The Regulatory Mix, TMI’s daily blog of regulatory activities, is a snapshot of PUC, FCC, legislative, and occasionally court issues that our regulatory monitoring team uncovers each day. Depending on their significance, some items may be the subject of a TMI Regulatory Bulletin.
TELECOM
FCC
The FCC announced it had entered into a settlement with TracFone Wireless, Inc. to resolve its investigation into whether TracFone violated the FCC’s rules by certifying its compliance with the CTIA – The Wireless Association® Consumer Code for Wireless Service (CTIA Code) despite failing to fulfill the standard requiring customer handset unlocking. (The handset unlocking provisions, which went into effect on February 11, 2015, require carriers to unlock customer handsets and to properly disclose their unlocking policies to consumers. TracFone did not have a process in place for unlocking its customers’ handsets despite representing to the FCC in its Form 481 that it would comply with the CTIA Code during the entirety of the 2015 calendar year.) See our Blog “FCC Settlement With TracFone To Total $3.2 Million” dated 7/7/15.
Colorado
On July 1, 2015, the PUC scheduled four hearings to be held in August to take public comment on whether basic service in certain areas of Colorado is subject to effective competition. TMI Regulatory Bulletin Service subscribers see Bulletin dated 9/26/14. The hearings will be held: (a) August 3, 2015, in Fort Morgan; (b) August 4, 2015, in Denver; (c) August 5, 2015, in Colorado Springs; and (d) August 6, 2015, in Delta. The hearings originally scheduled for July were vacated by PUC Decision on June 29, 2015. See the Regulatory Mix dated 5/5/15.
ENERGY
California
The PUC issued a News Release announcing that after a three year public process, the state’s residential customer electricity rates will transition to a more effective and cost-based structure. The PUC’s decision establishes customer default time of use rates on January 1, 2019, moves rates from four to two tiers, postpones a monthly fixed charge, and requires the utilities to create a special outreach program to educate lower tier customers on no-cost and low-cost conservation measures. Watch for our upcoming Blog article.
Vermont
Revised forms for use on and after July 1, 2015 for Net Metering Registration and Net Metering Application have been posted on the Public Service Board Home Page. Click here.
