W. Va. Code R. § 150-6-10

Current through Register Vol. XLI, No. 50, December 13, 2024

Section 150-6-10 - Reduced telephone rates for certain low-income residential customers

10.1. Requirement to Offer Tel-assistance Service.

Every eligible telecommunications carrier shall, pursuant to tariff or agreements filed with and approved by the Commission, offer a Tel-assistance Service rate schedule for residential customers. The Tel-assistance Service rate schedule shall provide special reduced rates for all qualifying low income consumers and shall clearly state the availability of service, the eligibility conditions, the type of service to be offered, the restrictions on service, and the applicable rates and charges as set forth in the subsequent subsections of this section and in W. Va. Code '24-2C.

10.2 Definitions.

a. "Customer" shall mean, for the purpose of this section, the member of the household in whose name telephone service is provided. For purposes of this section, the terms "customer" and "consumer" are synonymous, and may be used interchangeably.

b. "Eligible Telecommunications Carrier" means a common carrier that offers telecommunications services that are supported by federal universal service mechanisms, that advertises the availability of such services and the charges for such services using media of general distribution, and that has been designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier by the Commission pursuant to the provisions of 47 U.S.C. Section 214 (e).

c. "Qualifying low-income consumer" means a residential customer who is a recipient of Medicaid, food stamps, supplemental security income, federal public housing assistance, low-income home energy assistance program benefits, temporary assistance to needy families benefits, or benefits under other income-related state or federal programs.

d. "Tel-assistance Service" means an individual, residential local exchange dial access line and an allowance for usage established by the Commission. The monthly rate for Tel-assistance Service shall be less than that normally charged by the eligible telecommunications carrier for residential service available to all customers. No other basic local exchange telephone service, foreign zone or foreign exchange service may be provided to the dwelling place of a Tel-assistance customer. Tel-assistance service is not available to business customers.

e. "Usage" means the amount of local exchange service and long distance service provided by eligible telecommunications carriers to Tel-assistance customers.

10.3. Availability of Tel-assistance; rates and charges.

a. Tel-assistance Service shall be made available by eligible telecommunications carriers to all qualifying low income consumers.

b. The monthly Tel-assistance rate shall be set initially by the Commission at the lower of:

1. The lowest priced eligible service available to the customer at the time of his or her application; or

2. Seven dollars and fifty cents ($7.50).

c. The Tel-assistance rate shall allow the customer two dollars ($2.00) in usage and free optional toll blocking service. All usage in excess of two dollars ($2.00) shall be charged to the customer at the otherwise applicable tariff rate.

d. The Commission may, upon having set the rate initially for Tel-assistance, change such rate from time to time upon a finding that it is reasonable to do so, and may, in connection therewith increase or decrease the usage allowance. Insofar as permitted under federal law, eligible telecommunications carriers may file with the Commission tariffs or agreements that, without limitation, offer Tel-assistance Service which includes a broader group of services, or make Tel-assistance Service available to a broader group of low-income customers. All such tariffs and agreements are subject to approval by the Commission.

e. An eligible telecommunications carrier may not impose an order processing charge or line connection charge in changing a customer to or from Tel-assistance Service. However, charges for other allowed services, including those for installing service or for moving a customer's service from one (1) dwelling to another, shall be made at the otherwise applicable tariff rate.

10.4. Eligible telecommunications carrier's responsibility upon application.

a. Eligible telecommunications carriers shall accept applications for Tel-assistance Service from:

1. Any current customer; and

2. Any person who subsequently becomes a customer.

b. In determining whether an applicant is eligible to receive Tel-assistance Service, an eligible telecommunications carrier is entitled to rely upon the information provided to it directly or indirectly by the West Virginia Department of Health and Human Resources (or successor agency) pursuant to West Virginia Code.

c. An Eligible telecommunications carrier may provide Tel-assistance Service to a customer based on the customer's self-certification of eligibility, so long as the qualification of the applicant is subject to subsequent verification by the eligible telecommunications carrier.

d. Each eligible telecommunications carrier shall maintain documentation regarding the resolution of individual applications for Tel-assistance Service. The information contained in said records shall include names, addresses or other information which adequately identifies the applicant, the application date, the basis of eligibility, the date on which Tel-assistance Service is approved or denied; and whether the applicant is disabled and/or age sixty or older.

e. Any customer who ceases to receive service under a Tel-assistance Service rate schedule must reapply in order to receive such service again.

10.5. Certification of revenue deficiency.

a. On or before March 1 of each year, each eligible telecommunications carrier may make application to the Commission for a determination and certification of the revenue deficiency, except that caused by free toll blocking service, which it has experienced during the previous calendar year. Subsequently, the Commission will enter an order certifying the amount of the revenue deficiency. If an eligible telecommunications carrier does not make application for certification of revenue deficiency for any calendar year, that eligible telecommunications carrier must, by March 1 of the following year, fully report to the Commission the extent of its actual provision of Tel-assistance Service.

b. The eligible telecommunications carrier's revenue deficiency shall be calculated as the difference between revenues received from customers participating in Tel-assistance Service and the revenues which would have been received at full tariff rates for the same service as being provided under Tel-assistance; provided, however, that the revenue deficiency shall be limited to the revenues generated from providing Tel-assistance Service to qualifying low-income consumers who are disabled and/or age sixty or older.

c. Applications for determination and certification of an eligible telecommunications carrier's revenue deficiency shall be made in the format prescribed by the Commission. All information submitted in such application shall be verified by the eligible telecommunications carrier to be true and accurate to the best of its knowledge and information.

d. The agreements or tariffs filed with the Commission for approval in accordance with this section, and W. Va. Code '24-2C, may specify the methodology by which the eligible telecommunications carrier will calculate its annual revenue deficiency. Subject to prior approval by the Commission, eligible telecommunications carriers may agree to freeze or cap the amount of the revenue deficiency at specific levels.

e. Where an eligible telecommunications carrier provides Tel-assistance Service by means of resale of an incumbent local exchange carrier's retail service, the Commission shall allocate the revenue deficiency between the eligible telecommunications carrier physically providing the line serving the qualifying low-income consumer, and the eligible telecommunications carrier that provided the Tel-assistance Service at retail to the qualifying low-income consumer. The foregoing allocation shall be based on the wholesale resale discount applicable to such Tel-assistance Service.

10.6. Notice to customers.

a. All eligible telecommunications carriers shall advertise the availability of and rate for Tel-assistance Service throughout the service territory in which they have been designated an eligible telecommunications carrier.

b. All eligible telecommunications carriers shall adopt policies for providing notice to their customers of the availability and advantages of the Tel-assistance program.

c. As part of the annual certification required of the Commission under 47 C.F.R ''54.313 and 54.314, all eligible telecommunications carriers shall report to the Commission their actions to:

(1) advertise the availability of and rates for Tel-assistance Service, and

(2) to provide notice to customers of the availability and advantages of the Tel-assistance program.

10.7. Additional federal Lifeline Service provided by eligible telecommunications carriers.

a. In order to qualify for federal Lifeline assistance, an eligible_telecommunications carrier shall offer, pursuant to tariff, the same Lifeline service, and at the same rates, to all customers who would qualify for Tel-assistance Service. To receive federal Lifeline support, eligible telecommunications carriers must also file a tariff demonstrating compliance with all additional qualifications for Lifeline support established in the applicable Federal Communications Commission regulations.

b. Unless otherwise authorized by state law, revenue deficiencies associated with providing federal Lifeline Service described in '150CSR6-10.7.a. shall not be recoverable through Commission certification to the West Virginia Department of Taxation and Revenue of such shortfall. Additionally, the amount of federal Lifeline support received by an eligible telecommunications carrier shall be reported to the Commission in the carrier's application for recovery of revenue deficiencies and shall be deducted from the calculation of such revenue deficiency.

c. In order to increase the amount of federal Lifeline assistance it receives, an eligible telecommunications carrier may, pursuant to tariff, modify its Tel-assistance offering and the offering described in '150CSR6-10.7.a., to increase the benefit to eligible subscribers: Provided, that additional revenue losses incurred pursuant to such action shall not be certified to the West Virginia Department of Taxation and Revenue for purposes of recovery by the eligible telecommunications carrier of revenue deficiencies, except as provided in '150CSR6-10.7.b.

W. Va. Code R. § 150-6-10