Iowa Admin. Code r. 199-22.14

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 24, May 15, 2024

Rule 199-22.14 - Intrastate access charge application, tariff procedures, and rates

(1)Application of intrastate access charges.

a. Intrastate access charges shall apply to all intrastate access services rendered to interexchange utilities. Intrastate access charges shall not apply to EAS traffic. In the case of resale of services of interexchange utilities, access charges shall apply as follows:

(1) The interexchange utilities shall be billed as if no resale were involved.

(2) The resale carrier shall be billed only for access services not already billed to the underlying interexchange utility.

(3) Specific billing treatment and administration shall be provided pursuant to tariff.

b. Except as provided in 22.14(1)"b" (3), no person shall make any communication of the type and nature transmitted by telephone utilities, between exchanges located within Iowa, over any system or facilities, which are or can be connected by any means to the intrastate telephone network, and uses exchange utility facilities, unless the person shall pay to the exchange utility or utilities which provide service to the exchange where the communication is originated and the exchange where it is terminated, in lieu of the carrier common line charge, a charge in the amount of $25 per month per circuit that is capable of interconnection. However, if the person provides actual access minutes to the exchange utility, the charge shall be the charge per access minute or fraction thereof provided in 22.14(2)"d"(1), not to exceed $25 per line per month. The charge shall apply in all exchanges. However, if the person attests in writing that its facility cannot interconnect and is not interconnected with the exchange in question, the person will not be subject to the charge in that exchange.

(1) In the event that a communication is made without compliance with this rule, the telephone utility or utilities serving the person shall terminate telephone service after notice pursuant to subrule 22.4(5). The utility shall not reinstate service until the board orders the utility to restore service. The board shall order service to be restored when it has reasonable assurance that the person will comply with this rule.

(2) In any action concerning this rule, the burden of proof shall be upon the person making intrastate communications.

(3) This rule shall be inapplicable to administrative communications made by or to a telephone utility.

(2)Filing of intrastate access service tariffs.

a. Tariffs providing for intrastate switched access services shall be filed with the board by a local exchange utility which provides such services. A local exchange utility whose tariff or concurring tariff does not contain automatic reductions to implement the applicable transitional intrastate access service reductions shall file revised transitional intrastate access services rates with the board to become effective on or about July 1 of each year until such terminating rates are removed from the tariff. A competitive local exchange carrier that is required to benchmark its intrastate access service rates to the rates of an incumbent local exchange carrier shall file revised transitional intrastate access rates with the board to become effective on or about August 1 of each year until such terminating rates are removed from the tariff. Unless otherwise provided, the filings are subject to the applicable rules of the board.

b. Except in situations involving HVAS, a local exchange utility may concur in the intrastate access tariff filed by another local exchange utility serving the same exchange area. However, a competitive local exchange carrier may not concur in the intrastate access tariff of an incumbent local exchange carrier that qualifies as a rural telephone company pursuant to 47 U.S.C. § 153(44) unless the competitive local exchange carrier also is a rural CLEC pursuant to 47 CFR § 61.26(a)(6).

(1) Alternatively, a local exchange utility may voluntarily elect to join another local exchange utility or utilities in forming an association of local exchange utilities. The association may file intrastate access service tariffs.

(2) All elements of the filings, under rule 199-22.14 (476) including access service rate elements, shall be subject to review and approval by the board.

c. Rescinded IAB 2/7/90, effective 3/14/90.

d. All intrastate access service tariffs shall incorporate the following:

(1) Carrier common line charge. The rate for the intrastate carrier common line charge shall be three cents per access minute or fraction thereof for the originating segments of the communication unless a lower rate is required by the transitional intrastate access service reductions or if numbered paragraphs "1" and "2" are applicable. The carrier common line charge shall be assessed to exchange access made by an interexchange telephone utility, including resale carriers. In lieu of this charge, interconnected private systems shall pay for access as provided in 22.14(1)"b. "

1. Incumbent local exchange carrier intrastate access service tariffs shall include the carrier common line charges approved by the board.

2. A competitive local exchange carrier that concurs in or mirrors the rates in the access services tariff of the Iowa Communications Alliance, or its successor, shall deduct the originating and terminating carrier common line charges from its intrastate access service tariff.

(2) End-user charge. No intrastate end-user charge shall be assessed.

(3) Universal service fund. No universal service fund shall be established.

(4) Transitional and premium rates. There shall be no discounted transitional rate elements applied in Iowa except as otherwise specifically set forth in these rules.

(5) Rescinded IAB 10/14/15, effective 11/18/15.

(6) A telephone utility may, pursuant to tariff, bill for access on the basis of assumed minutes of use where measurement is not practical. However, if the interexchange utility provides actual minutes of use to the billing utility, the actual minutes shall be used.

(7) In the absence of a waiver granted by the board, local exchange utilities shall allow any interexchange utility the option to use its own facilities that were in service on March 19,1992, to provide local access transport service to terminate its own traffic to the local exchange utility. The interexchange utility may use its facilities in the manner and to a meet point agreed upon by the local exchange utility and the interexchange utility as of March 19, 1992. Changes mutually agreeable to the local exchange utility and the interexchange utility after that date also shall be recognized in allowing the interexchange utility to use its own local access transport facilities to terminate its own traffic. Recognition under this rule will also be extended to improvements by an interexchange utility that provided all the transport facilities to an exchange on March 19, 1992, whether the improvements were mutually agreeable or not, unless the improvements are inconsistent with an agreement between the interexchange utility and the local exchange utility.

(8) A provision prohibiting the application of association access service rates to HVAS traffic.

e. A local exchange utility that is adding a new HVAS customer or otherwise reasonably anticipates an HVAS situation shall provide notice of the situation, the telephone numbers that will be assigned to the HVAS customer (if applicable), and the expected date service to the HVAS customer will be initiated, if applicable. Notice may be sent to each interexchange utility that paid for intrastate access services from the local exchange carrier in the preceding 12 months; to any carrier with whom the local exchange carrier exchanged traffic in the preceding 12 months; and to all other local exchange carriers authorized to provide service in the subject exchange, by a method calculated to provide adequate notice. Any interexchange utility may request negotiations concerning the access rates applicable to calls to or from the HVAS customer.

Any interexchange utility that believes a situation has occurred or is occurring that does not specifically meet the HVAS threshold requirements defined in subrule 22.1(3), but which raises the same general concerns and issues as an HVAS situation, may file a complaint with the board pursuant to these rules.

A local exchange utility that experiences an increase in intrastate access billings that qualifies as an HVAS situation, but did not add a new HVAS customer or otherwise anticipate the situation, shall notify interexchange utilities of the HVAS situation at the earliest reasonable opportunity, as described in the preceding paragraph. Any interexchange utility may request negotiations concerning whether the local exchange utility's access rates, as a whole or for HVAS only, should be changed to reflect the increased access traffic.

When a utility requests negotiations concerning intrastate access services, the parties shall negotiate in good faith to achieve reasonable terms and procedures for the exchange of traffic. No access charges shall apply to the HVAS traffic until an access tariff for HVAS is accepted for filing by the board and has become effective. At any time that any party believes negotiations will not be successful, any party may file a written complaint with the board pursuant to Iowa Code section 476.11. In any such proceeding, the board will consider setting the rate for access services for HVAS traffic based upon the incremental cost of providing HVAS, although any other relevant evidence may also be considered. The incremental cost will not include marketing or other payments made to HVAS customers. The resulting rates for access services may include a range of rates based upon the volume of access traffic or other relevant factors. Any negotiations pursuant to this paragraph shall conclude within 60 days. After 60 days, a party to the negotiations may petition the board to extend the period of negotiations or may petition the board to set a hearing pursuant to 199-paragraph 7.4(10)"d. "

(3) Rescinded, IAB 9/21/88, effective 10/26/88.

(4)Notice of intrastate access service tariffs.

a. Each telephone utility that files new or changed tariffs relating to access charges or access service shall give written notice of the new or changed tariffs to the utility's interexchange utility access customers, the board, and the consumer advocate. Notice shall be given on or before the date of the filing of the tariff. The notice shall consist of: the file date, the proposed effective date, a description of the proposed changes, and the tariff section number where the service description is located. If two or more local exchange utilities concur in a single tariff filing, the local exchange utilities may send a joint written notice to the board, consumer advocate, and the interexchange utilities.

b. The board shall not approve any new or changed tariff described in paragraph"a " until after the period for resistance provided in subrule 22.14(5), paragraph"a. "

(5)Resistance to intrastate access service tariffs.

a. If an interexchange utility affected by an access service filing or the consumer advocate desires to file a resistance to a proposed new or changed access service tariff, it shall file its resistance within 14 days after the filing of the proposed tariff. The interexchange utility shall send a copy of the resistance to all telephone utilities filing or concurring in the proposed tariff.

b. After receipt of a timely resistance, the board may:

(1) Deny the resistance if it does not on its face present a material issue of adjudicative fact or the board determines the resistance to be frivolous or otherwise without merit and allows the tariff to go into effect by order or by operation of law; or

(2) Either suspend the tariff or allow the tariff to become effective subject to refund; and initiate informal complaint proceedings; or

(3) Either suspend the tariff or allow the tariff to become effective subject to refund; and initiate contested case proceedings; or

(4) Reject the tariff, stating the grounds for rejection.

c. The interexchange utility or the consumer advocate shall have the burden to support its resistance.

d. If contested case proceedings are initiated upon resistance filed by an interexchange utility, the interexchange utility shall pay the expenses reasonably attributable to the proceeding unless the interexchange utility is the successful party as determined by the board.

(6)Access charge rules to prevail. The provisions of rule 199-22.14 (476) shall be determinative of the procedures relating to intrastate access service tariffs and shall prevail over all inconsistent rules.

(7)Access billing disputes and discontinuation of service. The provisions of subparagraph 22.4(5)"h" (3) also apply to intrastate access billing disputes. The provisions of rule 199-22.16 (476) shall be followed before a utility discontinues providing intrastate access service to another utility.

Iowa Admin. Code r. 199-22.14

ARC 7826B, lAB 6/3/09, effective 7/8/09; ARC 8871B, lAB 6/30/10, effective 8/4/10

Amended by IAB October 14, 2015/Volume XXXVIII, Number 08, effective 11/18/2015

Amended by IAB February 15, 2017/Volume XXXIX, Number 17, effective 3/22/2017