Verizon applies for 271 approval in Maine

Verizon Communications today filed an application with the FCC to provide in-region long-distance service in Maine under Section 271 of the Telecommunications Act. The FCC has 90 days to review the application.

The Maine Public Utilities Commission previously indicated it supports the application, according to Verizon. The United States Department of Justice will issue its own recommendation during the comment period, but the FCC is not required to abide by that recommendation.

Tom Tauke, Verizon’s senior vice president of public policy and external affairs, said in a statement the Maine application “builds on our successful filings for other New England states.” According to Verizon, third-party auditor PricewaterhouseCoopers verified that the carrier’s operations support systems “are the same” as those in Massachusetts, where Verizon gained 271 approval in April 2001.

“There is no question that we’ve met or exceeded all the federal requirements,” Tauke said.

The filing for Maine comes a day after Verizon withdrew its application for New Jersey concerning a procedural matter involving the rates the carrier charges competitive carriers to make a “hot cut,” which is the physical act of switching a customer to a competitor’s service. Verizon said it would refile that application “promptly.”

Currently, Verizon has received 271 approval in five states—New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island—and has one application pending, for Vermont. The company’s long-distance division is the nation’s fourth-largest long-distance service provider with 8 million customers in 41 states.

--Glenn Bischoff, senior news writer