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 NEWS  1  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:  March  3,  2004  Jessica  Rosenworcel  202-  418-  2000 
 Dan  Gonzalez  202-  418-  2100  Scott  Bergmann  202-  418-  2300 


 STATEMENT  OF  FCC  COMMISSIONERS  MICHAEL  J.  COPPS,  KEVIN  J.  MARTIN,  AND  JONATHAN  S.  ADELSTEIN  ON  THE  D.  C.  CIRCUIT’S 
 DECISION  TO  ELIMINATE  THE  FCC’S  RULES 


 We  are  disappointed  in  the  Court’s  decision  to  eliminate  the  Commission’s  rules  requiring  incumbent  carriers  to  open  their  legacy  voice  networks  to  competition.  We 
 believe  that  the  rules  preserve  competition  in  a  manner  that  is  lawful,  and  recognize  the  important  role  that  states  have  historically  played. 


 Today  over  50  million  Americans  benefit  from  the  new  local  and  long  distance  one-  rate  plans  offered  by  both  incumbents  and  competitors  that  are  a  result  of  our  rules. 
 In  the  past,  the  Supreme  Court  has  made  clear  that  the  FCC  has  significant  discretion  in  ensuring  that  the  local  telephone  markets  are  open  to  competition.  We  have 
 instructed  our  General  Counsel  to  seek  a  stay  and  to  appeal  the  D.  C.  Circuit  decision  to  the  Supreme  Court  so  that  we  can  clarify  tension  with  the  Supreme  Court’s  past 
 decisions. 


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