National Ass'n of Regulatory Utility Com'rs v. F.C.C., s. 86-1678
| Decision Date | 07 July 1989 |
| Docket Number | 87-1023 and 87-1043,86-1713,86-1736,Nos. 86-1678,s. 86-1678 |
| Parties | NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REGULATORY UTILITY COMMISSIONERS, Petitioner, v. FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION and United States of America, Respondents, Virginia State Corporation Commission, et al., Intervenors. District of Columbia Circuit |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — District of Columbia Circuit |
Ellen S. LeVine, with whom Janice E. Kerr, J. Calvin Simpson, San Francisco, Cal. (for State of Cal. and the Public Utilities Com'n of the State of Cal.), Frank J. Kelley, Detroit, Mich., Louis J. Caruso, Don L. Keskey, Henry J. Boynton, Lansing, Mich. (for State of Mich. and the Mich. Public Service Com'n), Steven M. Schur, Robert J. Mussallem, Madison, Wis. (for the Public Service Com'n of Wis.), David M. Barasch, Harrisburg, Pa., Daniel Clearfield (for Nat. Ass'n of State Utility Consumer Advocates, et al.), Paul Rodgers, and Charles D. Gray, Washington, D.C. (for Nat. Ass'n of Regulatory Utility Com'rs) were on the joint brief, for petitioners.
John E. Ingle, Deputy Associate Gen. Counsel, Federal Communications Com'n ("FCC"), with whom Diane S. Killory, Gen. Counsel, Daniel M. Armstrong, Associate Gen. Counsel, and Linda L. Oliver, Counsel, Washington, D.C., FCC, were on the brief, for respondents.
David W. Carpenter, with whom Mark C. Rosenblum, David J. Lewis (for AT & T), J. Roger Wollenberg, William T. Lake, Washington, D.C., and Kevin H. Cassidy, Purchase, N.Y. (for IBM), were on the brief, for intervenors AT & T and IBM. Jonathan S. Hoak, entered an appearance for intervenor AT & T in Nos. 86-1713, 86-1736, and 87-1043.
Ann Henkener, Columbus, Ohio, (for Public Utilities Com'n of Ohio), Ivy Lincoln (for Arkansas Public Service Com'n), Joel Shifman, Charleston, W.Va., Mitch Tannenbaum, Peter Ballou, Augusta, Me. (for Me. Public Utilities Com'n), Gregory J. Krasovsky (for Fla. Public Service Com'n), Mary L. Vanderpan (for Public Utility Com'n of S.D.), Howard C. Davenport, and Mary J. Sisak (for Public Service Com'n of the District of Columbia), were on the joint opening brief for intervenors. Robert S. Tongren entered an appearance for Public Utilities Com'n of Ohio. Joseph G. Donahue, Augusta, Me., entered an appearance for Me. Public Utilities Com'n.
Dana A. Rasmussen and Robert B. McKenna, Denver, Colo., were on the brief for intervenors The Mountain States Telephone & Telegraph Co., Northwestern Bell Telephone Co., and Pacific Northwest Bell Telephone Co.
Albert H. Kramer and Denise Bonn, Washington, D.C., were on the brief for intervenor North American Telecommunications Ass'n.
Alfred W. Whittaker, Richmond, Va., Floyd S. Keene, Milwaukee, Wis. (for Ameritech Operating Companies), Saul Fisher, Bedminster, N.J., and Martin J. Silverman (for NYNEX Telephone Companies) were on the brief for intervenors NYNEX and Ameritech.
James P. Tuthill, Margaret deB. Brown, San Francisco, Cal., and Stanley J. Moore, were on the brief for intervenors Pacific Bell and Nevada Bell. Robert L. Barada and Susan E. Barisone, Santa Cruz, Cal., also entered appearances for Pacific Bell and Nevada Bell in Nos. 86-1678 and 86-1736.
Genevieve Morelli and Lisa M. Zaina, entered appearances for petitioner Nat. Ass'n of Regulatory Utility Com'rs in No. 86-1678. Charles S. Fax, Washington, D.C., entered an appearance for petitioners Nat. Ass'n of State Utility Consumer Advocates, et al., in No. 86-1713. James T. Quinn, entered an appearance for petitioners People of the State of Cal. and the Public Utilities Com'n of the State of Cal. in No. 86-1736. Ronald D. Eastman, Washington, D.C., and Lynda S. Mounts, entered appearances for petitioners State of Mich. and the Mich. Public Service Com'n in No. 87-1023.
Catherine G. O'Sullivan and Andrea Limmer, Dept. of Justice, Washington, D.C., entered appearances for respondent U.S. Jane E. Mago, FCC, entered an appearance for respondent FCC.
William C. Sullivan, Linda S. Legg, St. Louis, Mo., Gary L. Buckwalter, Houston, Tex., and Liam S. Coonan, St. Louis, Mo., entered appearances for intervenor Southwestern Bell Telephone Co.
Lawrence W. Katz and Robert A. Levetown, Washington, D.C., entered appearances for intervenor Bell Atlantic Telephone Co. R. Frost Branon, Jr., Atlanta, Ga., entered an appearance for intervenor Bell-South Operating Co., et al.
James S. Blaszak and Charles C. Hunter, entered appearances for intervenor Ad Hoc Telecommunications Users Committee.
Saul Fisher, Bedminster, N.J., and Amy S. Gross, Stamford, Conn., entered appearances for intervenor New York Telephone Co., et al.
William Malone, Richard McKenna, and James R. Hobson, entered appearances for intervenor GTE Service Corp. in Nos. 86-1678, 86-1713, 86-1736, and 87-1023.
David Cosson, Washington, D.C., and Paul G. Daniel, Wilmington, Del., entered appearances for intervenor Nat. Telephone Cooperative Ass'n in Nos. 86-1713, 86-1736, 87-1023, and 87-1043.
Herbert E. Marks and James L. Casserly, Washington, D.C., entered appearances for intervenor Independent Data Communications Mfrs. Ass'n in Nos. 86-1713, 86-1736, 87-1023, and 87-1043.
Charles M. Meehan and Shirley S. Fujimoto, Washington, D.C., entered appearances for intervenor Utilities Telecommunications Council in Nos. 86-1678, 86-1713, and 86-1736.
Brian R. Moir, entered an appearance for intervenor International Communications Ass'n in Nos. 86-1678, 86-1713, and 86-1736.
Charles D. Gray, Washington, D.C., entered an appearance for intervenor Nat. Ass'n of Regulatory Utility Com'rs in Nos. 86-1713 and 86-1736.
John C. Wohlstetter, entered an appearance for intervenor Contel Corp. in Nos. 86-1736 and 87-1023.
Robert M. Hill, Jr., Florence, Ala., entered an appearance for intervenor Ala. Public Service Com'n in Nos. 86-1736 and 87-1023.
J. Calvin Simpson, San Francisco, Cal., James T. Quinn, Janice E. Kerr, San Francisco, Cal., and Ellen S. Levine, entered appearances for intervenor People of the State of Cal. in Nos. 86-1713 and 87-1043.
Martin McCue, entered an appearance for intervenor U.S. Telephone Ass'n in No. 86-1678.
Lewis S. Minter, Richmond, Va., entered an appearance for intervenor Va. State Corporation Com'n in No. 86-1678.
Ana Colon Aebi, entered an appearance for intervenor Public Service Com'n of Nev. in No. 86-1678.
Larry V. Rogers, entered an appearance for intervenor Wash. Utilities and Trans. Com'n in No. 86-1678.
Robert S. Golden, Jr., Hartford, Conn., entered an appearance for intervenor Dept. of public Utility Control of the State of Conn. in No. 86-1678.
Sammy R. Kirby, Raleigh, N.C., entered an appearance for intervenor N.C. Utilities Com'n in No. 86-1678.
Henry Walker, entered an appearance for intervenor Tenn. Public Service Com'n in No. 86-1678.
William C. Black, Augusta, Me., entered an appearance for intervenor Me. Public Advocate in No. 86-1678.
David L. Stott and Laurie L. Noda, Salt Lake City, Utah, entered appearances for intervenor Utah Public Service Com'n in No. 86-1678.
Elisabeth H. Ross, Washington, D.C., entered an appearance for intervenor Mo. Public Service Com'n in No. 86-1678.
Weldon S. Caldbeck, entered an appearance for intervenor Public Service Com'n of Wyoming in No. 86-1678.
Louis J. Caruso, Don L. Keskey, Henry J. Boynton, Lansing, Mich., and Frank J. Kelley, Detroit, Mich., entered appearances for intervenor State of Mich. and the Mich. Public Service Com'n in No. 86-1678.
Before ROBINSON, MIKVA, and BUCKLEY, Circuit Judges.
Opinion for the court filed by Circuit Judge BUCKLEY.
Petitioners challenge Federal Communications Commission orders preempting the authority of state utility commissioners to regulate the installation and maintenance of a certain category of wiring used for both interstate and intrastate telephone communication. We conclude that the Commission may only preempt state regulation over intrastate wire communication to the degree necessary to keep such regulation from negating the Commission's exercise of its lawful authority over interstate communication service. Accordingly, we grant the petition for review and remand to the Commission for further proceedings.
The Communications Act of 1934 ("Act") creates the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC" or "Commission")
[f]or the purpose of regulating interstate and foreign commerce in communication by wire and radio so as to make available, so far as possible, to all people of the United States a rapid, efficient, Nationwide, and world-wide wire and radio communication service....
47 U.S.C. Sec. 151 (1982). To accomplish this goal, the Act divides the regulatory jurisdiction over wire and radio communication into distinct interstate and intrastate spheres.
Thus, while the Act grants the FCC jurisdiction over "all interstate and foreign communication by wire or radio ...," id. Sec. 152(a), it expressly limits the FCC's jurisdiction by reserving certain matters to the states:
[N]othing in this chapter shall be construed to apply or to give the Commission jurisdiction with respect to (1) charges, classifications, practices, services, facilities, or regulations for or in connection with intrastate communication service by wire or radio of any carrier....
Id. Sec. 152(b) ("section 152(b)"). "Wire communication" or "communication by wire" is defined as "the transmission of ... sounds of all kinds by aid of wire, cable, or other like connection ... including all instrumentalities, facilities, apparatus, and services ... incidental to such transmission." Id. Sec. 153(a).
The Act also establishes a "jurisdictional separations" process to determine what portion of an asset is employed to produce or deliver interstate as opposed to intrastate service. Id. Sec. 410(c). Once that determination is made, the costs can be allocated to a telephone company's intrastate and interstate services for regulatory purposes.
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