Amendment
Bill No. 1320

Amendment No. 710077

CHAMBER ACTION
Senate		House
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1	Representative(s) Bullard offered the following:
2
3	Amendment (with title amendment)
4	Remove everything after the enacting clause and insert:
5	Section 1.  Section 364.10, Florida Statutes, is amended to
6	read:
7	364.10  Undue advantage to person or locality prohibited;
8	Lifeline service.--
9	(1)  A telecommunications company may not make or give any
10	undue or unreasonable preference or advantage to any person or
11	locality or subject any particular person or locality to any
12	undue or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage in any respect
13	whatsoever.
14	(2)(a)  The prohibitions of subsection (1) notwithstanding,
15	an eligible telecommunications carrier a telecommunications
16	company serving as carrier of last resort shall provide a
17	Lifeline Assistance Plan to qualified residential subscribers,
18	as defined in a commission-approved tariff or price list, and a
19	preferential rate to eligible facilities as provided for in part
20	II. For the purposes of this section, the term "eligible
21	telecommunications carrier" means a telecommunications company,
22	as defined by s. 364.02, which is designated as an eligible
23	telecommunications carrier by the commission pursuant to 47
24	C.F.R. s. 54.201.
25	(b)  An eligible telecommunications carrier shall offer a
26	consumer who applies for or receives Lifeline service the option
27	of blocking all toll calls or, if technically capable, placing a
28	limit on the number of toll calls a consumer can make. The
29	eligible telecommunications carrier may not charge the consumer
30	an administrative charge or other additional fee for blocking
31	the service.
32	(c)  An eligible telecommunications carrier may not collect
33	a service deposit in order to initiate Lifeline service if the
34	qualifying low-income consumer voluntarily elects toll blocking
35	or toll limitation. If the qualifying low-income consumer elects
36	not to place toll blocking on the line, an eligible
37	telecommunications carrier may charge a service deposit.
38	(d)  An eligible telecommunications carrier may not charge
39	Lifeline subscribers a monthly number-portability charge.
40	(e)1.  An eligible telecommunications carrier must notify a
41	Lifeline subscriber of impending termination of Lifeline service
42	if the company has a reasonable basis for believing that the
43	subscriber no longer qualifies. Notification of pending
44	termination must be in the form of a letter that is separate
45	from the subscriber's bill.
46	2.  An eligible telecommunications carrier shall allow a
47	subscriber 60 days following the date of the pending termination
48	letter to demonstrate continued eligibility. The subscriber must
49	present proof of continued eligibility. An eligible
50	telecommunications carrier may transfer a subscriber off of
51	Lifeline service, pursuant to its tariff, if the subscriber
52	fails to demonstrate continued eligibility.
53	3.  The commission shall establish procedures for such
54	notification and termination.
55	(f)  An eligible telecommunications carrier shall timely
56	credit a consumer's bill with the Lifeline Assistance credit as
57	soon as practicable, but no later than 60 days following receipt
58	of notice of eligibility from the Office of Public Counsel or
59	proof of eligibility from the consumer.
60	(3)(a)  Effective September 1, 2003, any local exchange
61	telecommunications company authorized by the commission to
62	reduce its switched network access rate pursuant to s. 364.164
63	shall have tariffed and shall provide Lifeline service to any
64	otherwise eligible customer or potential customer who meets an
65	income eligibility test at 125 percent or less of the federal
66	poverty income guidelines for Lifeline customers. Such a test
67	for eligibility must augment, rather than replace, the
68	eligibility standards established by federal law and based on
69	participation in certain low-income assistance programs. Each
70	intrastate interexchange telecommunications company shall,
71	effective September 1, 2003, file a tariff providing at a
72	minimum the intrastate interexchange telecommunications
73	carrier's current Lifeline benefits and exemptions to Lifeline
74	customers who meet the income eligibility test set forth in this
75	subsection. The Office of Public Counsel shall certify and
76	maintain claims submitted by a customer for eligibility under
77	the income test authorized by this subsection.
78	(b)  Each eligible telecommunications carrier local
79	exchange telecommunications company subject to this subsection
80	shall provide to each state and federal agency providing
81	benefits to persons eligible for Lifeline service applications,
82	brochures, pamphlets, or other materials that inform the such
83	persons of their eligibility for Lifeline, and each state agency
84	providing the such benefits shall furnish the materials to
85	affected persons at the time they apply for benefits.
86	(c)  Any local exchange telecommunications company customer
87	receiving Lifeline benefits shall not be subject to any
88	residential basic local telecommunications service rate
89	increases authorized by s. 364.164 until the local exchange
90	telecommunications company reaches parity as defined in s.
91	364.164(5) or until the customer no longer qualifies for the
92	Lifeline benefits established by this section or s. 364.105, or
93	unless otherwise determined by the commission upon petition by a
94	local exchange telecommunications company.
95	(d)  An eligible telecommunications carrier may not
96	discontinue basic local exchange telephone service to a
97	subscriber who receives Lifeline service because of nonpayment
98	by the subscriber of charges for nonbasic services billed by the
99	telecommunications company, including long-distance service. A
100	subscriber who receives Lifeline service shall be required to
101	pay all applicable basic local exchange service fees, including
102	the subscriber line charge, E-911, telephone relay system
103	charges, and applicable state and federal taxes.
104	(e)  An eligible telecommunications carrier may not refuse
105	to connect, reconnect, or provide Lifeline service because of
106	unpaid toll charges or nonbasic charges other than basic local
107	exchange service.
108	(f)  An eligible telecommunications carrier may require
109	that payment arrangements be made for outstanding debt
110	associated with basic local exchange service, subscriber line
111	charges, E-911, telephone relay system charges, and applicable
112	state and federal taxes.
113	(g)  An eligible telecommunications carrier may block a
114	Lifeline service subscriber's access to all long-distance
115	service, except for toll-free numbers, and may block the ability
116	to accept collect calls, when the subscriber owes an outstanding
117	amount for long-distance service or amounts resulting from
118	collect calls. However, the eligible telecommunications carrier
119	may not impose a charge for blocking long-distance service. The
120	eligible telecommunications carrier shall remove the block at
121	the request of the subscriber without additional cost to the
122	subscriber upon payment of the outstanding amount. An eligible
123	telecommunications carrier may charge a service deposit before
124	removing the block.
125	(h)(d)  By December 31, 2003, each state agency that
126	provides benefits to persons eligible for Lifeline service shall
127	undertake, in cooperation with the Department of Children and
128	Family Services, the Department of Education, the commission,
129	the Office of Public Counsel, and telecommunications companies
130	providing Lifeline services, the development of procedures to
131	promote Lifeline participation.
132	(i)(e)  The commission shall report to the Governor, the
133	President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of
134	Representatives by December 31 each year on the number of
135	customers who are subscribing to Lifeline service and the
136	effectiveness of any procedures to promote participation.
137	(j)  The commission shall adopt rules to administer this
138	section.
139	Section 2.  By January 15, 2006, and in furtherance of its
140	Lifeline educational and promotional efforts, each
141	telecommunications company that has, by July 1, 2005, had a
142	petition granted under s. 364.164, Florida Statutes, shall file
143	with the Public Service Commission a report on Lifeline
144	participation in the state. The report shall be produced by the
145	Public Utility Research Center at the University of Florida and
146	shall be conducted under the auspices of the Public Service
147	Commission and the Office of the Public Counsel. The report
148	must, at a minimum, identify the total number of eligible
149	customers, without duplication occasioned by the applicability
150	of multiple eligibility criteria established, as of March 31,
151	2005, by law, commission order, or approved company agreement.
152	The report may also report on subscribership differences among
153	socioeconomic segments within the population of Lifeline-
154	eligible Floridians to the extent that any identifiable
155	segment's inclination to subscribe to Lifeline services of a
156	local exchange telecommunications company differs. Such report
157	may be filed with the commission jointly or individually by
158	companies covered by this section. By March 1, 2006, the
159	commission shall file the report with the President of the
160	Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, along
161	with supplemental information or commission comment, if any,
162	deemed relevant by the commission. By January 15, 2006, a copy
163	of the report shall be provided to the Office of Program Policy
164	Analysis and Government Accountability and the Public Service
165	Commission, which shall provide comment, if any, on the report's
166	findings to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the
167	House of Representatives by March 1, 2006.
168	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2005.
169
170
171	================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T =================
172	Remove the entire title and insert:
173	A bill to be entitled
174	An act relating to Lifeline telecommunications services;
175	amending s. 364.10, F.S.; requiring that Lifeline
176	Assistance Plans be provided by eligible
177	telecommunications carriers; deleting requirement that
178	such plans be provided by telecommunications companies
179	serving as carriers of last resort; defining the term
180	"eligible telecommunications carrier"; requiring such
181	carriers to offer Lifeline service applicants and
182	recipients the option of blocking or limiting toll calls
183	under certain circumstances; prohibiting the carrier from
184	requiring a service deposit from certain consumers
185	electing to block or limit toll calls; prohibiting a
186	number-portability charge to Lifeline subscribers;
187	providing requirements for termination of Lifeline
188	service; requiring the Public Service Commission to
189	establish procedures for notification and termination of
190	Lifeline service; requiring the carrier to timely credit a
191	consumer's bill with Lifeline Assistance credits;
192	providing criteria for connection, reconnection, and
193	discontinuation of basic local telecommunications service
194	for Lifeline Assistance subscribers; providing criteria
195	for blocking access to long-distance service; adding the
196	Department of Education and the Office of Public Counsel
197	to those agencies that are directed to cooperate in
198	developing procedures for promoting Lifeline
199	participation; requiring the commission to adopt rules;
200	requiring certain telecommunications companies to file
201	with the commission a report on Lifeline participation;
202	requiring the commission to file the report with the
203	Legislature; providing for comment on the report's
204	findings by the Office of Program Policy Analysis and
205	Government Accountability and the Public Service
206	Commission; providing an effective date.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.