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S. 887
STATUS INFORMATION
General Bill
Sponsors: Senators McConnell, Moore, Alexander, Anderson, Courson, Fair, Ford, Glover, Hawkins, Hayes, Jackson, Knotts, Leatherman, Martin, Mescher, Patterson, Peeler, Ritchie, Ryberg, Verdin, Setzler and Cromer
Document Path: l:\council\bills\dka\3751dw04.doc
Companion/Similar bill(s): 4656
Introduced in the Senate on January 29, 2004
Currently residing in the Senate Committee on Judiciary
Summary: Public Service Commission, telecommunications carriers required to provide contracts to; local exchange carrier, Public Service Commission prohibited from regulating
HISTORY OF LEGISLATIVE ACTIONS
Date Body Action Description with journal page number ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1/29/2004 Senate Introduced and read first time SJ-6 1/29/2004 Senate Referred to Committee on Judiciary SJ-6
View the latest legislative information at the LPITS web site
VERSIONS OF THIS BILL
TO AMEND SECTION 58-9-280, AS AMENDED, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO THE REQUIREMENTS FOR A TELEPHONE UTILITY TO BE GRANTED A CERTIFICATE OF NECESSITY BEFORE THE CONSTRUCTION, OPERATION, OR EXTENSION OF A PLANT OR SYSTEM, SO AS TO PROVIDE THAT TELECOMMUNICATIONS CARRIERS THAT HAVE ELECTED TO HAVE RATES, TERMS, AND CONDITIONS DETERMINED PURSUANT TO THE PLAN DESCRIBED IN SECTION 58-9-576(B) SHALL PROVIDE THESE CONTRACTS TO THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION AS REQUIRED; AND TO AMEND SECTION 58-9-576, AS AMENDED, RELATING TO THE ELECTION A LOCAL EXCHANGE CARRIER MAY MAKE WITH REGARD TO ITS REGULATION, SO AS TO PROVIDE FURTHER CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH A LOCAL EXCHANGE CARRIER MAY MAKE THIS ELECTION, TO DEFINE "ABUSE OF MARKET POSITION" AND REQUIRE THE COMMISSION TO RESOLVE COMPLAINTS WITHIN ONE HUNDRED TWENTY DAYS, TO DEFINE "BUNDLED OFFERING" AND "CONTRACT OFFERING", TO PROHIBIT THE COMMISSION FROM REGULATING A BUNDLED OFFERING OR CONTRACT OFFERING BY A CARRIER AND REQUIRE A CARRIER TO ADHERE TO AN ALTERNATIVE REGULATORY PLAN UNTIL IT EXPIRES OR IS TERMINATED BY THE COMMISSION, WHICHEVER IS SOONER, TO PROVIDE THAT A LOCAL EXCHANGE CARRIER PROVIDING BUNDLED OFFERINGS OR CONTRACT OFFERINGS IS OBLIGATED TO PROVIDE CERTAIN UNIVERSAL SERVICE FUND (USF) CONTRIBUTIONS, AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE MANNER IN WHICH ACCESS MINUTES OF USE MUST BE CLASSIFIED AND REPORTED FOR PURPOSES OF ADMINISTERING THE INTERIM LOCAL EXCHANGE CARRIER FUND.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Section 58-9-280(I) of the 1976 Code, as last amended by Act 354 of 1996, is further amended to read:
"(I) The incumbent LEC's subject to this section shall must be authorized to meet the offerings of any local exchange carrier serving the same area by packaging services together, using volume discounts and term discounts, and by offering individual contracts for services, except as restricted by federal law. Individual contracts for services or contracts with other providers of telecommunications services shall must not be filed with the commission, except as required by federal law, provided that telecommunications carriers that have not elected to have rates, terms, and conditions determined pursuant to the plan described in Section 58-9-576(B) shall provide access to such these contracts to the commission as required."
SECTION 2. Section 58-9-576(A) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 354 of 1996, is amended to read:
"(A) Any LEC may elect to have rates, terms, and conditions determined pursuant to the plan described in subsection (B), provided the commission has approved a local interconnection agreement in which the LEC is a participant with an entity determined by the commission not to be affiliated with the LEC or the commission determines that another provider's service competes with the LEC's basic local exchange telephone service, or the LEC is a 'small local exchange carrier' as defined in Section 58-9-10(14).
SECTION 3. Section 58-9-576(B)(5) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 354 of 1996, is amended to read:
"(5) The LEC's shall set rates for all other services on a basis that does not unreasonably discriminate between similarly situated customers; provided, however, that. All such of these rates are subject to a complaint process for abuse of market position in accordance with guidelines to be adopted by the commission. The commission shall resolve the complaint within one hundred twenty days of the date it is filed with the commission. As used in this section, 'abuse of market position' means any anticompetitive pricing action that prohibits an equally efficient new firm from entering a market or that would cause an equally efficient firm to exit a market."
SECTION 4. Section 58-9-576(B)(7) of the 1976 Code, as added by Act 354 of 1996, is amended to read:
"(7)(a) As used in this subsection:
(i) 'bundled offering' means an offering of two or more products or services to customers at a single price provided that each regulated product or service in the offering is available on a stand-alone basis under a tariff on file with the commission; and the LEC has a tariffed flat-rated local exchange service offering for residential customers and for single-line business customers on file with the commission that provides access to the services and functionalities set forth in Section 58-9-10(9); and
(ii) 'contract offering' means any contractual agreement by which the LEC offers any tariff product or service to any customer at rates, terms, and conditions that differ from those set forth in the LEC's tariffs.
(b) The commission shall not:
(i) impose any requirements related to the terms, conditions, rates, or availability of any bundled offering or contract offering of any LEC operating under this section; or
(ii) otherwise regulate any bundled offering or contract offering of any LEC operating under this section.
(c) A LEC providing bundled offerings or contract offerings is obligated to provide contributions to the Universal Service Fund (USF) and the commission shall ensure that contributions to the state USF, pursuant to Section 58-9-280(E) must be maintained at appropriate levels.
(d) Access minutes of use must continue to be classified and reported for purposes of administering the Interim LEC Fund, pursuant to Section 58-9-280(M), in the same manner as they were classified and reported before the effective date of this subitem (d).
(8) Nothing in this subsection affects any jurisdiction conferred upon the commission by 47 U.S.C. Section 254(k).
(9) Any An incumbent LEC operating under an alternative regulatory plan approved by the commission before the effective date of this section must shall adhere to such the plan until such the plan expires or is terminated by the commission, whichever is sooner."
SECTION 5. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
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