VI. Protests

ORA protested the application on the basis that it contained insufficient information to determine if the proposed merger is in the public interest as required by § 854 and Commission precedent. Although Applicants noted in a footnote that the utilities operating within California have operating revenues of less than $500 million, ORA believed that something more than a footnote is necessary for the Commission to determine if § 854(b) and (c) are applicable.

Irrespective of the applicability of § 854(b) and (c), ORA contends that § 854(a) and Commission precedent require the Commission to assess the impact of the merger on the public interest. In particular, ORA's public interest concern is the substantial number of California customer complaints that allege, among other things, abusive marketing (slamming)⁷ and unauthorized charges (cramming),⁸ and a October 5, 1999 FCC Notice of Apparent Liability for forfeiture against Qwest Inc. based in part on complaints from two California customers.

ORA concluded that Applicants should be required to amend their application to provide additional public interest information. The additional information should explain with specificity how California ratepayers' service quality will be maintained or improved, how the merger will benefit state and local economies on an overall basis, and how it will affect the Commission's jurisdiction and ability to effectively regulate and audit public utility operations. Alternatively, ORA recommended that an evidentiary hearing be held to determine whether the merger should be approved. Although ORA recommended that a hearing be held, it did not propose a hearing schedule as required by Rule 6(a)(2).