Arkansas, Maine, 22 other states reach phone company settlement

LITTLE ROCK – Arkansas, Maine, 21 other states and the District of Columbia have reached a settlement with three long-distance companies to resolve complaints about how they marketed telephone service.

Arkansas’ attorney general’s office said that AT&T, MCI WorldCom and Sprint didn’t disclose hidden charges when advertising long-distance telephone rates as low as two cents per minute.

“A dollar can buy a whole lot more as long as consumers in Arkansas know that they won’t be overcharged through hidden fees when they sign up for a long-distance calling plan,” Attorney General Mark Pryor said.

His office said that when monthly fees were added, the companies were charging 20 to 30 cents per minute to complete long-distance calls.

Also, the companies were accused of not disclosing that some discounted rates were available only at night and on weekends.

The carriers deny wrongdoing but agreed to pay $1.5 million that will be spread among Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and Wisconsin; and the District of Columbia.

The telephone companies also said they will disclose the entire cost of service and any limits imposed on calling plans.