Opinion ID: 501656
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Grounds for Review

Text: 47 Petitioners' objections concern different aspects of the two Commission orders before us. MCI Telecommunications Corporation (MCI) focuses its attack on the Commission's acceptance of the Joint Board recommendation that twenty-five percent of NTS costs be allocated to the interstate jurisdiction. It contends that that allocation has no other purpose but the redistribution of wealth through a form of tax, and that Congress has not delegated taxing authority to the Commission even if such delegation were constitutional. MCI also argues that the twenty-five percent allocation amounts to a taking of property for public use without just compensation, in violation of the Fifth Amendment to the Constitution. In addition, MCI claims that the CPE phase-out is based on fictitious phantom plant, and thus violates basic ratemaking principles. Finally, MCI challenges the high cost apportionment. 48 Rural Telephone Cooperative (Rural) limits its challenge to the Commission's decision concerning the seven-day sampling period. Although Rural originally sought review of the Commission's determination that the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. Secs. 601 to 612 (1982), does not apply to small telephone companies, counsel for Rural moved the court to dismiss that part of the petition in No. 84-1110. As the court granted the motion, the Regulatory Flexibility Act issue is no longer before us. 49 For the reasons stated below, we affirm the challenged portions of the orders under review.