CA SB 716

introduced

Lifeline program: broadband internet access service.

California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · upper

Description

Existing law, the Moore Universal Telephone Service Act, establishes the Universal Lifeline Telephone Service program to provide low-income households with access to affordable basic residential telephone service. Existing law requires all revenues collected by telephone corporations in rates authorized by the Public Utilities Commission to fund the Universal Lifeline Telephone Service program to be submitted to the commission pursuant to a schedule established by the commission. Existing law requires all moneys appropriated from the Universal Lifeline Telephone Service Trust Administrative Committee Fund to the commission to be used exclusively by the commission for the Universal Lifeline Telephone Service program. This bill would require the commission, as part of a new or existing proceeding, to establish a mechanism to permit internet service providers to voluntarily include stand-alone broadband internet access service as a class of lifeline service. The bill would provide that an internet service provider would be eligible for a lifeline subsidy if it offers at least one internet service plan that provides broadband internet access service at a speed of at least 100 megabits per second downstream and 20 megabits per second upstream and costs $30 or less per month. The bill would authorize the commission to adjust the speed and monthly plan cost for certain areas of the state, as provided. The bill would prohibit the commission from requiring a lifeline subscriber to bundle their voice and internet service plans in order to receive a lifeline subsidy pursuant to these provisions, as specified. The bill would prohibit the commission from providing a lifeline subscriber with more than one lifeline subsidy per household under the act, as provided. The bill would prohibit an internet service provider from being required to obtain an eligible telecommunications carrier designation in order to obtain a lifeline subsidy, except as provided. The bill would require the commission to prohibit internet service providers that offer lifeline service pursuant to these provisions from the inappropriate upselling of their internet service plans, as specified. The bill would require the commission, on or before December 31, 2026, to submit to the Legislature an estimate of any increase to the Universal Service Public Purpose Programs surcharge rate required for the implementation of these provisions. The bill would prohibit the commission from increasing the surcharge for the lifeline program above the highest rate collected within the previous 4 years, as of January 1, 2026. The bill would require the commission, on or before July 1, 2027, to adopt rules to implement these provisions. The bill would repeal these provisions on January 1, 2032. The bill would require the commission, on or before July 1, 2028, to report to the Legislature, as part of a specified report, on the performance and fiscal impact of the lifeline program, as specified. Under existing law, a violation of the Public Utilities Act or any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime. Because the above-described provisions would be part of the act and a violation of a commission action implementing this bill's requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 23 of the membership of each house of the Legislature.

Introduced: 2025-02-21
Status date: —
Latest action: 2026-06-23 — Ordered to third reading.
Bill type: bill
Last updated: —

Subjects

Committees

Not provided by source.

Action timeline

2025-02-21
Introduced. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
introduction,referral-committee
2025-02-24
From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 24.
2025-02-24
Read first time.
reading-1
2025-03-12
Referred to Com. on RLS.
referral-committee
2025-03-26
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on RLS.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-04-02
Re-referred to Com. on E., U & C.
referral-committee
2025-04-11
Set for hearing April 29.
2025-04-21
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on E., U & C.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-05-05
From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 13. Noes 3. Page 935.) (April 29).
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-05-06
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-05-09
Set for hearing May 19.
2025-05-19
May 19 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
2025-05-20
Set for hearing May 23.
2025-05-23
From committee: Do pass as amended. (Ayes 5. Noes 1. Page 1210.) (May 23).
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-05-23
Read second time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2
2025-05-27
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-06-04
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 29. Noes 8. Page 1516.) Ordered to the Assembly.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-06-05
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
reading-1
2025-06-16
Referred to Com. on C. & C.
referral-committee
2025-07-17
Assembly Rule 63 suspended. (Ayes 49. Noes 15. Page 2578.)
2025-07-17
From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 7. Noes 1.) (July 16).
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-07-17
Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-08-20
August 20 set for first hearing. Placed on APPR. suspense file.
2025-08-29
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 11. Noes 4.) (August 29).
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-09-02
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-09-11
Ordered to inactive file on request of Assembly Member Aguiar-Curry.
2026-06-22
Notice of intention to remove from inactive file given by Assembly Member Garcia.
2026-06-23
From inactive file.
2026-06-23
Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-3

Versions

02/21/25 - Introduced — 2025-02-21Compare
03/26/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-03-26Compare
04/21/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-04-21Compare
05/06/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-05-06Compare
05/23/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-05-23Compare
07/17/25 - Amended Assembly — 2025-07-17Compare
SB716Compare
(document, no version)Compare

Documents

Votes

Do pass as amended, but first amend, and re-refer to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-04-29 · pass · 13-3
Member-level votes (17)
- Limón: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Allen: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Becker: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Stern: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Rubio: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Ochoa Bogh: no
- Dahle: no
- Strickland: no
- Grove: other
Placed on suspense file
2025-05-19 · pass · 5-0
Member-level votes (7)
- Wahab: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Seyarto: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Cabaldon: other
- Dahle: other
Do pass as amended
2025-05-23 · pass · 5-1
Member-level votes (7)
- Caballero: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Seyarto: no
- Dahle: other
3rd Reading
2025-06-04 · pass · 29-8
Member-level votes (40)
- Durazo: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Limón: yes
- Rubio: yes
- Pérez: yes
- Padilla: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Allen: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- McGuire: yes
- Stern: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Becker: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Laird: yes
- Jones: no
- Strickland: no
- Seyarto: no
- Alvarado-Gil: no
- Ochoa Bogh: no
- Choi: no
- Dahle: no
- Niello: no
- Valladares: other
- Reyes: other
- Grove: other
Do pass as amended and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-07-16 · pass · 7-1
Member-level votes (9)
- Caloza: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Bonta: yes
- Blanca Rubio: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Castillo: no
- Hoover: other
Do pass.
2025-08-29 · pass · 11-4
Member-level votes (15)
- Elhawary: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Fong: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Solache: yes
- Sanchez: no
- Ta: no
- Tangipa: no
- Dixon: no

Related bills

No related bills recorded for this bill.

Official source

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB716

Attribution

Data from openstates_bulk_csv, retrieved 2026-07-24T01:34:27.960412Z

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