Verizon could again provide the majority of traditional landline telephone service in Manteca, Ripon, and Lathrop.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) is conducting a series of hearings for public input on Verizon’s bid to acquire Frontier and its California local exchanges and long distance subsidiaries.

Verizon sold the local exchange to Frontier in 2015.

Verizon had bought the landline service for the three communities in the 1990s from ConTel.

For decades, ConTel was the local exchange operator after acquiring the original independent Manteca and Ripon telephone companies.

The proposed Verizon-Frontier deal does not involve Internet service.

The CPUC is reviewing the request to determine whether it is in the public interest. This includes assessing the potential impacts on service quality, competition, financial stability, and long-term benefits to customers and communities.

The CPUC will also evaluate whether Verizon can maintain or improve upon Frontier’s current obligations and services, particularly in rural and underserved areas.

There are a series of in-person and a pair of virtual public forums on the proposal.

The closest in-person hearing

The CPUC is reviewing the request to determine whether it is in the public interest. This includes assessing the potential impacts on service quality, competition, financial stability, and long-term benefits to customers and communities. The CPUC will also evaluate whether Verizon can maintain or improve upon Frontier’s current obligations and services, particularly in rural and underserved areas.

The closest in-person public forum is July 7 from 2 to 6 p.m. at the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors Chambers, 700 H Street, Sacramento.

 The virtual hearings accessed via www.adminmonitor.com/ca/cpuc/  are June 16 and July  from 2 to 6 p.m. to watch only via webcast. To make a comment, you will need to phone 1-800-857-1917, Passcode 6032788#.

Participants who wish to speak must press star (*) one, unmute their phone, and record their name.

This will alert the operator who will put the speakers into a queue and announce each speaker’s name one at a time when the speaker’s turn comes up. When it is time for public comment, the Administrative Law Judge assigned to the proceeding will make an announcement through the telephone line for those who wish to speak. 

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com