Insights

Interstate Tariff Revisions Must be Filed by July 18, 2022

May 19, 2022

With an end goal of reducing Toll-Free traffic pumping and other rate arbitrage in today’s current system, on October 9, 2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved a Report and Order to reform Toll-Free (8YY) origination access charges. In particular, the order proposed updated measures aimed at preserving and enhancing the value of Toll-Free service for consumers, businesses, and communities.

One of the measures included in the report is a three-year phased-in approach to reducing dip charges. The effort, which kicked off in July 2020 and will culminate on July 1, 2023, comes as a result of FCC findings that identified vastly inconsistent, industry-wide database query dip charging. Similarly, the record showed that a single call could go through multiple dips, which increased a call’s cost without necessarily providing additional value.

In addition to updating how dip rates are charged, the order also prohibited multiple dip charges for a single call. While previously, a call that went through multiple dips could incur a charge for each dip performed, the new billing processes and procedures will only allow for a single query charge per call. While calls will still be permitted to make multiple dips as needed, competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) performing additional dips will not be permitted to charge for these additional queries.

In support of the above efforts, as well as to stay compliant with the updated 8YY Toll-Free pricing:

The new filing fees can be submitted via the Commission's Registration System (CORES). CORES can be accessed either at https://apps.fcc.gov/cores/userLogin.do using an existing FCC Username account or through the CORES’ FCC Registration Number (FRN) access page at https://apps.fcc.gov/cores/paymentFrnLogin.do.

To learn more about the updated measures, we encourage you to check out the following resources:

• Overview of FCC Order to Reducing Traffic-Pumping Through Updated Billing Procedures
  
   
• Wireline Competition Bureau Reminds Competitive Local Exchange Carriers to File Revised Tariffs by July 18, 2022, and to Submit New Filing Fees Through CORES
  
   
• Full Report and Order FCC 20-143