U S West Communications Inc. V. Wyoming Public Service Commission

In 1994, residents in the Rock River, Wyoming area requested that the separate local telephone exchanges currently provided by U S West Communications, Inc. (U S West) and Union Telephone Company, Inc. (Union) be combined into one local calling area which included Laramie, Wyoming. After a public hearing, the Wyoming Public Service Commission (PSC) agreed and issued an order to implement the service. The order also set additive rates for the service at a level below the proposals of both companies. U S West claims that the PSC exceeded the statutory authority conferred by the Wyoming Telecommunications Act of 1995 when it independently determined additive rates and ordered U S West to pay Union from the rates received from U S West customers. U S West contends that the PSC further erred when it treated the rates proposed by U S West as a request for price regulation.