Consumer groups seek veto of Internet phone service measure

Consumer groups are trying to kill legislation that they say may lead to the elimination of most telephone regulation in California.

Last month, the Legislature overwhelmingly approved a bill to eliminate all oversight of Internet phone service in California. Proponents, led by Silicon Valley companies, assured lawmakers that it would not affect old-fashioned, copper-wire telephone service still regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission. Now the consumer groups are urging Gov. Jerry Brown to veto the bill, saying the nation's big phone companies, including AT&T Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc., are pressuring Washington to phase out the copper-wire-and-switches "legacy" phone service altogether.