MinnesotaHF 405294th Legislature, 2025-2026HouseWALLET

Various provisions governing telephone company regulation, facilities and property, pricing plans, service classification, and reporting requirements.

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

17 provisions identified: 8 benefits, 2 costs, 7 mixed.

Customers get review before phone-area sales

Phone companies with at least $100 million in annual regulated telecommunications revenue need commission consent to sell a local service area. Customers must get a separate bill notice naming the area and buyer at least 90 days before the application. At least 60 days before the hearing, sellers must invite comments on the previous 12 months of service and provide a stamped commission-addressed envelope. A local public hearing must occur at least 30 days before commission deliberations. Approval requires prior-year substantial service-quality compliance, a financially responsible buyer able to invest, enough trained staff, and binding buyer investment and staffing commitments.

Competition tests and temporary phone discounts

Listed services keep their emerging-competition status until reclassified; caller-ID and related features require the statutory process for competitive status. Alternative services must reach over 50% of customers for effective competition, or over 20% for emerging competition. The commission weighs alternatives, substitutes, market power, and customer need; parties seeking less regulation must prove the required criteria. While a competitive-status petition is pending, companies can lower prices without notice and must provide an incremental-cost study if requested. After an expedited hearing, the commission must stop this option for below-cost pricing, or when the same service had interim rates within the past 12 months and was found noncompetitive.

Legacy phone rate statutes are repealed

The law repeals older statutes covering special telephone pricing, large-carrier rate limits, and rate-change procedures. These included notice, commission review, interim rates, and refund rules. The bill summary also describes rate procedures retained in the law's updated framework. Repealing the older sections does not, by itself, establish that every related protection ends. This provision sets no customer price change.

Phone service funding and school discounts

Minnesota's Public Utilities Commission must establish and administer a fund to preserve telephone service statewide. All phone service providers must contribute, including providers that are not telephone companies. The fund must coordinate with federal universal service funding and follow the specified federal law. Schools, school districts, and libraries qualify for discounted telecommunications consistent with federal E-rate rules. The law sets no contribution or discount amount and does not require providers to pass costs to customers.

Work-related phone discounts for company staff

Phone companies can give officers, agents, and employees free or reduced-rate service when it supports their work. The law does not set the discount amount. All other services must be charged at full scheduled rates without discrimination.

Clearer phone prices and blocking choices

Phone companies must disclose all available residential service prices when customers start service, change service, or ask. At signup, companies must explain blocking options, including blocks for 900-number and international long-distance calls. Annual bill inserts must list service-option prices, except for long-distance service. Electronic notices require an affirmative opt-in, clear access, and paper copies on request at any time. Independent, municipal, and cooperative providers are exempt from the specified notice-filing rule unless the commission orders otherwise.

Customers can require carrier switch approval

Residential and business customers can require their approval before a switch to another in-state phone carrier. Customers can change this choice anytime without a separate charge. Companies must explain this right when new customers first request local phone service. The notice must use uniform, competitively neutral language and a commission-approved form consistent with federal law. Companies can recover reasonable administrative costs through rates.

Metro phone features had rollout deadlines

Phone companies serving Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington counties had to support caller-ID and related features. The capability deadline was January 1, 1995, unless the commission approved an extension to a specific date. The commission had to set service terms by January 1, 1994. Related features include blocking, automatic callback and recall, and call tracing. These are historical deadlines, not new present-day rollout dates.

Phone discounts with bundle price safeguards

Phone companies can offer waived charges, coupons, or rewards starting the day after filing notice with the commission. Promotions must identify eligible customers, use reasonable customer-group distinctions, and price service above added costs, including spread-out promotion costs. Filed promotions lasting more than 90 days must be available for resale to carriers with commission certificates and approved resale agreements. Companies can bundle regulated phone services with other products, but each regulated service must remain available separately. At launch or a price change, a bundle cannot cost more than the sum of its unpackaged prices.

Fewer required phone company cost studies

Phone companies do not need cost studies for every service before filing an alternative rate plan. The commission can still require studies for specific services before approval. It can accept a variable-cost study instead of a total service long-run incremental cost study. This option applies when the fuller study is burdensome relative to annual service revenue, the service is closed to new customers, or other good cause is shown.

Phone rate protections when competition fails

After notice and a hearing, the commission must restore some or all rate regulation when competition fails and protection is needed. It must first weigh alternatives and regulatory burdens against benefits. It must also restore regulation when unreasonable discrimination occurs between Minnesota areas. The service must be reclassified as noncompetitive or subject to emerging competition. Complaint filers generally must prove the current classification is wrong; the company bears that burden in commission-initiated cases or complaints from Commerce or the attorney general.

Carriers must support lawful phone interceptions

Telecommunications carriers operating in Minnesota must maintain equipment, facilities, and services that support lawful interceptions. Authorized law enforcement agencies must also be able to access call-identifying information consistent with federal law. The requirement concerns carrier capabilities and does not authorize unlawful interception or information access.

Phone carriers face criminal violation penalties

A telephone company or telecommunications carrier that violates this chapter is guilty of a gross misdemeanor. Corporate officers are also covered when the carrier is a corporation. The penalty applies to carriers and their officers, not ordinary phone customers.

Phone company oversight duties and limits

Minnesota-regulated phone companies no longer must maintain an office in the state. Commerce can inspect company books, records, and files only when they fall under its authority. In wholesale or retail rate proceedings, or universal-service support proceedings, the commission can set property depreciation and amortization methods and rates. Companies must retain detailed depreciation data and related records for commission inspection on request. These changes set no customer rate or payment amount.

Phone plan extensions carried rate caps

Plans active on May 20, 2004, could extend up to three years after expiration or December 31, 2007, whichever came first. That historical extension window has ended. Later plans could extend once for one to three years after substantial service-quality compliance and fulfillment of infrastructure duties. During extensions, price-regulated rates were capped at starting levels, subject to existing plan exceptions. Customer and state notices were required; Commerce or the attorney general could object to later extensions over service-quality or infrastructure noncompliance.

Phone rate plans need renewal decisions

Approved alternative phone-rate plans must last at least three years. Within six months before a plan ends, companies must announce whether they seek a new plan, an extension, or standard rate-of-return regulation. New plans need commission approval, must allow possible rate increases or decreases, and require records and reports for review. Plans approved before May 1, 1997, are exempt from the specified 1997 amendments. Plans filed, revised, or renewed after that date must follow those amendments.

Shared phone rate plans with safeguards

A phone company can adopt an active alternative rate plan from a larger or affiliated company. It must stay for at least three years, or the original plan's longer term. First-time plan users face a three-year cap on price-regulated rates at starting levels, except for outside-change provisions. Companies must notify the commission at least 90 days and customers at least 60 days before adoption. The commission can reject or modify adoption when it is not in the public interest.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Sponsor

Ron Kresha
Republican • House

Cosponsors

Rasmusson
Affiliation unavailable
Aaron Repinski
Republican • House

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 199 • No: 0

Senate vote • 4/29/2026

Third Reading

Yes: 65 • No: 0

House vote • 4/23/2026

Passage

Yes: 134 • No: 0

Actions Timeline

Secretary of State Chapter 73
5/7/2026Senate
Governor's action Approval
5/7/2026Senate
Presentment date
5/6/2026Senate
Returned from Senate
5/4/2026House
Third reading Passed vote: 65-0
4/29/2026Senate
Special Order
4/29/2026Senate
Second reading
4/28/2026Senate
Comm report: Subst. for SF on General Orders SF4496
4/28/2026Senate
Referred to Rules and Administration for comparison to SF4496, now on General Orders
4/27/2026Senate
Introduction and first reading
4/27/2026Senate
Received from House
4/27/2026Senate
Bill was passed vote: 134-0
4/23/2026House
Third reading
4/23/2026House
House rule 1.21, placed on Calendar for the Day 04/23/2026
4/22/2026House
Author added Repinski
4/16/2026House
Second reading
4/7/2026House
Committee report, to adopt as amendeda
4/7/2026House
Introduction and first reading, referred to Commerce Finance and Policy
3/9/2026House

Bill Text

1st Engrossment
HTML PDF
Introduction
HTML PDF

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