Ohio Administrative Code › Title 4901:1 - Utilities › Chapter 4901:1-7 - Local Exchange Carriers › Section 4901:1-7-08 - Negotiation and mediation of 47 U.S.C. 252 interconnection agreements

Current through all regulations passed and filed through July 1,
			 2024
[Comment: For dates of references to a section of either the
				United States Code or a regulation in the Code of Federal Regulations, see rule
				4901:1-7-02 of the
				Administrative Code.]
Interconnection agreements pursuant to
				47 U.S.C.
				252, shall be negotiated, mediated, and
				arbitrated under the following mediation rules in this chapter and arbitration
				rules outlined in rule
				4901:1-7-09 of the
				Administrative Code:
(A) Duty to
			 negotiate
All telephone companies have the duty to negotiate in good
				faith the terms and conditions of their agreements. The commission will presume
				that a party who refuses to provide information about its costs or other
				relevant information upon request of the other party has not negotiated in good
				faith provided that, where appropriate, the other party agrees to execute a
				reasonable confidentiality agreement. This presumption of failure to negotiate
				in good faith is rebuttable. The commission will resolve disputes concerning
				the furnishing of information when raised by a party to the negotiation and may
				impose sanctions where appropriate.
(B) Mediation
(1) Mediation is a voluntary alternative
			 dispute resolution process in which a neutral third party assists the parties
			 in reaching their own settlement. At any point during the negotiation, any
			 party or both parties to the negotiation may ask the commission to mediate any
			 differences arising during the course of the negotiation.
(2) To request mediation, a party to the
			 negotiation shall notify in writing the chief of the telecommunications section
			 of the commission's legal department and the chief of the
			 
									regulatory utility services division of the rates
			 and analysis department of the commission. A copy of the mediation request
			 should be simultaneously served on the other party in the dispute. The request
			 shall include the following information:
(a)
			 The name, address, telephone number, e-mail, and fax number of the party to the
			 negotiation making the request.
(b)
			 The name, address, telephone number, e-mail, and fax number of the other party
			 to the negotiation.
(c) The name,
			 address, telephone number, e-mail, and fax number of the parties'
			 representatives participating in the negotiations and to whom inquiries should
			 be made.
(d) The negotiation
			 history, including meeting times and locations.
(e) A statement concerning the differences
			 existing between the parties, including relevant documentation and arguments
			 concerning matters to be mediated.
(f) The other party to the negotiation shall
			 provide a written response within seven calendar days of the request for
			 mediation to the chief of the telecommunications section of the commission's
			 legal department and to the chief of the 
										regulatory utility services division of the rates
			 and analysis department. The response to a request for mediation shall be
			 simultaneously served upon the telephone company requesting the
			 mediation.
(3) The
			 commission will appoint a mediator to conduct the mediation. The mediator will
			 promptly contact the parties to the negotiation and establish a time to
			 commence mediation. The mediator will work with the parties to establish an
			 appropriate schedule and procedure for the mediation.
(4) The mediator's function is to be
			 impartial and to encourage voluntary settlement by the parties. The mediator
			 may not compel a settlement. The mediator may schedule meetings of the parties,
			 direct the parties to prepare for those meetings, hold private caucuses with
			 each party, request that the parties share information, attempt to achieve a
			 mediated resolution, and, if successful, assist the parties in preparing a
			 written agreement.
(5) Participants
			 in the mediation must have the authority to enter into a settlement of the
			 matters at issue.
(6)
			 Confidentiality
(a) Discussions during the
			 mediation process shall be private and confidential between the parties. By
			 electing mediation under this rule, the parties agree that no communication
			 made in the course of and relating to the subject matter of the mediation shall
			 be disclosed, except as permitted in this chapter.
(b) No party shall use any information
			 obtained through the mediation process for any purpose other than the mediation
			 process itself. This restriction includes, but is not limited to, using any
			 information obtained through the mediation process to gain a competitive
			 advantage.
(c) As provided in the
			 Ohio Rules of Evidence 408, offers to compromise disputed claims and responses
			 to them are inadmissible to prove the validity of that claim in a subsequent
			 proceeding. Evidence of conduct or statements made in compromise negotiations
			 are also not admissible in a future proceeding. This rule does not require the
			 exclusion of evidence otherwise discoverable merely because it is presented in
			 the course of compromise negotiations.
(7) Parties to the mediation shall reduce to
			 writing the mediated resolution of all or any portion of the mediated issues
			 and submit the resolution to the mediator.
(8) A member of the commission staff or an
			 attorney examiner who serves as a mediator shall, by virtue of having served in
			 such capacity, be precluded from serving in a decision-making role or as a
			 witness on matters subject to mediation in a formal commission case involving
			 the same parties and the same issues.