From the Herald Tribune:

State officials are asking the Florida Public Service Commission to fine Verizon Florida $6.5 million for repeated violations of service rules last year.

The petition, filed by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum, Florida Public Counsel J.R. Kelly and AARP attorney Mike Twomey, claims that Verizon willfully violated the PSC’s rules for telecommunications service repairs 262 times last year.

Verizon has been working feverishly to install its FiOS fiber optic telephone system in Southwest Florida, prompting complaints from some customers who say it has taken weeks or months to resolve their problems.

Union representatives say that rather than hiring new employees along with its expansion, Verizon has largely shifted workers from telephone service centers to the fiber optics side with little training or resources.

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