First Regular Session
Sixty-second General Assembly
LLS NO. R990957.01 Duane
Gall
STATE OF COLORADO
BY SENATOR Chlouber;
also REPRESENTATIVES Coleman, Takis, and Tate.
APPROPRIATIONS
SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION 99-049
CONCERNING AN INTERIM STUDY OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS
ISSUES.
WHEREAS, In House Bill 951335, the General
Assembly announced its intention to change the regulatory policy
governing telecommunications in Colorado and to open the local
exchange market to competition, effective July 1, 1996; and
WHEREAS, In anticipation of this policy change, the
General Assembly established an interim committee and a working
group of telecommunications industry and consumer representatives
to conduct a thorough review of the issues involved and to recommend
statutory and regulatory measures that should be taken to smooth
the transition to a competitive local market; and
WHEREAS, This transition is taking place, albeit
more slowly than had been anticipated; and
WHEREAS, Since July 1, 1996, Colorado has experienced
radical changes, not only in the quality and variety of telecommunications
services available to consumers but also in virtually every other
economic, social, and demographic sphere; and
WHEREAS, To date, the General Assembly has not systematically
or comprehensively attempted to gauge the progress of competition
in the local telecommunications market since the passage of House
Bill 951335; and
WHEREAS, The General Assembly also has not had the
benefit of an examination of telecommunications regulation in
light of other economic, social, and demographic factors that
have come into play in the intervening three years; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the Sixtysecond
General Assembly of the State of Colorado, the House of Representatives
concurring herein:
(1) That there shall be a committee to
meet in the interim after the First Regular Session of the Sixtysecond
General Assembly to consider issues raised by the continuing evolution
and deregulation of telecommunications services in Colorado.
Such interim committee shall consist of six members of the General
Assembly. Three of such members shall be from the House of Representatives,
appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and
three of such members shall be from the Senate, appointed by the
President of the Senate. No more than two of the members from
the House of Representatives and two of the members from the Senate
shall be from the same political party. In particular, the issues
considered by the committee shall include, without limitation:
(a) The status of competition in Colorado
telecommunications markets and the identification of any impediments
to competition that may exist;
(b) The criteria to be used to determine
when a telecommunications service is generally available;
(c) The advanced telecommunications services
that are generally available in urban areas of the state;
(d) The advanced telecommunications services
that are generally available in rural areas of the state;
(e) An identification of the costs associated
with the deployment of access to advanced telecommunications services
that are generally available in urban areas to rural areas of
the state, including a costbenefit analysis of policies
encouraging "telecommuting" as a means of reducing suburban
sprawl;
(f) Options that might be considered in
establishing additional support mechanisms or other methods of
shared payment for the costs of ensuring the availability of advanced
telecommunications services throughout the state and avoiding
the arbitrary division of communities into different local calling
areas;
(g) An analysis of the level of competition
existing for services such as interLATA toll, intraLATA toll,
private line, and directory assistance to evaluate whether further
deregulation of such services is warranted; and
(h) An analysis of privacy issues raised
by the sharing of customer information and routing of calls by
and among competing carriers, particularly in regard to the secure
conduct of electronic commerce.
(2) That, in conducting such study, the
interim committee shall consult with the Colorado public utilities
commission and with representatives of counties, municipalities,
telecommunications providers, consumer and environmental groups,
chambers of commerce, and interested members of the public and
may hold public hearings in locations outside the Denver metropolitan
area as deemed necessary for purposes of the study. The study
shall not require additional staff for any state agency or any
additional appropriation to any such state agency.
(3) That the interim committee may recommend
and develop legislation to help local governments reduce impediments
to the provision of highquality, affordable telecommunications
service to their citizens or modify state policies and programs
that promote competition both locally and statewide.
(4) That the Legislative Council shall
report the findings and recommendations of the interim committee
to the Second Regular Session of the Sixtysecond General
Assembly.
(5) That all expenditures incurred in the conduct of the study enumerated in this resolution shall be approved by the chairperson of the Legislative Council and paid by vouchers and warrants drawn as provided by law from funds allocated to the Legislative Council from appropriations made by the General Assembly.