Terms Used In South Carolina Code > Title 58 > Chapter 9 - Telephone, Telegraph and Express Companies

• Affirmed: In the practice of the appellate courts, the decree or order is declared valid and will stand as rendered in the lower court.
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Appraisal: A determination of property value.
• Attachment: A procedure by which a person's property is seized to pay judgments levied by the court.
• Bankruptcy: Refers to statutes and judicial proceedings involving persons or businesses that cannot pay their debts and seek the assistance of the court in getting a fresh start. Under the protection of the bankruptcy court, debtors may discharge their debts, perhaps by paying a portion of each debt. Bankruptcy judges preside over these proceedings.
• Baseline: Projection of the receipts, outlays, and other budget amounts that would ensue in the future without any change in existing policy. Baseline projections are used to gauge the extent to which proposed legislation, if enacted into law, would alter current spending and revenue levels.
• Broadband affiliate: means a broadband service provider that is a separate legal entity from any electric cooperative but is wholly or partially owned by one or more electric cooperatives, or is controlled by, controls, or is under common control with one or more electric cooperatives. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Broadband facility: means any infrastructure used to deliver broadband service or for the provision of broadband service. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Broadband network: means any and all infrastructure, equipment, materials, or component parts thereof that may be used to provide landline or wireless broadband service, whether now existing or that may be developed in the future including, but not limited to, wires; cables, including fiber optic and copper cables; conduits to the extent not prohibited by the National Electric Safety Code; antennas; equipment; fixtures; switching multiplexers; poles; routers; switches; servers; appurtenances; facilities; or other equipment, whether ancillary, auxiliary, or otherwise used to facilitate the provision of landline or wireless broadband service. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Broadband service: means a service that meets the definition of "broadband service" in § 58-9-10(17) and that has transmission speeds that are equal to or greater than the requirements for basic broadband tier 1 service as defined by the Federal Communications Commission for broadband data gathering and reporting. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2610
• Broadband service: means a landline or wireless service that meets the definition of "broadband service" in § 58-9-10(17) and that has minimum download speeds of 25 megabits per second and minimum upload speeds of 3 megabits per second. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Broadband service provider: means :
  
  (a) a person that provides retail broadband service to end-user customers; and
  
  (b) an existing broadband service provider. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Cable service: includes , but is not limited to, the provision of video programming or other programming service to purchasers, and the purchaser interaction, if any, required for the selection or use of the video programming or other programming service, regardless of whether the programming is transmitted over facilities owned or operated by the cable service provider or over facilities owned or operated by one or more other telecommunications service providers. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2200
• CMRS connection: means each mobile number assigned to a CMRS customer. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Commission: means the South Carolina Public Service Commission. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2610
• Commission: means the Public Service Commission of South Carolina. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Commission: means the Public Service Commission. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Communications service: means a telecommunications service, a broadband service, or both. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2610
• Communications service provider: means a person that provides communications service as defined in § 58-9-2610(B). See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Continuance: Putting off of a hearing ot trial until a later time.
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the Department of Revenue. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Deposition: An oral statement made before an officer authorized by law to administer oaths. Such statements are often taken to examine potential witnesses, to obtain discovery, or to be used later in trial.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Docket: A log containing brief entries of court proceedings.
• DPR: means a procedure in which a deaf, hearing, or speech impaired TDD user can communicate with an intermediary party, who then orally relays the first party's message or request to a third party, or a procedure in which a party who is not deaf or hearing or speech impaired can communicate with an intermediary party who then relays the message or request to a TDD user. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Electric cooperative: means an electric cooperative organized under Chapter 49 of Title 33. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Electric easement: means a recorded or unrecorded easement or right-of-way or similar right in or to real property, including prescriptive rights, no matter how acquired, held by any electric provider for the siting of electric service infrastructure or for the purpose of delivering electric service, regardless of whether an electric cooperative's broadband affiliate or another broadband service provider uses the easement or other right to provide broadband service. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Electric provider: means an electric cooperative, an investor-owned electric utility, and the South Carolina Public Service Authority. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Exchange access facility: means the access from a particular telephone subscriber's premises to the telephone system of a service supplier. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• FCC: means the Federal Communications Commission or its successor. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Freedom of Information Act: A federal law that mandates that all the records created and kept by federal agencies in the executive branch of government must be open for public inspection and copying. The only exceptions are those records that fall into one of nine exempted categories listed in the statute. ^{Source: OCC}
• Government-owned communications service provider: means a state or local political subdivision, instrumentality of the State, person, or entity providing a communications service to the public for hire over a facility, operation, or system that is directly or indirectly owned by, operated by, or a financial benefit obtained by or derived from, an agency, instrumentality, or entity of the State or local government. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2610
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Interest rate: The amount paid by a borrower to a lender in exchange for the use of the lender's money for a certain period of time. Interest is paid on loans or on debt instruments, such as notes or bonds, either at regular intervals or as part of a lump sum payment when the issue matures. ^{Source: OCC}
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
• Local exchange provider: means a local exchange telephone company operating in this State. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Make-ready: means the modification or replacement of an electric cooperative's infrastructure or of the lines or equipment on the electric cooperative's infrastructure to accommodate additional attached facilities. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Oath: A promise to tell the truth.
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Operating fund: means the Dual Party Relay Service Operating Fund which is a specific fund to be created by the commission and established, invested, managed, and maintained for the exclusive purpose of implementing the provisions of this chapter according to commission regulations. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: means any natural person and any firm, association, corporation business trust, partnership, federal agency, state or political subdivision or agency thereof, or any body politic. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
• Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
• Prepaid wireless consumer: means a person or entity that purchases prepaid wireless telecommunications service in a prepaid wireless retail transaction. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Prepaid wireless provider: means a person or entity that provides prepaid wireless telecommunications service pursuant to a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Prepaid wireless retail transaction: means the purchase of prepaid wireless telecommunications service from a prepaid wireless seller for any purpose other than resale. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Prepaid wireless seller: means a person or entity that sells prepaid wireless telecommunications service to another person or entity for any purpose other than resale. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Prepaid wireless telecommunications service: means any commercial mobile radio service that allows a caller to dial 911 to access the 911 system, which service must be paid for in advance and is sold in units or dollars which decline with use in a known amount. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Public: means the public generally or a limited portion of the public, including a person or corporation. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2610
• Public law: A public bill or joint resolution that has passed both chambers and been enacted into law. Public laws have general applicability nationwide.
• Quorum: The number of legislators that must be present to do business.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Reporter: Makes a record of court proceedings and prepares a transcript, and also publishes the court's opinions or decisions (in the courts of appeals).
• Retail broadband service: means any broadband service other than that provided for:
  
  (a) the internal use of an electric cooperative;
  
  (b) the internal use of another electric cooperative;
  
  (c) resale by another electric cooperative or other broadband service provider; or
  
  (d) use as a component part of communications services that other cable, telecommunications, or information services providers offer to their customers. See South Carolina Code 58-9-3010
• Service address: means the location of the telecommunications equipment from which telecommunications services are originated or at which telecommunications services are received by a retail customer. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2200
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.
• Subscriber: means any person, company, corporation, business, association, or party who is provided telephone (local exchange access facility) service or CMRS service or VoIP service. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Telecommunications company: means a provider of one or more telecommunications services. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2200
• Telecommunications service: means a telecommunications service as defined in § 58-9-2200(1). See South Carolina Code 58-9-2610
• telecommunications service: includes , but is not limited to, local telephone services, toll telephone services, telegraph services, teletypewriter services, teleconferencing services, private line services, channel services, Internet protocol telephony, and mobile telecommunications services and to the extent not already provided herein, those services described in North American Industry Classification System Manual (NAICS) 5171, 5172, 5173, 5174, and 5179, except satellite services exempted by law. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2200
• Temporary restraining order: Prohibits a person from an action that is likely to cause irreparable harm. This differs from an injunction in that it may be granted immediately, without notice to the opposing party, and without a hearing. It is intended to last only until a hearing can be held.
• Testify: Answer questions in court.
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Tort: A civil wrong or breach of a duty to another person, as outlined by law. A very common tort is negligent operation of a motor vehicle that results in property damage and personal injury in an automobile accident.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• TTY: means a keyboard mechanism attached to or in place of a standard telephone by some coupling device used to transmit or receive signals through telephone lines. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2510
• Unserved area: means :
  
  (1) within a county that is identified as a persistent poverty county by the United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service pursuant to the most recent data from the Bureau of the Census, a nongovernment-owned communications service provider's territory within a 2010 Census tract, as designated by the United States Census Bureau, in which at least seventy-five percent of households have either no access to broadband service or access to broadband service only from a satellite provider; and
  
  (2) within any other county, a 2010 Census block, as designated by the United States Census Bureau, in which at least ninety percent of households have either no access to broadband service or access to broadband service only from a satellite provider. See South Carolina Code 58-9-2610