GOVERNOR Ralph DLG Torres has yet to respond to the concerns brought to his attention by Docomo Pacific Inc. regarding the Department of Public Lands.
Docomo Pacific president and chief executive officer Roderick A. Boss said they may have to file a lawsuit in federal district court.
However, in a letter addressed to Rep. Joseph Leepan Guerrero last week he wrote: “We would like to avail [ourselves] of any opportunity to solve these issues without resorting to litigation.”
In his letter to the governor on March 16, 2021, Boss asked for assistance to resolve a “matter that continues to negatively affect the operation of telecommunication services to the Commonwealth.”
He said Docomo has been in a long-standing disagreement with DPL regarding landing fees for the company’s inter-island submarine cable system, ATISA, as well as underground right-of-way fees.
He said the fee structure imposed on Docomo in relation to these activities “is discriminatory and contrary to the CNMI law.”
“Despite many attempts over the past few years to resolve these issues, Docomo Pacific Inc. has made very little progress. Our efforts to resolve this through discussions with both the secretary of Public Lands and most recently, the Office of the Attorney General have been fruitless,” Boss told the governor.
He added that the authority to address these issues “lies within the… secretary of Public Lands and we would like to request your consideration to intervene and to help move this process toward a solution.”
Boss said Docomo is not seeking special consideration.
“Our goal is simple: Docomo Pacific wants the same landing fee structure and right-of-way fees that are currently provided to other telecommunication providers in the Commonwealth. The establishment of a uniform rate structure for telecommunication providers will promote fair competition for customer services and enhance the services available to Commonwealth residents,” the Docomo president told the governor.
“I apologize for burdening you with this matter during these difficult times of Covid-19 restrictions and budgetary limitations. But considering the unsuccessful efforts to date, I am looking to you as the leader of the CNMI who has the authority to resolve this matter,” he added.
In a separate letter last week, Boss told Rep. Leepan Guerrero that Docomo is asking for “a level playing field — nothing more, nothing less.”
“We do not seek special favors, preferential treatment or backdoor deals. We believe that Docomo Pacific is being treated unfairly as compared to our competitor, who continues to benefit from various waivers and exemptions that have their roots in a time when that company was essentially a local monopoly provider,” he said.
Right now, he said, Docomo is charged a per-foot fee for terrestrial fiber undergrounding, as well as 3% of its entire annual CNMI revenue for public land leases to land its submarine fiber optic cable — “while our competition pays nothing.”
Boss said Docomo believes that unequal regulatory treatment of telecom providers is not just an issue of fairness. It also jeopardizes Docomo’s ability to invest here.
He said considering the remote geographic location of the CNMI, its vulnerability to typhoon and other natural disasters, and the recent Covid-19 pandemic, it is important more than ever to maintain the islands’ connectivity to the wider world and to the community through robust, state-of-the-art telecommunications technology.
At the same time, he said, Docomo believes that the current position of DPL with respect to regulatory fees and additional taxes ignores and contravenes local and federal laws.
Variety was unable to get a comment from the administration or DPL.
