00-25020. Publication of Depreciation Rates

AGENCY:

Rural Utilities Service, USDA.

ACTION:

Notice.

SUMMARY:

The Rural Utilities Service (RUS) hereby announces the depreciation rates for telecommunications plant for the period ended December 31, 1999.

DATES:

These rates are effective for the period beginning January 1, 1999 and ending December 31, 1999.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Jonathan P. Claffey, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Telecommunications Program, Rural Utilities Service, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 4056, STOP 1590, Washington, DC 20250-1590. Telephone: [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Section 206(a)(3) of the Rural Electrification Act of 1936 requires RUS to annually determine and publish average depreciation rates used by its borrowers for the purposes of depreciating telecommunications plant. The following chart provides those rates, compiled by RUS for the reporting period ended December 31, 1999:

Average Depreciation Rates of Rus Borrowers by Equipment Category For Period Ended December 31, 1999:

Telecommunications plant category	Depreciation rate (percent)
1. Land and Support Assets:
a. Motor vehicles	15.00
b. Aircraft	10.00
c. Special purpose vehicles	12.00
d. Garage and other work equipment	10.00
e. Buildings	3.01
f. Furniture and office equipment	10.00
g. General purpose computers	18.57
2. Central Office Switching:
a. Digital (a)	8.33
b. Analog & electro-mechanical	10.00
c. Operator systems	8.86
d. Radio systems	9.50
e. Circuit equipment (b)	10.00
3. Information Origination/Termination:
a. Station apparatus	11.59
b. Customer premises equipment	10.00
c. Large private branch exchanges	12.50
d. Public telephone terminal equipment	11.10
e. Other terminal equipment	10.55
4. Cable and Wire Facilities:
a. Aerial cable-Poles	6.67
a. Aerial cable-metal	6.00
b. Aerial cable-fiber	5.00
c. Underground cable-metal	4.81
d. Underground cable-fiber	4.82
e. Buried cable-metal	5.00
f. Buried cable-fiber	5.00
g. Conduit systems	3.02
h. Other	7.21

Christopher A. McLean,

Administrator, Rural Utilities Service.