John Higdon <john@zygot.ati.com> (05/27/91)
Remember the famous "access charge" that a great many people believe
has something to do with access?
"On April 2, 1991, Pacific Bell filed with the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) for an increase in the "Network Access for Interstate
Calling" charge that appears on your business bill. At the same time,
we requested an increase in certain rates for special access services.
"If rates are approved, they will go into effect July 1, 1991.
"'Network Access for Interstate Calling' Charge
"The 'Network Access for Interstate Calling' charge enables us to
recover the cost Pacific Bell incurs in completing interstate calls.
For the following customers who have more than one line, we have
proposed an increase of about three percent, from $4.02 to $4.14 a
month per line, for this access charge:
*Multi-Line Business
*Customer-Owned Pay Telephone (COPT)
*Semi-Public Coin Telephones
*Centrex
"In the same filing we also requested an increase of about 28 percent
in installation rates, from $346.50 to $445.00, for voice grade
special access services."
Would it not be a dream come true to have a business in which you
could simply pull money out of your customers on a whim? Costs of
completing interstate calls? Obviously, Pac*Bell figures that its
customers were born yesterday.
By the way, if you are a 200 line Centrex customer, the "access"
increase amounts to a not-so-insignificant $24.00 per month. If you
have a 200 line PBX with 30 trunks, the increase is only $3.60 per
month. Centrex customers get screwed again.
John Higdon | P. O. Box 7648 | +1 408 723 1395
john@zygot.ati.com | San Jose, CA 95150 | M o o !