OTTAWA – The Supreme Court of Canada has told the CRTC is can do what it pleases with the $650 million in deferral account money.
That means the Commission’s plan of giving some back to urban telecom customers who overpaid – while rural areas with little broadband will be able to draw on a few hundred million for more access, will go ahead.
The Court dismissed appeals from the major telcos and consumer groups that wanted the money to be doled out differently.
“While distinct questions arise in each of the appeals before us, the common problem is whether the CRTC, in the exercise of its rate-setting authority, appropriately directed the allocation of funds to various purposes,” writes Justice Rosalie Abella.
“In the Bell Canada and Telus Communications Inc. appeal, the challenged purpose is the distribution of funds to customers, while in the Consumers’ Association of Canada and National Anti-Poverty Organization appeal, the impugned allocation was directed at the expansion of broadband infrastructure. For the reasons that follow, in my view the CRTC’s allocations were reasonable based on the Canadian telecommunications policy objectives that it is obliged to consider in the exercise of all of its powers, including its authority to approve just and reasonable rates.”
The Regulator announced last year how the money will be spent. Click here for that
