The Negotiations Process
Initiating Negotiations
To initiate negotiations for local interconnection, a CLEC must submit a written request to the email or fax number below. The request for negotiations must identify the states for which the CLEC would like to negotiate and delineate whether an Interconnection or Resale agreement is required.
Please note that Southwestern Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Arkansas, AT&T Kansas, AT&T Missouri, AT&T Oklahoma and/or AT&T Texas; Pacific Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T California; Nevada Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Nevada and AT&T Wholesale; Illinois Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Illinois; Indiana Bell Telephone Company Incorporated d/b/a AT&T Indiana; Michigan Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Michigan; The Ohio Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Ohio, Wisconsin Bell, Inc. d/b/a AT&T Wisconsin and BellSouth Telecommunications, LLC d/b/a AT&T Alabama, AT&T Florida, AT&T Georgia, AT&T Kentucky, AT&T Louisiana, AT&T Mississippi, AT&T North Carolina, AT&T South Carolina and AT&T Tennessee are separate companies and, while negotiations may be requested in a single letter, the request must identify the companies and states in which the CLEC intends to do business.
The written request to initiate negotiations should include the following:
1) Certified name of the carrier
2) Physical street address (no P.O. Boxes)
3) City/State/Zip
4) Carrier contact person’s name
5) Carrier contact person's title
6) Carrier contact person’s address (no P.O. Boxes)
7) Carrier contact person’s city/state/zip
8) Carrier contact person's telephone number
9) Carrier Contact person's fax number
10) Carrier Contact person’s e-mail
11) Consultant/attorney’s name, if applicable
12) Consultant/attorney’s title
13) Consultant/attorney’s firm
14) Consultant/attorney’s address (no P.O. Boxes)
15) Consultant/attorney’s city/state/zip
16) Consultant/attorney’s telephone number
17) Consultant/attorney’s fax number
18) Consultant/attorney’s e-mail
19) Type of negotiations desired; i.e., interconnection, resale, etc.
20) State(s) in which carrier wishes to do business
21) State of incorporation
22) Is a signature-ready copy of the 21-State Agreement desired? If Yes, Interconnection or resale?
23) Include either a copy of proof of certification from the applicable state commission or application for certification for each state requested.
24) Include a copy of NECA confirmation of carrier Resale OCN if requesting resale negotiations. Include copy(ies) of NECA confirmation of carrier UNE OCN for each applicable state if requesting interconnection.
25) Include a copy of Telcordia’s confirmation of ACNA .
26) Include a copy of registration of type of entity and name of company with Secretary of State for each state requested. NAME ON STATE CERTIFICATION AND NAME REGISTERED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE MUST MATCH in order for AT&T to execute the Agreement. If they do not match, carrier will be required to change one or the other before AT&T can execute the Agreement.
Please address your request for negotiations for Southwestern Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Arkansas, AT&T Kansas, AT&T Missouri, AT&T Oklahoma and/or AT&T Texas; Pacific Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T California; Nevada Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Nevada and AT&T Wholesale; Illinois Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Illinois; Indiana Bell Telephone Company Incorporated d/b/a AT&T Indiana; Michigan Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Michigan; The Ohio Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Ohio, Wisconsin Bell, Inc. d/b/a AT&T Wisconsin and BellSouth Telecommunications, LLC d/b/a AT&T Alabama, AT&T Florida, AT&T Georgia, AT&T Kentucky, AT&T Louisiana, AT&T Mississippi, AT&T North Carolina, AT&T South Carolina and AT&T Tennessee (“AT&T”) to:
Director - Interconnection Agreements
AT&T Wholesale
Fax: (214) 712-5792 Email:m41654@att.com.
Requests can also be submitted using the "Negotiations Request Form". A copy can be found at the bottom of this page.
Prior to Negotiations
CLECs request negotiations with Southwestern Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Arkansas, AT&T Kansas, AT&T Missouri, AT&T Oklahoma and/or AT&T Texas; Pacific Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T California; Nevada Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Nevada and AT&T Wholesale; Illinois Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Illinois; Indiana Bell Telephone Company Incorporated d/b/a AT&T Indiana; Michigan Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Michigan; The Ohio Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Ohio, Wisconsin Bell, Inc. d/b/a AT&T Wisconsin and BellSouth Telecommunications, LLC d/b/a AT&T Alabama, AT&T Florida, AT&T Georgia, AT&T Kentucky, AT&T Louisiana, AT&T Mississippi, AT&T North Carolina, AT&T South Carolina and AT&T Tennessee (“AT&T”) in writing as described previously in the Initiating Negotiations section.
You will be working with a AT&T negotiating team that is comprised of a Lead Negotiator, and various specialists in the case of Resale and Interconnection Agreements. AT&T can provide you with a copy of our generic Interconnection or Resale Agreement to begin the negotiations. One of the generic agreements may fit your business plan. A new agreement may be negotiated with AT&T or you may adopt an Interconnection Agreement that is approved by the Commission in the state in which you are planning on doing business so long as that Agreement has not expired or been noticed for renegotiation. All commission-approved Agreements are publicly available for your review at the state regulatory commission's office. To obtain copies of a commission approved Agreement, refer to the Certification section.
AT&T offers a multi-state Interconnection and Resale Agreement. This multi-state Agreement offers many advantages for our CLEC customers. The Agreement is all inclusive, offers consistency, and is organized by topic. Although the 22-State Agreement covers all states, the Agreement will be effective only in the specific state in which it has been executed, filed and approved.
Obtain Public Service/Utility Commission Certification
Contact the appropriate Commission to determine certification requirements for each state in which you aim to do business. Commission certification is required before filing of an Agreement.
CERTIFICATION SECTION
Registration with Secretary of State
Contact the appropriate Secretary of State office to register your business. NAME ON STATE COMMISSION CERTIFICATION AND NAME REGISTERED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE MUST MATCH EXACTLY in order for AT&T to execute the Agreement.
Complete a Credit Application
A variety of documentation will be required, including proof of a satisfactory credit history. Such documentation may include:
- Deposit – Security deposit to be held by AT&T to assure payment of account
- Surety Bond – A security company guarantees payment of accounts in the event of default
- Bank Letter of Credit – Financial institution documentation guaranteeing a specific amount of money to be paid upon request.
The response packet will include a credit application for your convenience.
Non-Disclosure Agreements
Mutual Confidentiality and Non-Disclosure Agreements will be enclosed in the response packet, to ensure confidentiality of negotiations. The document protects both parties.
Most Favored Nations (MFN)
Southwestern Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Arkansas, AT&T Kansas, AT&T Missouri, AT&T Oklahoma and/or AT&T Texas; Pacific Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T California; Nevada Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Nevada and AT&T Wholesale; Illinois Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Illinois; Indiana Bell Telephone Company Incorporated d/b/a AT&T Indiana; Michigan Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Michigan; The Ohio Bell Telephone Company d/b/a AT&T Ohio, Wisconsin Bell, Inc. d/b/a AT&T Wisconsin and BellSouth Telecommunications, LLC d/b/a AT&T Alabama, AT&T Florida, AT&T Georgia, AT&T Kentucky, AT&T Louisiana, AT&T Mississippi, AT&T North Carolina, AT&T South Carolina and AT&T Tennessee (“AT&T”) will make available interconnection, service, or network element provided in agreements between AT&T and a Telecommunications Carrier that have been filed in accordance with the provisions of 251/252 of the Federal Telecommunications Act of 1996, and approved by a state regulatory commission to any other requesting telecommunications carrier upon the same terms and conditions as those provided in the agreement in accordance with Section 252(i) of the Act, as that Section has been interpreted by the FCC in its First Report and Order, FCC Rule 51.809, and the United States Supreme Court in AT&T Corp. v. Iowa Utilities Bd., 119 S. Ct. 721 (1999), along with any other relevant decision(s) by a regulatory commission or court of competent jurisdiction. Click here to download the form to request adoption of an Agreement in all states except California and Indiana."
Access Carrier Name Abbreviations (ACNAs)
IAC (Interexchange Access Customer) (aka ACNA) Codes are assigned and administered by Telcordia as the maintenance agent for ANSI (American National Standards Institute) Standard T1.251, which is the specification for these codes. An IAC is a telecommunications or information provider who may be classified as an Incumbent Local Exchange Carrier, a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier, a Reseller, a Wireless Services Provider, an Enhanced Service Provider, a Telecommunications Billing an/or Processing Company, a Competitive Access Provider, a Regional Holding Company or any other type of company that is part of the telecommunications industry. The IAC code is used in interfacing between companies and aiding flowthrough. This three character alphabetic code is used to populate such COMMON LANGUAGE® Universal Service Order (USO) record fields as "ACNA" and "PIC" and is used to populate the ACNA and CCNA fields on the Access Service Request (ASR) and the Local Service Request (LSR). Telcordia may be contacted at the following address or website to obtain an ACNA.
Customer Service Center
Telcordia Technologies, Inc.
One Telcordia Drive, RRC 1B-180
Piscataway, NJ 08854-4156
Phone: 866.672.6997
Fax: 732.336.222
http://telecom-info.telcordia.com/site-cgi/ido/
Industry Requirements for Operating Company Numbers/Company Codes
Operating Company Numbers, also known as company codes and AECNs (Alternate Exchange Carrier Numbers), are company identifiers assigned by the National Exchange Carrier Association (NECA). Company Codes are used like social security numbers to uniquely identify your company and are assigned to all telecommunications service providers. They are used in mechanized systems throughout the industry to facilitate the exchange of information. NECA and the telecommunications industry require state-specific company codes for facilities-based local service providers to fulfill the industry requirements of FCC Tariff Number 4 for intercompany compensation and meet-point billing arrangements.
NECA also assigns a nationwide company code for local wholesale customer specifically for resale for each local wholesale customer that resells other facilities-based providers’ telecommunications services.
Directory listings, Line Information Database (LIDB), repair/maintenance and ordering processes utilize company codes to identify local wholesale customers and to distinguish between facilities-based UNE/Interconnection and Resale business.
CLECs are required to provide unique state-specific code(s) for facilities-based business (UNEs and Interconnection) and a single resale-specific code for use nationwide.
It is AT&T’s policy to adhere to the industry standards as defined by NECA above. AT&T requires Competitive Local Exchange Carriers (CLECs) wishing to conduct business in any of the AT&T-owned ILEC territories to establish Operating Company Numbers (OCNs) in accordance with the NECA standards. CLECs will be required to establish Resale and/or Facility-Based OCNs as outlined above prior to provisioning services under a Resale or Interconnection Agreement (ICA) entered into with AT&T or any AT&T-Owned ILEC.
NECA may be contacted at the following address or website to obtain an OCN. NECA’s guidelines are available on its website.
80 South Jefferson Road
Whippany, NJ 07981-1009
800-228-8597
Fax: 973-884-8469
Interconnection & Resale Agreement Options Available to CLECs
Collocation
Physical collocation is a negotiated service offering which provides for the installation of collocator-owned equipment and facilities within leased floor space in AT&T Central Offices for the purpose of connecting to the AT&T network. Physical collocation is available as caged, shared caged, cageless and adjacent. The equipment compliment may include any type of equipment used or useful for interconnection or access to Unbundled Network Elements in the provision of telecommunication services. The collocator is solely responsible for the timing, alarming, monitoring, performance, maintenance, provisioning and repair of its equipment. Equipment ownership, maintenance and insurance are the responsibility of the collocator or its approved agent. Equipment and facilities placed as part of a collocation arrangement must be installed by an AT&T certified vendor in accordance with TR 73503.
Collocation may be included in an Interconnection Agreement as a separate appendix or negotiated as a stand-alone.
Filing Agreements with State Commission(s)
Overview
After the CLEC and AT&T have concluded negotiations and reached agreement on the language to be used, AT&T will prepare signature-ready documents for execution by both Parties. Under §252(e)(1) of the Act, the Agreement must be filed with the State Commission for its approval before the Agreement can become effective.
The required filing process varies from state to state in accordance with the State Commission’s requirements. Your AT&T Negotiator will communicate specific requirements involved in each state’s filing process, as appropriate.
Agreement Approval
Prior to providing local telephone service to your End User Customers, the Agreement must be approved by the appropriate State Commission. Individual State Commissions may have other requirements that must be met prior to offering local service in that state. AT&T, through various implementation subcommittees, will work with each CLEC regarding implementation of our Agreement. Your Account Manager, who will be available to guide you through the process, will oversee the implementation activities.
Amendments to Existing Agreements
Existing Agreements may require modification during the life of the Agreement. Modifications to an Agreement will require an amendment that must be signed by both parties. Amendments follow the same filing and State Commission approval process ad the original Agreement. An Amendment is necessary if an operation change results in changes to the terms and conditions of the Agreement.
Generally, there will also be a requirement in the Agreement that AT&T be notified and give its approval for any “assignment” of the Agreement to another party, as, for example, in the event of a change of ownership.
Acquisitions
State rules often govern acquisitions, mergers and name changes by local telephone service providers. CLECs should check with the appropriate State Commission to determine the correct regulatory process to achieve changes in their business structure. To find State Commission addresses, phone numbers and website addresses, refer to the Certification section.
Name Changes
State rules may govern name changes by local telephone service providers. CLECs should check with the appropriate State Commission or other state agency to determine the correct process to achieve a desired change in its business name or structure. To find State Commission addresses, phone numbers and website addresses, refer to the Certification section.
Expiration of an Agreement
Each Interconnection and Resale Agreement between a CLEC and AT&T contains a specific term. At some point prior to the expiration of the term, the Agreements specify that notice shall be given by one party to the other party to initiate negotiations for a successor Agreement, should the parties desire to do so. The timing of the notice to be given varies from Agreement to Agreement, but in all cases this notice information is found in the section which describes the term of the Agreement.
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AT&T 21-State Interconnection Agreement | |||
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AT&T 21-State Resale Agreement | |||
| Revised: 09/04/12 |
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Deposits | ||
| Revised: 01/10/24 |
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Negotiations Request Form | ||
| Revised: 07/07/21 |
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MFN Request Form | ||
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Credit Application | |||
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Credit and Collections Policy is at this location as well.
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