Competition Failed, Says Commissioner; CPUC Opens Broadband Rulemaking
Federal failure to spread broadband requires systemic changes, said California Public Utilities Commissioner Martha Guzman Aceves at the agency's Thursday livestreamed virtual meeting. CPUC members voted 5-0 to open a rulemaking on ways to spur high-speed internet. “We’ve been forced…
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by our federal government to succumb to rules based on imaginary definitions of what the internet is, which then block our ability to ensure universal service and affordable service through regulation,” said Guzman Aceves. A “neoliberalism economic theory” that competition will fill gaps “has failed many Californians,” she said. Nearly a quarter of its households -- 8.4 million Californians -- don’t have internet at home, the commissioner said. Less than 7% of Californians have a choice of three or more providers, while half have two and more than 40% have one or none, she said. Guzman Aceves sought ideas to expand fiber and make infrastructure open access. “We need fresh participants,” including public networks and public-private partnerships, she added. President Marybel Batjer “enthusiastically” supports the rulemaking, she said. “This is so needed.” Commissioner Cliff Rechtschaffen added that it’s “incredibly timely given the COVID pandemic and the disparity that it’s underscored.”