PUBLIC NOTICE

Federal Communications Commission

1919 M St., N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20554

DA 97-333

Released February 12, 1997

CCB/CPD No. 97-2

FURTHER EXTENSION OF TIME GRANTED FOR PARTIES TO SUBMIT COMMENTS IN RESPONSE TO COMMISSION STAFF'S ANALYSIS OF COST PROXY MODELS

Comment Date: February 18, 1997

Reply Comment Date: February 24, 1997

On January 9, 1997, the Commission Staff released a Staff Analysis intended to stimulate discussion of criteria for the evaluation, and use, of forward-looking cost proxy models in determining universal service support payments, cost-based access charges, and interconnection and unbundled network element pricing.⁽¹⁾ Also on January 9, 1997, the Common Carrier Bureau ("Bureau") issued a Public Notice seeking comment on issues raised in the Staff Analysis.⁽²⁾ The Public Notice indicated that the record gathered in response to the Staff Analysis might at a future date be associated with the official record of certain pending rulemakings to which it may be relevant and used to support Commission determinations in those rulemakings. See Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service, CC Docket No. 96-45, Access Charge Reform, CC Docket No. 96-262, and Implementation of the Local Competition Provisions of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, CC Docket No. 96-98.

On January 31, 1997, the Bureau extended the deadlines for filing comments in response to an extension petition filed by Pacific Telesis Group, Sprint Corporation, and U S WEST, Inc., to provide parties with more time to review new economic cost models that were about to be filed with the Commission. On February 10, 1997, GTE Service Corporation filed an Emergency Motion for Further Extension of Time on ground that the new models had been made publicly available later than originally expected, thus providing parties with less time to evaluate them. Because of difficulties in obtaining copies of the models experienced by some interested parties, the deadlines for filing initial and reply comments are being extended until February 18 and February 24, 1997, respectively.

The extension being granted is not the full period sought by GTE. We want to ensure that the responses filed to the Staff Analysis are available for possible use by the Commission in acting by May 8, 1997, on the recommendation of the Federal-State Universal Service Joint Board. Any longer extension could easily jeopardize such use of the record.

For further information contact David Konuch, 202-418-0199, or Brad Wimmer, 202-418-1847.

¹ The Use of Computer Models for Estimating Forward-Looking Costs, A Staff Analysis, (rel. January 9, 1996)("Staff Analysis").

² Commission Staff Releases Analysis of Forward-Looking Economic Cost Proxy Models, Public Notice, DA 97-56 (rel. Jan. 9, 1997) and Erratum (rel. January 10, 1997).