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PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION MEETING
Monday, April 6, 1998; 10:00 A.M.
State Capitol Building, Room 468
Pierre, South Dakota
MINUTES OF THE AD HOC MEETING
Chairman Burg called the meeting to order. Present were Commissioner Laska Schoenfelder, Commissioner Pam Nelson, Executive Director Bill Bullard, Staff Attorneys Karen Cremer and Camron Hoseck, Fixed Utilities Division Director Greg Rislov, Deputy Director Harlan Best, Utility Analysts Bob Knadle, Dave Jacobson and Tammi Stangohr, Consumer Representative Leni Healy and Administrative Secretary Shirleen Fugitt.
Also present were Tom Welk, Jon Lehner and Colleen Sevold, U S WEST; Terry Woster, Sioux Falls Argus Leader; Bob Mercer, Rapid City Journal; Al Lundy, South Dakota Public Broadcasting; and Chet Brokaw, Associated Press.
Joining the meeting by phone were Michele Engel, AT&T, and Mary Lohnes and Tom Simmoms, Midco Communications.
Telecommunications
Commissioner Nelson moved to dismiss the show cause proceeding against U S WEST. She cited to new laws that will provide the Commission with a new and improved vehicle to use in carrying out the Commission's original objectives of improving our telecommunications infrastructure, ensuring proper infrastructure maintenance, ensuring the timely provisioning of service, improving service quality, and enhancing network reliability. Commissioner Nelson moved that the Commission open a docket to receive public comments regarding service quality with respect to telecommunications services. She stated that the public input could be used by the Commission in its development of proposed service quality rules. Chairman Burg seconded.
Commissioner Schoenfelder dissented stating that the show cause proceeding was the way to bring U S WEST to the table, and in a public way, examine the whole company. She stated that the Commission could have emerged from a show cause proceeding with positive results for both present and future economic impacts on the state and that U S WEST could also have benefited from the show cause proceeding. Motion passed 2-1.
The meeting was adjourned.
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Shirleen Fugitt
Administrative Secretary
