NY State Senate Bill 2019-S3202

Senate Bill S3202

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Provides that the public service commission shall establish service performance standards for telephone corporations

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Energy And Telecommunications Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to energy and telecommunications
Feb 04, 2019	referred to energy and telecommunications

2019-S3202 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:: Senate Energy And Telecommunications
Law Section:: Public Service Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §95, add §103, Pub Serv L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2013-2014: S7321
2015-2016: S4937
2017-2018: S1268
2021-2022: S5780
2023-2024: S2663

2019-S3202 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides that the public service commission shall establish service performance standards for telephone corporations; provides that telephone corporations shall meet such standards; provides penalties for failure to meet such standards.

2019-S3202 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S3202

SPONSOR: COMRIE
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the public service law, in relation to service perform-
ance standards for telephone corporations

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To require any telephone corporation that offer fixed wireless telephone
services to meet the service performance standards established by the
public service commission ("PSC") before it can offer such wireless
telephone services to customers.

 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section one of the bill requires providers of telephone service that
offer fixed wireless telephone services to file monthly reports with PSC
reporting their compliance rate with respect to the service performance
standards established by the PSC as of January 1, 2010.  The PSC is

required to post the reports on its website. The information in the
report shall not be exempt from disclosure.

Section two provides the following:

*Prohibits the PSC from waiving, reducing or eliminating a service
performance standard for an individual service provider;

*Prohibits the PSC from using potential competition as a factor for
establishing or eliminating a service performance standard;

*Provides for a penalty of the greater of $500,000 or three times the
cost of meeting such standard for failing or neglecting to meet a
service performance standard;

*Prohibits, with certain exceptions, the PSC from authorizing or allow-
ing a service provider to offer wireless services until the service
provider has meet all of the performance standards applicable to the
provider.

Section three sets for the severability clause.

Section four states that this act shall take effect immediately.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

In a petition, dated April 25, 2012, filed with the PSC, the State
Attorney General found that:

*PSC allowed Verizon to subject only a small subset of its customers (8t
of its customers) to the service performance standards;

*PSC has relieved Verizon from meeting certain service performance stan-
dards;

*PSC has allowed Verizon to aggregate its repair service measurements
into five regions, rather than the 28 service repair bureaus;

*Verizon has drastically reduced its workforce with the result that it
cannot meet its landline customer repair needs in a timely manner;

*Verizon's policy is to focus on competing for wireless customers, even
at the experience of its own traditional wireline business;

*Verizon has chosen to spend the bulk of its investment and manpower on
expanding its wireless business. Verizon has relentlessly downsized and
avoided upgrading its wireline network;

*The current penalties are not sufficient to deter Verizon from deliver-
ing the level of service required by the PSC service performance stand-
ards.

This bill would address the problems and weaknesses identified by the
Attorney General, and would ensure that telephone corporations that are
offering fixed wireless do not abandon or ignore their landline custom-
ers.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2017-18: S1268
2015-16: S.4937/A.1968 (Brennan)
2014: S.7321 (Tkaczyk)/A.9645 (Brennan)

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None for the State.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S3202 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3202
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 4, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sen.  COMRIE -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on  Energy  and  Telecommuni-
   cations
 
 AN  ACT to amend the public service law, in relation to service perform-
   ance standards for telephone corporations
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 95 of the public service law is amended by adding a
 new subdivision 4 to read as follows:
   4.  (A)  ALL SERVICE PROVIDERS, AS DEFINED IN SECTION ONE HUNDRED FOUR
 OF THIS ARTICLE, SHALL FILE WITH THE COMMISSION FOR EACH AND EVERY MONTH
 A REPORT SETTING FORTH THE COMPLIANCE RATE OF THE SERVICE PROVIDER  WITH
 RESPECT  TO THE MONTHLY SERVICE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS ESTABLISHED BY THE
 COMMISSION PURSUANT TO SECTION ONE HUNDRED FOUR  OF  THIS  ARTICLE.  ALL
 SUCH  REPORTS  SHALL  BE  PUBLIC  DOCUMENTS  AND  SHALL BE POSTED ON THE
 WEBSITE OPERATED AND MAINTAINED BY THE COMMISSION.  THE  INFORMATION  OR
 DATA  CONTAINED  IN SUCH REPORTS SHALL CONSTITUTE STATISTICAL OR FACTUAL
 TABULATION OR DATA AND SHALL NOT BE EXEMPT FROM DISCLOSURE  PURSUANT  TO
 ARTICLE SIX OF THE PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW.
   (B)  ALL  SUCH REPORTS SHALL BE DISAGGREGATED BY SERVICE PROVIDER; AND
 BY REGIONS AND SUBREGIONS, AS DETERMINED BY THE  COMMISSION,  TO  ENSURE
 THAT  ALL  GEOGRAPHIC AREAS AND CUSTOMERS IN THE STATE ARE EQUALLY MEAS-
 URED AND COUNTED.
   (C) THE COMMISSION SHALL NOT BE AUTHORIZED TO WAIVE, REDUCE, RELAX  OR
 ELIMINATE ANY REPORTING REQUIREMENTS SET FORTH IN THIS SUBDIVISION.
   §  2. The public service law is amended by adding a new section 104 to
 read as follows:
   § 104. SERVICE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS. 1. DEFINITIONS. FOR THE PURPOSES
 OF THIS ARTICLE, THE TERMS:
   (A) "SERVICE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS" SHALL MEAN ANY METRIC OR  PERFORM-
 ANCE  STANDARD  OR THRESHOLD ESTABLISHED BY THE COMMISSION AS OF JANUARY
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD06210-01-9

 S. 3202                             2
 
 FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TEN THAT EACH SERVICE PROVIDER IS EXPECTED  TO  MEET
 RELATING  TO  MAINTENANCE  SERVICE,  INSTALLATIONS, NETWORK PERFORMANCE,
 ANSWER TIME, AND ANY OTHER STANDARD THAT MEASURES QUALITY  AND  ADEQUACY
 OF SERVICE.
   (B) "SERVICE PROVIDER" SHALL MEAN A TELEPHONE CORPORATION CERTIFIED BY
 THE COMMISSION PURSUANT TO THIS CHAPTER WITH THE AUTHORITY AND TARIFF TO
 PROVIDE  LOCAL  EXCHANGE  SERVICE  IN  THIS STATE THAT IS OFFERING FIXED
 WIRELESS TELEPHONE SERVICES IN THIS STATE.
   2. SERVICE PERFORMANCE STANDARDS. (A) THE COMMISSION  SHALL  ESTABLISH
 SERVICE  PERFORMANCE  STANDARDS  THAT SHALL BE APPLICABLE TO ALL SERVICE
 PROVIDERS. UPON THE ESTABLISHMENT OR  APPROVAL  OF  ANY  SUCH  STANDARD,
 EXCEPT  DURING  PERIODS OF EMERGENCY, CATASTROPHE, DISASTER OR ANY OTHER
 EXTRAORDINARY EVENT THAT IS BEYOND THE CONTROL OF A SERVICE PROVIDER  AS
 DETERMINED  BY  THE  COMMISSION,  THE  COMMISSION MAY NOT WAIVE, REDUCE,
 RELAX OR ELIMINATE ANY SERVICE PERFORMANCE STANDARD FOR  ANY  INDIVIDUAL
 SERVICE PROVIDER.
   (B)  THE  EXISTENCE OF ALTERNATE OR OTHER SERVICE PROVIDERS WITHIN THE
 SAME SERVICE AREA OR ANY OTHER FACTORS RELATING TO COMPETITION SHALL NOT
 BE A FACTOR, GROUND OR BASIS IN ANY DETERMINATION TO ESTABLISH,  REDUCE,
 RELAX OR ELIMINATE A SERVICE PERFORMANCE STANDARD.
   3.  REPORTS.  ALL SERVICE PERFORMANCE REPORTS SUBMITTED TO THE COMMIS-
 SION BY A SERVICE PROVIDER OR ANY OTHER ENTITY THAT  PROVIDES  TELEPHONE
 SERVICES  SHALL BE PREPARED, FILED AND MADE AVAILABLE PURSUANT TO SUBDI-
 VISION FOUR OF SECTION NINETY-FIVE OF THIS ARTICLE.
   4. PENALTIES. NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION TWENTY-FIVE OF
 THIS CHAPTER, ANY SERVICE PROVIDER AND THE OFFICERS, AGENTS AND  EMPLOY-
 EES  OF  SUCH  CORPORATION THAT FAILS OR NEGLECTS TO MEET ANY ONE OF THE
 SERVICE  PERFORMANCE  STANDARDS  ESTABLISHED  BY  THE  COMMISSION  SHALL
 FORFEIT TO THE STATE OF NEW YORK A SUM NOT TO EXCEED THE GREATER OF:
   (A)  FIVE  HUNDRED  THOUSAND  DOLLARS CONSTITUTING A CIVIL PENALTY FOR
 EACH FAILURE OR NEGLECT TO MEET ANY ONE OF THE SERVICE PERFORMANCE STAN-
 DARDS.  THE FAILURE OR NEGLECT TO MEET ANY SERVICE PERFORMANCE  STANDARD
 FOR  TWO CONSECUTIVE REPORTING PERIODS SHALL RESULT IN THE FORFEITURE OF
 ONE MILLION DOLLARS FOR EACH FAILURE OR NEGLECT; OR
   (B) THREE TIMES THE AMOUNT OF THE COST OF MEETING AND  COMPLYING  WITH
 THE SERVICE PERFORMANCE STANDARD, AS DETERMINED BY THE COMMISSION.
   5.  (A)  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY  PROVISION  OF  LAW  TO THE CONTRARY, NO
 SERVICE PROVIDER MAY OFFER OR PROVIDE FIXED WIRELESS TELEPHONE OR COMMU-
 NICATION SYSTEMS, SERVICES OR PRODUCTS, NOR MAY THE  COMMISSION  AUTHOR-
 IZE,  PERMIT  OR  APPROVE  ANY SERVICE PROVIDER TO OFFER OR PROVIDE SUCH
 SYSTEMS, SERVICES OR PRODUCTS, TO ANY PERSON IN  THIS  STATE  UNTIL  AND
 UNLESS THE COMMISSION HAS DETERMINED THAT SUCH SERVICE PROVIDER HAS MET,
 AND  FULLY  COMPLIED  WITH,  EACH AND EVERY MONTHLY PERFORMANCE STANDARD
 ESTABLISHED BY THE COMMISSION FOR SUCH  SERVICE  PROVIDER  IN  EACH  AND
 EVERY SERVICE REGION OR AREA SERVED BY THE SERVICE PROVIDER FOR A PERIOD
 OF AT LEAST TWELVE MONTHS.
   (B)  NOTWITHSTANDING  THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVI-
 SION:  (I) A SERVICE PROVIDER MAY REPLACE A COPPER-BASED WIRELINE COMMU-
 NICATION NETWORK WITH A WIRELESS SYSTEM  FOR  ANY  CUSTOMER  WHO,  AFTER
 RECEIVING  APPROPRIATE NOTICE AND INFORMATION FROM THE SERVICE PROVIDER,
 CONSENTS TO SUCH REPLACEMENT  ON  FORMS  PREPARED  OR  APPROVED  BY  THE
 COMMISSION;  AND  (II) THE COMMISSION, IN THE AFTERMATH OF A WEATHER-RE-
 LATED NATURAL EVENT OR EMERGENCY, MAY AUTHORIZE A  SERVICE  PROVIDER  TO
 TAKE ANY ACTIONS THAT ARE OTHERWISE PROHIBITED BY THIS SECTION.
   §  3. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, section
 or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of  competent  juris-

 S. 3202                             3
 
 diction to be invalid, the judgment shall not affect, impair, or invali-
 date  the  remainder  thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to
 the clause,  sentence,  paragraph,  section  or  part  thereof  directly
 involved  in  the  controversy  in  which  the  judgment shall have been
 rendered.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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