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Maine Agency Opposes Fairpoint Subsidy

PORTLAND, Maine — The Maine Public Utilities Commission is taking up telecommunications regulatory reform and a proposal to penalize a natural gas company for safety violations.

Those matters were on the panel's agenda Tuesday in Augusta.

The nonbinding telecommunications report was requested by lawmakers seeking to lower prices without harming service. As part of that report, the PUC already said FairPoint Communications is not entitled to a $63 million state subsidy for providing telephone service as a "provider of last resort" in remote parts of Maine.

The panel also was considering a consent decree in which Summit Natural Gas has agreed to pay a $25,000 fine to resolve safety violations. The company was accused of several violations including using contractors without proper qualifications to install natural gas pipelines.