A pending decision in a federal appeals court may set up a specia...
A pending decision in a federal appeals court may set up a special-access revamp at the FCC and spur a second look at broad forbearance relief deemed granted to Verizon in 2006, Stifel Nicolaus said in a note Monday.…
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Competitive carriers and the AdHoc Telecommunications Users Committee are challenging FCC orders granting AT&T, Embarq and Frontier forbearance from dominant-carrier requirements in the special access market. In oral argument Friday (CD Feb 23 p1), judges of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit seemed to lean toward sending the orders back to the FCC, the analyst firm said. If the court sides with the challengers, it would give the special-access proceeding “a new push” and raise the stakes by putting other incumbent services into play, it said. Because the case concerned orders on forbearance petitions seeking “me too” relief after the 2006 Verizon outcome, a court remand could also renew the FCC’s interest in peeling back relief given Verizon, it said. In its 2007 order on the AT&T forbearance petition, the FCC promised to harmonize the treatment of Bells within 30 days, but the commission hasn’t acted. The court is expected to rule on the case in two to four months. A further appeal of the decision, either to the full D.C. Circuit or the Supreme Court, is unlikely, Stifel Nicolaus said.