Legislation To Deregulate Land-Line Phone Service Passes

• {Frankfort, Kentucky}...Despite objections that AT&T and other companies would be allowed to abandon land lines in unprofitable areas, a Senate committee passed legislation Tuesday that largely completes the deregulation of land-line telephone service in Kentucky. Under Senate Bill 12, phone companies wouldn’t have to provide land lines to all homes and businesses if a competitor were available to provide those services. If there were no competitor, a company could substitute cell phone service instead. Mary Pat Regan, president of AT&T in Kentucky, says her company has no plans to abandon existing lines but would simply like the opportunity to stop the expansion of land lines where it’s not economically feasible.