Decision DRAFT DECISION OF ALJ PULSIFER (Mailed 6/20/2000)
BEFORE THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
Order Instituting Rulemaking on the Commission's Own Motion into Competition for Local Exchange Service. |
Rulemaking 95-04-043 (Filed April 26, 1995) |
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Order Instituting Investigation on the Commission's Own Motion into Competition for Local Exchange Service. |
Investigation 95-04-044 (Filed April 26, 1995) |
In this decision, we revise the deposit requirements applicable to prospective parties filing applications for certificates of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) for authority to provide any kind of facilities-based local exchange service. These revised deposit requirements shall supersede the deposit requirements previously adopted in Decision (D.) 97-04-046 to cover the Commission's costs to ensure compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The new requirements shall apply prospectively to all new CPCN applications for any kind of facilities-based local exchange service filed after the effective date of this order.
Background
As set forth in the rules adopted in D.95-07-054 governing the entry of competitive local carriers (CLCs) into the local exchange market, all such applications must comply with the environmental requirements prescribed by CEQA. CLCs are responsible for reimbursing the Commission for the costs of CEQA compliance. Section 21089 of the Public Resources Code provides: "A lead agency may charge and collect a reasonable fee from any person proposing a project subject to ... [CEQA] ... in order to recover the estimated costs incurred by the lead agency in preparing a negative declaration. ..." The Commission implemented this provision by Rule 17(j) which states: "For any project where the Commission is the lead agency responsible for preparing the EIR or Negative Declaration, the proponent shall be charged a fee to recover the actual cost of the Commission in preparing the EIR or Negative Declaration." Accordingly, each CLC is liable for the costs incurred by the Commission to prepare each EIR or Negative Declaration in conjunction with the CLC's petition or application for CLC CPCN authority.
In D.97-04-046, we imposed a $2,000 deposit requirement to be paid by each CLC seeking facilities-based CPCN authority on whose behalf the Commission prepared a mitigated negative declaration (MND) pursuant to CEQA. The $2,000 deposit amount was determined based upon the estimated cost of processing quarterly batches of CPCN filings for multiple CLCs through a consolidated MND during the year 1997. We continued in effect the $2,000 deposit requirement for CLC petitions for facilities-based authority through 1998 and 1999 under the quarterly batched processing cycles.
Beginning in 1999, however, we revised our procedures for the processing of CPCN filings for CLC facilities-based authority. First, we refined the criteria under which a MND was required. In D.99-10-025, the Commission separately identified criteria for "limited" facilities-based authority that did not involve environmental impacts requiring preparation of a MND. Subsequently, in D.99-12-050, the Commission concluded that beginning with filings made after January 1, 2000, CPCN filings for facilities-based authority would no longer be processed on a batched basis, but rather would each be processed individually as a separate application. Any new applications for CPCN authority requiring preparation of a MND are now likewise prepared on an individual basis, rather than aggregated quarterly into a single MND.
Since the previously authorized $2,000 deposit requirement was predicated on the batch processing of CPCN petitions through a single MND on a quarterly basis, a revision in the deposit requirement is now called for in view of the revised processing now used. Because the $2,000 CEQA deposit represented only a fractional share of the total cost of preparing a single MND allocated among multiple CLCs, the cost per CLC was lower than if each CLC had paid for its own individual MND. Since we shall prospectively prepare a separate MND (or EIR, if necessary) for each CLC seeking full facilities-based authority, the total CEQA fees that a CLC must pay to the Commission may be measurably higher than the $2,000 that has been applied in the past. The cost of a MND may also be impacted by any additional costs incurred for independent consulting services to assist the Commission staff in performing CEQA-related functions.
On the other hand, those CLCs that seek only limited facilities-based authority will not require an MND, and thus avoid the costs of a MND. Yet, some administrative CEQA-related costs are still incurred by the Commission even in the processing of those CPCN filings seeking only limited facilities-based authority. Therefore, it is appropriate to require at least a limited CEQA deposit even where only limited facilities-based authority is sought.
Because the total cost that may be incurred for a particular MND is not known with sufficient certainty at this time, and may vary from CLC to CLC, we shall not require CLC applicants to deposit the full CEQA fee at the time of filing. Instead, we shall require all applicants seeking any kind of facilities-based CLC authority to submit a deposit of $200. The figure of $200 represents a nominal estimate by the Commission staff of the minimum administrative overhead incurred in connection with CEQA work performed for a typical CPCN application exclusive of any costs incurred for preparing an MND or EIR. If the applicant seeks only limited facilities-based authority, only the $200 deposit shall be required. If the applicant seeks more extensive facilities-based authority that requires the preparation of either an MND or an EIR, however, then the applicant shall remain liable for reimbursing the Commission for additional CEQA costs that may be incurred in processing its application. The Commission will bill the applicant for any additional CEQA costs that are applicable once they become known.
