Vermont will adopt a connections-based contribution plan for the state's USF. Under the bill that Gov. Phil Scott (R) signed Monday, Vermont will assess 72 cents monthly per retail access line, including VoIP and postpaid wireless. Also, the new law adds the 988 mental health hotline to a list of what state USF may support and repeals Vermont taxes on telephone personal property and alternative telephone gross revenue. Before approving H-657 last month, legislators removed a proposed fee structure for communications facilities using state right of way (see 2405100017).

The Colorado Public Utilities Commission should pause a rulemaking on incarcerated people’s communications services (IPCS) until the FCC completes its rulemaking that will implement the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act, said ViaPath in comments Friday at the PUC. Due to the 2022 law, "regulation of all IPCS -- intrastate, interstate, and international -- is now within the jurisdiction of the FCC,” the IPCS provider said in docket 24R-0184T. With the FCC required to finish the rulemaking by January, it “would be administratively inefficient for the [PUC] to proceed without having the benefit of the final FCC ruling on the scope of state commission jurisdiction over IPCS," ViaPath said. Separately, Securus raised concerns with the PUC possibly expanding reporting requirements beyond data on phone calls and video service complaints. “Expanding the scope of the reporting … would result in the publication of information beyond that contemplated by [law] and which [IPCS] providers have legitimate interests in maintaining as confidential and proprietary," the company said.

Union workers authorized a strike at Altice in southeastern West Virginia, Communications Workers of America said Friday. The action gives union leaders the option of striking when the contract expires June 28 at 11:59 p.m., CWA said. The current four-year contract expired last month, but workers agreed to a two-month extension to allow more time for negotiations.

The tech industry urged Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) to veto the state’s privacy bill. Vermont could be the first state to include a broad private right of action. That and other “outlier provisions” have led businesses to lobby Scott to kill the measure, a Wiley lawyer said Wednesday (see 2405290072). In a Thursday letter to Scott, the Computer & Communications Industry Association said it was concerned about differences between Vermont’s bill and other states’ privacy laws, such as “the inclusion of a private right of action, the definition of ‘sale’, the language included around targeted advertising, and data minimization principles.” Allowing consumers to sue businesses, “the measure would open the doors of Vermont’s courthouses to plaintiffs advancing frivolous claims with little evidence of actual injury,” CCIA wrote, adding that other states vest enforcement with their attorneys general. “We encourage you to resist signing legislation that poses significant compliance and constitutional concerns.” The legislature passed the bill (H-121) May 10 but hasn't sent it to Scott yet. Once the governor receives the bill, he will have five days to veto it or it will become law. Scott's office didn’t comment.

Kansas will spend $2.8 million on digital literacy, Gov. Laura Kelly (D) said Thursday. The state awarded grants to 15 organizations, including libraries and higher educational institutions, through the Digital Opportunities to Connect Kansans (DOCK) program, the governor’s office said. Under one project, the University of Kansas Center for Digital Inclusion will provide digital training to help 1,000 women apply for jobs and reintegrate into society after being incarcerated, the governor’s office said. In another project, Kansas State University Research and Extension and the West Plains Extension District will create a program addressing broadband accessibility for seniors, minorities, unskilled workers and people with disabilities. “These awards are going to community partners with deep experience and trusted relationships in the communities they serve,” Kansas Office of Broadband Development Director Jade Piros de Carvalho said.

It wouldn’t be an “unfunded mandate” to require ISPs to have $15 affordable broadband plans as a condition of getting support from the California Public Utilities Commission’s federal funding account (FFA), The Utility Reform Network said Tuesday. TURN replied in docket R.20-09-001 to industry objections to the group’s petition asking the CPUC to pause FFA grants until it modifies rules to account for the federal affordable connectivity program (ACP) winding down (see 2405160055). "The courts have previously held that funding conditions for voluntary programs are permissible; funding conditions are not unfunded mandates or rate regulations,” said TURN. "Providers are free to decline FFA participation and instead charge customers whatever they wish.” Existing ISP-designed affordable plans are no substitute for ACP, added the consumer group: Such industry plans "tend to have significantly more restrictive eligibility requirements than the ACP and therefore will not be available to all ACP recipients.” TURN has two other petitions related to ACP's end (see 2405240060).

Some businesses are pushing for a veto of Vermont’s privacy bill, Wiley attorney Joan Stewart said on a webinar Wednesday. The Vermont legislature passed H-121 earlier this month but Gov. Phil Scott (R) hasn’t signed it yet (see 2405130050). “Outlier provisions” in Vermont’s bill have raised grave concerns in the business community “and there are some strong efforts going on right now to try and persuade the governor to veto that [proposed] law,” said Stewart. One key difference with other state laws is the Vermont bill’s broad private right of action (see 2403220040). Most existing privacy laws allow enforcement by only the state attorney general, though California gives individuals a more limited right to sue, she said. Vermont could be the 20th state to enact a privacy law. Minnesota became the 19th on Friday (see 2405280038).

The California Public Utilities Commission again postponed an AT&T enforcement item that had first appeared on the CPUC’s Feb. 15 meeting agenda and was scheduled for Thursday's meeting. Staff held the repeatedly revised item (resolution T-17789) until June 20, said a Tuesday hold list released in advance of Thursday’s meeting. The proposal would deny AT&T’s plan for correcting failures and improving service after failing to meet the state’s out-of-service repair interval standard in 2021. The CPUC didn’t comment Wednesday on the reason for the continuing delays.

The New York Senate cleared an amended wireless tower bill that would give cellphone companies and third-party infrastructure firms one year to publish studies on the feasibility of powering their towers with 100% renewable energy. State senators voted 39-19 Tuesday to pass S-4305 and send it to the Assembly. The Senate previously passed it on May 7 (see 2405080004) but then reconsidered the vote so it could amend the bill May 14. The earlier version would have required companies to submit plans for powering their towers entirely with renewable energy by 2031.

Colorado will be the fifth state with a right-to-repair law covering consumer electronics. Gov. Jared Polis (D) signed HB-1121 on Tuesday. Consumer Reports applauded. “In this legislative season we have seen Oregon and Colorado pass comprehensive right to repair laws that also cover parts pairing, and we hope to see further legislative action to prevent software from becoming a tool to enforce manufacturers’ monopolies on the repair process,” said CR Tech Policy Director Justin Brookman. Parts pairing is a manufacturer practice of using software to identify component parts through a unique identifier. Oregon made a similar law in March (see 2403270066. California, New York and Minnesota enacted digital right-to-repair laws previously. Also, Polis signed HB-1234 to indefinitely extend the state's high-cost support mechanism, which provides subsidies to a dozen rural telecom providers and is scheduled to sunset Sept. 1. The legislature passed the bill last month (see 2404220051).