Communications: Moore Universal Telephone Service Act and internet service providers.

Under existing law, the Public Utilities Commission has regulatory authority over public utilities, including telephone corporations. The Moore Universal Telephone Service Act requires the commission to annually designate a class of lifeline service necessary to meet minimum residential communications needs, including the ability to originate and receive calls and the ability to access electronic information service, to set the rates and charges for that service, to develop eligibility criteria for that service, and to assess the degree of achievement of universal service, including telephone penetration rates by income, ethnicity, and geography. Lifeline telephone service program rates are…