WASHINGTON-It ain’t over ’til it’s over, and state regulators are not giving up until they are sure the wireless industry cannot succeed in delaying the Nov. 24 mandate to implement local number portability.
“The National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners will remain vigilant. The wireless industry has already pulled off a double hat trick in delaying LNP until now; we do not want them to get a triple hat trick,” said James Bradford Ramsay, NARUC general counsel.
The opponents and proponents have been scrambling all over Capitol Hill in an attempt to either delay or thwart the delay of WLNP until after the holiday shopping season.
As of Thursday, Ramsay’s side appeared to be ahead as one of the staunch supporters of a delay, Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, told reporters that he does not support a delay at this time. He is instead waiting for a response to a letter he sent Tuesday to the Federal Communications Commission urging the agency to issue rules on wireline-to-wireless portability.
Stevens spoke to reporters outside a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on the universal-service system.
For his part, FCC Chairman Michael Powell told reporters after his appearance before the Senate Commerce Committee that he has had several conversations with lawmakers regarding LNP, and that while he is not lobbying against a delay, when asked his opinion, he said he supports WLNP.
Some in the industry were quick Wednesday to distance themselves from any delay. “While we agree that the FCC could have better defined the rules of WLNP for the wireless industry, U.S. Cellular has made the investment and is ready to accommodate the needs of our customers,” said U.S. Cellular President John Rooney.
The reluctance of senators to support a delay in WLNP became apparent just as a federal appeals court Wednesday afternoon rejected a plea from AT&T Wireless Services Inc. and Cingular Wireless L.L.C. to require the FCC to either issue rules on wireline-to-wireless portability or delay the Nov. 24 mandate.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit rejected the request in a one-paragraph opinion.
“The D.C. Circuit Court’s decision to deny the petition for mandamus, while disappointing, does not affect Cingular’s ability to be ready for the Nov. 24 launch of wireless local number portability,” said Cingular. “We will be ready to port in the Top 100 MSAs, and we welcome consumers to Cingular’s outstanding services and latest products.”
The Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association has made a similar request of the D.C. Circuit.
