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Qwest application for permission to offer long-distance service (Sec. 271 review of local competition requirements)
Dockets UT-003022, 003040, and 970300
The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) on July 1, 2002, decided that Qwest Corporation has opened its network to competition enough to earn the right to offer long-distance service to its customers. The decision completes a two-year review of Qwest's telephone operations in Washington.
The UTC also approved a performance plan that will require Qwest to pay up to $81 million -- more than one-third of its revenues from local telephone service -- in credits to competitors and the state if its performance levels slip.
The decision by the UTC does not, by itself, allow Qwest to offer its customers long-distance service in competition with AT&T, MCI, Sprint, and other carriers. Federal regulators have the final say, and the phone company is expected to file a formal application in early July. Under a federal law passed in 1996, Qwest is allowed to enter the long-distance market only after it shows that it has opened its local phone network to competition.
Press Release on Decision
Order
The WUTC review is being conducted under Section 271 of the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996. This law allows regional Bell operating companies, such as Qwest, to provide long-distance service in a state only after demonstrating that its local markets are open to competition. The proof, in the form of evidence to be filed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), is subject to review by the relevant state public utilities commissions prior to receiving FCC approval.
Section 271 has a checklist of 14 broad areas that must be satisfied before Qwest can provide long-distance service. The WUTC has now issued orders, and addressed petitions for reconsideration, on all 14 checklist items.
Earlier Orders
Workshop 1 - The Workshop 1 Order and Reconsideration Order (25th Supp.) address Checklist Items 3, 7-10, 12, and 13:
- Poles, Ducts, Conduits and Rights of Way;
- 911/E911, Directory Assistance and Operator Services;
- White Pages Listings;
- Numbering Administration;
- Signaling and Associated Databases;
- Dialing Parity, and
- Reciprocal Compensation.
Workshop 2 - The Workshop 2 Order (15th Supp.) and Reconsideration Order (26th Supp) address Checklist items 1, 11, and 14:
- Interconnection/Collocation,
- Number Portability, and
- Resale.
Workshop 3 - The Workshop 3 Order (24th Supp.) and Reconsideration Order (31st Supp.) address Checklist Items 2, 5, and 6:
- Unbundled Networks Elements,
- Unbundled Transport and
- Unbundled Switching.
Workshop 4 - The Workshop 4 Order (28th Supp.) and Reconsideration Order (31st Supp.) address the last of the 14 checklist items that Qwest must complete before it can gain permission to offer long-distance service in Washington state. In this order the WUTC finds Qwest not in compliance with:
- Checklist Item No. 4 (Unbundled Local Loops),
- Emerging Services,
- General Terms and Conditions
Compliance and Performance Assurance - The WUTC addressed Qwest's performance assurance plan (QPAP) in the 30th Supplemental Order, issued April 5, 2002, and on reconsideration in the 33rd Supplemental Order, issued May 20, 2002.
Performance Testing - The WUTC is working with other state commissions where Qwest is the regional Bell operating company to test Qwest’s Operational Support Systems (OSS), which are used by Qwest and its competitors to provide service to customers. The 13-state testing process can be reviewed at the NRRI website: The 13-state operational support systems (OSS) test report is due to be issued in February 2001. The WUTC will schedule a proceeding in which to consider the report to take place soon after its release.
Procedure and Policy - The WUTC issued an order that outlines the process. The WUTC also issued an interpretive and policy statement regarding the evidence the company must file to prove that its local markets are open to competitors.
The address of this page is: www.wutc.wa.gov/telecom/qwest271
Staff contact: Paula Strain
Posted/updated: 12/29/2005
Document list:
003040 Documents Schedule Orders All
003022 Documents Schedule Orders All
970300 Documents Schedule Orders All
