BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 1903|
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UNFINISHED BUSINESS
Bill No: SB 1903
Author: O'Connell (D)
Amended: 8/8/02
Vote: 21
SENATE ENERGY, U.&C. COMMITTEE : 6-2, 4/9/02
AYES: Bowen, Alarcon, Murray, Sher, Vasconcellos, Vincent
NOES: Morrow, Battin
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 7-4, 5/13/02
AYES: Alpert, Bowen, Escutia, Karnette, Murray, Perata,
Speier
NOES: Battin, Johnson, McPherson, Poochigian
SENATE FLOOR : 24-14, 5/28/02
AYES: Alarcon, Alpert, Bowen, Burton, Chesbro, Dunn,
Escutia, Figueroa, Karnette, Kuehl, Machado, Murray,
O'Connell, Ortiz, Peace, Perata, Polanco, Romero, Scott,
Sher, Soto, Speier, Torlakson, Vasconcellos
NOES: Ackerman, Battin, Brulte, Haynes, Johannessen,
Johnson, Knight, Margett, McClintock, McPherson,
Monteith, Morrow, Oller, Poochigian
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 49-29, 8/12/02 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Commercial mobile radio service providers
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill requires cellular telephone service
providers to establish a means by which customers can
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obtain current information on their calling plans and
usage.
Assembly Amendments a) reword the intent language, b)
remove the requirement that the State Public Utilities
Commission (PUC) shall adopt regulations, c) push back the
implementation date to January 2004, and d) clarify that
the bill applies only to cellular phones and not to one-way
paging services.
ANALYSIS : Current federal law permits states to
establish customer service rules for cellular telephone
companies.
Existing law requires anyone who charges subscribers for
products or services on a telephone bill to include in the
bill the amount being charged for each product or service,
including any taxes or charges, along with a clear and
concise description of the service or product.
This bill requires cellular telephone service providers to
give customers a way to obtain current information on their
calling plan and usage. Specifically, this bill:
1.Requires commercial mobile radio service providers,
commonly known as cellular telephone service providers,
to give subscribers a method to obtain current
information on the subscriber's calling plan or plans and
service usage.
2.Specifies that the service provider may determine what
information is reasonably current and available, but that
the information must be made available to subscribers no
later than January 1, 2004.
3.Directs cellular service providers to inform their
subscribers of this service, and how to get it, at the
time service is first established.
4.Excludes one-way paging and narrowband personal
communications services from the requirements.
Background
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Most cellular telephone service plans include a specified
number of minutes of service in the monthly price. Minutes
beyond that specified number are subject to additional,
relatively high charges which, not surprisingly, motivate
customers to try and keep close track of their usage. For
example, a typical plan might cost $39.99/month, which
includes up to 400 minutes of service (10 cents a minute if
the customer uses all 400 minutes), but that 401st minute
and every minute of usage after that may cost customers 40
cents apiece.
Many cellular phones can track minutes of use, but that
tracking isn't what the cellular carrier bases the
customer's bill on. Rather, cellular carriers rely on
their own internal billing systems to track usage.
This bill doesn't specify a method by which the cellular
telephone companies have to provide their customers with
current usage information. While computerized access via
the cellular telephone is the most obvious means, such
information could also be made available via the Internet
or through a call to the cellular carrier's customer
service center. The details of how that information is
provided to customers is appropriately left to the CPUC.
Giving customers access to their current account
information isn't an uncommon practice. Many credit card
companies, banks, and long distance telephone companies
provide customers with up-to-date information on their
account balances via telephone or the Internet.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
SUPPORT : (Verified 8/13/02)
Office of Ratepayer Advocates
OPPOSITION : (Verified 8/13/02)
Verizon Wireless
Nextel Communications
VoiceStream Wireless
Sprint
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AT&T Wireless
Cingular
ASSEMBLY FLOOR
AYES: Alquist, Aroner, Calderon, Canciamilla, Cardenas,
Cardoza, Cedillo, Chan, Chavez, Chu, Cohn, Corbett,
Correa, Diaz, Dutra, Firebaugh, Florez, Frommer,
Goldberg, Horton, Jackson, Keeley, Kehoe, Koretz, Liu,
Longville, Lowenthal, Matthews, Migden, Nakano, Nation,
Negrete McLeod, Oropeza, Papan, Pavley, Reyes, Salinas,
Shelley, Simitian, Steinberg, Strom-Martin, Thomson,
Vargas, Washington, Wayne, Wiggins, Wright, Wyland,
Wesson
NOES: Aanestad, Ashburn, Bates, Bogh, Briggs, Bill
Campbell, Cogdill, Cox, Daucher, Dickerson, Harman,
Havice, Hollingsworth, Kelley, La Suer, Leach, Leonard,
Leslie, Maddox, Maldonado, Mountjoy, Robert Pacheco, Rod
Pacheco, Pescetti, Richman, Runner, Strickland, Wyman,
Zettel
NC:kb 8/13/02 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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