U S West Communications, Inc. v. Wyoming Public Service Commission

15 P.3d 722, 2000 Wyo. LEXIS 228, 2000 WL 1781585
CourtWyoming Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 5, 2000
DocketNo. 97-146
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 15 P.3d 722 (U S West Communications, Inc. v. Wyoming Public Service Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Wyoming Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
U S West Communications, Inc. v. Wyoming Public Service Commission, 15 P.3d 722, 2000 Wyo. LEXIS 228, 2000 WL 1781585 (Wyo. 2000).

Opinions

THOMAS, Justice.

Following the filing of the original opinion of the Court in this case, U S West Commu-mications, Inc. v. Wyoming Public Service Com'n, 988 P.2d 1061 (Wyo0.1999), U S West Communications, Inc. (U S West) and two of the intervenors, AT & T Communications of the Mountain States and McLeod Teleman-agement, Inc., n/k/a McLeod USA (the Inter-venors), presented petitions for rehearing. U S$ West challenges the determination that its plan to grandfather Centrex Plus service is unreasonably discriminatory, and further challenges the Public Service Commission's (Commission) jurisdiction over Centrex Plus as a competitive service. The Intervenors, on the other hand, question our holding that Centrex Plus is a competitive service. There was no challenge to our holding that the Commission was without jurisdiction to determine whether there had been a violation of the Federal Communications Act. In the Order Granting Petitions for Rehearing, we ordered the parties to address these questions:

What is the proper interpretation of Wyo.Stat.Ann. § 37-15-108(a)(iv) (Lexis
1999) 1 in light of the language contained therein and the underlying purposes of the Wyoming Telecommunications Act of 1995? How does that interpretation correspond to, and interrelate with, telecommunications technologies such as POTS and Cen-trex?

In addition, the parties on rehearing briefed additional issues. In- Appellant U S West Communications, Inc.'s Brief on Rehearing, these issues were addressed:

I. What is the proper interpretation of Wyo.Stat. § 37-15-108(a)(iv) in light of the language contained therein and the underlying purposes of the Wyoming Telecommunications Act of 1995 and how does that interpretation correspond to, and interrelate with, telecommunications technologies such as Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) and Centrex Plus?
2. Was the court's ruling that allowed the Wyoming Public Service Commission to prevent U S$ WEST Communications, Inc.'s withdrawal of its Centrex Plus service by application of Wyo.Stat. § 37-15-404(a) inconsistent with its finding that Centrex Plus is a competitive service that can be withdrawn without Commission approval under Wyo.Stat. § 87-15-404(c)?

III. Did the court err in finding that U S WEST Communications, Centrex Plus service is a competitive service under the Wyoming Telecommunications Act of 19957

[724]*724In Mcleod USA and AT & T Communications of the Mountain State's Joint Brief on Rehearing, these issues were argued:

I. The agency interpretation of Wyo.Stat. 37-15-104 was correct, "Centrex Plus is a transmission service necessary for the connection between the end user's or customer's premises or location and the local network switching facility including necessary signaling service to access other essential services."
II The Public Service Commission of Wyoming had jurisdiction pursuant to W.S. § 37-15-404(a) and correctly concluded that U S West's plan to withdraw Centrex Plus from new customers and competitive resellers while grandfathering and permitting renewals for existing Centrex customers was unreasonably discriminatory under the Wyoming Telecommunications Act of 1995.

We adhere to our decision in the first opinion that Centrex Plus "is not an essential service as defined by statute and, therefore, is not subject to regulation as a noncompetitive service." U S West Communications, Inc., 988 P.2d at 1067. We maintain the reversal of the order of the Commission that ruled to the contrary. In this opinion on rehearing, however, we also reverse the ruling of the Commission that U S West's plan to grandfather Centrex Plus to existing customers while not offering the service to new customers, particularly the Intervenors, was unreasonably discriminatory and became subject to regulation by the Commission pursuant to Wyo.Stat.Ann. § 37-15-404(a) (Lexis 1999). That statute provides, in pertinent part, "[nlo telecommunications company shall unreasonably discriminate as to customers in prices, terms or conditions of service, or in connection to or with other telecommunications companies." - Wyo.Stat.Ann. § 37-15 404(a). For the reasons set forth below, that aspect of the Commission's order also is reversed, and the case is remanded to the Commission for the entry of an order in accordance with this opinion.

For the convenience of the reader, we reiterate our statement of the facts set forth in the first opinion:

Centrex Plus (also known as Centron) is an optional business service which allows a customer using a number of telephone lines to include the lines in a single-switched system. Each individual telephone can make and receive calls from other telephones within the system, typically by dialing only the last four digits of the called number. The service can also make and receive calls from telephones outside the system through connection and access to the central office switch. Utilizing physical facilities owned by U S West, Centrex Plus includes standard features such as call forwarding, call hold, call waiting, conference calling, individual line billing, last number redial, speed calling and other features. Although the features are similar to a private branch exchange (PBX), a PBX differs from Centrex Plus in that the PBX utilizes a switch located on the customer's property. The customer owns or leases the switch and, unlike Cen-trex Plus' direct access to the public switched network, the PBX access is through a trunk connection to U S$ West's central office. On February 15, 1996, U S West filed a price schedule with the Public Service Commission (the Commission) in which it gave the Commission notice that it intended to discontinue offering Centrex Plus to new customers as of February 6, 1996. U S$ West further stated its intention to continue Centrex Plus service to existing customers, subject to certain revised terms and conditions, through the duration of its longest existing contract for the service that ends on April 29, 2005. Pursuant to these plans, U S West proposed to move the service to the obsolete section of its price schedules. Shortly thereafter, Intervenors filed separate objections to U S West's filing, generally contending that the withdrawal of Centrex Plus service deterred Intervenorg' access to the Wyoming local exchange market through the resale of the service, thus rendering U S West's plans anti-competitive. Intervenors also claimed the grandfathering of Centrex Plus services solely to its existing customers unreasonably discriminated against new customers

On February 15, 1996, U S West filed a price schedule with the Public Service Commission (the Commission) in which it gave the Commission notice that it intended to discontinue offering Centrex Plus to new customers as of February 6, 1996. U S$ West further stated its intention to continue Centrex Plus service to existing customers, subject to certain revised terms and conditions, through the duration of its longest existing contract for the service that ends on April 29, 2005. Pursuant to these plans, U S West proposed to move the service to the obsolete section of its price schedules.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

State v. Smith
New Mexico Court of Appeals, 2019
State v. Garcia
New Mexico Supreme Court, 2014
Qwest Corp. v. Public Service Commission
2007 WY 97 (Wyoming Supreme Court, 2007)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
15 P.3d 722, 2000 Wyo. LEXIS 228, 2000 WL 1781585, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/u-s-west-communications-inc-v-wyoming-public-service-commission-wyo-2000.