Grant PUD sets fiber rate hearing for July 7

Increases detailed in proposal

EPHRATA - Residents will have a chance to talk to Grant County PUD commissioners during a July 7 hearing about proposed wholesale fiber rate increases.

If approved by commissioners, the increases would affect the direct Internet service providers who provide high-speed Internet to customers over the PUD's fiber-optic network.

The hearing is set for 2 p.m., Monday, July 7, at PUD headquarters in Ephrata. The new rates are expected to be approved sometime after the hearing.

The proposal will also be discussed as part of two daylong commission meetings next Monday, June 23, and June 30 at PUD headquarters in Ephrata.

Meeting agendas are posted online before each meeting at www.gcpud.org.

Direct providers were previously sent copies of the proposal presented to commissioners on Monday, said Grant PUD project specialist Warren Miller on Tuesday.

The commission is studying the increases because it recently restarted the utility's build-out of its fiber network by 15,000 homes over five years and doesn't want to subsidize the project.

The fees in the rate proposal include monthly access fee increases of $2.50 for each residential subscriber and $7 for each business subscriber, according to the proposal. Providers decide how much of the increases they'll pass on to customers.

The proposal mentions a $24 monthly access fee per residential subscriber (now $22.50) and a $37 monthly access fee per business subscriber (now $30), said Grant PUD project specialist Warren Miller on Tuesday.

The utility is also considering a $55 gateway installation where fiber has been extended and a hub is in place, according to the proposal.

Proposed Virtual Local Area Networks (VLAN) rates are: $100 (setup fee per port) and monthly charges of $100, $470 and $2,500, depending on the megabits per second.

The proposal states the rates for gateway installation, gateway port fees and advanced business transport services will be effective Oct. 1. If approved, rates for special VLANs will start in two steps, with the first half increase starting Oct. 1 and the next half on Jan. 1, 2009.

Grant County's Technology Services Director Gary Baker said the county currently pays $475 per month for a special VLAN and would pay $771 per VLAN per month with the proposed rate.

He said the county would pay $10,000 per month with the proposed increase. If the county cut back its megabits, it would impact public safety, he said.

If the proposal is improved, he said many people could quit using VLANs and switch to different equipment, the county included.

Commissioner Greg Hansen said the utility is trying to meet overhead and capital depreciation of newly installed fiber.

Baker pointed out the county wouldn't be receiving different services, rather, the price for services would change.

Marlon Schafer, owner of Odessa-based Accima, said Tuesday it's expected that a drastic decrease in capacity will be seen with the proposed rates.

He said he added the proposed increases to his company's monthly bill and saw a 62 percent increase in cost.

He said the proposal wasn't inappropriate, but a large, quick change.

Schafer said it would be nice to phase in the proposed increases over a few years.