Wireless Wave: Where do you fall in the universal service reform discussion, in light of the interest the CPUC has shown in making telecommunications available to more low income and under-served residents?
Comissioner Chong: We’re looking at whether to reform California’s current univer-sal service programs to be more technology neutral. Our subsidies currently flow almost exclusively to wireline carriers and distort the marketplace. We don’t want to shut out our low income or disability communities, for example, from more advanced services such as wireless or possibly broadband which matured after our universal service programs were put in place in California. We should look into expanding services such as our deaf and dis-abled equipment program to wireless and other advanced technologies.
A twenty-something deaf woman explained to us that a mobile text pager such as a Side-kick meant she could go out and get a job, instead of being tethered to her home-based equipment under our current program. There are costs associated with this, of course, so that’s an issue. Further, we have work to do with the wireless carriers to make wireless products more friendly to the disability com-munity’s physical needs.
We’re also going to take a hard look at our state low-income program. It’s about $435 million a year, and the PUC has asked in a recent rulemaking proceeding whether we should make LifeLine technology neutral and not just limit it to wired phones, given advances in technology.
Surprisingly, in low income communities, we see a willingness to “cut the cord” and get rid of their landline phone in favor of a mobile phone, so I think our programs should give flexibility for consumer preferences.
Wireless Wave: What other topics have your attention these days?
Comissioner Chong: Wireless phones are critical for public safety applications. I am pushing the work to go faster to help estab-lish interoperability on public safety phone systems in terms of a regional crisis.
As to cell siting, I’ve heard from a lot of wireless companies that are in the midst of large buildouts here in California. They want to invest in improving communication infra-structure in California, but are frustrated by delays with some of the local authorities doing the required environmental reviews. So, the PUC is looking at whether we can stream-line our current review process in terms of wireless siting to speed things up.
