Castle Pines North vs. Qwest's Infamous Phone Line "Distance Charge"
You see it every month on your bill: Qwest's $12 per month "distance charge" per wired phone line, an established yet outdated tariff for Qwest telephone service. This charge was put in place years ago and was intended to compensate Qwest for the greater expense of providing service to "rural" customers.
Ten or twenty years ago this may have made a lot of sense. Today, however, it is obsolete. Want to know more about why this fee exists?
Here are the steps Castle Pines North has taken in the fight against "distance" charges (in chronological order):
Early 2002: Some CPN residents filed a complaint against Qwest with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) attempting to eliminate distance charges. Qwest received the complaint and decided to not yield on the tariff.
August 2002: There was a pre-hearing conference held at the PUC regarding the charges. Once again, Qwest refused to give on the issue. The PUC advised CPN's committee to acquire an attorney.
September 2002: The CPN Master Association Board agreed to fund a retainer for an attorney specializing in telecommunications law.
October 2002: CPN's attorney and committee started negotiating with the PUC staff to review the tariff.
2003: The fight continues! Developments Mean there is Still Hope... CPN's committee has learned that this obsolete tariff structure affects many neighborhoods throughout Colorado, not just Castle Pines North. CPN's committee and attorney are currently working with PUC staff to have them review the statewide implications. While nothing is guaranteed, we are hopeful that this will lead to a solution for CPN residents and reduce the financial burden of tackling the issue on our own.
During the course of the review, the PUC may hold public meetings. When the dates and locations for these meetings are announced we will let everyone know via this web site and via e-mail alert (Sign up for the E-mail Alert List - it's easy to join).
- Sign up for CPN's e-mail distribution list. You'll receive e-mails notifying you of upcoming meetings as well as general updates. Send an e-mail to maillist@cpnhoa.org with your name, neighborhood and e-mail address.
- Do you know anyone living in a community other than CPN who also pays distance charges? (We know this affects Roxborough Park and at least parts of other areas such as Saddlerock, The Broadlands in Broomfield and some other new subdivisions built in the last decade.) Make sure to let them know what we're doing and if they're paying distance charges, have them contact CPN. This will also lend strength to our argument.
- The support of key politicians will be very helpful, and possibly essential, to getting this issue solved. Do you or someone you know have a close relationship with an elected official(s)?
