(a) The commission shall, pursuant to its existing authority, by rule or order, establish procedures governing telephone corporation billing practices and operations to require every telephone corporation, on and after July 1, 1986, or on and after another date or dates which the commission finds and determines to be appropriate and feasible with respect to the capability of particular telephone equipment, to offer residential subscribers the option of deleting access to a class of information-access telephone service, commonly referred to as “900 or 976 service,” whereby recorded commercial, informational, or public service messages, interactive computer programs, and other services, are provided for a charge, in addition to the basic local exchange charge, to the person calling, and to notify new residential subscribers of the options available to delete information-access services through telephone service.
The commission shall specify a method or methods for telephone corporations to institute this deletion of access option for residential subscribers, taking into consideration the operational requirements of the various types of telephone equipment in use throughout the state. The commission shall impose no charge on residential telephone subscribers for this deletion of access option, and shall require telephone corporations to refund to subscribers any amounts paid prior to the effective date of the amendments to this section enacted in 1988 for deletion of access. The commission shall determine and implement a method by which telephone corporations shall be recompensed for the expenses of providing this deletion of access option.
(b) The commission shall require every telephone corporation which furnishes information-access telephone service to make available a separate, easily distinguishable telephone prefix number for information providers which provide messages which constitute harmful matter and for those who provide other than messages which constitute harmful matter, and to request every information provider to designate which prefix corresponds to the type of messages it proposes to provide. Any information provider which provides any live or recorded message constituting harmful matter through any information-access telephone number other than one within the prefix assigned to information providers furnishing messages constituting harmful matter is in violation of Section 2111. The commission shall require the telephone corporation to offer residential subscribers the option of deleting access to the telephone prefix number by which messages constituting harmful matter are accessed, pursuant to subdivision (a), and shall determine and implement a method by which a telephone corporation shall be recompensed for the expenses of providing this deletion of access option to residential subscribers.
(c) As used in this section, “harmful matter” means harmful matter as defined in subdivision (a) of Section 313 of the Penal Code.
(d) If any provision of this section or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is held invalid, that invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the section which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this section are severable.
(Amended by Stats. 1991, Ch. 297, Sec. 1. Effective August 1, 1991.)