Implementing Policy Direction on procedures not going to be easy

The CRTC will likely find it difficult to determine which regulatory measures should be reviewed, given the "regulate only when necessary" mantra of the Policy Direction. Telecom Public Notice 2007-6 seeks comment from interested parties on which measures should be reviewed, their respective priority and an estimated time frame for completing such reviews.Comments on the public notice, which were recently made available on the commission's website, range from the specific to the vague. At one end, Bell Canada submitted what appears to be a comprehensive list of regulatory measures that should be reviewed as a well as time frames for completing them.At the other, MTS Allstream was substantially less specific in its comments, noting that the CRTC shouldn't embark on a shopping-list review. In the middle, other companies and groups that are requesting reviews of items in which they have a vested interest.MTS Allstream also suggests that the most significant regulatory measures are either currently under review, in the process of being implemented or have been completed, pointing to price caps, the wholesale regime and local forbearance as examples of each."In light of this reality, efficient and effective regulation demands that the Commission resist engaging in or permitting parties to initiate endless (and indeed, needless) reviews of existing policies or decisions, regardless of how recently they were implemented and without any substantive evidentiary basis," writes the company."Such reviews and applications have the tendency to consume the Commission's and parties' limited resources, which are already stretched thin dealing with the legitimate matters and priorities listed above, and threaten to paralyze the Commission's ability to properly, efficiently and fairly address more significant issues," says MTS Allstream.The Manitoba-based incumbent telephone company notes that the commission should be focused on creating unambiguous and fair evidentiary requirements so as to eliminate the needless filing of review applications.While Bell Canada and Telus Corp. offer up a laundry list of items that need to be cleansed of their regulatory aspects, other parties are more limited. The Canadian Cable Systems Alliance (CCSA), for example, wants the CRTC to lessen the CLEC requirements for small cable companies entering the telephony market. The association has already filed a Part VII on the matter.Among a number of measures it wants the commission to review, Cybersurf Corp. suggests that the CRTC should make it easier for smaller companies to participate in regulatory proceedings. The company says it's important for the regulator to look into this because it will ensure the regulatory process "is not inherently stacked against parties of modest size and means."It's unclear at this point how the commission plans to deal with such a diverse set of opinions, but the CRTC expects to issue an action plan regarding the implementation of the Policy Direction by July 11.

Implementing Policy Direction on procedures not going to be easy

News | June 1, 2007

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us