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 PUBLIC  NOTICE  FEDERAL  COMMUNICATIONS  COMMISSION  445  12th  STREET,  S.  W.  WASHINGTON,  D.  C.  20554  DA  01-  232 
 News  media  information  202/  418-  0500  Fax-  On-  Demand  202/  418-  2830  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  ftp.  fcc.  gov 
 AMANA  COLONIES  TELEPHONE  COMPANY  D/  B/  A  HICKORYTECH  AND 
 HEARTLAND  TELEPCOMMUNICATIONS  COMPANY  OF  IOWA  AND  SOUTH 
 SLOPE  COOPERATIVE  TELEPHONE  COMPANY  SEEK  A  WAIVER  OF  THE 
 DEFINITION  OF  "STUDY  AREA"  IN  PART  36  AND  SECTION  69.605(  C) 
 OF  THE  COMMISSION'S  RULES 


 PLEADING  CYCLE  ESTABLISHED 
 CC  Docket  No.  96-  45 
 Release  Date:  January  30,  2001 
 Comment  Date:  February  19,  2001 
 Reply  Comment  Date:  March  1,  2001 


 On  December  13,  2000,  Amana  Colonies  Telephone  Company  d/  b/  a  HickoryTech  and 
 Heartland  Telecommunications  Company  of  Iowa  (Amana  Colonies)  and  South  Slope 
 Cooperative  Telephone  Company  (South  Slope)  filed  a  joint  petition  for  waiver  of  the  definition 
 of  "study  area"  as  set  forth  in  Part  36  of  the  Commission's  rules.  That  definition  constitutes  a  rule 
 freezing  all  study  area  boundaries.  South  Slope  is  acquiring  from  Amana  Colonies  one  telephone 
 exchange  serving  approximately  1,500  access  lines  in  Iowa.  By  this  waiver,  Amana  Colonies  seeks  to 
 alter  its  Iowa  study  area  in  order  to  remove  the  telephone  exchange  being  transferred  to  South  Slope. 
 South  Slope  seeks  a  waiver  of  the  study  area  freeze  to  add  the  purchased  exchange  to  its  existing  Iowa 
 study  area.  The  petitioners  submitted  an  Order  from  the  Iowa  State  Utilities  Board  indicating  that 
 it  has  no  objection  to  the  issuance  of  a  study  area  waiver  associated  with  South  Slope’s 
 acquisition  of  the  one  telephone  exchange. 


 On  January  19,  2001,  South  Slope  filed  a  supplement  to  the  joint  petition  requesting  a 
 waiver  of  section  69.605  of  the  Commission’s  rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §  69.605,  so  that  it  may  continue 
 to  operate  as  average  schedule  companies  with  the  acquired  exchange.  Section  69.605  defines  an 
 “average  schedule  company”  as  a  telephone  company  that  was  participating  in  average  schedule 
 settlements  on  December  1,  1982. 


 Pursuant  to  sections  1.415  and  1.419  of  the  Commission's  rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §§  1.415, 
 1.419,  interested  parties  may  file  comments  on  or  before  February  19,  2001,  and  reply  comments 
 on  or  before  March  1,  2001.  Comments  may  be  filed  using  the  Commission's  Electronic 
 Comment  Filing  System  (ECFS)  or  by  filing  paper  copies.  See  Electronic  Filing  of  Documents  in 
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 Rulemaking  Proceedings,  63  Fed.  Reg.  24,121  (1998).  Comments  filed  through  the  ECFS  can  be 
 sent  as  an  electronic  file  via  the  Internet  to  <http://  www.  fcc.  gov/  e-  file/  ecfs.  html>.  Generally,  only 
 one  copy  of  an  electronic  submission  must  be  filed.  If  multiple  docket  or  rulemaking  numbers 
 appear  in  the  caption  of  this  proceeding,  however,  commenters  must  transmit  one  electronic  copy 
 of  the  comments  to  each  docket  or  rulemaking  number  referenced  in  the  caption.  In  completing 
 the  transmittal  screen,  commenters  should  include  their  full  name,  Postal  Service  mailing  address, 
 and  the  applicable  docket  or  rulemaking  number.  Parties  may  also  submit  electronic  comments  by 
 Internet  e-  mail.  To  receive  filing  instructions  for  e-  mail  comments,  commenters  should  send  an  e-mail 
 to  ecfs@  fcc.  gov,  and  should  include  the  following  words  in  the  body  of  the  message,  "get 
 form  <your  e-  mail  address."  A  sample  form  and  directions  will  be  sent  in  reply.  Parties  who 
 choose  to  file  by  paper  must  file  an  original  and  four  copies  of  each  filing.  If  more  than  one 
 docket  or  rulemaking  number  appears  in  the  caption  of  this  proceeding,  commenters  must  submit 
 two  additional  copies  for  each  additional  docket  or  rulemaking  number.  All  filings  must  be  sent 
 to  the  Commission's  Secretary,  Magalie  Roman  Salas,  Office  of  the  Secretary,  Federal 
 Communications  Commission,  445  12th  Street,  S.  W.,  Washington,  D.  C.  20554. 


 Parties  also  must  send  three  paper  copies  of  their  filing  to  Sheryl  Todd,  Accounting  Policy 
 Division,  Common  Carrier  Bureau,  Federal  Communications  Commission,  445  Twelfth  Street 
 S.  W.,  Room  5-  B540,  Washington,  D.  C.  20554.  In  addition,  commenters  must  send  diskette 
 copies  to  the  Commission's  copy  contractor,  International  Transcription  Service,  Inc.,  1231  20th 
 Street,  N.  W.,  Washington,  D.  C.  20037. 


 Pursuant  to  section  1.1206  of  the  Commission's  Rules,  47  C.  F.  R.  §  1.1206,  this 
 proceeding  will  be  conducted  as  a  permit-  but-  disclose  proceeding  in  which  ex  parte 
 communications  are  permitted  subject  to  disclosure. 


 For  further  information,  contact  Adrian  Wright,  Accounting  Policy  Division,  Common 
 Carrier  Bureau  at  (202)  418-  7400,  TTY  (202)  418-  0484. 
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