Sec. 17. (a) Subject to subsection (b), upon notice to the commission by an incumbent local exchange carrier that is the provider of last resort in one (1) or more parts of the incumbent local exchange carrier's service area, the incumbent local exchange carrier is relieved of its obligation as the provider of last resort in any part of the incumbent local exchange carrier's service area in which there are at least two (2) ETC eligible communications service providers, one (1) of which may be the incumbent local exchange carrier, offering a voice service through any technology or medium, including any of the following:
(1) Wire communication (as defined in 47 U.S.C. 153).
(2) Internet Protocol enabled services.
(3) Commercial mobile service (as defined in 47 U.S.C. 332).
(b) After June 30, 2014, upon notice to the commission by an incumbent local exchange carrier that is the provider of last resort in one (1) or more parts of the incumbent local exchange carrier's service area, the incumbent local exchange carrier is relieved of its provider of last resort obligation with respect to any part of its service area identified in the incumbent local exchange carrier's notice to the commission under this subsection.
(c) Relief from a provider of last resort obligation under this chapter does not affect an incumbent local exchange carrier's obligations under federal law.
(d) As used in this section, "ETC eligible communications service provider" means a communications service provider that provides, using any available technology or medium, the voice telephony services described in 47 CFR 54.101, regardless of whether the communications service provider has been designated as an eligible telecommunications carrier.
As added by P.L.8-2012, SEC.9.