WTA Files Oppositions to AT&T Forbearance Petition

On December 2, WTA and ERTA filed jointly in opposition to a petition for forbearance filed by AT&T in which it seeks to avoid paying access charges to certain RLECs allegedly engaging in “access stimulation.” WTA and ERTA object to granting forbearance in this instance because: 1) this is a misuse of the forbearance procedure; and 2)  AT&T has presented “no specific evidence that ‘access stimulation’ remains a significant problem in the telecommunications industry, or that the normal tariff review procedures in which AT&T actively participates are not sufficient to achieve just and reasonable tandem switching and tandem-switched transport rates, and database dip charges.”