1 / 7

California LifeLine Program Update

California LifeLine Program Update. Low Income Oversight Board May 16, 2013. California LifeLine Program Update. CA LifeLine Proceeding All Party Meeting – January 2013 Scoping Memo Issued April 10, 2013 Opening Comments Due May 13 Reply Comments Due May 31

kynan
Download Presentation

California LifeLine Program Update

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. California LifeLine ProgramUpdate Low Income Oversight Board May 16, 2013

  2. California LifeLine Program Update • CA LifeLine Proceeding • All Party Meeting – January 2013 • Scoping Memo Issued April 10, 2013 • Opening Comments Due May 13 • Reply Comments Due May 31 • Public Participation Hearings Scheduled • May 14 – Rancho Cordova • May 15 – San Francisco • June 12 – San Diego • June 17 – Riverside • June 18 – Los Angeles • July 17 – Eureka (updated from July 16) • July 31 – Fresno • August 13 – Salinas

  3. Summary of Basic Service Elements • Provider must offer the ability to place and receive voice grade calls over all distances, including access to: • 911/Enhanced 911. • Directory Assistance. • Optional white pages directory (or an electronic equivalent). • Billing Provisions • The option for customers to purchase a flat-rate plan to receive unlimited incoming calls without a per-minute or per-call charge. • Carriers are required to offer a stand-alone CA LifeLine rate to qualified residential customers. • Customers must have an option to a monthly rate without a contract or early termination penalty. • Carriers must offer stand-alone basic services, without a requirement to purchase additional features/services. Although these options can be offered to the customer. • One-time free blocking for information services and one-time billing adjustments for charges incurred inadvertently, mistakenly, or without authorization. • Toll Free Services • At least one basic service option that allows unlimited 800/8YY toll free calls. • The carrier must provide full disclosure of 800 number billing options. • Access to Public Programs • Telephone Relay Services for deaf or hearing-impaired persons or individuals with speech difficulties. • Information on the CA LifeLine program.

  4. Major Issues in the CA LifeLine Proceeding • Service Elements for CA LifeLine: • Should they be changed? • Should they be different than the general Basic Service Elements? • Should they be different for wireless providers? • What should be the requirements for wireless (and VoIP) participation in the CA LifeLine program • Will it result in state subsidy in addition to federal subsidy for wireless LifeLine plans? • These may include a minimum number of monthly minutes/texts to qualify. • Should there be more rules governing: • Bundled service? • Connection charges? • Contract or early termination fees?

  5. Major Issues in the CA LifeLine Proceeding (continued) • Administrative changes, including: • Making the process more transparent for consumers, stakeholders, etc. • Should CA LifeLine continue to require applicants to pay retail rates until they qualify (pre-qualification)? • Should the Commission institute a “pre-registration” process whereby applicants can obtain pre-approval of CA LifeLine eligibility before they sign up of service with a carrier of their choice? • Is the program outreach sufficient and effective? • Should the customer rate cap be extended beyond June 30, 2013? • Should the carrier reimbursement process be re-evaluated?

  6. Direct Application Process and Wireless • Current statistics for the DAP program to date (4/24/13): • A total of 19,840 transaction. • 15,490 were successful • 4,350 errored (customer already existed, usually due to multiple submission attempts) • Wireless Participation in LifeLine (4/20/13) • Cricket – 18,428 Approved, 4,604 Pending • Nexus – 76,076 Approved, 20,958 Pending • Telscape Wireless – 181 Approved, 25 Pending • Assurance (Virgin Mobile) – 557 Approved, 140 Pending

  7. Contact Information • Benjamin Schein – LifeLine Implementation • BDA@cpuc.ca.gov; (415) 703-1088 • Michaela Pangilinan – LifeLine Outreach • WOW@cpuc.ca.gov; (415) 703-1890 • RHA, Inc. (Outreach Contractor) – Vanessa Anderson • vanderson@rhainc.com; (559) 447-7000 • Consumer Affairs Branch • http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/puc/cec/e_complaint/; (800) 649-7570 • Xerox State and Local Solutions, Inc. (LifeLine Public Call Center) • https://www.californialifeline.com/en • (866) 272-0349 – English (866) 272-0354 – Korean • (866) 272-0350 – Spanish (866) 272-0355 – Vietnamese • (866) 272-0351 – Lao/Hmong (866) 272-0356 – Chinese • (866) 272-0352 – Khmer (866) 296-0860 – Japanese • (866) 272-0353 – Tagalog 7

More Related