ALJ/TRP/avs

Decision 01-07-022 July 12, 2001

BEFORE THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

In the Matter of the Application of Altrio Communications, Inc. for a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to Operate as Provider of Facilities-Based and Resale Local Exchange and Interexchange Telecommunications Service Within the State of California.

Application 00-10-044 (Filed October 20, 2000)

OPINION

By this decision, we grant the application of Altrio Communications, Inc. (Altrio or Applicant) for a certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) as a competitive local carrier (CLC) to offer resold local exchange services within the territories of Pacific Bell Telephone Company (Pacific), Verizon California, Inc. (Verizon),¹ Roseville Telephone Company (RTC), and Citizens Telephone Company (CTC), and statewide interexchange service, subject to the terms, conditions, and restrictions prescribed below. In this order, we also grant Altrio limited facilities-based authority, restricted to the terms, and, conditions as prescribed below. We defer action on Altrio's request for full facilities-based authority to a later decision.

I. Background

We initially established rules for entry of facilities-based CLCs in Decision (D.) 95-07-054. Under those procedures, we processed a group of candidates that filed petitions within the Local Competition dockets (Rulemaking (R.) 95-04-043/

Investigation (I.) 95-04-044) for CPCNs by September 1, 1995. We granted authority effective January 1, 1996, for qualifying CLCs to provide facilities-based competitive local exchange service in the territories of Pacific and Verizon. We authorized CLCs seeking to provide resale-based services to begin operations on March 1, 1996. We further advised prospective entrants that any filings from non-qualifying CLCs, and any filing for CLC operating authority made after September 1, 1995, would be treated as standard applications and processed in the normal course of the Commission's business.

By D.96-12-020, effective January 1, 1997, we instituted quarterly processing cycles for granting facilities-based CPCN authority. Since we had been processing the environmental impact review required under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) on a consolidated basis for groups of qualifying facilities-based CLCs, we determined in D.96-12-020 to process other aspects of the CLC filings on a consolidated basis, as well. Accordingly, we directed that any CLC filing on or after January 1, 1997, for facilities-based CPCN authority was to make its filing in the form of a petition to be docketed in I.95-04-044 to be processed on a quarterly consolidated basis. CLCs seeking only resale authority continued to file individual applications.

On September 24, 1997, D.97-09-115 extended the coverage of our adopted rules for local exchange competition to include the service territories of California's two mid-sized local exchange carriers, RTC and CTC.

Pursuant to D.99-12-050, for parties filing after January 1, 2000, we discontinued processing of CLC petitions for CPCN authority within the Local Competition dockets on a quarterly batched basis. Any party seeking authority for any form of CPCN authority as a CLC filing on or after January 1, 2000, was

directed to make its filing in the form of a separate application. Accordingly, Altrio filed its CPCN application on October 20, 2000.

In this decision, we approve limited CPCN authority as set forth below for Altrio in accordance with the applicable rules for certification as established in R.95-04-043. Altrio will be authorized to begin offering service upon the approval of the Telecommunications Division (TD) staff of filed tariffs and in compliance with the terms and conditions set forth in this order.