Press Release

HARRISBURG, Pa. - The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) today approved the contribution rates of six counties for local 911 systems.

The PUC approved the 911 System Renewal Plans received from the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) for Chester, Clearfield, Jefferson, Juniata, Lehigh and Luzerne counties.

The Public Safety Emergency Telephone Act of 1990 provides for a statewide 911 emergency communication system to be administered by PEMA. The law allows counties to recover the cost for 911 systems by assessing a fee on every telephone line. The local phone companies collect the fees for the county. The maximum fee that can be collected per telephone line is $1 for first and second class counties, $1.25 for third through fifth class counties and $1.50 for sixth through eight class counties.

Chester County, a third class county, is not requesting any change in the current contribution rate of $1.25 per access line per month. The county has a population of approximately 376,396. MC/Metro, Conestoga, Adelphia Communications, Commonwealth Telephone and Bell Atlantic serve the county.

Clearfield County, a fifth class county, is not requesting any change in the current contribution rate of $1.50 per access line per month. The county has a population of approximately 78,097. Bell Atlantic and ALLTEL serve the county.

Jefferson County, a sixth class county, is not requesting any change in the current contribution rate of $1.50 per access line per month. The county has a population of approximately 46,567. Bell Atlantic, ATX, Hyperion, Frontier Communications, and ALLTEL serve the county.

Juniata County, a seventh class county, is not requesting any change in the current contribution rate of $1.50 per access line per month. The county has a population of approximately 21,793. United and Bell Atlantic serve the county.

Lehigh County, a third class county, is not requesting a contribution rate of $1.25 per access line per month. The county has a population of approximately 297,838. Four telephone companies serve the county. The companies are Bell Atlantic, GTE, Commonwealth Telephone and Ironton Telephone Company.

Luzerne County, a third class county, is not requesting any change in the current contribution rate of $1.25 per access line per month. The county has a population of approximately 328,149. Bell Atlantic, Commonwealth, CTSE, ATX, Nextlink, Hyperion, Northeast Telephone, and North American Communications serve the county.

The PUC is responsible for reviewing the contribution rate requested by the counties and forwarding a decision to PEMA. The PUC has 90 days to submit its recommendations to PEMA as to whether the proposed contribution rates of the counties should be approved or modified. The plan and the surcharge are effective from the date of the PUC order for a period of three years.

For recent news releases, or more information about the PUC, visit our Internet homepage: http://puc.paonline.com.

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Chester County Docket No. M-00940567
Cleafield  County Docket No. M-00930454
Jefferson County Docket No. M-00930388
Juniata County Docket No. M-00001335
Lehigh County Docket No. M-00920377
Luzerne County Docket No. M-00950653