No on AB 2797 - Protect Emergency Phone Communications

UPDATE: AB 2797 was pulled from the Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee on July, effectively stopping the bill from becoming law. AB 2797 would have allowed AT&T to abandon its responsibility as the carrier of last resort (COLR)—effectively leaving many communities without reliable communications services during emergencies.

Background: No on AB 2797 (McKinnor)! Protect Emergency Phone Communications

Tell the State Senate AB 2797 is up for a July 2 hearing at the Senate Energy, Utilities & Communications Committee.

AT&T has deployed an unsavory “gut and amend” maneuver to transform AB 2797 (McKinnor), originally about horse racing, into a bill that permits AT&T to abandon its obligations to provide landline service, in defiance of today’s CPUC ruling. 

AB 2797 would authorize AT&T, or any phone company, to end its COLR obligations simply by sending a letter to the CPUC, self-certifying that alternative voice services are available, stripping the CPUC of its authority to require documentation of viable home and business telephone alternatives, before granting permission to withdraw from COLR obligations.

Thanks to you, and the comments of thousands of California residents, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) voted to dismiss AT&T’s application to withdraw as Carrier of Last Resort (COLR), requiring AT&T to continue to provide landline telephone service to all customers in its territory in California. The CPUC cited public comments and the fact that no other carriers were willing to serve as a Carrier of Last Resort. The CPUC also voted to open up a new policy proceeding to update COLR obligations to provide basic phone service given technological advances. 

Public pushback against the AT&T proposal to abandon landline service was overwhelming, with 5,000 residents submitting written comments, and hundreds attending public hearings in Ukiah and Clovis, to share how they depend on reliable landline service to reach emergency responders, social services, neighbors, and family.  Many people drove hundreds of miles to speak in person.  Others waited on the phone for hours.

Copper landlines remain the most dependable network because they work during power outages, and in rural and coastal communities where cell phone service is unreliable.

Opposition to AB 2797

County Boards of Supervisors
El Dorado County, Humboldt County, Imperial County, Marin County, Mendocino County, Merced County, Monterey County,
Nevada County, San Joaquin County