********************************************************    
                                         NOTICE
    ********************************************************
                                
                This document was converted from
               WordPerfect to ASCII Text format.
                                
   Content from the original version of the document such as
headers, footers, footnotes, endnotes, graphics, and page numbers
             will not show up in this text version.
                                
All text attributes such as bold, italic, underlining, etc. from the
    original document will not show up in this text version.
                                
        Features of the original document layout such as
columns, tables, line and letter spacing, pagination, and margins
           will not be preserved in the text version.
                                
        If you need the complete document, download the
  WordPerfect version or Adobe Acrobat version, if available.
                                
*****************************************************************
                                                                
                           Before the
               Federal Communications Commission
                     Washington, D.C. 20554
                                                                                                                        
                                   
In the Matter of                        )
                                   )
Billed Party Preference for                  )    CC Docket No. 92-77
InterLATA 0+ Calls                      )

                             ORDER
                                
    Adopted: October 29, 1998;   Released: October 30, 1998

By the Chief, Enforcement Division, Common Carrier Bureau:

     
1.   In its Second Report and Order in this proceeding, the Commission adopted rules, generally
effective July 1, 1998, applicable to carriers providing interstate operator services, particularly non-
access code calls from aggregator locations and from phones set aside for use by prison inmates. 
The Commission stated that it was prepared to consider waiver requests on a specific factual
showing of good cause.  Thereafter, a number of petitioners, including Cleartel Communications,
Inc. (Cleartel), sought certain limited waivers or extensions of time to come into compliance with
these rules.  On June 30, 1998, the Common Carrier Bureau (the Bureau) granted Cleartel, among
others, a four-month extension of time until November 1, 1998, to come into compliance with the
new rules, and until January 1, 1999, to do so with respect to collect call and inmate operator
services.  

     2.    On October 21, 1998, Cleartel filed with the Commission a petition for an additional
open-ended extension of the compliance dates for Section 64.703(a)(4) and 64.710 of the
Commission's Rules.  In its Petition, Cleartel states that it "expects to finalize [its real-time rate
quotation] system over the next few months and believes that it is better to provide a quality service
to the public rather than to deploy a system not properly tested that may confuse and frustrate
consumers."

     3.   Waiver of the Commission's rules is appropriate only if special circumstances warrant
a deviation from the general rule, and such a deviation will serve the public interest.  In its order
granting certain limited waivers, the Bureau noted that "the Commission adopted the original July
1, 1998 effective date because it found that it was in the public interest to provide protection for
consumers as soon as possible in the area of operator services."  The Bureau stated that it "will not
hesitate to enforce the Commission's rules to the fullest extent should carriers fail to comply with
extended compliance dates."  The Bureau further stated that if petitioners, including Cleartel, should
need additional time to implement actual rate quotation systems, they could comply with the oral
rate disclosure requirement "by delivering maximum rate quotations rather than actual rate
quotations obtained from the rate database."  We find that Cleartel has not shown special
circumstances that warrant a further extension of the dates by which its interstate,  operator services
must comply with the provisions of Section 64.703(a)(4) and 64.710 of the Commission's Rules.

     4.   Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to Sections 1, 4(i), 4(j), of the
Communications Act of 1934, as amended, 47 U.S.C.  151, 154(i), 154(j), Section l.3 of the
Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R.  1.3, and the authority delegated under Sections 0.91 and 0.291 of
the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R.  0.91, 0.291, that the Petition of Cleartel Communications, Inc.,
For Extension of Waiver, filed on October 21, 1998, IS DENIED.

     5.   IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that this Order is effective upon its adoption.
 
                              FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION



                              Dorothy T. Attwood
                              Chief, Enforcement Division
                              Common Carrier Bureau