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9.h Discussion on comments to PUC regarding Frontier Staff Report Date of Meeting: March 20, 2018 To: City Council From: Neil Soltis, Administrator Re: Comment to Public Utility Commission regarding Frontier Background: The Minnesota Department of Commerce has opened an investigation into Frontier Communications in the wake of widespread complaints. The Public Utilities Commission initiated the inquiry after reports had prompted them to review their database of complaints— revealing “a large volume,” sufficient to begin the investigation. The Commerce Department has posted notice of the investigation on Monday and is asking customers of Frontier who have experienced problems with the company’s service quality, customer service, or billing practices to submit comments on their experiences to the state by May 25, at 4:30 p.m. At the March work session the Council authorize staff to draft a letter to the PUC based on data the City has regarding Frontier’s service for submission to the PUC. Data collected in the comprehensive planning surveys returned by residents were summarized and are reflected in the summary that follow this report. Issue: Should the summary data be submitted by the City to the Public Utilities Commission Fiscal Impact: None Options: 1. Submit the comments as drafted 2. Amend the comments before submitting 3. Take on action Recommendation: Option1 The City of Scandia is located in a rural area of the metropolitan region with 3,905 residents living in 1,506 households. Due in a large part to low density, citizens have limited options for internet service providers. Pursuant to a cable television franchise agreement, Midco Communications provides cable, internet, and phone services to 369 customers in the City. Options for internet services for the remaining residents are either Frontier Communications, wireless providers, or no services. In June 2017 the City of Scandia mailed a community survey to every household to be used in the development of the City’s 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The response rate to the survey was approximately 20%. In the survey residents were asked to identify up to 3 of the mo st significant challenges facing Scandia in the future. Internet services was identified in 49.6% of the surveys. Residents were also asked to rate the dependability and quality of the services in the City. 77.0% of the responses rated telecommunication services fair or poor. The survey also requested comments regarding fair or poor ratings. Internet was mentioned in 107 comments on fair or poor ratings with 24 specifically referencing Frontier citing unreliability and poor customer service.