37-2-106 through 37-2-109;

37-2-106 through 37-2-109;

(v) Certification as applicable under W.S. 37-15-201.

37-15-203. Price regulation of noncompetitive essential services.

(a) Prices for telecommunications services which have been determined by the legislature or the commission to be noncompetitive essential telecommunications services shall be regulated by the commission in accordance with this section. The prices for noncompetitive essential telecommunications services of any local exchange company may be adjusted downward at the company's discretion. Except as provided in subsections (e), (f), (h) and (j) of this section, prices for noncompetitive essential telecommunications services shall be subject to a maximum determined by the commission. The initial maximum shall be the local exchange company's price of noncompetitive essential telecommunications services as of July 1, 2006. A local exchange carrier may increase its price for noncompetitive essential telecommunications services to the level of the maximum set under this subsection without approval of the commission as required under subsections (f) and (g) of this section.

(b) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(c) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(d) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(e) A local exchange company may seek approval to make revenue neutral adjustments, considering only revenue from noncompetitive essential telecommunications services, to the price of noncompetitive essential telecommunications services to reduce or eliminate differences in the price of noncompetitive essential telecommunications services in different portions of its service area. A local exchange company shall not use adjustments under this section to increase receipt of state universal service funds or increase switched access prices. This subsection shall not apply retroactively.

(f) A local exchange company may seek approval to increase the price of noncompetitive essential telecommunications services, including switched access charges, based on:

(i) Changes in the local calling area as approved by the commission;

(ii) Changes in access charges as approved by the commission;

(iii) Other changes affecting noncompetitive essential telecommunications services; or

(iv) Increases in the cost of providing essential telecommunications services. The increases shall be judged on the overall federal gross domestic product price index published by the United States department of commerce, bureau of economic analysis unless the applicant demonstrates that specific cost increases are disproportionably affecting the cost of providing their noncompetitive essential telecommunications services.

(g) Any requested price change under subsections (b) through (f) of this section, including revenue neutral changes, that may result in an increase in the price of noncompetitive essential telecommunications services is subject to review and determination by the commission, after notice and opportunity for hearing.

(h) The prices of any local exchange company may contain provisions for incentives for improvement of the company's performance or efficiency, lowering of operating costs, control of expenses or improvement and upgrading or modernization of its services or facilities. Any local exchange company may apply to the commission for incentives and innovative or nontraditional price regulation, including price indexing. The commission shall issue a final order approving, modifying or rejecting any application made under this subsection within one hundred eighty (180) days of the filing date of the application with the commission. If no order is issued by the commission within the one hundred eighty (180) day period, the application shall be deemed approved as filed. If during consideration of an application for regulation under this subsection, the commission materially alters the plan as filed in the application, the applying local exchange company may notify the commission in writing, at any time, but not later than sixty (60) days after any final commission order on the application, that it elects not to be price regulated as approved by the order. The local exchange company's prices shall then be regulated as they were prior to the application until such time as a new application is filed, approved and accepted.

(j) Unless as otherwise directed under federal law, noncompetitive switched access shall not be priced above three cents ($.03) per minute after January 1, 2010.

37-15-204. Price schedules.

(a) A local exchange company shall post on its website and file in electronic format to the commission price schedules showing all noncompetitive essential telecommunications services terms, conditions and prices currently in effect and charged to customers by the company in this state. All prices for new noncompetitive essential telecommunications services, and any increase in prices for noncompetitive essential telecommunications services as authorized by the commission pursuant to W.S. 37-15-203, shall be filed with the commission for approval thirty (30) days prior to the proposed effective date. The company shall also provide notice to each impacted customer electronically or in print using the same manner the customer receives bills from the company. No price increase for a noncompetitive essential telecommunications service shall be effective unless the customer has been given notice by the provider at least one (1) full billing cycle prior to the proposed increase and the increase has been approved by the commission as required by W.S. 37-15-203. No price or price change is effective until filed in accordance with this section. For purposes of this subsection, the rules, regulations, policies, practices and other requirements relating to services shall be posted on a local exchange company's website and filed with the commission in a simplified format which is not required to comply with the tariff formatting standards that were previously adopted by the commission. A local exchange company shall not be required to file or maintain paper copies of its price schedule with the commission. Rules, regulations, policies, practices and other requirements relating to noncompetitive essential telecommunications services shall be subject to the same requirements under this chapter as the prices of noncompetitive essential telecommunications services.

(b) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(c) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(d) Repealed by Laws 2015, ch. 96, § 2.

ARTICLE 3 - INTEREXCHANGE COMPANIES

37-15-301. Regulation of interexchange companies.

(a) An interexchange company not authorized to provide intrastate telecommunications service in this state on or before January 1, 1995, shall not provide intrastate interexchange telecommunications services unless it first registers with the commission. An interexchange company authorized by the commission to provide intrastate telecommunications service as of January 1, 1995, is not required to register. The form for registration shall be specified by the commission.  (b) Any interexchange company registered with the commission to provide intrastate telecommunications services shall be authorized to provide statewide services.

(c) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(d) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(e) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

ARTICLE 4 - REGULATION OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICES GENERALLY

37-15-401. Commission powers.

(a) In addition to the powers exercised pursuant to the provisions of W.S. 37-15-408, the commission has the power to:

(i) Investigate the methods and practices of any telecommunications company;

(ii) Require any telecommunications company to conform to the laws of this state and to all rules, regulations and orders of the commission not contrary to law;

(iii) Make any rules and regulations, in accordance with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act, necessary for the commission to carry out its powers in this chapter, including rules objectively established and consistent with commonly accepted industry standards, where applicable standards exist;

(iv) Require reports and studies as to prices and terms and conditions of service, necessary and relevant for the commission's exercise of its authority, including those protected as trade secret or confidential based on legitimate competitive or other operational concerns;

(v) Hold hearings on complaints, or for good cause, upon notice and subject to the provisions of the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act;

(vi) Regulate telecommunications companies only as provided for in this chapter; and

(vii) Exercise authority as expressly delegated under the Federal Communications Act of 1934, as amended.

37-15-402. Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.  37-15-403. Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

37-15-404. Protection of telecommunications consumers.

(a) No telecommunications company shall unreasonably discriminate as to customers in prices, terms or conditions of service, or in connection to or with other telecommunications companies. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prohibit any telecommunications company from:

(i) Providing volume or other price discounts based on reasonable, nonpredatory business practices;

(ii) Passing through any state, municipal or local taxes to the customers in the area where the tax is levied; or

(iii) Furnishing free or reduced price service to its current or pensioned employees and dependent members of their families, as defined in the applicable price schedules on file with the commission.

(b) The commission shall not give unreasonably discriminatory or preferential treatment in its regulation of any telecommunications company.

(c) A telecommunications company providing a noncompetitive essential telecommunications service shall not discontinue providing the service without the commission's approval.

(d) A telecommunications company shall not:

(i) Fail to disclose in a timely and uniform manner information necessary for the design of equipment and services that will meet the specifications of interconnection;

(ii) Fail or refuse to provide a service or product in accordance with the telecommunications company's tariffs, price lists or contracts and within the commission's applicable rules and orders.

(e) The commission may adopt rules and regulations to provide for:

(i) The interconnection of telecommunications companies' networks at nondiscriminatory and reasonable rates, terms and conditions, including interconnection under 47 U.S.C. §§ 251 and 252;

(ii) The effective and efficient interoperability of telecommunications companies' networks;

(iii) The unbundling of services into reasonable basic network features;

(iv) The administration and allocation of phone numbers to the extent technically and economically feasible;

(v) Telephone number portability to the full extent technically feasible;

(vi) The resale and sharing of services and functions at reasonable and nondiscriminatory rates; and

(vii) Rates, terms and conditions of wholesale service.

(f) No telecommunications company shall engage in anti- competitive behavior, including, but not limited to, discrimination in favor of its affiliates.

37-15-405. Complaint against prices.

Any person, and the commission on its own motion, may complain to the commission concerning the reasonableness of the price of any noncompetitive essential telecommunications service or any violation of W.S. 37-15-404. Any notice and hearing of any complaint shall be in accordance with the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act and this chapter. The commission shall only set aside any price it finds after notice and hearing to be unreasonable or unreasonably discriminatory. If the commission sets aside a price as unreasonable or unreasonably discriminatory, the telecommunications company shall have sixty (60) days to file a new price which is reasonable. The company shall refund any charges found to be unreasonable as ordered by the commission. Rates or prices for noncompetitive essential telecommunications services in effect as of July 1, 2006, are deemed to be fair and reasonable.

37-15-406. Quality of service.

(a) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.  (b) Any customer, and the commission on its own motion, may complain concerning the quality of service provided by a telecommunications company for noncompetitive essential telecommunications service. A complaint shall be noticed and heard as provided for in the Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act. The commission, after notice and hearing, may direct the telecommunications company to take whatever remedial action is technically feasible and economically reasonable to provide reasonably adequate service. The commission shall authorize a telecommunications provider to recover the cost of compliance as reasonably determined by any commission order under this section.

37-15-407. Annual report.

(a) The commission shall with the input and participation of the telecommunications industry and other relevant state departments, boards and agencies prepare and issue an annual report on the status of the telecommunications industry. The report shall be based on information provided to the commission and shall include:

(i) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(ii) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(iii) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(iv) Repealed By Laws 2007, Ch. 142, § 2.

(v) Any recommendations for legislative change which are adopted by the commission and which the commission believes are in the interest of Wyoming telecommunications customers; and

(vi) Any other information or analysis which the commission is required to provide by this title or deems necessary to provide.

(b) The commission's report shall be filed with the legislature and the governor.

37-15-408. Applicability of existing law.

W.S. 37-2-102, 37-2-104, 37-2-106 through 37-2-109, 37-2-113,