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California adopts 'bill of rights' for cellphone customers

By Michael Liedtke
The Associated Press

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The state Public Utilities Commission adopted the Telecommunications Consumer Bill of Rights on a 3-2 vote.

The commission said it received more than 5,000 complaints from consumers last year about wireless companies; nationally, the Council of Better Business Bureaus said wireless carriers are the No. 2 topic of complaints filed with its bureaus, second to auto dealers.

The regulation passed after an acrimonious debate about whether the reforms represented enlightened regulation or ham-handed meddling in the free market.

Consumer activists hailed the new rules as a long-overdue breakthrough that could provide the regulatory framework for similar reforms in other states.

Wireless-industry leaders disagreed and promised to explore all options to overturn yesterday's decision.

"These rules simply represent a leap to judgment that is fundamentally inconsistent with a vigorous and competitive marketplace," said Steve Largent, president of the Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association. Largent is a former Seattle Seahawk and congressman from Oklahoma.

The industry doesn't have to adopt many of the California reforms until late November. Other changes aren't scheduled to take effect for another year.

In one of the biggest changes, dissatisfied consumers will have the right to cancel their wireless service within 30 days of signing a contract.

Other key changes include: Requiring all rates, taxes and other service terms to be clearly posted on the Internet; requiring all key contract terms to be listed in 10-point type so vital information isn't written in fine print; requiring carriers to list the address and toll-free number of regulators to make it easier for customers to file complaints.

The reforms' opponents, led by wireless carriers, contend the rules will create new layers of bureaucracy and impose new costs that will be passed on to consumers. The industry said the price increases triggered by the rules could range from $4 to $17 a month.

Consumer groups are confident the changes will benefit California's 19 million wireless phone users.

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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