Section 772.10  Applicability

 

a)         This Part shall apply to any telecommunications carrier, as defined in Section 13-202 of the Public Utilities Act [220 ILCS 5/13-202] transporting or providing pay-per-call service within the State of Illinois.

 

b)         This Part shall not apply to any telecommunications carrier that is subject to 83 Ill. Adm. Code 760, "Cellular Radio Exclusion."

 

Section 772.20  Definitions

 

            "Abbreviated dialing code" means an alternative dialing arrangement consisting of #NXX, where the # represents the # symbol key on the telephone key pad, N represents any digit 2 through 9, and X represents any digit 0 through 9.

 

            "Basic telecommunications service" means both local exchange and interexchange service.

 

            "Blocking" means the inability to access intrastate pay-per-call services.

 

            "Information provider" means the sponsor that supplies the information, product, or entertainment source.

 

            "Pay-per-call service" means any service:

 

            In which any person provides or purports to provide:

 

            Audio information or audio entertainment produced or packaged by such person;

 

            Access to simultaneous voice conversation services; or

 

            Any service, including the provision of a product, the charges for which are assessed on the basis of the completion of the call;

 

            For which the caller pays a per-call or per-time-interval charge that is greater than, or in addition to, the charge for transmission of the call; and

 

            Which is accessed through the use of an abbreviated dialing code, a 900 service access code or a 976 exchange code.

 

            Such term does not include directory services provided by a common carrier or its affiliate or by a local exchange carrier or its affiliate.

 

            "Presubscription or comparable arrangement" means a contractual agreement in which the information provider discloses to the subscriber all terms and conditions associated with the use of the service, including the information provider's name and address, a local or toll-free telephone number which the consumer may use to obtain additional information or to register a complaint, and the rates for the service; the information provider agrees to notify the subscriber of any future rate changes; the subscriber agrees to utilize the service on the terms and conditions disclosed by the information provider; and the information provider requires the use of an identification number or other means to prevent unauthorized access to the service by nonsubscribers.

 

            "Subscriber" means a customer as defined in 83 Ill. Adm. Code 735.10.

 

(Source:  Amended at 22 Ill. Reg. 1192, effective January 1, 1998)

 

Section 772.30  Preamble

 

The preamble requirements are found in Section 10 of the Pay-Per-Call Services Consumer Protection Act [815 ILCS 520/10].

 

Section 772.35  Presubscription Arrangements by Credit Card or Charge Card

 

Disclosure of a credit card or charge card number, along with authorization to bill that number, made during the course of a call to a pay-per-call service, shall constitute a presubscription or comparable arrangement if the credit or charge card is subject to the dispute resolution procedures of the Truth in Lending Act and the Fair Credit Billing Act, as amended (15 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.). No other action taken by the consumer during the course of a call to a pay-per-call service can be construed as creating a presubscription or comparable arrangement.

 

Section 772.40  Identification of Information Providers

 

The telecommunications carrier of any pay-per-call telephone information service must provide to the customer at no charge, upon verbal or written request, the name, address and customer service telephone number of the actual provider of information service [815 ILCS 520/10].  This information shall be provided within 10 days after the initial request.

 

Section 772.45  Limitations on the Provision of Pay-Per-Call Services

 

Any telecommunications carrier assigning a telephone number or abbreviated dialing code to a provider of intrastate pay-per-call service shall require, by contract or tariff, that such provider comply with the provisions of the Pay-Per-Call Services Consumer Protection Act and this Part. Such contract or tariff shall provide that violation of the contract or tariff shall result in termination of service to the provider of intrastate pay-per-call services.

 

(Source:  Amended at 22 Ill. Reg. 1192, effective January 1, 1998)

 

Section 772.50  Number Designation and Restrictions on the Use of 800 Numbers

 

a)         Any intrastate pay-per-call service shall be offered only through telephone numbers beginning with a 900 service access code, 976 exchange code, or abbreviated dialing code.

 

b)         Telecommunications carriers shall prohibit, by contract or tariff, the use of any telephone number beginning with an 800 service access code, or any other telephone number advertised or widely understood to be toll free, in a manner that would result in:

 

1)         The calling party or the subscriber to the originating line being assessed, by virtue of completing the call, a charge for the call;

 

2)         The calling party being connected to a pay-per-call service;

 

3)         The calling party being charged for information conveyed during the call unless the calling party has a presubscription or comparable arrangement; or

 

4)         The calling party being called back collect for the provision of audio or data information service, simultaneous voice conversation service, or products.

 

(Source:  Amended at 22 Ill. Reg. 1192, effective January 1, 1998)

 

Section 772.55  Billing

 

a)         The bill for pay-per-call service shall:

 

1)         Appear under a separate heading that identifies the applicable pay-per-call telephone service charges. Telecommunications carriers shall comply with the requirements of this subsection by May 1, 1995;

 

2)         Identify on the bill the type of service and the number or the abbreviated dialing code that was called, the amount of the charge, the date, time, and for calls billed on a time-sensitive basis, the duration of the call;

 

3)         Display the local or toll-free telephone number where subscribers can obtain answers to their questions and information on their rights and obligations with regard to their use of pay-per-call services, and can obtain the name and mailing address of the provider of pay-per-call services; and

 

4)         Include a statement indicating that:

 

A)        Such charges are for non-telecommunications services;

 

B)        Neither local nor long distance service can be disconnected for non-payment although an information provider may employ private entities to seek to collect such charges;

 

C)        Blocking is available upon request for services accessed through a 900 access code, 976 exchange code or abbreviated dialing code; and

 

D)        Access to pay-per-call services may be involuntarily blocked for failure to pay legitimate charges.

 

b)         The local exchange carrier or intrastate telecommunications carrier of any pay-per-call telephone information services which bills for pay-per-call services shall agree to issue to a subscriber a one-time waiver of disputed charges for each type of dialing arrangement permitted by Section 772.50(a).  Subscribers are required to dispute pay-per-call charges within 60 days after the issue date of such charges to qualify for the one-time waiver.  Credits resulting from disputed pay-per-call charges that are determined by the local exchange carrier after investigation to have been billed to the wrong telephone number or billed at the incorrect rate shall be considered in error and shall not be considered a waiver.

 

c)         Any telecommunications carrier offering billing and collection services to an entity providing intrastate information service pursuant to a presubscription or comparable arrangement, or for intrastate tariffed collect information services, shall, to the extent possible, display the billing information in the manner described in subsection (a)(2) above.

 

d)         Any telecommunications carrier assigning a telephone number or abbreviated dialing code to a provider of intrastate pay-per-call services and offering billing and collection services to such provider shall not bill a subscriber for intrastate pay-per-call services that such carrier knows or reasonably should know were provided in violation of the Pay-Per-Call Services Consumer Protection Act or this Part.

 

(Source:  Amended at 22 Ill. Reg. 1192, effective January 1, 1998)

 

Section 772.60  Partial Payments

 

Partial payments shall be applied first to charges of the local exchange carrier and the interexchange carrier for which tariffs have been filed with the Illinois Commerce Commission and then to charges for pay-per-call services.

 

Section 772.70  Deposits

 

Deposit requests by the local exchange carrier, as set forth in 83 Ill. Adm. Code 735, shall not include pay-per-call charges.  Non-payment of pay-per-call charges shall not be a cause to request a deposit.

 

Section 772.80  Disconnection

 

a)         No local exchange carrier shall disconnect, or order the disconnection of, a telephone subscriber's basic telecommunications service as a result of that subscriber's failure to pay:

 

1)         Pay-per-call service charges;

 

2)         Charges for intrastate information services provided pursuant to a presubscription or comparable arrangement; or

 

3)         Charges for intrastate tariffed collect information services that have been disputed by the subscriber.

 

b)         Charges for pay-per-call services shall not be included in the amount that must be paid to avoid disconnection of basic telecommunications service.

 

Section 772.90  Blocking

 

a)         A local exchange carrier shall provide blocking, where technically feasible, at no charge for each type of dialing arrangement permitted by Section 772.50(a) on a one-time basis to all telephone subscribers.

 

b)         The local exchange carrier may charge a non-recurring fee for each subsequent request for blocking or unblocking pay-per-call service.  These charges shall be filed with the Illinois Commerce Commission pursuant to Section 9-201 of the Public Utilities Act [220 ILCS 5/9-201].

 

c)         A subscriber who transfers service to a new location and is served by the same local exchange carrier shall be able to maintain blocking of pay-per-call service without any additional charge to establish blocking at the new location.

 

d)         Requests by subscribers to remove pay-per-call blocking must be in writing to the local exchange carrier.

 

(Source:  Amended at 22 Ill. Reg. 1192, effective January 1, 1998)

 

Section 772.100  Involuntary Blocking

 

a)         The telecommunications carrier may block a subscriber's access of pay-per-call telephone service, but not basic telecommunications service, if the subscriber refuses to pay to the local exchange carrier any subsequent charges after the waiver provided by Section 772.55(b).

 

b)         The subscriber shall be notified either by mail or by verbal  notice that blocking will occur and that settlement of the amounts will result in the removal of involuntary blocking upon written authorization from the subscriber.  The written notice shall be mailed at least 5 working days before the effective date of the blocking, or verbal notification shall be given at least 1 day prior to the blocking.

 

c)         Upon settlement of outstanding pay-per-call charges, except the charges waived by Section 772.55(b), involuntary blocking shall be removed upon written authorization from the subscriber.

 

d)         A subscriber who has filed a complaint regarding a particular pay-per-call program pursuant to procedures established by this Part shall not be involuntarily blocked from access to that program while such a complaint is pending. This restriction is not intended to preclude involuntary blocking when a carrier or information provider has decided in one instance to sustain charges against a subscriber but that subscriber files additional separate complaints.

 

Section 772.110  Notices

 

a)         The local exchange carrier shall provide disclosure statements setting forth all rights and obligations of the subscriber and the carrier with respect to the use and payment of pay-per-call services to:

 

1)         All telephone subscribers no later than January 1, 1995;

 

2)         All new telephone subscribers no later than 60 days after service is established;

 

3)         All telephone subscribers requesting service at a new location no later than 60 days after service is established; and

 

4)         All subscribers at least twice per year thereafter.

 

b)         Subscribers must be informed of the following provisions either on the subscriber's monthly bill or as a disclosure statement as specified in 772.110(a):

 

1)         Whether free blocking is available to subscribers;

 

2)         If applicable, how a non-recurring charge to block or unblock may apply to subscribers after the one-time free blocking;

 

3)         That, if applicable, non-payment of pay-per-call charges may result in involuntary blocking to the pay-per-call programs;

 

4)         That non-payment of pay-per-call charges may result in collection activity by the information provider or the telecommunications carrier, their agents or assigns;

 

5)         That partial payments will be applied first to basic telecommunication charges, then to pay-per-call charges;

 

6)         That requests to unblock pay-per-call services must be in writing;

 

7)         That subscribers are required to dispute pay-per-call charges within 60 days after the issue date of such charges to qualify for the one-time waiver. Credits resulting from disputed pay-per-call charges that are determined by the local exchange carrier after investigation to have been billed to the wrong telephone number or billed at the incorrect rate shall be considered in error and shall not be considered a waiver; and

 

8)         That subscribers should not be billed for pay-per-call services not offered in compliance with all applicable State laws and regulations.

 

c)         If the local exchange carrier includes pay-per-call charges on a final notice sent pursuant to 83 Ill. Adm. Code 735, such charges shall be segregated from the amounts the subscriber must pay to avoid disconnection. The final notice shall state that only the amounts excluding pay-per-call charges must be paid to avoid disconnection.

 

d)         All local exchange carriers shall comply with the notice requirements of subsection (c) by November 1, 1995. Any local exchange carrier may request a waiver of this compliance date by filing a petition for a waiver pursuant to 83 Ill. Adm. Code 200.  In determining whether to grant such a waiver, the Commission shall consider the costs to the local exchange carrier of compliance with the requirement, the local exchange carrier's projected date for compliance with the notice requirements, and whether the local exchange carrier has procedures in effect currently that will ensure that subscribers are not disconnected for failure to pay the outstanding pay-per-call charges.

 

Section 772.120  Restrictions on Collect Telephone Calls

 

a)         No telecommunications carrier shall provide intrastate transmission or billing and collection services to an entity offering any pay-per-call service that is billed to a subscriber on a collect basis at a per-call or per-time-interval charge that is greater than, or in addition to, the charge for transmission of the call.

 

b)         No telecommunications carrier shall provide intrastate transmission services for any collect information services billed to a subscriber at a tariffed rate unless the called party has taken affirmative action indicating that it accepts the charges for the collect service.

 

Section 772.130  Generation of Signalling Tones

 

No telecommunications carrier shall assign a telephone number or abbreviated dialing code for any pay-per-call service which employs broadcast advertising which generates the audible tones necessary to complete a call to a pay-per-call service.

 

(Source:  Amended at 22 Ill. Reg. 1192, effective January 1, 1998)

 

Section 772.135  Verification of Charitable Status

 

Any telecommunications carrier assigning a telephone number or abbreviated dialing code to a provider of intrastate pay-per-call services that the carrier knows or reasonably should know is engaged in soliciting charitable contributions shall obtain verification that the entity or individual for whom contributions are solicited has registered with the Attorney General of the State of Illinois pursuant to Section 2 of the Solicitation for Charity Act [225 ILCS 460/2].

 

(Source:  Amended at 22 Ill. Reg. 1192, effective January 1, 1998)

 

Section 772.140  Dispute Procedures

 

Disputes arising under this Part shall be governed by 83 Ill. Adm. Code 735.190 and 735.200.

 

Section 772.150  Recovery of Cost

 

No telecommunications carrier shall recover its cost of complying with the provisions of this Part from local or long distance ratepayers.