Multi-Association Group (MAG) Plan for Regulation of Interstate Services of Non-Price Cap Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers and Interexchange Carriers; Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service

By this document, the Commission takes additional steps to provide rate-of-return carriers greater flexibility to respond to changing marketplace conditions. In particular, the Commission modifies the "all-or-nothing" rule to permit rate-of-return carriers to bring recently acquired price cap lines back to rate-of-return regulation without requiring a waiver of the all-or-nothing rule. In this way, the Commission reduces the administrative costs and uncertainties of such acquisitions for rate-of-return carriers. The Commission also grants rate-of-return carriers the authority immediately to provide geographically deaveraged transport and special access rates, subject to certain limitations. With this additional pricing flexibility, rate- of-return carriers will be able to set more economically efficient rates and respond to competitive entry. Finally, the Commission merges Long Term Support with Interstate Common Line Support. This will make the Commission's universal service mechanisms simpler and more transparent, while ensuring that rate-of-return carriers maintain existing levels of universal service support.