4 CCR 723-2-2152 - Audit of Service Providers Regarding Emergency Telephone Charge and 9-1-1 Surcharge Practices

(a) Either the Commission or one or more governing bodies may conduct an audit of an OSP's books and records regarding collection and remittance of emergency telephone charges. Audits of OSP's books regarding the collection and remittance of state 9-1-1 surcharges may only be initiated by the Commission.

(I) Unless otherwise approved for Commission funding of the audit, as described in rule 2153, the governing body or bodies initiating the audit shall pay all expenses related to the audit.

(II) All expenses related to audits initiated by the Commission shall be paid for by the Commission from the administrative retention fund authorized by § 29-11-102.3(3)(c)(II), C.R.S.

(III) OSPs shall make relevant records available to auditors at no charge.

(IV) Governing bodies conducting audits pursuant to this section must have an audit and appeals procedure in place, adopted by ordinance or resolution, as appropriate.

(V) Audits initiated by the Commission shall be limited to the collection and remittance of emergency telephone charges and state 9-1-1 surcharges.

(VI) Audits initiated by governing bodies shall be limited to the collection and remittance of emergency telephone.

(VII) Any delinquent remittance of state 9-1-1 surcharges received by the Commission, including penalties and interest, shall be deposited into the 9-1-1 surcharge trust cash fund and distributed as prescribed in rule 2151.

(b) All OSPs must collect and remit properly established emergency telephone charges.

(I) A properly established emergency telephone charge is one that is set at a rate that is no greater than the threshold established pursuant to rule 2148 or approved by the Commission in response to an application, as described in rule 2147.

(A) Changes to a local emergency telephone charge must have an effective date of either February 1 or June 1.

(B) Governing bodies must notify carriers of any change to the emergency telephone charge at least 60 days in advance of the effective date of the change.

(II) OSPs shall not bill or collect emergency telephone charges from 9-1-1 access connections purchased by state or local government entities.

(III) OSPs must remit emergency telephone charges to the appropriate governing bodies no later than the last day of the month following the month in which the charges were collected. Each governing body may establish payment procedures and schedules that vary from these rules, in which case the originating service provider must follow those procedures and schedules.

(IV) OSPs must include with their remittance to the appropriate governing bodies a report in such form as required by each governing body.

(V) OSPs may retain no more than two percent of each emergency telephone charge collected.

(VI) Emergency telephone charge remittances must be based on the actual number of 9-1-1 access connections within the governing body's jurisdiction.

(VII) Failure to bill a customer for a properly established emergency telephone charge does not relieve the OSP from the obligation to remit the surcharge. An OSP is only responsible for remittance of emergency telephone charges successfully collected from a customer.

(c) OSPs shall bill, collect, and remit the state 9-1-1 surcharge in accordance with rule 2150.

(d) OSPs must list separately the emergency telephone charge and state 9-1-1 surcharge on the customer's bill if fees and charges are listed on the customer's bill.

(e) OSPs shall provide governing bodies billing examples from a reasonable number of randomly selected addresses for verification of collection and remittance, and these billing examples shall be provided at no charge without disclosing any customer-identifying information.

(f) OSPs shall maintain a record of the amount of each emergency telephone charge and state 9-1-1 surcharge collected and remitted by service user address for three years after the time that it was remitted.

(g) If an OSP fails to file a report and remit emergency telephone charges in a timely manner, the governing body or the Commission may assess the OSP for the delinquent remittance in the following manner.

(I) The governing body or the Commission shall estimate delinquent remittance based on available information.

(II) The governing body or the Commission shall issue notice of assessment to the OSP within three years of the original due date of the remittance, unless the three-year period is extended, in writing, in accordance with this rule.

(III) Before the expiration of the three-year period, the governing body or the Commission, and the OSP may extend the period for assessment by agreement, in writing. The period agreed upon may be extended by subsequent agreements in writing made before the expiration of the period previously agreed upon. The governing body and OSP shall provide the Commission the written notice of extension prior to the expiration of the initial three-year period or any prior extension. Any party seeking extension from the Commission shall do so by filing a petition.

(IV) The governing body or the Commission shall impose an additional 15 percent penalty in addition to the estimated amount of the delinquent remittance.

(V) The governing body or the Commission shall assess an additional one percent interest monthly, assessed against the original principal owed, from the original due date until the delinquent remittance has been paid by the OSP.

(VI) If the assessment was properly noticed within three years of the original due date of the remittance, or prior to the expiration of the period of time agreed to by the Commission and OSP in writing, the governing body or the Commission may file a lien, issue a distraint warrant, institute a suit for collection, or take other action to collect the amount up to one year after the expiration of said time period.

(h) As an alternative to initiating an audit, a governing body or bodies may request that the Commission engage in informal mediation with the OSP, as described in rule 1301. Such requests shall be directed to the Commission's 9-1-1 program manager or other staff member designated for this purpose.

Notes

4 CCR 723-2-2152

39 CR 21, November 10, 2016, effective 12/1/2016 40 CR 15, August 10, 2017, effective 9/1/2017 41 CR 03, February 10, 2018, effective 3/2/2018 42 CR 02, January 25, 2019, effective 2/14/2019 42 CR 07, April 10, 2019, effective 4/30/2019 43 CR 02, January 25, 2020, effective 2/14/2020 43 CR 17, September 10, 2020, effective 8/17/2020 44 CR 17, September 10, 2021, effective 8/11/2021 44 CR 18, September 25, 2021, effective 10/15/2021 45 CR 03, February 10, 2022, effective 12/29/2021 45 CR 01, January 10, 2022, effective 1/30/2022 46 CR 05, March 10, 2023, effective 3/30/2023