Telecom Reforms Bearing Fruit

By Kelly Quigley
Crain's Chicago Business

February 12, 2003

A new report shows that state telecommunications reforms that fuel competition among local phone service providers are paying off big for Illinois consumers.

The Illinois Coalition of Competitive Telecommunications (ICCT), a group funded primarily by AT&T Corp., said Illinois consumers will save $294 million on their 2003 local phone bills because of competitive pricing. Last year’s savings amounted to $131 million, the group said.

The ICCT report, based on an analysis of 2,200 actual phone bills, “clearly demonstrates that the reforms adopted by the state legislature in 2001 are working for the people of Illinois,” ICCT Executive Director Gary Mack said in a statement.

The bulk of the savings come from lower average local phone rates overall and two price cuts SBC Communications Inc. made in 2002 in response to local phone service competition, the ICCT said.

Customers served by SBC competitors saved, on average, $11.87 per month in 2002, or $51 million. SBC customers reaped monthly savings of $80 million in 2002, the study reported.

“When we crafted telecommunications reforms in 2001 we knew that it would take time for competition to take hold and consumers to benefit,” said State Rep. Julie Hamos, D-Evanston, who co-sponsored the telecom bill that opened the door for local competition. “These data show that our efforts are beginning to bear fruit.”

She urged lawmakers to resist any changes to Illinois telecom law that could stifle competition.