SIERRA COUNTY — Last Friday, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) proposed rejecting AT&T’s request to forgo its Carrier of Last Resort (COLR) obligations in the state. The COLR status requires AT&T to offer essential telephone services, most commonly via landline, to anyone requesting service. According to AT&T, the proposal means landline telephone service will continue in western Sierra County.

Notably, the CPUC clarified in a press release that COLR status does not explicitly require AT&T to maintain landlines, as many in our area believed. According to their press release, “COLR rules are technology-neutral and do not distinguish between voice services offered (such as Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS), commonly known as landline service, or VoIP), and do not prevent AT&T from retiring copper facilities or from investing in fiber or other facilities/technologies to improve its network.” Still, the CPUC defines standards that must be met by the basic telephone service provided, which seem to contradict the release or at least muddy the waters, and AT&T believes the only way to maintain the standards is by maintaining their landlines. The CPUC has not yet responded at the time of writing after being asked to provide an example of a carrier in California meeting COLR obligations without the use of copper cables.

When asked for comment, AT&T responded with the following statement: “We are disappointed by the CPUC’s proposed dismissal of our application for relief from Carrier of Last Resort (COLR) regulation, as we’d hoped the commission would allow us the opportunity to demonstrate why the number of options for voice service available to customers make the COLR obligation unnecessary. Not surprisingly, no providers were interested in bidding on a service with a declining number of customers given the competitive options available in today’s marketplace. We remain committed to keeping our customers connected to voice service and will continue working with state leaders on policies that allow us to bring modern communications to Californians.”

AT&T also noted, “These COLR regulations, which were created back when copper-based landlines were a primary means of communication, are decades old and were established when COLR meant that the provider was a monopoly provider in a designated service area. Today, competition is robust, and the monopoly rationale behind COLR no longer holds.” In Western Sierra County, however, AT&T is the only provider of wired communication and internet, and most of the area’s telephone communications are still conducted via AT&T-owned copper cable. Additionally, the only cell tower in western Sierra County is owned and operated by AT&T.

CPUC’s proposed rejection is due primarily to the company’s failure to present a viable “willing and able” alternative to taking over COLR obligations. CPUC rules require a COLR to be present in all service areas. The press release also cited the number of comments and high public forum participation by concerned community members in Sierra County and other regions to which the proposal applied.