[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 68 (Tuesday, April 9, 2002)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 17009]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-8343]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Parts 1, 61, and 69

[CC Docket No. 96-128; FCC 02-39]


Implementation of Pay Telephone Reclassification and Compensation 
Provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In this document the Commission declined to modify its 
accounting safeguards in the manner requested by the Inmate Calling 
Services Provider Coalition (ICSPC) in part because the Commission's 
existing rules already provide for much of the relief that the ICSPC 
requested. The intended effect of this document is to maintain the 
existing Commission rules regarding the accounting safeguards.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joi Roberson Nolen, Wireline 
Competition Bureau, 202-418-1537.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 276 of the Communications Act of 
1934, as amended (the Act), directs the Commission to ``establish a per 
call compensation plan to ensure that all payphone service providers 
are fairly compensated for each and every completed intrastate and 
interstate call using their payphone.'' See 47 U.S.C. 276(b)(1)(A). The 
ICSPC sought reconsideration of certain issues relating to inmate 
calling services. See Implementation of the Pay Telephone 
Reclassification and Compensation Provisions of the Telecommunications 
Act of 1996, CC Docket No. 96-128, Order on Reconsideration, 11 FCC Rcd 
21233 (1996), 61 FR 65341 (Dec. 12, 1996)(Order on Reconsideration) 
aff'd in part and remanded in part, Illinois Pub. Tel. Ass'n v. FCC, 
117 F.3d 555 (D.C. Cir. 1997), cert. denied sub nom., Virginia State 
Corp. Comm'n v. FCC, 523 U.S. 1046 (1998). ICSPC, along with numerous 
other parties, initially sought review of the Order on Reconsideration 
before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia 
Circuit and consolidated its appeal under the lead case Illinois Public 
Telecommunications Association v. FCC. The court subsequently severed 
ICSPC's appeal, and later remanded it at the Commission's request. The 
Commission issued a Public Notice asking parties to update and refresh 
the record with respect to the issues raised in ICSPC's appeal.
    In this order, the Commission concluded that section 276's fair 
compensation requirement does not require either preemption of state 
local collect calling caps or imposition of a federally-tariffed 
surcharge above state rate caps for local inmate calls. The Commission 
also concluded that ICSPC's requested nonstructural safeguards are not 
necessary, in light of those that section 276 and our rules already 
impose. In addition, the Commission initiated a Notice of Proposed 
Rulemaking to examine the costs associated with the provision of inmate 
calling services. See Implementation of the Pay Telephone 
Reclassification and Compensation Provisions of the Telecommunications 
Act of 1996, CC Docket No. 96-128, Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, FCC 
02-39 ( Feb. 21, 2002) (published elsewhere in this issue) .
    Accordingly, it is ordered that, pursuant to the authority 
contained in sections 1, 4(i)-4(j), and 276 of the Communications Act 
of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i)-(j), 276, the Petition for 
Partial Reconsideration and Clarification of the Inmate Calling 
Services Providers Coalition is denied.

Federal Communications Commission.
William F. Caton,
Acting Secretary.
[FR Doc. 02-8343 Filed 4-8-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P