Certification Requirements for "Short-Haul" Telephone Toll Calls

A decision was requested as to whether "short-haul" telephone toll calls must be certified under the provisions of 31 U.S.C. 680a. Where a telephone company does not utilize a local message unit system but lists all calls as "long-distance" and the tolls charged are not sufficient to qualify for use of the Federal Telecommunications System, all calls must be certified as being "necessary in the interest of the Government." Certification may be made on the basis of statistically reliable sampling.