TELECOM Digest OnLine - Sorted: Re: Cost of POTS w/o Long Distance

Re: Cost of POTS w/o Long Distance

John Levine (johnl@iecc.com)
6 Jan 2006 05:08:18 -0000

> Am I correct that even though I'm not using my 3rd party LD provider
> that I had with my POTS service that I'm still paying some form of a
> month connection fee to the POTS provider?

Yes.

> Any idea what the fee is called.

I believe the usual term is a "phone bill".

If you're refering to a line called something like:

FCC MANDATED ACCESS CHARGE

which is probably $6.50, its correct label should be:

EXTRA MONEY THE FCC LETS US COLLECT

since it is simply part of your monthly phone rate.

Back at the time of the Bell breakup, the access charge was a
temporary band-aid the FCC added to make up for part of the previous
subsidy from deliberately overpriced interstate long distance rates.
It should have gone away in a few years once the telcos went to the
states to adjust their rates to include it, but that never happened.

Some people think that they shouldn't have to pay it if they never
make toll calls but they are wrong. The niggly reason is that even if
you never call anyone long distance, other people can call you so your
phone is still connected to the long distance network. The real
reason is the one above, it's just part of your phone rate.

R's,

John

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