Media contact: 360-664-1116 or media@utc.wa.gov Docket number: UT-240029

Agreement allows the company to be regulated under an Alternative Form of Regulation (AFOR) and retains strong customer protections

LACEY, Wash. - On July 8, the Utilities and Transportation Commission approved a revised settlement agreement between CenturyLink and commission staff that recognizes the increasingly competitive market for telecommunications services. The agreement includes strong protections for customers in the event CenturyLink seeks to discontinue their service.

In January 2024, CenturyLink filed a Petition for Competitive Classification, stating that changing technologies justified a shift away from traditional monopoly utility regulation.

In September 2024, the commission rejected a proposed settlement agreement. They found that the agreement did not serve the public interest because it lacked incentives for CenturyLink to provide appropriate service quality and failed to offer sufficient protections for customers at risk of service discontinuation by CenturyLink.

In approving the revised settlement, the commission found that it preserves the structure and benefits of the first agreement and further strengthens customer protections.

Key aspects of the revised settlement protect customers by ensuring service quality, including:

• Bill inserts informing customers about an expanded bill credit process.
• Automatic bill credits for customers who open a trouble ticket and whose service is out or not working properly for 24 hours.
• Doubling the credit amount if CenturyLink fails to provide a credit or misapplies any credit amounts.

The revised settlement also adds more protections for customers in areas where CenturyLink seeks to discontinue service, including:

• A limit of three times per year that CenturyLink can request to discontinue service in areas where no reasonable alternative service options exist. The requests are subject to commission review and approval.
• A limit of 500 customers annually, for whom CenturyLink can discontinue service.
• A requirement for CenturyLink to notify customers affected by service discontinuation and educate them about potential providers in their area, along with their right to object to the proposed discontinuation to the UTC.
• The creation of a dedicated phone number and ambassador program for customers facing potential service discontinuation.

CenturyLink is the largest local telephone company in Washington, serving approximately 650,000 residential and business lines. The terms of this settlement apply to the five CenturyLink companies classified as Incumbent Local Exchange Companies (ILEC): Qwest Corporation, CenturyTel of Washington, CenturyTel of Inter Island, CenturyTel of Cowiche, and United Telephone Company of the Northwest.

The UTC regulates the rates and services of investor-owned electric utilities, telecommunications companies, natural gas and water companies, garbage-collection haulers, household-goods movers and passenger transportation companies, commercial ferries, pipeline companies, marine pilotage, and a low-level radioactive waste repository. The commission does not regulate the rates of broadband services, cellular, cable, or Internet service.

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