Digital Liberty Submits Comments to the FCC urging Preemption of California’s Outdated Copper Rules

By Blake Reed

Digital Liberty has filed reply comments supporting AT&T’s petition to the FCC requesting preemption of California regulations that are blocking the retirement of outdated copper networks and the transition to modern fiber and wireless service.

In its comments in support of AT&T’s Petition for Preemption and Declaratory Ruling (WB Docket No. 26-125), Digital Liberty argued that California’s Carrier of Last Resort rules and related requirements are trapping consumers and providers in the past at a time when the vast majority of Americans have already moved on from legacy copper lines.

“Forcing providers to maintain an antiquated, parallel network for a rapidly vanishing fraction of the market is highly inefficient.”

Only 2–3% of the national market still relies on copper. Yet California’s rules effectively require providers like AT&T to keep operating and maintaining these legacy systems indefinitely, even as the company has committed $19 billion to broadband investments in the state. This not only delays the rollout of faster, more reliable fiber networks but also drives up costs that ultimately get passed on to consumers.

The comments highlighted several serious problems created by these outdated state rules:

Public safety and theft risks: Legacy copper lines have become a major target for thieves. In 2025 alone, copper theft cost an estimated $83 billion nationwide. Thieves often cut into cables looking for scrap metal, causing sudden service outages. Fiber has no scrap value, so retiring copper removes this incentive for vandalism.

Environmental harm: Degrading copper networks left in the ground pose ecological risks. Modern fiber infrastructure has a significantly smaller impact on soil chemistry and the surrounding environment.

Delayed upgrades: By slowing down copper retirement, California’s rules hinder the deployment of next-generation networks that deliver better service at lower long-term cost.

Digital Liberty urged the FCC to grant AT&T’s petition and declare that California cannot impose additional state-level barriers on the discontinuance of Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) once the Commission has authorized retirement. We argued that allowing these rules to stand harms consumers by slowing technological progress.

The Commission’s March 2026 Network and Services Modernization Order already took important steps to streamline copper retirement. Preempting California’s conflicting requirements would finish the job and help move the entire country forward.

To read Digital Liberty’s full reply comments in support of AT&T’s petition, click here.