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PUC unable to get hold of CTC money
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Posted on Apr 28 2008
The Public Utilities Commission has been unable to touch any money left by its predecessor, the Commonwealth Telecommunications Commission.
Rep. Francisco Dela Cruz reported that the bank holding CTC’s funds is requiring documents from PUC before transferring the money. One of the requirements is a copy of the minutes of the commission’s organizational meeting, where Viola Alepuyo was named chairwoman.
The issue of CTC’s funds came up while the House of Representatives was debating a bill that includes a provision granting $80,000 seed money to PUC.
Dela Cruz expressed reservation about the appropriation, saying the money could be used for other purposes such as helping the schools.
It is not clear how much money was left by CTC, but Dela Cruz said it could be substantial.
“I was assured that the PUC members are working diligently to get the transcript of the meeting to the bank,” he said.
From its inception in 2001 until its abolition in 2006, CTC collected franchise fee from Verizon and later, Pacific Telecom Inc.
The telecommunications firm paid a franchise fee equivalent to 0.5 percent of its annual gross revenue from 2001 through January 2005, when the fee was raised to 2.5 percent of the annual gross revenue. The increase brought the franchise fee from approximately $80,000 to over $400,000 a year.
In addition to the money left by CTC, PUC expects to start collecting regulatory fees from local utility companies.
Under the PUC law, telecommunications and other utility firms are required to pay 0.75 percent of their annual gross revenue to the regulatory board.
