ALJ/RAB/hkr Date of Issuance 8/24/2009
Decision 09-08-014 August 20, 2009
BEFORE THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
Application of Mosaic Networx, LLC for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to Provide Resold and Limited Facilities-Based Local Exchange and Interexchange Services in the State of California. |
Application 09-06-007 (Filed June 5, 2009) |
DECISION GRANTING A CERTIFICATE OF PUBLIC CONVENIENCE AND NECESSITY TO PROVIDE RESOLD AND LIMITED FACILITIES-BASED LOCAL EXCHANGE SERVICES AND INTEREXCHANGE SERVICES
Mosaic Networx, LLC (Applicant) requests a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to provide limited facilities-based and resold competitive local exchange and interexchange services in California. Applicant requests authority to operate as a facilities-based local exchange carrier in the territories currently served by AT&T California and Verizon and to offer interexchange services on a statewide basis. Applicant plans to service business customers. We grant the certificate. Applicant is a California limited liability company with its principal place of business at San Rafael, California.
Applicant seeks authority to provide resold and limited facilities-based local exchange services to business customers throughout California. Applicant will provide services through facilities to be leased from existing carriers. Applicant will not construct any new or extend any existing outside plants in California to provide the services for which it seeks authority. Applicant will provide dedicated private line transmission services for the transmission of point-to-point and point-to-multipoint information within a local area from point of origin in California to destination points in California. Applicant's initial service offerings consist of transport and access services for competitive carriers.
Pursuant to Decision (D.) 99-10-025 and D.99-12-050, the Commission has determined that no review is necessary under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) for applicants seeking only limited facilities-based authority. Such limited authority allows applicants to interconnect with incumbent local exchange carriers' (ILECs) facilities in their central offices, and to utilize other entities' facilities and structure, with no external construction. Because there are no material adverse environmental impacts associated with this limited authority, the Commission found that no CEQA review is required for these activities.
Applicant initially plans to provide service by using only existing conduits, ducts, right-of-way, and facilities of other telecommunications carriers. Applicant will not construct new, or extend existing outside plant anywhere in California. Accordingly, it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the grant of the application would have an adverse impact on the environment. Thus, no review under CEQA is required for the limited facilities-based authority requested by Applicant. Applicant will not undertake any external construction in California to provide the services for which it seeks authority. Applicant will provide local exchange services using its own facilities and services furnished by other authorized carriers and/or entities. No franchise or health and safety permits are required for the provision of the services described herein at this time.
Applicant asserts that this application will serve the public interest because Applicant's provision of local and long distance telecommunications services will increase competition and provide consumers in California with greater choices. It is in the public interest to create competition in the provision of local exchange and interexchange markets. Authorizing Applicant to provide local exchange and interexchange services will result in greater variety of telecommunications services and products to business and residential consumers in the telecommunications market. Consumers benefit from increased choices among facilities-based local and interexchange providers and competitive, cost-based rates.
Applicant will use the existing conduits, ducts, rights-of-way, and facilities of other telecommunications carriers, utilities, and municipalities. Thus the estimated cost of construction is expected to be negligible. Applicant's annual fixed and operating costs will be fully within the financial resources available to Applicant, through existing financing, procurement of additional financing, and anticipated revenues. The financing will be secured through initial investments in the company and by future revenues through provision of services.
Applicant is financially qualified to offer the telecommunications services requested in its service territory. Attached as Exhibit C to the application is a copy of Applicant's recent financial statements confirming that Applicant possesses a minimum of $100,000 that is reasonably liquid and available. Applicant does not currently owe deposits to local or interexchange carriers. Therefore, Applicant fully meets the financial qualification set forth in D.95-07-054 and D.96-02-072.
Applicant will offer its services pursuant to tariffs, on a non-discriminatory basis. A draft of Applicant's proposed tariff, which describes its services, rates, and terms and conditions for Applicant's local exchange services, is attached as Exhibit D to the application. Applicant will submit a final tariff applicable to local exchange service upon the granting of the authority it seeks. Insofar as a tariff applicable to interexchange services, Applicant is eligible for an exemption from tariffing requirements as set out in D.98-08-031 and seeks such an exemption.
Applicant is not a publicly traded company, and has no proxy statements or annual reports to provide. Further, Applicant states that none of its officers, directors, or stockholders, whether record or beneficial owners of stock, have a material financial interest (as that term is defined in Section 2 of General Order 104-A) in any transaction involving the purchase of materials or equipment, or the contracting, arranging, or paying for construction, maintenance, or service for or on behalf of Applicant.
Applicant's estimate of its customers for the first and fifth years is contained in Exhibit E to the application.
Applicant has the managerial and technical qualifications necessary to provide the proposed services. Attached as Exhibit F to the application are the biographies of the principals and directors of Applicant. These biographies reflect that Applicant possesses significant managerial and technical expertise for operating a telecommunications company consistent with the Commission's requirements.
We conclude that the application conforms to our rules for authority to provide resold competitive local exchange telecommunications services. Accordingly, we shall approve the application subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein.
Categorization and Need for Hearing
In Resolution ALJ 176-3236, dated June 18, 2009, the Commission preliminarily categorized this application as Ratesetting, and preliminarily determined that hearings were not necessary. There is no reason why the application should not be granted. A public hearing is not necessary.
