(a) On or before March 1, 1984, and annually thereafter, every telephone corporation operating within a service area shall issue to each of its residential subscribers, in a manner and form approved by the commission, a listing of the residential telephone services it provides, the rates or charges for those services, and the state or federal regulatory agency or agencies responsible for regulation of those services.
(b) On or before March 1, 1988, and annually thereafter, every telephone corporation operating within a service area providing public telephone service shall provide to each of its residential subscribers, in a manner and form approved by the commission, a description of that public telephone service and the telephone corporation’s policies for providing that service, which shall include policies of public need and safety. The description shall also specify how a customer or subscriber can contact the telephone corporation by telephone or mail, or both, for additional information concerning these public telephone policies or for assistance regarding a specific public telephone. The commission shall require that this information be published separately from, but transmitted to subscribers together with, the information specified in subdivision (a).
This subdivision does not apply to any corporation or person which owns or operates coin-activated telephone equipment available for public use but which is not a telephone corporation.
(c) Every charge imposed on business or residential telephone subscribers in response to rules or regulations of the Federal Communications Commission shall be shown separately from other charges on a subscriber’s billing statement. Every telephone corporation operating within a service area shall do either of the following:
(1) Identify these charges, by asterisk or other means, with the following phrase:
THIS CHARGE IS (or THESE CHARGES ARE) IMPOSED BY ACTION OF THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION.
(2) Include in the subscriber’s billing statement a listing of the total charges imposed pursuant to tariff of the Federal Communications Commission identified with the following phrase:
TOTAL CHARGES IMPOSED BY ACTION OF THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION.
The billing statement shall also provide the address and telephone number of the Federal Communications Commission to which inquiries may be directed.
(d) The commission shall, by rule or order, specify methods for compliance with this section, which shall include all of the following:
(1) An explanation of the configuration of telecommunications services in California following implementation of the final decision of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia circuit in the case of United States v. American Telephone and Telegraph Company (552 F. Supp. 131) decided on August 19, 1982, and the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the regulatory agencies responsible for the regulation of intrastate and interstate telephone service.
(2) A general description of the services provided by the telephone corporation or telecommunications provider issuing the explanation, how those services may be obtained, and a notice that other providers are available.
(3) A description of billing charges which may appear on the telephone corporation’s or the telecommunications provider’s billing statements.
(4) Procedures the subscribers, including subscribers equipped with telephone devices for the handicapped, may follow to protest items billed to the subscriber, and how to contact the telephone corporation or the telecommunications provider concerning those charges.
(Amended by Stats. 1991, Ch. 134, Sec. 1.)
Last modified: October 25, 2018