How did you go about requesting an interconnection agreement with Qwest?

Under the 1996 Act, an incumbent local exchange carrier (ILEC) such as Qwest has a variety of obligations regarding interconnection negotiations with would-be telecommunications service providers. Among other things, you can request arbitration from your state utility regulator if you haven't gotten what you want within 135 days of the date you requested interconnection. This makes the date that you request interconnection a very important date. The ILEC will keep close track of this date so they know when the 135 days has happened.

To request interconnection with Qwest, follow the procedure on the Qwest web site at Getting Started as a Facility-Based Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC). This page says you need to be a licensed CLEC. See our discussion of that issue.

Here are a few tips.

• Qwest will suggest right away that the best thing is for them to send you their "negotiation template", and will try to get you to agree to negotiate from that document. In other words, you would have to read the whole thing (it is some 400 pages, single-spaced) and try to figure out what traps are hidden in it. Do not agree to work from that document. Suggest instead that you will send them an agreement, and they can tell you what, if anything, they think should be added.
• Consider "opting in" to the Covad agreement, which lacks the $11 million insurance policy requirement that is in Qwest's "negotiation template".