aid-compatibility and volume control informal
complaints.

    Persons with complaints under Sec. Sec. 68.4 and 68.112 that are
not addressed by the states pursuant to Sec. 68.414, and all other
complaints regarding rules in this part pertaining to hearing aid
compatibility and volume control, may bring informal complaints as
described in Sec. 68.416 through Sec. 68.420. All responsible parties
of terminal equipment are subject to the informal complaint provisions
specified in this section.

[66 FR 7587, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.417  Informal complaints; form and content.

    (a) An informal complaint alleging a violation of hearing aid
compatibility and/or volume control rules in this subpart may be
transmitted to the Consumer Information Bureau by any reasonable means,
e.g., letter, facsimile transmission, telephone (voice/TRS/TTY),
Internet e-mail, ASCII text, audio-cassette recording, and Braille.
    (b) An informal complaint shall include:
    (1) The name and address of the complainant;
    (2) The name and address of the responsible party, if known, or the
manufacturer or provider against whom the complaint is made;
    (3) A full description of the terminal equipment about which the
complaint is made;
    (4) The date or dates on which the complainant purchased, acquired
or used the terminal equipment about which the complaint is being made;
    (5) A complete statement of the facts, including documentation where
available, supporting the complainant's allegation that the defendant
has failed to comply with the requirements of this subpart;
    (6) The specific relief or satisfaction sought by the complainant,
and
    (7) The complainant's preferred format or method of response to the
complaint by the Commission and defendant (e.g., letter, facsimile
transmission, telephone (voice/TRS/TTY), Internet e-mail, ASCII text,
audio-cassette recording, Braille; or some other

[[Page 495]]

method that will best accommodate the complainant's disability).

[66 FR 7587, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.418  Procedure; designation of agents for service.

    (a) The Commission shall promptly forward any informal complaint
meeting the requirements of Sec. 68.17 to each responsible party named
in or determined by the staff to be implicated by the complaint. Such
responsible party or parties shall be called on to satisfy or answer the
complaint within the time specified by the Commission.
    (b) To ensure prompt and effective service of informal complaints
filed under this subpart, every responsible party of equipment approved
pursuant to this part shall designate and identify one or more agents
upon whom service may be made of all notices, inquiries, orders,
decisions, and other pronouncements of the Commission in any matter
before the Commission. Such designation shall be provided to the
Commission and shall include a name or department designation, business
address, telephone number, and, if available, TTY number, facsimile
number, and Internet e-mail address. The Commission shall make this
information available to the public.

[66 FR 7587, Jan. 24, 2001, as amended at 73 FR 25591, May 7, 2008]



Sec. 68.419  Answers to informal complaints.

    Any responsible party to whom the Commission or the Consumer
Information Bureau under this subpart directs an informal complaint
shall file an answer within the time specified by the Commission or the
Consumer Information Bureau. The answer shall:
    (a) Be prepared or formatted in the manner requested by the
complainant pursuant to Sec. 68.417, unless otherwise permitted by the
Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau for good cause shown;
    (b) Describe any actions that the defendant has taken or proposes to
take to satisfy the complaint;
    (c) Advise the complainant and the Commission or the Consumer
Information Bureau of the nature of the defense(s) claimed by the
defendant;
    (d) Respond specifically to all material allegations of the
complaint; and
    (e) Provide any other information or materials specified by the
Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau as relevant to its
consideration of the complaint.

[66 FR 7587, Jan. 24, 2001]



Sec. 68.420  Review and disposition of informal complaints.

    (a) Where it appears from the defendant's answer, or from other
communications with the parties, that an informal complaint has been
satisfied, the Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau on
delegated authority may, in its discretion, consider the informal
complaint closed, without response to the complainant or defendant. In
all other cases, the Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau shall
inform the parties of its review and disposition of a complaint filed
under this subpart. Where practicable, this information (the nature of
which is specified in paragraphs (b) through (d) of this section, shall
be transmitted to the complainant and defendant in the manner requested
by the complainant, (e.g., letter, facsimile transmission, telephone
(voice/TRS/TTY), Internet e-mail, ASCII text, audio-cassette recording,
or Braille).
    (b) In the event the Commission or the Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau determines, based on a review of the information provided
in the informal complaint and the defendant's answer thereto, that no
further action is required by the Commission or the Consumer and
Governmental Affairs Bureau with respect to the allegations contained in
the informal complaint, the informal complaint shall be closed and the
complainant and defendant shall be duly informed of the reasons
therefor. A complainant, unsatisfied with the defendant's response to
the informal complaint and the staff decision to terminate action on the
informal complaint, may file a complaint with the Commission or the
Enforcement Bureau as specified in Sec. Sec. 68.400 through 68.412.
    (c) In the event the Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau
on delegated authority determines, based

[[Page 496]]

on a review of the information presented in the informal complaint and
the defendant's answer thereto, that a material and substantial question
remains as to the defendant's compliance with the requirements of this
subpart, the Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau may conduct
such further investigation or such further proceedings as may be
necessary to determine the defendant's compliance with the requirements
of this subpart and to determine what, if any, remedial actions and/or
sanctions are warranted.
    (d) In the event that the Commission or the Consumer Information
Bureau on delegated authority determines, based on a review of the
information presented in the informal complaint and the defendant's
answer thereto, that the defendant has failed to comply with or is
presently not in compliance with the requirements of this subpart, the
Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau on delegated authority may
order or prescribe such remedial actions and/or sanctions as are
authorized under the Act and the Commission's rules and which are deemed
by the Commission or the Consumer Information Bureau on delegated
authority to be appropriate under the facts and circumstances of the
case.

[66 FR 7588, Jan. 24, 2001, as amended at 67 FR 13229, Mar. 21, 2002]



Sec. 68.423  Actions by the Commission on its own motion.

    The Commission may on its own motion conduct such inquiries and hold
such proceedings as it may deem necessary to enforce the requirements of
this subpart. The procedures to be followed by the Commission shall,
unless specifically prescribed in the Act and the Commission's rules, be
such as in the opinion of the Commission will best serve the purposes of
such inquiries and proceedings.

[66 FR 7588, Jan. 24, 2001]

Subpart F [Reserved]



        Subpart G_Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments

    Source: 66 FR 7588, Jan. 24, 2001, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 68.602  Sponsor of the Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments.

    (a) The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) and the
Alliance for Telecommunications Industry Solutions (ATIS) jointly shall
establish the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachment and shall
sponsor the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments for four
years from the effective date of these rules. The division of duties by
which this responsibility is executed may be a matter of agreement
between these two parties; however, both are jointly and severally
responsible for observing these rule provisions. After four years from
the effective date of these rules, and thereafter on a quadrennial
basis, the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments may vote by
simple majority to be sponsored by any ANSI-accredited organization.
    (b) The sponsoring organizations shall ensure that the
Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments is populated in a manner
consistent with the criteria of American National Standards Institute's
Organization Method or the Standards Committee Method (and their
successor Method or Methods as ANSI may from time to time establish) for
a balanced and open membership.
    (c) After the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments is
populated, the sponsors are responsible for fulfilling secretariat
positions as determined by the Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments. The Administrative Council shall post on a publicly
available web site and make available to the public in hard copy form
the written agreement into which it enters with the sponsor or sponsors.

[66 FR 7588, Jan. 24, 2001, as amended at 67 FR 57182, Sept. 9, 2002]



Sec. 68.604  Requirements for submitting technical criteria.

    (a) Any standards development organization that is accredited under
the American National Standards Institute's Organization Method or the
Standards Committee Method (and their successor Method or Methods as
ANSI may from time to time establish) may establish technical criteria
for terminal equipment pursuant to ANSI

[[Page 497]]

consensus decision-making procedures, and it may submit such criteria to
the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments.
    (b) Any ANSI-accredited standards development organization that
develops standards for submission to the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments must implement and use procedures for the
development of those standards that ensure openness equivalent to the
Commission rulemaking process.
    (c) Any standards development organization that submits standards to
the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments for publication as
technical criteria shall certify to the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments that:
    (1) The submitting standards development organization is ANSI-
accredited to the Standards Committee Method or the Organization Method
(or their successor Methods as amended from time to time by ANSI);
    (2) The technical criteria that it proposes for publication do not
conflict with any published technical criteria or with any technical
criteria submitted and pending for publication, and
    (3) The technical criteria that it proposes for publication are
limited to preventing harms to the public switched telephone network,
identified in Sec. 68.3 of this part.



Sec. 68.608  Publication of technical criteria.

    The Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments shall place
technical criteria proposed for publication on public notice for 30
days. At the end of the 30 day public notice period, if there are no
oppositions, the Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments shall
publish the technical criteria.



Sec. 68.610  Database of terminal equipment.

    (a) The Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments shall
operate and maintain a database of all approved terminal equipment. The
database shall meet the requirements of the Federal Communications
Commission and the U.S. Customs Service for enforcement purposes. The
database shall be accessible by government agencies free of charge.
Information in the database shall be readily available and accessible to
the public, including individuals with disabilities, at nominal or no
costs.
    (b) Responsible parties, whether they obtain their approval from a
Telecommunications Certification Body or utilize the Supplier's
Declaration of Conformity process, shall submit to the database
administrator all information required by the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments.
    (c) The Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments shall ensure
that the database is created and maintained in an equitable and
nondiscriminatory manner. The manner in which the database is created
and maintained shall not permit any entity or segment of the industry to
gain a competitive advantage.
    (d) The Administrative Council for Terminal Attachments shall file
with the Commission, within 180 days of publication of these rules in
the Federal Register, a detailed report of the structure of the
database, including details of how the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments will administer the database, the pertinent
information to be included in the database, procedures for including
compliance information in the database, and details regarding how the
government and the public will access the information.



Sec. 68.612  Labels on terminal equipment.

    Terminal equipment certified by a Telecommunications Certification
Body or approved by the Supplier's Declaration of Conformity under this
part shall be labeled. The Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments shall establish appropriate labeling of terminal equipment.
Labeling shall meet the requirements of the Federal Communications
Commission and the U.S. Customs Service for their respective enforcement
purposes, and of consumers for purposes of identifying the responsible
party and model number.

[67 FR 57182, Sept. 9, 2002]

[[Page 498]]



Sec. 68.614  Oppositions and appeals.

    (a) Oppositions filed in response to the Administrative Council for
Terminal Attachments' public notice of technical criteria proposed for
publication must be received by the Administrative Council for Terminal
Attachments within 30 days of public notice to be considered.
Oppositions to proposed technical criteria shall be addressed through
the appeals procedures of the authoring standards development
organization and of the American National Standards Institute. If these
procedures have been exhausted, the aggrieved party shall file its
opposition with the Commission for de novo review.
    (b) As an alternative, oppositions to proposed technical criteria
may be filed directly with the Commission for de novo review within the
30 day public notice period.



PART 69_ACCESS CHARGES--Table of Contents



                            Subpart A_General

Sec.
69.1 Application of access charges.
69.2 Definitions.
69.3 Filing of access service tariffs.
69.4 Charges to be filed.
69.5 Persons to be assessed.

                    Subpart B_Computation of Charges

69.101 General.
69.104 End user common line for non-price cap incumbent local exchange
          carriers.
69.105 Carrier common line for non-price cap local exchange carriers.
69.106 Local switching.
69.108 Transport rate benchmark.
69.109 Information.
69.110 Entrance facilities.
69.111 Tandem-switched transport and tandem charge.
69.112 Direct-trunked transport.
69.113 Non-premium charges for MTS-WATS equivalent services.
69.114 Special access.
69.115 Special access surcharges.
69.118 Traffic sensitive switched services.
69.119 Basic service element expedited approval process.
69.120 Line information database.
69.121 Connection charges for expanded interconnection.
69.123 Density pricing zones for special access and switched transport.
69.124 Interconnection charge.
69.125 Dedicated signalling transport.
69.128 Billing name and address.
69.129 Signalling for tandem switching.
69.130 Line port costs in excess of basic analog service.
69.131 Universal service end user charges.

 Subpart C_Computation of Charges for Price Cap Local Exchange Carriers

69.151 Applicability.
69.152 End user common line for price cap local exchange carriers.
69.153 Presubscribed interexchange carrier charge (PICC).
69.154 Per-minute carrier common line charge.
69.155 Per-minute residual interconnection charge.
69.156 Marketing expenses.
69.157 Line port costs in excess of basic, analog service.
69.158 Universal service and user charges.

                Subpart D_Apportionment of Net Investment

69.301 General.
69.302 Net investment.
69.303 Information origination/termination equipment (IOT).
69.304 Subscriber line cable and wire facilities.
69.305 Carrier cable and wire facilities (C&WF).
69.306 Central office equipment (COE).
69.307 General support facilities.
69.308 [Reserved]
69.309 Other investment.
69.310 Capital leases.

                   Subpart E_Apportionment of Expenses

69.401 Direct expenses.
69.402 Operating taxes (Account 7200).
69.403 Marketing expenses (Account 6610).
69.404 Telephone operator services expenses in Account 6620.
69.405 Published directory expenses in Account 6620.
69.406 Local business office expenses in Account 6620.
69.407 Revenue accounting expenses in Account 6620.
69.408 All other customer services expenses in Account 6620.
69.409 Corporate operations expenses (included in Account 6720).
69.411 Other expenses.
69.412 Non participating company payments/receipts.
69.413 High cost loop support universal service fund expenses.
69.414 Lifeline assistance expenses.
69.415 Reallocation of certain transport expenses.

[[Page 499]]

    Subpart F_Segregation of Common Line Element Revenue Requirement

69.501 General.
69.502 Base factor allocation.

                 Subpart G_Exchange Carrier Association

69.601 Exchange carrier association.
69.602 Board of directors.
69.603 Association functions.
69.604 Billing and collection of access charges.
69.605 Reporting and distribution of pool access revenues.
69.606 Computation of average schedule company payments.
69.607 Disbursement of Carrier Common Line residue.
69.608 Carrier Common Line hypothetical net balance.
69.609 End User Common Line hypothetical net balances.
69.610 Other hypothetical net balances.

                      Subpart H_Pricing Flexibility

69.701 Application of rules in this subpart.
69.703 Definitions.
69.705 Procedure.
69.707 Geographic scope of petition.
69.709 Dedicated transport and special access services other than
          channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer
          premises.
69.711 Channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer
          premises.
69.713 Common line, traffic-sensitive, and tandem-switched transport
          services.
69.714-69.724 [Reserved]
69.725 Attribution of revenues to particular wire centers.
69.727 Regulatory relief.
69.729 New services.
69.731 Low-end adjustment mechanism.

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 154, 201, 202, 203, 205, 218, 220, 254, 403.

    Source: 48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, unless otherwise noted.



                            Subpart A_General



Sec. 69.1  Application of access charges.

    (a) This part establishes rules for access charges for interstate or
foreign access services provided by telephone companies on or after
January 1, 1984.
    (b) Except as provided in Sec. 69.1(c), charges for such access
service shall be computed, assessed, and collected and revenues from
such charges shall be distributed as provided in this part. Access
service tariffs shall be filed and supported as provided under part 61
of this chapter, except as modified herein.
    (c) The following provisions of this part shall apply to telephone
companies subject to price cap regulation only to the extent that
application of such provisions is necessary to develop the nationwide
average carrier common line charge, for purposes of reporting pursuant
to Sec. Sec. 43.21 and 43.22 of this chapter, and for computing initial
charges for new rate elements: Sec. Sec. 69.3(f), 69.106(b), 69.106(f),
69.106(g), 69.109(b), 69.110(d), 69.111(c), 69.111(g)(1), 69.111(g)(2),
69.111(g)(3), 69.111(l), 69.112(d), 69.114(b), 69.114(d), 69.125(b)(2),
69.301 through 69.310, and 69.401 through 69.412. The computation of
rates pursuant to these provisions by telephone companies subject to
price cap regulation shall be governed by the price cap rules set forth
in part 61 of this chapter and other applicable Commission rules and
orders.
    (d) To the extent any provision contained in 47 CFR part 51 subparts
H and J conflict with any provision of this part, the 47 CFR part 51
provision supersedes the provision of this part.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 55 FR 42385, Oct. 19, 1990;
58 FR 41189, Aug. 3, 1993; 62 FR 40463, July 29, 1997; 76 FR 73882, Nov.
29, 2011]



Sec. 69.2  Definitions.

    For purposes of the part:
    (a) Access minutes or Access minutes of use is that usage of
exchange facilities in interstate or foreign service for the purpose of
calculating chargeable usage. On the originating end of an interstate or
foreign call, usage is to be measured from the time the originating end
user's call is delivered by the telephone company and acknowledged as
received by the interexchange carrier's facilities connected with the
originating exchange. On the terminating end of an interstate or foreign
call, usage is to be measured from the time the call is received by the
end user in the terminating exchange. Timing of usage at both the
originating and terminating end of an interstate or foreign call shall
terminate when the calling or called party disconnects, whichever event
is recognized first in the originating and terminating end exchanges, as
applicable.

[[Page 500]]

    (b) Access service includes services and facilities provided for the
origination or termination of any interstate or foreign
telecommunication.
    (c) Annual revenue requirement means the sum of the return component
and the expense component.
    (d) Association means the telephone company association described in
subpart G of this part.
    (e) Big Three Expenses are the combined expense groups comprising:
Plant Specific Operations Expense, Accounts 6110, 6120, 6210, 6220,
6230, 6310 and 6410; Plant Nonspecific Operations Expenses, Accounts
6510, 6530 and 6540, and Customer Operations Expenses, Accounts 6610 and
6620.
    (f) Big Three Expense Factors are the ratios of the sum of Big Three
Expenses apportioned to each element or category to the combined Big
Three Expenses.
    (g) Cable and wire facilities includes all equipment or facilities
that are described as cable and wire facilities in the Separations
Manual and included in Account 2410.
    (h) Carrier cable and wire facilities means all cable and wire
facilities that are not subscriber line cable and wire facilities.
    (i) Central Office Equipment or COE includes all equipment or
facilities that are described as Central Office Equipment in the
Separations Manual and included in Accounts 2210, 2220 and 2230.
    (j) Corporate operations expenses are included in General and
Administrative Expenses (Account 6720).
    (k) Customer operations expenses include Marketing and Services
expenses in Accounts 6610 and 6620, respectively.
    (l) Direct expense means expenses that are attributable to a
particular category or categories of tangible investment described in
subpart D of this part and includes:
    (1) Plant Specific Operations expenses in Accounts 6110, 6120, 6210,
6220, 6230, 6310 and 6410; and
    (2) Plant Nonspecific Operations Expenses in Accounts 6510, 6530,
6540 and 6560.
    (m) End user means any customer of an interstate or foreign
telecommunications service that is not a carrier except that a carrier
other than a telephone company shall be deemed to be an ``end user''
when such carrier uses a telecommunications service for administrative
purposes and a person or entity that offers telecommunications services
exclusively as a reseller shall be deemed to be an ``end user'' if all
resale transmissions offered by such reseller originate on the premises
of such reseller.
    (n) Entry switch means the telephone company switch in which a
transport line or trunk terminates.
    (o) Expense component means the total expenses and income charges
for an annual period that are attributable to a particular element or
category.
    (p) Expenses include allowable expenses in the Uniform System of
Accounts, part 32, apportioned to interstate or international services
pursuant to the Separations Manual and allowable income charges
apportioned to interstate and international services pursuant to the
Separations Manual.
    (q) General support facilities include buildings, land, vehicles,
aircraft, work equipment, furniture, office equipment and general
purpose computers as described in the Separations Manual and included in
Account 2110.
    (r) Information origination/termination equipment includes all
equipment or facilities that are described as information origination/
termination equipment in the Separations Manual and in Account 2310
except information origination/termination equipment that is used by
telephone companies in their own operations.
    (s) Interexchange or the interexchange category includes services or
facilities provided as an integral part of interstate or foreign
telecommunications that is not described as ``access service'' for
purposes of this part.
    (t) Level I Contributors. Telephone companies that are not
association Common Line tariff participants, file their own Common Line
tariffs effective April 1, 1989, and had a lower than average Common
Line revenue requirement per minute of use in 1988 and thus were net
contributors (i.e., had a negative net balance) to the association
Common Line pool in 1988.
    (u) Level I Receivers. Telephone companies that are not association
Common Line tariff participants, file their own Common Line tariffs
effective

[[Page 501]]

April 1, 1989, and had a higher than average Common Line revenue
requirement per minute of use in 1988 and thus were net receivers (i.e.,
had a positive net balance) from the association Common Line Pool in
1988.
    (v) Level II Contributors. A telephone company or group of
affiliated telephone companies with fewer than 300,000 access lines and
less than $150 million in annual operating revenues that is not an
association Common Line tariff participant, that files its own Common
Line tariff effective July 1, 1990, and that had a lower than average
Common Line revenue requirement per minute of use in 1988 and thus was a
net contributor (i.e., had a negative net balance) to the association
Common Line pool in 1988.
    (w) Level II Receivers. A telephone company or group of affiliated
telephone companies with fewer than 300,000 access lines and less than
$150 million in annual operating revenues that is not an association
Common Line tariff participant, that files its own Common Line tariff
effective July 1, 1990, and that had a higher than average Common Line
revenue requirement per minute of use in 1988 and thus was a net
receiver (i.e., had a positive net balance) from the association Common
Line pool in 1988.
    (x) Line or Trunk includes, but is not limited to, transmission
media such as radio, satellite, wire, cable and fiber optic cable means
of transmission.
    (y) [Reserved]
    (z) Net investment means allowable original cost investment in
Accounts 2001 through 2003, 1220 and the investments in nonaffiliated
companies included in Account 1410, that has been apportioned to
interstate and foreign services pursuant to the Separations Manual from
which depreciation, amortization and other reserves attributable to such
investment that has been apportioned to interstate and foreign services
pursuant to the Separations Manual have been subtracted and to which
working capital that is attributable to interstate and foreign services
has been added.
    (aa) Operating taxes include all taxes in Account 7200;
    (bb) Origination of a service that is switched in a Class 4 switch
or an interexchange switch that performs an equivalent function ends
when the transmission enters such switch and termination of such a
service begins when the transmission leaves such a switch, except that;
    (1) Switching in a Class 4 switch or transmission between Class 4
switches that is not deemed to be interexchange for purposes of the
Modified Final Judgement entered August 24, 1982, in United States v
Western Electric Co., D.C. Civil Action No. 82-0192, will be
``origination'' or ``termination'' for purposes of this part; and
    (2) Origination and Termination does not include the use of any part
of a line, trunk or switch that is not owned or leased by a telephone
company.
    (cc) Origination of any service other than a service that is
switched in a Class 4 switch or a switch that performs an equivalent
function ends and ``termination'' of any such service begins at a point
of demarcation that corresponds with the point of demarcation that is
used for a service that is switched in a Class 4 switch or a switch that
performs an equivalent function.
    (dd) Private line means a line that is used exclusively for an
interexchange service other than MTS, WATS or an MTS-WATS equivalent
service, including a line that is used at the closed end of an FX WATS
or CCSA service or any service that is substantially equivalent to a
CCSA service.
    (ee) Public telephone is a telephone provided by a telephone company
through which an end user may originate interstate or foreign
telecommunications for which he pays with coins or by credit card,
collect or third number billing procedures.
    (ff) Return component means net investment attributable to a
particular element or category multiplied by the authorized annual rate
of return.
    (gg) Subscriber line cable and wire facilities means all lines or
trunks on the subscriber side of a Class 5 or end office switch,
including lines or trunks that do not terminate in such a switch, except
lines or trunks that connect an interexchange carrier.
    (hh) Telephone company or Local exchange carrier as used in this
part means an incumbent local exchange carrier as defined in section
251(h)(1) of

[[Page 502]]

the 1934 Act as amended by the 1996 Act.
    (ii) Transitional support (TRS) means funds provided by telephone
companies that are not association Common Line tariff participants, but
were net contributors to the association Common Line pool in 1988, to
telephone companies that are not association Common Line tariff
participants and were net receivers from the association Common Line
pool in 1988.
    (jj) Unit of capacity means the capability to transmit one
conversation.
    (kk) WATS access line means a line or trunk that is used exclusively
for WATS service.
    (ll) Equal access investment and equal access expenses mean equal
access investment and expenses as defined for purposes of the part 36
separations rules.
    (mm) Basic service elements are optional unbundled features that
enhanced service providers may require or find useful in the provision
of enhanced services, as defined in Amendments of part 69 of the
Commission's rules relating to the Creation of Access Charge Subelements
for Open Network Architecture, Report and Order, 6 FCC Rcd --------, CC
Docket No. 89-79, FCC 91-186 (1991).
    (nn) Dedicated signalling transport means transport of out-of-band
signalling information between an interexchange carrier or other
person's common channel signalling network and a telephone company's
signalling transport point on facilities dedicated to the use of a
single customer.
    (oo) Direct-trunked transport means transport on circuits dedicated
to the use of a single interexchange carrier or other person, without
switching at the tandem,
    (1) Between the serving wire center and the end office, or
    (2) Between two customer-designated telephone company offices.
    (pp) End office means the telephone company office from which the
end user receives exchange service.
    (qq) Entrance facilities means transport from the interexchange
carrier or other person's point of demarcation to the serving wire
center.
    (rr) Serving wire center means the telephone company central office
designated by the telephone company to serve the geographic area in
which the interexchange carrier or other person's point of demarcation
is located.
    (ss) Tandem-switched transport means transport of traffic that is
switched at a tandem switch--
    (1) Between the serving wire center and the end office, or
    (2) Between the telephone company office containing the tandem
switching equipment, as described in Sec. 36.124 of this chapter, and
the end office.

Tandem-switched transport between a serving wire center and an end
office consists of circuits dedicated to the use of a single
interexchange carrier or other person from the serving wire center to
the tandem (although this dedicated link will not exist if the serving
wire center and the tandem are located in the same place) and circuits
used in common by multiple interexchange carriers or other persons from
the tandem to the end office.
    (tt) [Reserved]
    (uu) Price cap regulation means the method of regulation of dominant
carriers provided in Sec. Sec. 61.41 through 61.49 of this chapter.
    (vv) Signalling for tandem switching means the carrier
identification code (CIC) and the OZZ code, or equivalent information
needed to perform tandem switching functions. The CIC identifies the
interexchange carrier and the OZZ identifies the interexchange carrier
trunk to which traffic should be routed.
    (ww) Interstate common line support (ICLS) means funds that are
provided pursuant to Sec. 54.901 of this chapter.

[52 FR 37309, Oct. 6, 1987]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec. 69.2,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids
section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.



Sec. 69.3  Filing of access service tariffs.

    (a) Except as provided in paragraphs (g) and (h) of this section, a
tariff for access service shall be filed with this Commission for a two-
year period. Such tariffs shall be filed with a scheduled effective date
of July 1. Such tariff filings shall be limited to rate level changes.

[[Page 503]]

    (b) The requirements imposed by paragraph (a) of this section shall
not preclude the filing of revisions to those annual tariffs that will
become effective on dates other than July 1.
    (c) Any access service tariff filing, the filing of any petitions
for rejection, investigation or suspension and the filing of any
responses to such petitions shall comply with the applicable rules of
this Commission relating to tariff filings.
    (d) The association shall file a tariff as agent for all telephone
companies that participate in an association tariff.
    (e) A telephone company or group of telephone companies may file a
tariff that is not an association tariff. Such a tariff may cross-
reference the association tariff for some access elements and include
separately computed charges of such company or companies for other
elements. Any such tariff must comply with the requirements hereinafter
provided:
    (1) Such a tariff must cross reference association charges for the
Carrier Common Line and End User Common Line element or elements if such
company or companies participate in the pooling of revenues and revenue
requirements for such elements.
    (2) Such a tariff that cross-references an association charge for
any end user access element must cross-reference association charges for
all end user access elements;
    (3) Such a tariff that cross-references an association charge for
any carrier's carrier access element other than the Carrier Common Line
element must cross-reference association charges for all carrier's
carrier access charges other than the Carrier Common Line element;
    (4) Except for charges subject to price cap regulation as that term
is defined in Sec. 61.3(v) of this chapter, any charge in such a tariff
that is not an association charge must be computed to reflect the
combined investment and expenses of all companies that participate in
such a charge;
    (5) A telephone company or companies that elect to file such a
tariff for 1984 access charges shall notify AT&T on or before the 40th
day after the release of the Commission order adopting this part;
    (6) Except as provided in paragraph (e)(12) of this section, a
telephone company or companies that elect to file such a tariff shall
notify the association not later than March 1 of the year the tariff
becomes effective, if such company or companies did not file such a
tariff in the preceding biennial period or cross-reference association
charges in such preceding period that will be cross-referenced in the
new tariff. A telephone company or companies that elect to file such a
tariff not in the biennial period shall file its tariff to become
effective July 1 for a period of one year. Thereafter, such telephone
company or companies must file its tariff pursuant to paragraphs (f)(1)
or (f)(2) of this section.
    (7) Such a tariff shall not contain charges for any access elements
that are disaggregated or deaveraged within a study area that is used
for purposes of jurisdictional separations, except as otherwise provided
in this chapter.
    (8) Such a tariff shall not contain charges included in the billing
and collection category.
    (9) Except as provided in paragraph (e)(12) of this section, a
telephone company or group of affiliated telephone companies that elects
to file its own Carrier Common Line tariff pursuant to paragraph (a) of
this section shall notify the association not later than March 1 of the
year the tariff becomes effective that it will no longer participate in
the association tariff. A telephone company or group of affiliated
telephone companies that elects to file its own Carrier Common Line
tariff for one of its study areas shall file its own Carrier Common Line
tariff(s) for all of its study areas.
    (10) Any data supporting a tariff that is not an association tariff
shall be consistent with any data that the filing carrier submitted to
the association.
    (11) Any changes in Association common line tariff participation and
Long Term and Transitional Support resulting from the merger or
acquisition of telephone properties are to be made effective on the next
annual access tariff

[[Page 504]]

filing effective date following consummation of the merger or
acquisition transaction, in accordance with the provisions of Sec.
69.3(e)(9).
    (12)(i) A local exchange carrier, or a group of affiliated carriers
in which at least one carrier is engaging in access stimulation, as that
term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb) of this chapter, shall file its own
access tariffs within forty-five (45) days of commencing access
stimulation, as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb) of this chapter,
or within forty-five (45) days of December 29, 2011 if the local
exchange carrier on that date is engaged in access stimulation, as that
term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb) of this chapter.
    (ii) Notwithstanding paragraphs (e)(6) and (e)(9) of this section, a
local exchange carrier, or a group of affiliated carriers in which at
least one carrier is engaging in access stimulation, as that term is
defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb) of this chapter, must withdraw from all
interstate access tariffs issued by the association within forty-five
(45) days of engaging in access stimulation, as that term is defined in
Sec. 61.3(bbb) of this chapter, or within forty-five (45) days of
December 29, 2011 if the local exchange carrier on that date is engaged
in access stimulation, as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb) of
this chapter.
    (iii) Any such carrier(s) shall notify the association when it
begins access stimulation, or on December 29, 2011 if it is engaged in
access stimulation, as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(bbb) of this
chapter, on that date, of its intent to leave the association tariffs
within forty-five (45) days.
    (f)(1) A tariff for access service provided by a telephone company
that is required to file an access tariff pursuant to Sec. 61.38 of
this Chapter shall be filed for a biennial period and with a scheduled
effective date of July 1 of any even numbered year.
    (2) A tariff for access service provided by a telephone company that
may file an access tariff pursuant to Sec. 61.39 of this Chapter shall
be filed for a biennial period and with a scheduled effective date of
July 1 of any odd numbered year. Any such telephone company that does
not elect to file an access tariff pursuant to the Sec. 61.39
procedures, and does not participate in the Association tariff, and does
not elect to become subject to price cap regulation, must file an access
tariff pursuant to Sec. 61.38 for a biennial period and with a
scheduled effective date of July 1 of any even numbered year.
    (3) For purposes of computing charges for access elements other than
Common Line elements to be effective on July 1 of any even-numbered
year, the association may compute rate changes based upon statistical
methods which represent a reasonable equivalent to the cost support
information otherwise required under part 61 of this chapter.
    (g) The following rules apply to telephone company participation in
the Association common line pool for telephone companies involved in a
merger or acquisition.
    (1) Notwithstanding the requirements of Sec. 69.3(e)(9), any
Association common line tariff participant that is party to a merger or
acquisition may continue to participate in the Association common line
tariff.
    (2) Notwithstanding the requirements of Sec. 69.3(e)(9), any
Association common line tariff participant that is party to a merger or
acquisition may include other telephone properties involved in the
transaction in the Association common line tariff, provided that the net
addition of common lines to the Association common line tariff resulting
from the transaction in not greater than 50,000, and provided further
that, if any common lines involved in a merger or acquisition are
returned to the Association common line tariff, all of the common lines
involved in the merger or acquisition must be returned to the
Association common line tariff.
    (3) Telephone companies involved in mergers or acquisitions that
wish to have more than 50,000 common lines reenter the Association
common line pool must request a waiver of Sec. 69.3(e)(9). If the
telephone company has met all other legal obligations, the waiver
request will be deemed granted on the sixty-first (61st) day from the
date of public notice inviting comment on the requested waiver unless:
    (i) The merger or acquisition involves one or more partial study
areas;

[[Page 505]]

    (ii) The waiver includes a request for confidentiality of some or
all of the materials supporting the request;
    (iii) The waiver includes a request to return only a portion of the
telephone properties involved in the transaction to the Association
common line tariff;
    (iv) The Commission rejects the waiver request prior to the
expiration of the sixty-day period;
    (v) The Commission requests additional time or information to
process the waiver application prior to the expiration of the sixty-day
period; or
    (vi) A party, in a timely manner, opposes a waiver request or seeks
conditional approval of the waiver in response to our public notice of
the waiver request.
    (h) Local exchange carriers subject to price cap regulation as that
term is defined in Sec. 61.3(ee) of this chapter, shall file with this
Commission a price cap tariff for access service for an annual period.
Such tariffs shall be filed to meet the notice requirements of Sec.
61.58 of this chapter, with a scheduled effective date of July 1. Such
tariff filings shall be limited to changes in the Price Cap Indexes,
rate level changes (with corresponding adjustments to the affected
Actual Price Indexes and Service Band Indexes), and the incorporation of
new services into the affected indexes as required by Sec. 61.49 of
this chapter.
    (i) The following rules apply to the withdrawal from Association
tariffs under the provision of paragraph (e)(6) or (e)(9) of this
section or both by telephone companies electing to file price cap
tariffs pursuant to paragraph (h) of this section.
    (1) In addition to the withdrawal provisions of paragraphs (e)(6)
and (e)(9) of this section, a telephone company or group of affiliated
companies that participates in one or more association tariffs during
the current tariff year and that elects to file price cap tariffs or
optional incentive regulation tariffs effective July 1 of the following
tariff year shall notify the association by March 1 of the following
tariff year that it is withdrawing from association tariffs, subject to
the terms of this section, to participate in price cap regulation or
optional incentive regulation.
    (2) The Association shall maintain records of such withdrawals
sufficient to discharge its obligations under these Rules and to detect
efforts by such companies or their affiliates to rejoin any Association
tariffs in violation of the provisions of paragraph (i)(4) of this
section.
    (3) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (e) (3), (6), and
(9) of this section, in the event a telephone company withdraws from all
Association tariffs for the purpose of filing price cap tariffs or
optional incentive plan tariffs, such company shall exclude from such
withdrawal all ``average schedule'' affiliates and all affiliates so
excluded shall be specified in the withdrawal. However, such company may
include one or more ``average schedule'' affiliates in price cap
regulation or optional incentive plan regulation provided that each
price cap or optional incentive plan affiliate relinquishes ``average
schedule'' status and withdraws from all Association tariffs and any
tariff filed pursuant to Sec. 61.39(b)(2) of this chapter. See
generally Sec. Sec. 69.605(c), 61.39(b) of this chapter; MTS and WATS
Market Structure: Average Schedule Companies, Report and Order, 103 FCC
2d 1026-1027 (1986).
    (4) If a telephone company elects to withdraw from Association
tariffs and thereafter becomes subject to price cap regulation as that
term is defined in Sec. 61.3(v) of this chapter, neither such telephone
company nor any of its withdrawing affiliates shall thereafter be
permitted to participate in any Association tariffs.
    (j) [Reserved]

(47 U.S.C. 154 (i) and (j), 201, 202, 203, 205, 218 and 403 and 5 U.S.C.
553)

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec. 69.3,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids
section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.



Sec. 69.4  Charges to be filed.

    (a) The end user charges for access service filed with this
Commission shall include charges for the End User Common Line element,
and for line port costs in excess of basic, analog service.

[[Page 506]]

    (b) Except as provided in paragraphs (c), (e), and (h) of this
section, and in Sec. 69.118, the carrier's carrier charges for access
service filed with this Commission shall include charges for each of the
following elements:
    (1) [Reserved]
    (2) Carrier common line, provided that after June 30, 2003, non-
price cap local exchange carriers may not assess a carrier common line
charge;
    (3) Local switching;
    (4) Information;
    (5) Tandem-switched transport;
    (6) Direct-trunked transport;
    (7) Special access; and
    (8) Line information database;
    (9) Entrance facilities.
    (c) [Reserved]
    (d) Recovery of Contributions to the Universal Service Support
Mechanisms by Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers.
    (1) [Reserved]
    (2)(i) Local exchange carriers may recover their contributions to
the universal service support mechanisms only through explicit,
interstate, end-user charges assessed pursuant to either Sec. 69.131 or
Sec. 69.158 that are equitable and nondiscriminatory.
    (ii) Local exchange carriers may not recover any of their
contributions to the universal service support mechanisms through access
charges imposed on interexchange carriers.
    (e) The carrier's carrier charges for access service filed with this
Commission by the telephone companies specified in Sec. 64.1401(a) of
this chapter shall include an element for connection charges for
expanded interconnection. The carrier's carrier charges for access
service filed with this Commission by the telephone companies not
specified in Sec. 64.1401(a) of this chapter may include an element for
connection charges for expanded interconnection.
    (f) [Reserved]
    (g) Local exchange carriers may establish appropriate rate elements
for a new service, within the meaning of Sec. 61.3(x) of this chapter,
in any tariff filing.
    (h) In addition to the charges specified in paragraph (b) of this
section, the carrier's carrier charges for access service filed with
this Commission by price cap local exchange carriers shall include
charges for each of the following elements:
    (1) Presubscribed interexchange carrier;
    (2) Per-minute residual interconnection;
    (3) Dedicated local switching trunk port;
    (4) Shared local switching trunk pork;
    (5) Dedicated tandem switching trunk port;
    (6) [Reserved]
    (7) Multiplexers associated with tandem switching.
    (i) Paragraphs (b) and (h) of this section are not applicable to a
price cap local exchange carrier to the extent that it has been granted
the pricing flexibility in Sec. 69.727(b)(1).
    (j) In addition to the charges specified in paragraph (b) of this
section, the carrier's carrier charges for access service filed with
this Commission by non-price cap local exchange carriers may include
charges for each of the following elements:
    (1) Dedicated local switching trunk port;
    (2) Shared local switching trunk port;
    (3) Dedicated tandem switching trunk port;
    (4) Multiplexers associated with tandem switching;
    (5) DS1/voice grade multiplexers associated with analog switches;
and
    (6) Per-message call setup.

[48 FR 43017, Sept. 21, 1983]

    Editorial Note: For Federal Register citations affecting Sec. 69.4,
see the List of CFR Sections Affected, which appears in the Finding Aids
section of the printed volume and at www.fdsys.gov.



Sec. 69.5  Persons to be assessed.

    (a) End user charges shall be computed and assessed upon public end
users, and upon providers of public telephones, as defined in this
subpart, and as provided in subpart B of this part.
    (b) Carrier's carrier charges shall be computed and assessed upon
all interexchange carriers that use local exchange switching facilities
for the provision of interstate or foreign telecommunications services.

[[Page 507]]

    (c) Special access surcharges shall be assessed upon users of
exchange facilities that interconnect these facilities with means of
interstate or foreign telecommunications to the extent that carrier's
carrier charges are not assessed upon such interconnected usage. As an
interim measure pending the development of techniques accurately to
measure such interconnected use and to assess such charges on a
reasonable and non-discriminatory basis, telephone companies shall
assess special access surcharges upon the closed ends of private line
services and WATS services pursuant to the provisions of Sec. 69.115 of
this part.
    (d) [Reserved]

(47 U.S.C. 154 (i) and (j), 201, 202, 203, 205, 218 and 403 and 5 U.S.C.
553)

[48 FR 43017, Sept. 21, 1983, as amended at 51 FR 10840, Mar. 31, 1986;
51 FR 33752, Sept. 23, 1986; 52 FR 21540, June 8, 1987; 54 FR 50624,
Dec. 8, 1989; 61 FR 65364, Dec. 12, 1996; 64 FR 60359, Nov. 5, 1999]



                    Subpart B_Computation of Charges



Sec. 69.101  General.

    Except as provided in Sec. 69.1 and subpart C of this part, charges
for each access element shall be computed and assessed as provided in
this subpart.

[55 FR 42386, Oct. 19, 1990]



Sec. 69.104  End user common line for non-price cap incumbent local
exchange carriers.

    (a) This section is applicable only to incumbent local exchange
carriers that are not subject to price cap regulation as that term is
defined in Sec. 61.3(ee) of this chapter. A charge that is expressed in
dollars and cents per line per month shall be assessed upon end users
that subscribe to local exchange telephone service or Centrex service to
the extent they do not pay carrier common line charges. A charge that is
expressed in dollars and cents per line per month shall be assessed upon
providers of public telephones. Such charges shall be assessed for each
line between the premises of an end user, or public telephone location,
and a Class 5 office that is or may be used for local exchange service
transmissions.
    (b) Charges to multi-line subscribers shall be computed by
multiplying a single line rate by the number of lines used by such
subscriber.
    (c) Until December 31, 2001, except as provided in paragraphs (d)
through (h) of this section, the single-line rate or charge shall be
computed by dividing one-twelfth of the projected annual revenue
requirement for the End User Common Line element by the projected
average number of local exchange service subscriber lines in use during
such annual period.
    (d)(1) Until December 31, 2001, if the monthly charge computed in
accordance with paragraph (c) of this section exceeds $6, the charge for
each local exchange service subscriber line, except a residential line,
a single-line business line, or a line used for Centrex-CO service that
was in place or on order as of July 27, 1983, shall be $6.
    (2) Until December 31, 2001, the charge for each subscriber line
associated with a public telephone shall be equal to the monthly charge
computed in accordance with paragraph (d)(1) of this section.
    (e) Until December 31, 2001, the monthly charge for each residential
and single-line business local exchange service subscriber shall be the
charge computed in accordance with paragraph (c) of this section, or
$3.50, whichever is lower.
    (f) Except as provided in Sec. 54.403 of this chapter, the charge
for each residential local exchange service subscriber line shall be the
same as the charge for each single-line business local exchange service
subscriber line.
    (g) A line shall be deemed to be a residential line if the
subscriber pays a rate for such line that is described as a residential
rate in the local exchange service tariff.
    (h) A line shall be deemed to be a single line business line if the
subscriber pays a rate that is not described as a residential rate in
the local exchange service tariff and does not obtain more than one such
line from a particular telephone company.
    (i) The End User Common Line charge for each multi-party subscriber
shall be assessed as if such subscriber had subscribed to single-party
service.
    (j)-(l) [Reserved]

[[Page 508]]

    (m) No charge shall be assessed for any WATS access line.
    (n)(1) Beginning January 1, 2002, except as provided in paragraph
(r) of this section, the maximum monthly charge for each residential or
single-line business local exchange service subscriber line shall be the
lesser of:
    (i) One-twelfth of the projected annual revenue requirement for the
End User Common Line element divided by the projected average number of
local exchange service subscriber lines in use during such annual
period; or
    (ii) The following:
    (A) Beginning January 1, 2002, $5.00.
    (B) Beginning July 1, 2002, $6.00.
    (C) Beginning July 1, 2003, $6.50.
    (2) In the event that GDP-PI exceeds 6.5% or is less than 0%, the
maximum monthly charge in paragraph (n)(1)(ii) of this section will be
adjusted in the same manner as the adjustment in Sec. 69.152(d)(2).
    (o)(1) Beginning on January 1, 2002, except as provided in paragraph
(r) of this section, the maximum monthly End User Common Line Charge for
multi-line business lines will be the lesser of:
    (i) $9.20; or
    (ii) One-twelfth of the projected annual revenue requirement for the
End User Common Line element divided by the projected average number of
local exchange service subscriber lines in use during such annual
period;
    (2) In the event that GDP-PI is greater than 6.5% or is less than
0%, the maximum monthly charge in paragraph (o)(1)(i) of this section
will be adjusted in the same manner as the adjustment in Sec.
69.152(k)(2).
    (p) Beginning January 1, 2002, non-price cap local exchange carriers
shall assess:
    (1) No more than one End User Common Line charge as calculated under
the applicable method under paragraph (n) of this section for Basic Rate
Interface integrated services digital network (ISDN) service.
    (2) No more than five End User Common Line charges as calculated
under paragraph (o) of this section for Primary Rate Interface ISDN
service.
    (q) In the event a non-price cap local exchange carrier charges less
than the maximum End User Common Line charge for any subscriber lines,
the carrier may not recover the difference between the amount collected
and the maximum from carrier common line charges, Interstate Common Line
Support, or Long Term Support.
    (r) End User Common Line charge deaveraging. Beginning on January 1,
2002, non-price cap local exchange carriers may geographically deaverage
End User Common Line charges subject to the following conditions.
    (1) In order for a non-price cap local exchange carrier to be
allowed to deaverage End User Common Line charges within a study area,
the non-price cap local exchange carrier must have:
    (i) State commission-approved geographically deaveraged rates for
UNE loops within that study area; or
    (ii) A universal service support disaggregation plan established
pursuant to Sec. 54.315 of this chapter.
    (2) All geographic deaveraging of End User Common Line charges by
customer class within a study area must be according to the state
commission-approved UNE loop zone, or the universal service support
disaggregation plan established pursuant to Sec. 54.315 of this
chapter.
    (3) Within a given zone, Multi-line Business End User Common Line
rates cannot fall below Residential and Single-Line Business rates.
    (4) For any given class of customer in any given zone, the End User
Common Line Charge in that zone must be greater than or equal to the End
User Common Line charge in the zone with the next lower cost per line.
    (5) A non-price cap local exchange carrier shall not receive more
through deaveraged End User Common Line charges than it would have
received if it had not deaveraged its End User Common Line charges.
    (6) Maximum charge. The maximum zone deaveraged End User Common Line
Charge that may be charged in any zone is the applicable cap specified
in paragraphs (n) or (o) of this section.
    (7) Voluntary Reductions. A ``Voluntary Reduction'' is one in which
the non-price cap local exchange carrier charges End User Common Line
rates below the maximum charges specified

[[Page 509]]

in paragraphs (n)(1) or (o)(1) of this section other than through offset
of net increases in End User Common Line charge revenues or through
increases in other zone deaveraged End User Common Line charges.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 48 FR 43018, Sept. 21, 1983;
52 FR 21540, June 8, 1987; 53 FR 28395, July 28, 1988; 61 FR 65364, Dec.
12, 1996; 62 FR 31933, June 11, 1997; 62 FR 32962, June 17, 1997; 66 FR
59730, Nov. 30, 2001]



Sec. 69.105  Carrier common line for non-price cap local exchange
carriers.

    (a) This section is applicable only to local exchange carriers that
are not subject to price cap regulation as that term is defined in Sec.
61.3(ee) of this chapter. Until June 30, 2003, a charge that is
expressed in dollars and cents per line per access minute of use shall
be assessed upon all interexchange carriers that use local exchange
common line facilities for the provision of interstate or foreign
telecommunications services, except that the charge shall not be
assessed upon interexchange carriers to the extent they resell MTS or
MTS-type services of other common carriers (OCCs).
    (b)(1) For purposes of this section and Sec. 69.113:
    (i) A carrier or other person shall be deemed to receive premium
access if access is provided through a local exchange switch that has
the capability to provide access for an MTS-WATS equivalent service that
is substantially equivalent to the access provided for MTS or WATS,
except that access provided for an MTS-WATS equivalent service that does
not use such capability shall not be deemed to be premium access until
six months after the carrier that provides such MTS-WATS equivalent
service receives actual notice that such equivalent access is or will be
available at such switch;
    (ii) The term open end of a call describes the origination or
termination of a call that utilizes exchange carrier common line plant
(a call can have no, one, or two open ends); and
    (iii) All open end minutes on calls with one open end (e.g., an 800
or FX call) shall be treated as terminating minutes.
    (2) For association Carrier Common Line tariff participants:
    (i) The premium originating Carrier Common Line charge shall be one
cent per minute, except as described in Sec. 69.105(b)(3), and
    (ii) The premium terminating Carrier Common Line charge shall be
computed as follows:
    (A) For each telephone company subject to price cap regulation,
multiply the company's proposed premium originating rate by a number
equal to the sum of the premium originating base period minutes and a
number equal to 0.45 multiplied by the non-premium originating base
period minutes of that telephone company;
    (B) For each telephone company subject to price cap regulation,
multiply the company's proposed premium terminating rate by a number
equal to the sum of the premium terminating base period minutes and a
number equal to 0.45 multiplied by the non-premium terminating base
period minutes of that telephone company;
    (C) Sum the numbers computed in paragraphs (b)(2)(ii) (A) and (B) of
this section for all companies subject to price cap regulation;
    (D) From the number computed in paragraph (b)(2)(ii)(C) of this
section, subtract a number equal to one cent times the sum of the
premium originating base period minutes and a number equal to 0.45
multiplied by the non-premium originating base period minutes of all
telephone companies subject to price cap regulation, and;
    (E) Divide the number computed in paragraph (b)(2)(ii)(D) of this
section by the sum of the premium terminating base period minutes and a
number equal to 0.45 multiplied by the non-premium terminating base
period minutes of all telephone companies subject to price cap
regulation.
    (3) If the calculations described in Sec. 69.105(b)(2) result in a
per minute charge on premium terminating minutes that is less than once
cent, both the originating and terminating premium charges for the
association CCL tariff participants shall be computed by dividing the
number computed in paragraph (b)(2)(ii)(C) of this section by a number
equal to the sum of the premium originating and terminating base period
minutes and a number equal to 0.45 multiplied by the sum of the non-

[[Page 510]]

premium originating and terminating base period minutes of all telephone
companies subject to price cap regulation.
    (4) The Carrier Common Line charges of telephone companies that are
not association Carrier Common Line tariff participants shall be
computed at the level of Carrier Common Line access element aggregation
selected by such telephone companies pursuant to Sec. 69.3(e)(7). For
each such Carrier Common Line access element tariff--
    (i) The premium originating Carrier Common Line charge shall be one
cent per minute, and
    (ii) The premium terminating Carrier Common Line charge shall be
computed by subtracting the projected revenues generated by the
originating Carrier Common Line charges (both premium and non-premium)
from the Carrier Common Line revenue requirement for the companies
participating in that tariff, and dividing the remainder by the sum of
the projected premium terminating minutes and a number equal to .45
multiplied by the projected non-premium terminating minutes for such
companies.
    (5) If the calculations described in Sec. 69.105(b)(4) result in a
per minute charge on premium terminating minutes that is less than one
cent, both the originating and terminating premium charges for the
companies participating in said Carrier Common Line tariff shall be
computed by dividing the projected Carrier Common Line revenue
requirement for such companies by the sum of the projected premium
minutes and a number equal to .45 multiplied by the projected non-
premium minutes for such companies.
    (6) Telephone companies that are not association Carrier Common Line
tariff participants shall submit to the Commission and to the
association whatever data the Commission shall determine are necessary
to calculate the charges described in this section.
    (c) Any interexchange carrier shall receive a credit for Carrier
Common Line charges to the extent that it resells services for which
these charges have already been assessed (e.g., MTS or MTS-type service
of other common carriers).
    (d) From July 1, 2002, to June 30, 2003, the carrier common line
charge calculations pursuant to this section shall be limited to an
amount equal to the number of projected residential and single-line
business lines multiplied by the difference between the residential and
single-line business End User Common Line rate cap and the lesser of
$6.50 or the non-price cap local exchange carrier's average cost per
line.

[51 FR 10841, Mar. 31, 1986, as amended at 52 FR 21541, June 8, 1987; 54
FR 6293, Feb. 9, 1989; 55 FR 42386, Oct. 19, 1990; 56 FR 21618, May 10,
1991; 62 FR 31933, June 11, 1997; 66 FR 59731, Nov. 30, 2001]



Sec. 69.106  Local switching.

    (a) Except as provided in Sec. 69.118, charges that are expressed
in dollars and cents per access minute of use shall be assessed by local
exchange carriers that are not subject to price cap regulation upon all
interexchange carriers that use local exchange switching facilities for
the provision of interstate or foreign services.
    (b) The per minute charge described in paragraph (a) of this section
shall be computed by dividing the projected annual revenue requirement
for the Local Switching element, excluding any local switching support
received by the carrier pursuant to Sec. 54.301 of this chapter, by the
projected annual access minutes of use for all interstate or foreign
services that use local exchange switching facilities.
    (c) If end users of an interstate or foreign service that uses local
switching facilities pay message unit charges for such calls in a
particular exchange, a credit shall be deducted from the Local Switching
element charges to such carrier for access service in such exchange. The
per minute credit for each such exchange shall be multiplied by the
monthly access minutes for such service to compute the monthly credit to
such a carrier.
    (d) If all local exchange subscribers in such exchange pay message
unit charges, the per minute credit described in paragraph (c) of this
section shall be computed by dividing total message unit charges to all
subscribers in a particular exchange in a representative month by the
total minutes of use that were measured for purposes of

[[Page 511]]

computing message unit charges in such month.
    (e) If some local exchange subscribers pay message unit charges and
some do not, a per minute credit described in paragraph (c) of this
section shall be computed by multiplying a credit computed pursuant to
paragraph (d) of this section by a factor that is equal to total minutes
measured in such month for purposes of computing message unit charges
divided by the total local exchange minutes in such month.
    (f) Except as provided in Sec. 69.118, price cap local exchange
carriers shall establish rate elements for local switching as follows:
    (1) Price cap local exchange carriers shall separate from the
projected annual revenues for the Local Switching element those costs
projected to be incurred for ports (including cards and DS1/voice-grade
multiplexers required to access end offices equipped with analog
switches) on the trunk side of the local switch. Price cap local
exchange carriers shall further identify costs incurred for dedicated
trunk ports separately from costs incurred for shared trunk ports.
    (i) Price cap local exchange carriers shall recover dedicated trunk
port costs identified pursuant to paragraph (f)(1) of this section
through flat-rated charges expressed in dollars and cents per trunk port
and assessed upon the purchaser of the dedicated trunk terminating at
the port.
    (ii) Price cap local exchange carriers shall recover shared trunk
port costs identified pursuant to paragraph (f)(1) of this section
through charges assessed upon purchasers of shared transport. This
charge shall be expressed in dollars and cents per access minute of use.
The charge shall be computed by dividing the projected costs of the
shared ports by the historical annual access minutes of use calculated
for purposes of recovery of common transport costs in Sec. 69.111(c).
    (2) Price cap local exchange carriers shall recover the projected
annual revenues for the Local Switching element that are not recovered
in paragraph (f)(1) of this section through charges that are expressed
in dollars and cents per access minute of use and assessed upon all
interexchange carriers that use local exchange switching facilities for
the provision of interstate or foreign services. The maximum charge
shall be computed by dividing the projected remainder of the annual
revenues for the Local Switching element by the historical annual access
minutes of use for all interstate or foreign services that use local
exchange switching facilities.
    (g) A local exchange carrier may recover signaling costs associated
with call setup through a call setup charge imposed upon all interstate
interexchange carriers that use that local exchange carrier's facilities
to originate or terminate interstate interexchange or foreign services.
This charge must be expressed as dollars and cents per call attempt and
may be assessed on originating calls handed off to the interexchange
carrier's point of presence and on terminating calls received from an
interexchange carrier's point of presence, whether or not that call is
completed at the called location. Local exchange carriers may not
recover through this charge any costs recovered through other rate
elements.
    (h) Except as provided in Sec. 69.118, non-price cap local exchange
carriers may establish rate elements for local switching as follows:
    (1) Non-price cap local exchange carriers may separate from the
projected annual revenue requirement for the Local Switching element
those costs projected to be incurred for ports (including cards and DS1/
voice-grade multiplexers required to access end offices equipped with
analog switches) on the trunk side of the local switch. Non-price cap
local exchange carriers electing to assess these charges shall further
identify costs incurred for dedicated trunk ports separately from costs
incurred for shared trunk ports.
    (i) Non-price cap local exchange carriers electing to assess trunk
port charges shall recover dedicated trunk port costs identified
pursuant to paragraph (h)(1) of this section through flat-rated charges
expressed in dollars and cents per trunk port and assessed upon the
purchaser of the dedicated trunk terminating at the port.
    (ii) Non-price cap local exchange carriers electing to assess trunk
port charges shall recover shared trunk port

[[Page 512]]

costs identified pursuant to paragraph (h)(1) of this section through
charges assessed upon purchasers of shared transport. This charge shall
be expressed in dollars and cents per access minute of use. The charge
shall be computed by dividing the projected costs of the shared ports by
the historical annual access minutes of use calculated for purposes of
recovery of common transport costs in Sec. 69.111(c).
    (2) Non-price cap local exchange carriers shall recover the
projected annual revenue requirement for the Local Switching element
that are not recovered in paragraph (h)(1) of this section through
charges that are expressed in dollars and cents per access minute of use
and assessed upon all interexchange carriers that use local exchange
switching facilities for the provision of interstate or foreign
services. The maximum charge shall be computed by dividing the projected
remainder of the annual revenue requirement for the Local Switching
element by the historical annual access minutes of use for all
interstate or foreign services that use local exchange switching
facilities.

[52 FR 37310, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 56 FR 33881, July 24, 1991; 62
FR 31933, June 11, 1997; 62 FR 40463, July 29, 1997; 66 FR 59731, Nov.
30, 2001]



Sec. 69.108  Transport rate benchmark.

    (a) For transport charges computed in accordance with this subpart,
the DS3-to-DS1 benchmark ratio shall be calculated as follows: the
telephone company shall calculate the ratio of:
    (1) The total charge for a 1.609 km (1 mi) channel termination,
16.09 km (10 mi) of interoffice transmission, and one DS3 multiplexer
using the telephone company's DS3 special access rates to;
    (2) The total charge for a 1.609 km (1 mi) channel termination plus
16.09 km (10 mi) of interoffice transmission using the telephone
company's DS1 special access rates.
    (b) Initial transport rates will generally be presumed reasonable if
they are based on special access rates with a DS3-to-DS1 benchmark ratio
of 9.6 to 1 or higher.
    (c) If a telephone company's initial transport rates are based on
special access rates with a DS3-to-DS1 benchmark ratio of less than 9.6
to 1, those initial transport rates will generally be suspended and
investigated absent a substantial cause showing by the telephone
company. Alternatively, the telephone company may adjust its initial
transport rates so that the DS3-to-DS1 ratio calculated as described in
paragraph (a) of this section of those rates is 9.6 or higher. In that
case, initial transport rates that depart from existing special access
rates effective on September 1, 1992 so as to be consistent with the
benchmark will be presumed reasonable only so long as the ratio of
revenue recovered through the interconnection charge to the revenue
recovered through facilities-based charges is the same as it would be if
the telephone company's existing special access rates effective on
September 1, 1992 were used.

[58 FR 41189, Aug. 3, 1993, as amended at 58 FR 44952, Aug. 25, 1993; 58
FR 45267, Aug. 27, 1993]



Sec. 69.109  Information.

    (a) A charge shall be assessed upon all interexchange carriers that
are connected to assistance boards through interexchange directory
assistance trunks.
    (b) Except as provided in Sec. 69.118, if such connections are
maintained exclusively by carriers that offer MTS, the projected annual
revenue requirement for the Information element shall be divided by 12
to compute the monthly assessment to such carriers.
    (c) If such connections are provided to additional carriers, charges
shall be established that reflect the relative use of such directory
assistance service by such interexchange carriers.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 56 FR 33881, July 24, 1991]



Sec. 69.110  Entrance facilities.

    (a) A flat-rated entrance facilities charge expressed in dollars and
cents per unit of capacity shall be assessed upon all interexchange
carriers and other persons that use telephone company facilities between
the interexchange carrier or other person's point of demarcation and the
serving wire center.

[[Page 513]]

    (b)(1) For telephone companies subject to price cap regulation,
initial entrance facilities charges based on special access channel
termination rates for equivalent voice grade, DS1, and DS3 services as
of September 1, 1992, adjusted for changes in the price cap index
calculated for the July 1, 1993 annual filing for telephone companies
subject to price cap regulation, generally shall be presumed reasonable
if the benchmark defined in Sec. 69.108 is satisfied. Entrance
facilities charges may be distance-sensitive. Distance shall be measured
as airline kilometers between the point of demarcation and the serving
wire center.
    (2) For telephone companies not subject to price cap regulation,
entrance facilities charges based on special access channel termination
rates for equivalent voice grade, DS1, and DS3 services generally shall
be presumed reasonable if the benchmark defined in Sec. 69.108 is
satisfied. Entrance facilities charges may be distance-sensitive.
Distance shall be measured as airline kilometers between the point of
demarcation and the serving wire center.
    (c) If the telephone company employs distance-sensitive rates:
    (1) A distance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of the
transmission facilities, including any intermediate transmission circuit
equipment between the end points of the entrance facilities; and
    (2) A nondistance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of
the circuit equipment at the ends of the transmission links.
    (d) Telephone companies shall apply only their shortest term special
access rates in setting entrance facilities charges.
    (e) Except as provided in paragraphs (f), (g), and (h) of this
section, and subpart H of this part, telephone companies shall not offer
entrance facilities based on term discounts or volume discounts for
multiple DS3s or any other service with higher volume than DS3.
    (f) Except in the situations set forth in paragraphs (g) and (h) of
this section, telephone companies may offer term and volume discounts in
entrance facilities charges within each study area used for the purpose
of jurisdictional separations, in which interconnectors have taken
either:
    (1) At least 100 DS1-equivalent cross-connects for the transmission
of switched traffic (as described in Sec. 69.121(a)(1) of this chapter)
in offices in the study area that the telephone company has assigned to
the lowest priced density pricing zone (zone 1) under an approved
density pricing zone plan as described in Sec. Sec. 61.38(b)(4) and
61.49(k) of this chapter; or
    (2) An average of at least 25 DS1-equivalent cross-connects for the
transmission of switched traffic per office assigned to the lowest
priced density pricing zone (zone 1).
    (g) In study areas in which the telephone company has implemented
density zone pricing, but no offices have been assigned to the lowest
price density pricing zone (zone 1), telephone companies may offer term
and volume discounts in entrance facilities charges within the study
area when interconnectors have taken at least 5 DS1-equivalent cross-
connects for the transmission of switched traffic (as described in Sec.
69.121(a)(1) of this chapter) in offices in the study area.
    (h) In study areas in which the telephone company has not
implemented density zone pricing, telephone companies may offer term and
volume discounts in entrance facilities charges when interconnectors
have taken at least 100 DS1-equivalent cross-connects for the
transmission of switched traffic (as described in Sec. 69.121(a)(1) of
this chapter) in offices in the study area.

[57 FR 54720, Nov. 20, 1992, as amended at 58 FR 41190 and 41191, Aug.
3, 1993; 58 FR 44950, Aug. 25, 1993; 58 FR 48763, Sept. 17, 1993; 59 FR
10304, Mar. 4, 1994; 60 FR 50121, Sept. 28, 1995; 64 FR 51267, Sept. 22,
1999]



Sec. 69.111  Tandem-switched transport and tandem charge.

    (a)(1) Through June 30, 1998, except as provided in paragraph (l) of
this section, tandem-switched transport shall consist of two rate
elements, a transmission charge and a tandem switching charge.
    (2) Beginning July 1, 1998, except as provided in paragraph (l) of
this section, tandem-switched transport shall consist of three rate
elements as follows:

[[Page 514]]

    (i) A per-minute charge for transport of traffic over common
transport facilities between the incumbent local exchange carrier's end
office and the tandem switching office. This charge shall be expressed
in dollars and cents per access minute of use and shall be assessed upon
all purchasers of common transport facilities between the local exchange
carrier's end office and the tandem switching office.
    (ii) A per-minute tandem switching charge. This tandem switching
charge shall be set in accordance with paragraph (g) of this section,
excluding multiplexer and dedicated port costs recovered in accordance
with paragraph (l) of this section, and shall be assessed upon all
interexchange carriers and other persons that use incumbent local
exchange carrier tandem switching facilities.
    (iii) A flat-rated charge for transport of traffic over dedicated
transport facilities between the serving wire center and the tandem
switching office. This charge shall be assessed as a charge for
dedicated transport facilities provisioned between the serving wire
center and the tandem switching office in accordance with Sec. 69.112.
    (b) [Reserved]
    (c)(1) Until June 30, 1998:
    (i) Except in study areas where the incumbent local exchange carrier
has implemented density pricing zones as described in section 69.123,
per-minute common transport charges described in paragraph (a)(1) of
this section shall be presumed reasonable if the incumbent local
exchange carrier bases the charges on a weighted per-minute equivalent
of direct-trunked transport DS1 and DS3 rates that reflects the relative
number of DS1 and DS3 circuits used in the tandem to end office links
(or a surrogate based on the proportion of copper and fiber facilities
in the interoffice network), calculated using the total actual voice-
grade minutes of use, geographically averaged on a study-area-wide
basis, that the incumbent local exchange carrier experiences based on
the prior year's annual use. Tandem-switched transport transmission
charges that are not presumed reasonable shall be suspended and
investigated absent a substantial cause showing by the incumbent local
exchange carrier.
    (ii) In study areas where the incumbent local exchange carrier has
implemented density pricing zones as described in section 69.123, per-
minute common transport charges described in paragraph (a)(1) of this
section shall be presumed reasonable if the incumbent local exchange
carrier bases the charges on a weighted per-minute equivalent of direct-
trunked transport DS1 and DS3 rates that reflects the relative number of
DS1 and DS3 circuits used in the tandem to end office links (or a
surrogate based on the proportion of copper and fiber facilities in the
interoffice network), calculated using the total actual voice-grade
minutes of use, averaged on a zone-wide basis, that the incumbent local
exchange carrier experiences based on the prior year's annual use.
Tandem-switched transport transmission charges that are not presumed
reasonable shall be suspended and investigated absent a substantial
cause showing by the incumbent local exchange carrier.
    (2) Beginning July 1, 1998:
    (i) Except in study areas where the incumbent local exchange carrier
has implemented density pricing zones as described in section 69.123,
per-minute common transport charges described in paragraph (a)(2)(i) of
this section shall be presumed reasonable if the incumbent local
exchange carrier bases the charges on a weighted per-minute equivalent
of direct-trunked transport DS1 and DS3 rates that reflects the relative
number of DS1 and DS3 circuits used in the tandem to end office links
(or a surrogate based on the proportion of copper and fiber facilities
in the interoffice network), calculated using the total actual voice-
grade minutes of use, geographically averaged on a study-area-wide
basis, that the incumbent local exchange carrier experiences based on
the prior year's annual use. Tandem-switched transport transmission
charges that are not presumed reasonable shall be suspended and
investigated absent a substantial cause showing by the incumbent local
exchange carrier.

[[Page 515]]

    (ii) In study areas where the incumbent local exchange carrier has
implemented density pricing zones as described in section 69.123, per-
minute common transport charges described in paragraph (a)(2)(i) of this
section shall be presumed reasonable if the incumbent local exchange
carrier bases the charges on a weighted per-minute equivalent of direct-
trunked transport DS1 and DS3 rates that reflects the relative number of
DS1 and DS3 circuits used in the tandem to end office links (or a
surrogate based on the proportion of copper and fiber facilities in the
interoffice network), calculated using the total actual voice-grade
minutes of use, averaged on a zone-wide basis, that the incumbent local
exchange carrier experiences based on the prior year's annual use.
Tandem-switched transport transmission charges that are not presumed
reasonable shall be suspended and investigated absent a substantial
cause showing by the incumbent local exchange carrier.
    (d)(1) Through June 30, 1998, the tandem-switched transport
transmission charges may be distance-sensitive. Distance shall be
measured as airline distance between the serving wire center and the end
office, unless the customer has ordered tandem-switched transport
between the tandem office and the end office, in which case distance
shall be measured as airline distance between the tandem office and the
end office.
    (2) Beginning July 1, 1998, the per-minute charge for transport of
traffic over common transport facilities described in paragraph
(a)(2)(i) of this section may be distance-sensitive. Distance shall be
measured as airline distance between the tandem switching office and the
end office.
    (e)(1) Through June 30, 1998, if the telephone company employs
distance-sensitive rates:
    (i) A distance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of the
transmission facilities, including intermediate transmission circuit
equipment between the end points of the interoffice circuit; and
    (ii) A non-distance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of
the circuit equipment at the ends of the interoffice transmission links.
    (2) Beginning July 1, 1998, if the telephone company employs
distance-sensitive rates for transport of traffic over common transport
facilities, as described in paragraph (a)(2)(i) of this section:
    (i) A distance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of the
common transport facilities, including intermediate transmission circuit
equipment between the end office and tandem switching office; and
    (ii) A non-distance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of
the circuit equipment at the ends of the interoffice transmission links.
    (f) [Reserved]
    (g)(1) The tandem switching charge imposed pursuant to paragraphs
(a)(1) or (a)(2)(ii) of this section, as applicable, shall be set to
recover twenty percent of the annual part 69 interstate tandem revenue
requirement plus one third of the portion of the tandem switching
revenue requirement being recovered through the interconnection charge
recovered by Sec. Sec. 69.124, 69.153, and 69.155, excluding
multiplexer and dedicated port costs recovered in accordance with
paragraph (l) of this section.
    (2) Beginning January 1, 1999, the tandem switching charge imposed
pursuant to paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of this section shall be set to recover
the amount prescribed in paragraph (g)(1) of this section plus one half
of the remaining portion of the tandem switching revenue requirement
then being recovered through the interconnection charge recovered by
Sec. Sec. 69.124, 69.153, and 69.155, excluding multiplexer and
dedicated port costs recovered in accordance with paragraph (l) of this
section.
    (3) Beginning January 1, 2000, the tandem switching charge imposed
pursuant to paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of this section shall be set to recover
the entire interstate tandem switching revenue requirement, including
that portion formerly recovered through the interconnection charge
recovered in Sec. Sec. 69.124, 69.153, and 69.155, and excluding
multiplexer and dedicated port costs recovered in accordance with
paragraph (l) of this section.
    (4) A local exchange carrier that is subject to price cap regulation
as that

[[Page 516]]

term is defined in Sec. 61.3(x) of this chapter shall calculate its
tandem switching revenue requirement as used in this paragraph by
dividing the tandem switching revenue requirement that was included in
the original interconnection charge by the original interconnection
charge, and then multiplying this result by the annual revenues
recovered through the interconnection charge, described in Sec. 69.124,
as of June 30, 1997. A local exchange carrier that is subject to price
cap regulation as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(x) of this chapter
shall then make downward exogenous adjustments to the service band index
for the interconnection charge service category (defined in Sec.
61.42(e)(2)(vi) of this chapter) and corresponding upward adjustments to
the service band index for the tandem-switched transport service
category (defined in Sec. 61.42(e)(2)(v) of this chapter) at the times
and in the amounts prescribed in paragraphs (g)(1) through (g)(3) of
this section .
    (h) All telephone companies shall provide tandem-switched transport
service.
    (i) Except in the situations set forth in paragraphs (j) and (k) of
this section, telephone companies may offer term and volume discounts in
tandem-switched transport charges within each study area used for the
purpose of jurisdictional separations, in which interconnectors have
taken either:
    (1) At least 100 DS1-equivalent cross-connects for the transmission
of switched traffic (as described in Sec. 69.121(a)(1) of this chapter)
in offices in the study area that the telephone company has assigned to
the lowest priced density pricing zone (zone 1) under an approved
density pricing zone plan as described in Sec. Sec. 61.38(b)(4) and
61.49(k) of this chapter; or
    (2) An average of at least 25 DS1-equivalent cross-connects for the
transmission of switched traffic per office assigned to the lowest
priced density pricing zone (zone 1).
    (j) In study areas in which the telephone company has implemented
density zone pricing, but no offices have been assigned to the lowest
priced density pricing zone (zone 1), telephone companies may offer term
and volume discounts in tandem-switched transport charges within the
study area when interconnectors have taken at least 5 DS1-equivalent
cross-connects for the transmission of switched traffic (as described in
Sec. 69.121(a)(1) of this chapter) in offices in the study area.
    (k) In study areas in which the telephone company has not
implemented density zone pricing, telephone companies may offer term and
volume discounts in tandem-switched transport charges when
interconnectors have taken at least 100 DS1-equivalent cross-connects
for the transmission of switched traffic (as described in Sec.
69.121(a)(1) of this chapter) in offices in the study area.
    (l) In addition to the charges described in this section, price cap
local exchange carriers shall establish separate charges for
multiplexers and dedicated trunk ports used in conjunction with the
tandem switch as follows:
    (1) Local exchange carriers must establish a traffic-sensitive
charge for DS3/DS1 multiplexers used on the end office side of the
tandem switch, assessed on purchasers of common transport to the tandem
switch. This charge must be expressed in dollars and cents per access
minute of use. The maximum charge shall be calculated by dividing the
total costs of the multiplexers on the end office-side of the tandem
switch by the annual access minutes of use calculated for purposes of
recovery of common transport costs in paragraph (c) of this section. A
similar charge shall be assessed for DS1/voice-grade multiplexing
provided on the end-office side of analog tandem switches.
    (2)(i) Local exchange carriers must establish a flat-rated charge
for dedicated DS3/DS1 multiplexing on the serving wire center side of
the tandem switch provided in conjunction with dedicated DS3 transport
service from the serving wire center to the tandem switch. This charge
shall be assessed on interexchange carriers purchasing tandem-switched
transport in proportion to the number of DS3 trunks provisioned for that
interexchange carrier between the serving wire center and the tandem-
switch.
    (ii) Local exchange carriers must establish a flat-rated charge for
dedicated DS1/voice-grade multiplexing

[[Page 517]]

provided on the serving wire center side of analog tandem switches. This
charge may be assessed on interexchange carriers purchasing tandem-
switched transport in proportion to the interexchange carrier's
transport capacity on the serving wire center side of the tandem.
    (3) Price cap local exchange carriers may recover the costs of
dedicated trunk ports on the serving wire center side of the tandem
switch only through flat-rated charges expressed in dollars and cents
per trunk port and assessed upon the purchaser of the dedicated trunk
terminating at the port.
    (m) In addition to the charges described in this section, non-price
cap local exchange carriers may establish separate charges for
multiplexers and dedicated trunk ports used in conjunction with the
tandem switch as follows:
    (1)(i) Non-price cap local exchange carriers may establish a flat-
rated charge for dedicated DS3/DS1 multiplexing on the serving wire
center side of the tandem switch provided in conjunction with dedicated
DS3 transport service from the serving wire center to the tandem switch.
This charge shall be assessed on interexchange carriers purchasing
tandem-switched transport in proportion to the number of DS3 trunks
provisioned for that interexchange carrier between the serving wire
center and the tandem switch.
    (ii) Non-price cap local exchange carriers may establish a flat-
rated charge for dedicated DS1/voice-grade multiplexing provided on the
serving wire center side of analog tandem switches. This charge may be
assessed on interexchange carriers purchasing tandem-switched transport
in proportion to the interexchange carrier's transport capacity on the
serving wire center side of the tandem.
    (2) Non-price cap local exchange carriers may recover the costs of
dedicated trunk ports on the serving wire center side of the tandem
switch through flat-rated charges expressed in dollars and cents per
trunk port and assessed upon the purchaser of the dedicated trunk
terminating at the port.

[57 FR 54720, Nov. 20, 1992, as amended at 58 FR 41190, Aug. 3, 1993; 58
FR 48764, Sept. 17, 1993; 60 FR 50121, Sept. 28, 1995; 62 FR 31933, June
11, 1997; 62 FR 40463, July 29, 1997; 62 FR 56132, Oct. 29, 1997; 64 FR
46594, Aug. 26, 1999; 66 FR 59732, Nov. 30, 2001]



Sec. 69.112  Direct-trunked transport.

    (a) A flat-rated direct-trunked transport charge expressed in
dollars and cents per unit of capacity shall be assessed upon all
interexchange carriers and other persons that use telephone company
direct-trunked transport facilities.
    (b)(1) For telephone companies subject to price cap regulation,
initial direct-trunked transport charges based on the interoffice
charges for equivalent voice grade, DS1, and DS3 special access services
as of September 1, 1992, adjusted for changes in the price cap index
calculated for the July 1, 1993 annual filing for telephone companies
subject to price cap regulation, generally shall be presumed reasonable
if the benchmark defined in Sec. 69.108 is satisfied. Direct-trunked
transport charges may be distance-sensitive. Distance shall be measured
as airline kilometers between customer-designated points.
    (2) For telephone companies not subject to price cap regulation,
initial direct-trunked transport charges based on the interoffice
charges for equivalent voice grade, DS1, and DS3 special access services
generally shall be presumed reasonable if the benchmark defined in Sec.
69.108 is satisfied. Direct-trunked transport charges may be distance-
sensitive. Distance shall be measured as airline kilometers between
customer-designated points.
    (c) If the telephone company employs distance-sensitive rates:
    (1) A distance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of the
transmission facilities, including intermediate transmission circuit
equipment, between the end points of the circuit; and
    (2) A nondistance-sensitive component shall be assessed for use of
the circuit equipment at the ends of the transmission links.

[[Page 518]]

    (d) Telephone companies shall apply only their shortest term special
access rates in setting direct-trunked transport rates.
    (e) Except as provided in pagagraphs (f), (g), and (h) of this
section, telephone companies shall not offer direct-trunked transport
rates based on term discounts or volume discounts for multiple DS3s or
any other service with higher volume than DS3.
    (f) Except in the situations set forth in paragraphs (g) and (h) of
this section, telephone companies may offer term and volume discounts in
direct-trunked transport charges within each study area used for the
purpose of jurisdictional separations, in which interconnectors have
taken either:
    (1) At least 100 DS1-equivalent cross-connects for the transmission
of switched traffic (as described in Sec. 69.121(a)(1)) in offices in
the study area that the telephone company has assigned to the lowest
priced density pricing zone (zone 1) under an approved density pricing
zone plan as described in Sec. Sec. 61.38(b)(4) and 61.49(k) of this
section; or
    (2) An average of at least 25 DS1-equivalent cross-connects for the
transmission of switched traffic per office assigned to the lowest
priced density pricing zone (zone 1).
    (g) In study areas in which the telephone company has implemented
density zone pricing, but no offices have been assigned to the lowest
priced density pricing zone (zone 1), telephone companies may offer term
and volume discounts in direct-trunked transport charges within the
study area when interconnectors have taken at least 5 DS1-equivalent
cross-connects for the transmission of switched traffic (as described in
Sec. 69.121(a)(1) of this chapter) in offices in the study area.
    (h) In study areas in which the telephone company has not
implemented density zone pricing, telephone companies may offer term and
volume discounts in direct-trunked transport charges when
interconnectors have taken at least 100 DS1-equivalent cross-connects
for the transmission of switched traffic (as described in Sec.
69.121(a)(1) of this chapter) in offices in the study area.
    (i) Centralized equal access providers as described in Transport
Rate Structure and Pricing, CC Docket No. 91-213, FCC 92-442, 7 FCC Rcd
7002 (1992), are not required to provide direct-trunked transport
service. Telephone companies that do not have measurement and billing
capabilities at their end offices are not required to provide direct-
trunked transport services at those end offices without measurement and
billing capabilities. Telephone companies that are not classified as
Class A companies under Sec. 32.11 of this chapter are required to
provide direct-trunked transport service upon request. All other
telephone companies shall provide a direct-trunked transport service.

[57 FR 54720, Nov. 20, 1992, as amended at 58 FR 41190, Aug. 3, 1993; 58
FR 44950, Aug. 25, 1993; 58 FR 48764, Sept. 17, 1993; 60 FR 50121, Sept.
28, 1995]



Sec. 69.113  Non-premium charges for MTS-WATS equivalent services.

    (a) Charges that are computed in accordance with this section shall
be assessed upon interexchange carriers or other persons that receive
access that is not deemed to be premium access as this term in defined
in Sec. 69.105(b)(1) in lieu of carrier charges that are computed in
accordance with Sec. Sec. 69.105, 69.106, 69.118, 69.124, and 69.127.
    (b) The non-premium charge for the Carrier Common Line element shall
be computed by multiplying the premium charge for such element by .45.
    (c) For telephone companies that are not subject to price cap
regulation as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(x) of this chapter, the
non-premium charge for the Local Switching element shall be computed by
multiplying a hypothetical premium charge for such element by .45. The
hypothetical premium charge for such element shall be computed by
dividing the annual revenue requirement for each element by the sum of
the projected access minutes for such period and a number that is
computed by multiplying the projected non-premium minutes for such
element for such period by .45. For telephone companies that are price
cap carriers, the non-premium charge for the Local Switching element
shall be computed by multiplying the premium charge for such element by
.45. Though June 30,

[[Page 519]]

1993, the non-premium charge shall be computed by multiplying the LS2
charge for such element by .45.
    (d) The non-premium charge or charges for the interconnection charge
element shall be computed by multiplying the corresponding premium
charge or charges by .45.
    (e) The non-premium charge for any BSEs in local switching shall be
computed by multiplying the premium charge for the corresponding BSEs by
.45.

[54 FR 6293, Feb. 9, 1989, as amended at 55 FR 42386, Oct. 19, 1990; 55
FR 50559, Dec. 7, 1990; 56 FR 33881, July 24, 1991; 57 FR 54721, Nov.
20, 1992; 59 FR 10304, Mar. 4, 1994; 64 FR 46594, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 69.114  Special access.

    (a) Appropriate subelements shall be established for the use of
equipment or facilities that are assigned to the Special Access element
for purposes of apportioning net investment, or that are equivalent to
such equipment or facilities for companies subject to price cap
regulation as that term is defined in Sec. 61.3(x) of this chapter.
    (b) Charges for all subelements shall be designed to produce total
annual revenue that is equal to the projected annual revenue requirement
for the Special Access element.
    (c) Charges for an individual element shall be assessed upon all
interexchange carriers that use the equipment or facilities that are
included within such subelement.
    (d) Charges for individual subelements shall be designed to reflect
cost differences among subelements in a manner that complies with
applicable Commission rules or decisions.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 48 FR 43019, Sept. 21, 1983.
Redesignated at 54 FR 6293, Feb. 9, 1989, as amended at 55 FR 42386,
Oct. 19, 1990; 64 FR 46594, Aug. 26, 1999]



Sec. 69.115  Special access surcharges.

    (a) Pending the development of techniques accurately to measure
usage of exchange facilities that are interconnected by users with means
of interstate or foreign telecommunications, a surcharge that is
expressed in dollars and cents per line termination per month shall be
assessed upon users that subscribe to private line services or WATS
services that are not exempt from assessment pursuant to paragraph (e)
of this section.
    (b) Such surcharge shall be computed to reflect a reasonable
approximation of the carrier usage charges which, assuming non-premium
interconnection, would have been paid for average interstate or foreign
usage of common lines, end office facilities, and transport facilities,
attributable to each Special Access line termination which is not exempt
from assessment pursuant to paragraph (e) of this section.
    (c) If the association, carrier or carriers that file the tariff are
unable to estimate such average usage for a period ending May 31, 1985,
the surcharge for such period shall be twenty-five dollars ($25) per
line termination per month. As of June 30, 2000, these rates will remain
and be capped at the current levels until June 30, 2005.
    (d) A telephone company may propose reasonable and nondiscriminatory
end user surcharges, to be filed in its federal access tariffs and to be
applied to the use of exchange facilities which are interconected by
users with means of interstate or foreign telecommunication which are
not provided by the telephone company, and which are not exempt from
assessment pursuant to paragraph (e) of this section. Telephone
companies which wish to avail themselves of this option must undertake
to use reasonable efforts to identify such means of interstate or
foreign telecommunication, and to assess end user surcharges in a
reasonable and nondiscriminatory manner.
    (e) No special access surcharges shall be assessed for any of the
following terminations:
    (1) The open end termination in a telephone company switch of an FX
line, including CCSA and CCSA-equivalent ONALs;
    (2) Any termination of an analog channel that is used for radio or
television program transmission;
    (3) Any termination of a line that is used for telex service;
    (4) Any termination of a line that by nature of its operating
characteristics could not make use of common lines; and

[[Page 520]]

    (5) Any termination of a line that is subject to carrier usage
charges pursuant to Sec. 69.5.
    (6) Any termination of a line that the customer certifies to the
exchange carrier is not connected to a PBX or other device capable of
interconnecting a local exchange subscriber line with the private line
or WATS access line.

(47 U.S.C. 154 (i) and (j), 201, 202, 203, 205, 218 and 403 and 5 U.S.C.
553)

[48 FR 43019, Sept. 21, 1983, as amended at 49 FR 7829, Mar. 2, 1984; 51
FR 10841, Mar. 31, 1986; 52 FR 8259, Mar. 17, 1987; 65 FR 38701, June
21, 2000]



Sec. 69.118  Traffic sensitive switched services.

    Notwithstanding Sec. Sec. 69.4(b), 69.106, 69.109, 69.110, 69.111,
69.112, and 69.124, telephone companies subject to the BOC ONA Order, 4
FCC Rcd 1 (1988) shall, and other telephone companies may, establish
approved Basic Service Elements as provided in Amendments of part 69 of
the Commission's rules relating to the Creation of Access Charge
Subelements for Open Network Architecture, Report and Order, 6 FCC Rcd
4524 (1991) and 800 data base subelements, as provided in Provision of
Access for 800 Service, 8 FCC Rcd --------, CC Docket 86-10, FCC 93-53
(1993). Moreover, all customers that use basic 800 database service
shall be assessed a charge that is expressed in dollars and cents per
query. Telephone companies shall take into account revenues from the
relevant Basic Service Element or Elements and 800 Database Service
Elements in computing rates for the Local Switching, Entrance
Facilities, Tandem-Switched Transport, Direct-Trunked Transport,
Interconnection Charge, and/or Information elements.

[58 FR 7868, Feb. 10, 1993]



Sec. 69.119  Basic service element expedited approval process.

    The rules for filing comments and reply comments on requests for
expedited approval of new basic service elements are those indicated in
Sec. 1.45 of the rules, except as specified otherwise.

[56 FR 33881, July 24, 1991]



Sec. 69.120  Line information database.

    (a) A charge that is expressed in dollars and cents per query shall
be assessed upon all carriers that access validation information from a
local exchange carrier database to recover the costs of:
    (1) The transmission facilities between the local exchange carrier's
signalling transfer point and the database; and
    (2) The signalling transfer point facilities dedicated to the
termination of the transmission facilities connecting the database to
the exchange carrier's signalling network.
    (b) A charge that is expressed in dollars and cents per query shall
be assessed upon all carriers that access validation information from a
local exchange carrier line information database to recover the costs of
the database.

[57 FR 24380, June 9, 1992]



Sec. 69.121  Connection charges for expanded interconnection.

    (a) Appropriate connection charge subelements shall be established
for the use of equipment and facilities that are associated with
offerings of expanded interconnection for special access and switched
transport services, as defined in part 64, subpart N of this chapter. To
the extent that the same equipment and facilities are used to provide
expanded interconnection for both special access and switched transport,
the same connection charge subelements shall be used.
    (1) A cross-connect subelement shall be established for charges
associated with the cross-connect cable and associated facilities
connecting the equipment owned by or dedicated to the use of the
interconnector with the telephone company's equipment and facilities
used to provide interstate special or switched access services. Charges
for the cross-connect subelement shall not be deaveraged within a study
area that is used for purposes of jurisdictional separations.
    (2) Charges for subelements associated with physical collocation or
virtual collocation, other than the subelement described in paragraph
(a)(1) of

[[Page 521]]

this section and subelements recovering the cost of the virtual
collocation equipment described in Sec. 64.1401(e)(1) of this chapter,
may reasonably differ in different central offices, notwithstanding
Sec. 69.3(e)(7).
    (b) Connection charge subelements shall be computed based upon the
costs associated with the equipment and facilities that are included in
such subelements, including no more than a just and reasonable portion
of the telephone company's overhead costs.
    (c) Connection charge subelements shall be assessed upon all
interconnectors that use the equipment or facilities that are included
in such subelements.

[57 FR 54332, Nov. 18, 1992, as amended at 58 FR 48764, Sept. 17, 1993;
59 FR 38930, Aug. 1, 1994]



Sec. 69.123  Density pricing zones for special access and switched
transport.

    (a)(1) Incumbent local exchange carriers not subject to price cap
regulation may establish any number of density zones within a study area
that is used for purposes of jurisdictional separations, provided that
each zone, except the highest-cost zone, accounts for at least 15
percent of that carrier's special access and transport revenues within
that study area, calculated pursuant to the methodology set forth in
Sec. 69.725.
    (2) Such a system of pricing zones shall be designed to reasonably
reflect cost-related characteristics, such as the density of total
interstate traffic in central offices located in the respective zones.
    (3) Non-price cap incumbent local exchange carriers may establish
only one set of density pricing zones within each study area, to be used
for the pricing of both special and switched access pursuant to
paragraphs (c) and (d) of this section.
    (b)(1) Incumbent local exchange carriers subject to price cap
regulation may establish any number of density zones within a study area
that is used for purposes of jurisdictional separations, provided that
each zone, except the highest-cost zone, accounts for at least 15
percent of that carrier's trunking basket revenues within that study
area, calculated pursuant to the methodology set forth in Sec. 69.725.
    (2) Price cap incumbent local exchange carriers may establish only
one set of density pricing zones within each study area, to be used for
the pricing of all services within the trunking basket for which zone
density pricing is permitted.
    (3) An access service subelement for which zone density pricing is
permitted shall be deemed to be offered in the zone that contains the
telephone company location from which the service is provided.
    (4) An access service subelement for which zone density pricing is
permitted which is provided to a customer between telephone company
locations shall be deemed to be offered in the highest priced zone that
contains one of the locations between which the service is offered.
    (c) Notwithstanding Sec. 69.3(e)(7), in study areas in which a
telephone company offers a cross-connect, as described in Sec.
69.121(a)(1), for the transmission of interstate special access traffic,
telephone companies may charge rates for special access sub-elements of
DS1, DS3, and such other special access services as the Commission may
designate, that differ depending on the zone in which the service is
offered, provided that the charges for any such service shall not be
deaveraged within any such zone.
    (1) A special access service subelement shall be deemed to be
offered in the zone that contains the telephone company location from
which the service is provided.
    (2) A special access service subelement provided to a customer
between telephone company locations shall be deemed to be offered in the
highest priced zone that contains one of the locations between which the
service is offered.
    (d) Notwithstanding Sec. 69.3(e)(7), in study areas in which a
telephone company offers a cross-connect, as described in Sec.
69.121(a)(1), for the transmission of interstate switched traffic, or is
using collocated facilities to interconnect with telephone company
interstate switched transport services, telephone companies may charge
rates for sub-elements of direct-trunked

[[Page 522]]

transport, tandem-switched transport, entrance facilities, and dedicated
signaling transport that differ depending on the zone in which the
service is offered, provided that the charge for any such service shall
not be deaveraged within any such zone.
    (1) A switched transport service subelement shall be deemed to be
offered in the zone that contains the telephone company location from
which the service is provided.
    (2) A switched transport service subelement provided to a customer
between telephone company locations shall be deemed to be offered in the
highest priced zone that contains either of the locations between which
the service is offered.
    (e)(1) Telephone companies not subject to price cap regulation may
charge a rate for each service in the highest priced zone that exceeds
the rate for the same service in the lowest priced zone by no more than
fifteen percent of the rate for the service in the lowest priced zone
during the period from the date that the zones are initially established
through the following June 30. The difference between the rates for any
such service in the highest priced zone and the lowest priced zone in a
study area, measured as a percentage of the rate for the service in the
lowest priced zone, may increase by no more than an additional fifteen
percentage points in each succeeding year, measured from the rate
differential in effect on the last day of the preceding tariff year.
    (2) Notwithstanding Sec. 69.3(e)(7), incumbent local exchange
carriers subject to price cap regulation may charge different rates for
services in different zones pursuant to Sec. 61.47(f) of this chapter,
provided that the charges for any such service are not deaveraged within
any such zone.
    (f)(1) An incumbent local exchange carrier that establishes density
pricing zones under this section must reallocate additional amounts
recovered under the interconnection charge prescribed in Sec. 69.124 of
this subpart to facilities-based transport rates, to reflect the higher
costs of serving lower density areas. Each incumbent local exchange
carrier must reallocate costs from the interexchange charge each time it
increases the ratio between the prices in its lowest-cost zone and any
other zone in that study area.
    (2) Any incumbent local exchange carrier that has already deaveraged
its rates on January 1, 1998 must reallocate an amount equivalent to
that described in paragraph (f)(1) of this section from the
interconnection charge prescribed in Sec. 69.124 to its transport
services.
    (3) Price cap local exchange carriers shall reassign to direct-
trunked transport and tandem-switched transport categories or
subcategories interconnection charge amounts reallocated under paragraph
(f)(1) or (f)(2) of this section in a manner that reflects the way
density pricing zones are being implemented by the incumbent local
exchange carrier.

[57 FR 54333, Nov. 18, 1992, as amended at 58 FR 48764, Sept. 17, 1993;
62 FR 31935, June 11, 1997; 64 FR 51267, Sept. 22, 1999; 69 FR 25336,
May 6, 2004]



Sec. 69.124  Interconnection charge.

    (a) Until December 31, 2001, local exchange carriers not subject to
price cap regulation shall assess an interconnection charge expressed in
dollars and cents per access minute upon all interexchange carriers and
upon all other persons using the telephone company switched access
network.
    (b) If the use made of the local exchange carrier's switched access
network includes the local switch, but not local transport, the
interconnection charge assessed pursuant to paragraph (a) of this
section shall be computed by subtracting entrance facilities, tandem-
switched transport, direct-trunked transport, and dedicated signalling
transport revenues, as well as any interconnection charge revenues that
the local exchange carrier anticipates will be reassigned to other,
facilities-based rate elements in the future, from the part 69 transport
revenue requirement, and dividing by the total interstate local
switching minutes.
    (c) If the use made of the local exchange carrier's switched access
network includes local transport, the interconnection charge to be
assessed pursuant to paragraph (a) of this section shall be computed by
dividing any interconnection charge revenues that

[[Page 523]]

the local exchange carrier anticipates will be reassigned to other,
facilities-based rate elements in the future by the total interstate
local transport minutes, and adding thereto the per minute amount
calculated pursuant to paragraph (b) of this section.

[62 FR 66030, Dec. 17, 1997, as amended at 66 FR 59732, Nov. 30, 2001]



Sec. 69.125  Dedicated signalling transport.

    (a) Dedicated signalling transport shall consist of two elements, a
signalling link charge and a signalling transfer point (STP) port
termination charge.
    (b)(1) A flat-rated signalling link charge expressed in dollars and
cents per unit of capacity shall be assessed upon all interexchange
carriers and other persons that use facilities between an interexchange
carrier or other person's common channel signalling network and a
telephone company signalling transfer point or equivalent facilities
offered by a telephone company. Signalling link charges may be distance-
sensitive. Distance shall be measured as airline kilometers between the
signalling point of interconnection of the interexchange carrier's or
other person's common channel signalling network and the telephone
company's signalling transfer point.
    (2) Signalling link rates will generally be presumed reasonable if
they are based on the interoffice charges for equivalent special access
services. Telephone companies that have, before February 18, 1993,
tariffed a signalling link service for signalling transport between the
interexchange carrier's or other person's common channel signalling
network and the telephone company's STP are permitted to use the rates
that are in place.
    (c) A flat-rated STP port termination charge expressed in dollars
and cents per port shall be assessed upon all interexchange carriers and
other persons that use dedicated signalling transport.

[57 FR 54721, Nov. 20, 1992, as amended at 58 FR 41191, Aug. 3, 1993; 58
FR 44950, Aug. 25, 1993; 62 FR 31935, June 11, 1997]



Sec. 69.128  Billing name and address.

    Appropriate subelements shall be established for the use of
equipment or facilities that are associated with offerings of billing
name and address.

[58 FR 36145, July 6, 1993]



Sec. 69.129  Signalling for tandem switching.

    A charge that is expressed in dollars and cents shall be assessed
upon the purchasing entity by a local telephone company for provision of
signalling for tandem switching.

[59 FR 32930, June 27, 1994]



Sec. 69.130  Line port costs in excess of basic analog service.

    To the extent that the costs of ISDN line ports, and line ports
associated with other services, exceed the costs of a line port used for
basic, analog service, non-price cap local exchange carriers may recover
the difference through a separate monthly end-user charge, provided that
no portion of such excess cost may be recovered through other common
line access charges, or through Interstate Common Line Support.

[66 FR 59732, Nov. 30, 2001]



Sec. 69.131  Universal service end user charges.

    To the extent the company makes contributions to the Universal
Service Support Mechanisms pursuant to Sec. Sec. 54.706 and 54.709 of
this chapter and the non-price cap local exchange carrier seeks to
recover some or all of the amount of such contribution, the non-price
cap local exchange carrier shall recover those contributions through a
charge to end users other than Lifeline users. The charge to recover
these contributions is not part of any other element established
pursuant to part 69. Such a charge may be assessed on a per-line basis
or as a percentage of interstate retail revenues, and at the option of
the local exchange carrier it may be combined for billing purposes with
other end user retail rate elements. A non-price cap local exchange
carrier opting to assess the Universal Service end-user rate element on
a per-line basis may apply that charge using

[[Page 524]]

the ``equivalency'' relationships established for the multi-line
business PICC for Primary Rate ISDN service, as per Sec. 69.153(d), and
for Centrex lines, as per Sec. 69.153(e).

[66 FR 59732, Nov. 30, 2001]



 Subpart C_Computation of Charges for Price Cap Local Exchange Carriers

    Source: 62 FR 31935, June 11, 1997, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 69.151  Applicability.

    This subpart shall apply only to telephone companies subject to the
price cap regulations set forth in part 61 of this chapter.



Sec. 69.152  End user common line for price cap local exchange carriers.

    (a) A charge that is expressed in dollars and cents per line per
month shall be assessed upon end users that subscribe to local exchange
telephone service or Centrex service to the extent they do not pay
carrier common line charges. A charge that is expressed in dollars and
cents per line per month shall be assessed upon providers of public
telephones. Such charge shall be assessed for each line between the
premises of an end user, or public telephone location, and a Class 5
office that is or may be used for local exchange service transmissions.
    (b) [Reserved]
    (c) The charge for each subscriber line associated with a public
telephone shall be equal to the monthly charge computed in accordance
with paragraph (k) of this section.
    (d)(1) Beginning July 1, 2000, in a study area that does not have
deaveraged End User Common Line Charges, the maximum monthly charge for
each primary residential or single-line business local exchange service
subscriber line shall be the lesser of:
    (i) The Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month as defined in
Sec. 61.3(d) of this chapter; or
    (ii) The following:
    (A) On July 1, 2000, $4.35.
    (B) On July 1, 2001, $5.00.
    (C) On July 1, 2002, $6.00.
    (D) On July 1, 2003, $6.50.
    (2) In the event that GDP-PI exceeds 6.5% or is less than 0%, the
maximum monthly charge in paragraph (d)(1)(ii) of this section and the
cap will be adjusted pursuant to Sec. 61.45(b)(1)(iii) of this chapter.
    (e)(1) Beginning July 1, 2000, in a study area that does not have
deaveraged End User Common Line Charges, the maximum monthly charge for
each non-primary residential local exchange service subscriber line
shall be the lesser of:
    (i) $7.00; or
    (ii) The greater of:
    (A) The rate as of June 30, 2000 less reductions needed to ensure
over recovery of CMT Revenues does not occur; or
    (B) The Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month as defined in
Sec. 61.3(d) of this chapter.
    (2) In the event that GDP-PI is greater than 6.5% or is less than
0%, the maximum monthly charge in paragraph (e)(1)(i) of this section
and the cap will be adjusted pursuant to Sec. 61.45(b)(1)(iii) of this
chapter.
    (3) Where the local exchange carrier provides a residential line to
another carrier so that the other carrier may resell that residential
line to a residence that already receives a primary residential line,
the local exchange carrier may collect the non-primary residential
charge described in paragraph (e) of this section from the other
carrier.
    (f) The charge for each primary residential local exchange service
subscriber line shall be the same as the charge for each single-line
business local exchange service subscriber line.
    (g) A line shall be deemed to be a residential subscriber line if
the subscriber pays a rate for such line that is described as a
residential rate in the local exchange service tariff.
    (h) Effective July 1, 1999, only one of the residential subscriber
lines a price cap local exchange carrier provides to a location shall be
deemed to be a primary residential line.
    (1) Effective July 1, 1999, for purposes of Sec. 69.152(h) of this
chapter, ``residential subscriber line'' includes residential lines that
a price cap local exchange carrier provides to a competitive local
exchange carrier that resells the line and on which the price cap

[[Page 525]]

local exchange carrier may assess access charges.
    (2) Effective July 1, 1999, if a customer subscribes to residential
lines from a price cap local exchange carrier and at least one reseller
of the price cap local exchange carrier's lines, the line sold by the
price cap local exchange carrier shall be the primary line, except that
if a resold price cap LEC line is already the primary line, the resold
line will remain the primary line should a price cap local exchange
carrier subsequently sell an additional line to that residence.
    (i) A line shall be deemed to be a single-line business subscriber
line if the subscriber pays a rate that is not described as a
residential rate in the local exchange service tariff and does not
obtain more than one such line from a particular telephone company.
    (j) No charge shall be assessed for any WATS access line.
    (k)(1) Beginning on July 1, 2000, for any study area that does not
have deaveraged End User Common Line charges and in the absence of
voluntary reductions, the maximum monthly End User Common Line Charge
for multi-line business lines will be the lesser of:
    (i) $9.20; or
    (ii) The greater of:
    (A) The rate as of June 30, 2000, less reductions needed to ensure
over recovery of CMT Revenues does not occur; or
    (B) The Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month as defined in
Sec. 61.3(d) of this chapter.

    Note to paragraph (k)(1):
    Except when the local exchange carrier reduces the rate through
voluntary reductions, the multi-line business End User Common Line
charge will be frozen until the study area's multi-line business PICC
and CCL charge are eliminated.

    (2) In the event that GDP-PI is greater than 6.5% or is less than
0%, the maximum monthly charge in paragraph (k)(1)(i) of this section
and the cap will be adjusted pursuant to Sec. 61.45(b)(1)(iii) of this
chapter.
    (l)(1) Beginning January 1, 1998, local exchange carrier shall
assess no more than one End User Common Line charge as calculated under
the applicable method under paragraph (e) of this section for Basic Rate
Interface integrated services digital network (ISDN) service.
    (2) Local exchange carriers shall assess no more than five End User
Common Line charges as calculated under paragraph (k) of this section
for Primary Rate Interface ISDN service.
    (m) In the event the local exchange carrier charges less than the
maximum End User Common Line charge for any subscriber lines, the local
exchange carrier may not recover the difference between the amount
collected and the maximum from carrier common line charges or PICCs.
    (n)-(p) [Reserved]
    (q) End User Common Line Charge De-Averaging. Beginning on July 1,
2000, local exchange carriers may geographically deaverage End User
Common Line charges subject to the following conditions:
    (1) In order for a price cap local exchange carrier to be allowed to
de-average End User Common Line charges within a study area, the price
cap local exchange carrier must have state Commission approved
geographically deaveraged rates for UNE loops within that study area.
Except where a LEC geographically deaverages through voluntary
reductions, before a price cap local exchange carrier may geographically
deaverage its End User Common Line rates, its Originating and
Terminating CCL and Multi-line Business PICC rates in that study area
must equal $0.00.
    (2) All geographic deaveraging of End User Common Line charges by
customer class within a study area must be according to the state
commission-approved UNE loop zone. Solely for the purposes of
determining interstate subscriber line charges and the interstate access
universal service support described in Sec. Sec. 54.806 and 54.807 of
this chapter, a price cap local exchange carrier may not have more than
four geographic End User Common Line Charge/Universal Service zones
absent a review by the Commission. Where a price cap local exchange
carrier has more than four state-created UNE zones and the Commission
has not approved use of additional zones, the price cap local exchange
carrier will determine, at its discretion, which state-created UNE zones
to consolidate

[[Page 526]]

so that it has no more than four zones for the purpose of determining
interstate subscriber line charges and interstate access universal
service support.
    (3) Within a given zone, Multi-line Business End User Common Line
rates cannot fall below Primary Residential and Single-Line Business or
Non-Primary Residential End User Common Line charges. Non-Primary End
User Common Line charges cannot fall below Primary Residential and
Single-Line Business charges.
    (4) For any given class of customer in any given zone, the Zone
deaveraged End User Common Line Charge in that zone must be greater than
or equal to the Zone deaveraged End User Common Line charge in the zone
with the next lower Zone Average Revenue Per Line.
    (5) The sum of all revenues per month that would be generated from
all deaveraged End User Common Line charges in all zones within a study
area plus Interstate Access Universal Service Support per Line month (as
defined in Sec. 54.807 of this chapter) for the applicable customer
classes and zones receiving such support multiplied by corresponding
base period lines, divided by the number of base period lines in that
study area cannot exceed Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per Line month as
defined in Sec. 61.3(d) of this chapter for that study area. In
addition, the sum of revenues per month that would be generated from all
deaveraged End User Common Line charges in all End User Common Line
charge deaveraging zones within a study area plus revenues per month
from all End User Common Line charge, multi-line business PICC and CCL
charges from study areas within that study area that have not
geographically deaveraged End User Common Line charges plus the sum of
all Interstate Access Universal Service Support per Line month (as
defined in Sec. 54.807 of this chapter) for the applicable customer
classes and zones receiving such support, multiplied by the
corresponding base period lines for the applicable customer classes and
zones within the study area, divided by the number of total base period
lines in the study area cannot exceed Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per
Line month as defined in Sec. 61.3(d) of this chapter for the study
area.
    (6) Maximum charge. The maximum zone deaveraged End User Common Line
Charge that may be charged in any zone is the applicable cap specified
in Sec. 69.152(d)(1), Sec. 69.152(e)(1)(i) or Sec. 69.152 (k)(1)(i)
Zone Average Revenue Per Line is the Average Price Cap CMT Revenue per
Line month allocated to a particular state-defined zone used for
deaveraging of UNE loop prices. The zone average revenue per line is
computed pursuant to Sec. 61.3 (zz) of this chapter.
    (7) Minimum charge. Except where a local exchange carrier chooses to
lower the deaveraged End User Common Line charge through voluntary
reductions, the minimum zone deaveraged End User Common Line charge in
any zone in a study area is at least the Minimum End User Common Line
charge. Minimum End User Common Line charge is Zone Average Revenue Per
Line for the zone with the lowest Zone Average Revenue Per Line in that
study area plus an amount per line calculated to recover the difference
between Interstate Access Universal Service Support Per Line (as defined
in Sec. 54.807 of this chapter) multiplied by base period lines for the
applicable customer class and zones receiving such support and Study
Area Above Benchmark Revenues, first from Zone 1 until the End User
Common Line charges in Zone 1 equal the End User Common Line charges in
Zone 2, and then from lines in Zones 1 and 2 equally until the End User
Common Line charges in those Zones reach Zone 3 (with all End User
Common Line charges subject to the applicable residential and multi-line
business lines nominal caps).
    (i) For the purposes of this part, ``Study Area Above Benchmark
Revenues'' is the sum of all Zone Above Benchmark Revenues.
    (ii) For the purposes of this part, ``Zone Above Benchmark
Revenues'' is calculated as follows:
    Zone Above Benchmark Revenues is the sum of Zone Above Benchmark
Revenues for Residential and Single-line Business lines and Zone Above
Benchmark Revenues for Multi-line Business lines. Zone Above Benchmark
Revenues for Residential and Single-

[[Page 527]]

line Business lines is, within each zone, (Zone Average Revenue Per Line
minus $7.00) multiplied by all eligible telecommunications carrier Base
Period Residential and Single-line Business lines times 12. If negative,
the Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for Residential and Single-line
Business lines for the zone is zero. Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for
Multi-line Business lines is, within each zone,
    (Zone Average Revenue Per Line minus $9.20) multiplied by all
eligible telecommunications carrier zone Base Period Multi-line Business
lines times 12. If negative, the Zone Above Benchmark Revenues for
Multi-line Business lines for the zone is zero.
    (8) Voluntary Reductions. A ``Voluntary Reduction'' is one in which
the local exchange carrier reduces prices other than through offset of
net increases in End User Common Line charge revenues or Interstate
Access Universal Service support received pursuant to Sec. 54.807 of
this chapter, or through increases in other zone deaveraged End User
Common Line charges.

[65 FR 38701, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57744, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 69.153  Presubscribed interexchange carrier charge (PICC).

    (a) A charge expressed in dollars and cents per line may be assessed
upon the Multi-line business subscriber's presubscribed interexchange
carrier to recover revenues totaling Average Price Cap CMT Revenues per
Line month times the number of base period lines less revenues recovered
through the End User Common Line charge established under Sec. 69.152
and Interstate Access Universal Service Support Per Line (as defined in
Sec. 54.807 of this chapter) multiplied by base period lines for the
applicable customer class and zones receiving such support, up to a
maximum of $4.31 per line per month. In the event the ceilings on the
PICC prevent the PICC from recovering all the residual common line/
marketing and residual interconnection charge revenues, the PICC shall
recover all residual common line/marketing revenues before it recovers
residual interconnection charge revenues.
    (b) If an end-user customer does not have a presubscribed
interexchange carrier, the local exchange carrier may collect the PICC
directly from the end user.
    (c) [Reserved]
    (d) Local exchange carriers shall assess no more than five PICCs as
calculated under paragraph (a) of this section for Primary Rate
Interface ISDN service.
    (e) The maximum monthly PICC for Centrex lines shall be one-ninth of
the maximum charge determined under paragraph (a) of this section,
except that if a Centrex customer has fewer than nine lines, the maximum
monthly PICC for those lines shall be the maximum charge determined
under paragraph (a) of this section divided by the customer's number of
Centrex lines.
    (f) The PICC shall not be applicable to any payphone lines.
    (g)-(h) [Reserved]

[65 FR 38703, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57744, Sept. 26, 2000, as amended at
68 FR 43329, July 22, 2003]



Sec. 69.154  Per-minute carrier common line charge.

    (a) Local exchange carriers may recover a per-minute carrier common
line charge from interexchange carriers, collected on originating access
minutes and calculated using the weighting method set forth in paragraph
(c) of this section. The maximum such charge shall be the lower of:
    (1) The per-minute rate using base period demand that would recover
the maximum allowable carrier common line revenue as defined in Sec.
61.46(d) of this chapter; or
    (2) The sum of the local switching, carrier common line and
interconnection charge charges assessed on originating minutes on
December 31, 1997, minus the local switching charges assessed on
originating minutes.
    (b) To the extent that paragraph (a) of this section does not
recover from interexchange carriers all permitted carrier common line
revenue, the excess may be collected through a per-minute charge on
terminating access calculated using the weighting method set forth in
paragraph (c) of this section.

[[Page 528]]

    (c) For each Carrier Common Line access element tariff, the premium
originating Carrier Common Line charge shall be set at a level that
recovers revenues allowed under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section.
The non-premium charges shall be equal to .45 multiplied by the premium
charges.

[62 FR 31935, June 11, 1997, as amended at 65 FR 38703, June 21, 2000]



Sec. 69.155  Per-minute residual interconnection charge.

    (a) Local exchange carriers may recover a per-minute residual
interconnection charge on originating access. The maximum such charge
shall be the lower of:
    (1) The per-minute rate that would recover the total annual residual
interconnection charge revenues permitted less the portion of the
residual interconnection charge allowed to be recovered under Sec.
69.153; or
    (2) The sum of the local switching, carrier common line and residual
interconnection charges assessed on originating minutes on December 31,
1997, minus the local switching charges assessed on originating minutes,
less the maximum amount allowed to be recovered under Sec. 69.154(a).
    (b) To the extent that paragraph (a) of this section prohibits a
local exchange carrier from recovering all of the residual
interconnection charge revenues permitted, the residual may be collected
through a per-minute charge on terminating access.
    (c)(1) No portion of the charge assessed pursuant to paragraphs (a)
or (b) of this section that recovers revenues that the local exchange
carrier anticipates will be reassigned to other, facilities-based rate
elements, including the tandem-switching rate element described in Sec.
69.111(g), the three-part tandem switched transport rate structure
described in Sec. 69.111(a)(2), and port and multiplexer charges
described in Sec. 69.111(l), shall be assessed upon minutes utilizing
the local exchange carrier's local switching facilities, but not the
local exchange carrier's transport service.
    (2) If a local exchange carrier cannot recover its full residual
interconnection charge revenues through the PICC mechanism established
in Sec. 69.153, and will consequently cover a portion of its residual
interconnection charge revenues through per-minute charges assessed
pursuant to paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, then the local
exchange carrier must allocate its residual interconnection charge
revenues subject to the exemption established in paragraph (c)(1) of
this section between the PICC and the per-minute residual
interconnection charge in the same proportion as other residual
interconnection charge revenues are allocated between these two recovery
mechanisms.

[62 FR 31938, June 11, 1997; 62 FR 40460, July 29, 1997, as amended at
62 FR 56133, Oct. 29, 1997]



Sec. 69.156  Marketing expenses.

    Effective July 1, 2000, the marketing expenses formerly allocated to
the common line and traffic sensitive baskets, and the switched services
within the trunking basket pursuant to Sec. 32.6610 of this chapter and
Sec. 69.403 will now be recovered in the CMT basket created pursuant to
Sec. 61.42(d)(1) of this chapter. These marketing expenses will be
recovered through the elements outlined in Sec. Sec. 69.152, 69.153 and
69.154.

[65 FR 38703, June 21, 2000]



Sec. 69.157  Line port costs in excess of basic, analog service.

    To the extent that the costs of ISDN line ports, and line ports
associated with other services, exceed the costs of a line port used for
basic, analog service, local exchange carriers may recover the
difference through a separate monthly end-user charge. As of June 30,
2000, these rates will be capped until June 30, 2005.

[65 FR 38704, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57744, Sept. 26, 2000]



Sec. 69.158  Universal service end user charges.

    To the extent the company makes contributions to the Universal
Service Support Mechanisms pursuant to Sec. Sec. 54.706 and 54.709 of
this chapter and the local exchange carrier seeks to recover some or all
of the amount of such contribution, the local exchange carrier shall
recover those contributions through a charge to end users other

[[Page 529]]

than Lifeline users. These contributions are not a part of any price cap
baskets, and the charge to recover these contributions is not part of
any other element established pursuant to part 69. Such a charge may be
assessed on a per-line basis or as a percentage of interstate retail
revenues, and at the option of the local exchange carrier it may be
combined for billing purposes with other end user retail rate elements.
A local exchange carrier opting to assess the Universal Service end-user
rate element on a per-line basis may apply that charge using the
``equivalency'' relationships established for the multi-line business
PICC for Primary Rate ISDN service, as per Sec. 69.153(d), and for
Centrex lines, as per Sec. 69.153(e).

[65 FR 38704, June 21, 2000; 65 FR 57744, Sept. 26, 2000]



                Subpart D_Apportionment of Net Investment

    Source: 52 FR 37312, Oct. 6, 1987, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 69.301  General.

    (a) For purposes of computing annual revenue requirements for access
elements net investment as defined in Sec. 69.2 (z) shall be
apportioned among the interexchange category, the billing and collection
category and access elements as provided in this subpart. For purposes
of this subpart, local transport includes five elements: entrance
facilities, direct-trunked transport, tandem-switched transport,
dedicated signaling transport, and the interconnection charge. Expenses
shall be apportioned as provided in subpart E of this part.
    (b) The End User Common Line and Carrier Common Line elements shall
be combined for purposes of this subpart and subpart E of this part.
Those elements shall be described collectively as the Common Line
element. The Common Line element revenue requirement shall be segregated
in accordance with subpart F of this part.

[52 FR 37312, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 57 FR 54722, Nov. 20, 1992]



Sec. 69.302  Net investment.

    (a) Investment in Accounts 2001, 1220 and Class B Rural Telephone
Bank Stock booked in Account 1410 shall be apportioned among the
interexchange category, billing and collection category and appropriate
access elements as provided in Sec. Sec. 69.303 through 69.309.
    (b) Investment in Accounts 2002, 2003 and to the extent such
inclusions are allowed by this Commission, Account 2005 shall be
apportioned on the basis of the total investment in Account 2001,
Telecommunications Plant in Service.

[52 FR 37312, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 54 FR 3456, Jan. 24, 1989; 67
FR 5703, Feb. 6, 2002]



Sec. 69.303  Information origination/termination equipment (IOT).

    Investment in all other IOT shall be apportioned between the Special
Access and Common Line elements on the basis of the relative number of
equivalent lines in use, as provided herein. Each interstate or foreign
Special Access Line, excluding lines designated in Sec. 69.115(e),
shall be counted as one or more equivalent lines where channels are of
higher than voice bandwidth, and the number of equivalent lines shall
equal the number of voice capacity analog or digital channels to which
the higher capacity is equivalent. Local exchange subscriber lines shall
be multiplied by the interstate Subscriber Plant Factor to determine the
number of equivalent local exchange subscriber lines.

[52 FR 37312, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 62 FR 31938, June 11, 1997]



Sec. 69.304  Subscriber line cable and wire facilities.

    (a) Investment in local exchange subscriber lines shall be assigned
to the Common Line element.
    (b) Investment in interstate and foreign private lines and
interstate WATS access lines shall be assigned to the Special access
element.

[52 FR 37312, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 62 FR 31938, June 11, 1997]

[[Page 530]]



Sec. 69.305  Carrier cable and wire facilities (C&WF).

    (a) Carrier C&WF that is not used for ``origination'' or
``termination'' as defined in Sec. 69.2(bb) and Sec. 69.2(cc) shall be
assigned to the interexchange category.
    (b) Carrier C&WF, other than WATS access lines, not assigned
pursuant to paragraph (a), (c), or (e) of this section that is used for
interexchange services that use switching facilities for origination and
termination that are also used for local exchange telephone service
shall be apportioned to the local Transport elements.
    (c) Carrier C&WF that is used to provide transmission between the
local exchange carrier's signalling transfer point and the database
shall be assigned to the Line Information Database sub-element at Sec.
69.120(a).
    (d) All Carrier C&WF that is not apportioned pursuant to paragraphs
(a), (b), (c), and (e) of this section shall be assigned to the Special
Access element.
    (e) Carrier C&WF that is used to provide transmission between the
local exchange carrier's signalling transfer point and the local switch
shall be assigned to the local switching category.

[52 FR 37312, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 57 FR 24380, June 9, 1992; 58
FR 30995, May 28, 1993; 62 FR 31938, June 11, 1997]



Sec. 69.306  Central office equipment (COE).

    (a) The Separations Manual categories shall be used for purposes of
apportioning investment in such equipment except that any Central office
equipment attributable to local transport shall be assigned to the
Transport elements.
    (b) COE Category 1 (Operator Systems Equipment) shall be apportioned
among the interexchange category and the access elements as follows:
Category 1 that is used for intercept services shall be assigned to the
Local Switching element. Category 1 that is used for directory
assistance shall be assigned to the Information element. Category 1
other than service observation boards that is not assigned to the
Information element and is not used for intercept services shall be
assigned to the interexchange category. Service observation boards shall
be apportioned among the interexchange category, and the Information and
Transport access elements based on the remaining combined investment in
COE Category 1, Category 2 and Category 3.
    (c) COE Category 2 (Tandem Switching Equipment) that is deemed to be
exchange equipment for purposes of the Modification of Final Judgment in
United States v. Western Electric Co. shall be assigned to the tandem
switching charge subelement and the interconnection charge element. COE
Category 2 which is associated with the signal transfer point function
shall be assigned to the local switching category. COE Category 2 which
is used to provide transmission facilities between the local exchange
carrier's signalling transfer point and the database shall be assigned
to the Line Information Database subelement at Sec. 69.120(a). All
other COE Category 2 shall be assigned to the interexchange category.
    (d) COE Category 3 (Local Switching Equipment) shall be assigned to
the Local Switching element except as provided in paragraph (a) of this
section; and that,
    (1) For telephone companies subject to price cap regulation set
forth in part 61 of this chapter, line-side port costs shall be assigned
to the Common Line rate element; and
    (2) Until June 30, 2012, for non-price cap local exchange carriers,
line-side port costs shall be assigned to the Common Line rate element.
Such amount shall be determined after any local switching support has
been removed from the interstate Local Switching revenue requirement.
Non-price cap local exchange carriers may use thirty percent of the
interstate Local Switching revenue requirement, minus any local
switching support, as a proxy for allocating line port costs to the
Common Line category.
    (3) Beginning July 1, 2012, a non-price cap local exchange carrier
shall assign line-side port costs to the Common Line rate element equal
to the amount of line-side port costs it shifted in its 2011 projected
Interstate Switched Access Revenue Requirement.
    (e) COE Category 4 (Circuit Equipment) shall be apportioned among
the

[[Page 531]]

interexchange category and the Common Line, Transport, and Special
Access elements. COE Category 4 shall be apportioned in the same
proportions as the associated Cable and Wireless Facilities; except that
any DS1/voice-grade multiplexer investment associated with analog local
switches and assigned to the local transport category by this section
shall be reallocated to the local switching category.

[52 FR 37312, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 57 FR 54722, Nov. 20, 1992; 58
FR 30995, May 28, 1993; 62 FR 31938, June 11, 1997; 66 FR 59732, Nov.
30, 2001; 78 FR 26269, May 6, 2013]



Sec. 69.307  General support facilities.

    (a) General purpose computer investment used in the provision of the
Line Information Database sub-element at Sec. 69.120(b) shall be
assigned to that sub-element.
    (b) General purpose computer investment used in the provision of the
billing name and address element at Sec. 69.128 shall be assigned to
that element.
    (c)(1) Until June 30, 2002, for all local exchange carriers not
subject to price cap regulation and for other carriers that acquire all
of the billing and collection services that they provide to
interexchange carriers from unregulated affiliates through affiliate
transactions, from unaffiliated third parties, or from both of these
sources, all other General Support Facilities investments shall be
apportioned among the interexchange category, the billing and collection
category, and Common Line, Local Switching, Information, Transport, and
Special Access elements on the basis of Central Office Equipment,
Information Origination/Termination Equipment, and Cable and Wire
Facilities, combined.
    (2) Beginning July 1, 2002, for all local exchange carriers that
acquire all of the billing and collection services that they provide to
interexchange carriers from unregulated affiliates through affiliate
transactions, from unaffiliated third parties, or from both of these
sources, all other General Support Facilities investments shall be
apportioned among the interexchange category, the billing and collection
category, and Common Line, Local Switching, Information, Transport, and
Special Access elements on the basis of Central Office Equipment,
Information Origination/Termination Equipment, and Cable and Wire
Facilities, combined.
    (d) For local exchange carriers subject to price cap regulation and
not covered by Section 69.307(c), a portion of General purpose computer
investment (Account 2124), investment in Land (Account 2111), Buildings
(Account 2121), and Office equipment (Account 2123) shall be apportioned
to the billing and collection category on the basis of the Big Three
Expense Factors allocator, defined in Section 69.2 of this Part,
modified to exclude expenses that are apportioned on the basis of
allocators that include General Support Facilities investment. The
remaining portion of investment in these four accounts together with all
other General Support Facilities investments shall be apportioned among
the interexchange category, the billing and collection category, and
Common Line, Local Switching, Information, Transport, and Special Access
Elements on the basis of Central Office Equipment, Information
Origination/Termination Equipment, and Cable and Wire Facilities,
combined.
    (e) Beginning July 1, 2002, for non-price cap local exchange
carriers not covered by Sec. 69.307(c)(2), a portion of General purpose
computer investment shall be apportioned to the billing and collection
category on the basis of the Big Three Expense Factors allocator,
defined in Sec. 69.2, modified to exclude expenses that are apportioned
on the basis of allocators that include General Support Facilities
investment. The remaining General Support Facilities investments shall
be apportioned among the interexchange category, the billing and
collection category, and Common Line, Local Switching, Information,
Transport, and Special Access Elements on the basis of Central Office
Equipment, Information Origination/Termination Equipment, and Cable and
Wire Facilities, combined.

[58 FR 30995, May 28, 1993, as amended at 58 FR 36145, July 6, 1993; 62
FR 31939, June 11, 1997; 62 FR 40464, July 29, 1997; 62 FR 65622, Dec.
15, 1997; 66 FR 59732, Nov. 30, 2001]

[[Page 532]]



Sec. 69.308  [Reserved]



Sec. 69.309  Other investment.

    Investment that is not apportioned pursuant to Sec. Sec. 69.302
through 69.307 shall be apportioned among the interexchange category,
the billing and collection category and access elements in the same
proportions as the combined investment that is apportioned pursuant to
Sec. Sec. 69.303 through 69.307.

[62 FR 31939, June 11, 1997]



Sec. 69.310  Capital leases.

    Capital Leases in Account 2680 shall be directly assigned to the
appropriate interexchange category or access elements consistent with
the treatment prescribed for similar plant costs or shall be apportioned
in the same manner as Account 2001.



                   Subpart E_Apportionment of Expenses

    Source: 52 FR 37313, Oct. 6, 1987, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 69.401  Direct expenses.

    (a) Plant Specific Operations Expenses in Accounts 6110 and 6120
shall be apportioned among the interexchange category, the billing and
collection category and appropriate access elements on the following
basis:
    (1) Account 6110--Apportion on the basis of other investment
apportioned pursuant to Sec. 69.309.
    (2) Account 6120--Apportion on the basis of General and Support
Facilities investment pursuant to Sec. 69.307.
    (b) Plant Specific Operations Expenses in Accounts 6210, 6220, and
6230, shall be apportioned among the interexchange category and access
elements on the basis of the apportionment of the investment in Accounts
2210, 2220, and 2230, respectively; provided that any expenses
associated with DS1/voice-grade multiplexers, to the extent that they
are not associated with an analog tandem switch, assigned to the local
transport category by this paragraph shall be reallocated to the local
switching category; provided further that any expenses associated with
common channel signalling included in Account 6210 shall be assigned to
the local transport category.
    (c) Plant Specific Operations Expenses in Accounts 6310 and 6410
shall be assigned to the appropriate investment category and shall be
apportioned among the interexchange category and access elements in the
same proportions as the total associated investment.
    (d) Plant Non Specific Operations Expenses in Accounts 6510 and 6530
shall be apportioned among the interchange category, the billing and
collection category, and access elements in the same proportions as the
combined investment in COE, IOT, and C&WF apportioned to each element
and category.
    (e) Plant Non Specific Operations Expenses in Account 6540 shall be
assigned to the interexchange category.
    (f) Plant Non Specific Operations Expenses in Account 6560 shall be
apportioned among the interexchange category, the billing and collection
category, and access elements in the same proportion as the associated
investment.
    (g) Amortization of embedded customer premises wiring investment
shall be deemed to be associated with Sec. 69.303(b) IOT investment for
purposes of the apportionment described in paragraph (c) of this
section.

[52 FR 37313, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 62 FR 31939, June 11, 1997]



Sec. 69.402  Operating taxes (Account 7200).

    (a) Federal income taxes, state and local income taxes, and state
and local gross receipts or gross earnings taxes that are collected in
lieu of a corporate income tax shall be apportioned among the
interexchange category, the billing and collection category and all
access elements based on the approximate net taxable income on which the
tax is levied (positive or negative) applicable to each element and
category.
    (b) All other operating taxes shall be apportioned among the
interexchange category, the billing and collection category and all
access elements in the same manner as the investment apportioned to each
element and category pursuant to Sec. 69.309 Other Investment.

[[Page 533]]



Sec. 69.403  Marketing expense (Account 6610).

    Marketing expense shall be apportioned among the interexchange
category and all access elements in the same proportions as the combined
investment that is apportioned pursuant to Sec. 69.309.



Sec. 69.404  Telephone operator services expenses in Account 6620.

    Telephone Operator Services expenses shall be apportioned among the
interexchange category, and the Local Switching and Information elements
based on the relative number of weighted standard work seconds. For
those companies who contract with another company for the provision of
these services, the expenses incurred shall be directly assigned among
the interexchange category and the Local Switching and Information
elements on the basis of the bill rendered for the services provided.



Sec. 69.405  Published directory expenses in Account 6620.

    Published Directory expenses shall be assigned to the Information
element.



Sec. 69.406  Local business office expenses in Account 6620.

    (a) Local business office expenses shall be assigned as follows:
    (1) End user service order processing expenses attributable to
presubscription shall be apportioned among the Common Line, Switching,
and Transport elements in the same proportion as the investment
apportioned to those elements pursuant to Sec. 69.309.
    (2) End user service order processing, payment and collection, and
billing inquiry expenses attributable to the company's own interstate
private line and special access service shall be assigned to the Special
Access element.
    (3) End user service order processing, payment and collection, and
billing inquiry expenses attributable to interstate private line service
offered by an interexhange carrier shall be assigned to the billing and
collection category.
    (4) End user service order processing, payment and collection, and
billing inquiry expenses attributable to the company's own interstate
message toll service shall be assigned to the interexchange category.
End user service order processing, payment and collection, and billing
inquiry expenses attributable to interstate message toll service offered
by an interexchange carrier shall be assigned to the billing and
collection category. End user payment and collection and billing inquiry
expenses attributable to End User Common Line access billing shall be
assigned to the Common Line element.
    (5) End user service order processing, payment and collection, and
billing inquiry expenses attributable to TWX service shall be assigned
to the Special Access element.
    (6) Interexchange carrier service order processing, payment and
collection, and billing inquiry expenses attributable to private lines
and special access shall be assigned to the Special Access element.
    (7) Interexchange carrier service order processing, payment and
collection, and billing inquiry expenses attributable to interstate
switched access and message toll, shall be apportioned among the Common
Line, Local Switching and Transport elements in the same proportion as
the investment apportioned to those elements pursuant to Sec. 69.309.
    (8) Interexchange carrier service order processing, payment and
collection, and billing inquiry expenses attributable to billing and
collection service shall be assigned to the billing and collection
category.

[52 FR 37313, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 62 FR 31939, June 11, 1997]



Sec. 69.407  Revenue accounting expenses in Account 6620.

    (a) Revenue accounting expenses that are attributable to End User
Common Line access billings shall be assigned to the Common Line
element.
    (b) Revenue Accounting Expenses that are attributable to carrier's
carrier access billing and collecting expense shall be apportioned among
all carrier's carrier access elements except the Common Line element.
Such expenses shall be apportioned in the same proportion as the
combined investment in COE, C&WF and IOT apportioned to those elements.

[[Page 534]]

    (c) Revenue Accounting Expenses allocated to the interstate
jurisdiction that are attributable to the provision of billing name and
address information shall be assigned to the Billing Name and Address
element.
    (d) All other Revenue Accounting Expenses shall be assigned to the
billing and collection category.

[52 FR 37313, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 58 FR 65671, Dec. 16, 1993]



Sec. 69.408  All other customer services expenses in Account 6620.

    All other customer services expenses shall be apportioned among the
Interexchange category, the billing and collection category and all
access elements based on the combined expenses in Sec. Sec. 69.404
through 69.407.

[52 FR 37313, Oct. 6, 1987, as amended at 54 FR 3456, Jan. 24, 1989]



Sec. 69.409  Corporate operations expenses (included in Account 6720).

    All corporate operations expenses shall be apportioned among the
interexchange category, the billing and collection category and all
access elements in accordance with the Big 3 Expense Factor as defined
in Sec. 69.2(f).



Sec. 69.411  Other expenses.

    Except as provided in Sec. Sec. 69.412, 69.413, and 69.414,
expenses that are not apportioned pursuant to Sec. Sec. 69.401 through
69.409 shall be apportioned among the interexchange category and all
access elements in the same manner as Sec. 69.309 Other investment.

[62 FR 31639, June 11, 1997]



Sec. 69.412  Non participating company payments/receipts.

    For telephone companies that are not association Common Line tariff
participants, the payment or receipt of funds described in Sec.
69.612(a) and (b) shall be apportioned, respectively, as an addition to
or a deduction from their common line revenue requirement.



Sec. 69.413  High cost loop support universal service fund expenses.

    Beginning April 1, 1989, expenses allocated to the interstate
jurisdiction pursuant to Sec. Sec. 54.1310 and 36.641 of this chapter
shall be assigned to the Universal Service Fund Element.

[79 FR 39193, July 9, 2014]



Sec. 69.414  Lifeline assistance expenses.

    Expenses allocated to the interstate jurisdiction pursuant to Sec.
36.741 shall be assigned to the Carrier Common Line element until March
31, 1989. Beginning April 1, 1989, such expenses shall be assigned to
the Lifeline Assistance element.



Sec. 69.415  Reallocation of certain transport expenses.

    (a) Beginning January 1, 2002, non-price cap local exchange carriers
shall reallocate a portion of the costs otherwise assigned to the
transport category to the common line, local switching, information, and
special access elements.
    (b) Until June 30, 2012, the amount to be reallocated is limited to
the total revenues recovered through the interconnection charge assessed
pursuant to Sec. 69.124 for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2001.
    (c) Until June 30, 2012, the reallocation of the amount in paragraph
(b) of this section shall be based on each access element's projected
revenue requirement divided by the total revenue requirement of all the
access elements, provided that:
    (1) Local switching support shall not be included in the local
switching category's projected revenue requirement, or in the total
projected revenue requirement;
    (2) A non-price cap local exchange carrier's universal service
contribution shall not be included in the numerator or the denominator
of the allocation formula;
    (3) The amount determined in paragraph (b) of this section shall be
excluded from the transport revenue requirement and from the total
projected revenue requirement for purposes of the allocation
calculations; and
    (4) The common line revenue requirement shall include Interstate
Common Line Support as provided in Sec. 54.901 of this chapter.
    (d) Beginning July 1, 2012, the amount of the Transport
Interconnection Charges to be reallocated to each category shall be
equal to the amount

[[Page 535]]

of Transport Interconnection Charge costs the non-price cap local
exchange carrier was projected to shift to each category in projecting
its 2011 Interstate Switched Access Revenue Requirement.

[66 FR 59733, Nov. 30, 2001, as amended at 78 FR 5750, Jan. 28, 2013; 78
FR 26269, May 6, 2013]



    Subpart F_Segregation of Common Line Element Revenue Requirement



Sec. 69.501  General.

    (a) [Reserved]
    (b) Until December 31, 2001, any portion of the Common Line element
annual revenue requirement that is attributable to CPE investment or
expense or surrogate CPE investment or expense shall be assigned to the
Carrier Common Line element or elements.
    (c) Until December 31, 2001, any portion of the Common Line element
annual revenue requirement that is attributable to customer premises
wiring included in IOT investment or expense shall be assigned to the
Carrier Common Line element or elements.
    (d) [Reserved]
    (e) Until December 31, 2001, any portion of the Common Line element
revenue requirement that is not assigned to Carrier Common Line elements
pursuant to paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section shall be apportioned
between End User Common Line and Carrier Common Line pursuant to Sec.
69.502. Such portion of the Common Line element annual revenue
requirement shall be described as the base factor portion for purposes
of this subpart.
    (f) Beginning January 1, 2002, the Common Line element revenue
requirement shall be apportioned between End User Common Line and
Carrier Common Line pursuant to Sec. 69.502. The Common Line element
annual revenue requirement shall be described as the base factor portion
for purposes of this subpart.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 50 FR 18262, Apr. 30, 1985;
52 FR 21542, June 8, 1987; 52 FR 37314, Oct. 6, 1987; 61 FR 65364, Dec.
12, 1996; 62 FR 31939, June 11, 1997; 66 FR 59733, Nov. 30, 2001]



Sec. 69.502  Base factor allocation.

    Projected revenues from the following shall be deducted from the
base factor portion to determine the amount that is assigned to the
Carrier Common Line element:
    (a) End User Common Line charges, less any marketing expense
revenues recovered through end user common line charges pursuant to
Sec. 69.156;
    (b) Special Access surcharges; and
    (c) Beginning July 1, 2002, the portion of per-line support that
carriers receive pursuant to Sec. 54.901 of this chapter; and
    (d) Line port costs in excess of basic analog service pursuant to
Sec. 69.130.

[62 FR 31939, June 11, 1997, as amended at 62 FR 40464, July 29, 1997;
66 FR 59733, Nov. 30, 2001; 78 FR 5750, Jan. 28, 2013]



                 Subpart G_Exchange Carrier Association



Sec. 69.601  Exchange carrier association.

    (a) An association shall be established in order to prepare and file
access charge tariffs on behalf of all telephone companies that do not
file separate tariffs or concur in a joint access tariff of another
telephone company for all access elements.
    (b) All telephone companies that participate in the distribution of
Carrier Common Line revenue requirement, pay long term support to
association Common Line tariff participants, or receive payments from
the transitional support fund administered by the association shall be
deemed to be members of the association.
    (c) All data submissions to the association required by this title
shall be accompanied by the following certification statement signed by
the officer or employee responsible for the overall preparation for the
data submission:

                              Certification

    I am (title of certifying officer or employee). I hereby certify
that I have overall responsibility for the preparation of all data in
the attached data submission for (name of carrier) and that I am
authorized to execute this certification. Based on information known to
me or provided to me by employees responsible for the preparation of the
data in this submission, I hereby certify that the data have been
examined and reviewed and are complete, accurate, and consistent with

[[Page 536]]

the rules of the Federal Communications Commission.
Date:___________________________________________________________________

Name:___________________________________________________________________

Title:__________________________________________________________________

(Persons making willful false statements in this data submission can be
punished by fine or imprisonment under the provisions of the U.S. Code,
Title 18, Section 1001).

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 52 FR 21542, June 8, 1987; 60
FR 19530, Apr. 19, 1995]



Sec. 69.602  Board of directors.

    (a) For purposes of this section, the association membership shall
be divided into three subsets:
    (1) The first subset shall consist of the telephone companies owned
and operated by the seven Regional Bell Holding Companies;
    (2) The second subset shall consist of all other telephone companies
with annual operating revenues in excess of forty million dollars;
    (3) The third subset shall consist of all other telephone companies.
All commonly controlled companies shall be deemed to be one company for
purposes of this section.
    (b) There shall be fifteen directors of the association.
    (c) Two directors shall represent the first subset, two directors
shall represent the second subset, six directors shall represent the
third subset, and five directors shall represent all three subsets.
    (d) No director who represents all three subsets shall be a current
or former officer or employee of the association or of any association
member, or have a business relationship or other interest that could
interfere with his or her exercise of independent judgment.
    (e) Each subset of the association membership shall select the
directors who will represent it through elections in which each member
of the subset shall be entitled to one vote for each director position
within that subset.
    (f) The association membership shall select the directors who will
represent all three subsets through an election in which each member of
the association shall be entitled to one vote for each director
position. No director representing all three subsets may serve for more
than six consecutive calendar years without standing for an election in
which that director is opposed by at least one other candidate meeting
the qualifications in paragraph (d) of this section.
    (g) At least one director representing all three subsets shall be a
member of each committee of association directors.
    (h) For each access element or group of access elements for which
voluntary pooling is permitted, there shall be a committee that is
responsible for the preparation of charges for the associated access
elements that comply with all applicable sections in this part.

[60 FR 19530, Apr. 19, 1995, as amended at 68 FR 46502, Aug. 6, 2003]



Sec. 69.603  Association functions.

    (a) The Association shall not engage in any activity that is not
related to the preparation of access charge tariffs or the collection
and distribution of access charge revenues or the operation of a billing
and collection pool on an untariffed basis unless such activity is
expressly authorized by order of the Commission.
    (b) Participation in Commission or court proceedings relating to
access charge tariffs, the billing and collection of access charges, the
distribution of access charge revenues, or the operation of a billing
and collection pool on an untariffed basis shall be deemed to be
authorized association activities.
    (c)-(e) [Reserved]
    (f) The association shall also prepare and file an access charge
tariff containing terms and conditions for access service and form for
the filing of rate schedules by telephone companies that choose to
reference these terms and conditions while filing their own access
rates.
    (g) The association shall divide the expenses of its operations into
two categories. The first category (``Category I Expenses'') shall
consist of those expenses that are associated with the preparation,
defense, and modification of association tariffs, those expenses that
are associated with the administration of pooled receipts and
distributions of exchange carrier revenues resulting from association
tariffs, those

[[Page 537]]

expenses that are associated with association functions pursuant to
Sec. 69.603 (c)-(g), and those expenses that pertain to Commission
proceedings involving subpart G of part 69 of the Commission's rules.
The second category (``Category II Expenses'') shall consist of all
other association expenses. Category I Expenses shall be sub-divided
into three components in proportion to the revenues associated with each
component. The first component (``Category I.A Expenses'') shall be in
proportion to the Universal Service Fund and Lifeline Assistance
revenues. The second component (``Category I.B Expenses'') shall be in
proportion to the sum of the association End User Common Line revenues,
the association Carrier Common Line revenues, the association Special
Access Surcharge revenues, the Long Term Support payments and the
Transitional Support payments. Beginning July 1, 2002, Interstate Common
Line Support revenues shall be included in the allocation base for
Category I.B expenses. The third component (``Category I.C Expenses'')
shall be in proportion to the revenues from all other association
interstate access charges.
    (h)(1) The revenue requirement for association tariffs filed
pursuant to Sec. 69.4(c) shall not include any association expenses
other than Category I.A Expenses.
    (2) The revenue requirement for association tariffs filed pursuant
to Sec. 69.4 (a) and (b)(2) shall not include any Association expenses
other than Category I.B Expenses.
    (3) The revenue requirement for association tariffs filed pursuant
to Sec. 69.4(b) (1) and (3)-(7) shall not include any association
expenses other than Category I.C Expenses.
    (4) No distribution to an exchange carrier of Universal Service Fund
and Lifeline Assistance revenues shall include adjustments for
association expenses other than Category I.A Expenses.
    (5) No distribution to an exchange carrier of revenues from
association End User Common Line or Carrier Common Line charges, Special
Access Surcharges or Long Term Support or Transitional Support payments
shall include adjustments for association expenses other than Category
I.B Expenses. Beginning July 1, 2002, Interstate Common Line Support
shall be subject to this provision.
    (6) No distribution to an exchange carrier of revenues from
association interstate access charges other than End User Common Line
and Carrier Common Line charges and Special Access Surcharges shall
include adjustments for association expenses other than Category I.C
Expenses.
    (7) The association shall separately identify all Category I.A, I.B
and I.C expenses in cost support materials filed with each annual
association access tariff filing.

[54 FR 8197, Feb. 27, 1989, as amended at 54 FR 8199, Feb. 27, 1989; 62
FR 41306, Aug. 1, 1997; 63 FR 70578, Dec. 21, 1998; 66 FR 59733, Nov.
30, 2001]



Sec. 69.604  Billing and collection of access charges.

    (a) Telephone companies shall bill and collect all access charges
except those charges specified in Sec. Sec. 69.116 and 69.117.
    (b) All access charges shall be billed monthly.

[51 FR 9012, Mar. 17, 1986, as amended at 52 FR 21543, June 8, 1987]



Sec. 69.605  Reporting and distribution of pool access revenues.

    (a) Access revenues and cost data shall be reported by participants
in association tariffs to the association for computation of monthly
pool revenues distributions in accordance with this subpart.
    (b) Association expenses incurred during the month that are
allowable access charge expenses shall be reimbursed before any other
funds are disbursed.
    (c) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this section, payments to
average schedule companies that are computed in accordance with Sec.
69.606 shall be disbursed before any other funds are disbursed. For
purposes of this part, a telephone company that was participating in
average schedule settlements on December 1, 1982, shall be deemed to be
an average schedule company except that any company that does not join
in

[[Page 538]]

association tariffs for all access elements shall not be deemed to be an
average schedule company.
    (d) The residue shall be disbursed to telephone companies that are
not average schedule companies in accordance with Sec. Sec. 69.607
through 69.610.
    (e) The association shall submit a report on or before February 1 of
each calendar year describing the association's cost study review
process for the preceding calendar year as well as the results of that
process. For any revisions to cost study results made or recommended by
the association that would change the respective carrier's calculated
annual common line or traffic sensitive revenue requirement by ten
percent or more, the report shall include the following information:
    (1) The name of the carrier;
    (2) A detailed description of the revisions;
    (3) The amount of the revisions;
    (4) The impact of the revisions on the carrier's calculated common
line and traffic sensitive revenue requirements; and
    (5) The carrier's total annual common line and traffic sensitive
revenue requirement.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 51 FR 17027, May 8, 1986; 52
FR 21543, June 8, 1987; 54 FR 11537, Mar. 21, 1989; 60 FR 19530, Apr.
19, 1995]



Sec. 69.606  Computation of average schedule company payments.

    (a) Payments shall be made in accordance with a formula approved or
modified by the Commission. Such formula shall be designed to produce
disbursements to an average schedule company that simulate the
disbursements that would be received pursuant to Sec. 69.607 by a
company that is representative of average schedule companies.
    (b) The association shall submit a proposed revision of the formula
for each annual period subsequent to December 31, 1986, or certify that
a majority of the directors of the association believe that no revisions
are warranted for such period on or before December 31 of the preceding
year.

(47 U.S.C. 154 (i) and (j), 201, 202, 203, 205, 218 and 403 and 5 U.S.C.
553)

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 50 FR 41356, Oct. 10, 1985;
55 FR 6990, Feb. 28, 1990]



Sec. 69.607  Disbursement of Carrier Common Line residue.

    (a) The association shall compute a monthly net balance for each
member telephone company that is not an average schedule company. If
such a company has a negative net balance, the association shall bill
that amount to such company. If such a company has a positive net
balance, the association shall disburse that amount to such company.
    (b) The net balance for such a company shall be computed by
multiplying a hypothetical net balance for such a company by a factor
that is computed by dividing the Carrier Common Line residue by the sum
of the hypothetical net balances for such companies.
    (c) The hypothetical net balance for each company shall be the sum
of the hypothetical net balances for each access element. Such
hypothetical net balances shall be computed in accordance with
Sec. Sec. 69.608 to 69.610.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 51 FR 42237, Nov. 24, 1986]



Sec. 69.608  Carrier Common Line hypothetical net balance.

    The hypothetical net balance shall be equal to a Carrier Common Line
revenue requirement for each such company that is computed in accordance
with subpart F of this part.



Sec. 69.609  End User Common Line hypothetical net balances.

    (a) If the company does not participate in the association tariff
for such element, the hypothetical net balance shall be zero.
    (b) If the company does participate in the association tariff for
such element, the hypothetical net balance shall be computed by
multiplying an amount that is computed by deducting access revenues
collected by such company for such element from an End User Common Line
revenue requirement for such

[[Page 539]]

company that is computed in accordance with subpart F of this part by a
factor that is computed by dividing access revenues collected by all
such companies for such element by an End User Common Line revenue
requirement for all such companies that is computed in accordance with
subpart F of this part. For purposes of this calculation, access
revenues collected shall include any revenues foregone because of a
voluntary reduction made pursuant to Sec. 69.104(r)(7).

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 66 FR 59733, Nov. 30, 2001]



Sec. 69.610  Other hypothetical net balances.

    (a) The hypothetical net balance for an access element other than a
Common Line element shall be computed as provided in this section.
    (b) If the company does not participate in the association tariff
for such element, the hypothetical net balance shall be zero.
    (c) If the company does participate in the association tariff for
such element, the hypothetical net balance shall be computed by
deducting access revenues collected for such element from the sum of
expense attributable to such element and the element residue apportioned
to such company. The element residue shall be apportioned among such
companies in the same proportions as the net investment attributable to
such element.
    (d) The element residue shall be computed by deducting expenses of
all participating companies attributable to such element from revenues
collected by all participating companies for such element.

[48 FR 10358, Mar. 11, 1983, as amended at 51 FR 42237, Nov. 24, 1986]



                      Subpart H_Pricing Flexibility

    Source: 64 FR 51267, Sept. 22, 1999, unless otherwise noted.



Sec. 69.701  Application of rules in this subpart.

    The rules in this subpart apply to all incumbent LECs subject to
price cap regulation, as defined in Sec. 61.3(x) of this chapter,
seeking pricing flexibility on the basis of the development of
competition in parts of its service area.



Sec. 69.703  Definitions.

    For purposes of this subpart:
    (a) Channel terminations. (1) A channel termination between an IXC
POP and a serving wire center is a dedicated channel connecting an IXC
POP and a serving wire center, offered for purposes of carrying special
access traffic.
    (2) A channel termination between a LEC end office and a customer
premises is a dedicated channel connecting a LEC end office and a
customer premises, offered for purposes of carrying special access
traffic.
    (b) Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). This term shall have the
definition provided in Sec. 22.909(a) of this chapter.
    (c) Interexchange Carrier Point of Presence (IXC POP). The point of
interconnection between an interexchange carrier's network and a local
exchange carrier's network.
    (d) Wire center. For purposes of this subpart, the term ``wire
center'' shall refer to any location at which an incumbent LEC is
required to provide expanded interconnection for special access pursuant
to Sec. 64.1401(a) of this chapter, and any location at which an
incumbent LEC is required to provide expanded interconnection for
switched transport pursuant to Sec. 64.1401(b)(1) of this chapter.
    (e) Study area. A common carrier's entire service area within a
state.



Sec. 69.705  Procedure.

    Price cap LECs filing petitions for pricing flexibility shall follow
the procedures set forth in Sec. 1.774 of this chapter.



Sec. 69.707  Geographic scope of petition.

    (a) MSA. (1) A price cap LEC filing a petition for pricing
flexibility in an MSA shall include data sufficient to support its
petition, as set forth in this subpart, disaggregated by MSA.
    (2) A price cap LEC may request pricing flexibility for two or more
MSAs in a single petition, provided that it submits supporting data
disaggregated by MSA.
    (b) Non-MSA. (1) A price cap LEC will receive pricing flexibility
with respect

[[Page 540]]

to those parts of a study area that fall outside of any MSA, provided
that it provides data sufficient to support a finding that competitors
have collocated in a number of wire centers in that non-MSA region
sufficient to satisfy the criteria for the pricing flexibility sought in
the petition, as set forth in this subpart, if the region at issue were
an MSA.
    (2) The petitioner may aggregate data for all the non-MSA regions in
a single study area for which it requests pricing flexibility in its
petition.
    (3) A petitioner may request pricing flexibility in the non-MSA
regions of two or more of its study areas, provided that it submits
supporting data disaggregated by study area.



Sec. 69.709  Dedicated transport and special access services other than
channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer premises.

    (a) Scope. This paragraph governs requests for pricing flexibility
with respect to the following services:
    (1) Entrance facilities, as described in Sec. 69.110.
    (2) Transport of traffic over dedicated transport facilities between
the serving wire center and the tandem switching office, as described in
Sec. 69.111(a)(2)(iii).
    (3) Direct-trunked transport, as described in Sec. 69.112.
    (4) Special access services, as described in Sec. 69.114, other
than channel terminations as defined in Sec. 69.703(a)(2) of this part.
    (b) Phase I triggers. To obtain Phase I pricing flexibility, as
specified in Sec. 69.727(a) of this part, for the services described in
paragraph (a) of this section, a price cap LEC must show that, in the
relevant area as described in Sec. 69.707 of this part, competitors
unaffiliated with the price cap LEC have collocated:
    (1) In fifteen percent of the petitioner's wire centers, and that at
least one such collocator in each wire center is using transport
facilities owned by a transport provider other than the price cap LEC to
transport traffic from that wire center; or
    (2) In wire centers accounting for 30 percent of the petitioner's
revenues from dedicated transport and special access services other than
channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer premises,
determined as specified in Sec. 69.725 of this part, and that at least
one such collocator in each wire center is using transport facilities
owned by a transport provider other than the price cap LEC to transport
traffic from that wire center.
    (c) Phase II triggers. To obtain Phase II pricing flexibility, as
specified in Sec. 69.727(b) of this part, for the services described in
paragraph (a) of this section, a price cap LEC must show that, in the
relevant area as described in Sec. 69.707 of this part, competitors
unaffiliated with the price cap LEC have collocated:
    (1) in 50 percent of the petitioner's wire centers, and that at
least one such collocator in each wire center is using transport
facilities owned by a transport provider other than the price cap LEC to
transport traffic from that wire center; or
    (2) in wire centers accounting for 65 percent of the petitioner's
revenues from dedicated transport and special access services other than
channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer premises,
determined as specified in Sec. 69.725 of this part, and that at least
one such collocator in each wire center is using transport facilities
owned by a transport provider other than the price cap LEC to transport
traffic from that wire center.



Sec. 69.711  Channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer
premises.

    (a) Scope. This paragraph governs requests for pricing flexibility
with respect to channel terminations between LEC end offices and
customer premises.
    (b) Phase I triggers. To obtain Phase I pricing flexibility, as
specified in Sec. 69.727(a) of this part, for channel terminations
between LEC end offices and customer premises, a price cap LEC must show
that, in the relevant area as described in Sec. 69.707 of this part,
competitors unaffiliated with the price cap LEC have collocated:
    (1) In 50 percent of the petitioner's wire centers, and that at
least one such collocator in each wire center is using transport
facilities owned by a transport provider other than the price cap

[[Page 541]]

LEC to transport traffic from that wire center; or
    (2) In wire centers accounting for 65 percent of the petitioner's
revenues from channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer
premises, determined as specified in Sec. 69.725 of this part, and that
at least one such collocator in each wire center is using transport
facilities owned by a transport provider other than the price cap LEC to
transport traffic from that wire center.
    (c) Phase II triggers. To obtain Phase II pricing flexibility, as
specified in Sec. 69.727(b) of this part, for channel terminations
between LEC end offices and customer premises, a price cap LEC must show
that, in the relevant area as described in Sec. 69.707, competitors
unaffiliated with the price cap LEC have collocated:
    (1) In 65 percent of the petitioner's wire centers, and that at
least one such collocator in each wire center is using transport
facilities owned by a transport provider other than the price cap LEC to
transport traffic from that wire center; or
    (2) In wire centers accounting for 85 percent of the petitioner's
revenues from channel terminations between LEC end offices and customer
premises, determined as specified in Sec. 69.725, and that at least one
such collocator in each wire center is using transport facilities owned
by a transport provider other than the price cap LEC to transport
traffic from that wire center.



Sec. 69.713  Common line, traffic-sensitive, and tandem-switched
transport services.

    (a) Scope. This paragraph governs requests for pricing flexibility
with respect to the following services:
    (1) Common line services, as described in Sec. Sec. 69.152, 69.153,
and 69.154.
    (2) Services in the traffic-sensitive basket, as described in Sec.
61.42(d)(2) of this chapter.
    (3) The traffic-sensitive components of tandem-switched transport
services, as described in Sec. Sec. 69.111(a)(2)(i) and (ii).
    (b) Phase I triggers. (1) To obtain Phase I pricing flexibility, as
specified in Sec. 69.727(a), for the services identified in paragraph
(a) of this section, a price cap LEC must provide convincing evidence
that, in the relevant area as described in Sec. 69.707, its
unaffiliated competitors, in aggregate, offer service to at least 15
percent of the price cap LEC's customer locations.
    (2) For purposes of the showing required by paragraph (b)(1) of this
section, the price cap LEC may not rely on service the competitors
provide solely by reselling the price cap LEC's services, or provide
through unbundled network elements as defined in Sec. 51.5 of this
chapter, except that the price cap LEC may rely on service the
competitors provide through the use of the price cap LEC's unbundled
loops.
    (c) [Reserved]



Sec. Sec. 69.714-69.724  [Reserved]



Sec. 69.725  Attribution of revenues to particular wire centers.

    If a price cap LEC elects to show, in accordance with Sec. 69.709
or Sec. 69.711, that competitors have collocated in wire centers
accounting for a certain percentage of revenues from the services at
issue, the LEC must make the following revenue allocations:
    (a) For entrance facilities and channel terminations between an IXC
POP and a serving wire center, the petitioner shall attribute all the
revenue to the serving wire center.
    (b) For channel terminations between a LEC end office and a customer
premises, the petitioner shall attribute all the revenue to the LEC end
office.
    (c) For any dedicated service routed through multiple wire centers,
the petitioner shall attribute 50 percent of the revenue to the wire
center at each end of the transmission path, unless the petitioner can
make a convincing case in its petition that some other allocation would
be more representative of the extent of competitive entry in the MSA or
the non-MSA parts of the study area at issue.



Sec. 69.727  Regulatory relief.

    (a) Phase I relief. Upon satisfaction of the Phase I triggers
specified in Sec. 69.709(b), Sec. 69.711(b), or Sec. 69.713(b) for an
MSA or the non-MSA parts of a study area, a price cap LEC will be
granted the following regulatory relief in that area for the services
specified in

[[Page 542]]

Sec. 69.709(a), Sec. 69.711(a), or Sec. 69.713(a), respectively:
    (1) Volume and term discounts;
    (2) Contract tariff authority, provided that
    (i) Contract tariff services are made generally available to all
similarly situated customers; and
    (ii) The price cap LEC excludes all contract tariff offerings from
price cap regulation pursuant to Sec. 61.42(f)(1) of this chapter.
    (iii) Before the price cap LEC provides a contract tariffed service,
under Sec. 69.727(a), to one of its long-distance affiliates, as
described in section 272 of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended,
or Sec. 64.1903 of this chapter, the price cap LEC certifies to the
Commission that it provides service pursuant to that contract tariff to
an unaffiliated customer.
    (b) Phase II relief. Upon satisfaction of the Phase II triggers
specified in Sec. 69.709(c) or Sec. 69.711(c) for an MSA or the non-
MSA parts of a study area, a price cap LEC will be granted the following
regulatory relief in that area for the services specified in Sec. Sec.
69.709(a) or 69.711(a), respectively:
    (1) Elimination of the rate structure requirements in subpart B of
this part;
    (2) Elimination of price cap regulation; and
    (3) Filing of tariff revisions on one day's notice, notwithstanding
the notice requirements for tariff filings specified in Sec. 61.58 of
this chapter.



Sec. 69.729  New services.

    (a) Except for new services subject to paragraph (b) of this
section, a price cap LEC may obtain pricing flexibility for a new
service that has not been incorporated into a price cap basket by
demonstrating in its pricing flexibility petition that the new service
would be properly incorporated into one of the price cap baskets and
service bands for which the price cap LEC seeks pricing flexibility.
    (b) Notwithstanding paragraph (a) of this section, a price cap LEC
must demonstrate satisfaction of the triggers in Sec. 69.711(b) to be
granted pricing flexibility for any new service that falls within the
definition of a ``channel termination between a LEC end office and a
customer premises'' as specified in Sec. 69.703(a)(2).



Sec. 69.731  Low-end adjustment mechanism.

    (a) Any price cap LEC obtaining Phase I or Phase II pricing
flexibility for any service in any MSA in its service region, or for the
non-MSA portion of any study area in its service region, shall be
prohibited from making any low-end adjustment pursuant to Sec.
61.45(d)(1)(vii) of this chapter in all or part of its service region.
    (b) Any affiliate of any price cap LEC obtaining Phase I or Phase II
pricing flexibility for any service in any MSA in its service region
shall be prohibited from making any low-end adjustment pursuant to Sec.
61.45(d)(1)(vii) of this chapter in all or part of its service region.

[[Page 543]]



                              FINDING AIDS




  --------------------------------------------------------------------

  A list of CFR titles, subtitles, chapters, subchapters and parts and
an alphabetical list of agencies publishing in the CFR are included in
the CFR Index and Finding Aids volume to the Code of Federal Regulations
which is published separately and revised annually.

  Table of CFR Titles and Chapters
  Alphabetical List of Agencies Appearing in the CFR
  Table of OMB Control Numbers
  List of CFR Sections Affected

[[Page 545]]



                    Table of CFR Titles and Chapters




                     (Revised as of October 1, 2014)

                      Title 1--General Provisions

         I  Administrative Committee of the Federal Register
                (Parts 1--49)
        II  Office of the Federal Register (Parts 50--299)
       III  Administrative Conference of the United States (Parts
                300--399)
        IV  Miscellaneous Agencies (Parts 400--500)

                    Title 2--Grants and Agreements

            Subtitle A--Office of Management and Budget Guidance
                for Grants and Agreements
         I  Office of Management and Budget Governmentwide
                Guidance for Grants and Agreements (Parts 2--199)
        II  Office of Management and Budget Guidance (Parts 200--
                299)
            Subtitle B--Federal Agency Regulations for Grants and
                Agreements
       III  Department of Health and Human Services (Parts 300--
                399)
        IV  Department of Agriculture (Parts 400--499)
        VI  Department of State (Parts 600--699)
       VII  Agency for International Development (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Department of Veterans Affairs (Parts 800--899)
        IX  Department of Energy (Parts 900--999)
        XI  Department of Defense (Parts 1100--1199)
       XII  Department of Transportation (Parts 1200--1299)
      XIII  Department of Commerce (Parts 1300--1399)
       XIV  Department of the Interior (Parts 1400--1499)
        XV  Environmental Protection Agency (Parts 1500--1599)
     XVIII  National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Parts
                1800--1899)
        XX  United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (Parts
                2000--2099)
      XXII  Corporation for National and Community Service (Parts
                2200--2299)
     XXIII  Social Security Administration (Parts 2300--2399)
      XXIV  Housing and Urban Development (Parts 2400--2499)
       XXV  National Science Foundation (Parts 2500--2599)
      XXVI  National Archives and Records Administration (Parts
                2600--2699)
     XXVII  Small Business Administration (Parts 2700--2799)
    XXVIII  Department of Justice (Parts 2800--2899)

[[Page 546]]

       XXX  Department of Homeland Security (Parts 3000--3099)
      XXXI  Institute of Museum and Library Services (Parts 3100--
                3199)
     XXXII  National Endowment for the Arts (Parts 3200--3299)
    XXXIII  National Endowment for the Humanities (Parts 3300--
                3399)
     XXXIV  Department of Education (Parts 3400--3499)
      XXXV  Export-Import Bank of the United States (Parts 3500--
                3599)
    XXXVII  Peace Corps (Parts 3700--3799)
     LVIII  Election Assistance Commission (Parts 5800--5899)

                        Title 3--The President

         I  Executive Office of the President (Parts 100--199)

                           Title 4--Accounts

         I  Government Accountability Office (Parts 1--199)
        II  Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board (Parts
                200--299)

                   Title 5--Administrative Personnel

         I  Office of Personnel Management (Parts 1--1199)
        II  Merit Systems Protection Board (Parts 1200--1299)
       III  Office of Management and Budget (Parts 1300--1399)
         V  The International Organizations Employees Loyalty
                Board (Parts 1500--1599)
        VI  Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (Parts
                1600--1699)
      VIII  Office of Special Counsel (Parts 1800--1899)
        IX  Appalachian Regional Commission (Parts 1900--1999)
        XI  Armed Forces Retirement Home (Parts 2100--2199)
       XIV  Federal Labor Relations Authority, General Counsel of
                the Federal Labor Relations Authority and Federal
                Service Impasses Panel (Parts 2400--2499)
        XV  Office of Administration, Executive Office of the
                President (Parts 2500--2599)
       XVI  Office of Government Ethics (Parts 2600--2699)
       XXI  Department of the Treasury (Parts 3100--3199)
      XXII  Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (Parts 3200--
                3299)
     XXIII  Department of Energy (Parts 3300--3399)
      XXIV  Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Parts 3400--
                3499)
       XXV  Department of the Interior (Parts 3500--3599)
      XXVI  Department of Defense (Parts 3600--3699)
    XXVIII  Department of Justice (Parts 3800--3899)
      XXIX  Federal Communications Commission (Parts 3900--3999)
       XXX  Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation (Parts 4000--
                4099)
      XXXI  Farm Credit Administration (Parts 4100--4199)

[[Page 547]]

    XXXIII  Overseas Private Investment Corporation (Parts 4300--
                4399)
     XXXIV  Securities and Exchange Commission (Parts 4400--4499)
      XXXV  Office of Personnel Management (Parts 4500--4599)
    XXXVII  Federal Election Commission (Parts 4700--4799)
        XL  Interstate Commerce Commission (Parts 5000--5099)
       XLI  Commodity Futures Trading Commission (Parts 5100--
                5199)
      XLII  Department of Labor (Parts 5200--5299)
     XLIII  National Science Foundation (Parts 5300--5399)
       XLV  Department of Health and Human Services (Parts 5500--
                5599)
      XLVI  Postal Rate Commission (Parts 5600--5699)
     XLVII  Federal Trade Commission (Parts 5700--5799)
    XLVIII  Nuclear Regulatory Commission (Parts 5800--5899)
      XLIX  Federal Labor Relations Authority (Parts 5900--5999)
         L  Department of Transportation (Parts 6000--6099)
       LII  Export-Import Bank of the United States (Parts 6200--
                6299)
      LIII  Department of Education (Parts 6300--6399)
       LIV  Environmental Protection Agency (Parts 6400--6499)
        LV  National Endowment for the Arts (Parts 6500--6599)
       LVI  National Endowment for the Humanities (Parts 6600--
                6699)
      LVII  General Services Administration (Parts 6700--6799)
     LVIII  Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
                (Parts 6800--6899)
       LIX  National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Parts
                6900--6999)
        LX  United States Postal Service (Parts 7000--7099)
       LXI  National Labor Relations Board (Parts 7100--7199)
      LXII  Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (Parts 7200--
                7299)
     LXIII  Inter-American Foundation (Parts 7300--7399)
      LXIV  Merit Systems Protection Board (Parts 7400--7499)
       LXV  Department of Housing and Urban Development (Parts
                7500--7599)
      LXVI  National Archives and Records Administration (Parts
                7600--7699)
     LXVII  Institute of Museum and Library Services (Parts 7700--
                7799)
    LXVIII  Commission on Civil Rights (Parts 7800--7899)
      LXIX  Tennessee Valley Authority (Parts 7900--7999)
       LXX  Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the
                District of Columbia (Parts 8000--8099)
      LXXI  Consumer Product Safety Commission (Parts 8100--8199)
    LXXIII  Department of Agriculture (Parts 8300--8399)
     LXXIV  Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission
                (Parts 8400--8499)
     LXXVI  Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (Parts
                8600--8699)
    LXXVII  Office of Management and Budget (Parts 8700--8799)
      LXXX  Federal Housing Finance Agency (Parts 9000--9099)
   LXXXIII  Special Inspector General for Afghanistan
                Reconstruction (Parts 9300--9399)

[[Page 548]]

    LXXXIV  Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Parts 9400--
                9499)
    LXXXVI  National Credit Union Administration (Parts 9600--
                9699)
     XCVII  Department of Homeland Security Human Resources
                Management System (Department of Homeland
                Security--Office of Personnel Management) (Parts
                9700--9799)
     XCVII  Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and
                Efficiency (Parts 9800--9899)
      XCIX  Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization
                Commission (Parts 9900--9999)

                      Title 6--Domestic Security

         I  Department of Homeland Security, Office of the
                Secretary (Parts 1--99)
         X  Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (Parts
                1000--1099)

                         Title 7--Agriculture

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary of Agriculture
                (Parts 0--26)
            Subtitle B--Regulations of the Department of
                Agriculture
         I  Agricultural Marketing Service (Standards,
                Inspections, Marketing Practices), Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 27--209)
        II  Food and Nutrition Service, Department of Agriculture
                (Parts 210--299)
       III  Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Department
                of Agriculture (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 400--499)
         V  Agricultural Research Service, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 500--599)
        VI  Natural Resources Conservation Service, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 600--699)
       VII  Farm Service Agency, Department of Agriculture (Parts
                700--799)
      VIII  Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards
                Administration (Federal Grain Inspection Service),
                Department of Agriculture (Parts 800--899)
        IX  Agricultural Marketing Service (Marketing Agreements
                and Orders; Fruits, Vegetables, Nuts), Department
                of Agriculture (Parts 900--999)
         X  Agricultural Marketing Service (Marketing Agreements
                and Orders; Milk), Department of Agriculture
                (Parts 1000--1199)
        XI  Agricultural Marketing Service (Marketing Agreements
                and Orders; Miscellaneous Commodities), Department
                of Agriculture (Parts 1200--1299)
       XIV  Commodity Credit Corporation, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 1400--1499)
        XV  Foreign Agricultural Service, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 1500--1599)

[[Page 549]]

       XVI  Rural Telephone Bank, Department of Agriculture (Parts
                1600--1699)
      XVII  Rural Utilities Service, Department of Agriculture
                (Parts 1700--1799)
     XVIII  Rural Housing Service, Rural Business-Cooperative
                Service, Rural Utilities Service, and Farm Service
                Agency, Department of Agriculture (Parts 1800--
                2099)
        XX  Local Television Loan Guarantee Board (Parts 2200--
                2299)
       XXV  Office of Advocacy and Outreach, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 2500--2599)
      XXVI  Office of Inspector General, Department of Agriculture
                (Parts 2600--2699)
     XXVII  Office of Information Resources Management, Department
                of Agriculture (Parts 2700--2799)
    XXVIII  Office of Operations, Department of Agriculture (Parts
                2800--2899)
      XXIX  Office of Energy Policy and New Uses, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 2900--2999)
       XXX  Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 3000--3099)
      XXXI  Office of Environmental Quality, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 3100--3199)
     XXXII  Office of Procurement and Property Management,
                Department of Agriculture (Parts 3200--3299)
    XXXIII  Office of Transportation, Department of Agriculture
                (Parts 3300--3399)
     XXXIV  National Institute of Food and Agriculture (Parts
                3400--3499)
      XXXV  Rural Housing Service, Department of Agriculture
                (Parts 3500--3599)
     XXXVI  National Agricultural Statistics Service, Department
                of Agriculture (Parts 3600--3699)
    XXXVII  Economic Research Service, Department of Agriculture
                (Parts 3700--3799)
   XXXVIII  World Agricultural Outlook Board, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 3800--3899)
       XLI  [Reserved]
      XLII  Rural Business-Cooperative Service and Rural Utilities
                Service, Department of Agriculture (Parts 4200--
                4299)

                    Title 8--Aliens and Nationality

         I  Department of Homeland Security (Immigration and
                Naturalization) (Parts 1--499)
         V  Executive Office for Immigration Review, Department of
                Justice (Parts 1000--1399)

                 Title 9--Animals and Animal Products

         I  Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Department
                of Agriculture (Parts 1--199)

[[Page 550]]

        II  Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards
                Administration (Packers and Stockyards Programs),
                Department of Agriculture (Parts 200--299)
       III  Food Safety and Inspection Service, Department of
                Agriculture (Parts 300--599)

                           Title 10--Energy

         I  Nuclear Regulatory Commission (Parts 0--199)
        II  Department of Energy (Parts 200--699)
       III  Department of Energy (Parts 700--999)
         X  Department of Energy (General Provisions) (Parts
                1000--1099)
      XIII  Nuclear Waste Technical Review Board (Parts 1300--
                1399)
      XVII  Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board (Parts 1700--
                1799)
     XVIII  Northeast Interstate Low-Level Radioactive Waste
                Commission (Parts 1800--1899)

                      Title 11--Federal Elections

         I  Federal Election Commission (Parts 1--9099)
        II  Election Assistance Commission (Parts 9400--9499)

                      Title 12--Banks and Banking

         I  Comptroller of the Currency, Department of the
                Treasury (Parts 1--199)
        II  Federal Reserve System (Parts 200--299)
       III  Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Export-Import Bank of the United States (Parts 400--
                499)
         V  Office of Thrift Supervision, Department of the
                Treasury (Parts 500--599)
        VI  Farm Credit Administration (Parts 600--699)
       VII  National Credit Union Administration (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Federal Financing Bank (Parts 800--899)
        IX  Federal Housing Finance Board (Parts 900--999)
         X  Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (Parts 1000--
                1099)
        XI  Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council
                (Parts 1100--1199)
       XII  Federal Housing Finance Agency (Parts 1200--1299)
      XIII  Financial Stability Oversight Council (Parts 1300--
                1399)
       XIV  Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation (Parts 1400--
                1499)
        XV  Department of the Treasury (Parts 1500--1599)
       XVI  Office of Financial Research (Parts 1600--1699)
      XVII  Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight,
                Department of Housing and Urban Development (Parts
                1700--1799)
     XVIII  Community Development Financial Institutions Fund,
                Department of the Treasury (Parts 1800--1899)

[[Page 551]]

               Title 13--Business Credit and Assistance

         I  Small Business Administration (Parts 1--199)
       III  Economic Development Administration, Department of
                Commerce (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Emergency Steel Guarantee Loan Board (Parts 400--499)
         V  Emergency Oil and Gas Guaranteed Loan Board (Parts
                500--599)

                    Title 14--Aeronautics and Space

         I  Federal Aviation Administration, Department of
                Transportation (Parts 1--199)
        II  Office of the Secretary, Department of Transportation
                (Aviation Proceedings) (Parts 200--399)
       III  Commercial Space Transportation, Federal Aviation
                Administration, Department of Transportation
                (Parts 400--1199)
         V  National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Parts
                1200--1299)
        VI  Air Transportation System Stabilization (Parts 1300--
                1399)

                 Title 15--Commerce and Foreign Trade

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary of Commerce (Parts
                0--29)
            Subtitle B--Regulations Relating to Commerce and
                Foreign Trade
         I  Bureau of the Census, Department of Commerce (Parts
                30--199)
        II  National Institute of Standards and Technology,
                Department of Commerce (Parts 200--299)
       III  International Trade Administration, Department of
                Commerce (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Foreign-Trade Zones Board, Department of Commerce
                (Parts 400--499)
       VII  Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of
                Commerce (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Bureau of Economic Analysis, Department of Commerce
                (Parts 800--899)
        IX  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
                Department of Commerce (Parts 900--999)
        XI  Technology Administration, Department of Commerce
                (Parts 1100--1199)
      XIII  East-West Foreign Trade Board (Parts 1300--1399)
       XIV  Minority Business Development Agency (Parts 1400--
                1499)
            Subtitle C--Regulations Relating to Foreign Trade
                Agreements
        XX  Office of the United States Trade Representative
                (Parts 2000--2099)
            Subtitle D--Regulations Relating to Telecommunications
                and Information
     XXIII  National Telecommunications and Information
                Administration, Department of Commerce (Parts
                2300--2399)

[[Page 552]]

                    Title 16--Commercial Practices

         I  Federal Trade Commission (Parts 0--999)
        II  Consumer Product Safety Commission (Parts 1000--1799)

             Title 17--Commodity and Securities Exchanges

         I  Commodity Futures Trading Commission (Parts 1--199)
        II  Securities and Exchange Commission (Parts 200--399)
        IV  Department of the Treasury (Parts 400--499)

          Title 18--Conservation of Power and Water Resources

         I  Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, Department of
                Energy (Parts 1--399)
       III  Delaware River Basin Commission (Parts 400--499)
        VI  Water Resources Council (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Susquehanna River Basin Commission (Parts 800--899)
      XIII  Tennessee Valley Authority (Parts 1300--1399)

                       Title 19--Customs Duties

         I  U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Department of
                Homeland Security; Department of the Treasury
                (Parts 0--199)
        II  United States International Trade Commission (Parts
                200--299)
       III  International Trade Administration, Department of
                Commerce (Parts 300--399)
        IV  U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Department
                of Homeland Security (Parts 400--599)

                     Title 20--Employees' Benefits

         I  Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Department
                of Labor (Parts 1--199)
        II  Railroad Retirement Board (Parts 200--399)
       III  Social Security Administration (Parts 400--499)
        IV  Employees' Compensation Appeals Board, Department of
                Labor (Parts 500--599)
         V  Employment and Training Administration, Department of
                Labor (Parts 600--699)
        VI  Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Department
                of Labor (Parts 700--799)
       VII  Benefits Review Board, Department of Labor (Parts
                800--899)
      VIII  Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries (Parts
                900--999)
        IX  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Veterans'
                Employment and Training Service, Department of
                Labor (Parts 1000--1099)

[[Page 553]]

                       Title 21--Food and Drugs

         I  Food and Drug Administration, Department of Health and
                Human Services (Parts 1--1299)
        II  Drug Enforcement Administration, Department of Justice
                (Parts 1300--1399)
       III  Office of National Drug Control Policy (Parts 1400--
                1499)

                      Title 22--Foreign Relations

         I  Department of State (Parts 1--199)
        II  Agency for International Development (Parts 200--299)
       III  Peace Corps (Parts 300--399)
        IV  International Joint Commission, United States and
                Canada (Parts 400--499)
         V  Broadcasting Board of Governors (Parts 500--599)
       VII  Overseas Private Investment Corporation (Parts 700--
                799)
        IX  Foreign Service Grievance Board (Parts 900--999)
         X  Inter-American Foundation (Parts 1000--1099)
        XI  International Boundary and Water Commission, United
                States and Mexico, United States Section (Parts
                1100--1199)
       XII  United States International Development Cooperation
                Agency (Parts 1200--1299)
      XIII  Millennium Challenge Corporation (Parts 1300--1399)
       XIV  Foreign Service Labor Relations Board; Federal Labor
                Relations Authority; General Counsel of the
                Federal Labor Relations Authority; and the Foreign
                Service Impasse Disputes Panel (Parts 1400--1499)
        XV  African Development Foundation (Parts 1500--1599)
       XVI  Japan-United States Friendship Commission (Parts
                1600--1699)
      XVII  United States Institute of Peace (Parts 1700--1799)

                          Title 23--Highways

         I  Federal Highway Administration, Department of
                Transportation (Parts 1--999)
        II  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and
                Federal Highway Administration, Department of
                Transportation (Parts 1200--1299)
       III  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
                Department of Transportation (Parts 1300--1399)

                Title 24--Housing and Urban Development

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary, Department of
                Housing and Urban Development (Parts 0--99)
            Subtitle B--Regulations Relating to Housing and Urban
                Development
         I  Office of Assistant Secretary for Equal Opportunity,
                Department of Housing and Urban Development (Parts
                100--199)

[[Page 554]]

        II  Office of Assistant Secretary for Housing-Federal
                Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and
                Urban Development (Parts 200--299)
       III  Government National Mortgage Association, Department
                of Housing and Urban Development (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Office of Housing and Office of Multifamily Housing
                Assistance Restructuring, Department of Housing
                and Urban Development (Parts 400--499)
         V  Office of Assistant Secretary for Community Planning
                and Development, Department of Housing and Urban
                Development (Parts 500--599)
        VI  Office of Assistant Secretary for Community Planning
                and Development, Department of Housing and Urban
                Development (Parts 600--699) [Reserved]
       VII  Office of the Secretary, Department of Housing and
                Urban Development (Housing Assistance Programs and
                Public and Indian Housing Programs) (Parts 700--
                799)
      VIII  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Housing--Federal
                Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and
                Urban Development (Section 8 Housing Assistance
                Programs, Section 202 Direct Loan Program, Section
                202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly Program and
                Section 811 Supportive Housing for Persons With
                Disabilities Program) (Parts 800--899)
        IX  Office of Assistant Secretary for Public and Indian
                Housing, Department of Housing and Urban
                Development (Parts 900--1699)
         X  Office of Assistant Secretary for Housing--Federal
                Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and
                Urban Development (Interstate Land Sales
                Registration Program) (Parts 1700--1799)
       XII  Office of Inspector General, Department of Housing and
                Urban Development (Parts 2000--2099)
        XV  Emergency Mortgage Insurance and Loan Programs,
                Department of Housing and Urban Development (Parts
                2700--2799) [Reserved]
        XX  Office of Assistant Secretary for Housing--Federal
                Housing Commissioner, Department of Housing and
                Urban Development (Parts 3200--3899)
      XXIV  Board of Directors of the HOPE for Homeowners Program
                (Parts 4000--4099) [Reserved]
       XXV  Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation (Parts 4100--
                4199)

                           Title 25--Indians

         I  Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior
                (Parts 1--299)
        II  Indian Arts and Crafts Board, Department of the
                Interior (Parts 300--399)
       III  National Indian Gaming Commission, Department of the
                Interior (Parts 500--599)
        IV  Office of Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation (Parts
                700--799)

[[Page 555]]

         V  Bureau of Indian Affairs, Department of the Interior,
                and Indian Health Service, Department of Health
                and Human Services (Part 900)
        VI  Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs,
                Department of the Interior (Parts 1000--1199)
       VII  Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians,
                Department of the Interior (Parts 1200--1299)

                      Title 26--Internal Revenue

         I  Internal Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury
                (Parts 1--End)

           Title 27--Alcohol, Tobacco Products and Firearms

         I  Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, Department
                of the Treasury (Parts 1--399)
        II  Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,
                Department of Justice (Parts 400--699)

                   Title 28--Judicial Administration

         I  Department of Justice (Parts 0--299)
       III  Federal Prison Industries, Inc., Department of Justice
                (Parts 300--399)
         V  Bureau of Prisons, Department of Justice (Parts 500--
                599)
        VI  Offices of Independent Counsel, Department of Justice
                (Parts 600--699)
       VII  Office of Independent Counsel (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency for the
                District of Columbia (Parts 800--899)
        IX  National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact Council
                (Parts 900--999)
        XI  Department of Justice and Department of State (Parts
                1100--1199)

                            Title 29--Labor

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary of Labor (Parts
                0--99)
            Subtitle B--Regulations Relating to Labor
         I  National Labor Relations Board (Parts 100--199)
        II  Office of Labor-Management Standards, Department of
                Labor (Parts 200--299)
       III  National Railroad Adjustment Board (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Office of Labor-Management Standards, Department of
                Labor (Parts 400--499)
         V  Wage and Hour Division, Department of Labor (Parts
                500--899)
        IX  Construction Industry Collective Bargaining Commission
                (Parts 900--999)

[[Page 556]]

         X  National Mediation Board (Parts 1200--1299)
       XII  Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (Parts
                1400--1499)
       XIV  Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (Parts 1600--
                1699)
      XVII  Occupational Safety and Health Administration,
                Department of Labor (Parts 1900--1999)
        XX  Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission
                (Parts 2200--2499)
       XXV  Employee Benefits Security Administration, Department
                of Labor (Parts 2500--2599)
     XXVII  Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission
                (Parts 2700--2799)
        XL  Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (Parts 4000--
                4999)

                      Title 30--Mineral Resources

         I  Mine Safety and Health Administration, Department of
                Labor (Parts 1--199)
        II  Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement,
                Department of the Interior (Parts 200--299)
        IV  Geological Survey, Department of the Interior (Parts
                400--499)
         V  Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Department of the
                Interior (Parts 500--599)
       VII  Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement,
                Department of the Interior (Parts 700--999)
       XII  Office of Natural Resources Revenue, Department of the
                Interior (Parts 1200--1299)

                 Title 31--Money and Finance: Treasury

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary of the Treasury
                (Parts 0--50)
            Subtitle B--Regulations Relating to Money and Finance
         I  Monetary Offices, Department of the Treasury (Parts
                51--199)
        II  Fiscal Service, Department of the Treasury (Parts
                200--399)
        IV  Secret Service, Department of the Treasury (Parts
                400--499)
         V  Office of Foreign Assets Control, Department of the
                Treasury (Parts 500--599)
        VI  Bureau of Engraving and Printing, Department of the
                Treasury (Parts 600--699)
       VII  Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, Department of
                the Treasury (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Office of International Investment, Department of the
                Treasury (Parts 800--899)
        IX  Federal Claims Collection Standards (Department of the
                Treasury--Department of Justice) (Parts 900--999)
         X  Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, Department of
                the Treasury (Parts 1000--1099)

[[Page 557]]

                      Title 32--National Defense

            Subtitle A--Department of Defense
         I  Office of the Secretary of Defense (Parts 1--399)
         V  Department of the Army (Parts 400--699)
        VI  Department of the Navy (Parts 700--799)
       VII  Department of the Air Force (Parts 800--1099)
            Subtitle B--Other Regulations Relating to National
                Defense
       XII  Defense Logistics Agency (Parts 1200--1299)
       XVI  Selective Service System (Parts 1600--1699)
      XVII  Office of the Director of National Intelligence (Parts
                1700--1799)
     XVIII  National Counterintelligence Center (Parts 1800--1899)
       XIX  Central Intelligence Agency (Parts 1900--1999)
        XX  Information Security Oversight Office, National
                Archives and Records Administration (Parts 2000--
                2099)
       XXI  National Security Council (Parts 2100--2199)
      XXIV  Office of Science and Technology Policy (Parts 2400--
                2499)
     XXVII  Office for Micronesian Status Negotiations (Parts
                2700--2799)
    XXVIII  Office of the Vice President of the United States
                (Parts 2800--2899)

               Title 33--Navigation and Navigable Waters

         I  Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security (Parts
                1--199)
        II  Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army (Parts
                200--399)
        IV  Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation,
                Department of Transportation (Parts 400--499)

                          Title 34--Education

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary, Department of
                Education (Parts 1--99)
            Subtitle B--Regulations of the Offices of the
                Department of Education
         I  Office for Civil Rights, Department of Education
                (Parts 100--199)
        II  Office of Elementary and Secondary Education,
                Department of Education (Parts 200--299)
       III  Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative
                Services, Department of Education (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Office of Vocational and Adult Education, Department
                of Education (Parts 400--499)
         V  Office of Bilingual Education and Minority Languages
                Affairs, Department of Education (Parts 500--599)
        VI  Office of Postsecondary Education, Department of
                Education (Parts 600--699)
       VII  Office of Educational Research and Improvement,
                Department of Education (Parts 700--799)[Reserved]
            Subtitle C--Regulations Relating to Education

[[Page 558]]

        XI  National Institute for Literacy (Parts 1100--1199)
       XII  National Council on Disability (Parts 1200--1299)

                          Title 35 [Reserved]

             Title 36--Parks, Forests, and Public Property

         I  National Park Service, Department of the Interior
                (Parts 1--199)
        II  Forest Service, Department of Agriculture (Parts 200--
                299)
       III  Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army (Parts
                300--399)
        IV  American Battle Monuments Commission (Parts 400--499)
         V  Smithsonian Institution (Parts 500--599)
        VI  [Reserved]
       VII  Library of Congress (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (Parts 800--
                899)
        IX  Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation (Parts
                900--999)
         X  Presidio Trust (Parts 1000--1099)
        XI  Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance
                Board (Parts 1100--1199)
       XII  National Archives and Records Administration (Parts
                1200--1299)
        XV  Oklahoma City National Memorial Trust (Parts 1500--
                1599)
       XVI  Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in National
                Environmental Policy Foundation (Parts 1600--1699)

             Title 37--Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights

         I  United States Patent and Trademark Office, Department
                of Commerce (Parts 1--199)
        II  U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress (Parts
                200--299)
       III  Copyright Royalty Board, Library of Congress (Parts
                300--399)
        IV  Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy, Department
                of Commerce (Parts 400--599)

           Title 38--Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief

         I  Department of Veterans Affairs (Parts 0--199)
        II  Armed Forces Retirement Home (Parts 200--299)

                       Title 39--Postal Service

         I  United States Postal Service (Parts 1--999)
       III  Postal Regulatory Commission (Parts 3000--3099)

                  Title 40--Protection of Environment

         I  Environmental Protection Agency (Parts 1--1099)

[[Page 559]]

        IV  Environmental Protection Agency and Department of
                Justice (Parts 1400--1499)
         V  Council on Environmental Quality (Parts 1500--1599)
        VI  Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (Parts
                1600--1699)
       VII  Environmental Protection Agency and Department of
                Defense; Uniform National Discharge Standards for
                Vessels of the Armed Forces (Parts 1700--1799)
      VIII  Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (Parts 1800--
                1899)

          Title 41--Public Contracts and Property Management

            Subtitle A--Federal Procurement Regulations System
                [Note]
            Subtitle B--Other Provisions Relating to Public
                Contracts
        50  Public Contracts, Department of Labor (Parts 50-1--50-
                999)
        51  Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or
                Severely Disabled (Parts 51-1--51-99)
        60  Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, Equal
                Employment Opportunity, Department of Labor (Parts
                60-1--60-999)
        61  Office of the Assistant Secretary for Veterans'
                Employment and Training Service, Department of
                Labor (Parts 61-1--61-999)
   62--100  [Reserved]
            Subtitle C--Federal Property Management Regulations
                System
       101  Federal Property Management Regulations (Parts 101-1--
                101-99)
       102  Federal Management Regulation (Parts 102-1--102-299)
  103--104  [Reserved]
       105  General Services Administration (Parts 105-1--105-999)
       109  Department of Energy Property Management Regulations
                (Parts 109-1--109-99)
       114  Department of the Interior (Parts 114-1--114-99)
       115  Environmental Protection Agency (Parts 115-1--115-99)
       128  Department of Justice (Parts 128-1--128-99)
  129--200  [Reserved]
            Subtitle D--Other Provisions Relating to Property
                Management [Reserved]
            Subtitle E--Federal Information Resources Management
                Regulations System [Reserved]
            Subtitle F--Federal Travel Regulation System
       300  General (Parts 300-1--300-99)
       301  Temporary Duty (TDY) Travel Allowances (Parts 301-1--
                301-99)
       302  Relocation Allowances (Parts 302-1--302-99)
       303  Payment of Expenses Connected with the Death of
                Certain Employees (Part 303-1--303-99)
       304  Payment of Travel Expenses from a Non-Federal Source
                (Parts 304-1--304-99)

[[Page 560]]

                        Title 42--Public Health

         I  Public Health Service, Department of Health and Human
                Services (Parts 1--199)
        IV  Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Department
                of Health and Human Services (Parts 400--599)
         V  Office of Inspector General-Health Care, Department of
                Health and Human Services (Parts 1000--1999)

                   Title 43--Public Lands: Interior

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary of the Interior
                (Parts 1--199)
            Subtitle B--Regulations Relating to Public Lands
         I  Bureau of Reclamation, Department of the Interior
                (Parts 400--999)
        II  Bureau of Land Management, Department of the Interior
                (Parts 1000--9999)
       III  Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation
                Commission (Parts 10000--10099)

             Title 44--Emergency Management and Assistance

         I  Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of
                Homeland Security (Parts 0--399)
        IV  Department of Commerce and Department of
                Transportation (Parts 400--499)

                       Title 45--Public Welfare

            Subtitle A--Department of Health and Human Services
                (Parts 1--199)
            Subtitle B--Regulations Relating to Public Welfare
        II  Office of Family Assistance (Assistance Programs),
                Administration for Children and Families,
                Department of Health and Human Services (Parts
                200--299)
       III  Office of Child Support Enforcement (Child Support
                Enforcement Program), Administration for Children
                and Families, Department of Health and Human
                Services (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Office of Refugee Resettlement, Administration for
                Children and Families, Department of Health and
                Human Services (Parts 400--499)
         V  Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the United
                States, Department of Justice (Parts 500--599)
        VI  National Science Foundation (Parts 600--699)
       VII  Commission on Civil Rights (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  Office of Personnel Management (Parts 800--899)
         X  Office of Community Services, Administration for
                Children and Families, Department of Health and
                Human Services (Parts 1000--1099)
        XI  National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities
                (Parts 1100--1199)

[[Page 561]]

       XII  Corporation for National and Community Service (Parts
                1200--1299)
      XIII  Office of Human Development Services, Department of
                Health and Human Services (Parts 1300--1399)
       XVI  Legal Services Corporation (Parts 1600--1699)
      XVII  National Commission on Libraries and Information
                Science (Parts 1700--1799)
     XVIII  Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation (Parts 1800--
                1899)
       XXI  Commission on Fine Arts (Parts 2100--2199)
     XXIII  Arctic Research Commission (Part 2301)
      XXIV  James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation (Parts
                2400--2499)
       XXV  Corporation for National and Community Service (Parts
                2500--2599)

                          Title 46--Shipping

         I  Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security (Parts
                1--199)
        II  Maritime Administration, Department of Transportation
                (Parts 200--399)
       III  Coast Guard (Great Lakes Pilotage), Department of
                Homeland Security (Parts 400--499)
        IV  Federal Maritime Commission (Parts 500--599)

                      Title 47--Telecommunication

         I  Federal Communications Commission (Parts 0--199)
        II  Office of Science and Technology Policy and National
                Security Council (Parts 200--299)
       III  National Telecommunications and Information
                Administration, Department of Commerce (Parts
                300--399)
        IV  National Telecommunications and Information
                Administration, Department of Commerce, and
                National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
                Department of Transportation (Parts 400--499)

           Title 48--Federal Acquisition Regulations System

         1  Federal Acquisition Regulation (Parts 1--99)
         2  Defense Acquisition Regulations System, Department of
                Defense (Parts 200--299)
         3  Health and Human Services (Parts 300--399)
         4  Department of Agriculture (Parts 400--499)
         5  General Services Administration (Parts 500--599)
         6  Department of State (Parts 600--699)
         7  Agency for International Development (Parts 700--799)
         8  Department of Veterans Affairs (Parts 800--899)
         9  Department of Energy (Parts 900--999)

[[Page 562]]

        10  Department of the Treasury (Parts 1000--1099)
        12  Department of Transportation (Parts 1200--1299)
        13  Department of Commerce (Parts 1300--1399)
        14  Department of the Interior (Parts 1400--1499)
        15  Environmental Protection Agency (Parts 1500--1599)
        16  Office of Personnel Management, Federal Employees
                Health Benefits Acquisition Regulation (Parts
                1600--1699)
        17  Office of Personnel Management (Parts 1700--1799)
        18  National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Parts
                1800--1899)
        19  Broadcasting Board of Governors (Parts 1900--1999)
        20  Nuclear Regulatory Commission (Parts 2000--2099)
        21  Office of Personnel Management, Federal Employees
                Group Life Insurance Federal Acquisition
                Regulation (Parts 2100--2199)
        23  Social Security Administration (Parts 2300--2399)
        24  Department of Housing and Urban Development (Parts
                2400--2499)
        25  National Science Foundation (Parts 2500--2599)
        28  Department of Justice (Parts 2800--2899)
        29  Department of Labor (Parts 2900--2999)
        30  Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security
                Acquisition Regulation (HSAR) (Parts 3000--3099)
        34  Department of Education Acquisition Regulation (Parts
                3400--3499)
        51  Department of the Army Acquisition Regulations (Parts
                5100--5199)
        52  Department of the Navy Acquisition Regulations (Parts
                5200--5299)
        53  Department of the Air Force Federal Acquisition
                Regulation Supplement (Parts 5300--5399)
                [Reserved]
        54  Defense Logistics Agency, Department of Defense (Parts
                5400--5499)
        57  African Development Foundation (Parts 5700--5799)
        61  Civilian Board of Contract Appeals, General Services
                Administration (Parts 6100--6199)
        63  Department of Transportation Board of Contract Appeals
                (Parts 6300--6399)
        99  Cost Accounting Standards Board, Office of Federal
                Procurement Policy, Office of Management and
                Budget (Parts 9900--9999)

                       Title 49--Transportation

            Subtitle A--Office of the Secretary of Transportation
                (Parts 1--99)
            Subtitle B--Other Regulations Relating to
                Transportation
         I  Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety
                Administration, Department of Transportation
                (Parts 100--199)

[[Page 563]]

        II  Federal Railroad Administration, Department of
                Transportation (Parts 200--299)
       III  Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration,
                Department of Transportation (Parts 300--399)
        IV  Coast Guard, Department of Homeland Security (Parts
                400--499)
         V  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
                Department of Transportation (Parts 500--599)
        VI  Federal Transit Administration, Department of
                Transportation (Parts 600--699)
       VII  National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK)
                (Parts 700--799)
      VIII  National Transportation Safety Board (Parts 800--999)
         X  Surface Transportation Board, Department of
                Transportation (Parts 1000--1399)
        XI  Research and Innovative Technology Administration,
                Department of Transportation (Parts 1400--1499)
                [Reserved]
       XII  Transportation Security Administration, Department of
                Homeland Security (Parts 1500--1699)

                   Title 50--Wildlife and Fisheries

         I  United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of
                the Interior (Parts 1--199)
        II  National Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic
                and Atmospheric Administration, Department of
                Commerce (Parts 200--299)
       III  International Fishing and Related Activities (Parts
                300--399)
        IV  Joint Regulations (United States Fish and Wildlife
                Service, Department of the Interior and National
                Marine Fisheries Service, National Oceanic and
                Atmospheric Administration, Department of
                Commerce); Endangered Species Committee
                Regulations (Parts 400--499)
         V  Marine Mammal Commission (Parts 500--599)
        VI  Fishery Conservation and Management, National Oceanic
                and Atmospheric Administration, Department of
                Commerce (Parts 600--699)

[[Page 565]]





           Alphabetical List of Agencies Appearing in the CFR




                     (Revised as of October 1, 2014)

                                                  CFR Title, Subtitle or
                     Agency                               Chapter

Administrative Committee of the Federal Register  1, I
Administrative Conference of the United States    1, III
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation         36, VIII
Advocacy and Outreach, Office of                  7, XXV
Afghanistan Reconstruction, Special Inspector     22, LXXXIII
     General for
African Development Foundation                    22, XV
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 57
Agency for International Development              2, VII; 22, II
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 7
Agricultural Marketing Service                    7, I, IX, X, XI
Agricultural Research Service                     7, V
Agriculture Department                            2, IV; 5, LXXIII
  Advocacy and Outreach, Office of                7, XXV
  Agricultural Marketing Service                  7, I, IX, X, XI
  Agricultural Research Service                   7, V
  Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service      7, III; 9, I
  Chief Financial Officer, Office of              7, XXX
  Commodity Credit Corporation                    7, XIV
  Economic Research Service                       7, XXXVII
  Energy Policy and New Uses, Office of           2, IX; 7, XXIX
  Environmental Quality, Office of                7, XXXI
  Farm Service Agency                             7, VII, XVIII
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 4
  Federal Crop Insurance Corporation              7, IV
  Food and Nutrition Service                      7, II
  Food Safety and Inspection Service              9, III
  Foreign Agricultural Service                    7, XV
  Forest Service                                  36, II
  Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards        7, VIII; 9, II
       Administration
  Information Resources Management, Office of     7, XXVII
  Inspector General, Office of                    7, XXVI
  National Agricultural Library                   7, XLI
  National Agricultural Statistics Service        7, XXXVI
  National Institute of Food and Agriculture      7, XXXIV
  Natural Resources Conservation Service          7, VI
  Operations, Office of                           7, XXVIII
  Procurement and Property Management, Office of  7, XXXII
  Rural Business-Cooperative Service              7, XVIII, XLII, L
  Rural Development Administration                7, XLII
  Rural Housing Service                           7, XVIII, XXXV, L
  Rural Telephone Bank                            7, XVI
  Rural Utilities Service                         7, XVII, XVIII, XLII, L
  Secretary of Agriculture, Office of             7, Subtitle A
  Transportation, Office of                       7, XXXIII
  World Agricultural Outlook Board                7, XXXVIII
Air Force Department                              32, VII
  Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement       48, 53
Air Transportation Stabilization Board            14, VI
Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau          27, I
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,       27, II
     Bureau of
AMTRAK                                            49, VII
American Battle Monuments Commission              36, IV
American Indians, Office of the Special Trustee   25, VII

[[Page 566]]

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service        7, III; 9, I
Appalachian Regional Commission                   5, IX
Architectural and Transportation Barriers         36, XI
     Compliance Board
Arctic Research Commission                        45, XXIII
Armed Forces Retirement Home                      5, XI
Army Department                                   32, V
  Engineers, Corps of                             33, II; 36, III
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 51
Bilingual Education and Minority Languages        34, V
     Affairs, Office of
Blind or Severely Disabled, Committee for         41, 51
     Purchase from People Who Are
Broadcasting Board of Governors                   22, V
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 19
Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation,    30, II
     and Enforcement
Census Bureau                                     15, I
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services          42, IV
Central Intelligence Agency                       32, XIX
Chemical Safety and Hazardous Investigation       40, VI
     Board
Chief Financial Officer, Office of                7, XXX
Child Support Enforcement, Office of              45, III
Children and Families, Administration for         45, II, III, IV, X
Civil Rights, Commission on                       5, LXVIII; 45, VII
Civil Rights, Office for                          34, I
Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity    5, XCVIII
     and Efficiency
Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency    5, LXX
     for the District of Columbia
Coast Guard                                       33, I; 46, I; 49, IV
Coast Guard (Great Lakes Pilotage)                46, III
Commerce Department                               2, XIII; 44, IV; 50, VI
  Census Bureau                                   15, I
  Economic Analysis, Bureau of                    15, VIII
  Economic Development Administration             13, III
  Emergency Management and Assistance             44, IV
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 13
  Foreign-Trade Zones Board                       15, IV
  Industry and Security, Bureau of                15, VII
  International Trade Administration              15, III; 19, III
  National Institute of Standards and Technology  15, II
  National Marine Fisheries Service               50, II, IV
  National Oceanic and Atmospheric                15, IX; 50, II, III, IV,
       Administration                             VI
  National Telecommunications and Information     15, XXIII; 47, III, IV
       Administration
  National Weather Service                        15, IX
  Patent and Trademark Office, United States      37, I
  Productivity, Technology and Innovation,        37, IV
       Assistant Secretary for
  Secretary of Commerce, Office of                15, Subtitle A
  Technology Administration                       15, XI
  Technology Policy, Assistant Secretary for      37, IV
Commercial Space Transportation                   14, III
Commodity Credit Corporation                      7, XIV
Commodity Futures Trading Commission              5, XLI; 17, I
Community Planning and Development, Office of     24, V, VI
     Assistant Secretary for
Community Services, Office of                     45, X
Comptroller of the Currency                       12, I
Construction Industry Collective Bargaining       29, IX
     Commission
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau              5, LXXXIV; 12, X
Consumer Product Safety Commission                5, LXXI; 16, II
Copyright Royalty Board                           37, III
Corporation for National and Community Service    2, XXII; 45, XII, XXV
Cost Accounting Standards Board                   48, 99
Council on Environmental Quality                  40, V
Court Services and Offender Supervision Agency    5, LXX; 28, VIII
     for the District of Columbia
Customs and Border Protection                     19, I

[[Page 567]]

Defense Contract Audit Agency                     32, I
Defense Department                                2, XI; 5, XXVI; 32,
                                                  Subtitle A; 40, VII
  Advanced Research Projects Agency               32, I
  Air Force Department                            32, VII
  Army Department                                 32, V; 33, II; 36, III,
                                                  48, 51
  Defense Acquisition Regulations System          48, 2
  Defense Intelligence Agency                     32, I
  Defense Logistics Agency                        32, I, XII; 48, 54
  Engineers, Corps of                             33, II; 36, III
  National Imagery and Mapping Agency             32, I
  Navy Department                                 32, VI; 48, 52
  Secretary of Defense, Office of                 2, XI; 32, I
Defense Contract Audit Agency                     32, I
Defense Intelligence Agency                       32, I
Defense Logistics Agency                          32, XII; 48, 54
Defense Nuclear Facilities Safety Board           10, XVII
Delaware River Basin Commission                   18, III
District of Columbia, Court Services and          5, LXX; 28, VIII
     Offender Supervision Agency for the
Drug Enforcement Administration                   21, II
East-West Foreign Trade Board                     15, XIII
Economic Analysis, Bureau of                      15, VIII
Economic Development Administration               13, III
Economic Research Service                         7, XXXVII
Education, Department of                          2, XXXIV; 5, LIII
  Bilingual Education and Minority Languages      34, V
       Affairs, Office of
  Civil Rights, Office for                        34, I
  Educational Research and Improvement, Office    34, VII
       of
  Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of   34, II
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 34
  Postsecondary Education, Office of              34, VI
  Secretary of Education, Office of               34, Subtitle A
  Special Education and Rehabilitative Services,  34, III
       Office of
  Vocational and Adult Education, Office of       34, IV
Educational Research and Improvement, Office of   34, VII
Election Assistance Commission                    2, LVIII; 11, II
Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of     34, II
Emergency Oil and Gas Guaranteed Loan Board       13, V
Emergency Steel Guarantee Loan Board              13, IV
Employee Benefits Security Administration         29, XXV
Employees' Compensation Appeals Board             20, IV
Employees Loyalty Board                           5, V
Employment and Training Administration            20, V
Employment Standards Administration               20, VI
Endangered Species Committee                      50, IV
Energy, Department of                             2, IX; 5, XXIII; 10, II,
                                                  III, X
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 9
  Federal Energy Regulatory Commission            5, XXIV; 18, I
  Property Management Regulations                 41, 109
Energy, Office of                                 7, XXIX
Engineers, Corps of                               33, II; 36, III
Engraving and Printing, Bureau of                 31, VI
Environmental Protection Agency                   2, XV; 5, LIV; 40, I, IV,
                                                  VII
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 15
  Property Management Regulations                 41, 115
Environmental Quality, Office of                  7, XXXI
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission           5, LXII; 29, XIV
Equal Opportunity, Office of Assistant Secretary  24, I
     for
Executive Office of the President                 3, I
  Administration, Office of                       5, XV
  Environmental Quality, Council on               40, V
  Management and Budget, Office of                2, Subtitle A; 5, III,
                                                  LXXVII; 14, VI; 48, 99

[[Page 568]]

  National Drug Control Policy, Office of         21, III
  National Security Council                       32, XXI; 47, 2
  Presidential Documents                          3
  Science and Technology Policy, Office of        32, XXIV; 47, II
  Trade Representative, Office of the United      15, XX
       States
Export-Import Bank of the United States           2, XXXV; 5, LII; 12, IV
Family Assistance, Office of                      45, II
Farm Credit Administration                        5, XXXI; 12, VI
Farm Credit System Insurance Corporation          5, XXX; 12, XIV
Farm Service Agency                               7, VII, XVIII
Federal Acquisition Regulation                    48, 1
Federal Aviation Administration                   14, I
  Commercial Space Transportation                 14, III
Federal Claims Collection Standards               31, IX
Federal Communications Commission                 5, XXIX; 47, I
Federal Contract Compliance Programs, Office of   41, 60
Federal Crop Insurance Corporation                7, IV
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation             5, XXII; 12, III
Federal Election Commission                       5, XXXVII; 11, I
Federal Emergency Management Agency               44, I
Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Federal    48, 21
     Acquisition Regulation
Federal Employees Health Benefits Acquisition     48, 16
     Regulation
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission              5, XXIV; 18, I
Federal Financial Institutions Examination        12, XI
     Council
Federal Financing Bank                            12, VIII
Federal Highway Administration                    23, I, II
Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation            1, IV
Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight Office       12, XVII
Federal Housing Finance Agency                    5, LXXX; 12, XII
Federal Housing Finance Board                     12, IX
Federal Labor Relations Authority                 5, XIV, XLIX; 22, XIV
Federal Law Enforcement Training Center           31, VII
Federal Management Regulation                     41, 102
Federal Maritime Commission                       46, IV
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service        29, XII
Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission  5, LXXIV; 29, XXVII
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration       49, III
Federal Prison Industries, Inc.                   28, III
Federal Procurement Policy Office                 48, 99
Federal Property Management Regulations           41, 101
Federal Railroad Administration                   49, II
Federal Register, Administrative Committee of     1, I
Federal Register, Office of                       1, II
Federal Reserve System                            12, II
  Board of Governors                              5, LVIII
Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board        5, VI, LXXVI
Federal Service Impasses Panel                    5, XIV
Federal Trade Commission                          5, XLVII; 16, I
Federal Transit Administration                    49, VI
Federal Travel Regulation System                  41, Subtitle F
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network              31, X
Financial Research Office                         12, XVI
Financial Stability Oversight Council             12, XIII
Fine Arts, Commission on                          45, XXI
Fiscal Service                                    31, II
Fish and Wildlife Service, United States          50, I, IV
Food and Drug Administration                      21, I
Food and Nutrition Service                        7, II
Food Safety and Inspection Service                9, III
Foreign Agricultural Service                      7, XV
Foreign Assets Control, Office of                 31, V
Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the       45, V
     United States
Foreign Service Grievance Board                   22, IX
Foreign Service Impasse Disputes Panel            22, XIV
Foreign Service Labor Relations Board             22, XIV
Foreign-Trade Zones Board                         15, IV

[[Page 569]]

Forest Service                                    36, II
General Services Administration                   5, LVII; 41, 105
  Contract Appeals, Board of                      48, 61
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 5
  Federal Management Regulation                   41, 102
  Federal Property Management Regulations         41, 101
  Federal Travel Regulation System                41, Subtitle F
  General                                         41, 300
  Payment From a Non-Federal Source for Travel    41, 304
       Expenses
  Payment of Expenses Connected With the Death    41, 303
       of Certain Employees
  Relocation Allowances                           41, 302
  Temporary Duty (TDY) Travel Allowances          41, 301
Geological Survey                                 30, IV
Government Accountability Office                  4, I
Government Ethics, Office of                      5, XVI
Government National Mortgage Association          24, III
Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards          7, VIII; 9, II
     Administration
Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council          40, VIII
Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation            45, XVIII
Health and Human Services, Department of          2, III; 5, XLV; 45,
                                                  Subtitle A,
  Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services        42, IV
  Child Support Enforcement, Office of            45, III
  Children and Families, Administration for       45, II, III, IV, X
  Community Services, Office of                   45, X
  Family Assistance, Office of                    45, II
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 3
  Food and Drug Administration                    21, I
  Human Development Services, Office of           45, XIII
  Indian Health Service                           25, V
  Inspector General (Health Care), Office of      42, V
  Public Health Service                           42, I
  Refugee Resettlement, Office of                 45, IV
Homeland Security, Department of                  2, XXX; 6, I; 8, I
  Coast Guard                                     33, I; 46, I; 49, IV
  Coast Guard (Great Lakes Pilotage)              46, III
  Customs and Border Protection                   19, I
  Federal Emergency Management Agency             44, I
  Human Resources Management and Labor Relations  5, XCVII
       Systems
  Immigration and Customs Enforcement Bureau      19, IV
  Transportation Security Administration          49, XII
HOPE for Homeowners Program, Board of Directors   24, XXIV
     of
Housing and Urban Development, Department of      2, XXIV; 5, LXV; 24,
                                                  Subtitle B
  Community Planning and Development, Office of   24, V, VI
       Assistant Secretary for
  Equal Opportunity, Office of Assistant          24, I
       Secretary for
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 24
  Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight, Office    12, XVII
       of
  Government National Mortgage Association        24, III
  Housing--Federal Housing Commissioner, Office   24, II, VIII, X, XX
       of Assistant Secretary for
  Housing, Office of, and Multifamily Housing     24, IV
       Assistance Restructuring, Office of
  Inspector General, Office of                    24, XII
  Public and Indian Housing, Office of Assistant  24, IX
       Secretary for
  Secretary, Office of                            24, Subtitle A, VII
Housing--Federal Housing Commissioner, Office of  24, II, VIII, X, XX
     Assistant Secretary for
Housing, Office of, and Multifamily Housing       24, IV
     Assistance Restructuring, Office of
Human Development Services, Office of             45, XIII
Immigration and Customs Enforcement Bureau        19, IV
Immigration Review, Executive Office for          8, V
Independent Counsel, Office of                    28, VII

[[Page 570]]

Indian Affairs, Bureau of                         25, I, V
Indian Affairs, Office of the Assistant           25, VI
     Secretary
Indian Arts and Crafts Board                      25, II
Indian Health Service                             25, V
Industry and Security, Bureau of                  15, VII
Information Resources Management, Office of       7, XXVII
Information Security Oversight Office, National   32, XX
     Archives and Records Administration
Inspector General
  Agriculture Department                          7, XXVI
  Health and Human Services Department            42, V
  Housing and Urban Development Department        24, XII, XV
Institute of Peace, United States                 22, XVII
Inter-American Foundation                         5, LXIII; 22, X
Interior Department                               2, XIV
  American Indians, Office of the Special         25, VII
       Trustee
  Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation,  30, II
       and Enforcement
  Endangered Species Committee                    50, IV
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 14
  Federal Property Management Regulations System  41, 114
  Fish and Wildlife Service, United States        50, I, IV
  Geological Survey                               30, IV
  Indian Affairs, Bureau of                       25, I, V
  Indian Affairs, Office of the Assistant         25, VI
       Secretary
  Indian Arts and Crafts Board                    25, II
  Land Management, Bureau of                      43, II
  National Indian Gaming Commission               25, III
  National Park Service                           36, I
  Natural Resource Revenue, Office of             30, XII
  Ocean Energy Management, Bureau of              30, V
  Reclamation, Bureau of                          43, I
  Secretary of the Interior, Office of            2, XIV; 43, Subtitle A
  Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement,     30, VII
       Office of
Internal Revenue Service                          26, I
International Boundary and Water Commission,      22, XI
     United States and Mexico, United States
     Section
International Development, United States Agency   22, II
     for
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 7
International Development Cooperation Agency,     22, XII
     United States
International Joint Commission, United States     22, IV
     and Canada
International Organizations Employees Loyalty     5, V
     Board
International Trade Administration                15, III; 19, III
International Trade Commission, United States     19, II
Interstate Commerce Commission                    5, XL
Investment Security, Office of                    31, VIII
James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation      45, XXIV
Japan-United States Friendship Commission         22, XVI
Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries       20, VIII
Justice Department                                2, XXVIII; 5, XXVIII; 28,
                                                  I, XI; 40, IV
  Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,     27, II
       Bureau of
  Drug Enforcement Administration                 21, II
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 28
  Federal Claims Collection Standards             31, IX
  Federal Prison Industries, Inc.                 28, III
  Foreign Claims Settlement Commission of the     45, V
       United States
  Immigration Review, Executive Office for        8, V
  Offices of Independent Counsel                  28, VI
  Prisons, Bureau of                              28, V
  Property Management Regulations                 41, 128
Labor Department                                  5, XLII
  Employee Benefits Security Administration       29, XXV
  Employees' Compensation Appeals Board           20, IV
  Employment and Training Administration          20, V

[[Page 571]]

  Employment Standards Administration             20, VI
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 29
  Federal Contract Compliance Programs, Office    41, 60
       of
  Federal Procurement Regulations System          41, 50
  Labor-Management Standards, Office of           29, II, IV
  Mine Safety and Health Administration           30, I
  Occupational Safety and Health Administration   29, XVII
  Office of Workers' Compensation Programs        20, VII
  Public Contracts                                41, 50
  Secretary of Labor, Office of                   29, Subtitle A
  Veterans' Employment and Training Service,      41, 61; 20, IX
       Office of the Assistant Secretary for
  Wage and Hour Division                          29, V
  Workers' Compensation Programs, Office of       20, I
Labor-Management Standards, Office of             29, II, IV
Land Management, Bureau of                        43, II
Legal Services Corporation                        45, XVI
Library of Congress                               36, VII
  Copyright Royalty Board                         37, III
  U.S. Copyright Office                           37, II
Local Television Loan Guarantee Board             7, XX
Management and Budget, Office of                  5, III, LXXVII; 14, VI;
                                                  48, 99
Marine Mammal Commission                          50, V
Maritime Administration                           46, II
Merit Systems Protection Board                    5, II, LXIV
Micronesian Status Negotiations, Office for       32, XXVII
Military Compensation and Retirement              5, XCIX
     Modernization Commission
Millennium Challenge Corporation                  22, XIII
Mine Safety and Health Administration             30, I
Minority Business Development Agency              15, XIV
Miscellaneous Agencies                            1, IV
Monetary Offices                                  31, I
Morris K. Udall Scholarship and Excellence in     36, XVI
     National Environmental Policy Foundation
Museum and Library Services, Institute of         2, XXXI
National Aeronautics and Space Administration     2, XVIII; 5, LIX; 14, V
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 18
National Agricultural Library                     7, XLI
National Agricultural Statistics Service          7, XXXVI
National and Community Service, Corporation for   2, XXII; 45, XII, XXV
National Archives and Records Administration      2, XXVI; 5, LXVI; 36, XII
  Information Security Oversight Office           32, XX
National Capital Planning Commission              1, IV
National Commission for Employment Policy         1, IV
National Commission on Libraries and Information  45, XVII
     Science
National Council on Disability                    34, XII
National Counterintelligence Center               32, XVIII
National Credit Union Administration              5, LXXXVI; 12, VII
National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact     28, IX
     Council
National Drug Control Policy, Office of           21, III
National Endowment for the Arts                   2, XXXII
National Endowment for the Humanities             2, XXXIII
National Foundation on the Arts and the           45, XI
     Humanities
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration    23, II, III; 47, VI; 49, V
National Imagery and Mapping Agency               32, I
National Indian Gaming Commission                 25, III
National Institute for Literacy                   34, XI
National Institute of Food and Agriculture        7, XXXIV
National Institute of Standards and Technology    15, II
National Intelligence, Office of Director of      32, XVII
National Labor Relations Board                    5, LXI; 29, I
National Marine Fisheries Service                 50, II, IV
National Mediation Board                          29, X
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration   15, IX; 50, II, III, IV,
                                                  VI

[[Page 572]]

National Park Service                             36, I
National Railroad Adjustment Board                29, III
National Railroad Passenger Corporation (AMTRAK)  49, VII
National Science Foundation                       2, XXV; 5, XLIII; 45, VI
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 25
National Security Council                         32, XXI
National Security Council and Office of Science   47, II
     and Technology Policy
National Telecommunications and Information       15, XXIII; 47, III, IV
     Administration
National Transportation Safety Board              49, VIII
Natural Resources Conservation Service            7, VI
Natural Resource Revenue, Office of               30, XII
Navajo and Hopi Indian Relocation, Office of      25, IV
Navy Department                                   32, VI
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 52
Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation             24, XXV
Northeast Interstate Low-Level Radioactive Waste  10, XVIII
     Commission
Nuclear Regulatory Commission                     2, XX; 5, XLVIII; 10, I
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 20
Occupational Safety and Health Administration     29, XVII
Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission  29, XX
Ocean Energy Management, Bureau of                30, V
Offices of Independent Counsel                    28, VI
Office of Workers' Compensation Programs          20, VII
Oklahoma City National Memorial Trust             36, XV
Operations Office                                 7, XXVIII
Overseas Private Investment Corporation           5, XXXIII; 22, VII
Patent and Trademark Office, United States        37, I
Payment From a Non-Federal Source for Travel      41, 304
     Expenses
Payment of Expenses Connected With the Death of   41, 303
     Certain Employees
Peace Corps                                       2, XXXVII; 22, III
Pennsylvania Avenue Development Corporation       36, IX
Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation              29, XL
Personnel Management, Office of                   5, I, XXXV; 45, VIII
  Human Resources Management and Labor Relations  5, XCVII
       Systems, Department of Homeland Security
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 17
  Federal Employees Group Life Insurance Federal  48, 21
       Acquisition Regulation
  Federal Employees Health Benefits Acquisition   48, 16
       Regulation
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety           49, I
     Administration
Postal Regulatory Commission                      5, XLVI; 39, III
Postal Service, United States                     5, LX; 39, I
Postsecondary Education, Office of                34, VI
President's Commission on White House             1, IV
     Fellowships
Presidential Documents                            3
Presidio Trust                                    36, X
Prisons, Bureau of                                28, V
Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board       6, X
Procurement and Property Management, Office of    7, XXXII
Productivity, Technology and Innovation,          37, IV
     Assistant Secretary
Public Contracts, Department of Labor             41, 50
Public and Indian Housing, Office of Assistant    24, IX
     Secretary for
Public Health Service                             42, I
Railroad Retirement Board                         20, II
Reclamation, Bureau of                            43, I
Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board    4, II
Refugee Resettlement, Office of                   45, IV
Relocation Allowances                             41, 302
Research and Innovative Technology                49, XI
     Administration
Rural Business-Cooperative Service                7, XVIII, XLII, L
Rural Development Administration                  7, XLII
Rural Housing Service                             7, XVIII, XXXV, L

[[Page 573]]

Rural Telephone Bank                              7, XVI
Rural Utilities Service                           7, XVII, XVIII, XLII, L
Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation     33, IV
Science and Technology Policy, Office of          32, XXIV
Science and Technology Policy, Office of, and     47, II
     National Security Council
Secret Service                                    31, IV
Securities and Exchange Commission                5, XXXIV; 17, II
Selective Service System                          32, XVI
Small Business Administration                     2, XXVII; 13, I
Smithsonian Institution                           36, V
Social Security Administration                    2, XXIII; 20, III; 48, 23
Soldiers' and Airmen's Home, United States        5, XI
Special Counsel, Office of                        5, VIII
Special Education and Rehabilitative Services,    34, III
     Office of
State Department                                  2, VI; 22, I; 28, XI
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 6
Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement,       30, VII
     Office of
Surface Transportation Board                      49, X
Susquehanna River Basin Commission                18, VIII
Technology Administration                         15, XI
Technology Policy, Assistant Secretary for        37, IV
Tennessee Valley Authority                        5, LXIX; 18, XIII
Thrift Supervision Office, Department of the      12, V
     Treasury
Trade Representative, United States, Office of    15, XX
Transportation, Department of                     2, XII; 5, L
  Commercial Space Transportation                 14, III
  Contract Appeals, Board of                      48, 63
  Emergency Management and Assistance             44, IV
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 12
  Federal Aviation Administration                 14, I
  Federal Highway Administration                  23, I, II
  Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration     49, III
  Federal Railroad Administration                 49, II
  Federal Transit Administration                  49, VI
  Maritime Administration                         46, II
  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration  23, II, III; 47, IV; 49, V
  Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety         49, I
       Administration
  Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation   33, IV
  Secretary of Transportation, Office of          14, II; 49, Subtitle A
  Surface Transportation Board                    49, X
  Transportation Statistics Bureau                49, XI
Transportation, Office of                         7, XXXIII
Transportation Security Administration            49, XII
Transportation Statistics Bureau                  49, XI
Travel Allowances, Temporary Duty (TDY)           41, 301
Treasury Department                               5, XXI; 12, XV; 17, IV;
                                                  31, IX
  Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau        27, I
  Community Development Financial Institutions    12, XVIII
       Fund
  Comptroller of the Currency                     12, I
  Customs and Border Protection                   19, I
  Engraving and Printing, Bureau of               31, VI
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 10
  Federal Claims Collection Standards             31, IX
  Federal Law Enforcement Training Center         31, VII
  Financial Crimes Enforcement Network            31, X
  Fiscal Service                                  31, II
  Foreign Assets Control, Office of               31, V
  Internal Revenue Service                        26, I
  Investment Security, Office of                  31, VIII
  Monetary Offices                                31, I
  Secret Service                                  31, IV
  Secretary of the Treasury, Office of            31, Subtitle A
  Thrift Supervision, Office of                   12, V
Truman, Harry S. Scholarship Foundation           45, XVIII
United States and Canada, International Joint     22, IV
   Commission
[[Page 574]]

United States and Mexico, International Boundary  22, XI
     and Water Commission, United States Section
U.S. Copyright Office                             37, II
Utah Reclamation Mitigation and Conservation      43, III
     Commission
Veterans Affairs Department                       2, VIII; 38, I
  Federal Acquisition Regulation                  48, 8
Veterans' Employment and Training Service,        41, 61; 20, IX
     Office of the Assistant Secretary for
Vice President of the United States, Office of    32, XXVIII
Vocational and Adult Education, Office of         34, IV
Wage and Hour Division                            29, V
Water Resources Council                           18, VI
Workers' Compensation Programs, Office of         20, I
World Agricultural Outlook Board                  7, XXXVIII

[[Page 575]]







                      Table of OMB Control Numbers



The OMB control numbers for chapter I of title 47 are consolidated into
Sec. 0.408. For the convenience of the user, Sec. 0.408 is reprinted
below.



Sec. 0.408  OMB control numbers and expiration dates assigned pursuant
to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

    (a) Purpose. This section displays the OMB control numbers and
expiration dates for the Commission information collection requirements
assigned by the Office of Management and Budget (``OMB'') pursuant to
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. The Commission
intends that this section comply with the requirement that agencies
``display'' current control numbers and expiration dates assigned by the
Director, OMB, for each approved information collection requirement.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, no person shall be subject
to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) that does not display a
currently valid OMB control number. Questions concerning the OMB control
numbers and expiration dates should be directed to the Associate
Managing Director--Performance Evaluation and Records Management,
(``AMD-PERM''), Office of Managing Director, Federal Communications
Commission, Washington, DC 20554 by sending an email to Judith-
[email protected].
    (b) Display.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             FCC form number or 47 CFR
                                           section or part, docket number
             OMB Control No.                  or title identifying the              OMB expiration date
                                                     collection
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3060-0004...............................  Secs. 1.1307 and 1.1311,         05/31/14
                                           Guidelines for Evaluating the
                                           Environmental Effects of
                                           Radiofrequency Radiation, ET
                                           Docket No. 93-62.
3060-0009...............................  FCC 316........................  05/31/13
3060-0010...............................  FCC 323........................  10/31/12
3060-0016...............................  FCC 346........................  03/31/14
3060-0017...............................  FCC 347........................  11/30/14
3060-0027...............................  FCC 301........................  04/30/15
3060-0029...............................  FCC 340........................  07/31/14
3060-0031...............................  FCC 314 and FCC 315............  05/31/13
3060-0053...............................  FCC 702 and FCC 703............  07/31/14
3060-0055...............................  FCC 327........................  02/28/15
3060-0056...............................  Part 68--Connection of Terminal  03/31/14
                                           Equipment to the Telephone
                                           Network.
3060-0057...............................  FCC 731........................  03/31/14
3060-0059...............................  FCC 740........................  03/31/13
3060-0061...............................  FCC 325........................  06/30/14
3060-0065...............................  FCC 442........................  06/30/14
3060-0075...............................  FCC 345........................  04/30/15
3060-0076...............................  FCC 395........................  09/30/13
3060-0084...............................  FCC 323-E......................  01/31/14
3060-0093...............................  FCC 405........................  10/31/14
3060-0095...............................  FCC 395-A......................  08/31/14
3060-0106...............................  Sec. 43.61, Part 43, Reporting   10/31/14
                                           Requirements for U.S.
                                           Providers of International
                                           Telecommunications Services
                                           and Affiliates.
3060-0110...............................  FCC 303-S......................  02/28/14
3060-0113...............................  FCC 396........................  04/30/15
3060-0120...............................  FCC 396-A......................  06/30/15
3060-0126...............................  Sec. 73.1820...................  09/30/14
3060-0132...............................  FCC 1068A......................  05/31/15
3060-0139...............................  FCC 854........................  04/30/15
3060-0147...............................  Sec. 64.804....................  09/30/14
3060-0149...............................  Part 63, Section 214, Secs.      12/31/12
                                           63.01, 63.602; 63.50, 63.51,
                                           63.52, 63.53; 63.61, 63.62,
                                           63.63; 63.65, 63.66; 63.71;
                                           63.90; 63.500, 63.501; 63.504,
                                           63.505 and 63.601.
3060-0157...............................  Sec. 73.99.....................  08/31/14
3060-0161...............................  Sec. 73.61.....................  01/31/15
3060-0166...............................  Part 42, Secs. 42.4, 42.5, 42.6  09/30/13
                                           and 42.7.
3060-0168...............................  Sec. 43.43.....................  09/30/12

[[Page 576]]


3060-0169...............................  Sec. 43.51.....................  10/31/14
3060-0170...............................  Sec. 73.1030...................  08/31/13
3060-0171...............................  Sec. 73.1125...................  08/31/13
3060-0174...............................  Secs. 73.1212, 76.1615, and      06/30/15
                                           76.1715.
3060-0175...............................  Sec. 73.1250...................  03/31/14
3060-0176...............................  Sec. 73.1510...................  08/31/14
3060-0178...............................  Sec. 73.1560...................  06/30/14
3060-0179...............................  Sec. 73.1590...................  09/30/13
3060-0180...............................  Sec. 73.1610...................  07/31/13
3060-0182...............................  Sec. 73.1620...................  02/28/13
3060-0185...............................  Sec. 73.3613...................  11/30/13
3060-0188...............................  Call Sign Reservation and        08/31/13
                                           Authorization System.
3060-0190...............................  Sec. 73.3544...................  10/31/12
3060-0192...............................  Sec. 87.103....................  10/31/13
3060-0202...............................  Sec. 87.37.....................  04/30/15
3060-0204...............................  Sec. 90.20(a)(2)(v) and          10/31/14
                                           90.20(a)(2)(xi).
3060-0207...............................  Part 11--Emergency Alert System  02/28/15
                                           (EAS).
3060-0208...............................  Sec. 73.1870...................  02/28/15
3060-0213...............................  Sec. 73.3525...................  02/28/15
3060-0214...............................  Secs. 73.3526 and 73.3527;       06/30/15
                                           Secs. 76.1701 and 73.1943.
3060-0216...............................  Secs. 73.3538 and 73.1690(e)...  11/30/13
3060-0221...............................  Sec. 90.155....................  01/31/14
3060-0222...............................  Sec. 97.213....................  06/30/15
3060-0223...............................  Sec. 90.129....................  09/30/14
3060-0228...............................  Sec. 80.59 and FCC 806, 824,     07/31/13
                                           827 and 829.
3060-0233...............................  Part 36--Separations...........  11/30/12
3060-0236...............................  Sec. 74.703....................  03/31/14
3060-0248...............................  Sec. 74.751....................  11/30/13
3060-0249...............................  Secs. 74.781, 74.1281, and       04/30/15
                                           78.69.
3060-0250...............................  Secs. 73.1207, 74.784 and        08/31/12
                                           74.1284.
3060-0259...............................  Sec. 90.263....................  08/31/12
3060-0261...............................  Sec. 90.215....................  07/31/13
3060-0262...............................  Sec. 90.179....................  04/30/14
3060-0264...............................  Sec. 80.413....................  08/31/12
3060-0265...............................  Sec. 80.868....................  05/31/13
3060-0270...............................  Sec. 90.443....................  01/31/13
3060-0281...............................  Sec. 90.651....................  05/31/13
3060-0286...............................  Sec. 80.302....................  02/28/13
3060-0288...............................  Sec. 78.33.....................  07/31/14
3060-0289...............................  Secs. 76.601, 76.1704, 76.1705,  05/31/14
                                           and 76.1717.
3060-0290...............................  Sec. 90.517....................  03/31/14
3060-0291...............................  Sec. 90.477(a), (b)(2), (d)(2)   07/31/14
                                           and (d)(3).
3060-0292...............................  Part 69 and Sec. 69.605........  02/28/13
3060-0295...............................  Sec. 90.607(b)(1) and (c)(1)...  04/30/13
3060-0297...............................  Sec. 80.503....................  08/31/12
3060-0298...............................  Part 61, Tariffs (Other than     05/31/15
                                           Tariff Review Plan).
3060-0307...............................  Parts 1, 22 and 90 Rules to      01/31/13
                                           Facilitate Development of SMR
                                           Systems in the 800 MHz
                                           Frequency Band.
3060-0308...............................  Sec. 90.505....................  04/30/13
3060-0310...............................  Sec. 76.1801 and FCC 322.......  01/31/15
3060-0311...............................  Sec. 76.54.....................  03/31/14
3060-0316...............................  Secs. 76.1700, 76.1702,          12/31/13
                                           76.1703, 76.1704, 76.1707, and
                                           76.1711.
3060-0320...............................  Sec. 73.1350...................  11/30/12
3060-0325...............................  Sec. 80.605....................  08/31/14
3060-0329...............................  Sec. 2.955.....................  01/31/15
3060-0331...............................  FCC 321........................  01/31/15
3060-0332...............................  Secs. 76.614 and 76.1706.......  08/31/13
3060-0340...............................  Sec. 73.51.....................  10/31/12
3060-0341...............................  Sec. 73.1680...................  01/31/15
3060-0346...............................  Sec. 78.27.....................  10/31/12
3060-0347...............................  Sec. 97.311....................  09/30/14
3060-0349...............................  Secs. 73.2080, 76.73, 76.75,     12/31/12
                                           76.79, and 76.1702.
3060-0355...............................  FCC 492 and FCC 492A...........  05/31/13
3060-0357...............................  Sec. 63.701....................  02/28/14
3060-0360...............................  Sec. 80.409....................  01/31/14
3060-0370...............................  Part 32--Uniform System of       01/31/14
                                           Accounts for
                                           Telecommunications Companies.
3060-0384...............................  Secs. 64.901, 64.904 and 64.905  12/31/13
3060-0386...............................  Secs. 1.5, 73.1615, 73.1635,     11/30/14
                                           73.1740, 73.3598, 74.788, and
                                           FCC 337.
3060-0387...............................  Secs. 15.201(d), 15.209,         05/31/15
                                           15.211, 15.213 and 15.221.
3060-0390...............................  FCC 395-B......................  09/30/14
3060-0391...............................  Parts 54 and 36, Program to      03/31/14
                                           Monitor the Impacts of the
                                           Universal Service Support
                                           Mechanisms.
3060-0392...............................  47 CFR Part 1, Subpart J, Pole   12/31/12
                                           Attachment Complaint
                                           Procedures.

[[Page 577]]


3060-0394...............................  Sec. 1.420.....................  04/30/14
3060-0395...............................  FCC Reports 43-02, FCC 43-05     09/30/14
                                           and FCC 43-07.
3060-0398...............................  Secs. 2.948 and 15.117(g)(2)...  09/30/13
3060-0400...............................  Tariff Review Plan (TRP).......  05/31/15
3060-0404...............................  FCC 350........................  11/30/13
3060-0405...............................  FCC 349........................  04/30/13
3060-0410...............................  FCC 495A and FCC 495B..........  09/30/14
3060-0411...............................  FCC 485........................  09/30/14
3060-0414...............................  Terrain Shielding Policy.......  10/31/12
3060-0419...............................  Secs. 76.94, 76.95, 76.105,      06/30/14
                                           76.106, 76.107, and 76.1609.
3060-0422...............................  Sec. 68.5......................  08/31/13
3060-0423...............................  Sec. 73.3588...................  04/30/14
3060-0430...............................  Sec. 1.1206....................  12/31/14
3060-0433...............................  FCC 320........................  05/31/14
3060-0434...............................  Sec. 90.20(e)(6)...............  07/31/14
3060-0439...............................  Sec. 64.201....................  09/30/13
3060-0441...............................  Secs. 90.621 and 90.693........  08/31/12
3060-0454...............................  Secs. 43.51, 64.1001 and         06/30/14
                                           64.1002.
3060-0463...............................  Telecommunications Relay         06/30/14
                                           Services and Speech-to-Speech
                                           Services for Individuals with
                                           Hearing and Speech
                                           Disabilities, Report and Order
                                           and Declaratory Ruling, CG
                                           Doc. No. 03-123, FCC 07-186.
3060-0466...............................  Secs. 73.1201, 74.783 and        10/31/13
                                           74.1283.
3060-0470...............................  Secs. 64.901 and 64.903, and     06/30/14
                                           RAO Letters 19 and 26.
3060-0473...............................  Sec. 74.1251...................  05/31/14
3060-0474...............................  Sec. 74.1263...................  09/30/14
3060-0484...............................  Secs. 4.1 and 4.2 and Part 4 of  02/28/14
                                           the Commission's Rules
                                           Concerning Disruptions to
                                           Communications (NORS).
3060-0489...............................  Sec. 73.37.....................  06/30/15
3060-0496...............................  FCC Report 43-08...............  04/30/13
3060-0500...............................  Sec. 76.1713...................  08/31/13
3060-0501...............................  Secs. 73.1942, 76.206 and        10/31/14
                                           76.1611.
3060-0506...............................  FCC 302-FM.....................  11/30/14
3060-0508...............................  Part 1 and Part 22 Reporting     09/30/14
                                           and Recordkeeping Requirements.
3060-0511...............................  FCC Report 43-04...............  11/30/14
3060-0512...............................  FCC Report 43-01...............  04/30/15
3060-0519...............................  Rules and Regulations            10/31/14
                                           Implementing the Telephone
                                           Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
                                           of 1991, Order, CG Docket No.
                                           02-278.
3060-0526...............................  Sec. 69.123, Density Pricing     05/31/14
                                           Zone Plans, Expanded
                                           Interconnection with Local
                                           Telephone Company Facilities.
3060-0531...............................  Secs. 101.1011, 101.1325(b),     01/31/13
                                           101.1327(a), 101.527, 101.529,
                                           and 101.103.
3060-0532...............................  Secs. 2.1033 and 15.121........  08/31/14
3060-0537...............................  Sec. 13.217....................  03/31/14
3060-0546...............................  Sec. 76.59.....................  09/30/14
3060-0548...............................  Secs. 76.1708, 76.1709,          06/30/14
                                           76.1620, 76.56 and 76.1614.
3060-0550...............................  FCC 328........................  05/31/14
3060-0560...............................  Sec. 76.911....................  05/31/13
3060-0562...............................  Sec. 76.916....................  12/31/12
3060-0565...............................  Sec. 76.944....................  03/31/15
3060-0568...............................  Secs. 76.970, 76.971 and 76.975  04/30/15
3060-0569...............................  Sec. 76.975....................  01/31/15
3060-0572...............................  Secs. 43.82, International       10/31/14
                                           Circuit Status Reports.
3060-0573...............................  FCC 394........................  02/28/15
3060-0580...............................  Sec. 76.1710...................  11/30/12
3060-0584...............................  FCC 44 and FCC 45..............  03/31/15
3060-0589...............................  FCC 159, FCC 159-B, FCC 159-C,   03/31/14
                                           FCC 159-E and 159-W.
3060-0594...............................  FCC 1220.......................  05/31/13
3060-0599...............................  Secs. 90.647 and 90.425........  02/28/13
3060-0600...............................  Application to Participate in a  09/30/12
                                           FCC Auction.
3060-0601...............................  FCC 1200.......................  05/31/13
3060-0607...............................  Sec. 76.922....................  01/31/15
3060-0609...............................  Sec. 76.934(e).................  06/30/13
3060-0625...............................  Sec. 24.103....................  04/30/13
3060-0626...............................  Sec. 90.483....................  01/31/14
3060-0627...............................  FCC 302-AM.....................  11/30/14
3060-0633...............................  Secs. 73.1230, 74.165, 74.432,   08/31/13
                                           74.564, 74.664, 74.765, 74.832
                                           and 74.1265.
3060-0634...............................  Sec. 73.691....................  11/30/12
3060-0636...............................  Secs. 2.906, 2.909, 2.1071,      05/31/15
                                           2.1075, 2.1076, 2.1077 and
                                           15.37.
3060-0645...............................  Secs. 17.4, 17.48 and 17.49....  04/30/15
3060-0647...............................  Cable Price Survey and           08/31/13
                                           Supplemental Questions and FCC
                                           333.
3060-0649...............................  Secs. 76.1601, 76.1617, 76.1697  08/31/13
                                           and 76.1708.
3060-0652...............................  Secs. 76.309, 76.1602, 76.160    07/31/14
                                           and 76.1619.
3060-0653...............................  Sec. 64.703(b) and (c).........  03/31/14

[[Page 578]]


3060-0655...............................  Requests for Waivers of          07/31/13
                                           Regulatory and Application
                                           Fees.
3060-0665...............................  Sec. 64.707....................  10/31/13
3060-0667...............................  Secs. 76.630, 76.1621 and        03/31/14
                                           76.1622.
3060-0668...............................  Sec. 76.936....................  09/30/13
3060-0669...............................  Sec. 76.946....................  11/30/13
3060-0674...............................  Sec. 76.1618...................  06/30/14
3060-0678...............................  Part 25 of the Commission's      09/30/13
                                           Rules Governing the Licensing
                                           of, and Spectrum Usage by,
                                           Satellite Network Stations and
                                           Space Stations.
3060-0685...............................  FCC 1210 and FCC 1240..........  12/31/14
3060-0686...............................  Secs. 63.10, 63.11, 63.13,       02/28/14
                                           63.18, 63.19, 63.21, 63.24,
                                           63.25 and 1.1311,
                                           International Section 214
                                           Process and Tariff
                                           Requirements and FCC 214, FCC
                                           214TC and FCC 214STA.
3060-0687...............................  Access to Telecommunications     05/31/15
                                           Equipment and Services by
                                           Persons with Disabilities, CC
                                           Docket No. 87-124.
3060-0688...............................  FCC 1235.......................  08/31/13
3060-0690...............................  Sec. 101.17....................  04/30/15
3060-0691...............................  Sec. 90.665....................  07/31/13
3060-0692...............................  Secs. 76.613, 76.802 and 76.804  02/28/13
3060-0695...............................  Sec. 87.219....................  10/31/14
3060-0698...............................  Secs. 25.203(i) and              03/31/14
                                           73.1030(a)(2), Radio Astronomy
                                           Coordination Zone in Puerto
                                           Rico.
3060-0700...............................  FCC 1275.......................  07/31/13
3060-0703...............................  FCC 1205.......................  01/31/15
3060-0704...............................  Secs. 42.10, 42.11 and 64.1900   09/30/14
                                           and Section 254(g), Policy and
                                           Rule Concerning the
                                           Interstate, Interexchange
                                           Marketplace.
3060-0706...............................  Secs. 76.952 and 76.990, Cable   06/30/14
                                           Act Reform.
3060-0707...............................  Over-the Air Reception Devices   03/31/14
                                           (OTARD).
3060-0710...............................  Policy and Rules Under Parts 1   07/31/13
                                           and 51 Concerning the
                                           Implementation of the Local
                                           Competition Provisions in the
                                           Telecommunications Act of
                                           1996--CC Docket No. 96-98.
3060-0713...............................  Alternative Broadcast            04/30/14
                                           Inspection Program (ABIP)
                                           Compliance Notification.
3060-0715...............................  Telecommunications Carriers'     07/31/14
                                           Use of Customer Proprietary
                                           Network Information (CPNI) and
                                           Other Customer Information--CC
                                           Docket No. 96-115.
3060-0716...............................  Secs. 73.88, 73.718, 73.685 and  04/30/15
                                           73.1630.
3060-0717...............................  Secs. 64.703(a), 64.709 and      06/30/14
                                           64.710.
3060-0718...............................  Part 101 Rule Sections           04/30/15
                                           Governing the Terrestrial
                                           Microwave Fixed Radio Service.
3060-0719...............................  Quarterly Report of IntraLATA    03/31/13
                                           Carriers Listing Payphone
                                           Automatic Number
                                           Identifications (ANIs).
3060-0723...............................  47 U.S.C. Section 276, Public    10/31/12
                                           Disclosure of Network
                                           Information by Bell Operating
                                           Companies (BOCs).
3060-0725...............................  Quarterly Filing of              05/31/15
                                           Nondiscrimination Reports (on
                                           Quality of Service,
                                           Installation, and Maintenance)
                                           by Bell Operating Companies
                                           (BOC's).
3060-0727...............................  Sec. 73.213....................  10/31/12
3060-0734...............................  Secs. 53.209, 53.211 and 53.213  08/31/14
3060-0737...............................  Disclosure Requirements for      01/31/15
                                           Information Services Provided
                                           Under a Presubscription or
                                           Comparable Arrangement.
3060-0740...............................  Sec. 95.1015...................  10/31/14
3060-0741...............................  Implementation of the Local      01/31/14
                                           Competition Provisions on the
                                           Telecommunications Act of
                                           1996--CC Docket No. 96-98.
3060-0742...............................  Secs. 52.21, 52.22, 52.23,       07/31/13
                                           52.24, 52.25, 52.26, 52.27,
                                           52.28, 52.29, 52.30, 52.31,
                                           52.32, 52.33, 52.34, 52.35 and
                                           52.36; and CC Docket No. 95-
                                           116.
3060-0743...............................  Implementation of the Pay        02/28/13
                                           Telephone Reclassification and
                                           Compensation Provisions of the
                                           Telecommunications Act of
                                           1996--CC Docket No. 96-128.
3060-0745...............................  Implementation of the Local      10/31/12
                                           Exchange Carrier Tariff
                                           Streamlining Provisions of the
                                           Telecommunications Act of
                                           1996, CC Docket No. 96-187.
3060-0748...............................  Secs. 64.1504, 64.1509 and       04/30/13
                                           64.1510, Pay-Per-Call and
                                           Other Information Services.
3060-0750...............................  Secs. 73.671 and 73.673........  06/30/14
3060-0751...............................  Sec. 43.51.....................  08/31/14
3060-0754...............................  FCC 398........................  04/30/15
3060-0755...............................  Secs. 59.1, 59.2, 59.3 and 59.4  01/31/15
3060-0758...............................  Secs. 5.55, 5.61, 5.75, 5.85,    04/30/13
                                           and 5.93, Experimental Radio
                                           Service Regulations, ET Docket
                                           No. 96-256.
3060-0760...............................  272 Sunset Order; WC Docket No.  09/30/14
                                           06-120; Access Charge Reform,
                                           CC Docket No. 96-262, First
                                           Report and Order; Second Order
                                           on Reconsideration and
                                           Memorandum Opinion and Order;
                                           and Fifth Report and Order.
3060-0761...............................  Sec. 79.1......................  Pending OMB review and approval.
3060-0763...............................  FCC Report 43-06...............  02/28/15

[[Page 579]]


3060-0767...............................  Secs. 1.2110, 1.2111 and         06/30/14
                                           1.2112, Auction and Licensing
                                           Disclosures--Ownership and
                                           Small Business Status.
3060-0768...............................  28 GHz Band Segmentation Plan    08/31/14
                                           Amending the Commission's
                                           Rules to Redesignate the 27.5-
                                           29.5 GHz Frequency Band, to
                                           Reallocate the 29.5-30.0 GHz
                                           Frequency Band, and to
                                           Establish Rules and Policies.
3060-0770...............................  Secs. 1.774, 61.49, 61.55,       10/31/14
                                           61.58, 69.4, 69.707, 69.713
                                           and 69.729.
3060-0773...............................  Sec. 2.803.....................  12/31/12
3060-0774...............................  Parts 36 and 54, Federal-State   06/30/14
                                           Joint Board on Universal
                                           Service.
3060-0775...............................  Sec. 64.1903...................  04/30/13
3060-0779...............................  Secs. 90.20(a)(1)(iii), 90.769,  11/30/13
                                           90.767, 90.763(b)(l)(i)(a),
                                           90.763(b)(l)(i)(B), 90.771(b)
                                           and 90.743, Rules for Use of
                                           the 220 MHz Band by the
                                           Private Land Mobile Radio
                                           Service (PLMRS).
3060-0782...............................  Petition for Limited             11/30/12
                                           Modification of LATA
                                           Boundaries to Provide Expanded
                                           Local Calling Service (ELCS)
                                           at Various Locations.
3060-0783...............................  Sec. 90.176....................  01/31/15
3060-0787...............................  Implementation of Subscriber     07/31/14
                                           Carrier Selection Changes
                                           Provisions of the
                                           Telecommunications Act of
                                           1996; Policies and Rules
                                           Concerning Unauthorized
                                           Changes of Consumers' Long
                                           Distance Carriers.
3060-0788...............................  DTV Showings/Interference        10/31/13
                                           Agreements.
3060-0790...............................  Sec. 68.110(c).................  09/30/12
3060-0791...............................  Sec. 32.7300...................  09/30/12
3060-0795...............................  FCC 606........................  08/31/14
3060-0798...............................  FCC 601........................  04/30/15
3060-0799...............................  FCC 602........................  09/30/13
3060-0800...............................  FCC 603........................  02/28/14
3060-0804...............................  FCC 465, FCC 466, FCC 466-A and  11/30/14
                                           FCC 467.
3060-0805...............................  Secs. 90.523, 90.527, 90.545     07/31/14
                                           and 90.1211.
3060-0806...............................  FCC 470 and FCC 471............  10/31/13
3060-0807...............................  Sec. 51.803 and Supplemental     07/31/13
                                           Procedures for Petitions to
                                           Section 252(e)(5) of the
                                           Communications Act of 1934, as
                                           amended.
3060-0809...............................  Communications Assistance for    02/28/14
                                           Law Enforcement Act (CALEA).
3060-0812...............................  Exemption from Payment of        12/31/14
                                           Regulatory Fees When Claiming
                                           Non-Profit Status.
3060-0813...............................  Sec. 20.18, Enhanced 911         02/28/15
                                           Emergency Calling Systems.
3060-0814...............................  Sec. 54.301, Local Switching     12/31/13
                                           Support and Local Switching
                                           Support Data Collection Form
                                           and Instructions.
3060-0816...............................  FCC 477........................  04/30/13
3060-0817...............................  Computer III Further Remand      06/30/15
                                           Proceedings: BOC Provision of
                                           Enhanced Services (ONA
                                           Requirements), CC Docket No.
                                           95-20.
3060-0819...............................  Secs. 54.400-54.707 and FCC 497  10/31/12
3060-0823...............................  Part 64, Pay Telephone           03/31/14
                                           Reclassification.
3060-0824...............................  FCC 498........................  11/30/12
3060-0833...............................  Implementation of Section 255    05/31/14
                                           of the Telecommunications Act
                                           of 1996: Complaint Filings.
3060-0835...............................  FCC 806, FCC 824, FCC 827 and    09/30/12
                                           FCC 829.
3060-0837...............................  FCC 302-TV.....................  04/30/13
3060-0844...............................  Carriage of the Transmissions    10/31/13
                                           of Digital Television
                                           Broadcast Stations.
3060-0848...............................  Deployment of Wireline Services  02/28/15
                                           Offering Advanced
                                           Telecommunications Capability--
                                           CC Docket No. 98-147.
3060-0849...............................  Commercial Availability of       07/31/14
                                           Navigation Devices.
3060-0850...............................  FCC 605........................  06/30/14
3060-0853...............................  FCC 479, FCC 486 and FCC 500...  10/31/13
3060-0854...............................  Truth-in-Billing Format, CC      09/30/14
                                           Docket No. 98-170 and CG
                                           Docket No. 04-208.
3060-0855...............................  FCC 499-A and FCC 499-Q........  10/31/14
3060-0856...............................  FCC 472, FCC 473 and FCC 474...  06/30/13
3060-0859...............................  Public Notice--Suggested         05/31/15
                                           Guidelines for Petitions for
                                           Ruling under Section 253 of
                                           the Telecommunications Act.
3060-0862...............................  Handling Confidential            07/31/14
                                           Information.
3060-0863...............................  Satellite Delivery of Network    06/30/14
                                           Signals to Unserved Households
                                           for Purposes of the Satellite
                                           Home Viewer Act (SHVA).
3060-0865...............................  Wireless Telecommunications      08/31/13
                                           Bureau Universal Licensing
                                           System Recordkeeping and Third-
                                           Party Disclosure Requirements.
3060-0874...............................  FCC 475B, FCC 501, FCC 2000
Pending OMB review and approval.
                                           Series A-F, FCC 1088A, B, C,
                                           D, E, F, and H.
3060-0876...............................  Sec. 54.703 and Secs. 54.719,    10/31/12
                                           54.720, 54.721, 54.722,
                                           54.723, 54.724 and 54.725.
3060-0881...............................  Sec. 95.861....................  07/31/14
3060-0882...............................  Sec. 95.833....................  10/31/14
3060-0888...............................  Secs. 1.221, 1.229, 1.248,       01/31/15
                                           76.7, 76.9, 76.61, 76.914,
                                           76.1001, 76.1003, 76.1302 and
                                           76.1513.
3060-0895...............................  Sec. 52.15, CC Docket No. 99-    06/30/13
                                           200 and FCC 502.
3060-0896...............................  Broadcast Auction Form Exhibits  10/31/14

[[Page 580]]


3060-0905...............................  Sec. 18.213....................  08/31/14
3060-0906...............................  FCC 317 and Sec. 73.624(g).....  11/30/14
3060-0910...............................  Third Report and Order in CC     09/30/12
                                           Docket No. 94-102 to Ensure
                                           Compatibility with Enhanced
                                           911 Emergency Calling Systems.
3060-0912...............................  Secs. 76.501, 76.503 and         03/31/15
                                           76.504, Cable Attribution
                                           Rules.
3060-0917...............................  FCC 160........................  05/31/13
3060-0918...............................  FCC 161........................  05/31/13
3060-0920...............................  FCC 318........................  05/31/14
3060-0922...............................  FCC 397........................  03/31/15
3060-0927...............................  Auditor's Annual Independence    02/28/15
                                           and Objectivity Certification.
3060-0928...............................  FCC 302-CA.....................  10/31/12
3060-0931...............................  Sec. 80.103, Digital Selective   07/31/12
                                           Calling (DSC) Operating
                                           Procedures; Maritime Mobile
                                           Services Identity (MMSI).
3060-0932...............................  FCC 301-CA and Sec. 74.793(d)..  11/30/13
3060-0936...............................  Secs. 95.1215 and 95.1217......  06/30/15
3060-0937...............................  Establishment of a Class A       07/31/13
                                           Television Service, MM Docket
                                           No. 00-10.
3060-0938...............................  FCC 319........................  02/28/15
3060-0942...............................  Access Charge Reform, Price Cap  06/30/13
                                           Performance Review for Local
                                           Exchange Carriers, Low-Volume
                                           Long Distance Users, Federal-
                                           State Joint Board on Universal
                                           Service.
3060-0944...............................  Secs. 1.767 and 1.768,;          02/28/14
                                           Executive Order (E.O.) 10530,
                                           Cable Landing License Act; FCC
                                           220.
3060-0950...............................  Bidding Credits for Tribal       08/31/13
                                           Lands.
3060-0951...............................  Sec. 1.1204(b) Note, and Sec. 03/31/13
                                           1.1206(a) Note 1.
3060-0952...............................  Proposed Demographic             03/31/13
                                           Information and Notifications,
                                           Second FNPRM, CC Docket Nos.
                                           98-147.
3060-0953...............................  Secs. 95.1111 and 95.1113......  05/31/13
3060-0955...............................  Secs. 25.114, 25.115, 25.133,    01/31/13
                                           25.137, 25.143, 25.203, and
                                           25.279; 2 GHz Mobile Satellite
                                           Service Reports.
3060-0957...............................  Sec. 20.18(i) and (g)..........  12/31/13
3060-0960...............................  Secs. 76.122, 76.123, 76.124     03/31/14
                                           and 76.127.
3060-0962...............................  Redesignation of the 18 GHz      08/31/14
                                           Frequency Band, Blanket
                                           Licensing of Satellite Earth
                                           Stations in the Ka-Band, and
                                           the Allocation of Additional
                                           Spectrum for Broadcast
                                           Satellite Service Use.
3060-0967...............................  Sec. 79.2......................  08/31/13
3060-0971...............................  Sec. 52.15.....................  02/28/14
3060-0972...............................  FCC 507, FCC 508 and FCC 509,    02/28/14
                                           Multi-Association Group (MAG)
                                           Plan Order, Parts 54 and 69
                                           Filing Requirements for
                                           Regulation of Interstate
                                           Services of Non-Price Cap
                                           Incumbent LECs and
                                           Interexchange Carriers.
3060-0973...............................  Sec. 64.1120(e)................  09/30/13
3060-0975...............................  Secs. 68.3 and 1.4000..........  11/30/13
3060-0979...............................  License Audit Letter...........  01/31/13
3060-0980...............................  Sec. 76.66, Implementation of    07/31/14
                                           the Satellite Home Viewer
                                           Extension and Reauthorization
                                           Act of 1999; (SHVERA) Rules,
                                           Local Broadcast Signal
                                           Carriage Issues,
                                           Retransmission Consent Issues.
3060-0984...............................  Secs. 90.35(b)(2) and            01/31/14
                                           90.175(b)(1).
3060-0986...............................  FCC 525........................  04/30/15
3060-0987...............................  Sec. 20.18(l)(1)(i-iii) and      09/30/14
                                           20.18(l)(2)(i-iii), 911
                                           Callback Capability; Non-
                                           initialized Handsets.
3060-0989...............................  Secs. 63.01, 63.03 and 63.04...  07/31/14
3060-0991...............................  AM Measurement Data............  01/31/15
3060-0992...............................  Sec. 54.507(d)(1)-(4)..........  09/30/13
3060-0994...............................  Flexibility for Delivery of      02/28/13
                                           Communications by Mobile
                                           Satellite Service Providers in
                                           the 2 GHz Band, the L-Band,
                                           and the 1.6/2.4 GHz Band.
3060-0995...............................  Sec. 1.2105(c).................  01/31/14
3060-0996...............................  AM Auction Section 307(b)        07/31/14
                                           Submissions.
3060-0997...............................  Sec. 52.15(k)..................  04/30/14
3060-0998...............................  Sec. 87.109....................  07/31/13
3060-0999...............................  Sec. 20.19 and Hearing Aid       12/31/13
                                           Compatibility Status Report.
3060-1000...............................  Sec. 87.147....................  12/31/13
3060-1003...............................  Communications Disaster          06/30/15
                                           Information Reporting System
                                           (DIRS).
3060-1004...............................  Commission Rules to Ensure       08/31/12
                                           Compatibility with Enhanced
                                           911 Emergency Calling Systems.
3060-1005...............................  Numbering Resource               05/31/14
                                           Optimization--Phase 3.
3060-1008...............................  Secs. 27.50 and 27.602.........  09/30/14
3060-1013...............................  Mitigation of Orbital Debris...  02/28/14
3060-1014...............................  Ku-Band NGSO FSS...............  12/31/14
3060-1015...............................  Ultra Wideband Transmission      01/31/15
                                           Systems Operating Under Part
                                           15.
3060-1021...............................  Sec. 25.139....................  03/31/14
3060-1022...............................  Secs. 101.1403, 101.103(f),      08/31/14
                                           101.1413, 101.1440 and
                                           101.1417.
3060-1028...............................  International Signaling Point    02/28/14
                                           Code (ISPC).
3060-1029...............................  Data Network Identification      02/28/14
                                           Code (DNIC).
3060-1030...............................  Service Rules for Advanced       06/30/13
                                           Wireless Services (AWS) in the
                                           1.7 GHz and 2.1 GHz Bands.

[[Page 581]]


3060-1031...............................  Commission's Initiative to       10/31/12
                                           Implement Enhanced 911 (E911)
                                           Emergency Services.
3060-1033...............................  FCC 396-C......................  02/28/13
3060-1034...............................  Digital Audio Broadcasting       06/30/13
                                           Systems and Their Impact on
                                           the Terrestrial Radio
                                           Broadcast Service and FCC 335-
                                           AM, FCC 335-FM.
3060-1035...............................  FCC 309, FCC 310 and FCC 311,    01/31/15
                                           Part 73, Subpart F,
                                           International Broadcast
                                           Stations.
3060-1039...............................  FCC 620 and FCC 621............  09/30/14
3060-1042...............................  Request for Technical Support--  08/31/13
                                           Help Request Form.
3060-1043...............................  Telecommunications Relay         03/31/14
                                           Services and Speech-to-Speech
                                           Services for Individuals with
                                           Hearing and Speech
                                           Disabilities, Report and
                                           Order, CC Docket No. 98-67;
                                           FCC 04-137.
3060-1044...............................  Review of the Section 251        04/30/13
                                           Unbundling Obligations of
                                           Incumbent Local Exchange
                                           Carriers, CC Docket No. 01-
                                           338, and WC Docket No. 04-313,
                                           FCC 04-290, Order on Remand.
3060-1045...............................  FCC 324 and Sec. 76.1610.......  02/28/15
3060-1046...............................  Part 64, Pay Telephone           06/30/14
                                           Reclassification and
                                           Compensation Provisions of the
                                           Telecommunications Act of 1996.
3060-1047...............................  Telecommunications Relay         01/31/15
                                           Services and Speech-to-Speech
                                           Services for Individuals with
                                           Hearing and Speech
                                           Disabilities, Report and
                                           Order, FCC 03-112.
3060-1048...............................  Sec. 1.929(c)(1)...............  02/28/13
3060-1050...............................  Sec. 97.303....................  10/31/13
3060-1053...............................  Sec. 64.604, Telecommunications  04/30/13
                                           Relay Services, and Speech-to-
                                           Speech Services for
                                           Individuals with Hearing and
                                           Speech Disabilities, Two-Line
                                           Captioned Telephone Order.
3060-1054...............................  FCC 422-IB.....................  02/28/13
3060-1056...............................  FCC 421-IB.....................  01/31/13
3060-1057...............................  FCC 420-IB.....................  01/31/13
3060-1058...............................  FCC 608........................  01/31/14
3060-1059...............................  Global Mobile Personal           11/30/13
                                           Communications by Satellite
                                           (GMPCS)/E911 Call Centers.
3060-1060...............................  Wireless E911 Coordination       11/30/13
                                           Initiative Letter to State 911
                                           Coordinators.
3060-1061...............................  Earth Stations on Board Vessels  12/31/12
                                           (ESVs).
3060-1062...............................  Schools and Libraries Universal  06/30/13
                                           Service Support Mechanism--
                                           Notification of Equipment
                                           Transfers.
3060-1063...............................  Global Mobile Personal           02/28/13
                                           Communications by Satellite
                                           (GMPCS) Authorization,
                                           Marketing and Importation
                                           Rules.
3060-1064...............................  Regulatory Fee Assessment True-  06/30/14
                                           Ups.
3060-1066...............................  FCC 312-R and Secs. 25.121(e)    02/28/13
                                           and 25.131(h).
3060-1067...............................  FCC 312-EZ.....................  03/31/13
3060-1069...............................  Rules and Policies Concerning    05/31/13
                                           Attribution of Joint Sales
                                           Agreements in Local Television
                                           Markets, NPRM, MB Docket No.
                                           94-256, FCC 04-173.
3060-1070...............................  Sec. 101.1523 and Allocation     10/31/14
                                           and Service Rules for the 71-
                                           76 GHz, 81-86 GHz and 92-95
                                           GHz Bands.
3060-1078...............................  Rules and Regulations            11/30/13
                                           Implementing the Controlling
                                           the Assault of Non-Solicited
                                           Pornography and Marketing Act
                                           of 2003 (CAN-SPAM Act), CG
                                           Docket No. 04-53.
3060-1079...............................  Sec. 15.240, Radio Frequency     02/28/14
                                           Identification Equipment
                                           (RFID).
3060-1080...............................  Improving Public Safety          09/30/14
                                           Communications in the 800 MHz
                                           Band; TA-13.1 and TA-14.1.
3060-1081...............................  Secs. 54.202, 54.209, 54.307,    07/31/14
                                           54.313, 54.314 and 54.809.
3060-1084...............................  Rules and Regulations            06/30/13
                                           Implementing Minimum Customer
                                           Account Record Obligations on
                                           All Local and Interexchange
                                           Carriers (CARE), CG Docket No.
                                           02-386.
3060-1085...............................  Sec. 9.5, Interconnected Voice   06/30/15
                                           Over Internet Protocol (VoIP)
                                           E911 Compliance.
3060-1086...............................  Secs. 74.786, 74.787, 74.790,    08/31/14
                                           74.794 and 74.796.
3060-1087...............................  Sec. 15.615....................  06/30/14
3060-1088...............................  Rules and Regulations            05/31/13
                                           Implementing the Telephone
                                           Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
                                           of 1991, CG Docket No. 05-338,
                                           FCC 06-42.
3060-1089...............................  Telecommunications Relay         12/31/13
                                           Services and Speech-to-Speech
                                           Services for Individuals with
                                           Hearing and Speech
                                           Disabilities, E911
                                           Requirements for IP-Enabled
                                           Service.
3060-1092...............................  FCC 609-T and FCC 611-T........  01/31/14
3060-1094...............................  Secs. 27.14 and 27.1221........  03/31/14
3060-1095...............................  Surrenders of Authorizations     01/31/15
                                           for International Carrier,
                                           Space Station and Earth
                                           Station Licensees.
3060-1096...............................  Prepaid Calling Card Service     04/30/13
                                           Provider Certification, WC
                                           Docket No. 05-68.
3060-1097...............................  Service Rules and Policies for   11/30/14
                                           the Broadcasting Satellite
                                           Service (BSS).
3060-1100...............................  Sec. 15.117(k).................  06/30/13
3060-1101...............................  Children's Television Requests   04/30/13
                                           for Preemption Flexibility.
3060-1103...............................  Sec. 76.41.....................  06/30/13

[[Page 582]]


3060-1104...............................  Sec. 83.682(d).................  03/31/14
3060-1105...............................  FCC 387........................  03/31/14
3060-1106...............................  Licensing and Service Rules for  12/31/12
                                           Vehicle Mounted Earth Stations
                                           (VMES).
3060-1108...............................  Consummations of Assignments     06/30/13
                                           and Transfers of Control of
                                           Authorization.
3060-1110...............................  Sunset of the Cellular           10/31/13
                                           Radiotelephone Service Analog
                                           Service Requirement and
                                           Related Matters, FCC 07-103.
3060-1111...............................  Secs. 225 and 255,               04/30/14
                                           Interconnected Voice Over
                                           Internet Protocol (VoIP)
                                           Services.
3060-1112...............................  Comprehensive Review of the      11/30/13
                                           Universal Service Fund
                                           Management, Administration,
                                           and Oversight.
3060-1113...............................  Commercial Mobile Alert System   07/31/14
                                           (CMAS).
3060-1115...............................  DTV Consumer Education           09/30/12
                                           Initiative; Sec. 73.674, and
                                           FCC 388.
3060-1116...............................  Submarine Cable Reporting......  12/31/14
3060-1120...............................  Service Quality Measurement      09/30/14
                                           Plan for Interstate Special
                                           Access and Monthly Usage
                                           Reporting Requirements (272
                                           Sunset Rulemaking).
3060-1122...............................  Preparation of Annual Reports    05/31/15
                                           to Congress for the Collection
                                           & Expenditure of Fees or
                                           Charges for Enhanced 911
                                           (E911) Services under the NET
                                           911 Improvement Act of 2008.
3060-1124...............................  Sec. 80.231....................  01/31/15
3060-1126...............................  Sec. 10.350....................  06/30/15
3060-1127...............................  First Responder Emergency        03/31/13
                                           Contact Information in the
                                           Universal Licensing System
                                           (ULS).
3060-1128...............................  National Broadband Plan Survey   03/31/13
                                           of Consumers.
3060-1129...............................  Broadband Speed Test and         02/28/13
                                           Unavailability Registry.
3060-1130...............................  National Broadband Plan Survey   02/28/13
                                           of Businesses.
3060-1131...............................  Implementation of the NET 911    12/31/12
                                           Improvement Act of 2008:
                                           Location Information from
                                           Owners and Controllers of 911
                                           and E911 Capabilities.
3060-1133...............................  FCC 308 and Secs. 73.3545 and    01/31/13
                                           73.3580.
3060-1135...............................  Rules Authorizing the Operation  08/31/13
                                           of Low Power Auxiliary
                                           Stations (including Wireless
                                           Microphones).
3060-1136...............................  Spectrum Dashboard Customer      08/31/13
                                           Feedback.
3060-1138...............................  Secs. 1.49 and 1.54............  04/30/13
3060-1139...............................  Residential Fixed Broadband      02/28/14
                                           Services Testing and
                                           Measurement.
3060-1140...............................  Requests for Waiver of Various   06/30/14
                                           Petitioners to Allow the
                                           Establishment of 700 MHz
                                           Interoperable Public Safety
                                           Wireless Broadband Networks,
                                           Order, PS Docket No. 06-229,
                                           DA 10-2342.
3060-1142...............................  Electronic Tariff Filing System  09/30/13
                                           (ETFS),WC Docket No. 10-141,
                                           FCC 10-127, NPRM.
3060-1143...............................  E-Rate Deployed Ubiquitously     04/30/14
                                           (EDU) 2011 Pilot Program.
3060-1144...............................  Consumer Survey................  02/28/14
3060-1145...............................  Structure and Practices of the   09/30/14
                                           Video Relay Service Program,
                                           CG Docket No. 10-51.
3060-1146...............................  Implementation of the 21st       Pending OMB review and approval.
                                           Century Communications and
                                           Video Accessibility Act of
                                           2010, Section 105, Relay
                                           Services for Deaf-Blind
                                           Individuals, CG Docket No. 10-
                                           210.
3060-1147...............................  Wireless E911 Phase II Location  05/31/15
                                           Accuracy Requirements.
3060-1148...............................  Sec. 79.3......................  Pending OMB review and approval.
3060-1150...............................  Structure and Practices of the   06/30/15
                                           Video Relay Service Program,
                                           Second Report and Order, CG
                                           Docket No. 10-51.
3060-1151...............................  Secs. 1.1420, 1.1422, and        01/31/15
                                           1.1424.
3060-1152...............................  Implementing a Nationwide,       06/30/14
                                           Broadband, Interoperable
                                           Public Safety Network in the
                                           700 MHz Band (Third Report and
                                           Order, PS Docket No. 06-229,
                                           FCC 11-6).
3060-1153...............................  Satellite Digital Radio Service  07/31/14
                                           (SDARS).
3060-1154...............................  Commercial Advertisement         06/30/15
                                           Loudness Mitigation (``CALM'')
                                           Act; Financial Hardship and
                                           General Waiver Requests.
3060-1155...............................  Secs. 15.713, 15.714, 15.715     02/28/15
                                           and 15.717.
3060-1157...............................  Formal Complaint Procedures,     09/30/14
                                           Preserving the Open Internet
                                           and Broadband Industry
                                           Practices, Report and Order,
                                           GN Docket No. 09-191 and WC
                                           Docket No. 07-52.
3060-1158...............................  Disclosure of Network            09/30/14
                                           Management Practices,
                                           Preserving the Open Internet
                                           and Broadband Industry
                                           Practices, Report and Order,
                                           GN Docket No. 09-191 and WC
                                           Docket No. 07-52.
3060-1159...............................  Part 25--Satellite               09/30/14
                                           Communications; and Part 27--
                                           Miscellaneous Wireless
                                           Communications Services in the
                                           2.3 GHz Band.
3060-1161...............................  Sec. 27.14(g)-(l)..............  10/31/14
3060-1162...............................  Closed Captioning of Video       Pending OMB review and approval.
                                           Programming Delivered Using
                                           Internet Protocol, and
                                           Apparatus Closed Caption
                                           Requirements.
3060-1165...............................  Sec. 74.605....................  03/31/15
3060-1166...............................  FCC 180........................  04/30/15
3060-1167...............................  Accessible Telecommunications    04/30/15
                                           and Advanced Communications
                                           Services and Equipment.

[[Page 583]]


3060-1168...............................  FCC 680........................  04/30/15
3060-1169...............................  Part 11--Emergency Alert System  11/30/12
                                           (EAS), Fifth Report and Order,
                                           FCC 12-7.
3060-1171...............................  Secs. 73.682(e) and 76.607(a),   06/30/15
                                           Commercial Advertisement
                                           Loudness Mitigation (``CALM'')
                                           Act.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


[77 FR 48090, Aug. 13, 2012]

[[Page 585]]



List of CFR Sections Affected



All changes in this volume of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) that
were made by documents published in the Federal Register since January
1, 2009 are enumerated in the following list. Entries indicate the
nature of the changes effected. Page numbers refer to Federal Register
pages. The user should consult the entries for chapters, parts and
subparts as well as sections for revisions.
For changes to this volume of the CFR prior to this listing, consult the
annual edition of the monthly List of CFR Sections Affected (LSA). The
LSA is available at www.fdsys.gov. For changes to this volume of the CFR
prior to 2001, see the ``List of CFR Sections Affected, 1949-1963, 1964-
1972, 1973-1985, and 1986-2000'' published in 11 separate volumes. The
``List of CFR Sections Affected 1986-2000'' is available at
www.fdsys.gov.

                                  2009

47 CFR
                                                                   74 FR
                                                                    Page
Chapter I
52.21 (w) added....................................................31638
52.26 (a) and (c) revised..........................................31638
52.35 Added........................................................31638
54.418 (a) and (d) amended; (b)(2)(i) and (ii) revised..............8878
63.60 (a), (b), (c) and (d) redesignated as new (b), (c), (e) and
        (g); new (a), (b)(3), (d) and (f) added (OMB number
        pending in part)...........................................39563
64 OMB number.......................................................4345
    Actions on petitions...........................................20892
    Policy statement........................................37624, 47894
    Waiver.........................................................54913

                                  2010

47 CFR
                                                                   75 FR
                                                                    Page
Chapter I
52.26 (a) revised..................................................35315
52.35 Revised......................................................35315
52.36 Added (eff. date pending)....................................35315
54 Policy statement................................................25113
    Order..........................................................26137
54.5 Regulation at 71 FR 38796 confirmed...........................70149
54.301 (a)(2)(ii) revised..........................................17874
54.409 Regulation at 69 FR 34600 June 22, 2004 confirmed in part
                                                                   70149
54.410 Regulation at 69 FR 34600 confirmed.........................70149
54.416 Regulation at 69 FR 34601 confirmed.........................70149
54.417 (a) correctly revised.......................................15352
54.501 (a) removed; (b), (c) and (d) redesignated as new (a), (b)
        and (c); heading, new (a)(1), new (b)(1) and new (c)(1)
        revised....................................................75411
54.502 Revised.....................................................75411
54.503 Revised.....................................................17589
    Revised........................................................75412
54.504 (b)(2)(iv) revised..........................................17589
    Revised........................................................75413
54.505 (b)(4) revised..............................................75414
54.506 Removed.....................................................75414
54.507 (g) introductory text, (1) introductory text, (i), (ii) and
        (iii) revised..............................................17589
    (a), (g) introductory text and (1)(i) revised..................75414
    (g) introductory text, (1) introductory text, (i), (ii) and
(iii) revised......................................................17589
54.508 Revised.....................................................75415
54.511 (a), (c)(1) introductory text, (ii) and (d)(1) revised;
        (c)(3) removed.............................................75415
54.513 Regulation at 69 FR 6191 confirmed..........................70149
    (a) revised; (b) and (c) redesignated as (c) and (d); new (b)
added..............................................................75415

[[Page 586]]

54.514 Regulation at 68 FR 36942 confirmed in part.................70149
54.517 (b) revised.................................................17590
    Removed........................................................75415
    (b) revised....................................................17590
54.518 Revised.....................................................75415
54.519 (a) introductory text, (6) and (b) revised..................75415
54.522 Removed.....................................................75416
54.609 Regulation at 68 FR 74502 confirmed in part.................70149
    Regulation at 70 FR 6373 confirmed.............................70149
54.621 Regulation at 68 FR 74503 confirmed.........................70149
54.703 Regulation at 63 FR 70573 confirmed in part.................70149
54.708 Regulation at 71 FR 38797 confirmed.........................70149
54.712 Regulation at 71 FR 38797 confirmed.........................70149
63.60 Regulation at 74 FR 39563 confirmed in part..................13235
64 Waiver..........................................................54040
64.604 (c)(5)(iii)(I) revised; interim (OMB number pending)........39860
64.605 Regulation at 73 FR 79696 confirmed.........................29914

                                  2011

47 CFR
                                                                   76 FR
                                                                    Page
Chapter I
43.11 Regulation at 73 FR 37881 eff. date confirmed................68641
43.53 Removed......................................................42573
43.61 (a) introductory text revised; (b) and (c) removed...........42573
43.82 (a) revised..................................................42573
51 Authority citation revised......................................73854
    Policy statement...............................................81562
51.700 Added.......................................................73854
51.701 (a), (b) introductory text, (c), (d) and (e) revised;
        (b)(3) added...............................................73855
51.703 Revised.....................................................73855
51.705 Revised.....................................................73855
51.707 Removed.....................................................73856
51.709 Revised.....................................................73856
51.711 (a) introductory text, (1) and (b) revised..................73856
51.713 Revised.....................................................73856
51.715 (a) introductory text, (1), (b) introductory text and (2)
        revised; (d) amended.......................................73856
51.717 Removed.....................................................73856
51.901--51.919 (Subpart J) Added...................................73856
51.907 OMB number pending in part..................................73856
51.909 OMB number pending in part..................................73856
51.911 OMB number pending in part..................................73856
51.915 OMB number pending in part..................................73856
51.917 OMB number pending in part..................................73856
51.919 OMB number pending..........................................73856
52.33 Regulation at 63 FR 35161 confirmed..........................61279
    Regulation at 67 FR 40620 confirmed............................61279
54 Order............................................................4827
    Authority citation revised.....................................73869
    Policy statement...............................................81562
54.5 Amended.......................................................73869
54.7 Revised.......................................................73869
54.101 Revised.....................................................73870
54.202 Revised.....................................................73870
54.301 (a)(1) revised; (b) and (e)(1) amended......................73870
54.302 Added.......................................................73870
54.303 Removed.....................................................73871
54.304 Added (OMB number pending)..................................73871
54.305 (a) and (b) amended.........................................73871
54.307 (e) added...................................................73871
54.309 (d) added...................................................73872
54.311 Removed.....................................................73872
54.312 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................73872
54.313 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................73873
54.314 Revised (OMB number pending)................................73875
54.316 Removed.....................................................73876
54.318 Added.......................................................73876
54.320 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................73876
54.401 (a)(1) revised..............................................38046
54.405 (a) revised; (e) added......................................38046
54.500 (c) and (k) revised; eff. 10-13-11..........................56302
54.501 Heading and (a)(1) revised; eff. 10-13-11...................56302
54.503 (c)(2)(i) revised; eff. 10-13-11............................56302
54.504 (a)(1)(i) revised; eff. 10-13-11............................56303

[[Page 587]]

54.507 (g)(1)(i) revised; eff. 10-13-11............................56303
54.520 (a)(1), (4), (c)(1)(i), (iii)(B), (2)(i), (iii)(B) and
        (3)(i)(B) revised; (c)(4), (5) and (h) added; eff. 10-13-
        11.........................................................56303
54.601 (a)(3)(i) revised; interim..................................37282
54.702 (a), (b), (c) and (h) revised...............................73876
54.709 (b) amended.................................................73876
54.715 (c) revised.................................................73877
54.801 (f) added...................................................73877
54.901 (b)(4), (c) and (d) added...................................73877
54.1001--54.1010 (Subpart L) Added.................................73877
54.1003 OMB number pending.........................................73877
54.1004 OMB number pending in part.................................73877
54.1005 OMB number pending in part.................................73877
54.1006 OMB number pending in part.................................73877
54.1007 OMB number pending in part.................................73877
54.1008 OMB number pending in part.................................73877
54.1009 OMB number pending in part.................................73877
54.1010 OMB number pending in part.................................73877
61 Policy statement................................................81562
61.3 (t) through (y) redesignated as (u) through (z); new (t)
        added (OMB number pending).................................43210
    (aa) through (zz) correctly redesignated as (bb) through
(aaa); old (z) correctly reinstated as (aa); CFR correction........60378
    Regulation at 76 FR 43210 confirmed............................61956
    (bbb) added (OMB number pending)...............................73880
    Regulation at 76 FR 73880 confirmed............................76623
61.13 (a) and (b) revised (OMB number pending).....................43210
    Regulation at 76 FR 43210 confirmed............................61956
61.14 (b) and (e) revised (OMB number pending).....................43210
    Regulation at 76 FR 43210 confirmed............................61956
61.15 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43210
    Regulation at 76 FR 43210 confirmed............................61956
61.16 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.17 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.20 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.21 Removed (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.22 Removed (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.23 Removed (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.26 Revised......................................................73881
    Regulation at 76 FR 73881 confirmed............................76623
61.32 Removed (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.33 Removed (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.38 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43211
    Regulation at 69 FR 25336 confirmed............................61279
    Regulation at 76 FR 43211 confirmed............................61956
61.39 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43212
    Regulation at 76 FR 43212 confirmed............................61956
    (a) revised; (g) added.........................................73882
    Regulation at 76 FR 73882 confirmed............................76623
61.40 (a) introductory text revised (OMB number pending)...........43213
    Regulation at 76 FR 43213 confirmed............................61956
61.41 (a)(2) revised (OMB number pending)..........................43213
    Regulation at 69 FR 25336 confirmed............................61279

[[Page 588]]

    Regulation at 76 FR 43213 confirmed............................61956
61.42 (d) introductory text, (4), (e)(1) introductory text and (f)
        revised (OMB number pending)...............................43214
    Regulation at 76 FR 43214 confirmed............................61956
61.43 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43214
    Regulation at 76 FR 43214 confirmed............................61956
61.45 (a), (b)(1)(i) introductory text and (d)(2) revised (OMB
        number pending)............................................43214
    Regulation at 76 FR 43214 confirmed............................61956
61.46 (a) introductory text revised (OMB number pending)...........43214
    Regulation at 76 FR 43214 confirmed............................61956
61.47 (f), (i)(2) and (5) revised (OMB number pending).............43214
    Regulation at 76 FR 43214 confirmed............................61956
61.48 (i)(2), (3) introductory text, (4) and (l)(2) revised (OMB
        number pending)............................................43214
    Regulation at 76 FR 43214 confirmed............................61956
61.49 (f)(2), (3), (4), (g) introductory text, (2), (h), (k) and
        (l) revised (OMB number pending)...........................43215
    Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed............................61956
61.51--61.59 (Subpart F) Designated as Subpart F; heading added
        (OMB number pending).......................................43215
    Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed............................61956
61.51 Added (OMB number pending)...................................43215
    Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed............................61956
61.51--61.59 (Subpart F) Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed.......61956
61.52 (a) removed; (b) and (c) redesignated as new (a) and (b);
        new (a) introductory text and (b) revised (OMB number
        pending)...................................................43215
    Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed............................61956
61.55 (a) revised (OMB number pending).............................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.58 (a)(2)(ii), (d) and (e)(1) introductory text revised; (f)
        added (OMB number pending).................................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.59 (b) and (c) revised (OMB number pending).....................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.66--61.87 (Subpart F) Redesignated as Subpart G (OMB number
        pending)...................................................43215
    Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed............................61956
61.66 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.68 (a) revised (OMB number pending).............................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.83 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.86 Revised (OMB number pending).................................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.87 (a) introductory text, (1)(i), (ii), (3) and (c) revised
        (OMB number pending).......................................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.131--61.136 (Subpart G) Redesignated as Subpart H (OMB number
        pending)...................................................43215
    Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed............................61956
61.132 Revised (OMB number pending)................................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.134 Revised(OMB number pending).................................43216
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
61.151--61.153 (Subpart H) Removed(OMB number pending).............43215

[[Page 589]]

    Regulation at 76 FR 43215 confirmed............................61956
61.191 Revised (OMB number pending)................................43217
    Regulation at 76 FR 43216 confirmed............................61956
63.19 Regulation at 72 FR 54366 confirmed..........................13295
63.23 (e) removed; (f) redesignated as new (e).....................42573
63.24 Regulation at 72 FR 54366 confirmed in part..................13295
64 Authority citation revised...24400, 26647, 43205, 65969, 67073, 73882
    Actions on petitions...........................................59557
    Policy statement...............................................81562
    Regulation at 76 FR 43205 confirmed............................61956
64.601--64.613 (Subpart F) Authority citation revised......24400, 26647,
                                                            65969, 67073
64.601 (a)(27) redesignated as (a)(28); new (a)(27) added..........24400
    (a)(10) revised; (a)(15) through (28) redesignated as (a)(16)
through (29); new (a)(15) added....................................65969
64.604 Regulation at 75 FR 39860 confirmed..........................8659
    (a)(6), (7), (b)(4)(iii), (c)(5)(iii)(L), (M), and (N) added;
(c)(5)(iii)(C) revised (OMB number pending in part)................24400
    (c)(5)(iii)(L)(3) corrected....................................30842
    (b)(4)(iv) added; (c)(5)(iii)(F) revised.......................47474
    (c)(5)(iii)(J) removed.........................................63563
    (c)(5)(iii)(A) and (B) revised; (c)(5)(iii)(D) removed;
(c)(5)(iii)(C) redesignated as new (c)(5)(iii)(D); new
(c)(5)(iii)(C) added...............................................65969
    Regulation at 76 FR 24400 confirmed in part....................59269
64.606 (g) revised.................................................24402
    Heading, (a)(2), (b)(2), (c)(2), (e)(2), (f)(2) and (g)
revised; (a)(3) and (h) added (OMB number pending in part).........47474
    (a)(2)(v) and (g) revised; interim (OMB number pending in
part)..............................................................47477
    (a)(2)(ii)(A)(4), (5) and (E) revised; (a)(2)(ii)(A)(6), (7)
and (8) added......................................................67073
    Regulation at 76 FR 47477 eff. date confirmed in part; interim
                                                                   68116
    Regulation at 76 FR 47474 eff. date confirmed in part..........68328
    Regulation at 76 FR 67073 confirmed............................68642
64.610 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................26647
    (c)(2)(ii) corrected...........................................31261
    Regulation at 76 FR 26647 confirmed............................58412
64.611 (e) and (f) redesignated as (f) and (g); new (g)(1)(iii)
        and (iv) amended; new (e), (g)(1)(v) and (vi) added; eff.
        in part 10-27-11 (OMB number pending in part)..............59557
    Regulation at 76 FR 59557 confirmed in part....................72124
64.613 (a)(1) and (2) revised; (a)(3) redesignated as (a)(4); new
        (a)(3) added; eff. in part 10-27-11 (OMB number pending in
        part)......................................................59557
    Regulation at 76 FR 59557 confirmed in part....................72124
64.709 (d)(1) and (2) revised......................................43217
    Regulation at 76 FR 43217 confirmed in part....................61956
64.1600 (c), (d), (e) and (f) redesignated as (e), (f), (i) and
        (j); new (c), (d), (g) and (h) added.......................43205
    (f) through (j) redesignated as (g) through (k); new (f) added
                                                                   73882
64.1601 (a) revised................................................73882
64.1604 Redesignated as 64.1605; new 64.1604 added.................43205
64.1605 Redesignated from 64.1604..................................43205
64.2401 Note removed...............................................63563
64.5001 Regulation at 71 FR 43673 confirmed........................61279
69 Policy statement................................................81562
69.1 (d) added.....................................................73882
69.3 (e)(6) and (9) revised; (e)(12) added (OMB number pending in
        part)......................................................73882
    Regulation at 76 FR 73882 confirmed............................76623
69.123 Regulation at 69 FR 25336 confirmed.........................61279

[[Page 590]]

                                  2012

47 CFR
                                                                   77 FR
                                                                    Page
Chapter I
51 Actions on petitions.............................................3635
    Technical correction...........................................30903
51.907 Regulation at 76 FR 73856 confirmed in part.................35623
    (b)(2)(v), (vi) and (c)(1) revised; (b)(3) and (c)(4) added;
(c)(3) removed.....................................................48452
51.909 Regulation at 76 FR 73856 confirmed in part.................35623
    (a)(3), (b)(2)(v), (3) and (c) revised; (b)(4) added...........48452
51.911 Regulation at 76 FR 73856 confirmed in part.................35623
    (b) introductory text and (6) revised; (b)(7) added............48453
51.913 (a) revised.................................................31536
    Regulation at 77 FR 31536 eff. date corrected..................36406
51.915 Regulation at 76 FR 73856 confirmed in part.................35623
    (d)(1)(i)(C)(2)(i), (ii)(C)(2)(i), (iii)(E)(2)(i),
(iv)(E)(2)(i), (v)(E)(2)(i), (vi)(F)(2)(i) and (vii)(G)(2)(i)
revised............................................................48453
51.917 (d)(1)(i), (ii) and (iii) revised...........................14302
    Regulation at 76 FR 73856 confirmed in part....................35623
54 Actions on petitions...............................3635, 23630, 48453
Authority citation revised.........................................71712
    Order...................................................30411, 42185
    Technical correction...........................................30903
    Policy statement...............................................39435
54.5 Amended.........................................12966, 20553, 30913
54.101 (a) revised...........................................1640, 12966
54.201 (a)(1) and (h) revised......................................12966
54.202 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................12966
    Regulation at 77 FR 12966 confirmed in part.............25609, 71712
54.209 Removed.....................................................12966
54.301 (f) removed.................................................14302
54.304 Regulation at 76 FR 73871 confirmed.........................35623
54.307 (e)(1)(ii) revised..........................................14302
    (e)(3)(iii), (v) introductory text, (5) and (7) revised;
(e)(3)(iv)(A) removed; (e)(3)(iv)(B) through (F) redesignated as
new (e)(3)(iv)(A) through (E)......................................30913
    (e)(5) revised.................................................52618
54.312 Regulation at 76 FR 73872 confirmed in part.................26987
    (b)(3) revised.................................................31536
    Regulation at 77 FR 31536 eff. date corrected..................36406
54.313 (a)(9) introductory text, and (f)(2) revised (OMB number
        pending)...................................................14302
    Regulation at 76 FR 73873 confirmed in part....................26987
    (a)(10), (11), (c)(1) through (4), (d), (e)(3) introductory
text, (f)(1) introductory text, (h) and (j) revised (OMB number
pending in part)...................................................30914
54.314 Regulation at 76 FR 73875 confirmed.........................26987
54.315 Removed.....................................................14302
54.318 (d) revised.................................................14302
    (a), (b), (c) and (f) revised; (h) and (i) added...............30914
54.320 Regulation at 73876 confirmed in part.......................26987
54.400 Revised.....................................................12966
54.401 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................12967
    Regulation at 77 FR 12967 eff. date corrected in part (OMB
number pending in part)............................................19125
    Regulation at 77 FR 12967 confirmed in part.............25609, 71712
54.403 Revised (OMB number pending)................................12967
    Regulation at 77 FR 12967 confirmed.....................25609, 71712
54.404 Added.......................................................12968
54.405 Revised.....................................................12969
    Regulation at 77 FR 12969 eff. date corrected in part (OMB
number pending in part)............................................19125
    Regulation at 77 FR 12969 confirmed in part....................25609
54.407 Revised (OMB number pending)................................12970
    Regulation at 77 FR 12970 confirmed.....................25609, 71712
    (d) corrected..................................................38534
54.409 Revised.....................................................12970
    (a)(3) correctly revised.......................................38534
54.410 Revised (OMB number pending)................................12970
    Regulation at 77 FR 12970 eff. date corrected..................19125
    (d)(3)(iii) through (viii) correctly redesignated as
(d)(3)(iv) through (ix); second (d)(3)(ii) correctly redesignated
as new (d)(3)(iii).................................................19125

[[Page 591]]

    Regulation at 77 FR 12970 confirmed in part....................25609
    Regulation at 77 FR 12970 confirmed............................71712
    (c)(1)(iii) correctly revised; second (d)(3)(ii) through
(viii) correctly designated as (d)(3)(iii) through (ix)............38534
54.411 Removed.....................................................12972
54.412 Added.......................................................12972
    (a) and (b) correctly revised..................................38534
54.413 Revised.....................................................12973
54.414 Added.......................................................12973
54.415 Removed.....................................................12973
54.416 Revised (OMB number pending)................................12973
    Regulation at 77 FR 12973 confirmed.....................25609, 71712
    (a)(3) correctly removed.......................................38534
54.417 Revised (OMB number pending)................................12974
    Regulation at 77 FR 12974 confirmed.....................25609, 71712
    (c) correctly revised..........................................38534
54.419 Added.......................................................12974
54.420 Added (OMB number pending)..................................12974
    Regulation at 77 FR 12974 confirmed in part....................25609
    Regulation at 77 FR 12970 confirmed............................71712
    (a)(5) correctly revised.......................................38534
54.422 Added (OMB number pending)..................................12974
    Regulation at 77 FR 12974 eff. date corrected in part (OMB
number pending)....................................................19125
    Regulation at 77 FR 12974 confirmed.....................25609, 71712
    Correctly revised..............................................38534
54.717 Amended.....................................................71712
54.903 (a)(2) revised..............................................14303
54.1003 (b) revised (OMB number pending)...........................14303
    Regulation at 76 FR 73877 confirmed............................33097
54.1004 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 confirmed in part................33097
54.1005 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 confirmed in part................33097
54.1006 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 confirmed in part................33097
54.1007 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 confirmed in part................33097
54.1008 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 confirmed in part................33097
54.1009 (a) introductory text revised..............................30915
61 Actions on petitions.............................................3635
61.3 Regulation at 76 FR 73880 confirmed...........................37614
61.26 (f) revised..................................................20553
64 Technical correction............................................18106
    Actions on petitions...............................1039, 3635, 75894
    Waiver.........................................................20553
    Authority citation revised.......................30919, 34246, 71137
    Policy statement...............................................43538
64.604 (c)(5)(iii)(D)(2) correctly amended.........................60630
64.606 (a)(2)(v) added.............................................33662
64.610 Regulation at 76 FR 26647 confirmed in part.................42187
64.1200 (a), (b), (c) and (f) revised (OMB number pending in part)
                                                                   34246
    Regulation at 77 FR 34246 confirmed in part....................63240
    Regulation at 77 FR 63240 eff. dates corrected.................66935
64.1202 Added (OMB number pending).................................71137
64.2400--64.2401 (Subpart Y) Heading revised.......................30919
64.2400 (b) revised................................................30919
64.2401 (a)(3) redesignated as (a)(4); new (a)(3) and (f) added
        (OMB number pending in part)...............................30919
    Regulation at 77 FR 30919 confirmed in part....................65320
    Regulation at 77 FR 30919 eff. dates corrected.................71353
    (f) correctly revised (OMB number pending).....................71354
69 Actions on petitions.............................................3635
69.3 Regulation at 76 FR 73882 confirmed in part...................37614

                                  2013

47 CFR
                                                                   78 FR
                                                                    Page
Chapter I
43 Authority citation revised......................................15623
43.01 (a), (b) and (d) revised (OMB numbers pending)...............49149
43.11 (a), (b) and (c) revised (OMB numbers pending)...............49149

[[Page 592]]

43.51 (a)(1) introductory text and (d) revised; (b)(1) and (2)
        amended; (b)(3), (e) and (f) removed (OMB number pending
        in part)...................................................11112
43.61 Removed (OMB number pending).................................15623
43.62 Added (OMB number pending)...................................15623
43.82 Removed (OMB number pending).................................15623
51 Order...........................................................39617
51.217 Regulation at 64 FR 51911 confirmed.........................52710
51.319 (d) removed; (e), (f) and (g) redesignated as new (d), (e)
        and (f); (a) and new (d) revised............................5746
51.909 (a)(4), (5) and (6) added; (a)(3) and (c)(1) revised........26267
51.915 (b)(13), (d)(1)(iii)(F), (iv)(F), (v)(F), (vi)(G),
        (vii)(H), (viii) and (f)(6) revised........................26268
51.917 (b)(5), (6), (d)(1)(iii)(D) and (f)(3) revised..............26268
52 Actions on petitions............................................36679
52.19 Regulation at 67 FR 6434 confirmed in part...................52710
52.36 Regulation at 75 FR 35315 confirmed..........................52710
53 Order...........................................................39617
53.203 Regulation at 62 FR 2968 confirmed..........................52710
54 Authority citation revised...............................38232, 48624
    Policy statement.............5750, 16808, 20796, 26269, 26705, 70881
    Regulation at 78 FR 5750 confirmed.............................10100
    Regulation at 78 FR 29063 confirmed............................70238
    Order (OMB number pending)..............................29063, 32991
    Order..........................................................42699
    Regulation at 78 FR 32991 eff. date confirmed..................44893
54.5 Amended.......................................................13982
54.304 (c)(1) and (d)(1) revised...................................26268
54.312 (b) introductory text amended; (c) added (OMB number
        pending in part)...........................................38233
    Regulation at 78 FR 38233 eff. date confirmed in part..........44893
    (b)(3) and (c)(4) revised......................................48624
54.313 (f)(2) revised (OMB number pending in part)..................3843
    (a) introductory text and (11) revised (OMB number pending)....22201
    (a)(9) introductory text revised...............................29656
    (b) revised (OMB number pending)...............................38233
    Regulation at 78 FR 38233 eff. date confirmed..................44893
54.313 Regulation at 76 FR 73873 eff. date confirmed...............47211
    Regulation at 77 FR 30914 eff. date confirmed..................47211
    Regulation at 78 FR 3843 eff. date confirmed...................47211
    Regulation at 78 FR 22201 eff. date confirmed..................47211
54.410 (a) revised.................................................40970
54.600 Undesignated center heading and section added...............13982
54.601 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................13982
    Regulation at 78 FR 13982 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.602 Added.......................................................13982
54.603 Undesignated center heading added; heading, (a), (b)(1)
        introductory text, (i) and (ii) revised; (b)(1)(iii)
        removed (OMB number pending in part).......................13983
    Regulation at 78 FR 13983 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.604 (a), (b) and (c) redesignated as (c), (d) and (e); Heading
        and new (c) introductory text revised; new (a) and new (b)
        added......................................................13983
54.605 (a) revised.................................................13983
54.609 (a) introductory text, (1)(iv), (3), (d)(1), (2) and (e)(1)
        revised (OMB number pending in part).......................13983
    Regulation at 78 FR 13983 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.611 Removed.....................................................13984
54.613 (b) removed.................................................13984
54.615 (b), (c) introductory text and (2) revised; (c)(3) removed
        (OMB number pending in part)...............................13984
    Regulation at 78 FR 13984 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.617 Removed.....................................................13984
54.619 (a)(1) and (d) revised (OMB number pending in part).........13984

[[Page 593]]

    Regulation at 78 FR 13984 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.621 Removed.....................................................13984
54.623 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................13984
    Regulation at 78 FR 13984 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.625 Revised.....................................................13984
54.630 Undesignated center heading and section added...............13984
54.631 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................13985
    Regulation at 78 FR 13985 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.632 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13985
    Regulation at 78 FR 13985 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.633 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................13985
    Regulation at 78 FR 13985 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.634 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................13986
    Regulation at 78 FR 13986 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.635 Added.......................................................13986
54.636 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13987
    Regulation at 78 FR 13987 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.637 Added.......................................................13987
54.638 Added.......................................................13987
54.639 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................13987
    Regulation at 78 FR 13987 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.640 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................13988
    Regulation at 78 FR 13988 eff. date confirmed..................38606
54.642 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13988
    Regulation at 78 FR 13988 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.643 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13990
    Regulation at 78 FR 13990 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.644 Added.......................................................13991
54.645 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13991
    Regulation at 78 FR 13991 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.646 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13991
    Regulation at 78 FR 13991 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.647 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13991
    Regulation at 78 FR 13991 eff. date confirmed..................54967
54.648 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................13991
    Regulation at 78 FR 13991 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.649 Added.......................................................13992
54.671 Undesignated center heading and section added...............13992
54.672 Added.......................................................13992
54.675 Added (OMB number pending in part)..........................13992
    Regulation at 78 FR 13992 eff. date confirmed in part..........54967
54.679 Added (OMB number pending)..................................13992
    Regulation at 78 FR 13992 eff. date confirmed..................38606
54.680 Added.......................................................13993
54.901 (c) introductory text and (2) revised.......................26269
54.1008 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 eff. date confirmed in part......45071
54.1009 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 eff. date confirmed in part......45071
54.1010 Regulation at 76 FR 73877 eff. date confirmed in part......45071
63 Order...........................................................39617
63.10 (c)(2) and (4) revised (OMB number pending)..................15623
63.14 (c) revised; (c) note removed................................11112
63.17 (b) introductory text revised................................11112
63.18 (l) removed..................................................15623
63.21 (d) revised (OMB number pending).............................15624
63.22 (f) redesignated as (h); new (f), (g), Note 1 and Note 2
        added......................................................11112
    (e) revised (OMB number pending)...............................15624
63.62 Regulation at 61 FR 15733 confirmed in part..................52710
64 Order...........................................................39617
64.601 (a)(2) through (29) revised; (a)(30) through (45) added.....40605
64.604 (c)(5)(iii)(E) revised.......................................8031
    (c)(8), (9) and (10) added; interim (OMB number pending in
part)...............................................................8038

[[Page 594]]

    Regulation at 77 FR 8038 confirmed 3-7-13 through 9-3-13.......14701
    (b)(2)(iii), (4)(iv) and (c)(5)(iii)(N)(1)(iii) revised;
(c)(11), (12), (13) and (d) added..................................40607
    (a)(1)(v) revised; (a)(1)(viii) and (b)(7) added eff. 10-15-13
                                                                   49696
    (c)(8), (9) and (10) revised; (c)(11) added (OMB number
pending in part)...................................................53691
64.605 (b)(4)(ii) revised..........................................40608
64.606 (a)(4), (g)(3) and (4) added................................40608
    (a)(2)(ii)(F) added (OMB number pending).......................53694
64.611 (a)(3), (4) and (h) added; (f) revised......................40608
64.615 Added.......................................................40609
64.617 Added.......................................................40609
64.619 Added.......................................................40609
64.621 Added.......................................................40609
64.623 Added.......................................................40609
64.630 Added.......................................................40609
64.631 Added.......................................................40609
64.632 Added.......................................................40609
64.633 Added.......................................................40609
64.634 Added.......................................................40609
64.635 Added.......................................................40609
64.636 Added.......................................................40609
64.1001--64.1002 (Subpart J) Removed...............................11113
64.1202 Regulation at 77 FR 71137 confirmed........................18246
64.1310 Regulation at 70 FR 722 confirmed..........................52710
64.2101--64.2109 (Subpart V) Added.................................76239
64.2201 (Subpart W) Added..........................................76239
64.5101--64.5111 (Subpart EE) Added................................40613
64.6000--64.6060 (Subpart FF) Added................................67975
69 Policy statement..........................................2572, 67053
    Technical correction...........................................24683
69.2 Removed........................................................5750
69.306 (d)(2) revised; (d)(3) added................................26269
69.415 (c)(4) revised...............................................5750
    (b) and (c) introductory text revised; (d) added...............26269
69.502 (c) removed; (d) and (e) redesignated as new (c) and (d).....5750

                                  2014

  (Regulations published from January 1, 2014, through October 1, 2014)

47 CFR
                                                                   79 FR
                                                                    Page
Chapter I
43.01 Regulation at 78 FR 49149 confirmed..........................36232
43.11 Regulation at 78 FR 49149 confirmed..........................36232
51.907 (d)(2)(i), (iii), (e)(1)(ii) and (f) revised................28844
51.909 (d)(3)(ii), (iii), (e)(1)(i), (ii), (f), (g)(1)
        introductory text, (i), (ii), (h)(1) introductory text,
        (i) and (ii) revised.......................................28845
51.915 (b)(14) and (d)(4) added; (d)(1)(iii)(B), (C), (iv)(B),
        (C), (v)(B), (C), (vi)(B), (vii)(B) and (2) revised........28846
51.917 (d)(1)(iii)(D) and (vii) revised............................28847
54 Policy statement...........................17070, 29111, 33705, 45705
    Regulation at 78 FR 32991 confirmed............................34639
54.5 Amended.......................................................49197
54.302 (b) revised.................................................39188
54.305 (d) and (e) revised.........................................39188
54.309 Revised.....................................................11335
54.310 Added.......................................................11335
    (a) and (b) revised; (e) and (f) added (OMB number pending in
part)..............................................................39189
54.312 Regulation at 78 FR 48624 confirmed in part.................34639
54.313 (e)(1). (2) and (3) introductory text revised (OMB numbers
        pending in part)...........................................11336
    Regulation at 78 FR 38233 confirmed............................34639
    (f)(1) introductory text and (i) revised.......................39189
54.314 (c) revised.................................................39189
54.318 (d) and (g) revised.........................................39190
54.319 Added.......................................................39190
54.500 Amended.....................................................49197
54.501 Heading and (a)(1) revised; (c)(1) removed; (c)(2) and (3)
        redesignated as new (c)(1) and (2).........................49198
54.502 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................49198
54.503 (c), (d)(2)(i) and(4) revised; (e) added (OMB number
        pending in part)...........................................49199
54.504 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................49199

[[Page 595]]

54.505 (b)(1), (2), (3)(i), (ii), (4) and (c) revised; (d) added
                                                                   49201
54.507 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................49201
54.508 Removed.....................................................49203
54.511 Revised.....................................................49203
54.514 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................49203
54.516 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................49203
54.642 (h)(5) revised..............................................49203
54.705 (a)(1)(vi), (vii) and (viii) removed........................49204
54.719 Revised.....................................................49204
54.720 Revised (OMB number pending in part)........................49204
54.903 (a)(1) and (2) revised......................................39190
54.1301--54.1310 (Subpart M) Added.................................39190
63.11 (g)(2) revised (OMB number pending)..........................31877
63.18 (k) introductory text revised; (q) redesignated as (r); (k)
        note and new (q) added (OMB number pending in part)........31877
64 Policy statement.........................................25682, 35956
64.604 Regulation at 78 FR 53691 eff. date confirmed in part.......40003
    Regulation at 78 FR 53691 confirmed in part....................51446
    (c)(9)(ii) introductory text, (iii) introductory text, (iv),
(v), (vii), (xi), (10) and (11)(iii) revised; (c)(11)(i), (iv) and
(v) removed........................................................51450
    (c)(11)(iv) correctly added....................................53303
64.606 Regulation at 78 FR 53694 eff. date confirmed...............40003
64.6000--64.6060 (Subpart FF) Regulation at 78 FR 67959 confirmed
                                                                   33709
69 Regulation at 78 FR 2572 eff. date confirmed....................57810
    Policy statement; eff. 10-27-14................................57811
69.413 Revised.....................................................39193


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