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 NEWS  News  Media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  TTY  202  /  418-  2555  Fax-  On-  Demand  202  /  418-  2830  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  ftp.  fcc.  gov  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974). 
 FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT:  April  23,  2003  John  R.  Winston  (202)  418-  7450 
 FCC  FINDS  THAT  VERIZON  VIOLATED  INTERCONNECTION  REQUIREMENTS 
 Washington,  D.  C.  –  Today,  the  Federal  Communications  Commission  granted  in  substantial  part  a  complaint  brought  by  Core  Communications,  Inc.  against  Verizon  Maryland 
 Inc.  alleging  that  Verizon  had  violated  the  Communications  Act  and  Commission  rules  by  failing  to  interconnect  with  Core  on  reasonable  terms. 


 The  Commission  found  that  Verizon  delayed  for  four  months  interconnecting  with  Core  in  the  Washington  Metropolitan  area,  and  also  failed  to  provide  Core  with  critical  information 
 about  the  delay  and  its  expected  duration.  The  delay  occurred  because  Verizon  allowed  the  capacity  of  certain  crucial  pieces  of  equipment  within  its  network  to  exhaust  and  to  remain  at 
 exhaust  for  an  extended  period.  The  Commission  found,  considering  all  of  these  circumstances  together,  that  Verizon  had  not  interconnected  with  Core  in  a  reasonable  manner.  The 
 Commission  ruled  that  Verizon  had  violated  the  terms  of  its  interconnection  agreement  with  Core,  and  thus  section  251(  c)(  2)  of  the  Communications  Act,  by  failing  to  provide  Core  with 
 interconnection  “on  rates,  terms,  and  conditions  that  are  just  [and]  reasonable  …  in  accordance  with  the  terms  and  conditions  of  [its  interconnection]  agreement.” 


 Under  commission  rules,  Core  may  now  file  a  supplemental  complaint  against  Verizon  for  damages  resulting  from  Verizon’s  violation. 
 In  today’s  ruling,  the  Commission  rejected  Verizon’s  argument  that  any  violation  of  its  interconnection  agreement  with  Core  would  not  constitute  a  violation  of  the  Communications 
 Act. 


 Action  by  the  Commission  April  18,  2003,  by  Memorandum  Opinion  and  Order  (FCC  03-  96).  Chairman  Powell,  Commissioners  Abernathy,  Copps,  Martin,  and  Adelstein. 


 Enforcement  Bureau  contacts:  John  Winston  at  (202)  418-  7450  and  Lia  Royle  at  (202)  418-  7391. 
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