Opinion ID: 2391146
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 14

Heading: fundamental principles underlying procedures.

Text: 2.1 The following general principles underlie the procedures outlined in this manual: 2.11 Separations are made on the `actual use' basis, which gives consideration to relative occupancy and relative time measurements. The Company asserts it followed the procedures set forth in the Separations Manual so that separation is based on actual use of its property and alleges that the respondent accepted its computation with the single exception of its property (and related revenues and expenses) used to furnish toll service over private lines. The Company states that, although the above adverted to Separations Manual permits short-cut calculations, it proved actual use. The Board in its decision said: The Company's asserted concern for exactness in this respect would be better understood if it had insisted on comparable degrees of exactness in other aspects of its separation study which have a more significant bearing on the over-all results of separation study. We have reference here to data in Exhibit P-259 which indicates that work time used by the Company in its separation of various types of traffic work operations is that reflected in the standard system tables issued by the A.T. & T., presumably prepared by the latter company on the basis of over-all Bell system experience and not that of New Jersey Bell Telephone Company alone. Further these system work-time tables bear dates ranging from 1945 to 1949 indicating that they are based on studies in this respect made some time ago. On this evidence the Board is impelled to the same conclusion as it reached in the 1949 proceeding, namely that the Company has wholly failed to sustain the burden of proof as to the reasonableness of the change in separation procedure aforementioned. The Board contended on appeal that The details of just how the Company determined its expenses associated with such toll private lines, singly or in total, was not spread upon the record. The references in the record upon which the Company relies on this appeal do not refute the Board's contention that the Company failed to carry the burden of proof as to the reliability of its separations computation as to toll private line service.