S.B. 870 Summary

• Requires telecommunications carriers to include only authorized charges on subscriber bills and prohibits "cramming" practices that place unauthorized charges on phone bills.

• Mandates written orders for products or services be separate documents from solicitation materials, written in clear language with minimum 10-point type.

• Requires billing companies to create separate billing sections for each service provider, clearly identify charges with descriptions, and provide toll-free dispute resolution numbers on bills.

• Establishes a rebuttable presumption that unverified charges were not authorized by the subscriber, with entities having 30 days to verify authorization or resolve disputes.

• Limits service disconnection to nonpayment of basic local exchange, long distance, and international telephone services only; directs Public Utilities Commission to adopt implementing rules by July 1, 2016.