Legislative proposal may threaten basic landline service

A bill before the legislative Committee on Energy, Utilities and Technologies has more than a few nonprofits and individuals concerned. LD 1302, An Act To Increase Competition and Ensure a Robust Information and Telecommunications Market, sounds benign, but more than half of the 21 businesses, nonprofits and agencies that testified at the committee's public hearing held in 2015 had plenty of concerns about those parts of Maine still heavily dependent on landlines for telephone service, and the 30,000 people who utilize a little known right governed by state law that requires FairPoint Communications to provide Provider of Last Resort (POLR) basic landline service. The service is one of the few areas of communications that is still regulated by the Maine Public Utilities Commission (PUC), says Maine Public Advocate Timothy Schneider.
If enacted as written, the law would remove the requirement that FairPoint provide POLR. Benjamin Sanborn of the Telecommunications Association of Maine explains in his testimony the point of the bill. "The first goal is the elimination of the requirement that a company be a POLR service unless they choose to be one, followed by an overall elimination of POLR service by the end of 2021. The second goal is the phasing out of the Maine Universal Service Fund, again by the end of 2021."
Schneider states in his testimony, "Many Mainers continue to rely on landline telephone service, either because they have no alternative provider, because they value the assurance of a powered line or because they use services that need a landline to function. The laws and regulations that govern POLR service are the sole remaining means to ensure that all Mainers continue to have access to safe, reliable telephone service regardless of where they live. It makes good on the state policy ... that 'telephone service must continue to be available especially to the poor, at affordable rates.'"
"FairPoint wants to be relieved of its obligation of providing landline service. It doesn't mean they would stop" providing it, says Schneider, but if the law were to stand as it is, there would be no guarantee that FairPoint would continue with the service. While basic POLR service, which doesn't include any additional services such as long‑distance or call‑waiting, costs $10 per month, if POLR is no longer legally required, Schneider fears that the company might require landline dependent customers to purchase bundled services that they either can't afford or don't want. As for the rational that other technologies are fast overtaking landlines presented by a number of supporters of the bill, Schneider explains, "We don't view cell phones as an equivalent service. There is the question about reliability, about consistency and reliability of service during outages" or for others who would not find the technology easy to use, especially under the duress of an emergency.
Those who supported the bill in their testimony include the Maine State Chamber of Commerce and the Portland Chamber of Commerce.
Jeff Nevins, FairPoint regional public relations and New England corporate communications, explains that there is a misconception about the bill that landline service is going to go away. That is not the case, he says. However, he notes, "We are expected to provide this service when it's not funded." He adds that, back when POLR was started, "providers were reimbursed. But that's not the case in Maine." In addition, he notes that federal funds and efforts have switched from landline technology expansion efforts to the Internet. "The [federal government has] transitioned universal service fees to fund the Internet development rather than landlines." The company "has asked the state to examine regulatory structure that's fair."
Schneider points out that the PUC denied FairPoint's request for $67 million to fund POLR. "The PUC said no because it [FairPoint] hadn't proved that it couldn't make it [losses] up from services, or that it needed that much."
POLR was created in the 1930s when landlines were the only option. However, for some parts of the state they still are the only option, and for many more who have access to other forms of technology it still provides the most reliable form of telephone service. Not including the 30,000 users of POLR, another 312,000 residents and/or businesses used landlines in 2014, as reported in the PUC 2015 annual report. Many of those are for regular communication functions, but for others it also includes special landline technologies that have no other technological twin. Sanborn states, "These changes will likely have unintended consequences, such as a potential violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act due to the elimination of support for relay service for the deaf and hard of hearing, as well as increased costs and limitation of opportunities to receive specialized equipment such as captioned telephone." Landlines are also used for specialized medical devices, such as the recharging of certain types of pacemakers.
Jan Sultz of Marion Township was taken aback when she read about the bill in her AARP newsletter. She notes that FairPoint, while often sticking all sorts of informative bits and pieces along with her bill, did not let her know as a customer of their efforts to change POLR service through the legislative process. "We're in a hole. We can't use cell phones at all," she says.
Sanborn states, "This legislation proposes to use the existence of competitors in most, but not all, of census tracts to phase out and eliminate POLR service. One thing this does not address is where service is advertised versus where it is actually available, which is a significant concern regarding wireless service." POLR service is available to everyone, he adds. Unlike regular service, which can deny a customer with a bad credit history or inability to meet deposit requirements, no one can be denied POLR service.
Like many, if Sultz does want to use a cell phone, she has to drive for a few miles, find a certain spot on high, and hang out while trying to grab enough signal to get a call through. When the power goes out they still have their landline in case of emergency or if they need to contact a repairman because of a furnace outage, downed limb or other obstacle created from a storm. While it can be inconvenient to be without power, to be without a landline can "sometimes be really dangerous," she adds.
Even though Sultz is not a POLR service recipient, as she utilizes more than just basic landline services, she is concerned for those in the state and in her county who are. "Even if we did have good cell phone service, it is still a problem. People use landlines to charge pacemakers. Then there are also a lot of not well‑off people, and the costs of cell phones and plans can be expensive. That's a real factor for many people."
During his public testimony Schneider said, "It is common for supporters of bills like this one -- that are incomplete, overbroad or would have massive unintended consequences -- to suggest that their goal was to 'start a conversation.' This bill is no way to start the conversation on basic telephone service." The public advocate notes that the legislative committee charged a number of those who presented at the public hearing, including his office and FairPoint, to work together on recommendations to bring back to the committee in early 2016. He expects the recommendations to be ready by the end of the month, but in the meantime he urges residents to contact their legislative representatives.