CPUC Shouldn't Delay MetroPCS Probe, Says Enforcement Division

The California Public Utilities Commission needn’t delay investigating T-Mobile’s MetroPCS while related litigation is pending at U.S. District Court in San Francisco, the CPUC’s Consumer Protection and Enforcement Division (CPED) said Thursday in docket I.22-04-005. The CPUC said in April that Metro faces up to $230 million in possible fines for failing to remit California USF payments for prepaid phone service, but Metro asked in May to dismiss the probe due to the pending court case (see 2205190013). The CPUC investigation "seeks only to determine the intrastate surcharges owed by MetroPCS on intrastate communications under the Prepaid Act and in no way seeks to impede the regulation of interstate communications by the FCC,” CPED said. “This issue is separate and distinct from the Federal Litigation." Metro disagreed: "The Commission should not move forward with any portion of the [investigation] until the MetroPCS Litigation concludes."