MISSOULA PLAN REFORMING INTERCARRIER COMPENSATION SUBMITTED AT FCC BY LECS

摘要

The latest edition of a controversial plan for reforming intercarrier compensation arrived in Washington, getting a lukewarm endorsement and a hostile welcome. Few changes mark the plan, submitted Mon. to the FCC by AT&T, BellSouth, Cingular and hundreds of small carriers. Now dubbed the 揗issoula Plan,?it抯 the final version of a proposal by the remaining elements of the forum organized by the National Assn. of Regulatory Utility Commissioners (NARUC). The proposal immediately drew fire in the form of a statement from many industry groups and companies, including the National Assn. of State Utility Consumer Advocates (NASUCA), the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Assn., the National Cable & Telecommunications Assn. and CompTel. 揟hat's not a good sign,?an industry observer said: 揟hey're obviously trying to head this off before it gets any momentum.?In its own statement, NARUC was noncommittal; the plan essentially emerged from meetings the group sponsored. Neither Verizon nor Qwest is signing on. nnThe plan, backed by many rural local exchange carriers, calls for a gradual, 4-year 搑ebalancing?to a single compensation rate for most calls. Along the way, small and medium carriers would enjoy higher rates than the largest carriers. To compensate smaller carriers for revenue lost to lower rates, the cap on the subscriber line charge (SLC) would rise in 4 annual steps. If small carriers?搑ecovered?sums shrank more, they could recover shortfalls via a new restructuring mechanism. To pay for the rebalancing, the plan also would increase Universal Service Fund charges. A change from the March proposal is the simplification of steps in the transition to unified rates, a source said. The new plan offers a compromise of sorts to wireless carriers, long distance companies and competitive carriers, making them responsible for calls only to the tandem switch, saving them 0.18?a minute in payments on the terminating end of calls.