OAH Docket No. 12-2500-16769-2
PUC Docket No. P421/AR-05-1081
STATE OF
OFFICE OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS
FOR THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
|
In the Matter of a Petition by Qwest Corporation for Approval of its Alternative Form of Regulation Plan |
REPORT OF THE |
1.
Public hearings in this matter were held in
2.
In
3.
Three members of the public made statements in
4. Mr. Smith is the Executive Vice President of the Rochester Area Economic Development Corporation. He is of the opinion that Qwest is now facing competition from all the new forms of communication, that Qwest should be free of regulation and free to compete in the marketplace, and that market choices should be left to consumers. It is his view that there are some regulators who just want to “keep the game going as long as we can.” He is also of the view that Qwest should not be required to meet higher quality of service standards than other providers.[2]
5.
Ms. Hamersly is the Executive Director of the
6. Ms. Ray is an officer in the Greater Minnesota Health Care Coalition and the Southeast Senior Federation. She is also co-chair of the Qwest Consumer Advisory Panel. The panel has existed for more than two decades and provides consumer advice to Qwest. Its members are seniors and people with disabilities. The panel meets regularly to review Qwest products and services to ensure that they are accessible and usable by all persons. For example, the panel has advised Qwest product managers on handset design and readability of caller ID displays. Their advice has been incorporated into new Qwest products. When Qwest began opening kiosks at malls, the panel worked with Qwest to train its employees there to understand and address the needs of disabled persons more appropriately. Ms. Ray feels that Qwest is unusual in its commitment to ensure that its network, products and services are accessible to all. She hopes that the Public Utilities Commission recognizes the good work Qwest is doing.[4]
7.
In
8.
Rich Diedrichsen spoke at the
Mr. Diedrichsen finds that Qwest makes a very sincere effort to be friendly toward people with disabilities, sensitive to their needs, and dedicated to producing products and services to meet the needs of the disabled and seniors.[5]
9.
In
10. Mr. Ross is the President of the Duluth Area Chamber of Commerce. He spoke in favor of the revised AFOR. The Duluth Chamber believes customers in the marketplace should determine industry winners and losers, not government regulation. If there is to be regulation, the Chamber believes it should be consistent and uniform in its application to Qwest and other providers.[6]
11.
Ms. Bell works for the Northland Foundation. She was there to support Qwest because of its
ongoing support of the Northland Foundation.
She described Qwest as a key corporate citizen in the area and region
that has provided support to the foundation's children and youth
initiatives. For example, for the last
12 years, Qwest has supported the Foundation's annual Kids Plus
Conference. It has also supported the
Grandma's Marathon in
12.
Mr. Cusick is an employee of Qwest and vice
president of the local CWA in
13.
In
14. Leonard Heltemes spoke at the hearing. He is a retired Qwest employee and feels that the PUC should act in fairness to both Qwest and its competitors because the regulation has been unfair to Qwest for several years. For example, competitors have been able to offer lower long-distance rates than Qwest in the past. He believes the same rules should be applied to Qwest as are applied to its competitors.[9]
15.
Chester Nettestad also testified. He is a Qwest construction network technician
out of
16.
Travis Hunter is also a network technician out of
the
17.
Ruth Ulvog asked a number of questions that Ms.
Hanson and Mr. Nelson responded to, as did Ms. Brion. She asked about the meaning of “affordable
rates.” Ms. Hanson discussed the concept
and pointed out that Qwest had not increased its rates for some 20 years and
that the residential one-party rate is still $13.96 in the outstate area and
$14.94 in the metro area. Ms. Ulvog also
expressed concerns about dealing with service personnel located in distant
service centers. Ms. Hanson apologized
for any difficulty she may have had, but assured her that the service centers
were organized to provide personnel having the talent and skills to deal with
service issues and to assure customer satisfaction. Ms. Ulvog noted some difficulties with area
code numbers in the border area near
18. Ms. Ulvog also asked about the meaning of “pricing flexibility.” Ms. Hanson explained that Qwest was requesting that the plan allow it to make changes in rates for certain services without getting prior approval from the PUC. Most of those services would be business services or were additional services not required for basic services. However, with respect to residential rates and business one-party rates, Qwest is not proposing any increases.[13]
19.
Six or seven other people attended the hearing
in
Dated November 2, 2005
/s/ Steve M. Mihalchick
Steve M. Mihalchick
Administrative Law Judge
[1] The fact that speakers at the public hearings were invited by Qwest is important in assessing any bias of the witnesses. They are entitled to speak, but the Administrative Law Judge and the PUC are entitled as well to know about any factors helpful in evaluating their presentations. Qwest should have revealed that the speakers had been invited prior to their presentations.
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