A smart phone user with his device. (Photo: TK Studio, via Shutterstock)OPINION: With the continued struggles exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, it is vitally important for consumers, especially historically underserved consumers and business communities to have access to reliable and affordable mobile services.
Assemblymember Steven Bradford claims that AB 1407 is needed to improve California’s LifeLine program (“PUC’s dithering hurts those who depend on basic phone service,” Capitol Weekly, July 29). According to Mr. Bradford, the California Public Utilities Commission has taken too long to revise the program, and AB 1407 will give LifeLine customers more choices while
The glacial pace of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has rendered California’s LifeLine program—which helps the poor, the elderly, and the disadvantaged obtain low cost telephone service—nearly obsolete. The program is many years out of date, and must be modernized to keep up with changing technologies.
The current LifeLine program only helps low-income households