NEWS
July 2, 1997

STATEMENT OF FCC COMMISSIONER SUSAN NESS
ON SBC CHALLENGE TO TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT

Congress carefully crafted a statutory framework that determined when, and under what circumstances, the Bell companies could obtain relief from an antitrust consent decree. I believe Congress got it right. They sought to introduce much needed competition in the local marketplace and, then, to allow new entrants in the long distance market as well. SBC's lawsuit appears to be an effort to circumvent that framework, to enable it to offer long distance service without first opening its local markets to competition. ###