Kavulla comments on CenturyLink probe

Montana Public Service Commissioner Travis Kavulla said he has heard lots of complaints about CenturyLink’s telephone service and is asking the public to step forward to express their views about the company’s service.

The commissioner Thursday said he had heard many complaints about the service and was launching an investigation.

Kavulla, R-Great Falls, who represents the Hi-Line, said especially in rural areas CenturyLink has let down its customers.

While the company is getting millions of dollars in federal subsidies to provide service to rural areas, the equipment in many parts of rural Montana is so antiquated that repair parts are no longer being manufactured.

Sometimes, he said, the company searches through junkyards to find spare parts.

It’s difficult to say if the federal subsidies are really being used to provide rural service, he said, since the money goes into one big pot.

But he said CenturyLink has a responsibility to provide good service to rural areas. This is especially true in areas where no alternatives are available to customers, he said.

Frequent outages have been reported, he said, and it takes the company a long time to make repairs.

Kavulla said he understands some of the problems CenturyLink has in rural areas.

Providing service in remote areas is more expensive than in urban areas, he said.

In the days when ATT held a monopoly, urban customers, in effect, subsidized service to rural areas.

But today, if CenturyLink were to have urban customers subsidize the rural areas, that would put the company in a competitive disadvantage in urban areas where other providers, such as Charter Communication, can offer service is urban areas while shunning rural areas.

But, he said, the commission has the responsibility to protect the rights of rural users who rely on CentruyLink service..

Complaints have been especially forthcoming in areas between Helena and Great Falls, he said.

The commission will eventually hold hearings on the CenturyLink situation, he said. If complaints are concentrated in one areas, the commission will hold hearings in that area, he said.

CenturyLink was cautious in its response to the commission’s investigation.

Michelle Jackson, market development manager for CenturyLink’s Billings office, said only that since the PSC investigation was ongoing, the company couldn’t comment.

"What we can say is that we are working with the Commission to meet the service quality needs of our rural customers in a cost effective way,” she said.