Okla. Stat. tit. 17, § 17-137

rate regulation.

A. Except as otherwise hereafter provided, any proceeding under

Section 136 of this title and in any other proceeding to regulate

the rates of a telephone utility subject to the jurisdiction of the

Corporation Commission, said Commission shall prescribe and enforce

rates to provide a fair return on the fair value of the property

devoted to public service in this state.

B. Telephone companies which serve less than fifteen thousand

(15,000) subscribers within the state and telephone cooperatives

shall not be subject to local exchange rate regulation by the

Corporation Commission unless:

1. The company elects by action of its board of directors to be

subject to such local exchange rate regulation by the Commission;

2. The proposed local exchange rate increase exceeds Two

Dollars ($2.00) per access line per month in any one (1) year;

3. Fifteen percent (15%) of the subscribers petition the

Commission to regulate local exchange rates pursuant to subsections,

D, E and F of this section; or

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4. The Commission declares that the company shall be subject to

local exchange rate regulation by the Commission pursuant to

subsection G of this section.

C. Each telephone company, which serves more than five percent

(5%) but less than fifteen percent (15%) of the subscribers of

telephone service within the state, that increases its local

exchange rates in accordance with this section shall invest an

amount equivalent to the annual revenues produced from such rate

increase to upgrade its facilities used for the provision of

services to subscribers served within the exchange from which

revenues from such rate increase are generated.

D. Each such telephone company not subject to local exchange

rate regulations, at least sixty (60) days before the effective date

of any proposed rate change, shall notify the Commission and each of

the subscribers of such company of the proposed local exchange rate

change. Notice to the Commission shall include a list of the

published subscribers of such company. Notice by the company to all

subscribers shall:

1. Be in a form prescribed by the Commission;

2. Be by regular mail and may be included in regular subscriber

billings; and

3. Include a schedule of the proposed local exchange rates, the

effective date of the said rates, and the procedure necessary for

the subscribers to petition the Commission to examine and determine

the reasonableness of the proposed rates. If the telephone

directory published by the company for its subscribers sets forth

the procedure for petitioning the Commission, a reference to the

location in the directory shall be adequate notice of the procedure.

E. The subscribers of a telephone company not subject to the

Commission's local exchange rate regulation may petition the

Commission to examine and determine the reasonableness of the local

exchange rate change proposed by the company pursuant to subsection

C of this section. The Commission shall adopt and promulgate rules

and regulations governing the form of such petitions. A petition

substantially in compliance with such rules and regulations shall

not be deemed invalid due to minor errors in its form.

F. If, by the effective date of the proposed local exchange

rate change, the Commission has received petitions from fewer than

fifteen percent (15%) of the subscribers requesting that the

Commission examine the proposed local exchange rate change, the

Commission shall immediately certify such fact to the company and

the proposed local exchange rates shall become effective as

published in the notice to subscribers. If, on or before the

effective date of the proposed local exchange rate change, the

Commission has received petitions from fifteen percent (15%) or more

of the subscribers requesting that the Commission examine and

determine the reasonableness of the proposed local exchange rates,
company and

the proposed local exchange rates shall become effective as

published in the notice to subscribers. If, on or before the

effective date of the proposed local exchange rate change, the

Commission has received petitions from fifteen percent (15%) or more

of the subscribers requesting that the Commission examine and

determine the reasonableness of the proposed local exchange rates,

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 17. Corporation Commission Page 47

the Commission shall notify the company that it will examine and

determine the reasonableness of the proposed local exchange rate

change. Local exchange rates and charges established by the

Commission or by a telephone company pursuant to this subsection and

subsection D of this section shall be in force for not less than one

(1) year.

G. In addition to the procedure for petition prior to any

proposed local exchange rate change pursuant to subsections D

through F of this section, the subscribers of a telephone company

not subject to the Commission's local exchange rate regulation may

at any time petition the Commission to declare the company be

subject to such rate regulation. If the Commission determines that

at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the subscribers of a company

have properly petitioned that the company be subject to the

Commission's rate regulation, the Commission shall certify such fact

to the company and thereafter the company shall be subject to rate

regulation by the Commission until at least fifty-one percent (51%)

of the subscribers of the company properly petition that the company

no longer shall be subject to the Commission's local exchange rate

regulation. The Commission shall adopt and promulgate rules and

regulations governing the petition procedure and the form of such

petitions and a petition substantially in compliance with such rules

and regulations shall not be deemed invalid due to minor errors in

its form.

H. Subsections A through G of this section apply only to local

exchange rates and charges and shall have no effect on the Oklahoma

Corporation Commission's jurisdiction over, and regulation of,

intrastate toll and access rates and charges.

I. The Commission shall have the right to investigate and

determine the reasonableness of the increase in local exchange rates

and charges of each telephone company or cooperative not subject to

local exchange rate regulation within one (1) year of the time local

exchange rates or charges are increased. If the Commission

determines such rate or charge increases are unreasonable, the

Commission shall have the authority to order a rate hearing and,

after such hearing, shall have the authority to rescind all or any

portion of the increases found to be unreasonable.

J. When any telephone utility subject to the jurisdiction of

the Corporation Commission shall file with the Commission a request

for review of its rates and charges, such request shall be conducted

in accordance with the provisions of subsection B of Section 152 of

this title.

K. It is the intention of the Legislature that this entire

section is an amendment to, and alteration of Sections 18 through

34, inclusive, of Article IX of the Constitution of the State of

Oklahoma, as authorized by Section 35, Article IX of said

Constitution.

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