Fiscal impact
reports (FIRs) are prepared by the Legislative
Finance Committee (LFC) for standing finance committees of the NM Legislature. The
LFC does not assume responsibility for the accuracy of these reports if they
are used for other purposes.
Current FIRs (in HTML & Adobe PDF formats) are available on the
NM Legislative Website (legis.state.nm.us). Adobe PDF versions include all attachments,
whereas HTML versions may not.
Previously issued FIRs and attachments may
also be obtained from the LFC in
|
SPONSOR |
Griego |
DATE TYPED |
|
HB |
|
||
|
SHORT
TITLE |
Switched Telecommunication Access Rates |
SB |
168/aSCORC/aSJC |
||||
|
|
ANALYST |
Gilbert |
|||||
APPROPRIATION
|
Appropriation
Contained |
Estimated
Additional Impact |
Recurring or
Non-Rec |
Fund Affected |
||
|
FY04 |
FY05 |
FY04 |
FY05 |
||
|
|
|
|
NFI |
|
|
(Parenthesis
( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
LFC Files
Response
Received From
Public
Regulation Commission (PUC)
SUMMARY
Synopsis
of SJC Amendment
The Senate Judiciary Committee amendment
reverses the SCORC amendment by giving the commission the authority to apply the surcharge on
all intrastate retail public telecommunications services provided by
telecommunications carriers, and to comparable retail alternative services
provided by telecommunications carriers and non-telecommunications carriers, instead
of requiring them to do so for the purpose of funding
the fund.
Synopsis of SCORC
Amendment
The Senate Corporations and Transportation
Committee amendment to Senate Bill 168 adds language to §63-9H-6B STATE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACCESS REFORM FUND – ESTABLISHMENT to limit to total revenue
that can be collected annually as follows:
B.
The fund shall be financed by a surcharge on all intrastate retail public
telecommunications services revenue, excluding revenue from services provided
pursuant to a low-income telephone assistance plan billed to end-user customers
by a telecommunications carrier, and excluding from revenue all amounts from
surcharges, gross receipts taxes, excise taxes, franchise fees and similar
charges. For the purpose of funding the fund, the commission [has the
authority to] shall apply the surcharge on all intrastate retail
public telecommunications services provided by telecommunications carriers and
to comparable retail alternative services provided by telecommunications
carriers and non-telecommunications carriers to the extent not prohibited by
federal law, including commercial mobile radio services, operator services
and aggregator services, offered by providers other than telecommunications
carriers, at a competitively and technologically neutral rate or rates to be
determined by the commission. In prescribing competitively and technologically
neutral surcharge rates, the commission may make distinctions between services
subject to a surcharge, but it shall require telecommunications carriers and
non-telecommunications carriers to apply uniform surcharge rates for the same
or comparable services. The commission shall set surcharge rates so that no
more than twenty-five million dollars ($25,000,000) in surcharge revenues are
collected annually. Money deposited in the fund is not public money, and
the administration of the fund is not subject to the provisions of law regulating
public funds. The commission shall not apply surcharges to a private
telecommunications network.
Synopsis of Original Bill
Senate
Bill 168 amends the State Universal Service Fund statute §63-9A-8.2 NMSA 1978 and §63-9H-6 NMSA 1978 to rename
the rural universal service fund to the telecommunications access reform fund
(TARF). The TARF is financed by a surcharge on all intrastate retail public
telecommunications services and will be managed by a neutral third party
administrator.
The
Public Regulation Commission (PUC), through rulemaking, is directed to: (1)
establish eligibility criteria for participation in the TARF, (2) establish a
benchmark rate for basic services that will be utilized in determining
affordability of basic services, (3) provide for the collection of the
surcharge on a competitively neutral basis and the administration and disbursement
of money from the TARF, (4) authorize payments from the TARF to carriers, in
combination with revenue-neutral rebalancing up to the benchmark rate, in an
amount equal to the revenue reduction resulting from the reduction in
intrastate access charges, and (5) allow telecommunication companies that reduce
intrastate switched access charges to increase rates for basic services to
implement the revenue-neutral switched access price reductions.
The PUC must commence the process of phase-in of
reductions of intrastate switched access charges to the level of interstate
switched access charges (FCC established rates in effect on
§63-9A-8.2, which currently covers Valor and
Qwest, is amended to clarify that implicit subsidies should be eliminated
through implementation of the state telecommunications access reform fund rather
than the state rural universal service fund.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
According to the PUC, implementation of this
bill will be revenue neutral.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
PUC
staff will be able to administer the directives made by SB 168 with current resources.
TECHNICAL ISSUES
HB 24 also
amends §63-9A-8.2, and if both bills pass the amendments
should be reconciled.
OTHER
SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
According to the PUC, this bill resulted from
several informal workshops ordered by the PUC in response to a staff petition
to convene a workshop to address intrastate access reform. The petition was initiated as a proactive
response to legislation on access surcharges introduced, but not passed, during
the 2003 regular session.
RLG/lg:yr