NOTICE OF ALTERNATIVE PETITION FOR DECLARATORY RULING OR WAIVER OF BACKUP POWER REGULATIONS

The REGULATORY COMMISSION OF ALASKA (Commission) gives notice that on November 8, 2017, New Cingular Wireless PCS, LLC d/b/a AT&T Mobility (“AT&T Mobility”) filed an alternative petition for either a declaratory ruling regarding certain backup power regulations or a waiver of those regulations insofar as they pertain to certain small cell facilities deployed to improve network capacity within AT&T Mobility’s existing cellular coverage area. Docket U-17-094 was opened to address this matter.

3 AAC 53.410(a)(12)(A) requires an eligible telecommunications carriers to certify that its services will remain functional in an emergency situation by, in part, “maintaining at least eight hours of backup power” to its facilities when commercial alternating current power service is interrupted.  AT&T Mobility’s petition seeks a declaratory ruling from the Commission that 3 AAC 53.410(a)(12)(A) does not apply to small cell facilities and certain distributed antenna facilities of a particular size, which AT&T Mobility seeks to deploy within its existing coverage area to improve network capacity.  In the alternative, AT&T Mobility seeks a waiver of 3 AAC 53.410(a)(12)(A) for the particular facilities it describes in its petition.

You may obtain more information about this filing by contacting Cindy Manheim, AVP – Senior Legal Counsel for AT&T Mobility, at P.O. Box 97061, Redmond, WA, 98073; phone: (425) 602-0197.  The complete filing is also available for inspection at the Commission's office, at 701 West Eighth Avenue, Suite 300, Anchorage, AK 99501; phone: (907) 276-6222, or may be viewed on the Commission’s website at http://rca.alaska.gov by typing Docket No. “U-17-094” in the Find a Matter search box.

To comment on this docket, please file your comments by 5:00 p.m. on December 11, 2017, at either the Commission address given above or via our website at:

https://rca.alaska.gov/RCAWeb/WhatsNew/PublicNoticesComments.aspx

Please reference Docket No. U-17-094 and include a statement that you have filed a copy of the comments with AT&T Mobility at its address given above. Individuals or groups of people with disabilities, who require special accommodations, auxiliary aids or service, or alternative communication formats, please contact Valerie Fletcher-Mitchell at (907) 276-6222, toll-free at 1-800-390-2782, or TTY (907) 276-4533 or send a request via electronic mail to rca.mail@alaska.gov by December 4, 2017.

DATED at Anchorage, Alaska this 9th day of November, 2017.                                                 

                                                       REGULATORY COMMISSION OF ALASKA                           

                                                       Stephen McAlpine

                                                       Chairman