Telecom Decision Good for Industry, Consumers, Jobs

CWA President Morton Bahr said the decision by the Justice Department and the Federal Communications Commission not to pursue a stay of the appeals court ruling that lifted competitive pricing regulation in telecommunications was in the best interest of the industry and American consumers.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit had ruled that the regional Bell companies should not be required to make their networks available to competitors at heavily discounted prices. Neither Justice nor the FCC appealed the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court, and the Court declined to stay the existing rules. Now, the FCC will write new rules to reflect the policy change.

"The current regulatory policy, forcing the Bell Regional phone companies to lease their lines to competitors at artificially low rates, has stifled capital investment, costing tens of thousands of jobs and constraining the roll-out of broadband communications," Bahr said.

He stressed that today's telecom industry is marked by vibrant and growing competition among wireline, wireless, cable and satellite providers, making the current pricing framework unnecessary and unfair.

CWA has long called for a competitive industry based on marketplace fairness, one that also preserves the concept of universal service and a broad range of customer choices, Bahr said.

"We are happy that a majority of FCC commissioners now believe in leveling the playing field in telecommunications, which will lead to a surge of new investment, new consumer services and the creation of new jobs that America desperately needs," he said.