International Trade Today is a Warren News publication.

AT&T COLR Relief Would Undermine Universal Service, Calif. Advocates Say

Consumer advocates urged the California Public Utilities Commission in a virtual meeting Wednesday to dismiss AT&T’s petition to relinquish carrier of last resort (COLR) obligations, the CPUC’s independent Public Advocates Office and The Utility Reform Network said in an ex…

Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article

If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.

parte filing Thursday in docket A.23-02-003. The advocates discussed the PAO’s motion to dismiss with aides to CPUC Commissioners John Reynolds and Darcie Houck, it said. “As a matter of law and a foregone conclusion, with no need to determine facts at an evidentiary hearing, AT&T’s Amended Application cancels the safety net provisions of the Universal Service Rules adopted by the Commission and is incompatible with the state’s ongoing commitment to universal service.” TURN said AT&T’s request “is fundamentally about dismantling the cornerstone of universal service and AT&T has failed to provide an adequate basis for the Commission to consider such drastic action.” AT&T urged quick approval of COLR relief in a virtual meeting with a Reynolds aide last month (see 2311070043).