Connecticut’s consumer counsel wants a probe of Frontier Communications' service quality, according to a Monday petition at the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA). The petition "provides documentary evidence from reports submitted by Frontier, reflecting failure to meet mandatory minimum standards relating to out-of-service repair and maintenance for extensive periods of time,” the consumer counsel said (docket 24-01-15). PURA should open “a contested case proceeding to investigate Frontier’s non-compliance with the specified quality of service standards and, thereafter, initiate a notice of violation proceeding to impose civil penalties and to issue appropriate orders to ensure compliance with the minimum standards as required by law,” it added. On average, across Connecticut, Frontier failed meeting an out-of-service repair standard in 44 months between January 2015 and July 2023, or about 46% of the time, the consumer counsel said. Frontier didn’t comply with a maintenance standard in 30 months, or about 31% of the time. The consumer counsel sought $10,000 in civil penalties per day of noncompliance. Frontier didn’t comment.
New Mexico Gov. Lujan Grisham (D) proposed spending $100 million to launch a state match fund that could be used for broadband. Grisham unveiled the $10.5 billion, FY 2025 executive budget recommendation Thursday. The New Mexico Match Fund would “leverage federal funding for infrastructure investments, including roads, bridges, water, energy and broadband,” Grisham’s office said.
Colorado’s challenge process starts Monday for NTIA’s broadband, equity, access and deployment (BEAD) program, the state broadband office said Thursday in an email newsletter. Colorado received NTIA approval for volume 1 of its initial plan Wednesday, allowing the office to move forward with challenges, the state office said. The state revised its first draft of volume 1 to receive NTIA approval, it said. “These changes include the removal of a number of the proposed ‘Modifications to Reflect Data Not Present in the National Broadband Map.’ As a result, the only modification made to the data is the DSL Modification.” The broadband office plans to publish the approved version in “coming days.”
An Ohio law requiring age verification to access social media runs afoul of the U.S. Constitution, NetChoice said Friday. The tech industry group asked the U.S. District Court for Southern Ohio to block the 2023 law from taking effect Jan. 15. Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted (R) lambasted the lawsuit as “cowardly but not unexpected.” Passed as part of Ohio's 2024-25 budget, the state law requires verifiable parental consent before kids under 16 can access social media (see 2307050064). Husted championed the measure (see [Ref:2303090051). Requiring Ohioans to submit sensitive personal data to age-verification services before they can share and receive information online violates the First Amendment, NetChoice argued. Also, the state law is too vague because it imposes a parental consent requirement for the internet broadly, the group said. And NetChoice complained about unclear definitions and descriptions in the law. “The law simply requires parental consent before children under the age of 16 sign up on social media and other online platforms,” Husted responded in a statement Friday. “In filing this lawsuit, these companies are determined to go around parents to expose children to harmful content and addict them to their platforms.” Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) didn’t comment by our deadline.
Verizon could soon finalize a possible settlement with The Utility Reform Network (TURN) and Center for Accessible Technology (CforAT) related to migrating TracFone customers still using non-Verizon networks, the carrier said Wednesday at the California Public Utilities Commission. “The parties have an agreement in principle on most terms and are close to resolving the remaining terms,” Verizon emailed Administrative Law Judge Thomas Glegola. The email was shared with the service list in docket A.20-11-001. While Verizon said the deal could be done in two weeks, it asked Glegola for 30 days -- until Feb. 7 -- to conclude the settlement. Verizon said CforAT and TURN support the extension. In another docket, A.23-09-006, Frontier Communications told the CPUC that it doesn’t necessarily oppose Blue Casa’s application to relinquish its eligible telecom carrier (ETC) designation and discontinue local exchange and interexchange services in AT&T and Frontier territory. But the commission should impose “reasonable conditions on Blue Casa to ensure a fair and reasonable mass migration, including setting a reasonable timeframe for any required mass migration and Blue Casa’s proposed market exit,” Frontier wrote Wednesday. “Frontier estimates that approximately eight to ten weeks from the date of the Commission’s approval of the Application would be needed to migrate the 639 Blue Casa customers that are in Frontier’s service area.” Also, the CPUC should condition the exit on Blue Casa paying its outstanding balance to Frontier and reimbursing “Frontier’s reasonable costs for implementing any forced mass migration.” Also Wednesday, CPUC Administrative Law Judge Patricia Miles set a preconference hearing for Jan. 22 on Consolidated Communications' transfer of indirect ownership and control of its California and enterprise subsidiaries to Condor Holdings. Consolidated and Condor sought New Hampshire approval last week (see 2401020037).
Kansas will designate “broadband ready” cities that address possible deployment barriers at the local level, Gov. Laura Kelly (D) said Thursday. Communities seeking the certification must adopt a local law that, at minimum, designates a single point of contact, commits to responding to applications in 30 days, limits filing fees to meet state law requirements, requires a move to electronic filing and prohibits discrimination in permitting procedures.
Colorado will spend about $113 million on broadband using federal cash from the U.S. Capital Projects Fund (CPF), Gov. Jared Polis (D) and the state broadband office said Wednesday. The state expects to connect about 19,000 homes and businesses, including many in Colorado's south and southwest regions, the broadband office said. Big winners include Clearnetworx ($25.3 million), Maverix Broadband ($25.2 million), the Southern Colorado Economic Development District ($12.5 million) and Fort Collins’ municipal broadband network ($10.8 million).
Kansas lawmakers might scrap a state 911 audit during the session that opens Monday. The House and Senate Legislative Post Audit committees prefiled similar bills Tuesday (SB-330 and HB-2483). Those bills would eliminate a five-year audit that checks if public safety answering points are appropriately using 911 funding, whether they have enough money, and the status of 911 service implementation. The first audit was required in 2018.
Kentucky state representatives and senators will consider different comprehensive data privacy bills during the 2024 legislative session, which opened Tuesday. On day one Rep. Phillip Pratt (R) introduced the 22-page HB-24, while Sen. Whitney Westerfield (R) floated SB-15, a 31-page piece of legislation. The House bill would apply to businesses that process personal data of at least 100,000 consumers annually, while the number in the Senate version is 50,000. Both bills would also apply to companies that process data of at least 25,000 consumers while deriving more than 50% of gross revenue from selling personal data. Among the differences, SB-15 would allow consumers to use global privacy controls to opt out, such as through a browser plugin or setting. Both bills allow enforcement solely by the state attorney general, with a 30-day right to cure and no private right of action. In addition, both would take effect Jan. 1, 2026. Going into 2024, 13 states had comprehensive privacy laws.
The Idaho Public Utilities Commission granted Terracom’s application for eligible telecom carrier (ETC) designation, the PUC said Wednesday. Doing business as Maxsip Tel, Terracom may receive reimbursement from the Idaho Telephone Service Assistance Program, said the PUC.order (docket TRA-T-23-01). The company sought ETC designation to allow it to provide Lifeline service.