ALBANY — The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) today announced it was seeking comment on a petition jointly filed on January 13, 2017, by Consolidated Communications Holdings, Inc. (CCH) and FairPoint Communications, Inc. (FCI) seeking Commission approval of the proposed transfer of certain telephone, broadband and cable assets from FCI to CCH.

Under the proposed transaction, CCH would acquire FCI and its subsidiaries operating in New York, including Berkshire Telephone Corporation, Chautauqua and Erie Telephone Corporation, Taconic Telephone Corporation, and FairPoint Business Services. CCH, which currently does not provide telecommunications service in New York State, plans to retain all of FCI’s existing assets in the State.

If the transaction is approved, CCH would own and/or manage certain broadband, voice and cable video systems service communities in Chautauqua, Columbia, Dutchess and Rensselaer counties. According to the petition, the proposed transaction would involve only a change of ownership at the holding company level and customers will not experience any immediate changes in services, rates, or terms and conditions of service. The petition asserts New York consumers will benefit from the merger because:

• The combined company will be able to offer advances products and services and expanded customer choice for telecommunications and broadband services;
  
  
• The transfer is expected to improve broadband coverage and speed. CCH has made it a priority to upgrade the broadband capability of the FCI subsidiary networks;
  
  
• CCH has a record of high quality customer service; and
  
  
• Over time, New York consumers may expect to see new services not currently offered in all markets, including video, home automation and security services.

Public Statement Hearing

Interested members of the public are invited to attend the public statement hearing at which time they may provide their comments on the petition. The public statement hearing will be held as follows:

Wednesday, May 31, 2017

Columbia-Greene Community College
4400 State Route 23, Room 206, Hudson, NY 12534 

6:00 p.m.       Information Session
6:30 p.m.       Public Statement Hearing

The hearing will be preceded by an information session, during which New York State Department of Public Service staff will provide an overview of the procedure for review of the petition. The information session will include an opportunity for the public to ask questions.

At the hearing, members of the public can provide their views personally before an Administrative Law Judge. A verbatim transcript of the hearing will be made for inclusion in the record of the proceeding. It is not necessary to make an appointment in advance in order to speak. Persons interested in speaking will be asked to complete a card requesting time to speak when they arrive at the hearing, and will be called in the order in which the cards are received. Speakers are not required to provide written copies of their comments. The hearing will be kept open for a minimum of one hour and will continue until everyone wishing to speak has been heard or other reasonable arrangements have been made to include their comments in the record.

Disabled persons requiring special accommodations should contact the Department of Public Service’s Human Resource Management Office at (518) 474-2520 as soon as possible. TDD users may request a sign language interpreter by placing a call through the New York Relay Service at 711. Individuals with difficulty understanding or reading English are encouraged to call the Department at 1-800-342-3377 for free language assistance services regarding this notice.

Other Ways to Comment:

Those who cannot attend or prefer not to speak at the public statement hearing, there are several other ways to comment about this case to the Commission. All comments should refer to “17-C-0050, FairPoint Communications, Inc.”

Internet of Mail: Go to http://www.dps.ny.gov, click on “Search,” enter the case number (17-C-0050), and then click on “Post Comments” at the top of the page; or e-mail comments to the Secretary to the Commission at secretary@dps.ny.gov. Alternatively, comments may be mailed or delivered to Hon. Kathleen H. Burgess, Secretary, Public Service Commission, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, New York 12223-1350.

Toll-Free Opinion Line: You may call the Commission’s Opinion Line at 1-800-335-2120. This number is set up to take comments about pending cases from in-state callers, 24 hours a day. Press "1" to leave comments, mentioning “Case 17-C-0050, FairPoint Communications, Inc.” These comments are not transcribed verbatim, but a summary is provided to the Commission.

Comments submitted via these alternate means are requested by June 5, 2017. All comments will become part of the record and will be reported to the Commission for its consideration. Submitted comments may be accessed on the Commission's website at http://www.dps.ny.gov (search using the case number “17-C-0050”) and click on the “Public Comments” tab. Many libraries offer free Internet access. The full text of the petition may be viewed online at the Commission’s website, www.dps.ny.gov. From the homepage, click on “search” and enter the case number (17-C-0050) in the “search by case number” field.