Nebraska Public Service Commission 2010 Annual Report on Telecommunications ANNUAL REPORT TO THE LEGISLATURE ON THE STATUS OF THE NEBRASKA TELECOMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY NEBRASKA PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION September 30, 2010 Nebraska Public Service Commission 300 The Atrium 1200 N Street P.O. Box 94927 Lincoln, NE 68509-4927 (402) 471-3101 (800) 526-0017 (Instate Only) psc.nebraska.gov 2010 ANNUAL REPORT TO THE LEGISLATURE Nebraska Public Service Commissioners Gerald L. Vap Tim Schram 5th District 3rd District McCook Gretna Chairman Vice-Chairman Frank E. Landis Anne C. Boyle Rod Johnson 1st District 2nd District 4th District Lincoln Omaha Sutton General Administration Staff Mike Hybl- Executive Director John Burvainis-Deputy Director Shanicee Knutson-Legal Counsel Angela DuVall Melton-Legal Counsel Nichole Mulcahy-Legal Counsel Tyler Frost-Analyst/Economist II Jamie McAlister-Law Clerk Brenda Wicken-Business Manager Amy Kavan-Accountant I Kathy Lahman-Executive Assistant Katy Hanson-Receptionist/Administrative Support Communications Department Staff Gene Hand-Director John Burvainis-Accountant Steve Stovall-Accountant Don Gray-Telecom Analyst Cheryl Elton-Consumer Affairs Advocate/IT Support Deena Ackerman-Administrative Assistant Susan Horn-Administrative Assistant Telecommunications Infrastructure & Public Safety Department Staff Sue Vanicek-Director Laurie Casados-Telehealth Coordinator/Policy Analyst Joan Raffety-E911 Coordinator Angela DuVall Melton-Policy Advisor Brandy Zierott-Administrative Assistant Andrea Grell-NTAP Coordinator Jackie Clanton-NTAP Specialist Nebraska Public Service Commission COMMISSIONERS 300 The Atrium, 1200 N Street, ANNE C. BOYLE Lincoln, NE 68508 FRANK E. LANDIS P.O. Box 94927, GERALD L. VAP Lincoln, NE 68509-4927 ROD JOHNSON Website: psc.nebraska.gov TIM SCHRAM Phone: (402) 471-3101 Fax: (402) 471-0254 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR NEBRASKA CONSUMER HOTLINE MIKE HYBL (800) 526-0017 September 30, 2010 The Nebraska Public Service Commission is pleased to provide our annual report on the status of the telecommunications industry in the State of Nebraska. This report covers Commission decisions and events related to the telecommunications industry from September 2009 through August 2010. Despite over a decade of number conservation efforts on the part of the Commission and the industry, the Commission was required to develop measures to introduce a new area code in eastern Nebraska. The exhaustion of assignable telephone numbers in the Code was forecasted to occur around March 2011. Therefore, the Commission has been working diligently with industry since the beginning of 2010 to educate consumers about the implementation of the new 531 Area Code overlay in eastern Nebraska, as well as the associated mandatory 10-digit dialing. The 308 Area Code is currently forecasted to have sufficient numbering resources well beyond the next 20 years. Last year the Commission was designated by Governor Heineman as the State entity to apply for and administer funding for a broadband mapping and planning project as part of the Federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Earlier this year, the Commission was approved for $2.1 million in stimulus funding to increase broadband access and adoption throughout the State. This award consisted of approximately $1.6 million to collect, integrate, verify and map broadband availability throughout the state and $500,000 for a broadband planning project. The broadband planning project is a collaborative effort led by the Nebraska Information Technology Commission’s Community Council, University of Nebraska – Lincoln Extension and Nebraska Department of Economic Development. In addition, the Commission was designated as the E911 Coordinator by Governor Heineman last year in order to implement E911 services and apply for available grant funds under the Ensuring Needed Help Arrives Near Callers Employing 911 Act of 2004. The Commission was awarded $484,000 under the Act’s grant program to purchase and install equipment and software for the provision of Phase II 911 service in Morrill County, Garden County, Region 24, and Pierce County. Funds will also be used for intertandem trunking between the selective routers in Scottsbluff and Grand Island. This report contains more detailed information regarding these as well as other telecommunications topics. If you have any questions, contact our Commissioners or staff. Sincerely, Gerald L. Vap Chairman T A B L E O F C O N T E N T S PART I Access Line Data 1. Access Line Table 1 2. Access Line Graph 3 PART II Review of the Quality of Telecommunications Service Provided to Nebraska Citizens 1. Telephone Informal Complaints 4 A. Local Exchange Carriers 5 B. Interexchange Carriers 6 C. Departmental Complaints 7 D. Relay Service Complaints 7 PART III Review of the Availability of Diverse and Affordable Telecommunications Services to the People of Nebraska 1. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 10 2. Local Competition 14 A. Competitive Local Exchange Carriers 14 B. Interconnection Agreements 14 3. Service Testing & Outage Reports 15 4. Telecommunications Relay Services 16 A. Telecommunications Relay Service-Selected Statistics (Table) 21 5. Extended Area Service 27 6. Numbering Issues 27 7. NII Dialing Codes 32 A. Nebraska 211 Coverage Map 35 8. Nebraska Internet Enhancement Fund 37 9. Marketplace Fund 38 PART IV Review of the Level of Rates of Local Exchange and Interexchange Companies 1. Local Exchange Rates 39 2. Financial Statistics 40 3. Long Distance Telephone Rates/Access Charges 40 4. Telephone Billing Changes 41 A. Basic Local Rate Changes (Table) 42 B. Nebraska Local Exchange Carriers & Rates (Table) 43 C. Explanation of Charges Which May Appear on Your 46 Telephone Bill PART V Recommendations for the 2011 Legislative Session 47 PART VI The Changing Face of Communications 1. Broadband 48 2. American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 49 3. Voice Over Internet Protocol 52 PART VII Applications and Tariffs 53 PART VIII Nebraska Telecommunications Infrastructure & Public Safety Department 1. Universal Service Fund 54 2. Wireless E911 Fund 59 A. Status of E911 Map 62 B. Wireless 911 Information 65 PART I ACCESS LINE & EXCHANGE DATA (See Note 1) December 31, 2009 ACCESS LINES COMPANY BUS. RES. TOTAL QWEST COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION 91,730 104,419 196,149 WINDSTREAM NEBRASKA, INC. 80,792 107,079 187,871 COX NEBRASKA TELECOM, LLC 49,034 123,130 172,164 AT&T COMMUNICATIONS OF THE MIDWEST 37,564 768 38,332 CITIZENS TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY OF NEBRASKA (dba FRONTIER) 13,969 22,824 36,793 GREAT PLAINS COMMUNICATIONS 6,376 20,092 26,468 TIME WARNER CABLE 1,248 22,765 24,013 NEBRASKA TECHNOLOGY & TELECOMMUNICATIONS INC. (NT&T) 4,375 19,151 23,526 UNITED TELEPHONE COMPANY OF THE WEST (dba CENTURYLINK) 4,801 12,454 17,255 WINDSTREAM COMMUNICATIONS OF THE MIDWEST 11,610 706 12,316 CHARTER FIBERLINK-NEBRASKA, LLC 606 10,093 10,699 TCG OMAHA 8,693 0 8,693 BLAIR TELEPHONE COMPANY 1,647 5,087 6,734 NEBRASKA CENTRAL TELEPHONE COMPANY 1,568 4,831 6,399 NORTHEAST NEBRASKA TELEPHONE COMPANY 1,128 5,143 6,271 HAMILTON TELEPHONE COMPANY 1,798 3,583 5,381 ALLO COMMUNICATIONS 4,396 804 5,200 GRANITE TELECOMMUNICATIONS, LLC 4,422 0 4,422 SOUTHEAST NEBRASKA TELEPHONE COMPANY 785 2,480 3,265 EASTERN NEBRASKA TELEPHONE COMPANY 967 1,866 2,833 ORBITCOM, INC. 2,656 99 2,755 CONSOLIDATED TELEPHONE 655 1,967 2,622 GLENWOOD LONG DISTANCE 384 1,789 2,173 COZAD TELEPHONE COMPANY 674 1,396 2,070 ARAPAHOE TELEPHONE COMPANY 577 1,435 2,012 LONG LINES SIOUXLAND, LLC 497 1,262 1,759 HUNTEL COMMUNICATIONS 673 959 1,632 PIERCE TELEPHONE COMPANY, INC. 379 1,185 1,564 CONSOLIDATED TELCO, INC. 380 963 1,343 HARTINGTON TELECOMMUNICATIONS CO., INC. 421 913 1,334 THREE RIVER TELCO 239 950 1,189 MCIMETRO ACCESS TRANSMISSION SERVICES 475 652 1,127 1 ACCESS LINES COMPANY BUS. RES. TOTAL CAMBRIDGE TELEPHONE COMPANY 333 745 1,078 STANTON TELECOM, INC. 218 853 1,071 PLAINVIEW TELEPHONE COMPANY 264 741 1,005 BENKELMAN TELEPHONE COMPANY 271 709 980 CONSOLIDATED TELECOM 198 766 964 PINPOINT COMMUNICATIONS, INC. 209 743 952 ARLINGTON TELEPHONE COMPANY 115 836 951 HOOPER TELEPHONE (dba WESTEL SYSTEMS) 214 727 941 DALTON TELEPHONE COMPANY 189 744 933 THREE RIVER COMMUNICATIONS, LLC 320 555 875 MOBIUS COMMUNICATIONS COMPANY 0 875 875 HENDERSON COOPERATIVE TELEPHONE (dba MAINSTAY) 261 613 874 FIBERCOMM, LC 558 290 848 ROCK COUNTY TELEPHONE COMPANY 205 620 825 HEMINGFORD COOPERATIVE TELEPHONE COMPANY 165 602 767 DILLER TELEPHONE COMPANY 104 650 754 CLARKS TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMPANY 173 570 743 HERSHEY COOPERATIVE TELEPHONE 107 534 641 CURTIS TELEPHONE COMPANY 204 421 625 WAUNETA TELEPHONE COMPANY 128 425 553 K&M TELEPHONE COMPANY 119 415 534 BULLSEYE TELECOM., INC. 524 0 524 NORTHSTAR TELECOM., INC. 6 461 467 KEYSTONE-ARTHUR TELEPHONE COMPANY 89 358 447 HARTMAN TELEPHONE EXCHANGE 58 289 347 MCLEOD USA TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES 318 0 318 TRANSNATIONAL COMMUNICATIONS INTERNATIONAL, INC. 236 0 236 METROPOLITAN TELECOMMUNICATIONS OF NEBRASKA., INC. 205 0 205 ELSIE COMMUNICATIONS, INC. 47 134 181 ERNEST COMMUNICATIONS, INC. 179 0 179 IONEX COMMUNICATIONS NORTH, INC. 126 40 166 FIRST COMMUNICATIONS, LLC 0 158 158 COMTEL TELCOM ASSETS, LP 0 112 112 SODTOWN TELEPHONE COMPANY 5 68 73 FRANCE TELECOM CORPORATION SOLUTIONS, LLC 11 0 11 NOS COMMUNICATIONS, INC. 10 0 10 MATRIX TELECOM, INC. 10 0 10 2 ACCESS LINES COMPANY BUS. RES. TOTAL LIGHTYEAR NETWORK SOLUTIONS, LLC 1 2 3 APPLIED COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY, INC. 1 1 2 QUANTUMSHIFT COMMUNICATIONS, INC. 1 0 1 TOTAL 341,701 495,902 837,603 Note (1): Access lines exclude the following categories: a) Mobile Access; b) Special Access (non- switched); c) Resold and; d) Official Company lines. Access Lines - 2009 State of Nebraska Qwest Comm Corp Windstream Nebr. Inc. 9.38% Citizens Telecom Co of Nebr 7.51% 23.42% Great Plains Comm 2.81% United Telephone Co d/b/a CenturyLink 0.00% Cox Nebr Telecom 4.58% AT&T Comm of the Midwest Nebr Tech & Telecom (NT&T) Time Warner Cable All other LECs 20.55% 22.43% All other CLECs 2.06% 2.87%4.39% Note: Wireless and other communication provider’s access lines reported for relay remittance purposes represent 1,281,986 for the year ended December 31, 2009.