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DATE: |
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TO: |
Director, Division of the Commission Clerk &
Administrative Services (Bayó) |
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FROM: |
Division of Competitive Markets & Enforcement (Isler) Office of the General
Counsel (McKay) |
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RE: |
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AGENDA: |
10/03/06 – Regular Agenda – Proposed Agency Action – Interested
Persons May Participate |
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COMMISSIONERS
ASSIGNED: |
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PREHEARING
OFFICER: |
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SPECIAL
INSTRUCTIONS: |
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Issue 1:
Should the Commission cancel OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications, Inc., OPTICOM, 1-800-MAX-SAVE, Advanttel, RegionTel, LiveTel, and SuperTel’s Competitive Local Exchange Telecommunications Company (CLEC) Certificate No. 8184 and OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications, Inc. d/b/a OPTICOM, d/b/a 1-800-MAX-SAVE, d/b/a Advanttel, d/b/a RegionTel, d/b/a LiveTel, and d/b/a SuperTel’s Intrastate Interexchange Telecommunications (IXC) tariff and remove its name from the register on its own motion effective July 20, 2006; notify the Division of the Commission Clerk & Administrative Services that any unpaid Regulatory Assessment Fees should not be sent to the Florida Department of Financial Services and request permission to write-off the uncollectible amount?
Recommendation:
Yes, the company’s CLEC certificate, IXC tariff and registration should be cancelled on the Commission’s own motion. (Isler, McKay)
Staff Analysis:
See attached proposed Order.
Issue 2:
Should this docket be closed?
Recommendation:
Staff recommends that the Order issued from this
recommendation will become final and effective upon issuance of a Consummating
Order, unless a person whose substantial interests are affected by the
Commission’s decision files a protest that identifies with specificity the
issues in dispute, in the form provided by Rule 28-106.201, Florida
Administrative Code, within 21 days of the issuance of the Proposed Agency
Action Order. As provided by Section
120.80(13)(b), Florida Statutes, any issues not in dispute should be deemed
stipulated. If any entity fails to
timely file a protest and to request a Section 120.57, Florida Statutes,
hearing, the facts should be deemed admitted and the right to a hearing
waived. The company’s CLEC certificate
and IXC tariff should be cancelled administratively, the company’s name should
be removed from the register, and the collection of the unpaid Regulatory
Assessment Fees, including statutory late payment charges, should not be
referred to the Florida Department of Financial Services for further collection
efforts. If the company’s CLEC
certificate and IXC tariff are cancelled and its name removed from the register
in accordance with the Commission’s Order from this recommendation, the company
should be required to immediately cease and desist providing competitive local
exchange and intrastate interexchange telecommunications services in
Staff Analysis:
Staff recommends that the Commission take action as set forth in the foregoing staff recommendation statement.
BEFORE THE
The following Commissioners participated in the disposition of this matter:
J.
NOTICE OF PROPOSED
AGENCY ACTION ORDER
CANCELLING COMPETITIVE LOCAL EXCHANGE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS CERTIFICATE AND INTRASTATE INTEREXCHANGE TELECOMMUNICATIONS
TARIFF
BY THE COMMISSION:
NOTICE is hereby given by the Florida Public Service Commission that the action discussed herein is preliminary in nature and will become final unless a person whose interests are substantially affected files a petition for a formal proceeding, pursuant to Rule 25-22.029, Florida Administrative Code.
OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications, Inc., OPTICOM, 1-800-MAX-SAVE, Advanttel, RegionTel, LiveTel, and SuperTel (OCMC) currently holds Competitive Local Exchange Telecommunications Company (CLEC) Certificate No. 8184, issued by the Commission on September 3, 2002.
OCMC,
Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications, Inc. d/b/a OPTICOM, d/b/a 1-800-MAX-SAVE,
d/b/a Advanttel, d/b/a RegionTel, d/b/a LiveTel, and d/b/a SuperTel (OCMC) currently
holds Registration No. TJ668, issued by the Commission on September 3, 2002, authorizing the
provision of intrastate interexchange telecommunications company (IXC) service.
Pursuant to
Section 364.336, Florida Statutes, telecommunications companies must pay a
minimum annual Regulatory Assessment Fee of $50 by January 30 of the subsequent
year and provides for late payment charges as outlined in Section 350.113,
Florida Statutes, for any delinquent amounts.
Pursuant to Rule 25-24.474, Florida Administrative Code, intrastate
interexchange companies must pay any current and past due Regulatory Assessment
Fees with its request for cancellation. All
entities that apply for registration receive a copy of our rules governing intrastate
interexchange telecommunications services.
On June 12, 2006, this Commission received a letter from Ms. Margaret
Good, President of The Meridian Group, which advised that OCMC no longer provided
service in Florida and wished to cancel all certificates. The Meridian Group was appointed as the
Receiver over OCMC by the US District Court for the Southern District of
Indiana in the case of PNC Bank, N.A. versus OCMC, Inc., Case No.
1:06-CV-0755-JET-TAB. On July 20, 2006, Ms.
Pamela Mock, on behalf of the Receiver, advised staff that all of OCMC’s
customers were transferred to other carriers and the company no longer operates
or has any assets. Ms. Mock followed up
the telephone conversation with an e-mail requesting that any unpaid Regulatory
Assessment Fees be written-off as there were no funds to pay the fees. This is not a bankruptcy case, but a case of
forced liquidation.
In a case such as this one, secured creditors are given the highest priority in the distribution of assets and normally receive all of the distributed assets. Regulatory Assessment Fees, late payment charges, and penalties owed by a company to the Florida Public Service Commission, as well as monetary settlements of cases resolving issues of failure to pay such fees, are not secured debts and, as a practical matter, are uncollectible.
This
Commission cannot grant a voluntary cancellation unless all outstanding fees
have been paid. Therefore, we find it
appropriate to cancel OCMC’s certificate and registration. Accordingly, we shall cancel OCMC’s CLEC
certificate and IXC tariff and remove its name from the register on this
Commission’s own motion, effective July 20, 2006. In addition, the Division of the Commission
Clerk and Administrative Services shall be notified that the 2006 Regulatory
Assessment Fees shall not be sent to the Florida Department of Financial
Services for collection, and permission for the Commission to write-off the
uncollectible amount will be requested. OCMC
shall immediately cease and desist providing competitive local exchange
telecommunications service and intrastate interexchange telecommunications service
in
Based
on the foregoing, it is
ORDERED by the Florida Public Service Commission that OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications, Inc., OPTICOM, 1-800-MAX-SAVE, Advanttel, RegionTel, LiveTel, and SuperTel’s CLEC Certificate No. 8184 is cancelled, effective July 20, 2006. It is further
ORDERED
by the Florida Public Service Commission that OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call
Communications, Inc. d/b/a OPTICOM, d/b/a 1-800-MAX-SAVE, d/b/a Advanttel,
d/b/a RegionTel, d/b/a LiveTel, and d/b/a SuperTel’s IXC tariff is cancelled
and its name removed from the register, effective July 20, 2006. It is
further
ORDERED
that the unpaid Regulatory Assessment Fees shall not be sent to the Department
of Financial Services for collection.
The Division of the Commission Clerk and Administrative Services,
instead, shall request permission to write-off the uncollectible amount. It is further
ORDERED that if OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications, Inc., OPTICOM, 1-800-MAX-SAVE, Advanttel, RegionTel, LiveTel, and SuperTel’s CLEC Certificate No. 8184 is cancelled and subsequently decides to reapply for certification as a competitive local exchange telecommunications company, that company shall be required to first pay any outstanding fees, including accrued statutory late payment charges. It is further
ORDERED that if OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications, Inc. d/b/a OPTICOM, d/b/a 1-800-MAX-SAVE, d/b/a Advanttel, d/b/a RegionTel, d/b/a LiveTel, and d/b/a SuperTel’s tariff is cancelled and its name removed from the register, and subsequently decides to reapply for registration as an intrastate interexchange telecommunications company, that company shall be required to first pay any outstanding fees, including accrued statutory late payment charges. It is further
ORDERED that if OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications,
Inc., OPTICOM, 1-800-MAX-SAVE, Advanttel, RegionTel, LiveTel, and SuperTel’s
CLEC Certificate is cancelled in accordance with this Order, the company shall
immediately cease and desist providing competitive local exchange
telecommunications service in
ORDERED that if OCMC, Inc. d/b/a One Call Communications,
Inc. d/b/a OPTICOM, d/b/a 1-800-MAX-SAVE, d/b/a Advanttel, d/b/a RegionTel,
d/b/a LiveTel, and d/b/a SuperTel’s IXC tariff is cancelled and its name
removed from the register in accordance with this Order, the company shall
immediately cease and desist providing intrastate interexchange
telecommunications services in
ORDERED that the provisions of this Order, issued as proposed agency action, shall become final and effective upon the issuance of a Consummating Order unless an appropriate petition, in the form provided by Rule 28-106.201, Florida Administrative Code, is received by the Director, Division of the Commission Clerk and Administrative Services, 2540 Shumard Oak Boulevard, Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0850, by the close of business on the date set forth in the “Notice of Further Proceedings” attached hereto. It is further
ORDERED
that in the event this Order becomes final, this docket shall be closed.
By ORDER of
the
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Division of the Commission Clerk and Administrative Services |
( S E A L )
VM
NOTICE OF FURTHER PROCEEDINGS OR JUDICIAL REVIEW
The Florida Public Service Commission is required by Section 120.569(1), Florida Statutes, to notify parties of any administrative hearing that is available under Section 120.57, Florida Statutes, as well as the procedures and time limits that apply. This notice should not be construed to mean all requests for an administrative hearing will be granted or result in the relief sought.
Mediation may be available on a case-by-case basis. If mediation is conducted, it does not affect a substantially interested person's right to a hearing.
The action
proposed herein is preliminary in nature. Any person whose substantial
interests are affected by the action proposed by this order may file a petition
for a formal proceeding, in the form provided by Rule 28-106.201, Florida
Administrative Code. This petition must
be received by the Director, Division of the Commission Clerk and
Administrative Services,
In the absence of such a petition, this order shall become final and effective upon the issuance of a Consummating Order.
Any objection or protest filed in this/these docket(s) before the issuance date of this order is considered abandoned unless it satisfies the foregoing conditions and is renewed within the specified protest period.