AUGUSTA, Maine — The Maine Public Utilities Commission on Thursday urged interests who still have not signed off on a Verizon-FairPoint land-line sale in northern New England to get on board in the next week to avoid delays in the $2.7 billion transaction.

In doing so, the panel put off until Dec. 20 consideration of a negotiated settlement, or stipulation, on the transaction with hopes that unanswered issues about the complex and far-reaching deal can be addressed.

"This case represents the most important telecommunications decision this commission has made in decades," said Public Utilities Commission Chairman Kurt Adams, adding that it has generated "mountains of evidence" and consumed three months of commission staff and interveners' time.

But Adams and the other commissioners promised to give the case the time it deserves. "We should not hurry this process," said Commissioner Vendean Vafiades. "It's very important we get it right."

Charlotte, N.C.-based FairPoint wants to take ownership of Verizon's 1.6 million access lines, along with Internet service, in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. Verizon would retain its wireless phone operations in the region.

With a session initially scheduled for Thursday to take up the merits of the deal, Maine stood to be the first of the three states' utility regulatory boards to rule on it. Approval by Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont is needed if the transaction is to go through. The Vermont Public Service Board is expected to make a decision on whether to approve sale before the end of the month.

Wednesday, an agreement on the deal was reached by Verizon, FairPoint, the state's public advocate, Public Utilities Commission advisory staff and other phone carriers. Others — notably the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and Communications Workers of America — continued to contest it. Adams said that having unanimous agreement on the deal would speed up its final resolution.

The unions, which commended the commission for refusing to rush to judgment, said the stipulation would leave Maine residents with a financially risky company without sufficient resources to improve service quality and expand high-speed broadband.

"It's the finances of (FairPoint) we're primarily concerned with," said Pete McLaughlin, business manager of IBEW Local 2327. "We haven't been concerned with labor issues since the beginning."

The Public Utilities Commission's Adams also said the newly approved stipulation left unanswered questions on at least three important matters. They include wholesale market issues, federal regulatory implications and privacy issues if customer call records have been released to the government without a warrant.

At next week's session, the Public Utilities Commission could order another hearing to determine whether the unions' objections have merit.

FairPoint founder and CEO Gene Johnson said he was optimistic many of the interveners still opposing the deal will change their minds.

"We would like to start serving the people of Maine," Johnson said. He added that he didn't believe Thursday's delay by the Public Utilities Commission will set back action in New Hampshire or Vermont "in any significant way," and that he thinks the Maine stipulation may aid the review process by clarifying issues still in question in the other two states.

"I think there's clarity there that wasn't there before," Johnson said.

Communication Workers of America and IBEW officials say a number of issues not in the Maine stipulation also have been raised in the other two states.

The stipulation incorporates some of the conditions that had been set forth prior to Thursday by representatives of the public before the Public Utilities Commission and other interveners.

One of the major ones calls for Verizon to put in more than $235 million in additional working capital to reduce the amount of debt FairPoint will need to incur. Another calls for FairPoint to reduce its dividend level by 35 percent and take other measures to further reduce its debt over time.

Both of those points address conditions set forth earlier by Maine Public Advocate Richard Davies that would require Verizon to lower the selling price by $600 million.

By Glenn Adams
The Associated Press