AB 1303 (Valencia) – Passed by the Governor

Source: Benton Institute for Broadband and Society | By Kevin Taglang

During the 2026 proceeding, AARP and TURN argued that the telephone remains a preferred channel for older adults, lower-income households, and consumers with limited digital literacy—and, as TURN noted, for people who do not yet have broadband and are calling to find out what it costs. TURN cited 2023 American Community Survey data showing that "80 percent of adults with vision difficulty own a smartphone, against 62.7 percent with home broadband service."

If you shop for home internet service in the coming months, something on the screen may look different. For the past two years, providers have had to show you a standardized "broadband label"—a black-and-white box modeled on the nutrition panel on a cereal box, listing the monthly price, what happens when the introductory rate expires, the typical speeds, the latency, the data allowance, and each fee added on top. The label had to sit right next to the advertised plan.

Source: Washington Watch | By NECA

TURN, et al. said comments in this record show AT&T’s application to relinquish its ETC designation will not have positive effects for California consumers. They said if the FCC grants AT&T’s petition before the CPUC can finish its investigation, consumers will be left with inadequate or nonexistent replacement services. all replies available | public notice | order

In addition to reply comments listed in a previous edition of Washington Watch, replies were filed on July 22, 2026, on AT&T’s petition seeking forbearance from Section 214(e) eligible telecommunications carrier requirements within its California service territory. 

Source: WAshington Watch | By NECA

TURN said this area of policy has been left to the states and Section 253 delegates to the states the authority to regulate to preserve and advance universal service. 

The Utility Reform Network met with Commissioner Gomez’s advisors on July 16, 2026, regarding AT&T’s petition for a ruling that any California regulation that interferes with its ability to discontinue POTS is preempted by the FCC and petition for forbearance from Section 214(e) ETC requirements in California. 

Source: Washington Watch | By NECA

TURN said this area of policy has been left to the states and Section 253 delegates to the states the authority to regulate to preserve and advance universal service. TURN also said while AT&T Phone- Advanced has been approved in other states, none have a comparable topographical range or similar extreme weather events to California. Additionally, TURN said it had some preliminary concerns about the June 2026 E-Rate NPRM and urged the FCC not to let E-Rate become a victim of its own success.  

The Utility Reform Network met with Commissioner Gomez’s advisors on July 16, 2026, regarding AT&T’s petition for a ruling that any California regulation that interferes with its ability to discontinue POTS is preempted by the FCC and petition for forbearance from Section 214(e) ETC requirements in California. 

Source: Communications Daily | By Matt Daneman

In a docket 22-2 filing last week recapping meetings with the offices of Chairman Brendan Carr and Commissioner Olivia Trusty, the Utility Reform Network said labels will be less effective if the FCC drops the requirement to display them online in full next to a plan that a consumer could purchase. Cutting the machine-readability requirement, meanwhile, hurts people who rely on screen readers and other assistive technologies, the group said. It also urged the commission to keep fees and state and local taxes broken out into their own line items.

Consumer advocacy groups and others are expressing concern that the FCC's proposed changes to its broadband consumer label rules focus heavily on easing the requirements for providers when the greater problem is their widespread lack of compliance.  

Source: Fierce Network | By Linda Hardesty

Johnston said, “There are people that get paid a lot more than me to read those tea leaves, and at this point, it is going to be very difficult to say.” He said the FCC will have to take more comments and write an order and get it published in the Federal Register before it can then be challenged. And the two current lawsuits in California are only just beginning. 

Petitions and appeals are flying between AT&T and government groups as AT&T accelerates its agenda to get out of the landline telephone business in California. But AT&T hasn’t provided data to prove that its alternative connectivity solution will definitely work in the most remote locations of the state, according to a consumer advocacy group.  

Source: ARS Technica | By Jon Brodkin

California told the FCC that AT&T is lying when it claims that state rules prevent it from replacing copper with fiber. The Utility Reform Network, an advocacy group in California, told the FCC that AT&T’s wireless home phone service is “an ill-suited replacement for existing legacy infrastructure.”  

California can keep enforcing rules that require AT&T to offer basic phone service to new customers in its wireline territory, following a federal judge’s ruling last week.  AT&T sued California in May in a bid to end the state’s Carrier of Last Resort (COLR) rules that require it to offer telephone service to any potential customer in its territory. AT&T asked for a preliminary injunction that would prevent California from enforcing the COLR rules while the litigation continues.

Source: Sebastopol Times | By Roger Coryell

There’s a new turn in the fight over AT&T’s plan to shut off its old copper phone lines.  On July 15, four groups asked a federal judge in San Diego to let them join AT&T’s lawsuit and fight on California’s side. The four are a group that speaks for the state’s rural counties, a consumer group called TURN, another that speaks for all of California’s counties, and the union for phone workers. Sonoma County is one of the 40 counties the rural group represents.

The same day, the judge, Linda Lopez, let the groups hand the court a brief with their views. AT&T had tried to block even that. Now the groups want more: the right to make their own arguments and to appeal if they lose, instead of leaving the defense to state officials. The judge hasn’t said yes or no yet. 

Source: Broadband Breakfast | By Jericho Casper

Before being granted party status in the case, TURN and its coalition partners had previously filed an amicus curiae brief supporting the CPUC and California Attorney General Rob Bonta's position. In a brief filed June 26, the groups argued that the CPUC is acting within its authority to protect universal service, a policy they said is important at both the state and federal levels.

A federal judge Thursday rejected an effort by AT&T to temporarily stop California regulators from requiring the company to provide basic telephone service.  AT&T had sought a preliminary injunction in its suit challenging the California Public Utilities Commission’s carrier of last resort rules. U.S. District Judge Linda Lopez of the Southern District of California denied AT&T’s request, allowing the rules to remain in effect while the case moves forward.  

Source: Vanguard News Group | By Lily Kenrow

The Rural County Representatives of California, California State Association of Counties, The Utility Reform Network and the Communications Workers of America, filed an amicus curiae brief in June in support of the CPUC and the Attorney General in the lawsuit.  While there are pending lawsuits and petitions, California rules remain in place and protect landline services till further decisions are made. 

AT&T has announced that it plans to move away from copper-based services, including phasing out landline services, across California starting June 1, 2027.