AT&T; Asks 13% Rise in Some Interstate Rates

American Telephone & Telegraph on Thursday proposed a 13% increase in service charges on most out-of-state, operated-assisted calls to offset higher costs.

The new rates on domestic interstate telephoning would affect collect calls, calls involving third-party billing and calls from pay telephones, AT&T; said. If the increases are approved by the Federal Communications Commission, they would take effect July 16.

On 99% of those calls, the current service charge is $1.55. That would increase to $1.75 under AT&T;’s proposal. Lower charges apply to shorter-distance calls.

Cites Rising Costs

“I’m astounded that the charges are that high right now, and I can’t imagine that it would take that much more (money) to provide this kind of service,” said Sylvia Siegel, executive director of Toward Utility Rate Normalization (TURN), a consumer activist group in San Francisco. “Maybe this will give competitors an edge,” she said.

MCI Telecommunications Corp., an AT&T; rival that provides few operator-assisted services, said it was studying AT&T;’s move. “We have to take a look at it before we know what our response will be,” said Stephen Gunn, senior business marketing manager.

AT&T; said charges for operator-assisted calls have not changed since 1982, while the cost of providing the service has risen by an average of $159 million a year over the last five years. If the new charges are approved, AT&T; would take in an additional $167 million in 1989. “It’s basically enough to offset the costs,” AT&T; spokesman Bryant Steele said.

AT&T;’s proposal would raise the service charge on a domestic, out-of-state, person-to-person call from $3 to $3.50.

The company also proposed adding 75 cents to the cost of a call if the caller has the operator dial the number, unless the caller is unable to dial on his own. AT&T; said its operators would tell callers about the surcharge and that there would be no charge if the caller is disabled, or if the caller had tried to dial the call without success. AT&T; asked that this surcharge take effect Dec. 1.

Rate Contradictions

Additionally, AT&T; proposed a $2 charge to have an operator check and verify a busy signal on out-of-state calls. A $4 charge would apply if a caller also asks the operator to interrupt the call. AT&T; asked that this surcharge also take effect Dec. 1.

AT&T;’s proposal regarding out-of-state calls comes on the heels of a proposed decrease in long-distance rates charged within California. Last week, AT&T; proposed lowering the cost of most such calls within the state by 11.7% as part of an overall rate restructuring imposed by the state Public Utilities Commission.