AB 1717 Summary

• Establishes the Prepaid Mobile Telephony Services Surcharge Collection Act, requiring sellers to collect a combined state surcharge (emergency 911 surcharge and PUC surcharges) and local charges from prepaid mobile telephony service consumers at point of sale, effective January 1, 2016.

• Creates a standardized collection mechanism through the State Board of Equalization, with sellers remitting collected surcharges quarterly; direct sellers (service providers) remit directly to the PUC, board, and local jurisdictions instead.

• Suspends local authority to impose utility user taxes and 911 access charges on prepaid mobile telephony services at existing rates and replaces them with tiered rates ranging from 0% to 9% for utility taxes and converted dollar amounts for access charges.

• Exempts prepaid mobile telephony service purchases by consumers certified for state or federal lifeline programs from the surcharge, and allows consumers to rebut the presumed location of retail transactions for local charge purposes.

• All provisions sunset January 1, 2020, unless extended by the Legislature; creates reporting requirements for the State Board of Equalization to assess whether to extend the collection acts beyond the repeal date.