The California Public Utilities Commission on Wednesday handed down a $200,000 fine against T-Mobile’s MetroPCS for universal service violations. Administrative Law Judge Robert Mason in June recommended the amount, which translates to $100,000 per violation (see 2406250054). The CPUC’s enforcement division had sought a $10 million fine, finding that the carrier insufficiently responded to a Sept. 27, 2021, data request (see 2209230032). The proceeding is now closed, the order said.
California commissioners next month could finalize a process that lets people without social security numbers apply for state low-income phone subsidies. The California Public Utilities Commission on Monday released a proposed decision (docket R.20-02-008) that could get a vote as soon as commissioners’ Aug. 22 meeting and tee up a three-month implementation. Accepting applications from those without SSNs wouldn't be optional under the draft.
The California Public Utilities Commission recommended $144.3 million in federal grant funding for last-mile projects in Sacramento, Riverside and five other counties. Commissioners plan to vote on the draft resolution at their Aug. 22 meeting, the CPUC said Monday. The CPUC recommended grants to seven entities, including AT&T ($18.2 million), Frontier Communications ($22.9 million), the Golden State Connect Authority, ($10.2 million), Colorado River Indian Tribes ($14.8 million) and the city of Sacramento ($38.7 million). It’s the fourth in a series of resolutions approving CPUC federal funding account grants. Commissioners approved $88.5 million in awards from the same program at their July 11 meeting (see 2407110057).
The California Public Utilities Commission could vote this fall on an incarcerated people’s communications service (IPCS) decision, the CPUC signaled Wednesday. The commission extended its deadline until Oct. 17 to act in docket R.20-10-002. “Commission staff have been reviewing the data submitted related to the cost of providing IPCS services and related ancillary services,” it said. “The next procedural steps are the issuance of a staff report addressing permanent intrastate calling rates caps for IPCS services, as well as rate caps for ancillary fees and charges.” The agency will propose a decision after receiving comment and replies on the staff report, it said. The CPUC has a voting meeting Oct. 17. It would have to propose a decision one month prior. The deadline was originally May 29, 2023.
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- A California rulemaking on modernizing carrier of last resort rules could inspire similar proceedings elsewhere, state and industry officials signaled at the NARUC conference Monday. The California Public Utilities Commission last month opened a rulemaking that took a fresh look at COLR rules after rejecting regulatory relief for AT&T (see 2406200065).
California will spend about $88.5 million on last-mile broadband projects using federal funding from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act, the California Public Utilities Commission decided at a Thursday meeting. Commissioners voted 5-0 for resolution T-17826 to spend $44.1 million on unserved areas in Imperial, Lassen and Plumas counties. They also voted unanimously for resolution T-17829 to spend $44.4 million on unserved areas in Alameda, San Francisco and Sierra counties, including an Oakland project that especially received support from local officials and community groups in comments during the meeting. Awardees included Golden State Connect Authority and Plumas-Sierra Telecommunications and the cities of Oakland, Fremont and San Francisco. The CPUC proposed the resolutions last month (see 2406070073). "These projects are a shining example of our state's broadband-for-all values and objectives," CPUC President Alice Reynolds at the livestreamed meeting said. She praised the approved projects for exceeding the program's 100 Mbps symmetrical requirements and for focusing on connecting low-income and disadvantaged communities. A top state legislator recently criticized the CPUC for not rolling out last-mile grants faster (see 2406050065). Thursday’s resolutions awarding federal funding account support are the CPUC's first since the agency received 484 applications requesting $4.6 billion from the $2 billion program in January, Executive Director Rachel Peterson said. The commission plans a vote at its Aug. 1 meeting on another resolution that would include $95 million in proposed grants (see 2407010037). Before the meeting, the commission delayed until Aug. 1 voting on a proposed decision related to ratemaking for small local exchange carriers (see 2406070027).
California video franchising is working fine as is, the California Video & Broadband Association (CalBroadband) said Monday. The state cable group urged the California Public Utilities Commission to “continue with the existing approach and adhere closely to the legislative mandates set forth in” a 2021 law that increased CPUC authority under the state’s Digital Infrastructure and Video Competition Act (DIVCA) to check if state video franchisees are deploying enough broadband. “Since the passage of DIVCA, an industry landscape of primarily locally franchised traditional cable providers has been replaced with a highly competitive, diversified environment that now includes a plethora of non-traditional video service providers,” CalBroadband said.
California state senators pushed back on two digital equity bills Tuesday. Multiple Communications Committee members during a livestreamed hearing raised concerns about the Assembly-passed AB-2239, which would ban digital discrimination as the FCC defines it. Also, the committee scaled back the Assembly-approved AB-1588, which had proposed to update the California LifeLine subsidy program to support broadband for low-income households. The committee directed the LifeLine bill’s sponsor to find a compromise with industry opponents and other stakeholders over the summer recess that runs from July 3 to Aug. 5.
North Carolina will award $61 million in broadband grants through the American Rescue Plan Act, the state broadband office said Monday. AT&T, Brightspeed and Charter Communications won many of the awards. In California, the Public Utilities Commission said Friday that the agency will vote Aug. 1 on a proposed resolution (T-17833) to approve about $95 million in last-mile grants through its federal funding program. The CPUC estimated that 71% of the locations that would receive service are in low-income areas, while 76% are in disadvantaged areas. The California awardees would include Comcast ($26.6 million), AT&T ($12 million), Frontier Communications ($2 million), the Golden State Connect Authority ($7 million) and the Fort Bidwell Indian community ($23.9 million).
An AT&T-backed California bill that reshapes rules for seeking relief from carrier of last resort (COLR) obligation won't move forward, the carrier confirmed Monday. A revised Senate Communications Committee agenda for Tuesday’s meeting said the bill was pulled from the hearing. AT&T had turned its attention to trying to pass AB-2797 in the California legislature to change COLR rules after the California Public Utilities Commission denied the company relief from the obligation last month (see 2406200065). “While we are disappointed that AB 2797 will not be voted on, we are committed to working with state lawmakers, community groups and stakeholders to find a path forward that keeps customers connected, modernizes California’s communications network, and ensures no customer will be left without voice and 911 services,” AT&T California President Marc Blakeman said in an emailed statement. The bill’s demise is a win for California phone customers, said The Utility Reform Network Telecom Policy Director Regina Costa: “AT&T retreated as a result of outrage from thousands of Californians and the organizations who oppose the bill because AT&T's plan is a threat to universal service and public safety.” Comments are due this fall on a CPUC rulemaking to consider updating COLR rules for modern technology. “The bill wasn’t about modernizing AT&T’s network,” Costa said. “It was about giving AT&T the power to walk away from providing any kind of service wherever it chose.”