COM/GFB/RW1/vfw Alternate Draft Item 44b

Agenda ID# 3570

Alternate to Agenda ID #2513

Quasi-legislative

Decision ALTERNATE PROPOSED DECISION OF COMMISSIONER BROWN

(Mailed 5/13/2004)

BEFORE THE PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

Order Instituting Rulemaking on the Commission's Own Motion to Establish Consumer Rights and Consumer Protection Rules Applicable to All Telecommunications Utilities.

Rulemaking 00-02-004 (Filed February 3, 2000)

INTERIM DECISION ISSUING GENERAL ORDER ___,

RULES GOVERNING TELECOMMUNICATIONS CONSUMER PROTECTION

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page

INTERIM DECISION ISSUING GENERAL ORDER ___,
RULES GOVERNING TELECOMMUNICATIONS CONSUMER
PROTECTION 2

Summary 2

Background 3

Part 1: Bill of Rights 7

Part 2: Consumer Protection Rules 16

Relationship to Existing Rules and Tariffs 16

Tariffs 17

CLC Rules 18

Detariffed IEC Rules 19

CMRS Rules, and the CMRS Proceeding 19

General Orders 21

State and Federal Statutes, and FCC Orders 22

Applicability 23

To Carriers 23

To Consumers 24

Other 26

The New Consumer Protection Rules 27

Rule 1: Carrier Disclosure 27

Rule 2: Marketing Practices 38

Rule 3 (and Former Rule 4): Service Initiation and Changes 42

Rule 4: Prepaid Calling Cards and Services 52

Rule 5: Deposits to Establish or Re-establish Service 57

Rule 6: Billing 60

Rule 7: Late-Payment Penalties, Backbilling, and Prorating 68

Rule 8: Tariff Changes, Contract Changes, Notices and Transfers 73

Rule 9 (and Former Rule 10): Service Termination 80

Rule 11: Billing Disputes 85

Rule 12 89

Rule 13: Consumer Affairs Branch Requests for Information 89

Rule 14: Employee Identification 90

Rule 15: Emergency 911 Service 92

Part 3: Reserved 94

Part 4: Rules Governing Billing for Non-Communications-Related Charges 94

Part 5: Rules Governing Slamming Complaints 96

Background 96

The FCC Slamming Rules 99

The CPUC Slamming Rules 101

The Parties' Comments 103

Detariffing 106

Limitation of Liability 111

Education and Enforcement 114

Education 114

Enforcement 119

Scoping Memo 125

Pending Motions 126

Comments on Draft Decision 143

Assignment of Proceeding 148

Findings of Fact 148

Conclusions of Law 152

INTERIM ORDER 156

Appendix A - General Order

INTERIM DECISION ISSUING GENERAL ORDER ___,

RULES GOVERNING TELECOMMUNICATIONS CONSUMER PROTECTION

Summary

By this decision the Commission adopts General Order No. ___ (G.O. ___), Rules Governing Telecommunications Consumer Protection, applicable to all Commission-regulated telecommunications utilities. G.O. ___ sets forth: in Part 1, a telecommunications consumers' Bill of Rights, the fundamental consumer rights that all communications service providers must respect; in Part 2, a set of Consumer Protection Rules all carriers must follow to protect those rights; Part 3, is a reserved section; in Part 4, Rules Governing Billing for Non-communications-Related Charges, in response to recent state legislation; and in Part 5, Rules Governing Slamming Complaints, to implement federal rule changes enacted in 2000 by the Federal Communications Commission. Where the new rules supersede current rules, the order so notes. Carriers are required to revise their tariffs where they conflict with the new rules, provided, however, that those revisions implementing these rules may not reduce current consumer protections. The Commission does not at this time implement the rulemaking order's proposal to have the Consumer Protection Rules replace tariffs for competitive telecommunications services.

This proceeding remains open to consider whether the Commission should establish a privacy rule in addition to existing P.U. Code Section 2891, implement a telecommunications consumer education program, and if so, how it should be structured; whether to curtail the Commission-sanctioned limitation of liability; and whether additional rules requiring that communications directed at consumers and subscribers be in languages other than English are needed.