Bell Operating Company Provision of Out-of-Region Interstate, Interexchange Services

In this Report and Order, the Commission facilitates the efficient and rapid provision of out-of-region, domestic, interstate, interexchange services by the BOCs, as contemplated by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 (1996 Act), while still protecting ratepayers and competition in the interexchange market, by removing dominant regulation for BOCs that provide such services through an affiliate that complies with certain safeguards. These safeguards are the same as those that have applied for more than ten years to affiliates of independent local exchange companies (LECs) (i.e., exchange telephone companies, including GTE, other than the BOCs) that are regulated as non-dominant interexchange carriers under the rules established in the Competitive Carrier proceeding. These rules will permit the rapid entry by the BOCs into the provision of out-of-region interstate, interexchange services while providing protection against anticompetitive conduct.