HB 1330 - AS INTRODUCED
2000 SESSION
HOUSE BILL 1330
AN ACT relative to telephone special contracts.
SPONSORS: Rep. MacGillivray, Hills 21; Rep. Norelli, Rock 31
COMMITTEE: Science, Technology and Energy
This bill establishes requirements for the form of special contracts for telephone utilities. This bill also prohibits recovery in rates in certain circumstances.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
00-2573
03/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand
AN ACT relative to telephone special contracts.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 Findings. The general court finds that for telecommunications service tariffed special rates for special services should be preferred to individually negotiated special contracts, but that special contracts may be necessary in some circumstances.
2 Public Utilities; Rates and Charges; Equality of Rates, etc.; Special Contracts, Telephone Utilities. Amend RSA 378:18-b to read as follows:
378:18-b Special Contracts; Telephone Utilities.
I. Any special contracts for telephone utilities providing telephone services shall be filed with the commission. Except as provided in paragraph IV, special contracts shall be in the form of special tariffed rates available to all customers, and shall include a complete list of volume discounts for all volumes of service so that all customers become eligible for service simultaneously, and so that all competitive suppliers have the opportunity to offer these services simultaneously.
II. Special contracts other than those described in paragraph IV [and] shall become effective 30 days after filing, provided the rates are set not less than:
[I.](a) The incremental cost of the relevant service; or
[II.](b) Where the telephone utility's competitors must purchase access from the telephone utility to offer a competing service, the price of the lowest cost form of access that competitors could purchase to compete for customers with comparable volumes of usage, plus the incremental cost of related overhead.
III. In the event that the commission subsequently determines that the rates have been set below those allowed by paragraph II, the amount of the difference shall not be recoverable in rates.
IV. Special contracts which are not in the form of special tariffed rates available to all customers shall be approved by the commission only if the commission finds that a special tariffed rate would be impractical and finds that the special contracts will not detrimentally affect competition for telecommunications services in the state.
3 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.