Telecommunications services; eliminates certain requirements. (SB1368)

Introduced By

Sen. Dick Saslaw (D-Springfield)

Progress

Introduced
Passed Committee
Passed House
Passed Senate
Signed by Governor
Became Law

Description

Telecommunications services; regulation.  Eliminates certain requirements applicable to competitive telecommunications services. The requirement that competitive services be offered for sale under a filed tariff is eliminated. The State Corporation Commission may permit the detariffing of any or all terms, conditions, or rates for retail telephone service not found prior to January 1, 2011, to be a basic local exchange telephone service. After July 1, 2013, the Commission shall permit, but may not mandate, the detariffing of any or all terms, conditions, or rates for any or all retail telephone services. In addition, the measure (i) limits the facility-building requirements of incumbent telephone companies to instances where the customer requesting service does not have an alternative provider of voice telephone service at prevailing market rates; (ii) permits an incumbent provider to meet its obligation to furnish reasonably adequate service and facilities through the use of any wireline or terrestrial wireless technology without expanding the Commissions jurisdiction to include those technologies; (iii) provides that the Commission's duty to ensure that a telephone company is furnishing reasonably adequate retail service in its competitive exchanges may be met by monitoring individual customer complaints and requiring appropriate responses by the company; (iv) eliminates the requirement of prior approval for the sale of all of the assets of a telephone company; (v) eliminates requirements associated with telegraph service that is no longer offered in the Commonwealth; (vi) expands the definition of mail used for providing notice to customers to include electronic mail; (vii) provides that the prohibition on multiple rate increases within a 12-month period does not apply to competitive services; (viii) exempts telephone companies from provisions relating to energy and capital resource use conservation, standard units of products or service, and fuel purchases; (ix) limits the authority of the Commission to require reports to services not found to be competitive; (x) eliminates provisions relating to the authority of the Commission to establish areas where a telephone company may provide mobile telephone service; (xi) deletes obsolete provisions applicable to the extension of telephone facilities into rural areas, to the rates of telephone companies set by municipal ordinances, and to the Commission's right to approve interconnection agreements; (xii) allows the detariffing of interexchange service; and (xiii) provides that requirements that telephone companies file reports, other than reports relating to the special revenue tax, will expire on December 31 of each year unless the Commission extends the requirement after notice and an opportunity for a hearing. Read the Bill »

Outcome

Bill Has Passed

History

DateAction
01/12/2011Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/11
01/12/2011Prefiled and ordered printed; offered 01/12/11 11100972D
01/12/2011Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor
01/19/2011Impact statement from SCC (SB1368)
02/07/2011Reported from Commerce and Labor with substitute (11-Y 4-N) (see vote tally)
02/07/2011Committee substitute printed 11104384D-S1
02/07/2011Substitute bill reprinted 11104384D-S1
02/08/2011Read second time
02/08/2011Reading of substitute waived
02/08/2011Committee substitute agreed to 11104384D-S1
02/08/2011Engrossed by Senate - committee substitute SB1368S1
02/08/2011Constitutional reading dispensed (39-Y 0-N) (see vote tally)
02/08/2011Passed Senate (29-Y 11-N) (see vote tally)
02/10/2011Placed on Calendar
02/10/2011Read first time
02/10/2011Referred to Committee on Commerce and Labor
02/14/2011Impact statement from SCC (SB1368S1)
02/15/2011Reported from Commerce and Labor (18-Y 3-N) (see vote tally)
02/17/2011Read second time
02/18/2011Passed by for the day
02/21/2011Read third time
02/21/2011Passed by temporarily
02/21/2011Passed House (64-Y 32-N 2-A)
02/21/2011VOTE: PASSAGE (64-Y 32-N 2-A) (see vote tally)
02/25/2011Enrolled
02/25/2011Bill text as passed Senate and House (SB1368ER)
02/25/2011Signed by Speaker
02/25/2011Signed by President
02/28/2011Impact statement from SCC (SB1368ER)
03/28/2011G Approved by Governor-Chapter 740 (effective 7/1/11)
03/28/2011G Acts of Assembly Chapter text (CHAP0740)

Video

This bill was discussed on the floor of the General Assembly. Below is all of the video that we have of that discussion, 3 clips in all, totaling 16 minutes.

Duplicate Bills

The following bills are identical to this one: HB2367.

Comments

bennie young writes:

This bill is riddiculas