Public Act 93-0005
SB885 Enrolled LRB093 07820 JLS 08009 b
AN ACT concerning telecommunications.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Public Utilities Act is amended by adding
Sections 13-408 and 13-409 as follows:
(220 ILCS 5/13-408 new)
Sec. 13-408. Unbundled network element rates. This
Section applies to and covers certain unbundled network
element rates that shall be charged by incumbent local
exchange carriers that are subject to regulation under an
alternative regulation plan under Section 13-506.1 of this
Act. The General Assembly finds and determines that it should
provide direction to the Illinois Commerce Commission
regarding the establishment of the monthly recurring rates
that such incumbent local exchange carriers shall charge
other telecommunications carriers for unbundled loops,
whether provided on a standalone basis or in combination with
other unbundled network elements, in order to ensure (i) that
such rates are consistent with the requirements of the
federal Telecommunications Act of 1996, the regulations
promulgated thereunder, and subsection (g) of Section 13-801
of this Act, and (ii) that such incumbent local exchange
carriers are able to recover the efficient, forward-looking
costs of creating, operating, and maintaining the network
outside plant infrastructure capacity and switching and
transmission network capacity necessary to permit such
incumbent local exchange carriers to meet in a timely and
adequate fashion the obligations imposed by Section 8-101 of
this Act.
In order to ensure recurring unbundled network element
rates for loops that accomplish these objectives, the
Illinois Commerce Commission shall set the recurring rates
affected incumbent local exchange carriers receive for
unbundled loops, whether provided on a standalone basis or in
combination with other unbundled network elements, in
accordance with the requirements delineated below.
(a) Fill factors. The General Assembly directs that the
Illinois Commerce Commission shall employ fill factors (the
proportion of a facility or element that will be "filled"
with network usage) that represent a reasonable projection of
actual total usage of the elements in question, in accordance
with applicable federal law. The General Assembly finds that
existing actual total usage of the elements that affected
incumbent local exchange carriers are required to provide to
competing local exchange carriers, as reflected in the
current actual fill factors for the elements in question, is
the most reasonable projection of actual total usage. The
Commission, therefore, shall employ current actual fill
factors that reflect such existing actual total usage on a
going forward basis in establishing cost based rates for such
unbundled network elements. In addition, the Commission shall
adjust all existing Commission-approved rates for unbundled
loops, whether provided on a standalone basis or in
combination with other unbundled network elements, that are
currently in effect to make such rates consistent with this
provision.
(b) Depreciation rates. The General Assembly further
directs that the Commission shall employ depreciation rates
that are forward-looking and based on economic lives as
reflected in the incumbent local exchange carrier's books of
accounts as reported to the investment community under the
regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Use of
an accelerated depreciation mechanism shall be required in
all cases. Use of a depreciation rate based on historical
rate-of-return regulation derived lives of the elements and
facilities in question shall be prohibited. In addition, the
Commission shall adjust all existing Commission-approved
rates for unbundled loops, whether provided on a standalone
basis or in combination with other unbundled network
elements, that are currently in effect to make such rates
consistent with this provision.
(c) The rate adjustments required by subsections (a) and
(b) of this Section must be completed within 30 days of the
effective date of this Section. In the case of any incumbent
local exchange carrier that is subject to an alternative
regulation plan under Section 13-506.1 at the time this
Section becomes effective, in making these rate adjustments,
the Commission shall determine the specific required
adjustments with respect to fill factors and depreciation
lives by employing the models and methodology used to
generate the proposed rates submitted by such an incumbent
local exchange carrier in ICC Docket 02-0864. The Commission
proceedings initiated to establish such adjusted rates shall
be deemed interconnection agreement arbitration and approval
proceedings under Sections 252(b) and (e) of the federal
Telecommunications Act of 1996. Immediately upon conclusion
of such proceedings, all existing interconnection agreements
in this State of affected incumbent local exchange carriers
shall be deemed amended to contain the adjusted rates
established in such proceedings. In addition, immediately
upon conclusion of such proceedings, all wholesale tariffs,
currently effective in this State, of affected incumbent
local exchange carriers shall be deemed amended to contain
the adjusted rates established in such proceedings. In
accordance with these provisions, immediately upon the
establishment by the Commission of the adjusted rates covered
hereby, each affected incumbent local exchange carrier shall
charge such adjusted rates, to the extent applicable, for all
of the network element products that are provided to other
carriers, whether those products are provided under an
interconnection agreement or a tariff. The proceeding in ICC
Docket 02-0864 is hereby abated as of the effective date of
this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly.
(d) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained
in Section 13-505.1 of this Act, unbundled network element
rates established in accordance with the provisions of this
Section shall not require any increase in any retail rates
for any telecommunications service.
(220 ILCS 5/13-409 new)
Sec. 13-409. Application of Sec. 13-408 unbundled
network element rates.
(a) During the first 2 years following the effective
date of Section 13-408, for the first 35,000 voice grade
equivalent access lines used by an individual carrier to
provide local exchange service to end users, the monthly
recurring rate for the unbundled network elements associated
with those lines and leased from an incumbent local exchange
carrier to which Section 13-408 applies shall be frozen at
the levels in effect immediately prior to the effective date
of Section 13-408.
(b) Thereafter, the monthly recurring rates for all
unbundled network elements provided by any incumbent local
exchange carrier to which Section 13-408 applies shall be the
rates established by the Commission in accordance with the
provisions of Section 13-408.
(c) If, as of the effective date of Section 13-408 and
this Section, an individual telecommunications carrier uses
unbundled network elements leased from a specific incumbent
local exchange carrier to provide local exchange service over
more than 35,000 voice grade equivalent access lines, that
carrier must designate the 35,000 voice grade equivalent
access lines to which the provisions of subsections (a) and
(b) of this Section apply. If subsequent to such designation,
the individual carrier loses the customer served by a
designated access line, and therefore no longer leases the
unbundled network elements associated with that line, the
individual carrier may not designate a different access line
to substitute for the lost line. All unbundled network
elements leased to provide service over undesignated voice
grade equivalent access lines shall be subject to the full
monthly recurring rates established by the Commission in
accordance with the provisions of Section 13-408.
(d) If, as of the effective date of this Section, an
individual carrier uses unbundled network elements leased
from a specific local exchange carrier to provide local
exchange service over fewer than 35,000 voice grade
equivalent access lines, that carrier must designate the
access lines to which the provisions of subsections (a) and
(b) of this Section apply. If subsequent to such designation,
the individual carrier loses the customer served by a
designated access line, and therefore no longer leases the
unbundled network elements associated with that line, the
individual carrier may not designate a different access line
to substitute for the lost line. Subject to these
limitations, subsequent to the effective date of this
Section, such a carrier may designate additional voice grade
equivalent access lines to which it wishes the provisions of
subsections (a) and (b) of this Section to apply, until the
total designated lines equal 35,000. If a subsequently
designated line is lost, the carrier will not be permitted to
designate a different line to substitute for that lost line.
All unbundled network elements leased to provide service over
undesignated voice grade equivalent access lines shall be
subject to the full monthly recurring rates established by
the Commission in accordance with the provisions of Section
13-408.
(e) For purposes of this Section, in determining when an
individual telecommunications carrier has reached 35,000
voice grade equivalent access lines, a specific carrier, any
affiliate of that carrier, any carrier serving as a sales or
marketing agent for that carrier, and any carrier with whom
that carrier has a cooperative sales or marketing arrangement
all shall be treated as a single individual carrier.
(f) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this
Section, access lines provided to payphone service providers
are not eligible for the freeze or discount provided for in
subsections (a) and (b) of this Section. Accordingly, the
provisions of subsections (a) and (b) shall not apply to
unbundled network elements that are leased by individual
telecommunications carriers to provide local exchange service
to payphone service providers.
Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect upon
becoming law.