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July 01, 2024

State bill affecting Santa Clara County landlines pulled after backlash

A state bill that would have let AT&T off the hook for emergency landline service — circumventing state regulators and affecting remote pockets of Santa Clara County — is on hold after public backlash.

Assembly Bill 2797 has been pulled from the California Senate Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee meeting slated for Tuesday. It comes after the bill — originally about horse racing — was gutted and amended to give telecommunications companies another way out of their “carrier of last resort” duty if they submit a notice showing a lack of customers or that alternative services are available. Critics said AT&T is behind the bill, which Assemblymember Tina McKinnor introduced just before state utility regulators denied AT&T’s request to withdraw from its state obligation.

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