PUC Commissioner Chong's bid for second term rejected

Former Federal Communications Commissioner Rachelle Chong will not be confirmed for a second term on the California Public Utilities Commission. Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) informed Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) that he would not hold a hearing on Commissioner Chong's nomination. Chong, who has been severely criticized by consumer groups, was first appointed in 2006 and had been seeking a term that would have lasted through 2014. The decision means she will have to leave the commission at the end of the year. Chong, who functioned informally as the Public Utilities Commission's main telecommunications regulator, had received support from the state's two largest phone companies, AT&T and Verizon, which benefited from her successful push to deregulate most land-line services. They lobbied for her confirmation, and AT&T solicited support letters from nonprofit groups and government organizations, some of which had received funding from the company. Both phone companies also donated to a nonprofit group affiliated with State Sen Steinberg.