Telecommunications Companies Gain Victory on Capitol Hill
Telecommunications Companies Gain Victory on Capitol Hill by UCStrategies Staff
September 29, 2012, saw a major victory in the Capitol for telecommunications companies. The controversial bill to prevent the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) from moderating voice-over-internet services (VoIP) used by California residents was finally signed into law by Governor Gerry Brown.
The telecommunications lobby had sought the action and pushed hard to get the bill passed. On the other side, several consumer groups criticized the plan, calling it a subtle attempt to implement a gradual deregulation of land lines – a notion rejected by Gov. Brown and the telecommunications industry.
“The bill does not affect the authority of the California Public Utilities Commission regarding the construction and maintenance of facilities, and access to utility support structures, including pole attachments,” Brown contested. “Importantly, the bill emphasizes the commission’s authority to monitor, track and report complaints from VoIP customers to the Federal Communications Commission...”
Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Pacoima, the author of the bill, explained that the measure ensures that protections for VoIP consumers remain in place, including disabled access, options to purchase 911 services, network outage reports and protection of client privacy.
The Utility Reform Network (TURN) and other consumer groups claimed that the whole purpose of the bill was to facilitate a major transition from current land-line services to VoIP services which replace copper wires with calls placed through the internet. VoIP is becoming increasingly popular with customers due to the fact that it is less expensive than a land-line service.
TURN’s Mark Toney criticized the legislation for reducing the CPUC’s ability to offer its customers even the most basic protection. He also claimed that a deregulation of VoIP today will lead to complete phone deregulation in the near future.
The Padilla legislation is backed by hundreds of communication companies, such as Verizon and AT&T. It prevents the CPUC from moderating VoIP services without first obtaining legislative approval. VoIP and landlines are not completely disjoined however, and the bill could affect the CPUC’s regulatory authority over communication services.
The bill was sponsored by the trade group TechAmerica, which has hundreds of companies, the technology lobbying group TechNet and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group.
Currently, the CPUC has regulatory control over telecommunications, natural gas and electrical utilities and railroads. It is not yet able to have any control over VoIP. Rumors among commissioners suggest that such legislation is forthcoming and that Padilla’s bill was a preemptive measure.
These measures will have significant impact on a fruitful industry.
During 2011, California’s two main carriers – AT&T and Verizon – increased their number of VoIP customers by 29 percent in just six months. According to a Senate analysis, California already has more than 3.5 million VoIP subscriber lines. That amounts to a third of the 87 million residential telephone subscriptions. While VoIP subscriptions have increased by 50 percent over the past three years, land-line based subscriptions have fallen by 17 percent.
For residential customers, VoIP is a good deal. A broadband-based service including long distance calls throughout the U.S. and Canada, directing missed calls to a mobile phone and emailing voicemail files runs at about $30 per month.
Christine Mailloux of TURN explains that the discussion of VoIP services extends beyond the cutting edge of internet technology to the regulation of an essential service that is used by millions of Californians. (CU) Link