Telecommunications: Public Utilities Commission: Federal Communications Commission: forbearance petitions.

The federal Communications Act of 1934, as amended by the federal Telecommunications Act of 1996, establishes a program of cooperative federalism for the regulation of telecommunications to attain the goal of local competition, while implementing specific, predictable, and sufficient federal and state mechanisms to preserve and advance universal service, consistent with certain universal service principles. The act authorizes an incumbent local exchange carrier, as defined, to file a forbearance petition with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to require the FCC to forbear from applying any regulation or any provision of the act to a telecommunications carrier, as defined, or telecommunications service, as defined, in any or some of its or their geographic markets, if the FCC makes certain determinations. Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has regulatory authority over public utilities, including telephone corporations, as defined. This bill would provide that if an incumbent local exchange carrier files a forbearance petition with the FCC requesting that the FCC forbear from enforcing that carrier's duty to provide to any requesting telecommunications carrier nondiscriminatory access to network elements on an unbundled basis at any technically feasible point on rates, terms, and conditions that are just, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory, within any metropolitan statistical area located in the state, the PUC would be required to participate in that forbearance proceeding by filing comments on the petition, providing data on competition in the metropolitan statistical area that is the subject of the petition, and taking any other action that advances the state's policies promoting competition in telecommunications markets. The bill would require the PUC to develop a sample data request for collecting data on competition in any California metropolitan statistical area, and would require all providers of voice communications services, as specified, to provide all data and other information relevant to the forbearance petition requested by the PUC. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the PUC is a crime. Because the provisions of this bill are within the act and certain of the bill's provisions require action by the PUC to implement, a violation of these provisions would impose a state-mandated local program by creating a new crime. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.