*October 28, 2022 Update: On October 20, 2022, the CPUC unanimously approved a revised proposed decision. The final decision contains two important changes: (1) it moves the implementation date from January 1, 2023 to April...more
On September 2, 2022, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) released a Proposed Decision (PD) in its ongoing Surcharge Reform rulemaking (R.21-03-002). The PD, if adopted, will fundamentally overhaul the surcharge...more
Today, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) unanimously voted to commence a rulemaking to consider new regulatory requirements for interconnected Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers in California,...more
Beginning in October 2022, providers offering access to 911 service will be required to create and make available on their websites maps depicting geographic areas experiencing service outages that meet a specified reporting...more
As predicted in our earlier post, here at the mid-way point of 2022 we have seen a number of significant regulatory developments related to communications infrastructure in California. In the first half of 2022, the...more
Since the 1970s, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has been setting minimum service quality standards for certain public utility telephone corporations. However, the CPUC recently adopted an Order Instituting...more
In February 2021, as part of it Rulemaking 18-03-011, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) adopted Decision 21-02-029, Decision Adopting Wireline Provider Resiliency Strategies (Decision). The Decision generally...more
As explained in our earlier post, we expect the substantial pace of regulatory developments related to communications infrastructure in California to continue in 2022. Additionally, changes at the California Public Utilities...more
2021 was a very active year for regulatory developments related to communications infrastructure in California. Several proceedings of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) were intended to: (i) enhance...more
In 49 states, the safety standard that governs overhead communications and electric facilities is the National Electrical Safety Code (NESC). California—not surprisingly—has adopted its own standard: General Order (G.O.) 95....more
In May 2020, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) finalized significant changes to its General Order 95 – Rules for Overhead Line Construction (GO 95). ...more
On Friday, June 26, the state of California approved telecommunications outage reporting requirements promulgated by the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES). Because the regulations were adopted on an...more
This is a reminder that in the coming months, telephone corporations under the jurisdiction of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) must submit certain annual reports to the CPUC Communications Division (CD)....more
On Sunday, October 27, 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom issued a Proclamation of a State of Emergency for the entire State of California in response to the state’s extreme fire weather conditions....more
Less than a month from now, communications service providers must submit their respective plans to the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for community outreach regarding disaster relief measures. ...more
On Dec. 1, 2016, the California PUC (CPUC) unanimously adopted Resolution SED-3, which implements a safety enforcement citation program for communications infrastructure providers (CIPs) including CLECs, cable operators,...more
On June 8, the FCC Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) announced that there is sufficient funding available to fully meet USAC’s estimated demand for both Category One services (i.e., telecommunications and Internet access)...more
The FCC announced on May 31 that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved changes to the FCC Form 481 (Carrier Annual Reporting Data Collection Form), which is due July 1.
The revised Form 481 includes a...more
On May 18th, 2016, the FCC’s Wireline Competition Bureau released a Public Notice informing carriers with pending Lifeline compliance plans or applications for designation as an ETC that they must submit an “affirmative...more
As the communications industry anxiously awaits a decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit on the judicial challenge to the Federal Communications Commission’s Open Internet rules, the Commission is...more
On April 7, the FCC issued a Notice of Apparent Liability (“NAL”) against a wireless Lifeline provider, Total Call Mobile, Inc. (“Total Call”). An investigation conducted by the Universal Service Administrative Company...more
On Friday, June 12 – barring a judicial stay – many of the FCC’s “Open Internet” rules will become effective. A significant consequence of the reclassification of retail broadband Internet access service (BIAS) as a...more
Data released by USAC in its 2014 Annual Report show an 11 percent decline in Lifeline disbursements from 2013 and a 27 percent decline from 2012 – the program’s peak funding year. These figures, illustrated in the table...more
Today, the FCC Wireline Competition Bureau released a Public Notice seeking to refresh the record on a Petition for Reconsideration filed by the National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA), COMPTEL, and tw telecom...more
As noted in our prior update, in November 2014, the FCC Wireline Competition Bureau issued a Public Notice requesting industry comment on a Petition filed by TracFone Wireless regarding 911 fees charged to Lifeline...more