CTIA Petitions CPUC for Clarity on Post-Disaster Public Outreach
CTIA is asking the California Public Utilities Commission to clarify post-disaster community engagement requirements for facilities-based telecommunications service providers. In a petition Tuesday, CTIA said the wireless industry and CPUC staff had been on the same page about community engagement requirements applying to situations where a communications provider must rebuild or do major restoration after a disaster. However, the CPUC now apparently expects community meetings for any service outage resulting from a declared disaster, CTIA said. That approach "risks frustrating and confusing communities."
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The commission should make clear that the community engagement and reporting requirements apply only when providers' network facilities are damaged or destroyed, CTIA said. It also urged the state to modify the requirements for situations where the community doesn't agree to meet with the provider. The group said its members have run into cases where local authorities in communities hit by disasters might not be able to meet within the 30-day deadline.