An act to amend Sections 280 and 884.5 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to communications.
Summary
AB 2790 would revise California’s Teleconnect Fund program, which is administered by the Public Utilities Commission to support discounted telecommunications services for schools, libraries, health facilities, and community organizations. The bill expands the list of eligible educational and public-serving entities to include schools, school districts, and county offices of education serving preschool and transitional kindergarten through grade 12, as well as public libraries and public library systems. It also makes clear that noninstructional facilities operated or contracted by those entities, including associated data centers and administrative offices, are eligible for discounts.
The bill also changes how discounts are applied when a customer is eligible for the federal E-rate program and the state Teleconnect Fund. Under the bill, the service provider—not the commission—would be required to apply the E-rate discount first, unless federal law makes the customer ineligible for E-rate. The bill preserves an exception for certain school districts that meet specified Education Code conditions, allowing the Teleconnect discount to be applied without regard to E-rate unless the district has actually applied for and been approved for E-rate.
Impact
AB 2790 would amend Public Utilities Code Sections 280 and 884.5. In practical terms, it would broaden eligibility for California Teleconnect Fund discounts to additional school-related and library-related entities and facilities, which could increase access to subsidized telecommunications services for educational administration and public library operations. It would also shift the statutory responsibility for sequencing E-rate and Teleconnect discounts to the service provider, while keeping the existing priority structure and certain school district exceptions. The bill declares its changes to be declaratory of existing law and states that no reimbursement is required.
Sentiment
The available voting history suggests the bill was received favorably in committee. It passed the April 21, 2026 vote 9-0 on a do-pass motion with re-referral to Appropriations, indicating unanimous support among voting committee members. No committee transcript excerpts were provided, so there is no recorded debate to indicate opposition or concern in the materials supplied.
Contention
The main policy issue apparent from the text is administrative and fiscal rather than ideological: the bill expands eligibility and clarifies discount sequencing, which could affect program costs and implementation for the Public Utilities Commission and telecommunications service providers. Another possible point of attention is the bill’s treatment of E-rate coordination, since it requires providers to apply the federal discount first when the customer is eligible, except in specified circumstances. The bill’s fiscal and local-program designations, along with referral to Appropriations, suggest lawmakers may have been attentive to cost and implementation effects, even though the recorded committee vote was unanimous.
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