Ala. Admin. Code r. 770-X-5-.02

Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 11, August 30, 2024

Section 770-X-5-.02 - Definitions

(1) In the interpretation of these rules, the following definitions shall be used:

(a) Access Lines - A circuit directly connecting a central office line with the customer's termination point, including all dial tone lines, basic telephone connections, key system trunks, private branch exchange trunks, pay stations and special circuits. Each customer on a multi-party line is an access line. (see Loop, Infra)

(b) Aid to Construction - A separate nonrecurring charge made for the construction of facilities in excess of that contemplated under the rates approved in the exchange tariffs.

(c) Average Busy Season/Busy Hour Traffic - The average traffic volume for the busy season, busy hours.

(d) Base Rate Area - The developed sections which are a part of or contiguous to the community in which the exchange is located as set forth in the telephone utility's tariffs and within which specified area local exchange service is furnished at uniform rates without mileage or zone rate charges.

(e) Busy Hour - The two consecutive half hours each day during which the greatest volume of traffic is handled in the central office.

(f) Busy Season - That period of the year during which the greatest volume of traffic is handled in the central office.

(g) Calls - Customer's telephone messages attempted.

(h) Captive Locations - Hotels, motels, hospitals, airports, colleges, universities, pay telephones, and other locations where the premises owner pre-subscribes to a toll service providing operators under an agreement providing for commissions to the subscriber; provided, however, that inmate telephones in prisons and jails are not included.

(i) Central Office - A switching unit, in a telecommunications system which provides service to the general public, having the necessary equipment and operating arrangements for terminating and interconnecting customer lines and trunks or trunks only. There may be more than one central office in a building (see Dial Switching Equipment).

(j) Channel - A path for communication between two or more stations or telephone central offices, furnished in such a manner as the facility may be provided, either by carrier, radio or a combination thereof, or by a single physical facility or route (see Circuit).

(k) Circuit - A channel used for the transmission of energy in the furnishing of telephone and other communications service (see Channel).

(l) Class of Service - A description of telecommunications service furnished a customer which denotes such characteristics as nature of use (business or residence) or type of rate (flat rate, measured rate, or message rate). Classes of service are usually subdivided in "grades," such as individual line, two-party, or four-party.

(m) Commission - Alabama Public Service Commission.

(n) Community of Interest Factor (CIF) - The average number of toll calls made during a specified period of time. A CIF is arrived at by dividing the total long distance (toll) calls made during a study period by the total number of customers (access lines) of the originating telephone exchanges involved in the study.

(o) Customer - Any person, firm, partnership, corporation, municipality, cooperative, organization, governmental agency, etc., subscribing for telecommunication services from a utility subject to the jurisdiction of the Commission.

(p) Customer Provided Equipment (CPE) - Those facilities and equipment provided and maintained by the customer and connected to telephone company facilities, pursuant to the tariffs of the telephone utility.

(q) Customer Trouble Report - An oral or written report from a customer pertaining to the access line(s) or related equipment; provided, that any trouble report that is eventually found to be caused by customer provided equipment will be excluded from the count of "customer trouble reports" as herein defined.

(r) Cut-Over - The conversion process in which subscribers are transferred to a new telephone service or system.

(s) Dial Switching Equipment - Switching equipment used in a central office or in connection with a private branch exchange system.

(t) Direct Current Supply - Electrical energy for talking and signaling purposes other than ringing.

(u) Exchange - The entire telephone plant and facilities used in furnishing local telephone service to customers located in an exchange service area. An exchange may include more than one central office unit.

(v) Exchange Service Area - The territory served by an exchange within which local telephone service is furnished at the exchange rates applicable within that area.

(w) Extended Area Service (EAS) - A type of telephone switching and trunking arrangement which provides for unlimited calling between two or more telephone exchanges based on a usage-sensitive structure and/or a flat rate additive, if applicable.

(x) Flat Rate Service - Local exchange service where the basic access line charge allows unlimited local calls.

(y) Grade of Service - The number of parties (main stations) served on a telephone line such as one-party, two-party, four-party, etc. (see Class of Service)

(z) Intercept Service - A service arrangement provided by the utility whereby calls placed to a disconnected or discontinued telephone number are intercepted and the calling party is informed that the called telephone number has been disconnected, discontinued, changed to another number, or that calls are being received by another telephone.

(aa) Local Access and Transport Area (LATA) - Geographic area established for the purpose of defining the territory within which a Bell Operating Company and General Telephone Company may offer its telecommunications services.

(bb) Loop - A general term used in the communications industry in several different senses, the most important of which are:

1. The conductor or conductors extending between customer stations and central offices, or between central offices whether they are in the same or different communities. (see Channel, Circuit)

2. The conductors and circuit apparatus associated with a particular communication channel.

3. Any communications channel between two points, disregarding the method of its derivation.

(cc) Map - The term map as used herein means a map associated with a tariff which is used to define utility and exchange boundaries.

(dd) Measured Rate Service - Telephone service for which charges are made in accordance with the use made of the line with the elements of time of day, distance, and duration.

(ee) Message - A completed telephone call regardless of length of call or time and distance involved.

(ff) Message Rate Service - Local exchange service billed on a per- message basis.

(gg) Message Toll Service or Message Telecommunication Service (MTS) - Long distance telecommunications service between exchange areas, excluding EAS, categorized as intraLATA/intrastate, interLATA/intrastate, or interstate and rated on a time and distance basis.

(hh) Network Control Signaling - The transmission of a signal, used in the telecommunications system which perform functions such as supervision (control, status, and charging signals), address signaling (calling and called number identification), audible tone signals (call progress signals indicating recorder or busy conditions, alerting coin denominations, coin collect, and coin return tones) to control the operations of switching machines in the telecommunications system.

(ii) Outside Plant - The telecommunications equipment and facilities installed on, along, over or under streets, alleys, highways or on private right-of-ways between the central office and customer's locations or between central offices.

(jj) Provider - A carrier that provides, directly or indirectly, operator service at captive locations.

(kk) Quiet Termination - A termination which when reached effectively isolates the line from the dial switching equipment noise.

(ll) Regrade - A change in the classification and/or grade of service, or an application for such change.

(mm) Repeated Repair Report - Customer reports on the same access line or related equipment concurring within one month of the original report.

(nn) Selective Ringing - A party line ringing system whereby only the bell of the desired party is rung.

(oo) Station - A telephone instrument or other terminal device.

(pp) Store and Forward - A call process technique used with smart telephone sets or telephone set controller equipment. The equipment cues the caller to enter or provide the information needed for an operator assisted call, stores this information, and then sends a direct dialed call through a telephone network.

(qq) Study Period - A representative period of one month used to determine the community of interest factor.

(rr) Subscriber - A customer of the telephone utility who is responsible for the telephone service, the person in whose name the telephone is listed, and to whom the charge for service is billed.

(ss) Tariff - The entire body of rates, charges, regulations, and rules adopted by the utility and approved by the Commission.

(tt) Telephone Utility - Any person, firm, partnership, corporation or cooperative organization engaged in the business of furnishing telecommunications service to the public under the jurisdiction of the Alabama Public Service Commission.

(uu) Toll Call - A call to a point outside the local calling area of an exchange for which a long distance charge applies.

(vv) Toll Network Trunks - A general classification of trunks carrying toll traffic and ordinarily extending between a local office and toll office.

(ww) Traffic -

(1) The messages sent and received over a communications channel.

(2) A quantitative measure of the total messages and their length, expressed in hundred call seconds (CCS) or other units.

(xx) Trunk Equipment - The equipment necessary to provide a communications channel between central office units.

(yy) 1,000 HZ Generator - The standard device for the generation of a 1,000 HZ frequency applied at a level which will send one milliwatt of power into a 900 ohm impedance.

Ala. Admin. Code r. 770-X-5-.02

Effective June 1968. Amended April 1988. Amended March 1993. Filed with LRS February 5, 2 013. Filed for Codification in the Alabama Administrative Code by the Alabama Public Service Commission on February 5, 2013, pursuant to the Code of Ala. 1975, § 41-22-7.

Author: Alabama Public Service Commission

Statutory Authority:Code of Ala. 1975, § 37-2-3.