SENATE BILL 122
50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011
INTRODUCED BY
John C. Ryan
AN ACT
RELATING TO TELECOMMUNICATIONS; PROVIDING AN EXCEPTION FOR FILING INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTS OR TARIFFS TO CERTAIN COMPETITIVE SERVICE PROVIDERS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 63-9A-8 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1985, Chapter 242, Section 8, as amended) is amended to read:
"63-9A-8. REGULATION OF RATES AND CHARGES.--
A. In accordance with the policy established in the New Mexico Telecommunications Act, the commission shall, by its own motion or upon petition by any interested party, hold hearings to determine if any public telecommunications service is subject to effective competition in the relevant market area. When the commission has made a determination that a service or part of a service is subject to effective competition, the commission shall, consistent with the purposes of the New Mexico Telecommunications Act, modify, reduce or eliminate rules, regulations and other requirements applicable to the provision of such service, including the fixing and determining of specific rates, tariffs or fares for the service. The commission's action may include the detariffing of service or the establishment of minimum rates [which] that will cover the costs for the service. Such modification shall be consistent with the maintenance of the availability of access to local exchange service at affordable rates and comparable message [telecommunication] telecommunications service rates, as established by the commission, for comparable markets or market areas, except that volume discounts or other discounts based on reasonable business purposes shall be permitted. Upon petition or request of an affected telecommunications company, the commission, upon a finding that the requirements of Subsection C of this section are met, shall modify the same or similar regulatory requirements for those providers of comparable public telecommunications services in the same relevant markets so that there shall be parity of regulatory standards and requirements for all such providers. Upon written notice to the commission, a provider of competitive local exchange services or intrastate long-distance services may withdraw any tariff for any service; provided, however, that the provider shall post the rates, terms and conditions on the provider's publicly accessible web site.
B. In determining whether a service is subject to effective competition, the commission shall consider the following:
(1) the extent to which services are reasonably available from alternate providers in the relevant market area;
(2) the ability of alternate providers to make functionally equivalent or substitute services readily available at competitive rates, terms and conditions; and
(3) existing economic or regulatory barriers.
C. No provider of public telecommunications service may use current revenues earned or expenses incurred in conjunction with any noncompetitive service to subsidize competitive public telecommunications services. In order to avoid cross-subsidization of competitive services by noncompetitive telecommunications services, prices or rates charged for a competitive telecommunications service shall cover the cost for the provision of the service. In any proceeding held pursuant to this section, the party providing the service shall bear the burden of proving that the prices charged for competitive telecommunications services cover cost.
D. The commission may, upon its own motion or on the petition of an interested party and after notice to all interested parties and customers and a hearing, reclassify any service previously determined to be a competitive telecommunications service if after a hearing the commission finds that a service is not subject to effective competition."
SECTION 2. Section 63-9A-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1985, Chapter 242, Section 9, as amended) is amended to read:
"63-9A-9. REGULATION OF INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTS TO FACILITATE COMPETITION.--
A. In accordance with the provisions of this section, the commission shall regulate the rates, charges and service conditions for individual contracts for public telecommunications services in a manner [which] that facilitates effective competition and shall authorize the provision of all or any portion of a public telecommunications service under stated or negotiated terms to any person or entity that has acquired or is preparing to acquire, through construction, lease or any other form of acquisition, similar public telecommunications services from an alternate source.
B. At any time, the provider of public telecommunications services may file a verified application with the commission for authorization to provide a public telecommunications service on an individual contract basis. The application shall describe the telecommunications services to be offered, the party to be served and the parties offering the service, together with such other information and in such form as the commission may prescribe. Such additional information shall be reasonably related to the determination of the existence of a competitive offer. A determination of effective competition pursuant to Section 63-9A-8 NMSA 1978 shall not be necessary to file an application or to have an application granted by the commission pursuant to this section.
C. The commission shall approve or deny any such application within ten days or such other period as shall be established by the commission, not to exceed sixty days, giving consideration to the requirements of any contract negotiations. If the commission has not acted on any application within the time period established, the application shall be deemed granted. The commission shall deny the application only upon a finding that the application fails to set forth prescribed information or that the subject or comparable services are not being offered to the customer by parties other than the applicant or that the contract fails to cover the costs of the service.
D. Within ten days after the conclusion of negotiations, the provider of public telecommunications services shall file with the commission the final contract or other evidence of the service to be provided, together with the charges and other conditions of the service, which shall be maintained by the commission on a confidential basis subject to an appropriate protective order.
E. Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, a provider of competitive local exchange services or intrastate long-distance telecommunications services to business customers in New Mexico is not required to file the individual contract."
- 6 -