Montana Code 69-3-840. Determination of eligible carrier status — universal service support
69-3-840. Determination of eligible carrier status — universal service support. (1) The commission is authorized to designate telecommunications carriers as eligible for federal universal service support, in accordance with 47 U.S.C. § 214(e)(1) and 47 U.S.C. § 254, and for any Montana universal service funds. This authorization applies to all telecommunications carriers notwithstanding the carrier’s exemption from further regulation by the commission.
Terms Used In Montana Code 69-3-840
- carrier: means any provider of telecommunications services. See Montana Code 69-3-803
- Commission: means the public service commission. See Montana Code 69-3-803
- Eligible telecommunications carrier: means a telecommunications provider designated by the commission under 69-3-840. See Montana Code 69-3-803
- Rural telephone company: means a local exchange carrier operating entity to the extent that the entity:
(a)provides common carrier service to any local exchange carrier study area that does not include either:
(i)all or any part of an incorporated place of 10,000 inhabitants or more based on the most recently available population statistics of the United States bureau of the census; or
(ii)any territory, incorporated or unincorporated, included in an urbanized area, as defined by the United States bureau of the census as of August 10, 1993;
(b)provides telephone exchange service, including exchange access, to fewer than 50,000 access lines;
(c)provides telephone exchange service to any local exchange carrier study area with fewer than 100,000 access lines; or
(d)has less than 15% of its access lines in communities of more than 50,000 on February 8, 1996. See Montana Code 69-3-803
- Telecommunications: means the transmission, between or among points specified by the user, of information of the user's choosing without a change in the form or content of the information upon receipt. See Montana Code 69-3-803
(2)Upon the petition of a telecommunications carrier or upon its own motion, the commission shall designate a telecommunications carrier that meets the requirements of 47 U.S.C. § 214(e)(1) as an eligible telecommunications carrier for a service area designated by the commission. In the case of an area served by a rural telephone company, the term “service area” means the company’s “study area” for federal universal service support unless the federal communications commission and the commission, after taking into account recommendations of a federal-state joint board instituted under 47 U.S.C. § 410(c), establish a different definition of service area for the company. The term “service area” for all other telecommunications carriers means a geographic area, such as a census block or grid block, as established by the commission for the purpose of determining federal universal service obligations and support mechanisms.
(3)Upon receiving a petition from a telecommunications carrier and consistent with the public interest, convenience, and necessity, the 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 telecommunications carrier for a service area, so long as each additional requesting telecommunications carrier meets the requirements of 47 U.S.C. § 214(e)(1). Before designating an additional eligible telecommunications carrier for an area served by a rural telephone company, the commission shall find that the designation is in the public interest.
(4)If no telecommunications carrier will provide the services that are supported by universal service support mechanisms under 47 U.S.C. § 254(c) to all or a part of an unserved community that requests service, the commission shall determine which telecommunications carrier is best able to provide the service to the requesting unserved community. Any telecommunications carrier ordered to provide service under this section shall meet the requirements of 47 U.S.C. § 214(e)(1) and must be designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier for that community or the unserved portion of the community.
(5)The commission shall permit an eligible telecommunications carrier to relinquish its designation as an eligible telecommunications 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 commission of the relinquishment. 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 commission shall require the remaining eligible telecommunications carrier 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 commission shall establish a time, not to exceed 1 year after the commission approves relinquishment under this section, within which the purchase or construction must be completed.