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                                Before the
                    Federal Communications Commission
                         Washington, D.C. 20554

In the Matter of                  )
                                 )
Informal Complaints Filed By      )
Independent Payphone Service      )   File Nos. IC-98-42853, et 
Providers Against Various         )   al.
Local Exchange Carriers           )
Seeking Refunds Of End User       )
Common Line Charges               )

                        
                            ORDER 

   
Adopted:  August 1, 2002                Released: August 2, 
2002

By the Chief, Enforcement Bureau:

     1.   In this Order, we extend the deadline for 
       converting End User Common Line (``EUCL'') informal 
       complaints that are covered by the Common Carrier 
       Bureau's Order of September 10, 1999,1 into formal 
       complaints.2  In these informal complaints, 
       independent payphone providers (``IPPs'') allege that 
       the defendant local exchange carriers (``LECs'') 
       improperly assessed EUCL charges, in violation of the 
       Commission's rules and sections 201(b) and 202(a) of 
       the Communications Act, as amended (the ``Act'').3  
       For reasons of administrative efficiency and because 
       of ongoing settlement discussions, the staff 
       previously extended the deadline for conversion of 
       these informal complaints into formal complaints.4  
       Pursuant to the most recent Bureau order, informal 
       complaints were required to be converted by September 
       9, 2002, to benefit from the relation back rule 
       outlined in section 1.718.5  

     2.   The Commission is currently adjudicating thirteen 
       formal complaints that were recently converted from 
       informal complaints and that raise many issues 
       similar to those raised in the pending informal 
       complaints.6  The Commission is expected to rule on 
       these liability issues by November 19, 2002, the 
       relevant statutory deadline.  We anticipate that the 
       resolution of these legal issues will be relevant to 
       the settlement of the informal complaints.  
       Accordingly, we now extend to June 30, 2003, the 
       filing deadline for the conversion of these EUCL 
       informal complaints into formal complaints. 7  
       Because this extension will facilitate the possible 
       settlement of these numerous claims, we are satisfied 
       that our action today serves the public interest.    

     3.   ACCORDINGLY, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to sections 
       4(i), 4(j), and 208 of the Communications Act, as 
       amended, 47 U.S.C. §§ 154(i), 154(j), 208, section 
       1.3 of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R. § 1.3, and 
       the authority delegated by sections 0.111 and 0.311 
       of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R. §§ 0.011 and 
       0.311, that section 1.718(a) of the Commission's 
       rules, 47 C.F.R. § 1.718(a), IS HEREBY WAIVED, with 
       regard to the IPP EUCL informal complaints described 
       herein and the deadline for the conversion and filing 
       of these informal complaints into formal complaints 
       is hereby extended to June 30, 2003.  This waiver is 
       effective as of the release of this Order.

     4.   IT IS FURTHER ORDERED, that the Secretary of the 
       Commission shall cause to have this Order published 
       in the Federal Register. 



                              FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS 
                         COMMISSION



                              David H. Solomon
                              Chief, Enforcement Bureau


 

_________________________

1    Informal  Complaints  Filed  By  Independent  Payphone 
Service Providers  Against Various Local  Exchange Carriers 
Seeking Refunds of End User  Common Line Charges, Order, 16 
FCC Rcd 3669  (CCB 1999), at ¶ 5  (``First Waiver Order'').  
See  also  C.F. Communications  Corp.,  et  al. v.  Century 
Telephone of  Wisconsin, Inc., et. al.,  Memorandum Opinion 
and Order  on Remand,  15 FCC Rcd  8759, 8768  (2000); C.F. 
Communications Corp. v. FCC, 128 F.3d 735 (D.C. Cir. 1997); 
C.F.  Communications Corp.  v. FCC,  No. 97-1202,  slip. op 
(D.C.  Cir. 1997);  C.F.  Communications  Corp. v.  Century 
Telephone of  Wisconsin, Inc.  et. al.,  Memorandum Opinion 
and   Order,  8   FCC  Rcd   7334,  7335-36   (1993);  C.F. 
Communications  Corp. v.  Century  Telephone of  Wisconsin, 
Inc., et.  al., Memorandum  Opinion and  Order, 10  FCC Rcd 
9775 (1995); C.F. Communications Corp., et. al. v. Michigan 
Bell Telephone Co., et.  al., Memorandum Opinion and Order, 
12 FCC  Rcd 2134 (1997).   A final nonappealable  order has 
been  entered in  this proceeding.   See Verizon  Telephone 
Companies, et  al. v. FCC,  269 F.3d 1098, 1109  (D.C. Cir. 
2001).

2    Ordinarily,  section  1.718  requires  that  a  formal 
complaint must  be filed with  six months of  the carrier's 
response to the informal  complaint if the formal complaint 
is to relate back to  the filing of the informal complaint.  
See 47 C.F.R. § 1.718(a).

3    47 U.S.C. §§  201(b) and 202(a); 47 C.F.R.  §§ 69.1 et 
seq. 

4    See First Waiver Order, 16 FCC  Rcd at 3671, ¶ 5.  See 
also  Informal  Complaints  Filed By  Independent  Payphone 
Service Providers  Against Various Local  Exchange Carriers 
Seeking Refunds of End User  Common Line Charges, Order, 17 
FCC  Rcd 2225,  2226 (EB  2002),  at ¶  3 (``Second  Waiver 
Order''). 

5    Second Waiver Order, 17 FCC Rcd at 2226, ¶ 3.

6    See Formal Complaints  filed in Communications Vending 
Corporation   of  Arizona,   Inc.,  et   al.  v.   Citizens 
Communications Companay f/k/a  Citizens Utility Company and 
Citizens Telecommunications Company d/b/a Citizens Telecom, 
et al., File Nos. EB-02-MD-018-030.

7    See 47 C.F.R. §§ 1.718 et seq.