Whippany, NJ—October 23, 2007—The National Exchange Carrier Association (NECA) is seeking to intervene on behalf of the FCC in a petition for review filed by Core Communications requesting forbearance from access charge and rate integration rules.  Core’s petition was filed before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.  The Commission rejected Core’s request at the administrative level in July, prompting the court petition.

NECA is being joined in this action by the Organization for the Promotion and Advancement of Small Telecommunications Companies (OPASTCO), the National Telecommunications Cooperative Association (NTCA), the Independent Telephone and Telecommunications Alliance (ITTA) and the Western Telecommunications Alliance (WTA).

In comments before the FCC filed in June 2006 NECA argued that Core failed to demonstrate it has the necessary jurisdictional standing to request forbearance either on its own behalf or on behalf of other carriers it doesn’t represent.

Further, NECA argued that Core Communications is not seeking regulatory forbearance at all, but rather is attempting to achieve access reform –a goal the Commission is currently pursuing in a “more thoughtful and responsible manner” in its intercarrier compensation proceeding.  NECA urged the Commission to deny Core’s petition and continue to focus its efforts on “developing rational and coherent reform to existing interconnection, universal service and intercarrier compensation mechanisms.”

Earlier this year the FCC denied Core’s petition because it “failed to meet the statutory forbearance criteria.” Core now seeks to have the DC circuit overturn the FCC’s decision. NECA and the national telecom associations will support the FCC in defending its position before the Court of Appeals.