IT Newsletters

PHONE LINES

Volume VIII Number 6

State of Nebraska

November 1998

Division of Communications

CELLULAR RATES DECREASE

Many state agencies will notice a decrease in their monthly cellular telephone bill beginning with the December 1998 billing. The Division of Communications has renegotiated cellular rate plans which will save the State an estimated $15,000 or more per month. In order to achieve this savings, the minutes accrued from all cellular telephone calls will be aggregated over each month. A standard flat rate was created based on the State's total minutes of use each month. This will eliminate the need to continually optimize rate plans. Each agency will realize a cost savings based on the number of cellular telephones they have and the number of minutes used each month.

Each cellular telephone that was on a statewide plan will be placed on a $17.00 per month rate plan and charged a flat rate of $.12 per minute. There will no longer be "free minutes" with any statewide plan. Local $9.95 metro plans will remain unchanged for the present time. However, metro plans that were at the higher rates (grandfathered plans) were changed to the $17.00 statewide plan. This will require 10-digit dialing. We realize it may be inconvenient to have to dial 10 digits, but the cost savings more than justifies changing the higher cost grandfathered plans to the new lower rate. We will begin to evaluate the local metro plans to allow as many people as possible to take advantage of the cost savings. You may also see some one-time adjustments on your December bill due to billing cycle adjustments.

You should have already received an estimated cost saving summary for your agency based on minutes billed in September 1998. If you have any questions about the cellular plan changes, contact Norma at 402/471-6391.

1999 STATE TELEPHONE DIRECTORIES

Thank you for your input for the 1999 Nebraska State Government Directory. We are in the process of updating all of the individual employee's information as well as each agency's information. With the election of a new Governor, the printing of the Directory will be slightly delayed this year due to new appointments being announced. We are anticipating the Directory to be available in Mid-February 1999. Your agency will be contacted one last time to update the agency information pages in the front of the directory.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM THE DIVISION OF COMMUNICATIONS

Nebraska: A Leader in Telecommunications

  • Nebraska telephone companies have installed more than 10,000 miles of fiber optic cable in Nebraska.
  • 99% of fiber optic cable is buried underground for more reliable service.
  • Nebraskans lead the country in Internet connection.
  • Nebraska's telephone companies built the nation's first frame relay network for high-speed data transmission.
  • Local phone companies have implemented special pricing discounts to assist with the deployment of distance learning programs for our schools.
  • 97% of Nebraska communities have local Internet access.
  • 100% of Nebraska's schools have local Internet access.
  • Nebraska telephone companies have invested more than $2 billion in Nebraska since 1988. In 1997 alone, the figure exceeded $177 million.
  • Nebraska telephone companies employ more than 5,000 Nebraska.

    • This article was reprinted with permission from the Nebraska Independent Telephone Association.

    DELAY IN BILLING

    Due to billing problems from AT&T, some of you may notice that your monthly telephone bill from the Division of Communications only shows long distance calls for the time period October 1 through October 9. AT&T has corrected this problem and calls for the time period October 10 through October 31 as well as calls for the month of November will appear on your December 1998 DOC bill. This problem did not affect all of our customers. If you have any questions, contact Jayne at 402/471-3454.

    Just a reminder - The Division of Communications does accept Visa and Mastercard for the purchase of the State Government directory or payment of video conferencing charges or your monthly telephone bill if you are not a State agency. Contact LaDonna at 402/471-4701 if you have any questions.

  • Don't forget about scheduling your meetings via Video Conferencing. For the 1997 and 1998 NFL Draft Pick, ESPN used video conferencing as teams made their choices and fans were able to see players and coaches live on TV as they were being interviewed. Video Conferencing is a good option to keep in mind as the winter months approach. To set up a conference, call 402/471-4130.

    • DIRECTORY LISTING CLOSING DATES:

    The following commercial telephone directories close their listings in the near future. If you have any offices listed in the local directories for these towns, please review your listings and contact LaDonna at 402-471-4701 if you have any changes.

    LOCATION

    DATE

    LOCATION

    DATE

    Ord

    Nov 30

    Henderson

    Nov 30

    Alliance/Chadron

    Dec 4

    Columbus

    January 11

    Omaha

    March 1