ARCHIVED -  Telecom Public Notice CRTC 1990-59

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Telecom Public Notice

Ottawa, 22 June 1990
Telecom Public Notice CRTC 1990-59
BRITISH COLUMBIA TELEPHONE COMPANY -IMPACT OF CHANGING THE SERVICE STANDARD IN RURAL AREAS
In British Columbia Telephone Company - 1988 Construction Program Review, Telecom Decision CRTC 89-13, 6 November 1989 (Decision 89-13), the Commission directed B.C. Tel to file a preliminary report on the costs and impact of establishing two-party service, rather than four-party service, as the standard offering outside the Base Rate Area (BRA) of an exchange.
The BRA is that area of an exchange where the population density is greatest. Within the BRA, single-party service is the standard offering, with some subscribers opting for a lower grade of service. Outside the BRA, the costs of providing service are greater, and four-party service is the standard offering. While certain subscribers outside the BRA are eligible for higher grades of service, they must pay additional charges in order to help offset the increased costs of providing the service. Those additional charges are based on the distance from the BRA boundary to the subscriber's premises.
On 4 May 1990, B.C. Tel filed its report as directed in Decision 89-13. As a result of its analysis, the company included a proposal to convert all four-party subscribers within an exchange boundary to two-party service over the ten-year period from 1991 to 2000. Under B.C. Tel's proposal, the two-party standard would take effect immediately upon commencement of the conversion program. Therefore, there would be an immediate loss of revenue from the additional charges paid by two-party customers located outside the BRA. The company forecasts that the impact of its proposal would be to add $2.2 million to its revenue requirement in each of the ten years.
On the basis of the information filed by the company, the Commission considers it appropriate, before making a determination with respect to B.C. Tel's proposal, to assess the impact of conversion to a single-party standard, instead of to a two-party standard. Accordingly, B.C. Tel is directed to file an assessment of the costs and impact of moving, over the ten-year period from 1991 to 2000, from a four-party to a single-party standard in areas outside the BRA. The Commission invites comments as to (1) whether the standard service offering outside the BRA should be changed, and (2) if so, whether the standard should be changed to single-party or to two-party service.
Procedure
1. B.C. Tel's report of 4 May 1990 may be examined at any of the company's business offices or at the offices of the CRTC, Room 201, Central Building, Les Terrasses de la Chaudière, 1 Promenade du Portage, Hull, Quebec, or Suite 1500, 800 Burrard Street, Vancouver, B.C. A copy of the report may be obtained by any interested person upon request directed to B.C. Tel at the address set out in paragraph 6.
2. Interested persons wishing to participate in this proceeding (interveners) must notify the Commission of their intention to do so by writing to the Commission at the address set out in paragraph 6 by 10 August 1990. A copy of that notice must be served on B.C. Tel by the same date.
3. B.C. Tel's report on the cost of moving to a single-party standard is to be filed with the Commission and served on interveners by 24 August 1990.
4. Interveners may file comments with the Commission, serving copies on B.C. Tel, by 21 September 1990.
5. B.C. Tel may file reply comments, serving copies on the interveners, by 12 October 1990.
6. The mailing addresses to be used in connection with this proceeding are:
Mr. Alain-F. Desfossés
Secretary General
CRTC
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0N2
Ms. Dorothy E. Byrne
Vice-President Regulatory Matters & Corporate Secretary
British Columbia Telephone Company
3777 Kingsway
Burnaby, British Columbia
V5H 3Z7
Alain-F. Desfossés
Secretary General

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