Legal Alerts and Articles
Increased Penalties to CPNI Rule Violators
Earlier today, the Enforcement Bureau ("Bureau") of the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") released two new Omnibus Notices of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture ("NALs") citing several companies for apparently violating the FCC's rules requiring the submission of an annual Customer Proprietary Network Information ("CPNI") Compliance Certificate which was due on or before March 1, 2009. These companies were each assessed a proposed forfeiture penalty in the amount of $25,000, an increase from the $20,000 penalty proposed in the Omnibus Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture issued February 2009 (which assessed penalties for violations of the March 1, 2008 filing deadline).
In addition to the NALs, the Bureau also issued individual letters of inquiry to several companies concerning their apparent failure to file annual CPNI Compliance Certificates on or before March 1, 2009. Apparently, these letters requested that the recipients either a) provide the Bureau with proof that a CPNI Compliance Certificate was filed or b) file the Certificate within 30 days. The Bureau is likely to issue another Omnibus NAL assessing penalties against companies that do not comply or provide the appropriate responses to these inquiries.
These actions taken together indicate that the FCC is continuing to take enforcement of CPNI rules, including the annual March 1st filing, very seriously. Accordingly, it is absolutely crucial that all telecommunications service and interconnected VoIP providers subject to the FCC's CPNI rules submit this year's required filing by March 1, 2010. Failure to do so will most likely lead to significant penalties in the near future.
If you require assistance with preparing your company's March 1, 2010 CPNI filing, or with responding to a letter of inquiry or Notice of Apparent Liability from the Enforcement Bureau, please contact us.
February 2010