NARUC Notes: Any new federal telecom act should have a role for s...

vp-state govt. affairs, said states “should continue to oversee carrier-to-carrier disputes, as a sort of interconnection court.” Cimerman also questioned the need for a new federal telecom act. He said there’s sentiment for a new act “whether it’s needed or not.” He said the 1996 act “has been an unbelievable success.” But if a new law is inevitable, he said, “the question is how to shape it.” He said Congress should look at what problems need fixing, and ensure that functionally equivalent services are treated alike, regardless of the technology that delivers them. Kent Lassman, dir. of the Progress & Freedom Foundation’s Institute for Regulatory Law & Economics, said the states may have a continuing role in rate regulation rather than the federal govt., and said state commissions should be at the forefront in dispute adjudication and consumer protection. He said states should have broad plenary powers to address disputes. Debra Berlyn, AARP advocacy dir., said there’s no reason to change state regulators’ role. “I'm not sure why there’s supposed to be a problem,” she said, since state regulators have succeeded at deregulating services and markets that are competitive. She said current federal legislative proposals would remove needed state and federal oversight of consumer concerns in wireless and broadband service, and are weak on network neutrality. She said any new federal act should leave states in charge of consumer protection matters. Steve Seitz, Vonage dir.-911 service, said Congress may need to include provisions giving regulators power to ensure all competitive providers have access to 911 systems, even though such systems weren’t designed for a multiple carrier environment. He said technical mandates will affect Vonage’s ability to connect. “We need a process so we can meet the rules” that require VoIP to provide 911 services, “and we need to keep all players at the table” until that process is in place. Bob Rowe, partner with Balhoff & Rowe and a former Mont. regulator, said FCC efforts to address key telecom issues may cut pressure for a new federal telecom act: “The more that happens at the FCC, the less Congress needs to do.”