Assembly Communications and Conveyance Committee, Wednesday, March 11, 2026

11 März 2026

Derzeit keine Kapitel verfügbar

Assembly Communications and Conveyance Committee Mi., 11. März 2026 California State Assembly

Ihren Sitzungen folgen

33:33 - 33:38

Redner 1

Thank you everyone for joining us here today for today's communication committee hearing on

33:38 - 38:59

Redner 2

the California Public Utilities Commission. My name is Tasha Burner. I serve as the chair of the committee. Joining me on the dais today are assembly I thought it was wrong. You'd think after three years of being chair, I remember the buttons, but every year.

So let me start over. Thank you everyone for joining us today at today's communication and conveyance committee hearing on the California Public Utility Commission. My name is Tasha Berner. I serve as the chair of the committee. Joining me on the dais today is, assembly member Chris Rogers.

We're also being joined by Emilio Perez, the chief consultant of the communications committee, and Daniel Ballin, the Republican policy consultant. Before we begin our presentation, I'd like to take care of some logistical housekeeping. As we proceed with witnesses and public comment, I wanna make sure everyone understands the assembly has rules to ensure that we maintain order and run an efficient and fair hearing. We apply these rules consistently to all people who participate in the proceedings regardless of the viewpoints they express. We seek to protect the rights of all who participate in the legislative process so that we can have effective deliberation and decisions on the critical issues facing California.

You can exit the hearing room once you've done testifying or return to your seat. Now let's cover the ground rules for appropriate conduct. The assembly has experienced a number of disruptions to committee and floor proceedings in the last few years. As you came into the hearing room today, the sergeants directed your attention to the rules for public attendance and participation, which were posted outside the door. In order to facilitate the goal of hearing as much from the public within the limits of our time, we will not permit conduct that disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of legislative proceedings.

We will not accept disruptive behavior or behavior that incites or threatens violence. The rules for today's hearing include no talking or loud noises from the audience. Public comment may be provided only at the designated time, place as permitted by me, the chair. Public comment must be related to the subject being discussed today, and no engaging engaging in conduct that disrupts, disturbs, or otherwise impedes the orderly conduct of the hearing. Please be aware that violations of these rules may be may subject you to removal or other enforcement actions.

So thank you for your cooperation on the housekeeping items today. Now we can transition to the substantive portion of today's oversight hearing on the California Public Utilities Commission. Since I've been chair of this committee, I've been insistent about ensuring the legislature exercises regular oversight on the CPUC programs falling under our jurisdiction. In the recent past, we have focused our hearings on last mile broadband, infrastructure programs, transportation network companies, and also carrier of last resort. At the same time, this committee has considered legislation that raises questions about the administrative structure of telecommunications and broadband regulation in our state.

For example, many of you are aware I've advocated for establishing a new agency to oversee broadband and telecommunications policy in our state. That agency would play a similar role to the Federal Communications Commission so that this important but niche area of policy could get focused attention it deserves. My colleagues have also introduced legislation that raised reasonable questions about whether the CPUC, especially in its current form, is most is the most suitable regulatory structure to meet our state's public policy objectives. For example, my colleague, assembly member McKinnon, is a strong advocate for rethinking how our state can transition from a leg legacy regulatory structure to a new structure that unleashes investment in a competitive market while protecting consumers. My colleague, assembly member Bonta, has also moved legislation that proposes greater oversight of broadband companies, but notably, that would happen outside the structure of the CPUC.

Given all this context, my intention with this year's hearing is to make more room for discussion about what I view as structural challenges to meeting our public policy objectives under the current structure of the CPUC. My reasons are not personal to any commissioner, and they are not a criticism of the staff of the CPUC who I believe do their best to serve the public. Thank you to the staff work at the CPUC. Our state will be investing billions of dollars into broadband infrastructure over the next five years. However, challenges still remain.

Despite our investment, policy decisions were taken that made achieving universal service more expensive and out of reach. My vision for the future of broadband and telecommunications legislation in the state it based on is based on believing that more is possible and that a focused and efficient regulatory agency could help us get there. One of the most obvious challenges the CPUC has has structurally is that there are only five commissioners who must oversee a breadth of public policy challenges that include electric rates and reliability, climate initiatives, utilities, utility wildfires on top of regulation of passenger carriers and telecommunications. There's seemingly a choke point to expect five people to be expert decision makers on that breadth of policy areas and to engage with the public on that number of matters. The things I hear my constituents complain about most is not broadband or their Uber ride.

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