(1)(a) Upon petition by any interested party and following notice and investigation, the Public Utility Commission may exempt in whole or in part from regulation those telecommunications services for which the commission finds that:

(A) Price or service competition exists;

(B) Telecommunications services can be demonstrated by the petitioner or the commission to be subject to competition; or

(C) The public interest no longer requires full regulation of the telecommunications services.

(b) The commission may attach reasonable conditions to an exemption made under paragraph (a) of this subsection and may amend or revoke any order as provided in ORS § 756.568.

(2) Upon petition by a telecommunications utility, and after notice and hearing, the commission shall exempt a telecommunications service from regulation if the commission finds that price and service competition exists.

(3) Prior to making the findings required by subsection (1) or (2) of this section, the commission shall consider:

(a) The extent to which services are available from alternative providers in the relevant market.

(b) The extent to which the services of alternative providers are functionally equivalent or substitutable at comparable rates and under comparable terms and conditions.

(c) Existing economic or regulatory barriers to entry.

(d) Any other factors deemed relevant by the commission.

(4) A service that is deregulated under subsection (2) of this section may be reregulated, after notice and hearing, if the commission determines an essential finding on which the deregulation was based no longer prevails, and reregulation is necessary to protect the public interest. [2005 c.232 § 8]