CPUC Staff Recommends Connections-Based State USF
The California Public Utilities Commission seeks comment by Nov. 30 on a staff recommendation to switch to connections-based state USF contribution, Administrative Law Judge Hazlyn Fortune ruled Friday in docket R.21-03-002. Fortune's schedule includes replies due Dec. 15, a hearing…
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Feb. 7-11 and a proposed decision in April. "Staff recommends that a flat, single-end user surcharge be adopted,” which would be more equitable and stable than the existing revenue-based approach, the report said. This would combine a multitude of public purpose program (PPP) charges into one per-access line surcharge that would be applied equally to all customer classes and service types, it said. Staff estimated the surcharge would be $1.11 monthly for all customers, based on a forecast $738 million budget for the state's PPPs in FY 2022-23. It proposed declaring an access line "means a 'telephone line' as defined in Public Utilities Code section 233 and is associated with one assigned California phone number, and shall include, but is not limited to, a 'wireline communications service line,' a 'wireless communications service line,” and a 'Voice over Internet Protocol service line.'" Staff doesn't object to giving carriers six months to implement the mechanism, it said. Big wireless carriers raised concerns in April about a connections method (see 2104060029).