1. (a) Balloting shall occur within forty-five (45) days of an Arkansas Public Service Commission order:

   1. (1) Approving the ballot and implementation date; and
   2. (2) Verifying the rate or rates.

2. (b)

   1. (1) At least fifteen (15) days prior to the balloting date, the ILEC shall provide notice to all basic local exchange customers in the EAS exchange of an EAS election.

   2. (2) The notice may be by:

      1. (A) Separate mailing;
      2. (B) Bill insert; or
      3. (C) Other reasonable medium.

3. (c) Balloting shall occur within six (6) months of receipt of a:

   1. (1) Valid petition; or
   2. (2) Resolution of the customers’ quorum court or other local governing body.

4. (d)

   1. (1) At least fifty percent (50%) of the ballots in each exchange must be returned to have a valid election.
   2. (2) If less than fifty percent (50%) of the ballots are returned, EAS will not be implemented.
5. (e) The balloting shall include a validation process, e.g., sequential numbering of ballots.

6. (f) At a minimum, the ballot shall include the following:

   1. (1) The calling scope of the proposed EAS route;
   2. (2) The date a ballot must be received in order to be counted;
   3. (3) The proposed rate or rates;
   4. (4) Information about the basis for implementation;
   5. (5) The estimated date for implementation if approved;
   6. (6) A space for the customer to vote and write any comments; and
   7. (7) An ILEC telephone number to contact for additional information.

7. (g)

   1. (1) Ballots shall be sent in a separate mailing unless the Arkansas Public Service Commission approves an alternative method of balloting.
   2. (2) The separate mailing shall clearly state on the exterior of the mailing that it contains information that could affect the customer’s calling scope and rates.

8. (h)

   1. (1) Only one (1) ballot will be sent to each billing address.
   2. (2) One (1) ballot per billing address will be counted.
9. (i) Ballots must be received within thirty (30) days of the ballot mail date in order to be counted.
10. (j) Return of the ballot will be prepaid by the ILEC.

11. (k)

    1. (1) The ballots shall be returned to the ILEC and the ILEC shall certify the results to the Arkansas Public Service Commission within fifteen (15) days of the ballot return date.
    2. (2) The ballots shall be retained by the ILEC for at least twelve (12) months from the ballot return date.

12. (l) Implementation of the EAS route will occur if in each exchange either of the following occurs:

    1. (1) Seventy-five percent (75%) of the returned ballots vote for the EAS route; or
    2. (2) A majority of the total mailed ballots vote for the EAS route.

Codification Notes: This section was promulgated as Rule 12.03 of the Telecommunications Providers Rules prior to codification in the Code of Arkansas Rules.