Charging Faith

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: The Hemet and San Jancinto Chronicle | By HSJC Newsroom

In a unanimous 4-0 vote Thursday, commissioners rejected the utilities’ plan, saying it failed to provide “sufficient health protections for customers.” The panel had originally set May 1 as the deadline for new rules to take effect. When utilities missed that deadline, consumer advocates filed emergency motions demanding action.  By May, with utilities still lagging, The Utility Reform Network joined forces with the San Diego-based Utility Consumers’ Action Network, the National Consumer Law Center and the Center for Accessible Technology to formally ask the commission to step in.

California utility regulators have moved to strengthen protections for customers facing power shutoffs during dangerous heat waves, ruling this week that major electric companies failed to deliver on requirements to better shield vulnerable residents from disconnection when temperatures soar.  The decision comes as another punishing heat wave grips much of the state, underscoring the real-world stakes of the debate. In rural areas, losing electricity can also mean losing access to water, since many wells rely on electric pumps. In cities, going without air conditioning or fans during a prolonged hot spell can pose serious health risks, and in extreme cases, prove fatal.

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. 

Source: CalMatters | By Alejandro Lazo

By May, with utilities still behind schedule, The Utility Reform Network joined with the San Diego-based Utility Consumers’ Action Network, the National Consumer Law Center and the Center for Accessible Technology,asking the commission to intervene.  This week the commission rejected the utilities’ proposal, siding with advocates. The path the utilities were proposing would be “no different” than prior practice. The resolution noted the extreme heat threshold is already below 100 degrees in 41 of California’s 58 counties. 

California bars utilities from cutting off power to customers who fall behind on their bills when it’s dangerously hot outside – a basic safety protection. Losing power in some rural areas can also mean losing water, and in cities, having no way to cool down can be dangerous, even deadly, when hot weather spans several days. 

Source: Benton Institute for Broadband & Society

The Utility Reform Network (TURN) has filed a motion to intervene in AT&T’s federal lawsuit against the California Public Utilities Commission and California Attorney General. TURN submitted this filing in partnership with the California State Association of Counties (CSAC), Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC), and the Communications Workers of America (CWA). 

AT&T’s lawsuit aims to have the federal courts determine that California’s Carrier of Last Resort (COLR) rules do not align with federal policy. If successful, California would be unable to enforce these rules against AT&T or any other designated COLR. 

Source: Sierra Sun Times | By Gerd Altman

“Extreme heat and utility disconnections are a dangerous combination that can put lives at risk. Today's decision recognizes that access to electricity is essential for health and safety during increasingly frequent heat events,” said Lee Trotman, communications director at The Utility Reform Network (TURN). “By requiring utilities to use CalHeatScore and lowering the temperature threshold for disconnection protections, the CPUC has taken an important step to better protect Californians — especially seniors, families with young children, people with disabilities, and low-income households — from losing power when they need it most.”

The California Public Utilities Commission on Thursday unanimously agreed to reduce the temperature that triggers a statewide ban on utility disconnections to 90 degrees Fahrenheit, rejecting corporate utilities’ proposal to keep the threshold at 100 degrees.

Source: Communications Daily |

The interveners, which include The Utility Reform Network (TURN), the California State Association of Counties, Rural County Representatives of California and the Communications Workers of America, have previously filed briefs in the case in support of California’s COLR requirements.

“California’s COLR rules are the cornerstone to ensuring that every California resident is able to access voice services,” TURN Executive Director Mark Toney said in a Thursday news release about the motion.

Source: Broadband Breakfast | By Jericho Casper

 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: Imperial Valley Press | By Staff Reporting

The legal maneuver, filed in partnership with a broad coalition including The Utility Reform Network (TURN), the California State Association of Counties (CSAC), and the Communications Workers of America (CWA), seeks formal party status in the ongoing battle over California's telecommunications safety net. The lawsuit, brought by Pacific Bell Telephone Company (doing business as AT&T California) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, seeks to dismantle the state's Carrier of Last Resort (COLR) requirements.

The Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC) has launched a legal bid to protect reliable phone services for millions of rural residents by filing a motion to intervene in AT&T’s federal lawsuit against the state’s utility regulators.

Source: Lost Coast Outpost | By LoCO Staff

The Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC) has taken legal action to protect reliable communications service for rural Californians by filing a motion to intervene in AT&T’s federal lawsuit against the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and the California Attorney General. RCRC conducted this filing in partnership with The Utility Reform Network (TURN), the California State Association of Counties (CSAC), and the Communications Workers of America (CWA).

COLR requirements play a critical role in ensuring access to communications services during emergencies, natural disasters, and power outages. For many rural residents, landline service remains one of the most dependable forms of communication when other networks fail.

Source: Communications Daily | By Philip Athey

Alexandra Green, a telecom and regulatory attorney for TURN, said she appreciated that both proposed decisions include conditions on the merger. "We're still reviewing some of those conditions," she told us. "I can see some cases with each proposed decision where there are conditions that reflect things that TURN and other parties have asked for, and that's encouraging.”  She said more details about TURN's positions on the proposed decisions will be included in the group's comments on the decision, which are due July 29.

In a win for proponents of the Charter/Cox merger, approval of the $34.5 billion deal will be on the California Public Utilities Commission’s agenda at its Aug. 13 voting meeting, a CPUC spokesperson told us Friday. The commission will have the option to vote on two proposals, which were released Thursday and would apply conditions to the transaction. 

Source: The Los Angeles Times | By Jenny Jarvie

The FCC decision does not allow AT&T to immediately discontinue its landlines, said Ryan Johnston, a telecommunications regulatory attorney who works for the Utility Reform Network. The company is still waiting for FCC decisions on two separate applications, he said, plus a federal court ruling on AT&T’s request to bar California from enforcing its carrier of last resort rule.

As telecommunications giant AT&T accelerates its push to retire landline service to about 184,000 households and 15,000 businesses across the state, hundreds of Californians have voiced alarm in public comments. Many who rely on copper-wire landlines live in remote rural areas, but some also live in the hills and canyons of major metro areas like Los Angeles, where cell and internet service is patchy and the risk of natural disasters is high.